The Basílica y Templo Expiatorio de la Sagrada Familia(Basilica and Expiatory Church of the Holy Family) or more popularly known as the Sagrada Família is a very big Roman Catholic church in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. It was designed by the the famous Spanish architect Antoni Gaudí.
Construction begun in 1882 and up to this day it is still incomplete. Though construction is still in progress it is already listed on the UNESCO World Heritage Site church was consecrated by Pope Benedict XVI in November 2010 and was proclaimed as a minor basilica.
The slow construction progressed of the church is attributed mainly to funds from private donations. It was also interrupted by the Spanish civil war. Construction resumed in 1950s and passed the midpoint only in 2010. Which explains why there are still many cranes and construction equipments seen inside and around the church during my visit in 2009.
The anticipated date of completion is on 2026, the centennial of Gaudi's death. He died in 1926 with only less than a quarter of the church completed. Some projection say that it will be completed in 2028.But because of the funds coming from the church's hundreds of visitors plus computer-aided design technology, construction maybe completed two years earlier than projected.
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| model design |
During the first phase of the construction, stones were carved by hands, with the help of modern technology, these stones are now shaped off site.
Due to the extraordinarily long time of construction, some part were already reconstructed/renovated. The newly constructed parts are clearly visible from the old structure.
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| notice the colors, lighter color is for the newly constructed portion while darker is for the older part |
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The church's Spires original design is a total of eighteen spires which when completed will make the minor basilica the tallest church in the world. The said spires symbolizes in ascending order of height the Twelve Apostles, the four Evangelists, the Virgin Mary and Jesus Christ, the tallest. As of 2010, Only Eight spires have been representing the four apostles at the Nativity facade and four apostles at the Passion facade.
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| at the tower |
The Evangelists' spires will be built together with the sculptures of their traditional symbols: a bull (Saint Luke), a winged man (Saint Matthew), an eagle (Saint John), and a lion (Saint Mark). The central spire of Jesus Christ is to be surmounted by a giant cross;The lower spires features a communion hosts with sheaves of wheat and chalices with bunches of grapes, representing the Eucharist.
The Church has planned three grand facades: the Nativity facade to the East, the Passion facade to the West, and the Glory facade to the South (yet to be completed).
The Nativity Facade was the first facade to be built among the three. The design is of the birth of Jesus. Figures of turtles and two chameleons can be found at either side of the facade. The three porticos each represents a theological virtue; Hope, faith and Charity. Above the door is a Tree of Life symbolizing Jesus.The four towers are dedicated to the four Saints namely: Saint Matthias the Apostle, Saint Barnabas, Saint Jude the Apostle, and Saint Simon the Zealot.
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| the Nativity Facade's four towers |
The Passion facade as the name suggest depicts the suffering of Christ. It's design ii in contrast to the heavily decorated Nativity Facade though both have three porticos. This facade is plain and simple. Construction began in 1954, in 1976 the four towers were completed and in 1987 work for the sculpting the details of the facade commences. This entrance that faces the setting the sun is supported by six inclined columns that resembles a sequoia trunk. The three level-sculptures depicts the Last Supper, Judas Kiss and Trial of Jesus on the lowest level followed by the Calvary on the center.The highest level is the Death, Burial and the Resurrection. Soaring above the facade are the four towers dedicated to four Apostles: James, Thomas, Philip and Bartholomeo. At the middle of the four towers is a bridge with a bronze figure symbolizing the Ascension of Christ, it links one tower to another.
The Glory facade, still under construction, will serve as the principal facade.When it will be completed it would become the largest of all the three facades. The design depicts the Celestial Glory of Jesus, the road to God: Death, Final Judgement and Glory.
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| with my former classmate in High School |
The main nave was still under construction during my visit, scaffoldings were everywhere but you can already see how beautiful it is. The intricately designed carved ceilings were amazingly designed.Like the fully laden symbols of the three facades, the naves are also rich of symbology. The tree-like columns resemble as palm grove complete with branches.
Visitors can access the Nave, Crypt, Museum, Shop, and the Passion and Nativity towers. Access to the towers is by lift(elevator) the remainder can be reach by walking/climbing from one tower to another over the bridge linking the towers.
