Current mood:

(and tired, bed time for me)

Seville, the Epic version :)
Today I thought 'I'll just make a list of all the places we've been to so far in case I miss anything' and ended up with a Long list, taking in Seville, Cordoba and Granada. Usually I try to write an longer, interesting post, telling a story of where I've been and what my personal impressions of a place were, partly 'cause it helps me to remember, but also 'cause I figure its a hell of a lot more interesting to read then 'and then we did this, and then we did this, oh and then we went here' :)

However in Summary, here's a list of every where we've been so far, and a few brief notes on each which I may update if time and brain power permit :)

Seville:

General Impressions:
Seville is lovely, the kind of place I could go back to and work or study and just hang out in. Despite the heat, its filled with lots of parks and gardens and fountains. The streets are very walkable and are still safe for a couple of lone females late into the evening :) Away from the tourist areas there are cute little tapis bars, beautiful churches and a local atmosphere. The area, especially Triana where we stayed, is known for its title manufacture, partly a throw back to the times of Moorish occupation, and many of the street signs are beautifully painted white and colored tiles.

Triana, where our hostel was located:
A lovely, quieter area across the river from the Torre del Oro and 'main' part of town. Its more local and less touristy, more's the better because of it :) Up until the 19th century there was no bridge between Triana and the main area of Seville, so the area still retains sense of inderpendence and less touristy vibe than 'the main land' . . . The area's church, Iglesia de Santa Ana is very pretty, with titled pictures of Mary on the outside and impressive, ornate silver figures and religious scenes on the inside.

Across the river on 'the main land':
Are some simply Stunning examples of Moorish architecture that leaves the Christian stuff for dead :). My favorite has to be the Casa de Pilatos or 'Pilots House'. Not the biggest of places, but gorgeous none the less :) The main square nearly took my breath away. Words don't really do it justice, but here goes - the central court yard has a large, multi teared fountain with crystal clear, cool water flowing down it. The walls of the courtyard and covered with the most beautiful and amazing array of patterned, colored tiles up to nearly head hight, with different patterns and colors covering different sections. Above this, delicately and intricately carved arches in white dazzle the eye, with their maze of fabulous criss crossing patterns. At each corner both on the ground and above it are roman statues, that provide an interesting and yet complementary contrast to the stunning Moorish patterns. Leading off the courtyard are a number of symmetrical square rooms, each entered through a archway of intricately carved arches, and filled with different arrays of the same beautifully pattern tiles, with their own small, trickling fountain in the centre and to top it all off celling of dark, beautifully carved wood with golden highlights . . .
Through the windows looking outside is a series of lovely, lush, good green leafy gardens with sweet smelling roses and climbers and cool, trickling fountains . . .
Suffice to say if I was ruler of Spain I would kick all these pesky commoners out of the place and keep it and all its loveliness all to myself. If I was feeling generous I Might let them in once a month, on Tuesday afternoon when I'm not there :).

The same day we went to Seville Cathedral and La Giralda, the big bell tower. The cathedral is nice enough, Big and has lots of impressive, amazingly carved religious scenes and pretty stone carved arches. La Grialda is currently winning as my favorite bell tower because instead of stairs is has a series of not too steep ramps going round and round. Apparently it was designed this way so the ruler of the time could ride his horse up the top of the tower. Why on earth any one would Want to ride a horse all the way up there is beyond me, however it does make for a much, much easier climb if you´re a tired tourist that's been walking all day :) We were also up there when the bells started ringing, which were rather loud and are all mechanized now. I had this mental image of these beautiful old bells being controlled by a modern laptop stilling in the basement of the cathedral somewhere . . .

The following day we went to Real Alcazares or Royal Palance. The tiles, fountains and gardens are of a similar style to the Casa de Pilatos, however obviously on a much, much larger scale! The archways and celling of the central thrown rooms are even more beautiful and ornate, with triple arches simply covered with more intricate, colored patterns and carvings all the way up to the tall, wooden, carved celling above. Some of the pools are a bit more greenish, and fish appear occasionally from the murky depths. The gardens are extensive, with each section laid out in it own separate area that you discover as you walk around another hedge or avenue of trees. You'd think you'd get tired of beautiful, trickling tiled fountains after the umteenth one, but you really don't :)

On our final day we sauntered though Parque Maria Lusia and near by Plaza de Espana. The park is a green oasis with lots of lovely mature trees, but didn't really live up to its reputation in the guide book. Many of the fountains are chipped, broken, or other wise graffitied or not working, and several ponds and fountains contain rather skanky looking, bright green water with scummy bits floating on top. Top this all off with a small sprinkling of some of the less desirable characters from around Seville skulking around begging off the odd tourist and its not the kind of place I would want to be alone of an evening. There are apparently plans to rejuvenate the park, and is its currently obviously used by lots of locals running and the like, but I think it'll be a while before its restored to its former glory . . . The adjoining Plaza de Espana has recently undergone restoration works and was rather lovely in the afternoon light. Originally created for the huge Spanish Expo in 1920 something, it formed a centre piece to show Spain off to the rest of the world. How well this worked maybe still be disputed, however the Plaza itself it still a lovely place, although its hard to see what function it currently serves, other than being a pretty thing. In the center is a large, ornate fountain, surrounded by large, beautiful spiraling patterns in swaths of black and white pebbles. The building around the edge are double story and ornate, with tiles depicting scenes and maps of each region of Spain, set off by the large pointed towers at each corner.

See, all I needed was a list and a little inspiration to write another Epic (I can hear you all groaning now - that wasn't a quick summary! I was going just spend a few mins scanning this on my lunch break and now my coffee's gone cold! Jibbed I tell you, jibbed! (*giggle*).

And now its nearly 1am and I need to go to bed 'cause Jen and I are catching the 10am train to Almeria tomorrow. At some point in the not to distant future I'll do a write up of Cordoba and Granada, although I think this will be the last free internet I have access to for a while . . .

Cheers
S.