What a mad, magnificent thing is Gaudí's Sagrada Familia. Should it ever be completed in my lifetime, that is definitely on my bucket-list. (I'm willing to regenerate, time-lord fashion if necessary.)
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One of my unpopular opinions: Sagrada Familia is badly overrated, not even close to the best cathedral in Spain. It has some great parts, but as a whole it is an incoherent mess.
I didn’t know about that, thanks. It seems as though he hated it, though, and I don’t hate it. (I even really like parts of it.) I just think it’s deeply flawed and massively overrated. So maybe my opinion is less unpopular than Orwell’s.
That sounded more glib than I meant it to be. I haven't been there in many years, but I found the Sagrada Família fascinating in large part because it seemed so fractured. I'm not sure what my reaction would have been to seeing all those components somehow unified.
And for the obligatory pedantry:
The Sagrada Familia is a temple, raised to the privilege of basilica in 2010... ...but not a cathedral, as Barcelona already has (a very boring) one in the gothic center.
I'm a pro tour guide, and yeah, there's are some other amazing churches in Spain; the Mezquita of Córdoba comes to mind as stellar.
...but the SF is absolutely unique in the world, with a conceptual depth to go with it's beauty.
I'm generally quite jaded for sites, but never tire of this one.
But haven’t they had several other projected deadlines that they’ve missed? I recall the locals a few months saying that they don’t expect it to be done for a very long time.
It's getting very close to done... Just the top of the main tower to go, and not much of it.
I think they'll hit the 2026 date.
(I can see it from balcony here).
I thought that there was still some dispute about seizing land where apartment buildings now stand, to complete the plaza for the main entrance, and that this was a big part of the uncertainty? I’m just relaying what our tour guide said in March, but my memory could be off.
We had been there years ago before it was glazed and it felt slightly claustrophobic as it was so dark.
The difference this time was breathtaking and I definitely had a tearful moment too.
I would think the food and architecture are a valid reason by themselves! (Also, seconding the Sagrada Família being worth visiting even before completion. I've visited it two or three times, and the changes between visits were fascinating.)
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The Sagrada Familia is a temple, raised to the privilege of basilica in 2010... ...but not a cathedral, as Barcelona already has (a very boring) one in the gothic center.
...but the SF is absolutely unique in the world, with a conceptual depth to go with it's beauty.
I'm generally quite jaded for sites, but never tire of this one.
I think they'll hit the 2026 date.
(I can see it from balcony here).
The difference this time was breathtaking and I definitely had a tearful moment too.
It was almost like being in heaven 😇
Also... if all tickets are booked out, it's still worth it to just see from the outside.
With any luck it may be in our lifetimes 🙏
I have been twice