Ah, Seville. It's so nice when something lives up to the hype. Coming into town, I frankly wasn't too impressed. Seville, pretty much a dead flat city, lacks the rolling beauty of Lisbon, as well as the red tile rooftops. But when you get inside the city, it turns out it is all about the nooks and cranies. I budgeted two days for sightseeing, and like Lisbon, I could have easily stayed more. But I think I covered the must-sees. They are no secrets from the tourists, but there's a reason. The main cathedral of Seville is jaw-droppingly enormous (like 12 stories tall inside), ornate, packed full of priceless art and treasure, and if that wasn't enough for you, has the tomb of Christopher Columbus in the middle of it. It was also built on the ruins of a magnificent mosque (knocked over by the same earthquake that leveled Lisbon), but the spectacular minaret (the Giraida) remains, and hiking up to the top of it is part of the tour. The Alcazares palace is similarly amazing, particularly the moorish bits that remain, nearly intact. There are other great sights, such as the immense Plaza de Espana (build for the very unfortunately timed 1929 World's Fair), the astounding Museo de Bellas Artes (a former convent packed with more priceless religious art from any prominent Spanish artist from the Rennessance on you might care to name) and the grim Plaza de Toros (one of the most famous bullfighting rings in the world. Fun side note- bull fighting in real life was even grosser and crueller than I thought- apperently it was common for at least a dozen horses to be evicerated in a day's proceedings. Nowadays, they wear horse body armor, but the event remains about the same for the bulls.) and the giant "mushroom" sculpture at the Plaza Mayor right downtown.
But again, the charm of Seville really comes from the Medieval maze of streets that make up most of the central city. Not a morning person's city (or country, from what I can tell), the streets burst into life in the evenings, teaming with music, laughter, and people of all description enjoying their beautiful city and each other. It's a really treat just walking anywhere during the evenings- the energy is infectious. Of course, staying at a hostel is an ideal way to specialize in night life, since most of the young people there are on young people schedules- stagger out of bed around noon, grudgingly see a sight or two, nap through the siesta, and then begin the evening with a Spanish-time supper (around 9 usually), then out to the bars around 11, and finish at 4 or 5. And repeat until the next city, and repeat there, and so on till the money runs out. I have always been a morning person, and also am a history nerd, and would never forgive myself if valuable sightseeing time were lost, and also am nearly 20 years older than most of these kids, so I only half heartedly participated, but still had a lot of fun.
Oh, and also the women are indeed beautiful and the oranges top notch. These things also live up to the hype.
So that's Sevilla. On Sunday morning, I was out long before my roommates even stirred (a shocking 9 am), and on the road heading for Cadiz. I feel like I gave especially short shrift to the city in this entry, but this is really really one of those places you have to experince to get it. Also I am behind on entries, so this will have to do!
We too have enjoyed Saville. That whole section of Spain is fascinating history of "Moorish" influence. If memory serves, Spanish Jews lived peacefully under the Muslim regime... and only had major problems after the Christian restoration, and eventually the Inquisition (which originated in Spain).
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