July 12th Espagne Part 2: Barcelona Day 1

 So after our short stint in Figueres and the Salvador Dali Museum we made our way to Barcelona.. here we had more bad luck as almost immediately upon entering the city our car tire was slashed as part of the many tourism scams that take place in the city. Really Its a beautiful city but I will tell you only once. Train, Plain, and NO Automobile in this city. We parked the car in a secure lot as planned after and took the metro the rest of our stay, however my dad did by a tire as a souvenir he couldn't take home:(
We stayed in a little B&B called The Fashion House and it was in a really great location right next to the metro.

 This lovely street is in the Gothic Quarter of Barcelona, I would have liked to have seen more of it however our only major stop here in our short stay was the Picasso museum. It was a charming little street and very exciting to see Picasso's work in his home town. The museum really focused on his younger years and development and establishment of the artist. Seeing how he progressed through various mediums and styles was fascinating especially as I have been lucky enough to have already seen so much of his work in Paris, London, and New York.

 The biggest draw in Barcelona for me was the urban design and architecture by far. Its a truly fascinating city. Of course the major architect is the renowned Antoni Gaudi. Modernism is very much the style of the city and every building you see almost its own work of art a person could spend days just walking around looking at facades, roof tops and boulevards.

 One of the most famous Gaudi houses is Casa Batllo which was built as a private residence for a well off Bourgeoisie family. Essentially the entire house is modelled to be like the sea everything from the fish boned Facade to the water like stain glass.

Oh and this is a mushroom shaped fireplace, considered the most unique fireplace in the word. Its awesome. 

Even the ceiling reminds you of the sea floor and its creatures 

Light was Gaudi's favourite tool and he spares no effort in utilizing it.

Chimneys, honestly the rooftop is as spectacular as the interior and the facade. 

This tiny entrance and stair case... I don't know why its there honestly.  

Ah, its just so so beautiful I didn't want to leave!

Our next stop was another Gaudi Building known as La Pedrera 

Unfortunately for us the building was heavily under preservative construction all along the outer facade so you couldn't actually see it from the outside:( I did include here a picture of the model to give you an idea of what it would look like but I suggest googling it. The inside of the building had to inner courtyards that allowed for light. Every room in the building is designed to have access to natural light.

 The most amazing part of this multi-home complex is the chimneys... They are absolutely spectacular as you can see. I really fell completely in love with Gaudi's work its just so unique. 

 As you can see the view from the roof was spectacular. On the upper right you can see a photo of the arches that support the roof in the attic of La Pedrera their varying height gives the unique look to the roof of the building making it curve and wave.

Here is another shot of Casa Battlo on the walk back as well as the neighbouring building which I missed the first time round. It is also vary unique however it is done by a different architect.  

After a long first day full of walking, sightseeing, museums, and insurance related phone calls all we wanted was a nice quite dinner in the hotel room. Luckily for us there was a little restaurant on the corner of our block which just happened to have plenty of vegetarian options and even some vegan ones!

My amazing avocado pesto penne:)

My yum salad on the upper left. My Dads quiche and I think eggplant something. 

Moms Lasagna

and my dads quinoa salad. 

All in all after the bad luck and stress from the day before with the semi and the tire slashing it was nice to have an easier day and an early night with real food.