Seville Dream City

#16 #17 Seville

Seville. We had planned to stay for only one day, but it ended up being two. It could have been 20 or 200 days, and we still wouldn't have seen everything there was to discover. Monumental buildings. Not in the extravagant splendor of Vienna, but in a simple elegance, a beauty of unexpected naturalness. The path through the city lured us into narrow, dark alleys, which suddenly led us into a large, light-filled square, surrounded by magnificent buildings, each with its own story written on the facades over the past 400-500 years – each one a work of art in itself.

From our campsite – guarded and perfectly located for €19 per night – it took us about 25 minutes to reach the city center, where the Setas de Sevilla, the Mushrooms of Seville, were our first destination. It took us ten minutes to get to our first stop. Not bad at all! "It's almost one o'clock and I haven't eaten anything yet," Icke complained. I had to agree with her. Besides the two sandwiches for breakfast and the cookies on the way, she was practically fasting. The Taberna de Papelon could help with that. It was one of 3,000 restaurants, bars, cafes, and pubs in the city center alone. Those 25 minutes threatened to turn into two and a half hours. I had a feeling something bad was about to happen...

But we made surprisingly good progress. Maybe because Icke was completely captivated by taking pictures. She didn't have to look for motifs, she had to choose among them, to resist a flood in which she almost drowned. What a beautiful city it was! What a lively city. Incredibly many young people, lots of laughter, lots of lightness.

We let ourselves drift further. The Cathedral of Seville, the largest Gothic church in the world, with the 104-meter-high La Giralda tower, which was preserved from a mosque and incorporated into the construction of the cathedral. In this colossal church, Christopher Columbus is buried in a bronze sarcophagus. We would have liked to see it, Icke and I agreed on that, but of course, we weren't allowed to go inside with the dogs. However, a look at our three troublemakers quickly dispelled any doubts about what was more important...

We also only saw Alcázar Real de Sevilla, the royal palace and symbol of Seville, from the outside. But the Spanish Square - Plaza de España - compensated us with its extensive Maria Luisa Park. The colossal semi-circular building was created for the Ibero-American Exposition of 1929 to symbolically reconcile with the former colonies. On the Plaza, the 52 benches with Andalusian tiles stand out, representing all the Spanish provinces.

We were so delighted with this complex that we spontaneously decided to spend another day in this fantastic city. And on the second day, we wanted to enjoy the flair, the atmosphere of this wonderful metropolis, this unique mixture of art, history, and zest for life even more. We spent the whole day on the Spanish Square, in the gardens, between the many palaces and villas, together with tapas, coffee, and cake. It was a wonderful day - followed by a terrible night. But I'll tell you about that next time...