OCD Planner's Mah-valous Mediterranean Adventure on Serenade of the Seas

[ace1zoe2]

A few close ups of the stained glass:

 

 

 

 

Behind the alter area you can look below to the chapel area where actual masses are held. This is also the crypt where Antonio Gaudi is buried. You may enter this area from the exterior of the building but we did not take the time to do that.

 

 

These doors lead into the Passion Facade and are 3 dimensional and just amazing:

 

 

[ace1zoe2]

The Passion Facade of Sagrada is nothing whatsoever like the Nativity Facade. It is all straight lines, plain & simple. None the less it is striking. It tells the story of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. It faces the setting sun symbolic of the death of Christ. There are 6 large columns which look like trees, 4 towers that represent the Apostles James, Thomas, Philip & Bartholomew. 18 smaller towers end in a cross and crown of thorns.

 

 

 

 

 

From Wikipedia:

The scenes sculpted into the façade may be divided into three levels, which ascend in an 'S' form and reproduce the Via Crucis of Christ. The lowest level depicts scenes from Jesus' last night before the crucifixion, including The Last Supper, Kiss of Judas, Ecce Homo, and the Sanhedrin Trial of Jesus. The middle level portrays the Calvary, or Golgotha, of Christ, and includes The Three Marys, Saint Veronica, Saint Longinus, and a hollow-face illusion of Christ. In the third and final level the Death, Burial and the Resurrection of Christ can be seen. A bronze figure situated on a bridge creating a link between the towers of Saint Bartholomew and Saint Thomas represents the Ascension of Jesus.

 

 

[ace1zoe2]

Our tour continued with a trip thru the museum below the basilica. It features drawings, photographs, furniture and models of Gaudi's original designs and polyfunicular model of the church.

 

This is a huge model inside the museum:

 

 

A model of the Passion Facade:

 

 

Another huge model of the Basilica:

 

 

Engineers and designers at work designing and testing:

 

 

After walking through the museum our tour basically concluded. You could spend more time in the museum, visit the school house Gaudi had designed and built for the children of the workers, return to the basilica or call it a day... I had to see more!

 

I took time to visit the school house which had been destroyed in the Spanish war. It was reconstructed and is open to visitors today at no additional cost. It features all of Gaudi's charm and style of architecture.

 

The outside of the building flows:

 

 

Inside the building is basically two rooms. The school room and a replica of Gaudi's office.

 

[ace1zoe2]

 

The ceiling flowed as well:

 

 

 

 

 

Upon leaving the school house we entered to take the trip up the tower. On our way in I noticed the apostles on the Passion Facade as well as Jesus between the towers symbolizing the ascension.

 

[ace1zoe2]

 

Here a crane is hoisting materials to the upper section to be used in construction:

 

 

 

The floor in the entrance to the tower area:

 

 

 

You may take small purses but no back packs or large purses. There are lockers available and we all combined our things and stuffed into a larger locker. You insert a 25 cent euro or 1 euro and take the key. When you return and turn the key your money is returned to you, so it really is free.

 

From above you could see the workers in action:

 

[ace1zoe2]

We waited about 10 minutes until our timed entry to the tower. We took an elevator up to a look out point and then you could continue up a few stairs to the next level then return to take the elevator back down. The views up top were amazing and every "window" that you look out from the sphere was an entirely different view.

 

 

Looking up at the tops of the spires:

 

 

If you chose, you could also walk back down instead of taking the elevator. We opted for the easy way down.

 

 

We decided to go back through basilica on our way out and I am so glad that we did. The sun was over the top of the basilica and now on the west side and the stained glass was casting beautiful colors on the "tree trunks" and ceiling and floors and it was magical.

 

 

 

 

And with that our tour of Sagrada Familia comes to an end... Sorry it was so long but I wanted you to experience just a small portion of what we saw. My daughter had been about 4-5 years earlier when they lived in London and she couldn't believe all the changes there were. We were told that they expect to have it completed in 12 more years. I would love to return and see the finished project if we're not too old and decrepit by then!

[ace1zoe2]

By now it was 2:30 or so and our bellies were growling. We walked right up Ave de Gaudi just a couple of blocks and lunch at one of the places Esther had told us about was a local favorite. It was called La Piazzenza and it was great. Debbie & I continued our Sangria Tour and both agreed that this was the best we had during our trip and the largest!

 

 

After lunch we walked on up Ave de Gaudi for a few blocks until we reached the Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau. Esther had also told us about this place and all the renovations that had been done. She told us it was free to tour but when we arrived that wanted an admission fee so we passed on that and just took pictures from the outside.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The building was very pretty on the outside and I would have enjoyed seeing the inside but we still had lots to see on our last day in Barcelona. So as we had agreed the night before, today we would be taking public transportation. We headed to the Sagrada Metro stop and set out for the Las Ramblas area we visited last night. Debbie needed to pick up a few gifts for her daughters and friends back home. We also wanted to attend the only showing of the Magic Fountain that evening at 7pm.

