EU 2013: Last day in Barcelona

You could tell the runners or non runners apart at the finish line or the next day at breakfast. The walk. Call it what you like - Cowboys, crabs, toddlers learning to walk for the very first time, and so forth :-D Going up or down the stairs even a single step poses a real obstacle.  But we wear it proudly.

Day 4 itinerary

The first stop of the day was Sagrada Família.  I believe I don't have to spend  talking about it in great length.  There's always the Wiki page ;)

You can tell the new section and the old one apart

It is indeed a very unique building.  The interior looked brand new that you tend to forget that groundbreaking was held in 1882, Gaudí took over the project a year later and transformed it with his personal touches until his death in 1926. Then it was only less than a quarter done, and it's not expected to complete until 2026.  Gosh! (Btw, thanks Wikipedia).

The Passion facade - See you can find the Darth Vadery figure

As you walked around, you can appreciate the nature-inspired themes from wide range of flora and fauna, like the tree-like pilars, complete with the stumps, shooting upwards and formed a canopy.  How about the spiral staircase coming down the tower?  And the finials that capped the top of the spires.

The stained glass windows

The tree-like pillars

The ceiling

More of the ceiling

The Nativity facade, which is on the opposite side

The ticket that I purchased online was inclusive of the Torre Naixement (Nativity Towers) visit. They should put a sign at the tower's elevator entrance a day after the Barcelona Marathon -  "Marathoners - be warned. You need to walk down the stairwell once you reach the top".  Hahaha.

The use of a tablet and stylus was not a new thing

Looking out from the top of the tower

The other Nativity tower

Torre Agbar

Fruity and flowery finials

A lot more fruity finials that capped the spires

Coo, coo, cooooo....

I'm not too sure which specific object this was inspired from

Torre Mapfre and Hotel Arts Barcelona from afar

The 3 towers

Now, it's time to go down... slowly now

I wasn't done with Gaudí, not just yet. So Parc Güell was next in the itinerary.  Unfortunately, one of the 2 buildings at the entrance was shrouded with scaffolding and mesh; A TripAdvisor app termed them gingerbread houses :)

Arriving at Parc Güell's entrance

Park Güell (Parc Güell is in Catalan)

As you climbed up the small steps heading towards the main terrace, you'd find the "el drac" (the dragon).

Mozaic head thingy

El Drac

Tourists.  Tsk, tsk, tsk.  Hahaha  (Tak sedar diri)

The main terrace was a wide open space area and offered great views of the city.

Booo to the scaffolding and mesh

Serpentine seating along the edges

Bird nests were built at those columns

Gaudi House Museum

That's one big vending machine.  (@ the Lesseps Metro Station)

Of all the commercial buildings in Port Olímpic area that include the 2 tall towers, the Casino, bars and restaurants, to me the Peix (Fish) stood out the most.  It may be a gold Fish, but it's a size of a whale :)

Peix with Hotel Arts Barcelona (left) and Torre Mapfre (right)

Peix from another angle

The beach

Now, where did I park my boat?

When I was running the marathon the day before, I passed by Parc de la Ciutadella and some golden statue stood in the stark contrast to the dark and grey of the overcast day.  So I made it a point to check it out as I was coming back from Port Olímpic.  Google results state that it's the sculpture of Aurora in her chariot at the top of the Cascada (Fountain).

Cascada

Aurora and Venus, among others could be seen in this snapshot

The fountain in its entirety... almost

Carry your own leash

Besides the fountain, the park houses the zoo, a couple of museums and the Catalan Parliament.  Don't forget the stone mammoth.

The stone mammoth

Catalan Parliament

They were sooo cute!  They were singing "Train goes Choo, chooo..."

The train got derailed because they were distracted by the guy walking on tight rope :D

The entrance to the park.

Arc de Triomf - an arch built as a gateway to the 1888 Universal Exhibition, held at Parc de la Ciutadella. (cf Wikipedia, Barcelona Turisme)

Arc de Triomf on a sunny day compared to yesterday's gloomy one

Palau de Justicia (the Courthouse)

Up close and personal

From Arc de Triomf, I walked back to Port Vell, Colom and La Rambla (which were already covered on Day 2) before concluding my final day in Barcelona.

Follow the blue-lined road

Gambrinus, are you happy to see me or happy to see me off?

To end the Barcelona posts, I'd like to say this... Alhamdulillah, I survived Barcelona - the marathon, pickpockets and all :)  (my best friend warned me of the pickpockets before my trip.  He told me not to put my wallet in my pockets.  When I asked "How about the front pocket?"  His response was "Even the front pockets!!"  because his friend had first hand-experience when a nice looking girl was caught with her hand in his pocket, trying to steal his wallet.  Good thing his pockets were deep.  Gosh!)

Would I come back?  Sure!  But there's still a lot of other places in my list.   This time around, I didn't get to go to Montjuïc to check out Poble Espanyol, Estadi Olímpic and Castell de Montjuïc.  And more certainly, I've got to gain entrance to Casa Batlló and La Pedrera.  And sample more food.  The first 2 days in Barcelona, I had to be contend with "safe" foods. I didn't want to be looking for pottys during the run, which I read grouses that they weren't aplenty.

So what's in store next?  Tungguuuu (Just wait and see) ;-)