As I mentioned the other day, 2026 is the date that has been set for completion of Barcelona's most famous, most visited attraction, the Sagrada Familia, or Holy Family Basilica. In celebration of the announcement, the architects have made a pretty amazing video showing what is still to come with regards the missing bits, and stages. Enjoy.
Now that's pretty damn cool, right?!
One thing I'm not so sure about is the possible demolition of one of the adjacent buildings in order for the construction to be finished in accordance with the original plans. I think it's Calle Mallorca, basically in front of the steps, or where they will be, and I'm sure I saw a few years ago that plans had been made to tunnel traffic under the steps, or make them higher and effectively a bridge over the traffic, but can't remember - if anyone has any up-to-date information about that, please do share, and contribute in the comments!!
Considering that Notre Dame in Paris took about 400 years to complete, then it's not bad going for the Sagrada Familia, but then again, 2016 is a long way off, so who knows!
Coming to Barcelona soon ? Why not stay in a Barcelona Apartment rental, like those we have on offer? We have some great deals on last minute bookings, and considerable savings compared to a hotel!
Showing posts with label Gaudi. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Gaudi. Show all posts
Thursday, September 26, 2013
Thursday, June 27, 2013
Gaudi gets his own Google Doodle
It would have been Gaudi's 161st birthday this year, and this week, none other than Google has shone its own kind of praise on the crazy-talented Catalan architect, with his very own Google doodle. Google typically re-writes the letters in a funny way, characteristic of the person they are honouring, so this time it's no different, with different parts of Barcelona and his buildings spelling out the word. Barcelona has 9 UNESCO World Heritage sites, and Gaudi is responsible for 7 of those 9. Take a bow, sir, take a bow.
Cool eh? Recognise them all? If you don't, then there's a very good explanation here.
Fancy a trip to the Catalan Capital to see the sights of Gaudi? BCN Rentals has some great deals on apartment rentals instead of staying in a hotel.
Fancy a trip to the Catalan Capital to see the sights of Gaudi? BCN Rentals has some great deals on apartment rentals instead of staying in a hotel.
Monday, February 18, 2013
Council to start charging entrance to Park Güell
Well, it looks like the crisis is getting to everyone and everything. So after threatening to do it for a while now, the council announced that it will be charging an entrance fee to Park Güell. The Park is one of the most visited attractions that the city has, holding UNESCO World Heritage status and has been for such a long time one of the best things to do in Barcelona for free.
However, needs must, and starting from October this year, the council will be charging between 7 and 8 Euros for an entrance fee for the thousands of tourists who make the trip up to the park. Locals who live there will be able to use the park and its facilities free of charge, and there's also another type of entrance ticket for some kind of reserved list which I didn't fully understand, but the long and short of it is that it'll be another paid attraction that the city has to offer.
So, despite the move creating around 50 jobs according to the press reports, it does come at quite a cost - it'll take an investment of 2,2 million Euros to implement. I can see why the council has moved to do this - I remember reading a while back some staggering figures about just how much it costs the council to keep the place litter and graffiti free (which is shocking when you think about it - if anyone has a link to that, please share in the comments), but at the same time, a part of me feels sad as it was always a great place to go for free - heck, it's a park for God's sake! Charge to go in the pink house and the museums and that, but...well...
One thing that makes me now wonder is that of the "top manta" ambulant salesmen and women around the park. Will they pay money to get in, banking on making their money back? I can't see it, personally, and if that's the order of things, then I'd like to hope that it would mean an end to the many scams and robberies that happen in and around the park on a daily basis. Although, I guess they'd then have to go some place else, right?!
What do you guys think about the payment idea? Any ideas of how it could have been avoided? Are you a neighbour in the area who is in favour or can see some of the consequences down the line being negative? Let me know in the comments!
Fancy a trip to Barcelona this spring? Check out BCN Rentals for some great, late deals on furbished apartments!
However, needs must, and starting from October this year, the council will be charging between 7 and 8 Euros for an entrance fee for the thousands of tourists who make the trip up to the park. Locals who live there will be able to use the park and its facilities free of charge, and there's also another type of entrance ticket for some kind of reserved list which I didn't fully understand, but the long and short of it is that it'll be another paid attraction that the city has to offer.