[ace1zoe2]

We made our way towards the Magic Fountain that we could see in the distance. I zoomed in and took this picture as we headed up the street.

 

 

Instead of our Magic Fountain Show we were greeted with protestors instead! The show had been postponed until Saturday evening and by then we'd be headed back to the states... BOO! The Cantalan people are trying to gain independence from Spain and there were people gathered everywhere.

 

 

So we made our way to the big shopping mall inside the old bull ring where she was able to find a few gift items. Afterwards we walked around in the back street areas around Las Ramblas for about an hour. By this time it was completely dark and we were all tired. We still needed to pack and make sure the apartment was clean before checking out the next morning. We didn't see a metro stop so we caught a taxi which when split between the four of us was cheaper than taking the metro had been.

 

Our nice peaceful evening at home packing was interrupted for about an hour with neighbors opening the windows & doors and standing on their balconies beating pots and pans in support of seceding from Spain. It was a unique feeling being in the middle of the protests. We never felt unsafe, it was just something none of us had ever experienced. You can click on the link (picture) below and get an idea of what we listened to for about an hour!

 

 

Finally we were able to go to sleep. Morning came early and we were equally sorry to see our vacation end and ready to be back home to rest! We had prearranged for transfer service to the airport using Barcelona Day Tours. I made the reservation online for all 12 of us to be picked up at 3 different locations between 8:00am-8:30 and transferred to the airport for our 11:15 flight home. They were prompt and even about 10 minutes early picking us up in 2 Mercedes vans.

 

We were at the Barcelona airport in no time. Bag check, security check and to our gates without any problems. We were all on the initial flight from Barcelona to Amsterdam, then Atlanta where we would part ways with some driving the rest of the way to Alabama, some flying on to Indy and the other 6 of us back to Texas.

 

Our last views of Sagrada as we were leaving.

 

 

And our neighborhood. Everywhere you see a flag hanging they were beating pots and pans the night before.

 

[Raxter54]

Those pictures of Sagrada Familia - just WOW! I can't even comprehend how much effort when into a place like that. Just curious - how long has it been under construction, and how long will it take to finish?

[ace1zoe2]

We had a couple of hours to chill inside the airport and we had brunch and did some duty free shopping. Debbie was able to find a few bottles of Sangria with little hats and castanetas attached. I purchased some chili oil and 3 bottles of wine and everything was sealed in duty free bags and inserted into boxes that we could carry on to the plane. We boarded the Delta plane on time and were on our way to Amsterdam. Right away we were served lunch which was a cucumber, mayo & cheese sandwich. Minus the cucumbers, add a glass of wine and it wasn't so bad.

 

 

Worst part of the flight for me... my entertainment in the seat in front and the irresponsible parent traveling with him. He was constantly standing up, horsing around, singing or listening to his games or CD's without earbuds. It was SO annoying I finally took his picture!

 

 

We arrived in Amsterdam with only 45 minutes to de-plane, go thru customs, have our duty free bags check and reboard our next flight to Atlanta. We were pulled aside for duty free where they checked our passports, took our sealed bottles out of the boxes, put them in a second plastic bag and resealed them again, returned them to their boxes and we were able to make our flight without any problems.

 

My view of Amsterdam from the plane. Hopefully some day we can return for an actual visit.

 

 

 

 

Wind turbines in the ocean... I had not seen this before either.

 

 

The next flight was the long haul portion and none of us were able to sleep since it was day time to us now. We arrived in Atlanta 15 minutes late with only an initial 1.5 hour layover to catch our next flights. This is where we ran into trouble.

 

Let me just say now that I will never intentionally book a connecting flight through ATL EVER AGAIN! It was a cluster from start to finish. They had 2 or 3 international flights arriving at the same time. First there were not enough passport agents to check incoming people, it took in excess of 45 minutes just to get through that line, then you had to pick up your luggage, go around a corner and recheck your luggage. IF you had duty free liquids they now had to be place in your checked bag whether or not you had room for it. So we had to ditch the boxes and pray that the 3 bottles of wine and oil weren't broken and soaked in to our clothes when we got home.

 

Our friends weren't told that they had to put their liquids in so we told them after we were already in the security line. She called a TSA agent over and asked her and she told them no, they could carry it on... didn't really matter at this point because their other bags were already gone. There were hundreds of people standing in line for 2 checkpoints and we all had less than 15 minutes to make our flight. We had told everyone to go on ahead of us since they were flying different flights to Indy (4 of our group). One had traveled early from Barcelona when they initially changed our flights so that she could get home in one day. Two were spending the night in Atlanta and driving back to Alabama the following day and 5 of us were on the same flight to DFW.

