The wind blew last night, slamming the unmoored shutters and keeping me awake. It was truly cold this morning at 8:00 when we made our way to Via Grácia. Today we toured one of António Gaudí’s iconic sights, Casa Batlló.
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| Casa Batlló Patio |
We’ve passed by it many times. It’s one of the main features of the “Golden Block” or “Block of Discord,” and only about 5 blocks from our apartment. The style is organic in a broad sense of holistic connectivity, but also insofar as the elements echo the physicality of bones and skin. One of the nicknames for the Casa Batlló is “The House of Bones,” a title that draws attention to the stark emergence of vertebrae on the exterior or a receding seashell in the ceiling pattern of the attic.
It is fanciful yet grounded in nature: echoes of flowing water and anatomy throughout, and the rooftop and exterior recall St. George (San Jordi) and the dragon, with the cross on the roof recalling the hilt of his (rather impressive!) lance.
We had paid a bit extra for the early morning tickets, and there were only 4 of us in the house. Parts were closed due to renovation. We had toured the other two houses on the block, and even though this house is the most famous of the three, we found this self-guided headphone experience lacking in comparison.
The others, especially the “Mulberry” house by Muntaner, gave a much better sense of how the family lived and a bit more about the history.
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| Casa Batlló |
Casa Batlló felt like the shell of a house; we had actually seen some of the furniture at the museum last week. Even with that, it is after all, Gaudí, and the shapes, tile work, and organic lines are just amazing.
We followed that with a tour of Luis Puig de Caldefach’s Casa del Punxtes. They really went all in on the San Jordi tale with an elaborate multi-room video/interactive experience. One scene of Jordi’s slaying of the dragon would end and a door would open and the film would continue. A classic knight in shining armor tale with maidens and a persistent dragon. The rooftop was lovely. The sun rose and warmed us and the wind that was biting this morning finally fell.
We walked back and split a sandwich on the way home. After laundry and a light lunch, we headed out for the Thursday night “Ruta del Pincho,” a row of restaurants on Carrer de Blai featuring 2EUR beer and pintxos. I was on it!!
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| Casa Batlló |
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| Casa del Punxes |
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| Casa del Punxes |
I feel like we have conquered tapas. Lorena found out about a January Thursday night promotional deal, one small beer and a tapa for two Euros offered in several bars up and down this pedestrian strip.
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| La Esquinita del Blai |
The Tapas bars have always been intimidating. Tons of people and competition, not clear what to do, always hard. Well we arrive plenty early and this kind waitress takes us under her wing. “I will tell you what to do.”
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| L’Angolina del Blai |
The tapas all have toothpicks, the white ones are the cheaper and the colored ones are more expensive. Well of course I want all the colored ones. I start out very timid, barely able to peruse the choices.
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| Blai 9 |
But by fourth bar I was bellied up with the rest of them pushing to get the hot new choices. The bars all had different cliental and different vibes. One was local & cheaper (little burgers), one was cool and upscale (greens and brie) another was more like Frank Sinatra (Beef and sausage) . What fun! I love Barcelona! I can’t wait to go home and recreate the tapas at home. (Especially the little bread and bacon with a quail egg over-easy).
K & L's Travel Blog 