So, despite the move creating around 50 jobs according to the press reports, it does come at quite a cost - it'll take an investment of 2,2 million Euros to implement. I can see why the council has moved to do this - I remember reading a while back some staggering figures about just how much it costs the council to keep the place litter and graffiti free (which is shocking when you think about it - if anyone has a link to that, please share in the comments), but at the same time, a part of me feels sad as it was always a great place to go for free - heck, it's a park for God's sake! Charge to go in the pink house and the museums and that, but...well...
One thing that makes me now wonder is that of the "top manta" ambulant salesmen and women around the park. Will they pay money to get in, banking on making their money back? I can't see it, personally, and if that's the order of things, then I'd like to hope that it would mean an end to the many scams and robberies that happen in and around the park on a daily basis. Although, I guess they'd then have to go some place else, right?!
What do you guys think about the payment idea? Any ideas of how it could have been avoided? Are you a neighbour in the area who is in favour or can see some of the consequences down the line being negative? Let me know in the comments!
Fancy a trip to Barcelona this spring? Check out BCN Rentals for some great, late deals on furbished apartments!
Friday, February 6, 2009
Barcelona Sights - Sagrada Familia
Well, the blog is called Barcelona Sights, so I should post regularly about the city's main attractions, right? I started on the right track but have since veered off a little with other things I hope you're interested in, but here goes back to the big guns. And you don't get any bigger than Sagrada Familia.
Almost everyone who visits Barcelona takes a trip across town to visit Europe's wackiest church which also boasts 2 UNESCO World Heritage sites (the Nativity facade and the Crucifixion Facade). If you want to get close to Gaudi, you can do no better than coming here - literally - as he's buried in the crypt.
Official visitor stats testify that over 2.5 million visitors pay the entrance fee to the Sagrada Familia, but I'd guess that the same amount of people probably go and just have a look around outside, or those who arrive in coaches and don't have time to go inside will also contribute to the huge numbers. I'm not going to turn this into a history lesson, as that's not what the blog's about. Just give you a few anecdotes from my experience here over the years.
It's a very cool place, and I've been privileged enough to see it over a period of 9 years - although it has to be said that progress has been fairly slow! Gaudi himself said that
"The expiatory church of La Sagrada Família is made by the people and is mirrored in them. It is a work that is in the hands of God and the will of the people".
So basically it's funded entirely by donations and the profits from the entrance fees of all the other Gaudi attractions the city has. I have heard rumors that many different corporations have offered to step in and speed up the process, but with the condition that the place is re-named "The Sony Sagrada Familia" (not really Sony but you get the picture). Obviously, these advances have been refused - Gaudi was a Catholic and wanted the church to be the people's church, not owned by anyone but the people.
It's funny to see how plans are going to have to be changed, in order to finish the entrance to Sagrada Familia (the two current facades pictured here are actually the sides). The entrance would now eliminate a huge portion of Carrer Mallorca, and discussions even went as far as talking about moving the street underground, so as to accommodate the entrance, which would sit right in the middle of the road. I think that they settled on a bridge and that there will be steps up to the entrance instead of a street level entrance.
One thing I was quite surprised about was that the Sagrada Familia is held dear in local hearts. Obviously, it's had a turbulent history - original plans were burned during the civil war, and the place was even bombed. When I was an English teacher, a question on a first day of class for an intermediate group (to get them talking) would often be "If you had 3 wishes, what would they be?" I was VERY surprised to hear (not always in perfect English) "to see the Sagrada Familia finished in my lifetime".
There really is a wealth of information at the cathedral, and if you read up a little beforehand or have a good guide, then you'll be amazed. There is a plaque on the crucifixion facade for example, which looks like a sudoko puzzle with many numbers in squares on a grid. Well if you add all of the numbers together in any direction, they all reach 33 - the age of Christ when he dies. This is positioned right next to Judas' betrayal kiss. All statues inside and outside the cathedral look towards either Jesus or Mary. Going back to the bomber, Gaudi made a model of the bomber, refusing a bomb from a demon, and looking towards the Virgin Mary.
I always say that you can appreciate the Sagrada Familia more after visiting the Attic in La Pedrera - another of Gaudi's buildings on Paseo de Gracia - and at night, when it's illuminated by bright footlinghts and literally does take your breath away. Gaudi was a crazy guy who challenged the ideas and principles of modern architecture (La Pedrera is a building with no straight lines, for example). There is a model of how Gaudi envisaged the Sagrada Familia - he basically took an iron wheel (his father was an ironmonger), and began to tie small bags of sand to the wheel in the form that he wanted the cathedral to take shape - when he reached the peak, he suggested that if gravity can pull it down in this form, then gravity will also hold it up. So if you look in the mirror on the floor, you see the Sagrada Familia. Amazing.