 

Of course when we finally reached security the agents there told our friends they couldn't bring on the liquids. After a few heated words and supervisors they said screw it and just left everything so we would at least have a chance to make the flight if they held it. Our friend Deb made the flight and we were texting before they left. She said there we A LOT of empty seats and she informed the flight attendant that we were running and she said they would hold the plane.

 

Next we had to go down an escalator, catch a tram, go 3 stops and run 20 something gates dragging our carry-ons. The plane is still at the gate but they had closed the door and would not allow us on. 15 people missed our flight, they held it (3 minutes) long enough for 10 to get on and our group of 4 and another we never saw were left behind.

 

Finally we were able to find a gate agent who was on the receiving end of some mad customers. Afterwards we all felt bad for her and apologized before we left. Delta ended up putting us up at the airport Marriott and booking us on an 8am flight home the following morning.

 

We finally got to the hotel about 10:15pm after being up for what seemed like forever all we wanted to do was go to bed! We stopped by the Delta service area before leaving the airport to pick up our "essentials" bag which provided us with sleeping clothes (the thinest t-shirt you can ever imagine, you could literally see through it!), a plastic comb, toothbrush, one time tooth paste and a razor.

 

We went ahead down to the restaurant and hubby had a burger and I had a sushi roll and glass of wine which set us back about $50 with tip. Then it was off to bed so that we could be up and outside for the shuttle by 7am. We were already checked in and bags where gone the night before and hopefully somewhere at DFW so we left the hotel and arrived at the airport less than 15 minutes later. Went straight to our gate and onto the plane.

 

Finally just a few hours later we arrived at DFW and found our other bags sitting outside the Delta office. After an extra day and 17 days in someone else's bed I was ready to be home and in my own bed!

 

We had a fantastic trip, saw more than I could have ever imagined, enjoyed time with friends, family and new Roll Call friends on tours, dinners and more. We were exhausted but it was worth every minute and every dollar or euro that we spent along the way!

 

I apologize again that it has taken me 7 plus weeks to finish this report and I hope that you feel that the time you invested in reading it has left you a little more knowledgeable about the areas we visited.

 

If anyone has any questions about anything I would be happy to try and answer them. If I don't know the answer I'm sure that someone else will chime in and help us out.

 

YAY!!!! Finally I'm finished! Now to enjoy Christmas, then a 4 night camping trip then time to pack and leave on 12/31 heading to Florida to have Christmas with 3 of our 4 grands that live there. Then a drive from JAX to Port Canaveral on 1/4 to board Explorer for a RELAXING five night cruise before flying home to start the new work year!

 

Until then, Happy Sails!

 

Cindy

[ace1zoe2]

Those pictures of Sagrada Familia - just WOW! I can't even comprehend how much effort when into a place like that. Just curious - how long has it been under construction, and how long will it take to finish?

 

Raxter,

 

The Sagrada Familia began construction in 1882, 132 years ago, and is expected to be completed in 2026 if funds continue from tourism as they have over the past few years.

 

That date will coincide with the 100th anniversary of Antonio Gaudi's death in 1926 at age 72.

 

If you ever get the chance to see it don't pass up the opportunity. It is indescribable to tell someone what I saw... you will have to see it for yourself to get the full effect.

 

Cindy

[karinad]

That spiral staircase is amazing! Great shot of it, too! The whole church is a work of art. We were there, but couldn't go in about 12 yrs. ago. These are the best pictures I've seen of it. Again, thanks for taking the time! I'm learning a lot!

[Dreamer115]

Amazing review thank you very muchfor doing it. I look forward to your next one, have a great christmas.

Connie

[cruzinlady1947]

Cindy....what an awesome review. Pictures were fantastic. I can't imagine seeing all that in person. I can only dream of that. Thanks for taking the time to do this. Doesn't matter how long it took, it was worth it.

 

The picture of that little boy.....wow...he really looked like a little brat. I think my husband would have had a few choice words to say to him. Of course, he was only doing what his parents allowed him to do. So really, it was their fault. Thank goodness, you don't come across someone like that too often. Just a shame it was on a plane with no way out. :eek:

 

Thanks again and will be looking forward to you next adventure, wherever it takes you.

 

 

Gwen :)

[ace1zoe2]

That spiral staircase is amazing! Great shot of it, too! The whole church is a work of art. We were there, but couldn't go in about 12 yrs. ago. These are the best pictures I've seen of it. Again, thanks for taking the time! I'm learning a lot!

 

 

Thanks for taking time to post. If you ever return it is totally worth it to go inside.

