Videos from the Mediterranean (3)

Monaco - The Changing of the Guard at the Prince's Palace

Barcelona - Inside Gaudi's Sagrada Familia

Videos from the Mediterranean (2)

Florence - The Basilica of Saint Maria Del Fiore - One of the largest cathedrals in the world.

Rome - Inside the Colosseum

Videos from the Mediterranean (1)

The Clock Tower in St. Mark's Square, Venice - The bell is "rung" by the bronze men hitting it with mallets.  One man is old and the other is young to represent the passage of time.

Mt. Stromboli - The volcano venting

Mt. Stromboli - Venting with a view of the path of the frequent flow of lava.

Gaudi's Barcelona, Spain Photos

Gaudi's Garden has a town "square" that is surrounded by a bench decorated in sections with broken tiles from other projects.

The "square" is raised off of the ground.  Below is the other side of the benches.

Below the "square" are the columns that are holding it up.  Each column drains rain water from the square and into a cistern.

Part of the decoration down the stairs from the "square" above.

The Sagrada Familia Church was designed by Gaudi.  This facade of the church (the Nativity) was mostly completed in his lifetime.

The decorations at the top of the spires are fruits that can be harvested in the area.

The main entrance is not completed.  The iron rods from the incomplete columns can be seen in the image below.

Construction crains came are working to complete the church within the next ten years.

The facade on the opposite side of the Nativity is called the Passion and it was completed recently.  While the architects followed Gaudi's ideas, they did make changes that demonstrate more modern art elements than viewed in the Nativity facade.

The facade illustrates the final days of Jesus as told in the Bible.

The interior of the church is opposite from the exterior.  While the exterior is covered with images of people and things in great detail, the interior is left purposely simple.  The columns are designed to look like palm trees and the ceiling to look like the stars.

The stained glass windows are simple geometric shapes and colors that illustrate the seasons of the year.

The light filtering through the windows project colors throughout the interior of the church.

A modern spiral staircase that leads to one of the towers.

The Nativity facade of the exterior include the story of the journey of Mary and Joseph on the way to Bethlehem. 

The church is not complete.  The tallest portions of the plan have not been built yet.  The goal is to complete the church by 2026 for the 100th anniversary of the death of Gaudi.  Below, the gray portions are completed and the gold portions are planned for future construction.

Gaudi's spiral staircase.

The school that Gaudi had built for the children of the laborers building the church.  Meant to be temporary, it was preserved as an example of Gaudi's designs.

Inside the classroom

Materials, including the desk that Gaudi used while living and working in the church.

Monaco Photos

The Prince's Palace at the top of the "Rock" overlooking the port of Monaco.

Even though the race is not for another month and a half, the preparations for the Monaco Grand Prix are already underway as the spectator stands are being constructed.

Princess Grace of Monaco is still remembered and present in many ways.  Below is a statue of Princess Grace found in the middle of a garden in the city.  Land is so scarce in the small country, that homes do not have yards or gardens, so public gardens are appreciated by the people.

The changing of the guard at the palace.

The Prince's Palace

The palace was expanded from the original medieval fortress.

The Grimaldi coat of arms hangs over the main palace entrance.

Photos were not allowed within the palace during my tour, but we did walk through this walled garden.  All that can be seen from the exterior of the garden is the purple of the tree.

The Princes of Monaco have a love of the ocean and created a "temple" to the study and preservation of the ocean and sea creatures.  The Oceanographic Museum is also a research facility.  It has been a passion of the princes for generations.

The museum is decorated with sea creatures.

Pisa, Italy Photos

A view of the Cathedral of Pisa from the baptistery to the tower.

The baptistery was an important structure for a church as it was necessary for individuals to enter the church without having been baptized. 

The Leaning Tower of Pisa

The base of the tower was never level and appears to be built on an incline, but the land shifted with the weight of the marble.  The tower was built on clay that was softened  by the sea.

It really is very tilted.  However, I was assured that it is anchored and reinforced.  There were people in line to enter, but I am not sure that is something that I trust!