Where in the world is Lani?

Ask anyone here in Barcelona and they will tell you the first thing you should see as a tourist is the the work of Gaudi - Barcelona’s most famous and brilliant modernist architect, Antoni Gaudí (1852-1926). Even now, many years after his heydays, Gaudi's work is admired by architects around the world as being one of the most unique and distinctive styles.

His work has greatly influenced the face of Barcelona architecture and anyone who comes here to Barcelona will see Gaudi's work all over the city.Gaudi's work was greatly influenced by forms of nature and this is reflected by the use of curved construction stones, twisted iron sculptures, and organic-like forms which are traits of Gaudi's Barcelona architecture.

Gaudi also adorned many of his buildings with coloured tiles arranged in mosaic patterns. This added another important dimension to his buildings which is so often overlooked by architects - the use of colour. The combination of original design, interesting shaped stonework, and vibrant colours in Gaudi's work gives a truly breathtaking visual experience!

Some of the places I visited today:

Sagrada Familia

A giant temple, probably Gaudi's greatest works and is the No.1 most visited attraction in Barcelona

Parc Guell

A magical park with amazing buildings, sculptures, and tile work designed by Gaudi. You will also find Gaudi's old home in Park Guell which is now open to the public as a small museum.

Casa Batillo

One of the most interesting and unusual houses in Barcelona.

Casa Mila

The façade, which was covered with black soot from urban pollution, now proudly shows of its sinuous curves and elaborate metalwork. The staircases and interior courtyards have also been restored to their original state with the careful recovery and restoration of the original mural paintings.

The most spectacular project was the recovery of the original attic, one of the most original aspects of Gaudí’s work. In the 1950’s the attic was converted into apartments (13 separate ones!) and to take them apart and recover the original structure was a slow and arduous task. The restoration of the roof, with the chimneys that are a symbol of Barcelona, involved cleaning by hand the thousands of pieces of tile fixed with mortar that Gaudí used as a kind of mosaic.

My advice is that you really should make a point of seeing these places if you are in Barcelona, as its an awesome experience to see some unusual and very Spanish architecture in a city so passionate!