17th August : Barcelona

 ** Good morning. Given the disruptions I had to face yesterday, my plans for today are relatively simple. Just 2 museums.

• Picasso Museum
• Barcelona Museum of Contemporary Art - (never actually found it, most probably because I was tired. However having come across the Born museum by accident, it made up for the art museum.)

They are relatively close to each other, on the east side of the city,  near to the coast. But before I start out I will need my cafe Americano and coisant to give me energy for the morning.

** There is a storm forecast for this afternoon so finally I be be using my umbrella that I have been shlepping around for the past 5 odd weeks.

The storm is finally arriving as I am typing at 9pm

** This will be my last full day in Barcelona and in Spain, as I leave early tomorrow afternoon for a very long bus ride to Paris. I should arrive about 8am on Friday morning. After about 2.5 to 2 hours with Matt, Marie and new born Emmett I will catch the chunel train at midday for London. 

** Toilet stops. If you find a nice coffee shop, of which there are dozens in almost every direction you look, they more than likely will have a toilet. So for the cost of a coffee, about 1.5 to 2 Euro, you can make sure you do not get yourself into trouble.

** The Arc D'Triumf (this is spelt correctly, btw)

Here are the images I failed to take my first day in Barcelona. This arch was built for a very different reason than the one in Paris. There is apparently a great undercurrent of animosity against the French dating back to the Napoleon's Peninsular Wars. The rule appears to be, if you ask about the historic issues with France, you will get an earful 😮‍💨

** Some comments about how certain things work and are laid out here in Barcelona. The buildings in the older parts of the city, certainly around where I am currently staying, are laid out, in my mind, in a manner that is very different to any other city I have seen. 

Whilst in newer areas the buildings are built square to the corners of the  block and run parallel to the pavement, the older areas make use of the corners by cutting them. The image is better able to explain what I mean.

** Many of the population make use of the instant for hire electric bicycles and scooters that abound. These bikes appear to be almost everywhere, and the young, the not so young and the not so, not so young all use them. It is great for clean air. I am not sure if they are readily available in the outer suburbs.

** The side roads all appear to run on an alternating, one way system. One just had to remember which way the road runs, otherwise accidents occur.

** Ok museums. As always, when you are making your way to one museum, you come across another one. I needed a toilet so found a coffee shop and while looking around I found a large building called the Born. Nothing to do with birth. When I asked about the name I was told that it was the protective piece placed at the end of Lance's when there were tournaments in the middle ages. It used to be a market with a protective cover (the Born,). Anyway about 300 years ago during the wars if the Spanish succession, the imported - hated king, made the villagers leave their homes and he had the area all filled in and covered and he built something. Jump forward 300 odd years someone wanted to build on the area and lo & behold they started digging up the past. So it is now a museum of the homes from 300 years ago. The photos I took show the remains of the old section 300 years ago when it was filled in.

The sign basically says 'no more war'. Great sentiment for a city that has seen so much of the horrors of war over the centuries.

The Picasso Museum

He was definately a prodegy and a genius. He donated over 900 pieces of work to this museum. His early works are from age 15 upwards  and a few later items. Much of the item on show are sketches and development pieces for larger works he had in mind for parts of his major works. 

The most important concept to take away is that no one just sits down and creates masterpieces. It takes time and effort and relies on support of family & friends all the way along.

All of the following are the works of Picasso.

Warning - some of his sketches are very graphic, and are basically pornographic. If you can't handle it, please do not look at it.

This piece is called the mad man

These are a series of sketches around the subject of the bull fight ring

Picasso 's father who was an art teacher

Picasso 's sister

Self portrait wearing a wig

Be warned, naughty bits ahead. Just keep in mind that he was born in 1881 and these sketches are dated 1970 so they are the possible memories of a man in his late 80s / early 90s.