We continued our tour on the double-decker bus. There were three different routes to take, we completed the red route on Saturday and decided to try the blue route today. Our main stop for the day was Sagrada Familia. Sagrada Familia (soon to be commissioned as a Basilica by Pope Benedict, is the life-long work of Antoni Gaudi (1852-1926). Gaudi started work on the Church in 1883 and was still working on it when he was struck and killed by a train in 1926. The Church is about 50% completed today. Work is going on each day but is completely funded by private donations and admissions. The line was half-way around the five sided Church when we got there and it took about 40 minutes to get in. If anyone is familiar with Gaudi’s work, “wild” is my best one word descriptor. But as I learned from the excellent, and I mean excellent audio phone, each and every detail was thought out and has some religious tie. Estimates range from 20 to 50 years on how long it will take to complete. But there is enough of it completed to gain a real understanding and admiration for what Gaudi is trying to accomplish. His original plans were burnt in a 1927 civil uprising and current architects are working off some models that were put back together after they were destroyed by the same uprising. If you ever get to Barcelona, this is a must see! As a practical person with enough historic preservation work under my belt to make me dangerous, they will be working on this project forever as it’s style means constant repair and work. I would like to see the finished product!
We finished the blue route, and after a short nap, we took one of the boats that cruises the seaport of Barcelona. It was the last cruise of the day, so it started in daylight and ended up at duck. I was able to watch the sun set over the mountains to the west of Barcelona. We ate cheap again!
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