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| inside one of the towers |
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| the spiral stairs going down |
The descent is by a spiral staircase with no handrails and somewhat dark.( This was the situation during my visit way back in summer of 2009. I do not know if there are already changes made)
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| view of Barcelona as seen at the tower |
The capital and largest city France on the Seine river of the Ile-de-France region is most famous for its three major landmarks;the cathedral Notre Dame de Paris, Arc de Triomphe, the beautiful Sacre-Coeur and the Eiffel Tower.Not to forget is the world' largest museum, The Louvre Museum.
For a kid at heart like me, there's the Disneyland Resort. It is the only Disneyland amusement park in Europe.
The famous European city also known as the Fashion Capital of the world really live-up to that phrase. Well, for my almost two weeks stay, I saw and observed that Parisians dresses fashionably.You can easily distinguish who are tourists and who are locals and/or expats by the way they dress. I for myself was on my flip flops, regular jeans and shirts since it was summer at that time. Some tourists were wearing shorts, rubber shoes and tops/shirts while residents of Paris dresses impressively. 
Another contrast I observed was, Paris is also tagged as City of Lights. As such, one may assume that the city is full of life and vibrant at night but on one not-so late night,at around 10:00PM,coming back from Barcelona, I waited for a bus for more than an hour in a dimly lit bus stop along a sparsely lighted street. I walked to the next bus stop and almost cried because there were no one else except me. I was so very willing to take a taxi even if I would be paying more but not even one cab passed by in that one hour.My friend was so worried that I might not catch the last train going to her place. It would mean, me staying in a hotel.. Finally, the bus arrived!, haist... 
Actually their transportation system is efficient. It's multi-level subway trains and local buses make my tour more enjoyable (during the day) but may I also add that it really costs a lot compared here in Italy. 
The aquarium is divided into several themes: 
Mediterranean theme is like a simulation of the Mediterranean sea showing the sea life near the shore. On exhibit here are sea species living in th shallow water and in the ocean deap corals.
Tropical Theme shows the sea life in the Great barrier reef, Red Sea and even Hawaii.
The Mini aquariums tanks exhibit the sea's flora and fauna. 
Planeta Aqua shows the life of sea animals in extreme conditions like that arctic water, tropical water and the deepest part of the sea, the abyss. On exhibit here are penguins, rays, carnivorous piranhas and water spitting archerf. 
Just before the exit is a gift shop for souvenirs.
Construction begun in 1882 and up to this day it is still incomplete. Though construction is still in progress it is already listed on the UNESCO World Heritage Site church was consecrated by Pope Benedict XVI in November 2010 and was proclaimed as a minor basilica. 
The slow construction progressed of the church is attributed mainly to funds from private donations. It was also interrupted by the Spanish civil war. Construction resumed in 1950s and passed the midpoint only in 2010. Which explains why there are still many cranes and construction equipments seen inside and around the church during my visit in 2009. 
The anticipated date of completion is on 2026, the centennial of Gaudi's death. He died in 1926 with only less than a quarter of the church completed. Some projection say that it will be completed in 2028.But because of the funds coming from the church's hundreds of visitors plus computer-aided design technology, construction maybe completed two years earlier than projected. 
Due to the extraordinarily long time of construction, some part were already reconstructed/renovated. The newly constructed parts are clearly visible from the old structure.
The Church has planned three grand facades: the Nativity facade to the East, the Passion facade to the West, and the Glory facade to the South (yet to be completed). 
The Nativity Facade was the first facade to be built among the three. The design is of the birth of Jesus. Figures of turtles and two chameleons can be found at either side of the facade. The three porticos each represents a theological virtue; Hope, faith and Charity. Above the door is a Tree of Life symbolizing Jesus.The four towers are dedicated to the four Saints namely: Saint Matthias the Apostle, Saint Barnabas, Saint Jude the Apostle, and Saint Simon the Zealot.
Visitors can access the Nave, Crypt, Museum, Shop, and the Passion and Nativity towers. Access to the towers is by lift(elevator) the remainder can be reach by walking/climbing from one tower to another over the bridge linking the towers.
