The following paragraph is from Wikipedia:
"Barcelona's Montjuïc (translated as Hill of the Jews) is a broad shallow hill with a relatively flat top overlooking the harbour, to the southeast of the city centre. The eastern side of the hill is almost a sheer cliff, giving it a commanding view over the city's harbour immediately below. The top of the hill (a height of 173 metres) was the site of several fortifications, the latest of which (the Castell de Montjuïc) remains today. The fortress largely dates from the 17th century, with 18th century additions. In 1842 the garrison (loyal to the Madrid government) shelled parts of the city following disturbances. It served as a prison, often holding political prisoners, until the time of General Franco. The castle was the site of numerous executions. In 1897 an incident popularly known as Els processos de Montjuïc prompted the execution of anarchist supporters, which in turn lead to a severe repression of the workers' struggle for their rights. On different occasions during the Spanish Civil War, both Nationalists and Republicans were executed there, each at the time when the site was held by their opponents. The Catalan nationalist leader Lluís Companys i Jover was also executed there in 1940, having been extradited to the Franco government by the Nazis."
What they do not say is why it is called Hill of the Jews ... but meh. The area around Montjuïc had numerous landmarks, and was the site of numerous events in the '92 Barcelona games. The following is Courtney in front of the National Catalan Museum of Art. We had coffee at the base of the hill leading up to the building and then after that all we saw of it was the exterior architecture, and the restrooms, of which both were inspiring.
We went and walked around the Olympic stadium. The following photo shows me in front of the torch (designed by Calatrava, the same architect that designed the Turning Torso), which was definitly a sight to see.
Notice probably my favorite detail about this photo ... I'm not bundled up under 10 layers like I'm used to! Ahh, gotta love the Catalan weather.
We then took a tram to the top (sure it cost money, but as you will read we did more than our fair share of walking and I'm glad we did it). The fort wasn't so much impregnable due to the gun emplacements ... it just had confusing signs. I guess Franco's forces were relying more on confusing "Do Not Enter" signs as a means to keep the Catalans at bay.
Once we got up to the fort though, we had a chance to enjoy the wonderful views.
Ahh! What's that shiny ball of light in the sky?!? I haven't seen it in months!
Barcelona:
Watch your step!
There was a museum, but pshhh we weren't in the mood to learn! We were in the mood to swing! And luckily, there was a swing randomly on the walk back down the hill.
From there, we hit the metro to go see Sagrada Familia. This temple, as the architect Gaudi described it, is his unfinished masterpiece (started in 1882, and expected to finish in 2026), and is an absolutely breathtaking building. For those not familiar with his work, I have a few photos from one of his other creations, but certainly he has to have developed one of the most unique architectural styles that I have ever seen.
Unfortunately, when we arrived it was already closed for the day, but we had a chance to wander around outside and take some photos.
One of the major reasons that construction has taken so long is because that numerous plaster molds he made were destroyed in the Spanish Civil War. He was a Catalan Nationalist, and so when the war broke out his workshop was destroyed. However, with a meticulous process that is still going on now, they were able to reassemble his molds and effectively piece his vision back together again. As you can see, it is still very much a work in progress.
The two sides have two distinctly different looks. One side represents the birth of Christ, while the other represents his death.
The sculpture work (not done by Gaudi, but by a modern artist) on the crucifixion side was really cool. The figures had hard features, and it was unlike most religious sculpture I am used to. The older side featuring the birth was perhaps more classical.
A quite different portrayal of the crucifixion.
This is one of Gaudi's other famous creations, Casa Batlló. This was taken with Courtney's camera and my tripod, creating the ultimate alliance of inanimate objects.
Having seen numerous works by an innovative and controversial architect of the past, we went down to see a building, shaped like a giant fish, designed by Frank Gehry. I know, you're thinking ... building shaped like a fish? How could you go wrong. Well, boy was it disappointing. I didn't even bother taking a photo. But here's a picture of Courtney as we strolled towards our disappointing "landmark".
Here's Courtney speed walking towards a beautiful sculpture:
It was titled "A Big Waste of Steel", and the artist remained anonymous to avoid reprisals from fundamentalist art critics.
Having not found much worthwhile to do, we popped our head into a casino ... were bored immediately and then just sat around in some comfy chairs while we relaxed. On my way to the restroom, I noticed how apparently amputee women get their own bathroom.
The fucked up thing about it is that it was preceded by 20 stairs.
Afterwards we went to sample some of the local cuisine. Here's a burger tailor made for Hindus. Apparantly it's popular because "agotado" means sold out.
So at the beginning I mentioned we walked a lot. In our quest here we definitly covered a lot of ground. However, the fun was just beginning. Courtney and I went and grabbed some tapas at a small restaurant that Kyle and Lisa had recommended, followed by a glass of wine. Then we met up with Giselle and Jon and from there we walked to meet with Tamer and Bahra. We then went on a long trek trying to find a restaurant that was open north of the busiest part of La Rambla. After 45 minutes, with our stomaches rumbling, we finally we found a decent little restaurant. And thus ended our night, with us headed back to Tamer's and Giselle and Jon calling it a night on their last day in Barcelona.
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