We are back in Mockva having spent two weeks in the US during the holidays. On our way back to Mockva we stopped in Barcelona for five days and enjoyed this visitor-friendly cosmopolitan city with perfect weather under sunny warm skies. Visitor-friendly is not a phrase that comes to mind in Mockva but it fits well with Barcelona. We stayed in the center of town and thus had easy access to all of Barcelona.
Antoni Gaudí was a well-known architect in Barcelona and is famous for his experimental designs employing curved surfaces vs. straight lines. In one of his designs known as La Pedrera (Casa Milá), just two blocks from where we stayed at the Hotel Majestic, there are no straight lines, only curved and undulating surfaces including a rooftop with artistically inspired vents and chimneys, some reminiscent of ancient warrior figures. Just one and a half blocks in the other direction along the Paseo Gracia is the similarly designed Casa Batlló.
Gaudí also designed the Parc Guell, one of relatively few parks in the City a 25 minute bus-ride from our hotel. The park is sculpted in into a steep hill and offers great sky-line views of Barcelona.
Perhaps Gaudí’s best known and controversial project is the Sagrada Familla, a towering cathedral that still remains unfinished, originally started in 1882. Gaudí spent 40 years on the project often sleeping on the construction site until his death in 1927 due to a traffic accident. Since this death multiple architects and designers have built on or diverted from Gaudí’s original vision. To this day there are two large cranes being used to complete the exterior of the building. The Sagrada Familla, has come to be loved or hated: some consider it a masterpiece of experimental design, while others consider it a mis-mash of styles and an eyesore. It’s spires climb into the sky and can be seen from all corners of the City.
Since Gaudí is one of Barcelona’s great historical and cultural icons I’ve put together a slideshow of shots from all the sites I’ve mentioned above. This all-Gaudí show is one my Web site at: http://www.andrewmcdonoughphotography.com/
Доследующегораза,
Борис
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