Palau Guell - another Gaudi masterpiece

I wander along Las Ramblas under clear blue skies. Not too busy at this hour (9:30am) and the day hasn't heated up too much - yet. The trees keep things shady. Restaurants are slowly setting up for a busy day ahead. 

At 10am opening hour, I enter Palau Guell - a house that Gaudi designed and built and the one I can see from my hotel window. At this point I have no idea how much I am about to blown away by this building.

There are only a handful of people here and I wander the place alone, taking photos galore and marvelling at everything. It's the way the light filters inside, the attention to detail, the sophisticated colour combos, the stories behind each perfectly curated room, the complexity behind the simplicity, the clever use of space and colour, the practical beauty of it all ... 

Again, I'll let the photos do the talking, although they do not do it justice ...

The exterior belies the intricate interior

Palau Guell to the right, my hotel to the left

The stables

I emerge onto the roof terrace and its array of chimneys - which I can see from my hotel window. It is warm up here and oh-so-fascinating. Sprawling views of the city in all directions, and all these wonderful chimneys.

My hotel room is the window of the orange building to the right. 

After 1.5 happy hours here discovering more of Gaudi's genius, it is time to check out of my hotel, store my luggage and grab a bite to eat. 

It occurs to me that there is a hint of Hundertwasser in Gaudi - well, it's actually vice versa. 

Gaudi 1852-1926, Spanish / Hundertwasser 1928-2000, Austrian

It is evident that the latter was inspired and influenced by the former and that the former led the way for the latter to excel. I adore Hundertwasser's work. He spent a number of years living in a remote part of the Bay of Islands, largely in solitude, planting trees. I am very much looking forward to visiting the recently completed Hundertwasser Art Centre in Whangarei, NZ which he designed before his death. It took the community way too long to say "yes please" and get consent to get it constructed - I am so very glad they finally did. 

My prediction is that within ten years Whangarei will be the Queenstown of the north, with this new Hundertwasser masterpiece being the seed of attraction and people coming in droves to see it. 

OBSERVATION OF THE DAY:
All the shops have a solid [graffitied] garage door and/or grill which shuts them off entirely. No view of what's inside, little chance of ramraids here. I suspect they've had plenty of them in the past but I'm not sure they do these days. Most of the shops along this side-street sell booze and vapes. But how would you know? With a huge police presence and proper property protection, the thieves will have a hard time ramraiding these places. Barcelona has put a solution in place. Take note Auckland!

BTW, I met some ladies from Queensland who stayed at Hotel Gaudi which sits opposite the Palau Guell and was also on my watch-list. They highly recommended it. I'll try it next time!