Last Year's Europe Trip: Barcelona
Day seven
DAY SEVEN: BARCELONA
Right after Monteserrat, we made our way to Barcelona to have some free time and explore. I have no idea which part of Barcelona we went to first but I know it was a commercial area with malls and shops, and the works. This was also where I had my very first Spanish churros (sans the chocolate dip)!
We also had a mini/very brief tour around the city/on our way to our crucial destination.
The real reason why Barcelona is included in our itinerary was because of the next basilica, perhaps an important part of the tour as well: the Basílica de la Sagrada Família or the Sagrada Familia. It is best known as the largest unfinished Catholic church (it began in 1882 and as of today, it's still undergoing construction) and the masterpiece of Catalan architect Antoni Gaudi.
The basilica has three facades and this is the East facade which features the Nativity. This was constructed between 1894-1930 and the first to be completed. This facade features the birth of Christ as well as elements of life and nature. Its three porticos represents the virtues hope, faith, and charity.
Now we enter.
The inside of the basilica is just as majestic and jaw-dropping as its facades. It is pure art and passion- it was such a wonderful sight. The inside was full of tall columns and bars that resembled trees and branches, of glass windows that brought in colorful and playful lights that just lit up the whole church. You won't ever run out of something wonderful to see.
As you can see, the two sides of windows have different colors:blue and green, red and yellow. If I remember correctly, one side represents sunrise (blue and green) and the other represents sunset (red and yellow).
If you head west, you'll see the next facade that features the Passion of Christ. It's very different from the grandeur of the Nativity facade as this one is more bare and has more harsh lines. This facade was constructed in 1954, 27 years after Gaudi's death. This facade's construction was spearheaded by Josep Subirachs who followed the drawings and vision Gaudi left behind. This facade's columns and arcs were intended to resemble skeleton bones, as this facade portray's Jesus' sufferings as well as the sins of man.
The south facade features the Glory of Christ and this facade is still yet to be completed. When we were there, there were a lot of tarps covering the entrance and sides so I was only able to take this one photo of it:
The view of the Glory facade from the inside.
After our Sagrada Familia tour, we went on to a restaurant to have dinner where we had paella!
Photo from Fr. Ferdinand Delatado
Few more sights around Barcelona:
Can't wait to go back to Barcelona and visit the Sagrada Familia again to see all its (finished) glory. Seriously, seeing this basilica in person made me love and appreciate it more. It's probably my most favorite basilica in this tour. Ahh, it legit brought tears in my eyes!
Next stop: Valencia!
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