Sunday is for Museums & Gaudi

Sunday is a great day to go to the museums.  As most of the shops are closed, and if you are not there during the summer when the beach would be the obvious choice, plan to go to a museum or 2.   Here are a few suggestions:

The Picasso Museum is in the heart of Las Ramblas and it’s  free to get in on Sundays after 3pm.  Picasso’s early work is quite different than the Picasso that most of us associate with him.  It was more detailed and realistic.  The audio tour is good to get as it will help you understand how different influences changed the face of his work.  However make sure you follow the numbers to each room as it is not clear that they are numbered at the beginning of the tour.

Casa Bastllo is another great museum to do on Sunday.  It is open till 8pm and it is a fairly short tour so you won’t feel overwhelmed by seeing too many museums in one day.  I recommend the audio tour.  It is a little wordy but it does guide you, especially if this is among the first Gaudi museums of your trip.

Spain is known for its Cava and it wine.  Sunday should also include a stop between museums for a glass of Cava and some tapas.

Just up the street from Casa Bastllo is La Pedrera or Casa Mila also by Gaudi.  The name La Pedrera means Stone Quarry.  

Casa Mila got its nickname La Pedrera owning to the way its façade appears to be carved out of the rock.  It is an apartment complex that Gaudi was commission to build between the late 19th and early 20th century.  The tour takes you through one of the apartments that is the museum portion of the building, while the rest of the building is residential.  Again, the audio is really great and will give you a better depth of understanding of Gaudi’s work and life.