Sunday, July 10: Park Guell, Sagrada Familia take 2, Euro 2016 soccer final

It was a good thing we did not have tickets for Park Guell until 1:30 pm. We took the metro because we had read a lot about how many steps and steep climbing there was to get to the park. We went a bit early, since we did not know how long it would take to get there. Also, there is a free part of the park and we thought if we were early, we could go there first. Well, after getting off the metro, we followed the other tourists and soon found the escalators. Wow, they are not kidding, there are A LOT of escalators interspersed with steep streets to get to the park. A strenuous climb!

 Along the way we had to stop for a frozen fruit smoothie!

My mango smoothie was really refreshing and eventually we made it to the top and entered the free section of the park.

There was no map anywhere and it was pretty confusing to find our way. we walked around for quite a while enjoying the views of the city, the beautiful flowers and trees, etc. Other tourists were similarly confused. One lady asked me if we knew where to go, since it was already past her 1:00 pm ticketed entry time! Eventually we found the official entrance just in time! The place was really gorgeous! Gaudi is an incredible designer.

They were able to scan our tickets off our phones. Thankfully Ben was able to help me figure out how to take a "screenshot", since we were not sure we would have access to the email confirmation or downloads without wifi! 

We walked out onto the "Main Terrace" surrounded by a mosaic tile wavy bench, which I read is called the "Sea Serpent". I love that bench, it is so beautiful!! 

It wasn't until we walked down some steps to the lower level that we realized we had not been on solid ground, but that there was a room down below with huge columns holding up the terrace above! This is a photo I found online, not one I took, but it shows the awesome architecture and the wavy Sea Serpent bench!

 Down on the lower lever, there were more mosaic designs on the ceilings in between the pillars, very impressive.

 And then there's the famous lizard, "El Drac", the dragon, seen in every souvenir shop by the dozens! It is truly a fantastic place. I think everyone enjoyed this place!

After we got back to the apartment and relaxed for an hour or so, it was time to go again, since we had tickets for the Sagrada Familia! Somehow, I messed up and thought our entry time was 17:45, when in fact it was 18:45, so we actually got there an hour earlier than needed. 

 We decided to just have an ice cream and chill while waiting.

 We found a great spot in the park to sit and view the basilica. There was a little turtle swimming around in the pond, which was fun to watch!

Once we were allowed to enter, it was really well worth the ticket price and the wait! The basilica is very different from all the medieval Gothic cathedrals I've seen in Germany or France. The architecture is more modern (construction began in 1882) and Gaudi has a unique style.  

 I was glad we went in the evening, because the way the evening sun shone in through the stained glass windows was spectacular! Do you like how Ben is wearing blue with the blue window and Alex orange? 

 

 I am not sure what this particular artistic element was called or what the significance of it was, but we dubbed it "parachute Jesus".

The pink flowery looking tops of the spires were beautiful. Alex was fascinated with the square of numbers. We later researched it and found it to be a cryptogram in which there are over 300 different combinations of numbers that always add up to 33, Jesus age at his Crucifixion. We also thought it was interesting to have a depiction of  couple kissing in the architecture of a catholic basilica.

 While browsing in the gift shop, Ben had the ingenious idea of taking photos through a kaleidoscope! The end result was really fun, lots of little pictures of the person you were aiming it at! Jennys on the left and Bens on the right!

After leaving the Sagrada Familia, our agenda was to find a restaurant where we could watch the final Euro 2016 soccer game. In Spain, not every restaurant has TVs, so it was not an easy task. We happened to pass a restaurant called "Obama", a British American Bar, with a statue of President Obama out front sitting at a table! It was still an hour before game time, so we asked if they took reservations, but they did not. I explained that we wanted to stay for the game and that we would order drinks, and food throughout the evening. The hostess was very nice and said we could stay as long as we wanted to. As it turned out, they were very busy and it took a long time for our waiter to 

even take our first drink order. Another half hour went by before we ordered an appetizer of loaded nachos. We even got a few free drinks for our long wait! The game was well under way before we ordered real food! We had a great view of the game and it was a good one! After Ronaldo was injured in the first 7 or 8 minutes, it was quite impressive that Portugal was able to prove themselves and pull out the big win even without him! The food was delicious, too! We had pizzas and burgers, real American food. Somehow we did not do well with appreciating the Spanish cuisine. We kept talking about wanting to eat tapas, but we never wound up at a good place for it!