Basílica i Temple Expiatori de la Sagrada Família

After just four hours of sleep and a light breakfast, Elaine and I headed out for some proper sightseeing on a planned day off. We caught a tourist bus from just outside the station under our hotel, sitting up on the open top deck. The bus had translation headphones and we could jump on and off as often as we liked, which seemed a good way to see the main sights in a short period of time.

We stayed on as the bus wended its way up Montjuïc Hill, then down to the main port. We went past the World Trade Centre, a statue of Columbus and Port Olimpic, where we dined on Monday night. We drove through the Olympic Village and then alighted at the Gothic section of town, where we wandered around taking photos of the incredible buildings and architecture, including an old Roman defence wall.

We rejoined the bus, passing numerous Gaudi houses, until we reached Basílica i Temple Expiatori de la Sagrada Família - the Gaudi cathedral - which remains unfinished. Words cannot adequately describe this building, but I'll try by saying it is enormous; unusual, unique, surprisingly spacious, light and open inside; stunning; breathtakingly beautiful. Nothing we saw after this could have been anything but an anti-climax.

We returned to the hotel to collect our bags, hopped into a taxi to the airport and caught our late night flight home. The trip was very successful from a business point of view and it was fantastic to have Elaine join me not only for the meetings but the sightseeing too. She has been a star helping out on this project, which would have been a lot more stressful and a lot less fun without her.

I'm very pleased to be home and in my own bed, which I'm going to settle into after posting this, as I have a meeting tomorrow...