Day 16-Day 19 – Barcelona

Day 16 – Travel day today  – Valencia to Barcelona, a 4+ hour bus ride. I had a front row seat upstairs for the view – shame the windscreen hadn’t been de-bugged for yonks. 😆

I was able to get my multi-trip ticket for public transport no problems. Got on the first train and after two stops realised I was going in the wrong direction. Switched trains and at the first stop heading back to where I’d been, they told everyone to get off as the train would be delayed for at least two hours due to some incident at a station.

I had to figure out which line to switch to and where to transfer to another train. With the help of a couple of locals I got it sorted.

Then there’s a few photos from round my hotel which it located close to the older part of the city.

I have no explanation.

A great looking building which has been doing business since 1916 if the plaque in the footpath in front of the entry is correct.

The Plaza de Catalunya.

Day 17 – It was a bit of a grey old day to take the train to Figueres to look through the Dali Theatre-Museum. Dali built it on the remains of the Figueres theatre, and it was inaugurated in 1974. It was conceived and designed by the artist himself and contains the broadest range of works spanning the career of Salavador Dali (1904-1989).

Dali is buried in a tomb in the theatre. Some interesting pieces and the sheer scale of some of it has to be seen to believed.

Enjoy.

Barcelona Sants train station, the main station in the city, tens of thousands must go through here every day.

Some Autumn colour from the train window.

Art works outside the Museum.

Dali’s tomb in the theatre and his headstone. I would think that the headstone is on the side of his tomb as it is located in the level down and under the theatre floor.

Geological Echos and Old Man at the Twilight Hour

The Madonna of Portlligat is a key work in the painter’s nuclear mystical stage, where he fuses art, science and spirituality, with Gala, his wife, at the centre. Considered a masterpiece by Salvador Dalí, it is an allegorical painting with powerful iconography and a striking composition. The work synthesizes his artistic evolution, from Surrealism to nuclear mysticism—a new stage in his career where he combines nuclear physics, religion, and a return to classicism to express his vision of the world. (So they say)

Definitely a man with an eccentric mind and definitely not everyone’s cup of tea.

I finished the day at the local food market, 2 minutes from my hotel.

Welcome back to normal.

Day 18 – dawned bright and sunny which was a nice change from yesterday. In the morning I took a bus to the lookout, well most of the way, I still had an easy 12 minute walk up to the top for a great panoramic view of Barcelona city.

Then it was back into the city for some wandering time. I had wanted to go in and look round the Sagrada Famila, however tickets had been sold out about a week in advance. So had to make do with a walk round the outside taking what photos I could.

The building was started in 1882 and is still a work in progreess. If you’re interested in the timeline and some of the history, here’s an excellent website. Sagrada Familia

Casa de les Punxes, also known as Casa Terradas, was declared a historical monument of national interest in 1975. From 2016 to 2020, it housed a museum open to the public, dedicated to showcasing the work and legacy of its architect, Josep Puig i Cadafalch. Currently, it is not open to the public, as the building is privately owned and used for various offices and events.

Its original name is Casa Terradas, as it was Àngela Brutau, widow of the businessman Bartomeu Terradas, who commissioned the project from Puig i Cadafalch. Brutau asked the architect to design three buildings in one, thinking of her three daughters: Àngela, Josefa, and Rosa. The result was a building reminiscent of old medieval castles, combining elements from different architectural styles, such as Gothic architecture and Modernist ornamentation.

Casa Milà is Gaudí’s most emblematic civil building, both for its constructive and functional innovations and for its ornamental and decorative solutions, which break away from the architectural styles of its time. It was built between 1906 and 1912.

Princes, diplomats, lawyers, notaries, doctors, textile and automobile businesspeople, actors, artists, journalists, politicians, spies, psychics and military officers have lived in the building. More info can be found HERE.

I only have external photos as I felt it was really expensive to go inside at 30 Euros when it was only 18 to go in the Dali Theatre-Museum – bah humbug!

Next the Casa Bastllo – Originally, the building was constructed in 1877 by Emili Sala Cortés (one of Gaudí’s architecture professors) when Barcelona still did not have electric lighting.

In 1903 the property was brought by Josep Batllo, who gave complete creative freedom to Antoni Gaudí, initially commissioning works that involved demolishing the building. However, thanks to Gaudí’s boldness, the demolition of the house was ruled out, and a full renovation was carried out between 1904 and 1906.

Passeig de Gràcia, where the property is located, became the location for the residences of the city’s most distinguished families, which would explain why the architecture is so amazing in the area.

Here are some of the other buildings in the same area.

Then I went on a jaunt down to the marina and beachfront.

Day 19 – I had a few hours to kill before the bus left Barcelona for Zaragoza so I decided to walk back to the Casa Bastllo. As there weren’t too many people wanting to go in, I bit the bullet and paid a small fortune to look round inside. I didn’t go up on to the roof as that cost even more!

Hope you enjoy the photos as much as I enjoyed looking at the house. The woodwork and craftsmanship was superb. Even though it’s not to everyone’s taste, I actually quite liked it.

The doors and wooden stairs are just amazing.

That chain stuff would need to go though – ugh!

This next stuff doesn’t really gel with place either. These stills are from a digital kaleidoscope type of display.

And that’s a wrap for Barcelona….