July 27: Park Güell 1

Park Güell was built between 1900 and 1914. It's a Gesamtkunstwerk, with architecture blending in with exterior structures, which blend in with the landscape, partly thanks to Gaudí's penchant for structures and forms mimicking nature.

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Rounding up to the highest hilltop in the Park, with Montjuïc just visible.

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The city and the sea, with near-axial views down Passeig de Sant Joan and Carrer de Bailèn.

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Zooming in on Montjuïc reveals the communications tower designed by Santiago Calatrava, built to broadcast the 1992 Olympics.

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A colony of pigeons, and further out, the Sagrada Família and the Torre Agbar.

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Tallpigeons.

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The hilltop is crowned by this small climbable tower and cross, which is naturally quite a popular node.

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Tibidabo and the Collserola tower looking perhaps less vastly far away than usual.

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Let's check out the view from the top... nope, way too crowded. Never mind.

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A framed double view, with Torre Mapfre and Hotel Arts, the equally-tall tallest buildings in Barcelona, at right.

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A screened Tibidabo view.

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A thoroughly corrugated WC.

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A less improved path leading into the Park's hinterlands. It almost looks like a natural arroyo.

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The lovely Casa Martí Trias i Domènech, designed by Juli Batllevell i Arús, is perched on a back ridge of the Park.

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Zigbricks.

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A partial moongate (a gibbous moongate?) leading up to the Casa.

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A viaduct-footpath. The rows of triangular openings make the assembly look a little like a series of grinning monsters.

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The other side of the monster-teeth, revealed to be benches.

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All sorts of masonry and stone textures on the way down.