Miles Walked -- Week Two

It's hard to believe we've been here two weeks so far!  Just over two weeks left, and the days are just packed (yes, the homage to Calvin and Hobbes was intentional).

Saturday, 9/21:                 9.90 miles
Sunday, 9/22:                 10.95 miles
Monday, 9/23:                  8.80 miles
Tuesday, 9/24:                 6.87 miles
Wednesday, 9/25:            7.60 miles
Thursday, 9/26:                6.60 miles
Friday, 9/27:                     7.66 miles

Total, Week Two:           58.38 miles
Average Week Two:        8.34 miles per day

Total On Trip:               115.62 in two weeks
Average Per Week:         57.81 miles 

The Gaudi Triple Crown!

We ended up going to three Gaudi UNESCO World Heritage sites in the same day.  I checked my phone -- even on a Sunday Palau Guell was open till eight pm!  So we walked back to the Lesseps Metro from Parc Guell.  It's a lot easier when it's all downhill!  Five Metro stops later and we were at Palau Guell, just off La Ramblas.

Again, there was no line, so we were able to buy tickets and go right in.  It's pretty neat to see it a second time just a few days later, although I did not take nearly the same number of photos.  

The stables underneath the house.

The door on the second floor.

Painting of Hercules.

Gaudi designed brilliant looking

furniture because, of course!

Maddy's Selfies From The Carrefoc

Maddy had the presence of mind to take a couple of selfies while fire rained down on us:

Saturday, In The Park, Volume 2

I had forgotten that, while Maddy was visiting, we took her to Citadel Park Saturday after the rainstorm.  

The rowboats had closed for the day, but other than that, it was pretty much as we saw a week ago.  With the festival, however, there was a stage set up, and some people were break-dancing on it. 

As we walked away, I mentioned to Carol and Maddy that this was something that back in high school my friends and I did all the time, not realizing it would be a thing.  Carol of course knew I was kidding, but Maddy had to check just to be sure.

(I don't need to watch a LOT of break dancing to get my fill of it.  Heck, I don't need to watch a LITTLE.  Nothing against break dancing -- I'm impressed with what they can do, but I don't need to see it for long.)

Before heading to El Xampanyet for cava and a snack, our last stop in the park was the Arc d' Trompf.  A few selfies:

Pretty cool with the balloons.

Millennials take the best selfies.

We Get Letters

An email from my biz partner Gene Ulm, entitled "Enjoying Your Blog" -- with some pretty good observations:

Greeks

Celts

Romans

Vandals

Swabians

Franks

Visigoths

Moors

French (many times)

Every neighboring Spanish Kingdom

Habsburg crown (more Germans)

Bourbon crown (more French)

Republicans

Nationalists

communists

Falangists

And every post Franco government

... has tried to control that place.  All have failed.  Not counting the Great Plague.  But all seem to have left a mark?

Gene Ulm

Back to Back Gaudi!

We trudged up the steep hills from Casa Vicens to Park Guell (okay, Maddy didn't trudge, but she had to wait for us).  But, once you get to Park Guell (designed by Gaudi, of course!) in northern Barcelona, all the steepness is forgotten.

A UNESCO World Heritage Sight, Park Guell was built between 1900 and 1914.  It was supposed to be a housing development and park for rich industrialists -- a summer retreat, but only one of the expected 61 houses were built.  Instead, it opened to the public in 1926 (same year Gaudi died).  His patron Eusebi Guell hired him to design the park and public buildings.  Gaudi did not design/build the one house that was done.

The park is so popular with tourists that the authorities only allow 400 people in per half hour.  The public areas are not that large, but, as with anything by Gaudi, they are stunning.  The colors, the curved lines, the building tops, and the benches are all signature Gaudi.  If you come to Barcelona, plan in advance and buy your tickets before you get here.

Sagrada Familia from Park Guell.

The famed Porter's Lodge

at the entrance to the park.

Look at the detail, the curves.  No straight

lines from Gaudi here at the park.

Awesome building topper.

The famed dragon staircase,

although it looks more like a 

chameleon to me!

A close-up of the dragon, aka the

salamander, which is the colorful

symbol

Look at the level of detail in this retaining

wall. A retaining wall for crying out loud!

The emblem of Catalonia, with a beast to

give us a fountain.  The fountain actually

runs the length of the staircase.

These tile shard mosiacs (here, the dragon's

foot) are ubiquitous in Gaudi's works.

Much of the Greek theater esplanade was

under refurbishment, but there were enough

benches open to the public that we

could enjoy it.  Besides, the refurb is

necessary to fully display Gaudi's genius. 

Part of the refurbed benches.

The imagination that went into

creating the viaducts is beyond

belief.

