Port Visit: Barcelona's Sagrada Familia

The back of the cathedral has some many decorations

Trying to take in Barcelona in less than 12 hours is impossible. Even trying to do the highlights well is a difficult too.

The front of the church (not my picture!)

We had our best intentions, but literally only had a taste of the Spanish city.

Since we were a group of eight traveling together, my uncle arranged for a van for us, but we actually got a full-on tour bus instead. How that happened is strange, but it was like our very own hop-on, hop-off bus.

Our first destination was Sagrada Familia, the famous cathedral designed by Antoni Gaudi that is still being built. Construction started in 1882, but by the time he died in 1926, only one-quarter of the building was completed.

Construction continues...

The project kept going through private donations, but then construction was interrupted by the Spanish Civil War, and building started again in the 1950s. Now with computer technology, construction has speeded up, and the Roman Catholic cathedral is expected to be completed in 2026, the centenary of Gaudi's death.

The original inspiration for the Basilica Sagrada Familia came from Josep Maria Bocabella, founder of the Spiritual Association of Devotees of St Joseph. He visited the Vatican in 1872 and wanted to build a church.

During the Civil War, Gaudi's workshop was destroyed by Catalan anarchists and so the designs now are based on reconstructions of plans that were burned in the fire as well as on modern adaptations.

Admission into the cathedral (15-22 euros for basic tickets, and can go up as much as 40 euros) is what funds construction, which probably explains why there are so many people there and tickets sell out quickly.

The ceiling of the cathedral that I couldn't see unfortunately!

We didn't get a chance to go in, so we could only admire it from the outside. It covers one giant block and there's so much to see from every angle. I tried sketching part of the facade and even then it was had to squeeze in all the detail. The spires had figures on them as well as words, every little bit had some kind of decoration that was not necessarily symmetrical.

The place is still literally a construction site, with cranes moving materials around as the rest of us watch. It's as if they are putting on a show for us, that they are building this thing...

Same with the beautiful colours reflected inside...! Next time!

In any event it's an excuse to come back when it's finally completed... though Wikipedia says while the main construction will be completed in 2026, the decorations may not be completed until 2030 or 2032...

Port Visit: Palma de Mallorca

The Palace of L'Almudaina (left) and La Seu cathedral (right)

Our next port of call was Palma de Mallorca in the Balearic Islands in Spain. We had a short shuttle ride to the main attraction, La Seu, or Palma Cathedral, a massive cathedral near the water, and it was built to look like a ship moored at the city's edge.

The beautiful nave of the cathedral

When James I, King of Aragon conquered the area, the mosque on that site was turned into a cathedral with construction starting in 1300 and didn't finish until 1601. James I wanted to make a statement with the church, that Christianity had established itself here. And it is a grand statement.

It's a Gothic cathedral complete with flying buttresses and has one of the largest rose windows in the world, known as "the Gothic eye". Its nave is also one of the highest in all the Gothic cathedrals in Europe.

After an earthquake struck in 1851, parts of the cathedral had to be rebuilt and was overseen by architect Antonio Gaudi.

Inside it's magnificent -- one is filled with awe seeing the light bouncing off the stained glass windows and creating a kaleidoscope effect with colours. It's absolutely beautiful. You feel so tiny in the cathedral and at the same time in awe of the beauty of the place that's quite eclectic.

Everyone is drawn to the nave, which has a kind of hanging chandelier, perhaps designed by Gaudi, with a string of lights supporting the crucifixion of Christ at the top, and below more strings of lights.

Our delicious seafood paella for lunch

To the right is an area that's been completely designed by Gaudi. It looks very organic and hardly structured. On the left it looks like the sea, with fish looking like they are coming out of the wall, while the other walls have various textures and sculptures covered with splattered paint. Was it a rush job or deliberately done like that to contrast with the orderliness of the cathedral?

Next door is the Palau de L'Almudaina, originally an Islamic fort that was converted into a residence for Mallorcan monarchs at the end of the 13th century.

It is very grand and solid inside, thanks to the Moorish architecture, while the walls are filled with Flemish tapestries and paintings. Some of the rooms are very grand (though probably cold in the evenings). One dining hall has a series of arches holding up the room, with a massive carpet on the floor and the windows overlook the sea.

The tomatoes (left) and mushrooms (right) were huge!

The palace has its own small chapel too, intimate, and even the vestments are on display in glass showcases. There is also a small courtyard complete with a fountain.

Afterwards we wandered through the streets in search of a bite to eat and found a small place that actually did a decent seafood paella, thought it took a while for it to be prepared.

