Art Invokes the Diety.

It doesn't matter what language they speak, watching someone encounter the Sagrada Familia for the first time, they get it. From that first moment, whether turning the corner on the street or stepping out of the ground from the Metro station, they get it.

Antoni Gaudí probably never got to see the effects of what he had created. I'm sure he got a taste of it when people saw the residences he designed, but that was no where near this.

I can't explain it to you. I can only show you pictures and tell you what I overheard as I stood near another pilgrim, for that is what we all become in this space. As I passed this young man staring up at the vaulted ceiling high above he said in a hushed awestruck whisper, "There is a God."

What more could Gaudí have wanted?

Like a Virgin, with apologies to Gaudí and Madonna both

I treasure the feeling of first spotting a Gaudí creation. It was the Palau Güell. Wandering down La Rambla towards the sea, I took a left onto a narrow little one way street much like all the other narrow little streets in the area known as Raval. Souvenir shops and sandwich shops line the tiny sidewalks. The street was none too clean. It was early morning with the city just waking. I had no idea what was coming.

And then, there it was, these two incredible arched wrought iron gates set into the stone wall. There are no words to fully describe it. Wrought iron taken to its limits and made to move and flow like a pile of ribbon. Between the two gates there is a great wrought iron sculpture topped by a barbed sphere on which perches a fearsome bird. I have no idea how long I stood and tried to take it all in.

The street is so narrow, even backing up across the street, risking being hit by racing motorcycles and taxis, I couldn't take it all in completely. I craned my neck to see the top of this amazing place and up there in the far distance I could see just a bit of the most exquisitely turned mosaic finials glistening in the morning light.

There was nothing I could do, but stand gape mouthed before this tremendous place so out of time and place on this previously normal little street. I got my camera out only to realize there was no way that I could capture an image of it. I could never do it justice. I was reduced to taking shots of details, the gate, the sculpture, the windows covered in wrought iron lace.

I love to go walking past it over and over. I can't recapture the full feeling of first seeing the Palau Güell, but I can watch the crowds that gather to gawk at it. I can experience, if only vicariously, that wondrous feeling once more.

How can I describe Barcelona?

Barcelona is full.

Full of tourists.
Full of history.
Full of art.
Full of passion.

Everything is intensified.

Sound
Color
Light
Smell

In the Boqueria it overwhelms. Although the light is limited it's as though the odors grew large to take the lights place. Each stall I pass sends out scented tendrils to lure me in - luscious white Spanish cheeses here, ham still in the form of a leg there - suddenly strawberries - then fresh fish overwhelms it all - spices - chocolate - gelato - crepes cooking - the mouth waters and the mind is boggled . . . .

Oh, to have just a taste, a tiny taste of each one.

I wonder where the true Barcelonans are?

Where do they live?

Surely not in this mass of uncouth tourists
who only come to look
All the time snapping pictures,
pictures,
pictures.

Flocks of tourists
Herds of tourists
Schools of tourists

Walking dazed,
Seeing the world through the LCD screens of their cameras.

I am not of Barcelona.
I am just another awestruck tourist viewing the world through all my shiny toys.
Such a barbarian,
I can't even speak the language.

Wandering and wondering

As usual, I seem to be having a difficult time keeping you up to date on here, but that may have changed. Suddenly for some unknown reason I'm able to pick up a strong wifi signal in my hotel room. Prior to this I had to go to the first floor (That's the second floor back in the states.) to be able to email or post or tweet or otherwise play around on the world wide web. This is wonderful so far. I hope it lasts.

I've been all over the place since I got here. I've walked the Ruta de Modernisme, rambled all up and down La Rambla, and nibbled my way through the Boquería all the while taking photographs like a fiend. I've been looking at mosaics and ceramic tile work anywhere I can find them, which seems to be just about everywhere, from the obvious places like Gaudí's Casa Batllo and Park Güell, or Domènech i Muntaner's overwhelming Palau de la Música Catalana, to the odd bits and pieces hiding over doorways or decorating pharmacies all around the Old City. It's been a safari of sorts. Each corner I turn reveals some new jewel like vista.