 

Cindy

 

 

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[ace1zoe2]

Amazing review thank you very muchfor doing it. I look forward to your next one, have a great christmas.

 

Connie

 

 

Thanks Connie for taking time to read & comment.

 

May you and your family have a very blessed Christmas.

 

This will be our 1st Christmas in 32 years (since our oldest child's birth) that our entire family won't be together for Christmas. Our SNL is Navy & they moved out of state last year

 

Luckily we'll be flying out on 12/31 to see the daughter, SNL & 3 of our 4 grands!

 

Merry Christmas to All!

Cindy

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[ace1zoe2]

Cindy....what an awesome review. Pictures were fantastic. I can't imagine seeing all that in person. I can only dream of that. Thanks for taking the time to do this. Doesn't matter how long it took, it was worth it.

 

The picture of that little boy.....wow...he really looked like a little brat. I think my husband would have had a few choice words to say to him. Of course, he was only doing what his parents allowed him to do. So really, it was their fault. Thank goodness, you don't come across someone like that too often. Just a shame it was on a plane with no way out. :eek:

 

Thanks again and will be looking forward to you next adventure, wherever it takes you.

 

 

Gwen :)

 

 

Gwen,

 

Thank you so much! You are too kind. I appreciate you following along in all of my reviews and taking time to comment & let me know you're still there.

 

Next up is Explorer 5 night out of Port Canaveral. My report will probably be mostly about the ship as I have pre-planned ABSOLUTELY NOTHING! Not one excursion or even a specialty dinner.

 

We're even doing a table for two. This trip is all about REST & RELAXATION!

 

Cindy

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Julia’s Journey’s]

Great pictures of Sagrada - I was first there in 1984 and then again in 2011, what a difference, then I took DD in May 2012 and DH in October 2012, you never get tired of seeing it or the awesome market ;)

BTW that red fruit is dragon fruit :)

Sorry you had such a crappy flight thru Atlanta :(

[Sheal]

Cindy,

 

Thanks for taking the time to write this wonderful review. I'm thinking about taking the trip to Montserrat and the photos you took make it much easier to explain what is so special and unique about this place.

 

We, too, have rented an apt for our 5-7 days pre-cruise (us-5 days, inlaws, dd and friend-7 days). I'm hoping it turns out as nice as the pictures since I chose the place.:)

 

Enjoy your holiday, visits, and cruise!

 

Sheal

[tidygirl]

I agree the Sagrada Familia was great! My hubby and kids aren't really into historical stuff but they thought it was really impressive and they enjoyed it much more than the Vatican! There were so many details to see you couldn't take it all in! As I was looking at your pictures I noticed many places we missed!

[BonTexasNY]

This thread is one of the most amazing and comprehensive ones I've read in quite awhile. And those pictures...OMG! Makes all of my Caribbean cruises seem so boring! Your review reminds me a bit of "Drama Queen's" report on her family's Med cruise a few years ago. I doubt we will ever be able to take one of these Med cruises ( I know, never say never) so your review made me feel as if I were part of your tour group. Thank you for that!

 

I am now going to go back and look at some of your other threads that I've missed. I know I'm in for a wonderful read.

 

Enjoy your time on the Explorer!

[ace1zoe2]

This thread is one of the most amazing and comprehensive ones I've read in quite awhile. And those pictures...OMG! Makes all of my Caribbean cruises seem so boring! Your review reminds me a bit of "Drama Queen's" report on her family's Med cruise a few years ago. I doubt we will ever be able to take one of these Med cruises ( I know, never say never) so your review made me feel as if I were part of your tour group. Thank you for that!

 

I am now going to go back and look at some of your other threads that I've missed. I know I'm in for a wonderful read.

 

Enjoy your time on the Explorer!

 

 

Thank you so much for all the complements. I really enjoy the research and planning and figure if I can provide the links and such it will help others get to what they are looking for more quickly.

 

I hope you enjoy the other trip reports as well. Maybe someday you will be planning a trip there as well.

 

Merry Christmas!

 

Cindy

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[abhb]

Thank you so much for your pictures and information. We are doing a Med cruise this summer. You gave me some great ideas and information for tours.

[ace1zoe2]

Thank you so much for your pictures and information. We are doing a Med cruise this summer. You gave me some great ideas and information for tours.

 

 

You are so welcome. I hope something I included will make you're planning easier!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[JM-1972]

What a fantastic review, thanks for posting, as a fellow OCD planner, I was wondering if you had in the compasses or port info given out details about the port shuttles. We are a family of 4 and I need to decide between DIY and RCCL excursions I would like to know the charge that RCCL is making for the shuttles. I know in some ports the shuttles are provided by the port but can't remember the situation in the above ports. I did notice last year that if RCCL are providing the shuttle the prices have greatly increased.

 

Can you help?