Park Güell

Today the main event was a visit/tour of Park Güell. This Gaudi designed park was started by Eusebi Güell as essentially a private housing development centered around a park. This "get back to nature" approach was a good fit for Gaudi. The effort started in 1900 with the development of the park and attempts to entice wealthy folks to buy/build homes in the park. As a commercial venture, it failed. The rich folks thought that the park was too far from the center of Barcelona and didn't bite. It was turned over to the city and is now a municipal park. Like la Sagrada Familia, this park is unusual and fantastic. These rough stone walkways wind through the entire grounds:

Fairy tale buildings dot the property:

One of the rough stone pillars is in the shape of a laundress:

These support pillars are modeled after tornados:

One of the buildings has been converted into the neighborhood elementary school. I can't think of a better place for kids to go to school--surrounded by Gaudi's unusual art:

This is the main entrance to the park:

After the park, we wandered down to the gothic quarter, then to the art museum (we didn't go in). This fountain in front is called "The Magic Fountain":

Further up the hill towards the art museum is the cascade fountain:

Proof that we made it to the top:

The place around the art museum was very busy because the final stage of the Tour of Catalonya had just wrapped up. Here's Chris Froome signing autographs outside of the Sky Team bus:

We went back into the gothic quarter and just like cathedrals all over the world, this one had buskers out front:

On the subway back to the hotel, or is it a bar. It's weird to see people drinking beer on the subway. That's not a thing in the US:

We went to a great little kebab place around the corner from the hotel for dinner. I'm so full. We have  a noon-ish flight back to Sevilla tomorrow.