Day 6: Final day in Europe - Sagrada Familia

The last day in Europe, day 6 was a bittersweet day.  Spain, the country we had grown to love would soon be just a distant memory in a scrapbook or a conversation with a friend.  We dreaded the thought of leaving. In an attempt to distract ourselves, we planned one of the biggest attractions for the last day.  A visit to Gaudi's greatest and most famous architectural masterpiece- La Sagrada Familia.

 

I had spent hours researching the attractions in Barelona before we left and I read on Trip Advisor that the best way to see La Sagrada Familia was too book and print tickets online prior to the trip. I did just that and we were so glad we did. We had zero wait time when we arrived right at 8:30am.

 

 

I also booked the audio tour in English and a trip up the Passion Tour.  It was definitely worth the extra 5-10 Euros for the guide and the tour climb.

 

The views of the city from the top were amazing!

 

The audio tours were also very interesting and I loved learning the inspirations behind Gaudi's magnificent work. He was a devout catholic and everything he did with this particular masterpiece was meant to bring glory to God.  He wanted the world to see and experience the wonder of God.

 

 

The tour even had a moment of silence in the main sanctuary for private prayers and reflections.  It was so peaceful and intentional. It made me appreciate Gaudi so much more than I had before.

 

 

Climbing the Passion Tour, what felt like hundreds of feet above the city

 

another view from the top

 

After an entire morning of Sagrada Familia, Bryan and I were hungry. We ended up finding a bakery/restaurant a few blocks down the road and helped ourselves to pastries, lattes, and a pizza.

 

 

 

I could never get enough lattes in Europe!!

 

Since Gaudi was the focus of the day, we decided to take a cab to Gaudi's other attraction- Park Guelle- a residential project that had failed several years prior and was turned into a public city park.

 

 

It was beautiful!

 









 

 

 

 

It sort of reminded me of Disney's Animal kingdom. All the stone structures were purposely made to look natural. There were also several hiking trails and winding pathways that led us in every direction.

 

 

At the end of one of the trail excursions we came across a band playing in the middle of the street.  They were so passionate about their music and it added a lively vibe.

 

A view of Sagrada Familia from the top of one of the trail heads.

Our last day in Spain was fun, but it certainly wasn't over yet!...(to be continued)

Question:
Where have you traveled lately? Have you ever been to Barcelona?

Day 5: Montserrat, Spain

Day 5 was my absolute favorite day of the entire trip.  It was full of everything I love- adventure, exploration, nature, history....oh, and I got to do it all with my best friend.

 

After a late night at the wedding the night before, we slept in.  After a leisurely morning of getting showered and changed, we headed out to a find a new café in the middle of Gothic Quarter, Barcelona for breakfast.  We were both craving Spanish eggs and found a cute café/diner that had exactly what we wanted.

 

naturally, I had to get a latte. Why can America never make them like they are in Europe?

After a delicious protein-(and grease)rich breakfast, we headed to our rental car to head out on an excursion.  We hadn't driven the car for a few days since we didn't need it in Barcelona.  If you ever find yourself in Barcelona, don't bother renting a car- it really ends up being quite expensive to pay for parking and there are several transportation options that are much better.


After a half hour or so of driving we started to see mountains in the distance.

We had read in travel  books that the city of Montserrat (our destination for the day) was up in the middle of the mountains. The books mentioned we could drive up or hike.  We both knew exactly what we wanted to do...

The sites were breathtaking.  I loved every minute.  The weather was in the mid 70s and the sun was shining brightly.

1.5 hours later, we started to see a paved stairway, we had made it!

the entrance to the city

Once at the top, we stood in awe as we looked at the city.  It was so unique- several building nestled neatly within mountains.  I had never seen anything like it and having just hiked there I felt as if we had discovered a hidden gem- unseen by the world below.

We decided to get a few bags of our favorite gummy candy Habarro in a nearby shop and walked to the cuty cathedral.

In the courtyard I noticed the rocks peeping out from behind the buildings.  It was as if to remind us- we were still on the top of a mountain.

At the very back of the cathedral in an upper room was a black stone called St Mary.  People lined the building and paid 10 Euros to walk up and touch the stone. Apparently if you touch it, you life will be prosperous.  We decided time was running short so we opted out. Maybe next time!

We headed to the city tourism center and found a map showing that there were several nature trails running from the city that took us to monasteries from the 1600s.

Bryan at one of the Montessori's' chapels.

The hike was beautiful.  Every few miles we would discover another building that had been the home to an ancient monk.   I loved imagining what it would have been like back in the day hiking the same routes.  I felt such a sense of peace in those mountains, it was amazing.

Before we knew it, it was getting dark and we remembered our car was parked at the base of one of the cliffs.  We literally raced down the mountainside to catch the last moments of light.  We didn't have a cell phone nor a flashlight so we were slightly anxious but in the end it just added to the adventure.

Bryan racing down the mountainside

 

That night we headed back to shower and went down to the pier for dinner back in Barcelona.  Another wonderful day.

