In contrast to the night before, we had the streets to ourselves on our first morning in Seville. At 9am the only cafés open for breakfast were near the cathedral and clearly for tourists, although we did have another delicious start to the day of fresh pastries, cafés con leche and freshly squeezed orange juice. I had prepurchased online 10am entrance tickets to the Real Alcázar (the 10th-century Moorish royal palace in Seville), so after breakfast we still had a little time to explore and enjoy the empty streets. It was a lovely, clear-skied, crisp morning with the breeze blowing through the orange trees which line the narrow, cobbled streets. We stopped to watch the bells of Giralda Tower ring in the morning and took our time meandering back the way we had walked the previous night. It was all such a lovely experience, taking in the sights and sounds of this old city on such a still morning.
This was our only full day in Seville, so we made the most of it, hitting as many sights as we could but also making sure to take breaks, people watch, and have leisurely meals when we could. Our morning stroll filled the time until the entrance time on our tickets for the Real Alcázar. At 10am we skipped the line and just walked right into the palace. The palace is a beautiful sprawling expanse of courtyards, arches, and domed ceilings, full of both Islamic and Christian details (a style known as Mudejar). It is probably one of the most ornate structures Ella and Jack had ever seen and they were amazed at the idea that it was all handcrafted and so old. It was also cool to think that, for a while, this was the royal palace of Ferdinand and Isabel. We explored every room and spent quite a bit of time enjoying the beautiful day out in the gardens.
From the Real Alcázar, we walked along the Guadalquivir River to the Parque de María Luisa where the Plaza de España is, both built for the 1929 international fair. The tile work, a trademark of Seville, and fountains are stunning here. We took a carriage ride back to the cathedral area to see more of the city in a way that seemed very Sevillan (they have horse festivals here and horse carriages are everywhere), and perhaps to rest our feet a bit after all that walking. The cathedral line was pretty long at that point and we were getting hungry, so we found an outside café near the Torre del Oro (Gold Tower) and enjoyed a lunch of tapas and pan that wasn’t quite what we expected, but yummy nonetheless—and fortunately the kids were up for anything.
After lunch, we headed over to the Catedral de Sevilla which is the the third-largest cathedral in Europe and the largest Gothic church in the world. When we stepped inside and saw the towering columns, the kids both said, “Woah.” The nave, art on display, and even Christopher Columbus’s tomb were all pretty awe-inspiring but it was the walk up the ramp and views of Giralda Tower that I thought spectacular. We explored the cathedral and its grounds and then headed back to our hotel for a little rest. It was a little early for siesta and we passed crowds of locals sitting outside for their late lunch which we probably should’ve taken as a sign that it was time to eat, but the adrenaline of being in a new place was wearing off and jet lag was creeping in.
Well rested, refreshed, and starving, we headed back out on the narrow streets of Seville after a few hours in the hotel only to quickly find out that all of outside restaurants were only serving at this time of the evening—and what droves of locals were enjoying—was simply coffee and pastries (as in no substantial food). Jonathan and I both shrugged, happy to find an available table, and said, “When in Rome…” or Seville, as it were. The kids were none too satisfied. We had tickets to a flamenco show and realized it’s probably best to have a great dinner after the show instead of forcing it before, but to ward off the grumps of the kids until then we found a great little Spanish “fast food” place (I use that term lightly—the food was good and well prepared) called ‘100 Montaditos’ (100 Sandwiches—every typed of tapa you can imagine on a little pan sandwich). And there began Ella’s love for the Spanish tortilla montadito.
We had reservations for an authentic flamenco show in a small theater with only a few rows of seating. The fast-paced pounding of the flamenco dancers’ feet, the constant strumming of the Spanish guitar, and the wailing of the singer were mesmerizing, especially from the front row. Our intent was to avoid restaurants that have a menu in English, but a restaurant around the corner from the flamenco show looked so wonderful and had available tables (the closer we got to our hotel the previous night, the harder it was to find a table), so we couldn’t resist. When we requested our menu in Spanish I think the waiter almost sighed, but we managed, ordering everything we intended (artichoke hearts, cod, mushrooms, spinach and garbanzos, etc., trying to hit all of the Andalucían specialties). Well, I guess that’s not entirely true—we did order a few things we hadn’t intended. The waiter asked Jack if he, too, could speak any Spanish to which Jack simply just started listing random Spanish words he knows, “el baño, las papas fritas…café con leche…” The waiter then said, “¿Para ti?” And then I felt like playing along, so I said, “No, para mí.” And then Jonathan joined in with, “Dos.” The waiter then walked away and Jonathan and I looked at each other wondering if we had actually just ordered two coffees at 10 o’clock at night. The answer to that was a definitive yes. It was a delicious end to a delicious meal, and a good, funny memory, but between the two cafés con leche that night (one at 5pm and one at 10pm) and the boisterous Sevillans who enjoy partying in the streets until 3am, we didn’t get a great night’s sleep that second night. But, no matter, we were up bright and early the next morning, excited to catch the 8am train to Barcelona. Seville is a beautiful and bustling old city and I loved that we were out with the locals in their festivals and paseo—but, I can’t imagine how crowded it feels during Holy Week!
