The Wife enjoyed the visit to the Royal Alcazar. I, for one, did not regret missing out on yet another Spanish palace/fortress.
By noon, I was feeling a bit better and needed some fresh air, so I rendezvoused with everybody else at their next stop, the Catedral de Sevilla. Like the other cathedrals that we had seen so far on this trip, this one was also Gothic style. However, it has the distinction of being the largest Cathedral (but not church) in the world, encompassing almost 24,000 square meters in area. The church was immense and beautiful, but I was too preoccupied with not throwing up to really enjoy it's grandeur.
I did feel well enough to walk up the Giralda Bell Tower. It was initially built as a minaret for the city's mosque when it was under Islamic control. It was converted into a bell tower when the current cathedral was constructed over the site of the mosque. The walk was tedious, but it was worth it for the picturesque views of the city and the nearby Royal Alcazar.
The Cathedral of Seville is also celebrated as the final resting place of Christopher Columbus. When the famous explorer died in 1506, his body was initially brought to Seville, but then moved in 1542 to the Samto Domingo cathedral in the Dominican Republic. An elaborate tomb was constructed to hold his remains. When Spain lost control of the island, the tomb was moved to nearby Cuba. That island gained independence after the Spanish-American War. The tomb was then brought back to Seville where it has remained inside the Cathedral since 1899.
But that's only part of the story. In 1877, Dominican workers found a box of bones at the Santo Domingo cathedral that was labeled "Don Columbus, Admiral of the Ocean Sea." Since then, Spain and the Dominican Republic have both claimed to have the true remains of Christopher Columbus. A $70 million Columbus Lighthouse was even constructed in the Dominican Republic. In 2002, Spanish authorities did a DNA comparison between the remains in the Seville Cathedral and those of his brother Diego, finding a perfect match. Nevertheless, the controversy has yet to be put to rest. So it begs the next question: Who's buried in Grant's Tomb?
After leaving the cathedral, we enjoyed walking around the heart of the city. We stopped at a nearby Christmas market at the Plaza Nueva.
This market was much better than the one in Madrid, one higher end and craftier merchandise. The Wife and Mother-In-Law were enthralled with the skillfully crafted jewelry and accessories made simply with paper and leather.
We had an alfresco lunch at Sal Gorda Restaurant. It was nice to be able to relax and enjoy the perfect winter weather while we ate delicious tapas with a modern twist.
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| Pan |
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| Alitas de pollo con salsa kimchee |
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| Tartar de atun rojo |
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| Patatas brava |
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| Cochinito asado |
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| Lubina en adobo |
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| Dorado con ajoblanco y fruta de temporada |
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| Risotto de boletus y langostinos |
We walked around the winding streets of the city after lunch. All of the Christmas decorations and heavily-armed police officers gave the city a festive atmosphere.
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| The window display of this confectionery was made entirely of sugar. |
After a nice rest back at our rental apartment, we had dinner up the street at the Vineria San Telmo Restaurant. Although it was a bit chilly at night, we were able to dine comfortably because of their outdoor heaters. The restaurant is located in the touristy section of the city, but the food was still very good and reasonably-priced.
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| Hot Chocolate |
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| Red cabbage salad with a balsamic vinegar reduction |
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| Cod Fritters |
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| King prawn carpaccio with sesame seeds and soy reduction |
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| Squid ink spaghetti with pesto and grilled scallops |
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| Crepes with black pudding and roasted red pepper sauce |
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| Tower of tomato, eggplant, goat cheese, and smoked salmon |
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| Fresh grilled foie gras with apple compote |
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| Moroccan pasty with chicken, almonds, and cinnamon |
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| Stewed oxtail in crispy filo pastry |
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| Grilled beef sweetbreads |
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| Lemon meringue pie |
*****
December 24, 2017
*****
I was still feeling a bit lightheaded the following morning, and The Wife awoke with a headache too. It wasn't as bad as the morning before, but I did look forward to getting some fresh air to feel better. The city was pretty quiet. Not only was it a Sunday, but it was also Christmas Eve. We headed over to the Metropol Parasol, reportedly the largest wooden structure in the world. The site originally housed a food market that dated back to 1842. Eventually the building was torn down in the 1970. Decades later, this work of art and architecture was created after a series of construction delays and cost overruns. The design of the structure was inspired by a mushroom, hence the alternate name Las Setas de la Encarnación (Incarnation's Mushroom). The market has returned to the area, 40 shops at the street level. Only a few were open that morning.
