Sevilla

On Monday this week Rose, Ruth and I rode the bus for just under 3 hours en route to Sevilla, España, the 4th largest city in the country (population around 1 million) and the capital of the region of Andalusia. We have visited Sevilla previously (see this blog post and this one) but the historical and architectural richness of the old city and, especially for us, the Real Alcazar, are definitely worth another visit.

Don't forget to click on any photo to see a larger image.

This is a day trip so as the time in Sevilla is fairly brief we are limited in what we can see. Our goal was to visit the Real Alcazar, the Catédral de Sevilla and the area of the old city nearby. Rose was interested in the Cathedral so she spent just under an hour there while we strolled around this huge edifice trying to figure out from which of the many possible doorways she might emerge. In the end we got it right so managed to avoid the unpleasant experience of getting separated.

While we were circumnavigating the building we found these two fellows. It appears that the meditator on the bottom is holding, in one hand, a pole which supports a platform on which the other is sitting. How they achieved and maintained this arrangement was not clear to us.

I think it is fair to say that Rose was disappointed in the Cathedral. Both outside and inside it is an extremely over large, bulky and  quite unattractive structure and inside it is cold, dark and dingy and most of the areas that might be interesting to get close to are blocked by iron bars.

It was built on the site of a mosque and, to me, the most interesting part of the Cathedral is the imposing tower, a preserved remnant of the original mosque. They say the view from the top is quite spectacular but as our time here is limited we decided to move on to the Reales Alcázares.

The story about the beautiful Real Alcazar is confusing as different sources relate a slightly different history. I think what is not in doubt is that the original "fort" or "palace" was built in the 10th century by the Moors, an Arab, Muslim culture that was established and thrived in the Iberian Peninsula (what is now Spain and Portugal) for over 500 years.

Above, a couple of tourists just inside the original wall are trying to understand the map of the Alcazar.

After they drove the Moors from these lands the Christians destroyed many of the structures, especially those of a "religious" nature,  replacing Mosques with Cathedrals/churches (as in the case of the Cathedral of Seville above) . Others, recognized for their beauty and functionality, were at least partially preserved, modified and put to use (as with the Alcazar which is the official residence of the Spanish Heads of State and the oldest Royal Palace still in use in Europe) or, at least not destroyed, but rather left to the degrading effects of misuse, entropy and weather (as with the Alhambra in Granada, though in this instance, fortunately, Washington  Irving's discovery of the Alhambra and his book about it seems to have been part of the motivation for Spain to rehabilitate this treasure.  More about it after our upcoming trip to Granada.)

Since its original construction, within the ancient walls there have been major alterations and revisions which reflect Moorish and Spanish history, all of which contribute to the exquisite structure that we see today.

The architecture and artistry vary tremendously including Moorish styles such as Almohad and Mudejar and other genres such as Renaissance, Baroque and Neo-classical.

Here is one of several reflecting pools inside the Alcazar.

I can't possibly describe the beauty of this place or show much in photos but have selected a few to try to give some sense of the artistry and craftsmanship that enrich it.

Here and in the photos below I think you can appreciate the beauty of the tile work and the detailed carving in the plaster like material that is shown in more detail in a close up image below.

Both the inside and the extensive gardens are quite spectacular though I have no photo here of the gardens, check out earlier blog postings.

From the Alcazar we went for some lunch then a very brief walk through an adjacent area of the old city before returning to the bus and a short drive to the Plaza de España for a very brief visit. We have been here before so didn't mind that the visit was so brief. But for Rose and others who have not been here before I think the time was too short. I have quite good photos and comments about this place in an earlier blog post. If you are interested click here and here. Use the back button to return to this page.

Then the long bus ride home.

I have a number of other photos that I would like to show, so they may surface in a later post.

John and Jean have gone to Lisboa for a few days and Rose is now back home, so we are on our own for a couple of days.

Next Monday we leave for Granada (the Alhambra), Cordoba and the Costa del Sol - a three day trip to which we are looking forward - especially the visit to the Alhambra. But, at least one more post before we depart.