Barcelona is old, old in a way that is hard for me to even conceive. It was founded by the Romans and bits and pieces of its Roman past pop out when least expected. A little over a block from my hotel is a portion of a Roman necropolis that has been excavated. Sticking off the Cathedral is a bit of Roman wall. Here there's a bit of Roman wall jutting out or it may be just as likely hiding in the back of a restaurant.

I ate lunch in a restaurant, Set Portes, that was opened the same year, 1836, that my hometown of Houston was founded.

I've been to all the major Gaudí sites, La Sagrada Familia, La Pedrera, Casa Batllo, Palau Güell, and Park Güell. I still have a few of his creations to tour. I've also learned a little about other Modernist architects. Turns out Gaudí didn't build Barcelona all by himself! Imagine that! I have to admit that he is pretty outstanding.

I've been to Montjuic and gone to the Fundacio Joan Miró. I've photographed Miró's large mosaic in the middle of La Rambla and tracked down his family home where he was born and where he lived and worked after World War II.

I've walked the neighborhood where the young Picasso lived and painted, and visited the Picasso Museum. I had lunch at Els Quatre Gats, the hangout for anybody who was anybody in the Barcelona avant garde art scene of the early twentieth century. Picasso designed a menu cover for Els Quatre Gats when he was 19 years old.

So, you can see I haven't been sitting still. I still need to make it north to the Costa Brava to see the place where Salvador Dalí started out and ended up and south to see the birthplace and childhood home of Antoni Gaudí. Then, if there's time, I hope to make it over to Palma de Mallorca to visit the Pilar and Joan Miró Foundation and the Cathedral. Gaudí worked on the Cathedral in Palma for ten years, but he didn't finish the job. He walked away from it with little or no explanation.

I've taken literally thousands of pictures, even though some local thief picked my pocket and stole my camera. I replaced the camera the next day and was right back at it! I won't subject you to all my pictures, but I'm posting the best of them via Flickr and Instagram. Try www.flickr.com/photos/jean999/ You can also find them posted on my FaceBook page and on Twitter. I'm on Twitter as @jean999.

My little home away from home (just in case you're curious)

Lying awake very early, no noises outside. The city slumbers.
Then the first delivery truck arrives. Noises echo with great ease through the narrow street. Dollies rolled on cobblestones rumble and the sound of early morning deliveries seems to go on forever.

Voices lose their language in the echo.
Sound builds as more and more people awaken, begin their work, and start their days.

My hotel, the Hotel Catalunya, is not a fancy place, but it suits my needs and the price is right.

It has a small elevator and a steep almost spiral staircase.

My room is on the second floor, which is to say that it is on the third floor. Here the first floor is called the basement and holds the reception area and little more. On the first floor (in the States this is the second floor) there are two vending machines ( water, sodas and beer in one, the other dispenses hot coffee, tea and hot cocoa), two computers, the hotel office and a restroom. WiFi is only available on this floor. I've spent some rather long hours here. Thankfully the hotel has created a sort of brightly lit lounge area with upholstered chairs and a coffee table. I've discovered that if I stand by the stairwell on my floor I can pick up the WiFi. It's rather awkward to simply stand there and the stairs are too narrow to accommodate more than one person at a time. I think it appears a bit odd to my fellow travelers, this American woman in her fifties standing by the stairwell cradling her iPad, so I spare them the sight and instead I enjoy the amenities of the little common area below.

My room is small, although it's not small for a single room by European standards. It has a closet that has been added into a corner of the room. I sleep on a twin bed. There don't seem to be many true single rooms around these days either here or anywhere else I've traveled. Tourists seem to move in groups of two or more.

To turn the lights on in my room I have to insert my card key into a little holder next to the door. I had the same set up in Japan in 2008. It's a great way to conserve energy. There'll be no leaving all the lights and the air conditioning on with no one around to use them.

My room has a sliding glass door that opens onto a narrow, dead-end street, more of an alley than a street actually although it does have a name, Carrer de Bonaventura. There is a wrought iron rail outside the sliding glass door and I have a balcony,of sorts, about nine inches of it. My bathroom has a window that opens onto the same street. If my neighbors across the way open their curtains at the same time I do we will find ourselves face to face with a mere eight feet of open space between us. A little too close for my needs for personal space. I keep my curtains drawn most of the way, thus avoiding awkward moments.

