|
Seville the great city of the Spanish South
A thriving cultural capital, but easily walkable,
as the mainly pedestrianised historic centre retains the feeling
of a medieval Andalucian village. It is a labyrinth of cobblestone
streets, and shady squares lined with orange trees, aristocratic
palaces and beautiful museums, and wonderful theatres with a full
season of opera, dance and music. At night the air smells
of jasmine and orange blossom, and Seville becomes as romantic as
Venice, but with sudden bursts of life as you chase music being
clapped out by unseen hands, Suddenly you turn a quiet corner,
and there it is... an impromptu flamenco juerga in progress.Moreover,
it is an excellent base from which to tour the unspoiled interior
of Andalusia, which is the largest and oldest province in Spain.
The coast, famous "Pueblo Blanco" hilltowns, Cordoba with
its famous mosque "La Mezquita", and nature parks are
all less than 1 1/2 hours from Sevilla.
The Cathedral main square 
One must begin one's affair with Sevilla in the historic
main square by the Cathedral, where you are struck by the sound
of clattering hooves on the cobblestones as the horses & carriages
glide past. This stunning plaza is flanked by epic monuments from
the city's tremendous history. First, the cathedral, the Giralda,
the largest Gothic building in the world, where Christopher Columbus
lies entombed. You can climb up the enormous bell tower for spectacular
views over all of Seville. The river Guadalquivir, once Columbus's
highway, glitters in the sun. The tower has ramps, not stairs, for
it is these ramps that in the 13th Century, Pedro the Cruel rode
up on his horse to watch his conquering troops slaughter the moors
in the fields beyond the city.
The Palace of the Alcazar
The Palace of the Alcazar - opposite the Cathedral
- is nearly 1000 years old! It is as beautiful architecturally as
the Alhambra in Granada, but without the oppressive crowds. One
can wander these cool courtyards and marvel at the art of the Moors,
whose flourishing civilisation here in Andalucia was the most advanced
in Europe. The gardens are a virtual paradise, and many of the trees
and plants are those brought back by Columbus and later explorers
from .the New World. This vast tropical garden is an ideal place
to escape the heat of the afternoon. The summers here can get very
hot, upper 30's is normal, but at times it can go over 40 degrees
Celcius.
The Barrio de Santa Cruz
This is how you stumble upon Seville's myriad of
little treasures ...: The Barrio is the old historic Jewish
quarter of the city around the Cathedral, and is a veritable labyrinth
of narrow cobblestone streets. These tiny pedestrian streets have
names like Aire, Vida, Agua; Air, Water Life. It is a parallel
universe, and getting lost here is an unavoidable pleasure.This
is how you stumble upon Seville's myriad of little treasures: old
palaces, open to the public, the house of the Barber of Seville,
the statue of Don Juan, that infamous Sevillano eyeing you across
a square, or the lines of a Cernuda poem inscribed on the tiles
of a wall, "I dream of a god without time." .Seville's
ancient streets bear the imprint of the multitude of peoples and
cultures that have called this city home: Romans, Visigoths, Muslims,
Jews and Christian.
Seville, the city of Festivals and Ferias
...
But one of the distinct beauties of Sevilla is one
can be there almost any time of year and find the city in
the throes of one festival or another, and this passion for life
one finds here is truly infectious. I have witnessed several Holy
Week celebrations there, and all the adjectives one heaps upon the
experience do not come close to describing it. It is the Middle
Ages come to life, as day and night, all of Sevilla either watches
or participates in the somber processions of Semana Santa through
the narrow streets. In more than 100 processions which wind their
way thoughout the city day and night, the giant statues are carried
out of the churches by all the brotherhoods in their medieval cloaks,
carrying them on their backs for hours, candle wax from the sea
of enormous tapers covering the cobblestones under foot. The sombre
music of the cornets is broken by a singer emerging onto a balcony
as silence falls. The singer starts a mournful saeta, an ancient
religious song with ornaments of flamenco, and the statues are held
motionless for the serenade. Then as he finishes his song, there
is a great cry from the crowd, the bearers hoist up the massive
platforms, the drums start once again, and the procession winds
onward through the narrow streets.After a week of such vivid and
dramatic observance of this tradition dating back 700 years, the
city abandons itself to feria, the spring fair. For Spring Fair,
the city becomes a mass of flowers and ruffled dresses, as the sevillanos
ride through the streets on horses and in carriages, stopping at
various points to drink and dance sevillanas, the traditional couple
dance of the city. These two festivals, the mournful and the festive,
literally held back to back, illustrate the complex character of
the andalusian people, at once lamenting and joyful, a bliss tinged
with deep melancholy.
A special treat ...
I almost never recommend touristy ventures, but ...
... as the day lengthens, it is time to take a horse and carriage
ride. This is something you must not miss. To be whisked around
the city in one of these shiny black carriages is a magical experience,
passing the Golden Tower (Torre de Oro) to the sweeping Plaza de
espana. As the day closes, you should wander to the river near the
Maestranza bullring, one of the most famous bullring in Spain, and
sit sipping tinto de verano - a refreshing mixture of red wine and
limonade - and watch the sun slowly sink behind the old gypsy quarter
of Triana across the river. Suddenly an old gypsy starts singing:
"When I cross the bridge of Triana, with you is my life Triana,
with you is my life. For my art, only you Triana, I die of happiness."
And if you fear the heat ...
The best antidote for the heat is the siesta, that
most civilised of Spanish practices, which is almost religiously
observed here. So you should do your touring in the morning, and
then be lulled into the afternoon like the Spanish, lunch and rest
until 5, when everything springs back to life.
Jennifer Clickner-Engel,
cultural guide
|
Seville
the great city of the Spanish South ... 
