Viva Barcelona!

Update: This post is new and improved with photos!

Preface: I'm sorry there are no pictures to accompany this post but my internet connection kept timing out before they would upload and between the options of finishing this post and hurling Josh's laptop into the Aegean Sea I opted to finish the post so please use your imaginations and if one day I find high speed internet on the continent of Europe I'll be sure to upload lots of pics. And now, the post....

From the instant you arrive in Barcelona you pick up on an energy from this city that is unlike any other place. This city runs deep without a doubt and it quickly became my favourite stop of the trip thus far.

With so many sights to explore in and around Barcelona we did our best to see what was important to each of us. The first day was unintentionally Gaudi-oriented when we went and saw La Padrera and La Sagrada Familia. If you've never heard of Gaudi you're not alone but you're missing out. My advice is that rather than Google or Wikipedia the man book a trip to Barcelona as nothing he created in his lifetime is as impressive than when you see it in person.


While I loved La Padrera, the Sagrada Familia is the most incredible edifice I've ever seen. Nothing I could write here nor any picture I could post would do justice to the sheer wonder and beauty that is this 8th wonder of the world in the making. The Temple - as it's known - has been under construction for over 100 years and they currently estimate it will take another 20 to complete and you can bet I'll be there again to see this magnificent structure completed.


The following day we split off to do different things and I took in the Picasso Museum first while the boys did what one does on La Rambla (i.e. ramble). The Picasso Museum was extraordinary and a great way to understand what a truly prolific and evolutionary artist he was. The Museum is structured to guide you through his different periods and gives you insight into the various influences that inspired/encouraged Picasso's evolution from his early classic style to his dramatic cubism.

I took in the waterfront, La Rambla, Parc de Ciutadella and - before my feet totally gave out on me - Parc de Monjuic. We reunited for dinner and some time out on the town in Eixample which is a very cool neighbourhood near the University with lots of great architecture, restaurants and bars.

The next day was spent it Sitges (will be it's own post so stay tuned) but overall Barcelona left a lasting impression. Above all one must be impressed with the extraordinary public works of La Rambla, the beautiful parks and above all Gaudi's masterpiece La Sagrada Familia.

Since visiting The Temple there hasn't been a day I haven't reflected on it's magnificance. I'm not a religious person by nature but this building truly is a monument to faith; and I am not just Gaudi's devoute Catholicism. This building is a monument to man's faith in oneself. How else could anyone designed such an enormous undertaking is he did not believe inherantly in his own abilities, those around him and in the very project itself? When you comprehend the sheer scale of this 150 year project I could only think of a man in 1883 designing a building of uncomperable scale and detail knowing full well he'd never see it's completion but yet having the faith to dedicate the last 40 years of his life to this project in the belief that it will be finished even without him.

Although they're very different personalities, I keep drawing a connection between Gaudi and Picasso in my mind. What impressed me the most after visiting the Picasso Museum was his courage and faith in himself to consistantly reinvent his style and push the boundaries of the comfort zone of his work. His work was always acclaimed and well received and he likely would have done very well as an artist sticking with his early style that was in the vein of the Old Masters. You could say that his faith in his underlying talents gave him the courage to reinvent his style and push the boundaries of the art world.

While it's nice to put these men on a pedastal of courage and leaders in their field I couldn't help but wonder if during their lives they had their doubts; moments where they second-guessed not just their projects but themselves and their steadfastness to complete them. It seems all too likely and it gives me hope that regardless of the times when we don't necessarily believe in ourselves or what we are doing that hopefully it leads to something remarkable and lasting that gives others cause to reflect on their own faith in themselves.