After braving the towers of La Sagrada Familia, it was on to the spiral staircase that was the only way down. It’s a good thing I’m not claustrophobic. The staircase looked like the inside of a seashell, one person wide and spiraling down around an opening about a foot wide. Looking straight down, it’s impossible to tell how many floors up you are. It didn’t help that I didn’t pass a single person on the way down (which was enough to make me wonder if I was actually going the right direction). Crazy stuff. My knees were pretty shaky after climbing all the way back down.Read More
Tag
basilica
Towers Above Barcelona
I’m not usually one to be scared of heights, and the majority of the towers at La Sagrada Familia were totally doable, but there was one point in particular that even got me a bit nervous. The five-person lift that takes you up would be enough to rattle some (and one British chick actually was freaking out a bit as the stories flew by outside), but the view alone was worth it. Stepping right out of the lift, you walk across from one tower to the next by a narrow walkway. The walkways and stairways were probably the worst part, as they were all pretty much one-person wide. There were numerous times I found myself going down a stairwell at the same time another person (or people!) were going up (and vice a versa). Aside from that, however, the views from the towers were breathtaking.Read More
Reaching Towards the Divine
As awe-inspring as the exterior of La Sagrada Basilica may be, the inside blows that all out of the water. Or maybe into the water would be a better choice of words?
My uncle commented that the interior looked like the inside of a giant sea creature, and I don’t disagree. The whole thing looks like a Giger/Seuss-inspired amalgam and it’s absolutely amazing. The columns reach towards the ceiling like organic tendrils. Said ceiling is festooned with flowering star-shaped objects.Read More