The last stop on our 12 day cruise was Barcelona! We had had such perfect weather the entire trip so it was bound to happen that on the last day we got rain--- and it was a little chilly. Because of the rain we decided to book a ticket for the 'hop on hop off bus.' Let's just say Marci wasn't too thrilled about our decision once we got going. We were crammed on a bus as it drove around Barcelona with headphones in our ears trying to listen to an audio tour of what we were supposed to be seeing. Plus it was rainy so if we were on the top we were soaked. I am sure we drove by some cool stuff but I don't remember exactly what they all were.
We decided to hop off the bus when we got down to some of the city center area. Our first stop was to see some of Gaudi's famous architecture designs. This is known as the Casa Batllo, or the House of Bones for its slightly creepy looking exterior.
We next walked to the Gothic Quarter (Barri Gòtic). This area of the old town is generally characterized by narrow, cobblestone streets with tall, old, sometimes-elaborate buildings. It almost felt like we were on the set of Harry Potter. Many of these little streets pass by structures that date from medieval times, some as far back as when the Romans settled here.
Our stroll then took us over to the Arc de Triomf.
We had tickets to 'Sagrada Familia' at a certain with all the rest of our family so we had to hussle there to make it on time. This place was nothing short of miraculous! It is possibly the most iconic tourist attraction in Barcelona and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is one of the best works of Antoni Gaudís work, who is well known for it’s out of this world architectural design. This church is still however under construction even after its master passed away; they are hoping to finish it on 2026, exactly a century after Gaudí’s death. Although it is still under construction, you are still able to go inside.
The outside detail work was amazing in itself. All kinds of symbolism and scenes from Christ's life.
The detail of everything was breathtaking.
We had an audio tour that explained to us all about it. Inside the stain glass windows were all different shades and all over. With the light coming in it was beautiful.
This was a little scale model of what it will look like when finished. Seriously amazing.
After the Sagrada Familia we hopped back on the bus which took us around some of the outskirts of Barcelona. We hopped off at the bottom of Mt. Tibidabo. There is a little trolley that will take you up for some great views of Barcelona.... but we decided to walk.
We made it to an area that had some little restaurants, Mirablau, so we decided to get some dinner. It was awesome food and arguably some of the best we had had in any of Spain. The Views weren't too shabby either.
It was starting to get a little dark so we walked down the hill, hopped back on our bus, finished the rest of the bus tour--- and made it back near the port. We did a little more walking, saw the Christopher Columbus statue and then made it back on to the ship! Spain was amazing and although Barcelona started off a little rough, it ended up being great. So long Spain.
We had our last day at sea which we enjoyed by getting the last of our relaxation and food in. We made it back to the Rome port, caught a shuttle to the airport, and took the long flight home. It was such a great time and saw so many amazing things. It was fun to be able to have some one on one time just as a couple but it was sure nice to get home to Lincoln, Norah, and Cade and get some hugs and kisses from them. We were so grateful for Penny, Laura/Jeremy, Heidi/Tim for helping watch our kids while were gone. So blessed to have such great family.
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