La Sagrada Familia or the Church of the Holy Family is the most visited attraction in the City of Counts.  You can't and you shouldn't miss this place whenever you find yourself in Barcelona, for it is one of the most (if not the most) awe-inspiring things you'll ever see in Catalonia's capital.

The construction of this UNESCO World Heritage Site designed by Barcelona's renowned architect, Antoni Gaudi, began in 1882 (134 years ago) and it is expected to be completed by 2026.  I know, that sounds unbelievable!  This church took longer to build than Egypt's pyramids!  However, once you've seen its intricate details and extraordinary architecture, I'm pretty sure you'll understand the reason why its completion is taking so long.

If you would take a closer look at the photos, you'd probably notice that this church has a very elaborate design.  Indeed, it is a haven for lovers of architecture!  And I would have to agree as well to Rainer Zerbst when he said, "It is probably impossible to find a church building anything like it in the entire history of art."  La Sagrada Familia is truly one of a kind!

Although its construction is still on-going (thus, the many photo bomber cranes), tourists are already allowed to enter and explore the church.  Admission tickets get sold out really fast (one day ahead), so it's always better to book a reservation online.  The tickets they issue have a specific time slot for your visit, hence it is only advisable to plan your trip ahead of time.  Should you wish to avoid the crowd, go early.  (Entrance gates open at 9am sharp.)

Our visit to La Sagrada Familia had been an eventful one, for we had to fall in line outside the entrance gate under the pouring rain.  We arrived at the place a bit earlier than 9am, so people were not yet allowed to get in.  I understand that their security personnel had a protocol to follow, but it's just disappointing that they failed to prioritize the parents with babies/toddlers (there were several of us then) who had been waiting in line for about 10 - 15 minutes under the heavy rain.  To cut the long story short, we were all soaked, cold, and chilling throughout the tour.  I was furious and totally lost interest in exploring the historic church.  

It would only take approximately an hour to walk around and see the entire building.  However, since it was raining hard that day, we decided to stay longer and wait for the rain to stop, so we could continue on with our itinerary.  Unfortunately, more than an hour had already passed, but the rain still continued to pour.  The skies also looked dark and heavy as if it's going to rain all day.  My sister and I were chilling and I know Ronnie and Rafa were both cold.  Hence, we decided to just brave the rain and went back to our hotel so we could get ourselves dry and comfortable.

Luckily, at around 12 noon, the skies cleared up and the sun finally shone! So off we went to La Sagrada Familia once more to have our photo-op, after which, we spent the rest of the day exploring more of Barcelona's tourist attractions.  It's still a great day after all!