Lecturas recomendadas: El tambor de piel, y Rinconete y Cortadillo.
La verdad es que resulta curioso la cantidad de vínculos emocionales que me unen a esta maravilla de ciudad... y de la que casi no te das cuenta hasta que pasas revista a lo acontecido en un fin de semana... y es que no es normal que en poco más de 48 horas, y en este orden... nos vayamos de marcha con el grupo de sevilla más salaó que cuidó de jess cuando andaba por aquí, me encuentre a Tomás Collantes tomando una copita, Sacha nos invite al concierto de Monn de cello que casualmente toca ese día en Sevilla, que hagamos unas tapas con mis buenos Ernesto y Ángela a los que hacía años que no veía y comamos en uno de los lugares predilectos de mi querida tía Amalia, que Jess visite la casa donde vivía hace casi dos lustros, y que para terminar comamos con mi querido tío Manolín. Una semana desde luego intensa y maravillosa. Y todos esos lugares pensar que los habrá pateado mi querido primo Edu tantas y tantas veces.
Allá va el resumen de lo que dio de sí Sevilla en ese delicioso fin de semana...
SEVILLE
(Sevilla if you’re in the mood to use your Spanish!)
Sevilla is such an enchanting city. The best way to enjoy it is to wander around and take it all in. It’s very manageable and you can easily see it all in 2-3 days.
The central point of the city is the cathedral, so if you’re ever wondering which way to go, just look for the tower (La Giralda in Spanish) connected to the cathedral and you’ll find your way.
Walk around the the neighborhood called Santa Cruz. It's a quaint little area behind the cathedral with winding streets. Adorable little plazas are scattered throughout this area, as well as tons of cafes and tapas restaurants. It's worth spending a morning or afternoon just walking, getting lost, and stumbling across a beautiful plaza and grabbing a beer.
Tourist spots worth seeing
Sevilla is the kind of city that you just want to stroll around and enjoy, but a few tourist spots worth visiting:
El Alcazar - a royal palace with Moorish influence. It takes a few hours to walk through the whole thing. It’s best to go right when it opens because the line to get in can get painfully long.
La Catedral - you can enjoy it from the outside, but it’s worth stepping inside. If you want you can climb the tower called La Giralda to see the city from a bird's eye view.
Plaza de España and Parque María Louisa - the park is beautiful to stroll through and Plaza de España is also worth seeing. It was built back in the early 1900s for an exposition and is now an important landmark in the city.
La Casa de Pilatos - this used to be a palace of a famous Duke and is reminiscent of the Alcazar, though it is much less visited and significantly smaller. However, it’s worth a visit.
La Casa de la Juderia - https://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g187443-d191207-Reviews-Las_Casas_de_la_Juderia-Seville_Province_of_Seville_Andalucia.html
This is actually a hotel, but it’s a gem that many tourists don’t visit (since it’s not actually a tourist attraction). It’s right next to El Pasaje restaurant (see below). It’s made up of about 30 houses from the city’s old Jewish quarter, connected by patios and little passageways. If you just act like you’re staying there, you can walk in and see the facades of the different houses and enjoy the architecture. It’s really beautiful and quaint -- seems like a secret little spot. They also have two other attractions:
- Piano Bar - 7:00-10pm live music
- Spa: Las Termas de Hispalis
Where to eat:
When Sevillians go out, it's usually for tapas, so you're less likely to find sit down restaurants and more likely to come across tapas places. You can honestly stop most anywhere that looks appetizing and you won’t be disappointed, but here are a few recs.
El Pasaje Sevilla - Calle Ximénez de Enciso, 33 (corner of la Calle Santa María la Blanca). My friend, Fran, owns this restaurant and another friend, Juanma, is one of the managers/waiters. It’s a beautiful restaurant and the food is delish. They also have seating outside in an adorable plaza. If you want to make a reservation to eat, contact Juanma directly (he speaks English - you could call +34 685.057.465). Or let me know and I’ll reserve for you. If you go, make sure you tell them you’re a friend of mine.
El Pasaje Bar - Calle Pasaje de Vila. This is another spot that Fran owns (right around the corner from the previous restaurant), which is more of a bar, but also serves food. It’s a great spot to grab a beer/cocktail/wine at night.
Las Teresas - Calle Santa Teresa, 2. They are known for having amazing jamón (Spanish ham). Small little corner bar/restaurant with a delicious selection of tapas.
Bar Pelayo - Calle de Placentines 25. This is a great little tapas spot that’s also right near the cathedral, but on a smaller street, so it’s not as crazy as all of the restaurants that line the streets leading to and around the cathedral itself.
Antonio Romero - Calle Antonia Díaz, 5. This is a typical tapas restaurant where people go to eat after a bullfight (it's right next to the bull ring). Try the piripi montaditos. http://www.bodeguitaantonioromero.com/es/
Taberna Aguilas – Calle Aguilas, 10. Fran also owns this tavern. It sometimes has flamenco music being played and has a very local feel. It’s near la Plaza del Salvador which is a fun area for going out.
Rooftop bars
Hotel Doña Maria: http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g187443-d236102-Reviews-Hotel_Dona_Maria-Seville_Province_of_Seville_Andalucia.html — amazing location, right in Barrio Santa Cruz. My parents stayed here when they visited me. Prices at this point in the year seem reasonable as well. They also have a great rooftop that you can grab a drink on.
EME fusión hotel:
They have a beautiful rooftop… more posh feel. Good for a cocktail. Calle Alemanes, 27.
Flamenco
La Carbonería: http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g187443-d754093-Reviews-La_Carboneria-Seville_Province_of_Seville_Andalucia.html — great flamenco bar in the santa cruz neighborhood. They generally have performances daily in a very unpretentious setting, aka cafeteria style wooden benches and tables. tends to be a young crowd.
La Casa Anselma: http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g187443-d2057719-Reviews-Casa_Anselma-Seville_Province_of_Seville_Andalucia.html — another flamenco bar. This one is in the neighborhood of Triana (other side of the guadalquivir river) and is very much a neighborhood/family bar. it’s known to have some pretty authentic flamenco, so worth a visit for sure.
If you head over to Triana you should walk down Calle Betis and grab a drink at one of the restaurants along the river.
Going out
You can just tapa/bar hop around Barrio Santa Cruz, but if you’d like a little more of a going out scene, you can head to Calle Betis which has bar after bar after bar and usually gets pretty lively at night.
La Plaza del Salvador also has lots of bars around and is a great spot to grab drinks day or night.
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