The furnishings in my room are minimal: the twin bed, a small night stand with two drawers, a writing desk without drawers, a small refrigerator, a straight backed chair, a bench/coffee table-ish piece of furniture, a TV attached to the wall high up in the corner, a mirror in a plain frame on the wall and a small reading lamp also wall-mounted. It's a very efficient use of space.

There's a step up into the bathroom. The bathroom has a freestanding sink, a toilet, a bidet, and a small shower/tub. If I plug the drain I can fill the tub and soak in a little over a foot of water. There is no coffee maker, but there is a blow dryer.

What the Hotel Catalunya has more than anything else is location. It is on the Carrer de Santa Anna. If I head left as I exit the building I come to the intersection of Carrer de Santa Anna and Carrer de Canuda at La Rambla. If I go right I come out at Avinguda Portal de L'Angel. It's about a block to Plaça Catalunya where everything comes together, Metro lines, major streets and the main tourist office.

For most of the day Carrer de Santa Anna is pedestrian traffic only with the occasional bike rider or skate boarder for added excitement. In the evening it opens to vehicular traffic which consists of delivery trucks, taxis, police cars and garbage pick up.

I don't use the air conditioning. The weather is mild and the breezes that blow in coupled with the shade of the buildings keep my room cool. I keep the windows open and enjoy the sounds of the city. It keeps my evenings and my mornings more interesting.

Moving, looking, learning, and posting

It's almost midnight in Barcelona. For the past several days I've found myself up until 2:00 and 3:00 in the morning attempting to keep up with loading in photos, reading and writing emails, writing postcards, tweeting, posting on FaceBook, and journaling. I thought all this electronic stuff was supposed to make life easier!

I've been going all day, every day. I've made it to Palau Güell, Casa Batllo, La Pedrera, Palau de la Musica Catalana, Park Güell, the Gaudí Museum, La Sagrada Familia, Fundacio Miró, Montjuic and Montjuic Castle, the Picasso Museum, had lunch at Els Quatre Gats, and attended a classicsl Spanish guitar concert. I've ridden the Metro, a funicula, and two different teleferics and walked until I've blistered both of my feet. I've had my pocket picked and I'm still going, shooting pictures and posting all over the place. I'll catch up on posting here tomorrow. For tonight I have to catch some Zzz's!

Hasta mañana, muchachos!

My first full day in Barcelona

I'm having some problems posting pictures to my blog, but you can find my photos on my Flickr account or on Instagrid.

There have been a few additional photo problems, but more about that later.

Since I arrived in Barcelona I've been in hot pursuit of mosaics, Modernisme, Miró, Gaudí, Picasso, and Dalí. It's been easy in some ways and difficult in others. There are numerous sites for each item and many of them overlap. The public transportation system here is excellent. I've been able to get around easily via bus, metro, and on foot.

On day one I set out to explore on foot. It's a bit of a walk down La Rambla to Palau Güell. One Of Gaudi's masterpieces, it's located less than a block down Carrer de Nou Rambla. The house, or perhaps palace is more appropriate, is extraordinary. The attention to detail is exquisite. Everything is handcrafted exactly for this space. I can't begin to describe it, but the thing I was seeking was on the roof terrace. There I could get up close and personal with the mosaic chimney pots. I've seen photos, but this was right there in front of my eyes and in reach of my hands.

The chimneys have been restored to their original splendor. The documentation on the restoration of the entire building is on view in the attic. I was able to see what went into the creation of these incredible sculptures. The work was done both by and under the supervision of Josep Gardy Artigas, the son of the original mosaicist, Josep Llorens Artigas.

Back down at street level I turned back to study the wrought iron work on the front of the building. I was reminded of Albert Paley's work. It is easy to see how Modernisme influenced this contemporary American sculptor's work.

Back closer to my hotel, as in across the street closer, I wandered over to the little Eglesia de Santa Anna. I haven't explored there yet. I did peek through the gates at the shaded and colonnaded courtyard. I'll go back there later.