This is not another Barcelona post
Posted: August 25th, 2011 | Author: admin | Filed under: Uncategorized | No Comments »Dear architects,
Following arch. Milusheva’s invitation and after completing a detailed analysis of what has been written here about Barcelona, I decided to write a few lines with my slightly unprofessional (architecture-wise) standpoint on it.
THE PEOPLE
Finding Spanish people (not to mention Catalan) in Barcelona in August is simply a “causa perduta” – in genuine Latin language (and this at the feet of the crowds of tourists is Miro’s mosaic).
There are plenty of German, Italian and French people, however, and after trying hard to find some authentically Spanish individuals, we came upon this group of people:
This boring picture (an excellent beginning – I know ;)… actually, someone had called a similar pictures the „United colors of this and that“), strangely enough expresses the only thing (besides physiological needs) which unites 98% of Spanish people. It is called “El Gordo” (literarily translated as “The Fat One”), but you can also see it as Sorteo de Navidad or Lotería de Navidad and this is their national, Christmas lottery draw. The old men and women in the picture are vigorously discussing the numbers of the tickets they own and they are making strategic plans about exchanging some of theм plus how to spend the money if they won. BUT… how FAT can The Fat One really get?
For 2010 the cumulative value of the awards was €2,320,500,000 (yes, that’s right, in the billions and it gets bigger each year).
This is the biggest lottery in the world and also one of the oldest. They have been playing it since 1812 and it has literarily turned into a national treasure hunt! The draw is on December 22nd and small children take out the balls from the sphere as everyone watches them on TV, the streets are deserted, the families gather together, the prayers to the virgins patrons of the corresponding cities grow exponentially and they start to focus on the numbers of the tickets that everyone has been purchasing diligently throughout the year.
It is a bit complicated… but overall, each ticket is a deck of smaller tickets. The big ticket wins (but it is very expensive to buy, so people purchase one or a number of smaller tickets from it) and, therefore, everyone wins a % of the award of the big ticket equal to the % of these smaller tickets as a part of the big ticket. In order to increase their chances of winning, however, people buy smaller tickets from different big tickets (with a different ticket number). Tickets are sold pretty much everywhere – in the pastry and coffee shops, in the newspaper stands, park benches, etc.
For me this is the most fresh and strange thing about Spanish people together with the fact that they are Catholic while the lottery is gambling , therefore, a sin, therefore… confessions before and after December 22nd become a more significant nationwide sport than soccer which reminds me to mention
THE CHURCHES
Of course, there is a strict dress code for Catholic churches which is, apparently, not so valid for tourists because, it seems, they are already forgiven their delusion, insolence and noisiness
I am not religious, but I thought these few churches were really beautiful and they sounded great since it was August 15th – a religious national holiday for the whole of Spain. I know they say that all Gothic churches and cathedrals are the same but they were among the most significant buildings at the time they were built as they defined the sky line of each village/town/city and these places in Barcelona, in my opinion, have fulfilled their purpose of making you feel small and insignificant, as well as promise you that maybe there is something better in life…
but in the afterlife :)!
TRANSPORTATION
Since the last time I was here… in 2002, there are 2 new ways of exploring the city and I am eager to share them with you and recommend them wholeheartedly to anyone who is headed to Barcelona in the near future:
1) The Go Car – this idiotic, yellow automobile… is, in reality, a scooter or a three-wheeler, more precisely, and it is equipped with well-informed GPS audio guide which (at least this is what they say) has a sense of humor besides telling you all about the sights you pass by and offering you different routes. The cars are a novelty even for the locals who find it appropriate to take on you in the left lane, roll down their windows and ask you how it goes.
2) There are such bicycle stands all over Barcelona. The municipality has arranged those for the locals when they pay a small charge and they have gradually become a major means of transportation here. You ride it to wherever you like and just leave it at the closest bicycle stand – that’s all.
GAUDI (but, of course)
Maybe it is some kind of an architectural sin to write about the OBVIOUS side of Barcelona, BUT here I am going to do my best to tell you about something relatively new to the city which was a pleasant surprise to me. Well, it is new, meaning that up until 2008 (although they finished it up completely in April, 2011), they were busy restoring it and it was not open for tourist visits, thus, there are still no tedious queues plus they let only a limited number of visitors at a time.
The place is called Palau Güell (or Güell Palace) and Gaudi designed it for his patron and personal friend – Eusebi Güell (the same Mr. Güell who was planning on making today’s Park Güell a family residence outside the city). The house… or the palace, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and relative to the other Gaudi houses open for tourist visits in the city, this one impressed me the most.
The initial idea was for the building to be an outhouse which would be connected to the inherited by Mr. Güell property at La Rambla Street, so that he would live at a passage-way distance from his parents. Everyone’s dream, no doubt! 😀 The building, however, is anything else but an outhouse.
The entrance is here. These really are two entrances for the carriages and they are decorated with amazing wrought iron elements the aim of which is for people on the inside to see what is happening in the street but not vice versa.
it would have been noisy and not that hygienic, though, if the horses tramped on a floor made of stone. The solution was this: flooring made of solid wood tiles. And really pretty ones too!
Next, the horses go here
through this
and remain there together with the people who are taking care of them while the owners go up these stairs:
and get here:
have a meal or two and head for the main hall for entertainments where they used to greet the most notable and talented composers, musicians, architects and artists of the time as well as other industrialists.
there is a chapel behind these door which can be seen only during mass and then remains hidden from the main hall.
аnd the best part…
The idea was for the ceiling to look like a star-lit sky both in day- and in night time, so I think they really achieved that effect. This is what they call Islam-inspired modernism… which can be noticed on the solid wood ceilings in other parts of the house as well.
There is also an organ ;)… but I did not absorb most of the information about it except for the fact that it was very, very special.
a terrace, unique blinds and, of course, a lot of natural light
the misery which surrounds the building on the inner side of the street… I have no idea how it looked back in the day but this is how it looks now:
inside the other rooms which belonged to the owner and his wife (not quite as impressive – no wonder she never enjoyed spending her time in this house). These are even smaller than the ones belonging to the children.
and especially for all of you – a wrought-iron supporting column… I think they said it was a supporting one… but what do I know?
the kitchen (beside the space for cooking, this was also the living space for all servants)
the roof with Gaudi’s befitting chimneys
a nice view which must have been quite different back in the day…
and that’s it… it has been a pleasure and if there are outbursts of interest and comments :), I will write Part 2 :D… about THE FOOD, THE FACADES… “and more” 😉
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