The Pope will visit Barcelona and Sagrada Familia

On Sunday November 7th, Pope Benedict XVI will come to Barcelona and consecrate the Temple of Sagrada Familia. This piece of news was announced yesterday by Cardinal Archbishop of Barcelona, Lluis Martinez Sistach.

Sagrada Familia seen from Hotel Europark

This visit shows the high esteem of the Pope for the catalan architect Antoni Gaudi, added the spoke-person at the Vatican, Federico Lombardi. NN Hotels invites you to discover all Gaudi’s buildings as well as other Art-Noveau works in Barcelona, such as Park Guell or Palau de la Musica, with the Modernism Route.

The last time a Pope was in Barcelona dates from 1982, when John Paul II visited Montserrat, the construction works at Sagrada Familia and celebrated mass at the Camp Nou stadium.

Replica of Gaudí’s dragon will be in Shangai

Last Sunday, 20th December, Barcelona’s Mayor, Jordi Hereu, presided over the send-off ceremony of an exact replica of Gaudí’s dragon that Barcelona is giving to Shanghai for the Expo being held there next year.

Logo - Expo 2010 Shangai

“This dragon forms part of Barcelona’s culture and is a clear expression of our universal vocation”, said Hereu, who also admitted he was “proud” that a dragon that “identifies” the city and has been offered to Shanghai as a “symbol of friendship and respect would be present in this sister city of ours”.

For the first time at any Expo, cities will have their own area in Shanghai, independent of their countries, namely in the area devoted to best urban practice.

Gaudi's Dragon

The replica of the Park Güell dragon measures 3.28 metres long, 1.65 metres wide and 1.82 high, and it weighs 12 tonnes. Many Barcelona residents visited the Rambla de Santa Mònica to take a farewell photo with the dragon. They were also able to write and send their best wishes to Shanghai in the dozens of balloons that were released into the air at the end of the send-off ceremony.

The exact reproduction of the Gaudí dragon was sponsored by “La Caixa“, who see it as a way of establishing even stronger links between the Catalan and Chines communities.

If you want to discover the complet Art Nouveau information in Barcelona, do not hesitate to visit our Art Nouveau Route.