Percy's Travels: Barcelona Part 1 - La Sagrada Familia & Flamenco

Wow... Breathtaking!

Obviously the fat guy in the red pants isn't impressed with the Lord's sacrifice, lol

Hey what's that kid pointing at?

Whoa! That's cool!

Barcelona! My first time in Spain. Did not know what to expect (I must be a terrible planner because I say that for almost every place I visit lol). I knew I had to visit La Sagrada Familia (does anybody who visits Barcelona not go here???) but I wasn't sure what else there was for me here. By the time I left, my to-do list had definitely gotten longer! I was generally pretty good with the amount of time I spent in each place that I visited during this trip (except for 5Terre where I think I probably had two surplus days), but the amount of time I had in Barca was not enough (probably one or two days from 5Terre would have covered it actually). This blog post goes over the things that Kelven and I did together here. Check out my second and third posts for what I did after we parted ways!

Honestly, even the doors are cool. This Gaudi guy's pretty good eh?

The columns inside the church are designed to evoke trees. Who DOES that??? Such cool design, so unique for a Catholic church.

What I did:

September 27, 2012 - Miserably early start to the day (it's a loooooooong way to the Naples airport from Positano), flight to Barcelona, checked out La Rambla (the big street that all the tourists go to)
September 28, 2012 - La Sagrada Familia (or as it's actually known, La Basilica y Templo Expiatorio de la Sagrada Familia), Flamenco show

How amazing is this going to be when it's FINALLY finished? (FYI, construction began in 1882)

Highlights:

La Sagrada Familia - ... this place is amazing. You can't imagine the scale of this thing... It's ridiculously impressive! It looks kind of creepy from afar because the spires are so weird and it's still under construction, but when you get there and see it, it takes your breath away. Make sure you go to the website I linked to earlier and buy your tickets in advance so you don't have to wait in line (ignore the thing that says how long you get to spend in there, nobody will kick you out until the end of the day when they close).
La Sagrada Familia (continued) - Because it's so awesome, I had to highlight it twice! The symbolism there is incredible. Gaudi was a genius! I definitely had one of my religious experiences there, which I didn't expect because it got pretty loud from the crowds and the sounds of construction. When this place finally gets finished (probably another 50 years or so lol) I'll absolutely have to go again! But next time, I'll have to make sure I wear long pants (they wouldn't let me into the quiet prayer section because I was wearing shorts that day).

Of course I had Paella... Can anybody think of a more typical Spanish dish? Yes, I know it's not exactly a Catalan dish, but I don't know what a traditional Catalan dish would be...

Lowlights:

La Rambla, surprisingly! It's super packed all the time, you're paranoid because you always hear about the pickpockets (I was fortunate that I didn't run into any trouble in this department), and there's always those damn guys making those duck noises and trying to sell you those stupid glowing things that they toss into the air (I wonder how those guys make money because I've NEVER see anybody EVER buy one from them - it must be a front for drug dealing or something).

And the Flamenco show! Recommended by our hostel as a very authentic experience!

OK. So the guy behind the mic claps his hands and mumbles things (that I'm pretty sure aren't in Spanish and aren't the result of speaking in Tongues), the two people behind him clap along and yell encouragement, and the guy with the guitar... ok he plays the guitar