Shamballa Cruising Yacht Club: Sassy Saucy Seville (but not a barber in sight)

Bob had been putting off a much needed trip to the barber until we reached Seville but in our 2 ½ days in Seville we never came across a single barber shop. Perhaps the requirement to sing Rossini was just too much for the barbers and they all left town! Never mind, Seville is a vibrant and fun city that held many attractions that more than made up for the apparent lack of barbers.

A few weeks too early for the opera

We arrived in Seville mid-afternoon and immediately hit the streets. Just over the bridge near our hotel was the Torro del Oro, a 12^th Century watch tower on the River Guadalquivir, now a naval museum. The small museum had some wonderful models of old ships, including Magellan’s Victtoria and Columbus’s Santa Maria, and fantastic views of the city.

Torro del Oro watchtower

One of the great ship models

This is one of the tallest buildings in Europe

View of the Cathedral from the tower

Just down the road from the tower was the Plaza de Torros. Bob suggested we take the 20 minute tour. I had some reservations but thought a tour of a bull ring might give me insight to the Spanish mindset. I also thought that bull fighting had gone the way of fox hunting in England. I was shocked to find out that there are still 3000 bull rings in Spain and ‘shows’ are held from April through October. Each ‘show’ lasts about 2 ½ hours with 3 bulls being sacrificed. It was all pretty gruesome and horrid. I must admit it only made me more confused about the Spanish outlook.

Plaza de Torros

Inside the bullring. They were selling small bottles of sand from the ring for 6 euros.

Dragging out the bull - quite horrid

The torreador's outfit

The next day we went to the Real Alcázar. This royal palace was first built by the Moors in the 12^th Century and continued to be added to for the next 500 years so contains elements of Moorish, Gothic and Renaissance architecture. The palace is still used by the Spanish royal family when in Seville and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

We spent hours wandering around the large tile and tapestry lined halls and picturesque gardens. There was even a maze, not as good as the one at Hampton Court, but fun nonetheless.

Winter gardens of orange trees and date palms

Underground pool

The peacock giving us a good show

Ornate ceiling of gold

Tapestry several hundred years old

We next went to the Plaza de España, a lovely public space. The huge plaza is bordered by a crescent shaped building of stone and tiles with a balcony along its front and at ground level are ceramic tiled alcoves commemorating all the provinces in Spain – a real people’s place. There is a moat around the perimeter of plaza for people to row small boats under pretty arched bridges. Horse drawn carriages ride around the fountain and buskers are everywhere, including some fantastic Flamingo dancers.