Barcelona

Barcelona

Barcelona has some really interesting architecture - even apart from Gaudi's buildings.

The Rambles is a large open Boulevard and a popular tourist area.

The usual buskers but this time playing on an amazing flamenco guitar.

                                   Delicious tapas for lunch - about $6 with a glass of wine.

                            Figurines of well known people - all of whom are sitting on a toilet!

A variation of the bride theme. This one was sitting in a pizza shop.

Flamenco dresses and fans for sale.

Lovely shops selling lace and braid for handicrafts.

Shoes of every colour.

Market

We went to an amazing market. Some of the food was similar to France but some had a Spanish touch which I concentrated on. It was all fresh and very colourful.

                           These potatoes look delicious but I wondered if they had measles?

                                    The fish was fresh - some of it still alive and a good price.

                                                     Lots of fruit in cups and juices.

Well we’ve left Europe after 4 months. It’s been an amazing time.

Home is beckoning but first we have 4 weeks in Africa.

The last 2 weeks with Liz and John were really great. They went out of their way to do things with us and of course we had a lot to catch up on after all these years. We also had great conversations about how the world works and how we could improve it!

We only saw a small part of Spain and it was the first time we’d spent any time there apart from a couple of seaside holidays to the Costa Brava when we lived in Germany. Just a few thoughts.

I was struck by how patriotic the people in Catalonia are. They really identify as a separate people, as the Basques do also I believe. So many of the country boundaries in Europe are artificial and politically based. It will be interesting to see if these boundaries change over the next few years because of public pressure. Maybe Europe would end up being more united if they do.

It was interesting seeing the reaction Liz and John got when they spoke Catalan to locals. Many of them would have been impressed to see a foreigner speaking Spanish but Catalan was very special. It’s a relatively small language and more complex than Spanish so the surprise and then joy lots of Catalans expressed was great to see.

We spent 4 nights in Barcelona in an apartment about a 30 minute walk from the centre of town owned by friends of Liz and Johns. It had balconies at both ends and we could sit out at night and enjoy the view over the city. The friends are trialing living in Rupit with their children in the small school there and running their business more remotely. It will be interesting to see where they decide to reside in the future.

Spain, along with most of Europe is suffering economically at present. It has been hard on restaurants in Rupit where lots of tourists come for day trips. Previously they were likely to eat at restaurants but now are more likely to bring a picnic or buy something from the local bakery.

Youth unemployment and underemployment is very high. About 50% of young people are unemployed. We had a coffee at this small restaurant near the market in Barcelona and Liz spoke to the young waiter. He seemed very smart and personable. He is employed there for 12 hours a week and told Liz that he can only just manage on that wage and it’s really not enough. He probably still lives at home which enables him to manage at all. He probably considers himself one of the lucky ones.

We went on an organised walk of Barcelona with Discovery Tours. The girl who led it finished training as an architect two years ago and presumably can’t get work in that area. Great for us to share her knowledge but it seems there’s a whole generation of young people that are affected by unemployment. This has the potential to affect them and their families for years to come.

We noticed things in Spain to be much cheaper than France and a lot cheaper than Australia. It is common to have a three course set menu in Europe – especially at lunchtime. In France this does not include wine, mineral water or tea and coffee but in Spain this is included. We had a three course menu in a very nice restaurant – 336 Restaurant Cafeteria - for 20 Euro – about $30 Australian. This included the option of prawns and other seafood, half a bottle of good house wine and mineral water each and tea and coffee afterwards. Very good value.

Liz and John have been very happy with the health care in Spain. They do not pay to go to the doctor and prescriptions are free or cost very little. We stocked up on some pharmacy items for Africa that were less than half what you’d pay at home. The hospital care, when the family has needed it, has been excellent. One difference is that family are expected to come and assist in the care of patients. E.g. to feed them if they are unable to do it themselves.

