We tried to visit a big tourist attraction today called the Sagrada Familia. We had a nice walk through nice neighborhoods to get to this world renowned place. It was actually kind of funny to see just how many other people were there, because a conservative estimate would be a million. There were a million people in line. The line started in front of the church, stretched the length of one long block, and curled around the back. There were seriously a lot of people queued up. We seriously didn't try to go in. I did, however, walk back to the entrance, start my video camera, and follow the line as it snaked around the building - it felt like I was shooting pictures of a concentration camp based on the facial expressions and body language of those poor souls. Those people are still standing there today. There is no way they got in to see that place and if they did, it must have sounded like a jet engine test center in there, with sounds bouncing all over the stone, high-ceilinged interior.
We sat outside for a while, musing over the fact that the cathedral has been under construction for a hundred years. The guy who designed it died before he completed all of the plans so someone else drew some stuff up and they got to work, mashing the different visions together, in slow motion. It was almost as if the construction was the attraction.
"I think they need to go into therapy with this church," SuperK said. "They don't know how to stop."
"I've lost some respect for them," she added.
"How could they not finish this place in a hundred years?" she asked.
I stood back and listened respectfully for my wife was on a roll.
We took off for another world renowned attraction - a park with sculptures by the world renowned architect who designed the church. On the way we stopped for coffee and had a great conversation with a nice man who gave us all kinds of tips and information. It was a lot of fun. The church was no fun. We grabbed a taxi because the park is at the top of a steep hill - an extravagance for the chronically cheap - piloted by another nice guy. It was a fun taxi ride up to the park where we found all of the people who couldn't get into the Sagrada Familia. They were all there, shelling out another stiff entry fee - the "Gaudi Gouge," SuperK called it - to see attractions that seemed dubious at best. It looked like the centerpiece was an empty bull ring with people sitting on stone benches.
We walked back down the hill, toward our neighborhood. We peeled off on a little side street and had a nice pizza lunch, in the sun, at a 4 table local bar. I trotted out my Spanish and befuddled a businessman eating there. It was fun. We walked home, stopping to sit at a park and over a coffee at a small bar.
Fun, fun, fun.
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