Impressions of Spain

Using balconies as a frame, this essay explores the mutual gaze between buildings, residents, and passers-by: even as travellers take in the view, they unwittingly become part of someone else’s.

Inside Gaudí’s unfinished Sagrada Família, the Nativity and Passion façades—and the still-incomplete Glory façade—reveal the awe and tension between nature-inspired design, religious devotion, and modern efforts to finish his work.

Moving through Casa Milà’s undulating façade, light-filled courtyards, skeletal attic, and fantastical rooftop, I saw how Gaudí wove nature, practicality, faith, and imagination into a single residence.

Following the legend of Saint George and the dragon into Casa Batlló, I encountered a fairy-tale world of dragon-scale tiles, bone-shaped columns, and oceanic curves—and reflected on the distance between commercial alterations and Gaudí’s original vision.

A chance visit to Casa Amatller, next door to Casa Batlló, reveals the chocolate magnate’s art collection, passion for photography, and Gothic-inspired home—a quietly luxurious and wholly unexpected delight.

At Barcelona’s Palau de la Música Catalana, voices, guitars, handclaps, and stamping feet reverberate through a flamenco performance whose male and female dancers—powerful and graceful in equal measure—transform the impressions left by images on a screen.

At daybreak, I set out for Madrid’s El Rastro flea market, hunting for treasures among thousands of stalls, secondhand wares, and colorful street characters while photographing the everyday bustle and distinctive personality of this centuries-old market.

Exploring Barcelona’s flea markets, from tourist-filled antique stalls to small neighbourhood fairs, and discovering another side of the city among second-hand goods, collectibles, and chance encounters.

A walk down La Rambla leads into La Boqueria, where dazzling displays of ham, spices, seafood, fruit, and vegetables reveal how this “breadbasket of Europe” brings together food, art, and urban culture.

A stroll through Madrid’s El Retiro Park takes us past its lake and palaces, the love story of Sanmao and José, and a temporary art exhibition—a leisurely glimpse of the city’s culture within a former royal garden.