April 20.
Today we get serious about imaginative architecture, the Barcelona Metro and making paella.
We walked 10 minutes down to the Plaça d'Espana and popped down into the Metro station. We used one of the handy kiosks and with the assistance of a pleasant staff member walked out with our ten-trip Metro cards. Back on the surface we made our way to the hop-on stop and took the orange route to Plaça de Catalunya where we switched to the green. Along the orange route we passed a couple of the more impressive examples of local Barcelona architecture.
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| La Pedrera |
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| Casa Batillo |
Once on the green route we briefly retraced the orange route before heading down to the waterfront area.
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| Port Vell |
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Barceloneta
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| Port Olimpic |
Making our way past the l'Auditori, we came to the Torre Glories.
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| l'Auditori |
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| Torre Glories |
The next stop was at the world-famous, controversial and certainly imaginative Sagrada Familia.
Since the church grounds were literally packed with humanity and since I had failed to get us tickets in advance, we opted to get off at the next stop, and walk down to the church. It was lucky that we did because the stop left us at Sant Paul Hospital.
Built in the early 20th century in a completely revolutionary art nouveau style with connecting tunnels and the latest in medical technology, the hospital was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1997. Today it is a wonderful space to wander among the orange trees as you move from building to building learning about the history of the fantastic space dedicated to modernisme. Oh, and the interpretative signage is superbly presented and in multiple languages.
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| entrance and former administration building |
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| model of the original |
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| the large courtyard connecting the various wards and medical facilities |
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| the interiors of all the buildings are similarly fitted out with mosaics and decorative tile work |
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| back in the main entrance building |
Soon after leaving the hospital we stopped at a cafe for a light lunch and glass of wine.
Leaving the restaurant we strolled down the Avenue de Gaudi which connects the hospital directly with Sagrada Familia. Once at the church we made our way to the nearest Metro stop and headed back to the hotel to rest and refresh before our paella cooking class later that evening.
Next: A market tour, cooking paella, and new friends.
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