Bienvenidos a Espana!

Spain, a country with a rich history. It's funny, but one of the last places we visited in Italy was Genoa, the birthplace of Christopher Columbus, and one of the first sights we came across in Barcelona was a huge monument to the very same man. It seems we made the same trip Chris did all those years ago. And while all of us ultimately end up in America, only one of us is really worried about scurvy.



This is Barcelona's iconic church, the Sagrada Familia or Temple of the Holy Family. You can see what it looks like by purchasing postcards of an artist's rendition because they've been building the church since 1882, and construction is expected to last until 2026. Designed by Antoni Gaudi, who only lived to see the cellar completed before he died, it is now being completed based on another architect's interpretation.



About three-fourths of the Spanish population is Roman Catholic. We visited several beautiful churches, many constructed in the Gothic style, across the city. These candles were lit at the Cathedral of Santa Eulalia, dedicated to one of the patron saints of Barcelona.



Unfortunately, a great portion of Barcelona's cathedral was covered by scaffolding. We were able to capture this small unobstructed part of the facade as the moon was rising in the distance.



We walked through the Arc de Triomf on the way to the Sagrada Familia. We promise this is a different arch and we're not reusing the same picture from India or Italy.



Las Ramblas is a well-known street in Barcelona, populated by tourists, locals, and street performers alike. It's also home to an extensive market of fresh fruit, vegetables, fish, meat, and all kinds of Spanish specialties. The colors are free to sample.



Another Gaudi design. He is a beloved figure in Barcelona, with many of his buildings now open as museums. Gaudi had a architectural style that, while inspired by works of Gothic architecture, maintains a strong sense of originality and uniqueness.



This is also Gaudi...I mean gaudy...no wait, I had it right the first time.