We had been to Barcelona in 2012 but did not spend much time in the city centre. In 2012, Barcelona was the first place that we swam in the Mediterranean Sea.
Today we caught the shuttle bus which took us from the cruise terminal to the World Trade Centre. From here it was a short walk to the Column at the start/end of Las Ramblas – reputed to be the most pickpocketed site in Europe. We felt safe with our gift back pack from Princess which has been designed to be pickpocket safe.
We followed Las Ramblas from one end to the other (with some interesting side trips to collect geocaches) finishing at the Placa de Catalunya – the centre of town.
Our main destination for the day was Sagrada Familia for a 2pm tour.
We were at our appointed meeting place well before our scheduled time, so we found a quiet place for a coffee (that also had a loo). We also had one of the best croissants that we have ever tasted. Our 2 large cappuccinos and croissants cost less than our 2 tiny coffees in Marseille!
From our meeting point it was a short walk to the Sagrada Familia and a reasonably quick process to get through the security screening. Our tour then started at a model that showed the completed sections (in grey) and the yet to be completed sections (in yellow). The plan is to complete the central tower by 2026 – the 100 anniversary of the death of Gaudi.
Our tour guide, who was clearly very knowledgeable and passionate about her subject, had very good English but a very strong Spanish accent so it required a lot of concentration to keep up with her narration.
It is certainly an impressive building with so many religious and cultural elements in the story it has been designed to tell. You can tell the difference between the early Gaudi work carved in sandstone and the more recent additions that are done in prefabricated cement. Will it ever be finished? Who knows! To complete the southern side they will need to knock down a block of residential units and the owners are not going to go without a fight!
Having finished our time at Sagrada Familia we made our way back to the ship via the Barcelona Arc de Triumph and then retracing our step down Las Ramblas.
Barcelona is a very busy but very walkable city with many plazas and pedestrian roads.
Westysclan World Cruise 2023 
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