Barcelona Spain

Hello!
Our newest adventure was to Barcelona, Spain. We knew we had to take one more trip before Nick "classed up." We were not sure exactly where we wanted to go so we researched multiple locations from warmer weather to ski locations. We found cheap flights to Barcelona through Ryan Air and found a 2 bedroom apartment with an amazing view of the Sagrada Familia for less than $80 a night so Barcelona became our destination! Unlike Ireland, where we saw 5 cities in 7 days, we decided to just stay in one place and see all that Barcelona had to offer. Also, we are learning that is the easiest way to travel with a toddler, and she does better with being able to sleep in the same place every night. One of the main attaractions in Barcelona is the Sagrada Familia and Gaudi's other works. The Sagrada Familia is a large cathedral that has been under construction for over 100 years and still is not scheduled to be completed for another 30-80 years. The details in this building and the magnitude of its size is unbelievable.We were only able to spend a couple of hours but even with days of exploring, I am sure we could not have seen it all.

The main cathedral, looking up. The columns are reminiscent of tree trunks with the tops like palm leaves.

The stain glass windows reflected throughout.

The back of the cathedral and the most finished outside area.

We had one audio tour between the two of us (to save money and because we can really only one listen at a time).

Back of the Sagrada Familia from the park.

 The next day we went to another piece of Gaudi's work, the Casa Batllo. Due to the nature of the house (multiple levels with stairs) and Em's mood, we decided that only one of us would tour the building and the other would entertain our baby. The hubs was very sweet and let me take the tour, with the condition that I take lots of pictures to show him. Out of the 3 Gaudi works we saw, this was my favorite. Gaudi designed this house and it was so interesting to see the detail he put into a home. I felt that I was able to appreciate the details more because it was on a more manageable scale. The entire home has a "sea life" theme and is can be seen from the curves in the walls and windows to the tile choice used in the atrium.

Casa Batllo

Balconies of Casa Batllo

Nick and Emily fighting for a picture in front of the Casa Batllo

The lighting in the livingroom, sea life inspired.

Top of the atrium looking down.

Rooftop view

 Nick found a market while he was walking around with Emily and we decided to buy lunch/dinner there one day. Markets are one of our favorite places to find on vacation and we love "self catering".

Check out the next blog for the rest of our holiday in Barcelona!