Set the Controles para el Corazón del Sol (part 4)

Waking up somewhat later than originally planned, we headed out in search of some breakfast. This was not as easy as you might think - the Spanish like to have their evening meal at 9-10pm or even later, so correspondingly, restaurants don't open until about midday or even 2pm. We eventually found a nice place on La Rambla, Barcelona's amazing mile-long avenue of shops, stalls and entertainment.




Omelettes all round and we were off again, with a to-do list as long as your arm. Just off to the side of La Rambla is the Barrí Gotic, the old town, a maze of little alleys and great shops. I took this picture of Bec without her realising what she was standing next to. Good to know I can find a replacement for just 29 Euro! Hehehe...







Of course, no visit to Barcelona can be complete without a visit to the Cathedral of the Sagrada Familia, Antoni Gaudí's masterpiece which is still being constructed after 120 years. We certainly could detect almost no progress since our other visit 18 months ago - I think they might have added some decoration to the ceiling. Anthony asked an official how long she thought it would be until it is finished. "About 60 years" she replied matter-of-factly. ¡Ay, caramba! I would have thought the mayor of Barcelona and/or the prime minister would want to be the ones remembered for "getting it done" during their term of office. Oh well, hopefully we'll all be alive to see it; we toured the museum underneath the church, and the drawings of what it will be like are incredible. It's going to be another 70 metres taller, with a massive cross on the top with lights beaming from each axis.

Next stop was another bit of Gaudí-gothic, his Casa Milà apartment building on the Eixample, a great boulevard that reminded us all of the Champs-Élysées. We recharged with iced coffees - it was 25 degrees! We finished up with one more Gaudí must-see, the Park Güell (wow - I'm getting a good wēïrd-çhâråctér wørköüt today!) which is a huge garden of his design, featuring lots of his trademark curly shapes and trencadis broken-tile mosaics. Plus a great view back over Barcelona:


We swung back to the apartment in Barceloneta for a bit of a breather - we'd done a lot of walking! But the day wasn't done yet, we were out for dinner with Jo and Jase again!