I'm Sorry To Sound Like a Broken Record* But Gaudi Was A Genius

Casa Vicens was Gaudi's first house that he designed and built for someone (1883).  Mr. Vicens really went out on a limb hiring Gaudi for the project.  Gaudi was considered loco in his early years as an architect.  Given how different his buildings were from anything that came before him, that early perception of him was understandable!

Back in the day, the house had a huge garden.  Much of the house brought nature inside.  Open and airy, Gaudi had bold strokes of flowers and plants painted on the inside walls.  

I would have loved to been a fly on the wall for the discussions between Gaudi and Vicens.  Did Vicens take to Gaudi's ideas right away or did it take a while for him to come around?  Did Gaudi draw up the whole plans and show them to Vicens, or did Gaudi unveil his ideas a little at a time?  That would have been fun to watch!

It was a private house until 2014, so obviously we did not visit it in 2009 when we were in Barcelona.  We are so fortunate that so many more Gaudi houses have been opened to the public in the last ten years.  For Carol and I, this was our third new Gaudi house of the trip.

Maddy had put together a list of places/things she wanted to do and see if time permitted (we only failed to do one of those things -- good for us!).  Casa Vicens was on the list.  We took the Metro to the Fontana stop after the Human Towers on Sunday.  We got there early, so we stopped in a bar and had sandwiches and water for lunch.  Having killed enough time for our 1:40 tickets, we went to Casa Vicens and were, of course, dazzled.

I know I keep writing on this theme, but it has the added advantage of being true: Gaudi was a genius. . .the greatest architect who ever lived.  If you have not been to Barcelona, give yourself plenty of days to see his works.  And, be sure to buy your tickets in advance!

I'm sorry if there are too many pictures of Casa Vicens below, but there actually should be more. . .I left plenty out!

A corner of the house.

Look at the brilliant use of color tiles, the

creative balconies, and overall design.

A light in the house.  There were so

many incredible design features.

Not the doorway behind it.

The side facade.

The use of palm leaves for the gate/wall.

Look at the intricate ceiling carvings.

Note the palm leaf painting top right,

along with this ceiling triangle.

A vibrant wall.

The porch.  And Maddy.  Note 

the planter behind her.

I might have this done for my ceiling.

Up on top of the house -- Gaudi's

signature whimsical rooftops.

Husband and wife.

Daughter and mom.

Using the tilted technique from Anna.

Casa Vicens from the steps of

the gelato shop.  Yes, we took

in a post-tour ice cream! 

*For you whippersnappers out there, to "sound like a broken record" means to repeat the same thing over and over again, like a needle is stuck on a record when playing music.  We'll see if the phrase lasts!

Another Day, Another Bunch of Human Towers

We took Maddy to Brunch and Cake by the Sea, a place recommended by my high school buddy of long-standing, Mark Ganung because he had eaten at a Brunch and Cake back in the early summer (there are five Brunch and Cakes in Barcelona, with this one just down the street from us).

We got there early, so you could argue against it being brunch, but they still served us anyhow.  The food is fabulous -- Carol and I had gone a week earlier, and we said then that Maddy would love this place.  And we were right!  The rest of the time we've been eating breakfast at the condo, but a once a week breakfast splurge is great fun.

After that, we headed to Placa Sant Jaume for the Human Towers portion of the La Merce festival.  Carol and I had seen the equivalent of the Triple A Human Towers six days ago, but these were definitely the major leaguers.  The towers went up fast, they did not take long breaks between each.

They did a lot more formations than these three;

it was very impressive, but you don't need

to see all of their formations.

Oh, and I'm NOT intentionally slighting last weeks groups in the slightest.  What they did was fun to watch and impressive, but these Castellers had a certain flair for the dramatic.  They went up fast, came down fast, and did not take long breaks between each.

I did joke with Maddy that, along with all the other sports and music they tried, that it's a shame the girls never did this.  She laughed, probably more at me than with me, but that happens to most dads I presume (?).

We headed out before they were done because we had a date with Gaudi. A double date actually.  But, despite the headline of this blog post, the human towers the second time was just as thrilling to watch as the first time.

Fire, Walk With Me

What I'm about to describe to you can not be described.  You had to be there.  And you can, in future years.  The Carrefoc (fire walk) is something that would not be allowed in the United States, as lawyers and fire marshals would tear each other to pieces trying to stop it.

It is, without question, the most amazing aspect of a street festival we have ever been to.  Now, to be fair, I have not been to Mardi Gras, or that festival down in Key West, but Carrefoc has to blow the those away.  As much as we love Semana Santa, Carrefoc is even more amazing because we were right in the middle of it all!  

