church in 1884 and devoted himself completely to its construction until he was run over by a trolley and died in 1926.  The church is still in construction and we heard that they are hoping to complete it by 2020.  A massive project.  La Sagrada Familia has 4 towers, 8 of which will be 12 belfries, bright and colorful mosaics, abstract and geometric shapes, and sculptures on the Passion and Nativity Facades.  You have to see it.  You can climb to the top of the towers on small, dark, spiraling staircases (or take the elevator) for different perspectives of the church and a great view of the city.
       In addition to Park Güell (featuring Gaudí's landscape, architecture, and sculpture) and Le Pedrera (an apartment building with sculpture on the roof covered in broken ceramic that function as ventilation towers, staircases and chimneys), we visited the Casa Batlló, my favorite part of the whole trip.  Casa Batlló is a house that Gaudí remodeled for a Spanish textile manufacturer.  The blue-green facade makes you think of the ocean and the rooftop sculptures remind you of fish.  Inside you feel like you're in some sort of organic being.  There's not a single straight line in the whole building but there are plenty of vibrant color and abstract shapes.  Gaudí worked on it from 1904-06 but it looks brand new.  It is amazing.
       I took over 100 pictures (yeah for digital cameras!) in Barcelona, most of which are of Gaudí's architecture.  Of course, there are certain shots the average tourist can't get, which is what postcards are for, I spent about €10 on just postcards.  Not even postcards to send to people, but postcards for me to keep.  Totally worth it. You can see the pictures at  photos.yahoo.com/laurengurl5.

by Lauren Weiner

        It's strange to be writing something other than an email in English.  I just finished an essay for my Spanish grammar class and was ready to start this article, "El fin de semana pasado . . . " Then I remembered, I get to write in English.  Yes!  That means not looking up a bunch of words in the dictionary or wondering whether or not my grammatical structure is correct.
       Anyways, last weekend my roommate, Amy, and I skipped school on Thursday and spent 3 days in Barcelona.  (Yeah, we don't have classes on Fridays - how nice is that?)  Barcelona is on the northeast coast, Spain's second largest city, and an 11-hour bus ride or 1 hour flight from Granada.  When I flew over to Spain from the US, I had an hour layover in Barcelona and ever since then actually seeing the city has been on my "To Do in Spain" list (oh yes, there's an actual list posted on my wall).  And on what was my desire to visit Barcelona based?  Honestly . . . the fact that Barcelona has the coolest airport I've ever been in and I figured if the airport is any indication, then the city must be amazing.
       And it is.  Sevilla is my favorite city in Spain because it is so essentially Spanish, but Barcelona is a close second.  Being a big city on the water gives it a kind of San Francisco feel and it was like we had stepped out of Spain for the weekend.  As my host mom describes it, "Barcelona is more European than Spanish."  There are a zillion things to do there - relax on the beach, wander the Ramblas, go shopping, visit museums (Picasso, chocolate, modern art . . . ), go to the aquarium or the zoo, hang out in the parks, etc., etc., but the Gaudí buildings were by far my favorite.
       Antoni Gaudí was a Spanish modernist architect.  We had the chance to see four of his major works while in Barcelona.  La Sagrada Familia is probably the most well known.  Gaudí took over as Project Director of the