Barcelona2011 - More

My daughter also traveled with us and I would advise not reading this blog but go to her blog at bluepoolroad to see how a professional blogs!

After Madrid, Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain with almost to two million people. It is such a diverse place that even though we have been there twice we haven’t begun to see much of this beautiful city.

The highlight of this trip was visiting the Picasso Museum located in the Old Quarters. The museum is located in five large town houses dating back to the 13th century. Of course there have been a lot of refurbishments over the years to convert to a museum. But it was beautifully done and one doesn’t even realize he is going from one townhouse to another. All of the paintings were arranged in chronological order which made it so easy to follow the changes in Picasso paintings over the years.

Afternoon snack by the Cathedral

Just one of many side streets in the Old Quarters.

Barcelona - 2011

So we are back from our European trip and to say we took a few pictures might be a slight understatement. I'm just glad we have gone digital and we do not have to print all of our pictures, the good ones and the really bad ones.

Our first stop was Barcelona, so since I posted a picture of La Sagrada Familia before we left, I thought it appropriate to start off with this beautiful, and very unusual cathedral.

The first thing that I notice this year was the number of people there to see the cathedral. There were buses everywhere and lines almost a block long to get into the cathedral. Ten years ago there was little or not wait.

The other thing I noticed was so many more cranes hovering over the construction. Maybe there is a big push to complete and also with all the people visiting maybe there is more money in the budget for construction. Completion date is estimated to be 2026, hundred years after the death designer, architect Antoni Gaudi.

This is basically the same view I took in 2000; it is a little closer since the trees now are taller and the same view would cover more of the cathedral.

The is the view from the other side.

Travel Photo -La Sagrada Familia

With my wife and I planning a European Cruise, in which we start in Barcelona, my thoughts go back to when we were in Barcelona in 2000. The picture above, as everyone I'm sure recognizes, is the La Sagrada Familia designed by Antoni Gaudi.

Gaudi began construction on La Sagrada Familia (Blessed Family) in 1882; died in 1928 with only a quarter of the church completed. The construction passed a mid-point in 2010 and was consecrated in November 2010 by Pope Benedict XVI . The anticipated completion date is about 2026.

We are anxious to see the changes that have been made to the church in the pass ten years.

AARP Tax-Aide

Another Tax season is over! Many of you know that I am a volunteer for the AARP Tax-Aide Program. The program is an IRS/AARP sanctioned free tax preparation service primarily for taxpayers with low and moderated income. Of course most of our clients are seniors but we serve non-seniors as well. It is a lot of work, which begins with training in November, but I receive much more from this service than I give.

Stockholm

I have been very fortunate to have been to Stockholm a couple times over the past fifty years, and I have always thought it was one of the most beautiful cities in Europe or maybe the world.

This is a slide I took in June 1958 of a street in Stockholm. I will have to search to see if I can find what this street looks like now! The camera I used was a 35mm Cita vintage about c1955.

This picture was taken in 2004 when we stopped in Stockholm on a Northern European Cruise. I loved these side streets; every corner you turn is like a "kodak" moment!

This shot was also taken in 2004 from the window of our hotel . I placed the camera on a ledge on our balcony for this shot; I am going to have to start taking a tripod on our trips!

Travel Photo - Munich, Germany

Here is a couple of pictures I took of the Konigsplaza in Munich, Germany in 1959 while my buddy and I were driving a 1947 Mercedes (not mine of course) from Rhein Main Air Force Base in Frankfurt to beautiful Lake Thun in Switzerland. We were very fortunate to have arrived just after a rain shower; I love the reflection in the payment.

Here is a current shot of the Konigsplaza; compliments of Wikipedia!

Enough!

Let's hope this past snow storm is the last for the winter, but I wouldn't bet the ranch on it! Right about now Sunny Carolina is looking good!