So Europe has been a wonderful experience. We have been lucky to be able to do such a variety of activities and have so many different experiences. Now on to Africa.

The Amazing Gaudi

Gaudi

Antoni Gaudi 1852 – 1926 was an architect who influenced architecture in the late 19^th and early 20^th century. He was fascinated with nature and geometry and used many different materials. His chief customers were in Barcelona, which was becoming more affluent after the industrial revolution and the Church.

We went to two buildings that he designed and found them both to be extraordinary.

La Sagrada Familia is a huge Roman Catholic Church that was commenced in 1882. When Gaudi died in 1926 only a quarter was completed. Work has continued slowly using donated funds over the years. It was consecrated in 2010 when it was half finished. It is hoped that it will be completed by 2026 for the centennial of Gaudi’s death. It is a mammoth undertaking and it will be the tallest church building in the world when all the spires are completed.

Even now it’s quite impressive enough with a well lit bright interior and three extravagant outside facades – nativity, passion and glory (yet to be completed).

Gaudi was a genius especially considering when he lived.

           Beautiful rose windows and other windows left with clear glass to allow more light in.

                  The Lord's Prayer in Catalan covering what will be the main entrance when it is finished.

Another beautiful feature letting in light.

La Pedrera

We also visited La Pedrera. It was commissioned to be a family home with apartments for rent. It now has UNESCO world heritage rating. It was built to optimise light and ventilation and to have a spectacle of forms, light and colour. The roof is spectacular and has floral motifs which Gaudi is renowned for. 

            One of the apartments is on display and decorated as it would have been in Gaudi’s day.

                                     A children's doll's house with tiny intricate furniture.

                                               A bike above and the maid's room below.

Tarragona

Tarragona

Tarragona is a city of about 130,000 a couple of hours driving south of Barcelona. We stayed there for two days with Liz and John who had not spent time there before but had heard it was a nice town and that the Roman ruins were worth seeing. They were.

We stayed in a hotel near the beach so could swim in the mornings in clear blue sea with very few people.

This Roman amphitheatre is 2,000 years old and was used as a quarry after the fall of the Roman Empire but a lot still remains. Hope you can read this about them. It was a competition between chariots pulled by horses and provided much entertainment for the locals. The circus in Tarragona was 450 metres long.

Romulus and Remus.

It was fascinating to go down the old passageways with rooms off the side that the Romans built. There is a lot that is unknown about what the various buildings were used for.
I liked the man who took our ticket's comment about the four of us being "a curious salad" because of Liz and John's language ability and Bob and I being from Australia.

A view of the town with parts of the old wall still intact. Everywhere people need to wash and hang out clothes.

The buildings might be old but it is still important to have access to modern equipment. I guess new wires are difficult to install internally in these buildings so the solution is to string them outside.

 We had lunch in a square with ruins of part of the old wall nearby. Most people had their photos taken beside it but Liz had to climb up it to see if she could do a traverse to an arch. She couldn't!

Nice day for a bit of passion by the port and a variation from geraniums in a window box.

 This Roman aqueduct was by far the most impressive of the Roman ruins in our opinion. It is about 4 kilometres out of town in bushland and hence probably missed out on it's stones being pillaged for other uses and is largely intact. It was built about 2000 years ago to carry water to the town of Tarragona. It is 249 metres long. The upper level has 25 arches and the lower 11. All arches are the same size. A huge engineering feat. The water was carried along the small channel on the top.

We visited the Tarragona Cathedral on the site of an earlier Roman Temple. This one was built in the mid 1300s. It has a beautiful carved wooden organ.

                                      I liked the stone floors and the very peaceful cloisters.

A good place for wedding photos.

We came across this workman chiselling away plaster and exposing old stones. Work carrying on just as it has over the centuries.
Liz was able to ask him what he was doing. He said when it was done a decision would be made as to whether to keep the old stone work exposed or plaster over it again. I like the look of the old stones but guess it may be about strength and preservation as well.