Don't tell Don and Jennifer, but I purposefully bought the 8:30 am Sunday morning tickets to go to Casa Batllo, another Gaudi masterpiece. And yes, it is one of his seven UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
(I have to believe that is a record for UNESCO World Heritage sites. . .and, thanks to Google, I already have learned it is not. Frank Lloyd Wright has eight UNESCO sites in the US!)
Casa Batllo was the first Gaudi we went to 2009. I've been looking forward to going back ever since. It's hard to believe I waited until day 15 of the trip!
Even at 8:05 on a Sunday morning, the Metro was running quickly. So we got there early. There were already others there for the early morning entrance. It cost a little more, but the sweetener is that the crowds would be fewer. And that was nice, being able to wander around the rooms with the audio guide.
By now, you all know how I feel about Gaudi -- a true genius. So I won't continue on, but again, if you are coming to Barcelona, don't hesitate to see all seven of his UNESCO sites, and the other houses that are not on that list.
Obviously there is more to Barcelona than Gaudi, but his work is a major part of the fabric of the city. It also means that you need to spend at least a week here, so you can do at least some other parts of the city. Thinking more about it, a month is about right.
Over a door to let in more light.
A very efficient fireplace -- it has two benches
on either side. One side seats two, and the
other seats one person, so that person
can keep a close watch on the young couple!
Don photobombs my picture of the
famed front window of Casa Batllo.
Window selfie
Gaudi included "bones" outside to
provide more support to the facade.
Some of the decoration on the back patio.
More decoration
Ten planters on the back patio.
The rear facade.
Up on the roof.
Part of the dragon's back.
Rooftop selfie
Jennifer and Don with us!
Part of the dragon.
These are amazing in their creativity.
The center stairwell is dotted
with windows to allow more
natural light in the rooms.
This is pretty cool. They have a camera set
up outside. So we're on a balcony near
the very top of the house.
After our visit to Casa Batllo, we hit a coffee shop around the block. We were able to get an outside table and relax. Our local shop was just two stores down from a Starbucks. The place we stopped was better, but I will say Starbucks had a steady stream of customers!
No comments:
Post a Comment