It has to be said that the existing facades of the Nativity (looks like a melting candle, and is 100% Gaudi's work) and the Crucifixion facade are completelty different. Gaudi died before work could continue - tragically run down by a tram in front of the Sagrada Familia - and other architects took over the work. I have heard that an architect will never work as possionately on a job if it is not his own, and as some of the worlds best architects were invited to participate on the Crucifixion facade, it was inevitable for them to change it. They claim that the Star Wars-like figures pay homage to the hugely famous chimneys on La Pedrera (mentioned above), but the truth is that the majority of people prefer the Nativity facade. There are even opposition groups to the advances of other city projects which may affect the structure of the sagrada Familia, and another group of influential artists, architects and culture moguls have also spearheadeed a campaign to stick more rigourously to Gaudi's original plans, in fear that the Sagrada Familia is losing its identity. One thing is certain, and that is that depsite the quarrelling and discussion about the Sagrada Familia - an unfinished masterpiece - the masses will still flock to see the amazing edefice. And you don't want to miss out on that, right?
Like what you're reading? Please comment below, and let me know your opinion if you've seen the Sagrada Familia.
For accomodation, why not try apartments for rent in Barcelona as a great alternative to a hotel room. For more information about the Sagrada Familia including more historical detail, see the link.
Almost everyone who visits Barcelona takes a trip across town to visit Europe's wackiest church which also boasts 2 UNESCO World Heritage sites (the Nativity facade and the Crucifixion Facade). If you want to get close to Gaudi, you can do no better than coming here - literally - as he's buried in the crypt.
Official visitor stats testify that over 2.5 million visitors pay the entrance fee to the Sagrada Familia, but I'd guess that the same amount of people probably go and just have a look around outside, or those who arrive in coaches and don't have time to go inside will also contribute to the huge numbers. I'm not going to turn this into a history lesson, as that's not what the blog's about. Just give you a few anecdotes from my experience here over the years.
It's a very cool place, and I've been privileged enough to see it over a period of 9 years - although it has to be said that progress has been fairly slow! Gaudi himself said that
"The expiatory church of La Sagrada Família is made by the people and is mirrored in them. It is a work that is in the hands of God and the will of the people".
So basically it's funded entirely by donations and the profits from the entrance fees of all the other Gaudi attractions the city has. I have heard rumors that many different corporations have offered to step in and speed up the process, but with the condition that the place is re-named "The Sony Sagrada Familia" (not really Sony but you get the picture). Obviously, these advances have been refused - Gaudi was a Catholic and wanted the church to be the people's church, not owned by anyone but the people.
It's funny to see how plans are going to have to be changed, in order to finish the entrance to Sagrada Familia (the two current facades pictured here are actually the sides). The entrance would now eliminate a huge portion of Carrer Mallorca, and discussions even went as far as talking about moving the street underground, so as to accommodate the entrance, which would sit right in the middle of the road. I think that they settled on a bridge and that there will be steps up to the entrance instead of a street level entrance.
One thing I was quite surprised about was that the Sagrada Familia is held dear in local hearts. Obviously, it's had a turbulent history - original plans were burned during the civil war, and the place was even bombed. When I was an English teacher, a question on a first day of class for an intermediate group (to get them talking) would often be "If you had 3 wishes, what would they be?" I was VERY surprised to hear (not always in perfect English) "to see the Sagrada Familia finished in my lifetime".
There really is a wealth of information at the cathedral, and if you read up a little beforehand or have a good guide, then you'll be amazed. There is a plaque on the crucifixion facade for example, which looks like a sudoko puzzle with many numbers in squares on a grid. Well if you add all of the numbers together in any direction, they all reach 33 - the age of Christ when he dies. This is positioned right next to Judas' betrayal kiss. All statues inside and outside the cathedral look towards either Jesus or Mary. Going back to the bomber, Gaudi made a model of the bomber, refusing a bomb from a demon, and looking towards the Virgin Mary.
