The Local Spain's reporter and long-term Barcelona resident Esme Fox reports from the Sagrada Familia as Pope Leo XIV blesses its tallest tower.
Wednesday June 10th was a historic day for the city of Barcelona – the centenary of the death of Sagrada Familia’s architect Antoni Gaudí, as well as the inauguration of the basilica’s central tower, which now makes it the world’s tallest church at 172.5 metres.
The event was commemorated with a mass presided over by Pope Leo XIV and attended by King Felipe VI, Queen Letizia and Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, among hundreds of other dignitaries, members of the press and selected members of parishes from around the city.
When I arrived at the Sagrada Familia four hours before the start of the mass, the atmosphere in the city was strangely quiet - roads had been blocked off, and people had already begun to gather outside the fences which surrounded the entire Sagrada Familia block. The only sound was that of the helicopters circling overhead.
I first visited the Sagrada Familia on a backpacking trip around Spain in 2003. Back then, the inside wasn’t even complete, the stained glass hadn’t been installed, and sandbags lay all over the floor.
