Seville
is a lovely city. Waking up early in the morning, enjoying a rich breakfast at
the Palacio de Villapanes Hotel and sipping my (finally) perfectly prepared
Cappuccino is exactly what I was looking for after my previous weekend in
Mykonos.
 |
| The Hotel's lobby: my morning coffee place |
Still, the schedule was
a little bit hectic; as soon as the last drop of my (again) perfectly prepared Cappuccino
was gone, we had to rush into the bus and go to the renowned sites of the city
like Alcazar, the Mesquita and the cathedral of Santa Maria Sede. Not that I dislike
History, but I’d rather spare my readers of the historical-all-that-jazz part.
BUT, just because I am a proud Arab (at that time the Arabs were super amazing smart
people who helped Spain obtain the civilized and artistic touch it has today),
I would like to point out few historical points:
- Hercules was the one who marked with six columns the place
where the great Julius Caesar later on built the Seville which was then called
Iulia Romula Hispalis (206 B.C)
- 527 was the year where the Visigoths established themselves
and promoted Catholicism through King Recared.
- In the year 712, the Arabs (called the Moors at that time)
settled in Seville for quite a long time (around 536 years!); a period long
enough to influence the arts, religion and the language.
- In 1248, Fernando III brought back the power of Christianity
and put an end to the Moors’ power.
- In 1492 many things occurred that altered the history of
Spain and the world in general: the Moors were completely thrown out from
Seville, Spain was unified under one crown and Christopher Columbus discovered
the “New World” which made Seville the intermediate route between Europe and
America.
- The first economical and artistic decline hit the city in
the sixteenth century mostly due to the Plague, the floods, etc.
- Thanks to its river, Guadalquivir (the Grand
Valley in Arabic), Seville was since the ninth century both a river port and a
bridge between the Atlantic ocean and the hinterland of Andalusia.
Seville’s small alleys
and terracotta walls made me travel in a time where people moved with carriages
and horses, where children would safely play on the streets and where women would
sing opera songs from the play “Carmen” while drying their laundry on the
balcony; basically, where all was simpler. After the appreciation I had for all
these rural details, I concluded that Seville is one of the best cities in Spain
in terms of beauty and history (again, my Arab origins come into play in this
bias statement).
 |
| Wall of the Royal Palace of Alcazar (originally a Moorish fort) |
 |
| the Royal Palace of Alcazar |
 |
| Garden of the Royal Palace of Alcazar |
 |
| the Mesquita, Cordoba: Islamic architecture's perfection |
One big, big, BIG
disadvantage in Seville is the food. Paella? No way; I didn’t like it at all
(just by looking at the picture tell me frankly, would you eat it?); Tapas?
Most of them looked odd and are either way not sufficient for my metabolism. Also, this
thing that they have with the damned “jamon” is ridiculous: everything has ham
in it, even a green salad! Thus, I spent the weekend eating bread and some “safe” appetizers.
So if you go to Spain, you probably should pack several cans of Tuna and a big
bag of Spaghetti.
 |
| Traditional sea-food-based Paella (pity the flies wandering around don't show on the picture) |
Another
great experience was spending the day at a Spaniard farm located in a far away
place in the mountains where all appeared to me as if I was leaving in another
era. I had a great time exploring the area and a lot of fun riding the
“horsey”. The people owning the farm as
well as (I guess) their relatives were very hospitable serving us water, sangria,
wine and tapas over and over again. They were all dressed in flamenco dresses
and flowers in their heads, dancing to the guitar which made me understand and
appreciate the beauties of the Spanish folklore.
 |
| How cute? |
 |
| Break in the mountain with a lot of Folklore |