I always say that you can appreciate the Sagrada Familia more after visiting the Attic in La Pedrera - another of Gaudi's buildings on Paseo de Gracia - and at night, when it's illuminated by bright footlinghts and literally does take your breath away. Gaudi was a crazy guy who challenged the ideas and principles of modern architecture (La Pedrera is a building with no straight lines, for example). There is a model of how Gaudi envisaged the Sagrada Familia - he basically took an iron wheel (his father was an ironmonger), and began to tie small bags of sand to the wheel in the form that he wanted the cathedral to take shape - when he reached the peak, he suggested that if gravity can pull it down in this form, then gravity will also hold it up. So if you look in the mirror on the floor, you see the Sagrada Familia. Amazing.
It has to be said that the existing facades of the Nativity (looks like a melting candle, and is 100% Gaudi's work) and the Crucifixion facade are completelty different. Gaudi died before work could continue - tragically run down by a tram in front of the Sagrada Familia - and other architects took over the work. I have heard that an architect will never work as possionately on a job if it is not his own, and as some of the worlds best architects were invited to participate on the Crucifixion facade, it was inevitable for them to change it. They claim that the Star Wars-like figures pay homage to the hugely famous chimneys on La Pedrera (mentioned above), but the truth is that the majority of people prefer the Nativity facade. There are even opposition groups to the advances of other city projects which may affect the structure of the sagrada Familia, and another group of influential artists, architects and culture moguls have also spearheadeed a campaign to stick more rigourously to Gaudi's original plans, in fear that the Sagrada Familia is losing its identity. One thing is certain, and that is that depsite the quarrelling and discussion about the Sagrada Familia - an unfinished masterpiece - the masses will still flock to see the amazing edefice. And you don't want to miss out on that, right?
Like what you're reading? Please comment below, and let me know your opinion if you've seen the Sagrada Familia.
For accomodation, why not try apartments for rent in Barcelona as a great alternative to a hotel room. For more information about the Sagrada Familia including more historical detail, see the link.
Friday, July 25, 2008
Intorducing the new, reformed Palau Güell....well, not quite.
Nestled just off Las Ramblas is one of Gaudi's numerous famous creations - Palau Güell - perhaps one of the most famous houses in Barcelona. It is just a little way down Nou de La Rambla, near to Liceu metro station. This is the only work by Gaudi that he actually finished, and is a UNESCO World heratige site.
During recent years (I'd say 3, but I might be wrong) it has been undergoing a complete restauration and renovation, and many a tourist has been baffled to see scaffolding over the structure and a full memory stick on their camera ready to use in hand. The notice of the front of the building since the beginning said that renovation was due to be completed at the end of 2007. Indeed, all of the usual guide books printed this for their 2007 versions. However, true to form, the Spanish builders were well off the mark, and I think it was May/June this year when the scaffolding finally came down.
I had already done a full tour a couple of years ago, but then seeing the scaffolding on there made me forget how much of an impact the building makes, espcially nestled between a mini-market, a bank and a kebab house.
So recently I decided to pay a visit. I remember last time that the rooftop was especially interesting, Gaudi had a penchant for chimneys is my guess (see La Pedrera if you don't beleive me!) so I was looking forward to seeing this again, and what if anything they had done. The last time I went there were guided tours, and you had to take a ticket and come back at a certain time. This time it's queue and walk around on your own - and here's why. The sign says a "Partial visit: entrance, basement and facade" I'm not quite sure how you give a tour of the facade (I didn't get one), but there you go.
The entrance is looming, and uses wrought Iron in winding shapes like snakes and vines - no straight lines here people. Then there is a kind of courtyard which leads down a very steep slope to the basement. I remember from last time that this entrance was only for goods and went stright downstairs to the cellar - the part we visit as the basement. Considering this would have rarely been seen by count Güell, his family of even his guests, Gaudi put an awful lot of work into it and the attention to detail is amazing.
Brick pillars come up from the ground to support the ceiling (and presumably the rest of the building), but no two follow form - one is curved, the other square. The lighting added afterwards by the modern day museum gives a stunning balance of shadow and light. There are chains to chain the horses with a drinking trough too. Unfortunately here ends the visit, which is a bit of a let-down as it's when it just gets you going!I didn't enquire as to when the next part will be open (there is a period house to be seen on 2 floors, I seem to remember and the rooftop already mentioned is amazing) as I know they would just guess. I got chatting to one guy but he just said he was "new there" and seemed to just want to hand out leaflets (I got a French one, hence the lack of historic detail to accompany the post!).
I guess we'll just have to wait and see....
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