{From top to bottom, left to right (like a book): Giralda Tower of Sevilla Cathedral in the morning; entrance to the Patio de Banderas of the Real Alcázar (Flags Courtyard, once a military parade ground for the royal palace); NO8DO is the city insignia of Seville—nodo meant “knot” in the old dialect, and this symbol evokes the strong ties between the citizens of Seville and King Alfonso X (during a succession dispute in the 13th century, the Sevillans remained loyal to their king) *per Rick Steves guidebook; the ironwork and traditional whitewash-and-goldenrod color scheme of Andalucía; part of the Catedral de Sevilla, the largest gothic church in the world.}
{Patio de Banderas; the iconic view of Giralda tower, this time without the need to cut the people on the streets out; the entrance to the Real Alcázar (the royal palace), decorated for the holidays—the Spanish celebration continues until Three Kings Day on January 5th.}
{The Real Alcázar, a 10th century Moorish palace that was renovated in the 14th century by Muslim workmen for the Christian King Pedro I—it’s the oldest palace in Europe still in use by royals—and this first image is of the entrance to King Pedro I’s Palace; tile work; courtyard and arches; altarpiece painting of St. Mary and Navigators (Santa María de los Navegantes) including what is to be believed as the most accurate depiction of Christopher Columbus; the Courtyard of the Maidens (Patio de las Doncellas), the center of King Pedro I’s palace.}
{Mudejar style stucco panels and tiles; more intricate stucco carvings; happiness and smiles captured, couldn’t delete this moment, however blurry; more of the Courtyard of the Maidens; looking out to the courtyard from an adjacent room.}
{The domed ceiling of the throne room; looking up; intricate columns and arch work; getting a little help looking up; Arabic writing, interlacing plants, and geometric shapes are molded into the walls and ceilings.}
{The palace rooms led from one to another; a peek to the gardens; the Real Alcázar logo, so to speak; marble columns in the Courtyard of the Dolls; we all found that throughout this trip there was quite a bit to see looking up.”
{I handed Jonathan the guidebook on this morning; tiles representing the various regions of Spain; beautiful tile work even on the outside steps; love these smiles; entering the Moorish gardens.}
{A view of Giralda Tower from an original part of the Moorish castle wall; lush gardens, even at the end of December; taking in the view.}
{The Mercury Pool, a reservoir fed by a 16th-century aqueduct; hand-painted tiles from the 16th century; world travelin’ cutie; even the garden benches are beautiful.}
{My cute family in the palace gardens; some time to run; and to explore; Sevillan orange trees—the oranges in Seville are bitter and only used for sauces and English marmalades; the tunnel under the Mercury Pool.}
{You can find tributes to Saints throughout the city; orange trees and Giralda tower, iconic Seville; more archways; trying out a Segway outside the palace; Ella had to try, too.}
{Plaza de España; beautiful tiled bridge—too crowded to get pictures on; hey look—I’m on vacation, too!; more of Plaza de España.}
{The Spanish Pavilion—the tiles show historic scenes and maps from every province of Spain; most of the benches were taken up by Spanish families taking photographs in their region, so we just picked one randomly; it was a lovely place to walk around, and not a hard one to find a horse carriage for a ride back to town.}
{Riding in the horse carriage; my cuties; my beautiful world traveler; Plaza de España is a treasure of Seville.}
{We ordered gambas and we got gambas—admittedly I was expecting shrimp in a garlicky butter sauce, but these were good, too; Torre del Oro (Gold Tower), built by the Moors in the 13th century, it was the starting and ending point for all shipping to the New World; pan and Fanta and this girl’s happy; dos Fanta de naranja y dos cañas; these kids were so adventurous on our travels with food.}
{Inside and outside the Catedral de Sevilla.}
{More details inside the cathedral—the altarpiece is the largest one ever made.}
{Checking out the views from Giralda Tower—the tower was actually a Moorish minaret that became the cathedral’s bell tower after the Reconquista.}
{More beautiful views from the tower.}
{And more details inside the cathedral; the Court of the Orange Trees—this was once a Moorish courtyard with irrigation streams and a fountain where 12th-century Muslims washed themselves before praying.}
{Walking the narrow streets of Seville—cars actually drive on some of these; the tower of La Iglesia de San Isidoro; the tortured face of the Spanish singer, wailing his sad tale; I couldn’t believe how fast the fingers of the guitarist could move; and flamenco, all at Casa de la Memoria.}
{You were only allowed to take pictures during the final dance. The entire show was passionate and captivating.}
{Another gorgeous view at night of the tower; our hotel was on Abades Street.}