Nearby was a food market, but many of the stalls were closing for the afternoon already. Of the ones that were still open, the produce looked amazing -- the tomatoes were massive together with the mushrooms, while the seafood, such as oysters looked delicious.

The elegant Parliament building

On our way back to the shuttle, we stumbled upon the Parliament building, a beautiful ornate building with the Spanish, Catalan and EU flags flying out front.

Port Visit: Alghero

The Sardinian town Alghero means "full of seaweed"

This morning we arrived in Alghero, a port town in northwestern Sardinia. But because the port isn’t deep enough for the cruise ship, we had to take a tender, or a small shuttle boat to get to the town, which took about 15 minutes.

The clear blue waters are amazing, our ship in the distance

I love how the town’s name means “full of algae”, and its history dates back in the 8^th century when it was established by the Phoencians, who set up a post here to trade with the Etruscans on the Italian mainland.

In 1102, Alghero developed into a fortified town by the Genoese Doria family who ruled the town for centuries, but, in 1354, Peter IV of Aragon took over the town and populated the port with Catalans, expelling Sardinians and Ligurians. Alghero was under Catalan-Aragonian rule and the Spanish Hapsburgs for four centuries.

By the early 16^th century, Alghero was received papal recognition, and in 1720 the town was acquired by the Piedmont-based House of Savoy.

The ramparts right by the water to fortify the town

During World War II Alghero was bombed and many parts of the town were destroyed.

Today it’s a quaint place with narrow streets and leftover Catalan architecture. We first took a small tour bus that was actually like a children’s train ride through parts of the town.

Afterwards we retraced some of the areas that the train went through to have a closer look. Many of the shops sell red coral made into jewellery, some costing 10 euros up to over 100 euros. It was hard to tell the difference in terms of quality.

We were most impressed with the clear blue water that you could still see far into the distance, which is why this place is famous for its lobster and sea urchin! Sadly we didn’t get to try any…

The Senyera flag represents Aragon

Nevertheless it’s a very walkable town, and with the sunshine and blue skies at 25 degrees Celsius, makes for a nice visit!

Port Visit: Livorno

The "new" fort at Livorono that is now a park inside

Early in the morning we arrived in Livorno, which is the main port for Tuscany. The town may only have a population of 180,000, but it’s Italy’s third-largest seaport. Livorno developed as a port under the control of the Republics of Pisa and Florence, the Duchies of the Medici and Lorensi, and since 1860 under a united Italy.

The piazza has a fountain with the town crest

In the 16^th and 17^th centuries, the Medici built many buildings, but many of them were destroyed in Allied bombing, and by the Germans who retreated northward in 1944.

We only spent a few hours in Livorno, as there wasn’t much to see – on Sunday practically the entire town seems to shut down. One of our first stops was Fortezza Nuova or “New Fort” to distinguish itself from the older fort near the water.

It isn’t well maintained, but walking around the area we soon realized it has been transformed into a park with grass patches and lots of trees – many people bring their dogs here for exercise, others come here to have chats with friends.

Near the fort by one of the canals, a local stopped us to show us large amounts of fish were swimming in the dirty water by the boats tied up. He made gestures to explain that he would never eat the fish because the water was filled with waste.

The beautiful exterior of the cathedral on Via Grande

On Via Grande we visited a cathedral that was constructed from 1581 until 1606. The ceiling was completely destroyed in the war, but was replaced with a decent copy of the murals on the ceiling. It’s a very beautiful church.

We saw a sign pointing to the Mercato Centrale100 metres away but when we got there it was obvious it was shut down today – it was like a ghost town. However, we noticed an interesting looking building nearby and discovered it was a synagogue.

It turns out at the end of the 15^th century a large Jewish community of traders began living in Livorno. The synagogue is modern looking, a sharp contrast to the church.

Inside the ceiling was rebuilt after World War II

In the Piazza Grande there’s a fountain – many piazzas have fountains – and people use them too. We saw a man take out his plastic bottle and fill it up with water from the fountain.

Unfortunately we missed Terrazza Mascagni, a walkway by the water that features black and white tiles like a chessboard. The area used to be the Fort of Cavalleggeri, but it was dismantled in 1872 and in 1925 made into a public space for strolling and concerts. After World War II it had to be rebuilt.

Also our shuttle bus passed by the Monumento dei Quatro Mori, or the monument of the four Moors. At the top is a statue of Ferdinand I of Tuscany, who built the fortress to protect Livorno from the invasion of pirates, Moors and Saracen.

The modern-looking synagogue

The statue is hardly politically correct these days, because below Ferdinand I’s feet are four Moors who are chained and crouching below him.