Carrefoc involves drums and demons, dragons and fire.  And they shoot the firework sparks right at you.  It was intoxicatingly dangerous and fun at the same time.    

But first, I need to get through some other stuff first, so I will do that in a couple of quick paragraphs.

The rain had stopped by the time we woke up from our naps.  Finally, we woke Maddy up around 5 pm, and headed out for more of a walk about the old city.  We showed her more of Barri Gotic and El Born.  Then, we all realized we were hungry, so we went for what turned out to be tapas dinner #1 that day.  Oh, but in between we earned tapas dinner number two!

We arrived at our favorite Cava Bar, El Xampanyet, about ten minutes before it opens at 7 pm.  There was a line already.  Upon opening, we all filed in quickly, and we were able to get a table.  From there the service was immediate.  We got a bottle of Cava, which Maddy enjoyed (Carol and I already knew we liked it), and some of the tapas -- the anchovies in vinegar, the bread with tomato spread, and a plate of jamon (of course).  The place is small and raucous, and was a good set-up for the fire walk.

From there we walked over to Via Laietana, where the Correfoc was just getting started.  There had been a street fireworks parade for the kids done by the junior Diables (Devils with fireworks), but they don't actually shoot the fireworks at the crowd.

For the adult one (adult because it is more dangerous), we were advised to wear a hat, long sleeves, and long pants.  Oh, and safety glasses, but somehow I missed that part.  Other, more veteran people, had donned all sorts of safety glasses.

For a while we listened to the drummers on the back of a large truck.  They were impressive, and probably numbered 15.  They banged out stirring, impressive tunes.  Up the road we could see the fireworks starting.  There were masses of people, but somehow we got right near the truck.

Guys were walking through the crowd selling beers from plastic bags.  I felt a beer -- it was cold. They actually used ice in the bag -- Europe is entering the 20th Century!  

(Editor's Note: Uh, Glen, it is the 21st Century.  Blogger: I stand by my observation -- cold drinks being better than room temperature drinks is not a new thing.)

So I bought two small beers (that was the size) at one Euro each for Maddy and I.  Cold beer for $1.10, delivered to us street side.  That was pretty good!

The truck of drummers.  Very cool.

This gives you a sense of the crowd.

And then came the main event.  The fireworks steadily came down the road, closer and closer to us.  Suddenly, we ended up in the middle of the road, with demons to the left of us and devils* to the right of us, shooting fire at us from both directions.  The sparks would come raining down on us.  I felt some on the back of my neck, and Carol and Maddy each had small spark burns on their hands.  

(*No actual devils were involved, instead it was people dressed in costumes.  It was quite a production.  It did strike me as weird that "devils" were a featured part of the festival dedicated to the patron saint of Barcelona!)

Fireworks from afar.

As the demons approached, you could see them

firing into the crowd on either side of them.

As we were in the middle of the street, we

got hammered by the demons on both sides of us.

Google tell me that while the festival originated in 1902, the Carrefoc started in 1978.  Here is a link to some background on the Carrefoc, and it has a video to give you some idea of the crazy fun.  Carol took a video, but I can't get it to upload on the blog.

When the demons got too close, we had to turn away and duck to protect our eyes and faces.  We caught a bit of a break, because just as some of the devils got to us, they had to reload, so we sometimes missed the most sustained assaults.  I'm not sure how long we could have held out otherwise.  

It was pretty chaotic.  A lot of the time I put

my camera down and just celebrated being in 

the middle of the craziness.  So the pictures

aren't the best, but the time we had was the best!

Each devil comes from a specific neighborhood association, and is supported by numerous folks, including people who reload the fireworks, people to guide the demons, and, impressively, drummers marching along behind them.  

This devil was just reloading.

Angry cat.  This gives you some sense

of the totality of the fireworks.

A moment of calm as the devil nears.

There were also guys NOT in demon costumes firing fireworks/sparks at people.  It was crazy -- especially as they aimed the fireworks right at us.  Carol was fine with the demons, it was these guys she did not like.

Cool dragon, shooting fire.

This pig looked angry, so we named him 

"Angry Pig."  Don't say we are not creative.

As you can tell, it was reloading time!

They just kept coming wave upon wave.  Finally, Carol decided we had enough, so we took advantage of a break in the action during a reload, pushed our way to the sidewalk, and exited the scene.  It was wild.

We reeked of gunpowder and loved every minute of it.  We headed to our 10 pm dinner reservations at Bar Brutal, found our way there without using GPS, and dined on fabulous tapas and toasted our fun with a great local wine.  I'm pretty sure this was the night Maddy fell in love with Barcelona.  And for a good reason.  

It was a spectacular night!