"Seville - the city of Carmen, Don Juan... " a Sevilla Travel Page by annase

According to legend, the city was founded by Hercules. It was called Hispalis under the Romans and Isbiliya by the Moors. Its high point in its history was following the discovery of America. The city lies on the banks of the River Guadalquivir. It houses one of the largest historical centres in Europe and it is very well known as a host of two international exhibitions in 1929 and 1992. The sights include the Old City Centre, the Cathedral and the Giralda tower at its heart where you can climb the tower for a magnificent view of the city. Very close by are the royal Mudéjar Palace (also known as the Alcázar) with marvellous gardens and magnificent architecture.

Part of the city's treasure include Casa de Pilatos, Torre del Oro, the Town Hall, Archive of the Indies (where the historical records of the American continent are kept), the Fine Arts Museum (the second largest picture gallery in Spain), the street of Las Sierpes, La Maestranza bullring, María Luisa park, the riverside walks, convents, parish churches, palaces as well as the Santa Cruz quarter with cramped streets, flowered balconies, richly decorated facades, hidden patios...

I happened to spent one day in Seville as my flights were rescheduled to leave from Seville instead Jerez de Frontera. I got there on Saturday morning in July. It was piping hot already at 11am when me and my sister stepped out of the train. The first thing that we noticed at the station was that it was absolutely spotless and there was no people around asking for change or just loitering there - unlike every other station I've been to in Belgium, Holland, the UK, Finland.. you name it. I was absolutely amazed..

We jumped on a bus which took us to the town centre and the hostel I had booked for one night. After leaving my luggage at the hostel, we decided to go and find a cafe that serves breakfast. The usual breakfast in southern Spain consist of white toast (tostada) and coffee, but this cafe also had freshly squeezed orange juice, which I absolutely adore, so I had a glass. Two coffees, two cheese and ham toasts and one orange juice for €10. What a bargain!

After breakfast we had intended to go back to the hostel, but decided to go and explore the city instead. We walked to the river whilst I could feel the midday sun starting become more intense and due to my fair complexion I presumed I'd burn since I hadn't applied any sun cream that day. I opted for shade where there was one available.

The riverside was very pretty with a lovely promenade and benches under some decorative trees along on it. The locals had also opted for a shade on that day (a wise move!). We passed the bull fight ring and got to the tower Torre del Oro. From there we cut across to the centre of town again and headed for the cathedral. I really had to get inside away from the heat by that time. My sister was used to the heat and wasn't complaining, but accompanied me indoors :-)

The cathedral was absolutely huge and as it was hot, we decided that we were going to see 3 things (the courtyard with the orange trees, the cathedral tower and Columbus's tomb). The walk up the cathedral was long albeit being easy otherwise. It's along a ramp, so you won't be spending time counting the steps (not that I do anyway!). The view from the top is nice, but it was getting very crowded and we had to wait to be able to climb on the steps to see anything.

After the visit to the cathedral we decided to find a place to eat. My sister had seen a Cuban place in her guide book, so we decided to go there. It wasn't easy to find and the sun was burning hot, but in the end we got there. Unfortunately, I didn't enjoy the meal very much, but I wasn't that hungry anyway.

We headed back to the hostel via supermarket and got some things for my sister to take with on her train trip to Malaga. I took her to the bus and decided to go and explore the city a bit further. I ended up walking loads in Seville. In such a heat it wasn't very wise, but I did see a lot.

The narrow roads in the very centre of the city are covered with some kind of sheets fixed between the exterior walls of the house (high up on the top floors), which gives a moderate shade to the people wandering on the streets although during siesta, there are hardly anyone except some tourists on the streets. It's simply too hot. Any sensible person remains indoors.

The city is full of buildings that are more magnificent than the one next door. You take one photo of one and then you see another one. This way, you end up taking hundreds of photos of the town :-) It is absolutely stunning, nothing else I have seen before and the fact that there are orange trees growing on along the streets, is just amazing :-)

I really loved Seville. Although it was way too hot for me and the heat made feel unwell at the end of the day, it was worth experiencing and seeing Seville even though it was just for a day (and a night).