We purchased tickets to the Antiquarium, located inside. When construction began on the Metropol Parasol, old Roman ruins that dated to 30 AD were discovered. Local authorities have attempted preserved these ruins by building around them. An old salt factory and several houses were uncovered.
Aside from some nice, but incomplete mosaics and a few broken pots, there aren't many artifacts on display. Although the tickets were inexpensive, we would not have missed much if we had skipped the antiquarium.
We then took the elevator to the top of the Metropol, which serves as a lookout point to see the city.
Our next stop on this warm, sunny day was the Casa de Pilatos. This palace was built in the 15th century by local Spanish dukes. Its design was influenced by Italian, Mediterranean, and Moorish culture, creating a unique Andalusian-style architecture. Basically it is a mishmash of classical and Arabic designs.
The one painting in the Casa de Pilatos that caught my eye was of a bearded man breast-feeding a baby. WTF! It turns out that it is a reproduction of a portrait of Magdalena Ventura known as the "bearded woman of the Abruzzi" and her husband. This 17th century lady was married with children when she began growing a beard in her late 30's, likely from hirsutism. Oddly enough, this portrait of her was painted when she was 52. Not only was she still able to have babies at that age, but her husband still thought she was attractive even though she looked like George Costanza.
Guided tours are available to see the upper floor. Since the palace is still used as a residence, photography is not permitted. Aside from paintings by famous artists, much of that second story was mainly just ornate furnishings and family effects.
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| This is what The Boy thought about the tour. |
Afterwards, we strolled around the various green areas of Seville. Most of the locals were off for the holidays. They seemed to be enjoying themselves with the multitude of outdoor activities on this bright, sunny day.
We tried some polvoróns which are holiday sweets popular in the Andalusian areas of Spain. They are essentially shortbreads made with flour, sugar, milk, and usually almonds. There were many flavors to try. They were good, but nothing to get overly excited about.
Eventually, we arrived at the Maria Luisa Park. Within this area is the Plaza de España--aka the Naboo Palace from the "Star Wars Attack of the Clones" movie. Fortunately, there were no gungans present when we visited. I can see why the movie was filmed there. The park is absolutely beautiful, even in the winter time without any flowers in bloom.
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| The Plaza de España looks identical to the scenes from the Star Wars movie. The only thing missing is the bad acting. |
There are several alcoves against the wall of the Plaza de España that celebrate the difference provinces of Spain.
While we were there, some amateur performers broke out into a flamenco performance.
Besides relaxing and enjoying the ambiance, visitors to the park can also pay for activities such as renting a rowboat or hiring a carriage ride.
Since many of the restaurants would be closed for Christmas Eve, we decided to have a late lunch/early dinner. In the US, it's mainly the Chinese restaurants that stay open around Christmas. Since we didn't see any of those, we did the next best thing and found a Korean restaurant called Moon. I have to admit, it was nice having a respite from eating Spanish food for a week straight.
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| Banchan |
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| Japche |
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| Tukkbokki |
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| Ttuk ramyun |
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| Mandoo-kuk |
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| Osam bulgogi |
*****
December 25, 2017
******
It was not a typical Christmas for us. There was no Christmas tree or presents to open. There was no snow nor even a reason to wear a coat. We had thought about going to midnight mass at the Cathedral of Seville, but in the end we were too lazy to leave our apartment. Plus, the procession would be either in Spanish or Latin, so we wouldn't be able to understand anything anyway.
It was raining outside and everything was closed, so we had nothing else to do but sit around our apartment and relax. That evening, we did have reservations at Casa de la Guitarra for a show that combined Spanish guitar, flamenco dancing, and singing.
The performers were pretty intense which I believe is normal for those types of art forms. The guitarist was great, my favorite of the performers. However, I couldn't tell whether his facial expressions were a sign of his passion for his music, or if he was just really constipated. Altogether, it was an entertaining show even though we didn't really understand any of it. I was just happy that there was something to do on Christmas day beside stare at our apartment walls.
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