People kept asking me whether I had been to Seville before and in truth I had, but you could hardly call it a visit – it was more of a drive through. In the ‘80s I did a 3 month campervan trip through Europe and travelled across Spain and through Portugal before coming across the Spanish border at the Guadiana river not far from Seville. “Stay away from Seville” we were warned, “there’s a lot of thievery from campervans, even at traffic lights, so keep your doors locked”. So that is what we did, bypassing Seville and heading for Granada, which we absolutely loved.
Fast forward 30 years, and I had a deep regret about my neglect of Seville, so added it to my bucket list of places I wanted to visit while I was on my middle-aged gap year. When I discovered a friend who was equally keen to go to Seville a plan was hatched to visit Seville during a Bank Holiday weekend.
I absolutely loved my long weekend in Seville and have come up with seven reasons why it makes an ideal city break/long weekend destination.
1. The Tapas Culture
Seville is, at its essence, a very traditional city and nowhere is this more obvious than in its tapas bars and what is served. Tapas has become a bit of a catch cry world wide for casual shared snacks, but Spain and Seville is where it all started and it is fair to say in Seville tapas are taken very seriously. There are tapas bars everywhere, and the tapas tradition is part of daily life. We were lucky enough to be staying very near the Santa Maria church and El Rinconcillo the oldest tapas bar in Seville and so headed there on our first night. We stumbled into this beautiful Tapas bar with very little Spanish but managed to order some wine and traditional tapas that we could see the guy behind the bar preparing in front of us. We started off with cheese and traditionally cured ham – both quite delicious. From here we watched other people and when we saw something we liked the look of we pointed, and what we got was equally delicious. A running record was chalked up on the wooden bar top. I was beginning to get a bit worried about it’s length, but the total cost was only 20 Euro, and cheaper than London prices. The experience was like those credit card ads – priceless!
2. Shopping and shoes
To my mind one of the key things you need for a city break/long weekend is a chance for shopping, and the shopping in Seville is superb. The shoe shopping in particular was to die for. We found ourselves heading to go and see a tourist sight but then getting distracted by the shop windows of shoe shops – the choice was amazing, as were the prices. Both of us ended up with a couple of pairs of shoes, and then had to figure out how we were going to fit them in our hand luggage. It was a case of where there is a will there is a way, but I would recommend leaving plenty of room in your bag when you visit Seville.
3.Flamenco
This is the dance of Seville, and like the tapas bars, there are Flamenco performances on offer everywhere – even busking performances on the street. Obviously a lot of shows are put on especially for tourists, but we managed to find an AirB & B experience that had the real deal. We met our host on the river and headed into Triana, where we were first taken for tapas – I told you tapas is embedded into the social fabric of this town – before being taken to a small bar on the riverfront. Our host was the main flamenco dancer of the evening , and she was able to explain the history and traditions of the dance, and to tell us what we would be seeing so that we could understand what was going on in the actual performance.
4. Royal Alcazar
This is one amazing palace, and a definite must do – it is so beautiful. We spent around 3 hours here. First we did a tour I discovered on AirB&B experience ‘The Royal Alcazar Secrets’ and I was so glad I took this option. We met Beatriz our guide in the nearby square, and because we were with her we bypassed the long queue and entered the palace straight away. She was an amazing guide – she talked passionately about the history of Seville, and its implications on the architectural features of the palace, which also allowed us to understand other buildings in Seville too. The tour took us through the main buildings, with only a cursory look at the gardens, because as Beatrice explained – it was better that we took the time to explore these ourselves, which we did. After we left the tour, we spent another hour or so exploring the gardens, but also revisiting some of the rooms we had visited on the way through. The cost of the tour was €44, plus the cost of entry (which you need to book and pay for online). It was well worth it.
5. Paella
I love paella, and when I discovered you could do a paella cooking class I was quick to sign up for our third AirB&B experience. It was held in the Triana market, where the chef who runs the class has set up a couple of commercial kitchens. As I have said before, Seville is a very traditional city, and has a very traditional way of doing things, and this is also the case for paella. We were told that paella as I know it, with chorizo and perhaps prawns, is just rice with those ingredients and cannot truly be classified as paella! The chef took us through the steps of paella making Sevillian style, and we were all involved in its making – chopping and preparing the stock, the chicken and the vegetables, and adding these to the great big paella pan in just the right order. We also made gazpacho, so simple to do and so delicious – as was the paella which we got to eat with sangria and then red wine. It was dusk when we left the market and headed back across the river, and we enjoyed the golden light and warm temperatures as we walked back through this beautiful city to our apartment.
6. The Parasol
This meandering wooden structure is located at La Encarnacion Square in the heart of old Seville. It was designed by German Architect Juergen Mayer and was completed in 2011. As wth most architecture that pushes the boundaries, the stucture is somewhat controversial and you either love it or hate it. I’m in the love it camp as I think we need new and challenging buildings for cities to evolve. The Parasol is imposing without dominating the beautiful buildings around it, and it affords some glorious views of Seville from its upper reaches. We spent a very happy hour there on the day we were due to go home, recognising the places we had visited.
7. Its a city to get lost in, but easy to get around
This is a city that begs to be explored, and get lost in – discovering beautiful old buildings, courtyards and narrow cobblestoned lanes. It was easy to get lost in – one wrong turning and you were heading in a slightly different direction but it was always rewarding, and with the help of google maps we are able to get back on course.
When it mattered, such as getting from the airport into town, navigation was easy, the bus system was efficient and the people only too happy to help with directions.
LIVING LIFE ON MY OWN TERMS 