Casa Batllo, Barcelona

Last time we went to Barcelona, it was a bank holiday Saturday. In August. Yes, we were idiots. I fell out of love with Barcelona that day.

We wanted to visit the Casa Batllo that time, but we could see through the windows that it was crammed with people -- quite apart from the queue snaking down the street. La Pedrera: same problem, with at least an hour's wait. The Sagrada Familia -- you could barely see it for tour buses.

Today, we took the train from Flaçá to Passeig de Gracia, strolled down the street, and walked straight into the Casa Batllo. We'd intended to do a number of other things today, but we reeled out over two hours later with our heads full of magic. We were so lucky -- during the whole time we were in there, we only saw about a dozen other people. What an amazing building ... Gaudi had an eye for every detail, from door handles and ventilation slats to the shape and gradations of colour of the tiles in the internal light well (darker at the top, lighter at the bottom, to allow for the different light levels). Everything is cleverly designed to maximise use of natural light. There were no plans, and virtually no straight lines -- the builders had to work from drawings and a plaster model. Around every corner, there was something to delight and amaze. You could take hundreds of photos and still not capture everything. I tried to imagine what it must have been like to live inside a transcendental work of art, and I couldn't. Imagine waking up every day surrounded by the workings of Gaudi's mind.

Outside, we sat down in a pavement cafe and toasted Gaudí with glasses of cava. It was well after 2 pm by now, so we headed off to the Euskal Etxea (the Basque House) for lunch and a bit of Basque nostalgia. By the time we'd finished ... well, it was almost 5 pm and a bit late for any more sightseeing, as it was getting dark. We pressed our noses vainly against the windows of the Palau de la Musica, and then walked back to the station through the Barri Gótic. I'd fallen in love with Barcelona again -- this area of narrow streets with small shops, balconies hung with washing, kids playing in the streets, is nothing like Barcelona's grand avenues. And we still haven't seen la Pedrera, or revisited the Sagrada Familia, so we'll just have to come back.

This photo is the roof, seen from the terrace at the back of the house, which is invisible from the street. I had a hard time choosing, but I like the simplicity of this. Do have a look in large.