La Sagrada Familia

Barcelona has many unbelievable sites but if you have time to see only one you must go to La Sagrada Família. I was virtually awestruck. Begun in 1882, it is only sixty percent complete and is expected to be finished in 2026. Before I toured La Sagrada Família I wondered how an unfinished church could be so dazzling. It is the exquisite way in which Gaudí depicts the story of the birth of Jesus in the Nativity façade and the death and resurrection of Jesus in the Passion façade. The ornate figures on the façades are carved with such delicate and intense detail that I was drawn in to the story in a mysterious way that has never happened to me in any other church or cathedral.

Inside the church, Gaudí’s use of space, light and stone which gives you the feeling of being under an immense forest canopy is extraordinary.

If you go, be sure to take the audio tour. I don’t think it’s possible to appreciate La Sagrada Família in all its glory without hearing its incredible history and the stories that make its walls come alive.

More photos of La Sagrada Família