Travels with Janice.. - Linda- Viva Espana!

First day in Madrid and then to Barcelona via train.

First toast in Madrid .! Salud!!💗Mercado de San Miguel- Madrid!

Barcelona

Monserrat Monastery home to the Black Madonna 🙂

Gaudi’s House

He was a genius for his time , this house is so artistic and modern even though it’s initial construction was in 1904. His use of a large open atrium in the center of the 4 stories , allowed for natural light and ventilation . There were wooden vents that could be opened or closed for appropriate airflow. Gaudi used **recycled materials, stones, metal, wood, ceramic, wrought iron and glass** to create Casa Batllo.

Some may say that the architect Gaudi is aptly named because his designs could be considered, gaudy. I was struck by the clean, detailed lines and designs of his home and the sagrada Familia. They were uncluttered, and so allowed you to really enjoy the light in each of the spaces.

Sagrada Familia . Gaudi’s still unfinished church . But it is getting there).

The ‘Bible made of stone’

The primary architect of the work, Antoni Gaudí, wanted the basilica to represent ‘the Bible made of stone,’ as explained to Catalan News by Onno Schoemaker, a tour guide specializing in the exterior design of the breathtaking piece of architecture.

During Gaudí’s lifetime, “a lot of the working class was illiterate,” Schoemaker explains, “so Gaudí wanted to tell the story of Jesus through imagery, through sculptures and visual elements, rather than through text.” As such, each side of the structure relates to a different aspect of Jesus’ life.

The three facades in place today represent the Nativity, which is a celebration of the birth of Jesus and life and nature in general; the Passion of Christ, showing the crucifixion of Jesus and his ascension to heaven; and then there’s the Glory facade, which tells the story of the message and teachings of Christ and Christianity.

The Sagrada Família is almost like a “story book,” Shoemaker jokes, and within each facade “you get specific elements of Jesus’ life story.”

Towers

Antoni Gaudí envisioned 18 towers for the Sagrada Família, of which nine have already been built. The latest was complete on December 8, 2021, when the star that sits atop what will be the second-tallest tower once complete was lit up for the first time.

These 18 towers have a lot of meaning behind them as well, they all represent different characters from the Bible.

Twelve stand for Jesus’ twelve apostles, while four stand for the Evangelists, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, those who ascribed the Gospel. The star-topped second-tallest tower is named after the Virgin Mary, while the last tower, which will be the tallest once construction is complete, is in honour of Jesus Christ.

Once this largest one is erected, it will make Sagrada Família the highest church in the world, and the tallest building in Barcelona.

Nature

Once it’s complete, the tallest tower of the Sagrada Família will stand at a height of 172.5 metres. This is a very deliberate figure because it is just below the peak of Montjuïc, the highest point of the city of Barcelona.

Gaudí wanted to ensure that no man-made object would overtake the natural world, as he viewed this as God’s work.

Alhambra-majestic palaces

The original palace was built in 1238 for Mohammad I but the other 2 palaces were built later for his sons.