 



Day 4: Europe Barcelona and the wedding

Our 4th day in Europe, we woke up in Barcelona.  For such an active city at night, Barcelona was an entirely different place in the morning.  It was quiet and peaceful.  As we headed down the narrow streets we stumbled across a café that offered just what we were looking for.

 



 

The latte's in Europe are DEVINE in every sense of the word. I had them add Mocha powder for a decadent treat.  It was perfect and gave me tons of energy to  head to our walking tour.

 

We were scheduled to meet a guide from FREEWALKINGTOURS.com in front of the newer section of the city. 

 

While heading to meet our guide, we couldn't help but take picture in front of the cathedrals we passed. Each one was so beautiful and charming. 

 

The city started waking up as we made our way through the gothic area "old city" to meet our guide in the "new" industrial city square.

The new part of the city was so interesting from an engineering standpoint.  The corners of every building were diagonal to make the intersections larger ad allow for more space. (as seen above)

The water tower

As the city grew louder and louder as more and more people woke up, we stumbled across a small courtyard that contained one of the first water towers in Barcelona.  It was so quiet in the courtyard it was unbelievable the sound barrios it provided.

Soon we made our way to.....

Casa Milo, Gaudi

 

Casa Milo- one of Gaudi's great architectural masterpieces> He had several throughout the newer part of the city.

Casa Milo

 

Designed for a wealthy family by the last name Milo, Gaudi constructed this building in the early 1800s.  It was the first of it's kind.  Gaudi was revolutionizing architecture in Spain with his work and he even got the attention of a man in the US.  You may know him- Walt Disney.  It is said that Walt Disney and Gaudi were friends and at one time had even planned to work together, unfortunately those plans fell through.

 

After our amazing tour (which ended up being a private tour) we headed back to our loft apartment to get ready for the event that lead us to Barcelona in the first place - Bryan's friend Alex's wedding!  (Thank you Alex for getting married in this beautiful city!!!)

 

At the Cathedral St Mary - anticipating the bride's arrival.

The wedding was absolutely stunning!  One of the most beautiful weddings I have ever been to.  It was like I was in a dream.

 

After the wedding ceremony, we were escorted to a private shuttle bus that took us to a private castle on the outskirts of Barcelona.

at the castle reception

The castle was BEAUTIFUL.  As we awaited the bride and groom, we sipped wine, learned traditional Spanish dances, and munched on an array of cheeses, fruit, tapas, nuts, spreads, and meats. (my favorite were the cheese stuffed olives, they were divine).

Dinner included a traditional Asian Dragon show, a Spanish Classical Music Band, Fireworks, Confetti, and several speeches.  The entire bridal party got up to the mic to make a toast to the amazing bride and groom. There was so much love and laughter in the room.  It was perfect.

The adorable flower girl

After a 5 course meal of salad, rolls, sherbet, veal, potatoes, pasta, and dessert in the courtyard, we headed inside to a private Club dance reception.  There were more drinks, desserts, dancing, and a photo booth. 

The wedding was truly amazing in every way.

 

 

photo booth

Around 2am, we boarded the shuttle back to Barcelona for a good night sleep.  It was truly a night I will never forget.

Day 3 Europe, Barcelona, Spain

On our third day in Europe, we had our last delicious breakfast of croissants, cheeses, chocolate, and yogurt and said goodbye to the friendly owners of the bed and breakfast we stayed at in France.  We had had a wonderful experience in France but were just excited to continue the adventure somewhere new and packed our rental car to head back to Spain. It was a three hour drive, but this time we felt much more refreshed and ready for the drive, compared to our trip there (just minutes after a 9 hour flight from the US).

Once we arrived, we checked into our home for the next four days of the trip.  A sweet little loft apartment we found on air bnb. It was perfect!

My favorite part of the loft was the little rooftop balcony pictured above.  I would enjoy tea out there each morning. Glorious!

The loft was even equipped with snacks - chips, crackers, coffee, and tea.  The owners were extremely accommodating and gave us maps, the wifi passwords, and even provided a special requested fan for sleeping. The place was extremely quiet compared to the hustle and bustle of the city outsides its doors.

Bryan even found a soccer trophy displayed. "Futbol" I mean.

After checking in we quickly got changed and haded out to our friend Alex's wedding rehearsal.

The streets were so cool looking.  Narrow cobblestone passageways and alleys at every turn. We managed to get a little lost ;-) But nothing crazy.

Barcelona is definitely a place I could see myself living.  It reminded me of Miami, full of excitement, energy, people, and fun.

We passed the cathedral we would soon be attending to celebrate the love of Alex and his gorgeous bride the next day.

The rehearsal reception was held at a palace museum. It was so neat and we got a free tour of the royal family chambers.  The rest of the night was spent in great conversation with Alex and his good friends while sipping drinks and munching on passed "tapas."

That night we walked home under the moonlight.  There was a parade in the streets honoring the festival of La Merce,  so we stopped and watched a bit. We also passed the Christopher Columbus Statue. An interesting fact is that the statue is positioned with it's back facing Spain.  Barcelona is very proud of it's Catalonian culture and likes to distinguish itself from the rest of Spain.

Day 3, was wonderful.  However we were exhausted and ready for a long night sleep that night.