Barthelona - Day 2

I just pounded on the keyboard for 5 minutes like this:
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Because I'm bored with this travel writing.  But here goes nothin'.

On Day 2 of our Barthelona trip, Friday, we hit up the 'North side'.  And by North side, I mean...anything north of Plaza Catalunya at the top of Las Ramblas.  This was basically our Gaudi day.  In case you don't know who this kook is, Antoni Gaudi was a modernista architect whose works punctuate a lot of Barcelona's most famous buildings.  His major focuses were "architecture, nature, and religion" and he often combined all three.  He died in 1926 when he was hit by a trolley car (yikes) and never saw his masterpiece, La Sagrada Familia, completed.  And homeboy would STILL be waiting because it's STILL not done for some reason.  (Really?  Even with today's building technology?)  Anyways...he was evidently a genius, and I just like looking at his fun stuff.

First stop: a healthy breakfast at Dulcinea in el Barri Gotic.  A croissant covered in chocolate with a cup of the thickest chocolate you've ever seen.  

And we had to hit up the market on Las Ramblas again.  This huge market is a food lover's paradise!  Tons of fresh fruit and veg, meat, seafood - really anything you could ever want.  I wish Dublin had something like this, I'd go every day.

This is a cow's tongue in the center, surrounded by intestines and stomachs and I think brains.  Sick me out.  But cool textures I guess.

Then we walked off the chocolate and went to see Gaudi's 'Casa Batllo' - or 'House of Bones'.  It's covered in mosaics and bone/skeleton-like structures and it was a private house built originally built for a wealthy family.  Nice.

Then on to Casa Mila or 'La Pedrera", built for another wealthy couple.  It's humongous!  And it has really pretty dragon scale covered towers on the top that are beautiful at night with the lights.  (We did this in college.  It was awesome.)  We didn't go in but took lots of pics on the outside.

Next: La Sagrada Familia - Gaudi's famous mega church.  It's tall, huge, and gorgeous.  We didn't go in last time so we did this time and boy I'm glad we did.  Gaudi became involved with this project in 1883 and like I said...it's STILL not done.  They're still adding towers and it seems like it will forever have siding and cranes circling it.  It's still pretty exquisite to behold though, and the inside is even better.

These block-like Bibical stories are pretty fascinating.  

The inside!  The towers/columns are supposed to look like towering trees with branches extending into the ceiling.  I'd say he NAILED IT.  

I've never seen anything like it!  Pretty damn breath-taking if you ask me.

It looked like something from Lord of the Rings.

And for our last stop on the Gaudi Fun Tour, we cabbed it Parc Guell, a huge park up on a high hill overlooking the city.  I guess this was supposed to be a housing development that never reached fruition, so Gaudi stepped in with his pal Mr. Guell and turned it into a mosaic masterpiece!

Hansel and Gretel house!  Loves it.

Looking out on the city and sea.

I love this tunnel.

Couple more solo photo shoots.

Selfies!

We strolled back to the city centre and had more tapas and beers at a DELICIOUS place, Ciudad Condal (where I had the most amazing black rice/paella stuff I've ever had), and then...napped.  Because we're old now, evidently, and can't get through a day of walking without one.  

We stumbled upon a quirky little bar during our Barri Gotic tour yesterday, Alcoba Azul, and we weren't disappointed!  They're known for their Gin & Tonics and they served them in big glasses filled with juniper berries.  There was antique furniture and knick-knacks hanging from the walls and candles filled the tiny space.  Delightful!

We finished up our day with another meal of tapas at Xaloc, a Rich Steves recommendation, and we thoroughly enjoyed it.  The place had ham legs hanging all over the walls - which scared me when studying abroad, but now I love it.  

Another successful day in Barthelona!