One day in Seville, Spain

Seville, the Andalucian capital of Spain, is rich in history and vibrant in colours. And it is only 2.5 hours away from Albufeira, Portugal where I was on a week-long holiday along with my partner and few friends around the end of December. Considering the fact that Seville gets really hot in the summer, we thought it was the perfect time to visit it. In fact, Seville was a very easy day trip from Albufeira.

We were right about the weather. It was perfect, no rains, pleasantly chilly, and the sun shining upon us throughout the day. I love the winter sun, who doesn’t?

So, the first thing we did on reaching Seville is find parking – such a chore, always! After that, we walked to the Plaza de Toros, one of the most famous bullrings. I do not particularly like the sport of bullfighting yet wanted to understand the history and the reason for its popularity. We got into the queues for the tickets but realised a bit later we would have to wait a bit longer to get the next guided tour. Since we were short on time, we decided to skip going inside the museum.

A few minutes further is the Torre del Oro, a watch-tower from the Moorish times, on the banks of the river Guadalquivir. The name means the golden tower. Some say that the tower used to be covered with tiles that shone in the sun giving an impression of gold tiles. There is a museum inside and one can climb up the floors to get a view of the city and the river.

From Torre del Oro, we walked towards the Alcazar Palace. It was a must-do and no long queues would stop me from going in. Thankfully, the wait wasn’t as bad as it would have been in peak season. The palace itself is huge and extensive, so we could not go through it all but whatever I saw was fascinating. It is designed with heavy Moorish influence but for a Christian king. There are indications of various styles amalgamated, but what mostly caught my eye were the beautiful painted tilework, intricate carvings and etchings, and patterns that are quite reminiscent of the palaces in Rajasthan, India. I am not saying that they are very similar, but this palace is unlike any I have seen in Europe.

Each room I visited was unique in its own beauty, the sunken gardens and courtyards were lined with laden orange and lemon trees and fragrant flowers. Despite so many visitors, it was possible to find a quiet spot for myself in an alcove right next to a pond and just take it all in.

This palace is a visual treat, a kaleidoscope of colours, and a standing example of great craftsmanship. On a lighter note, it is also a heaven for clicking some photographs (read selfies :D). In fact, a part of the fifth season of Game of Thrones was shot right here.

It was way past lunch-hour by the time we left the palace and we headed straight towards the Santa Cruz neighbourhood. We walked around this quaint and vibrant area to the Bodega Santa Cruz which enjoys fantastic reviews on TripAdvisor but it was brimming with people for drinks and tapas, in fact people were filling out on the streets as well. I had read that generally speaking, any restaurant on the Calle Mateos Gago would be a good option and we settled on one because we were starving!

After lunch, we went to Catedral de Sevilla (the Cathedral). It is the largest Gothic cathedral and the third-largest church in the world. The cathedral is also the burial site of Christopher Columbus. The Giralda Tower is fantastic way to get a bird’s eye view of the city. It is a minaret of a mosque that was on the site formerly but later this minaret for converted into a bell tower for the cathedral. Unfortunately, we decided against going in because it was almost closing time.

We later we took a taxi to Plaza de España. It is located near the Maria Luisa Park. The Vicente Traver fountain lies in the centre of the square. There are buildings housing some government departments which form a semi-circle around the fountain and what beautiful buildings they are! I was mesmerised by the sheer scale and grandeur of this place. There is a canal running along the façade of the buildings where you could rent a boat and row around. The area is dotted with orange trees (no surprise there), and possibly the most stunning lamp-posts I have ever seen. Such a fantastic place to end our day in Seville.

As evident, we did not get to a lot of sights and that was never the plan. It was way too ambitious. Whatever we saw, we enjoyed and made the most of the time we had. For me, this was a little peek through a small window into the Andalucian culture! With friends, tapas and even the weather on my side – it was a wonderful day out!

If you intend to go to Seville for more than a day, here’s a list of places/things to do:

• Plaza de Toros or the Bull Ring
• Torre del Oro
• Alcazar Palace
• Seville Cathedral and the Giralda Tower
• Explore Barrio Santa Cruz
• Casa de Pilatos
• Plaza de España
• Maria Luisa Park
• Metropol Parasol
• Basilica de la Macarena
• Enjoy a flamenco dance show
• Take a horse-carriage ride around the city
• Eat Tapas

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Have you been to Seville or plan to go there? I’d love to know your thoughts on this post 🙂

Cheers,

Ameeta