Chapter 108 - Honeymoon (3) (1/2)
Finland bought entrance tickets to Sagrada Familia online and after brunch they both immediately drove there. For the first time Finland saw Caspar drive the car himself, and he looked very cool. Like a star with his own car commercial!
Finland couldn't stop admiring her husband's appearance. She felt very lucky.
They parked at a parking place a bit far from the Sagrada Familia, and continued on foot. Finland wore a thick coat, but she still felt cold. Her body was accustomed to the hot and humid weather in the tropical country, she had difficulty adjusting to the mild winter in Spain.
Caspar embraced her and tried to provide warmth for the girl as they walked towards Sagrada Familia.
The queue at the online ticket exchange counter was indeed shorter than the on-the-spot ticket purchase counter and 15 minutes later they were already inside.
”There's no need to use a headset and hire a guide,” Caspar said, ”I know Gaudi and I can tell you the complete history of the Sagrada Familia.”
Ah, of course, Finland thought. At this point she would be surprised if Caspar did not know Gaudi. Her husband seemed to know all the important people in world history.
He was friends with Albert Einstein and Mileva Maric, assisted in the research of the Wright brothers and Karl Benz, and apparently also knew Antoni Gaudi in person.
”How do you know Gaudi?” Finland finally asked, she could not help herself.
”He was recommended by Guell. Gaudi designed a lot of buildings for Guell, including his house and the park that we will visit later this afternoon, Parc Guell. I like Gaudi's style and asked him to design the villa we live in now.” Caspar shrugged, ”Now my taste has changed, but in the past, I really liked Gaudi. He was a legend. Too bad the only woman he loved did not return his love, so he chose celibacy and devoted himself to his religion and lived a really simple life. At his old age, people often thought he was a bum because of his shabby appearance. When he was hit by a tram, no one recognized Gaudi and thought he was a beggar, so he did not get adequate treatment at the hospital. He finally died because of his wounds...”
”Ohh... what a pity.” sighed Finland. She never knew how tragic the life of the Sagrada Familia's designer was.
”It was indeed tragic.”
When they entered the building, Finland was fascinated by how intricate and beautiful the colorful carvings and glass alloys in the Sagrada Familia were. It's very tall pillars gave a grand and majestic impression. It's hard to believe that this unique building was a church. The design was not similar to any church she had seen anywhere.
Caspar patiently explained every detail of the monument and fascinated Finland with the history behind it.
Sagrada Familia was built in 1882, and to this day, more than 100 years later, it still wasn't finished. The building was opened to the public with an entrance fee to finance its construction.
Every year it was visited by millions of people. Some parts of the building were still closed when they entered because they were still being built by workers.