The Lizard King

One last day in Barcelona, and I hopped on the metro early to get up to Parc Guell, a public space designed by Gaudi. For some reason my guide book directed me to an entrance at the top of the mountain, but didn't tell me NOT to follow all the signs pointing down the hill. So I walked down the hill. Only to later have to walk up it again.

But after I got to the bottom, I found the remarkable monument area and main entrance, pictured here. The area between these two staircases are this incredibly elaborate fountain, all covered in mosaic tile, a Gaudi staple. Below you'll see a photo of perhaps the most famous part of this fountain, the Drac (a big lizard.) The fountain was really spectacular, and at the very top of it, which you can just see the railing of in this picture, there's a big open pavillion overlooking the city. The benches up there are amazing -- they're one long bench, really, in a big semicircle, that are all designed to look like one giant serpent.

Above that part of the park the design elements were mostly limited to landscaping, but it was still pretty nice. And there was another viewing area near the very top that had pretty fantastic views all the way across the lower city and out into the Mediterranean.

After visiting the park, I tried to go to Palau Guell again -- did I mention that before? -- and once again got frustrated with the system. Not to mention the group of four or five French tourists who kept stepping in front of me while I was trying to ask questions, even though I was there at least five minutes before them. (I had several bad experiences with French tourists cutting in lines. Strange. Perhaps their reputation is deserved. I never really disliked the French, just the Quebecois.)

After giving up on that quest, I went around the old city some more and saw a few more of the churches I had missed before, either because I wasn't in a church mood or (in most cases) they were closed when I arrived. I think I forgot to mention in my post about Sunday that I visited the Picasso Museum, too. That just occurred to me, now. It was neat, and I think fairly essential if you're going to be in Barcelona, but his best work is undoubtedly displayed elsewhere.

Anyway, after a few more hours of walking around, I ran into siesta time, when a lot of things closed. I stopped in a bar that looked cool and dark, and struck up a conversation with an American woman who was living in Catalonia for a few months. We had a nice chat for a while over a beer or two, but I started to get the itch to not waste away my last few hours, so I left to visit the Contemporary Art Museum. It was ok, but if you're visiting Barcelona, don't feel obligated to go unless you have a ton of time.

After that I went back to the hotel, fetched my bag, and headed toward the airport for my evening flight back to Brussels. I got in to my apartment around 1 a.m. -- I had a crazy conversation with a Spanish guy on the train from Brussels Airport downtown who just would not accept that I wasn't a student but I was Canadian. I'm still not sure what he was on about. He spoke French, and we conversed alright, but every now and then he would throw out a word that was, I swear, not French nor Spanish, and completely lose me for a second. And despite my protestations that I was not a student and that I was working in Brussels, he kept asking "Vous etes etudiant?" Very bizarre.

Anyway, I was very tired by the end of the trip. All that walking in severe heat took its toll. Tomorrow I'll get you caught up on this week. By the way, that last photo is taken from the stairwell of Casa Battlo. Notice how the tiles get lighter as you go further down, and the windows get larger. To let in more light to the lower floors. Seems simple, but Gaudi thought of it first.