Yesterday morning, Thursday November 15th, we decided that once we saw the Sevilla Cathedral, which is the largest Gothic cathedral in the world and the 3rd largest cathedral overall after St Peter’s in Rome and St Paul’s in London, we wouldn’t need to see any more cathedrals on this trip. In Granada, Córdoba and now Sevilla, we have stayed in little hotels in the old (usually formerly Jewish) quarter of the city. It’s been great. We had been planning to go to Cadiz and then the southern port of Tarifa where we could take a ferry to Morocco. However, we have decided that we don’t need to see any more old neighbourhoods in old cities anymore this trip. We just don’t think we’ll see anything much different or better in Cadiz, Tarifa or, for that matter, in Asilah or Chefchaouen, the towns we’d planned to visit in Morocco.
Since we’re loving Sevilla, we booked 2 more nights in this hotel. Oddly enough, it’s cheaper to do that online through booking.com than it is to book at the front desk. We got all that organized and cancelled our reservations in Cadiz and Tarifa. From here we’re going straight to Ronda, a little hill town, for 2 nights. Then we’ll go to the Costa del Sol somewhere, rent an apartment and from there take a day trip to Gibraltar. Other than that we’ll just hang out in some beach town and enjoy the sun and tapas. We both felt there was something wrong with our plan so we fixed it. Spending 6 nights instead of 4 in Sevilla feels right.
At 11 am, we walked down to the Cathedral when it opened. The line to get in was so long that we decided to try later in the day. There’s a tourist information office near the Cathedral so we went in to inquire about how to get bus tickets to Ronda for next Tuesday. I had checked online and it seemed like the Prado de San Sebastián bus station was the place to go. However, the tourist info lady told us to walk 15 minutes to the Plaza de Armas bus station, which is the one we had come to from Córdoba. After a 25 minute walk along the river, we got there. The bus ticket lady told us that we had the wrong station and to go back to the Prado de San Sebastián. Good to know.
At least on the way back we found a mini-market where we bought nuts, oranges and beer. Plus it was the hottest day yet so we enjoyed the heat and 26C temperature.
After a snack in our room, we went back to the Cathedral. It took only 5 minutes to get in. The Sevilla Cathedral is so massive and so filled with ornate artistry, it’s hard to believe. The altar piece, reputedly the largest in the world, is 65 feet high and 45 feet across, made up of carved wooden panels covered in gold leaf depicting the life of Jesus from birth until crucifixion.
In one corner is the coffin of Christopher Columbus held up by 4 kings. Yes, he’s really in there. They proved that with DNA testing in 2006, 500 years after he was interred.
The bell tower used to be a Muslim minaret. There is a spiral ramp that goes up 330 feet so armed guards could ride horses up 5 times a day to escort the muezzin as he performed the call to prayer. We walked up and were glad to finally get to the top.
When we had seen all there was to see in the Cathedral, we went back to the Bodega Santa Cruz near our hotel, where we had eaten the night before. It’s an experience. We noticed when we got back to the hotel that it’s recommended in both our guidebooks and is described as a “forever-crowded bodega where eating tapas becomes a physical contact sport”. That sounds about right. Great place.
Internet here is slow. We have lots of pictures but will put them in later.
Since we’re loving Sevilla, we booked 2 more nights in this hotel. Oddly enough, it’s cheaper to do that online through booking.com than it is to book at the front desk. We got all that organized and cancelled our reservations in Cadiz and Tarifa. From here we’re going straight to Ronda, a little hill town, for 2 nights. Then we’ll go to the Costa del Sol somewhere, rent an apartment and from there take a day trip to Gibraltar. Other than that we’ll just hang out in some beach town and enjoy the sun and tapas. We both felt there was something wrong with our plan so we fixed it. Spending 6 nights instead of 4 in Sevilla feels right.
At 11 am, we walked down to the Cathedral when it opened. The line to get in was so long that we decided to try later in the day. There’s a tourist information office near the Cathedral so we went in to inquire about how to get bus tickets to Ronda for next Tuesday. I had checked online and it seemed like the Prado de San Sebastián bus station was the place to go. However, the tourist info lady told us to walk 15 minutes to the Plaza de Armas bus station, which is the one we had come to from Córdoba. After a 25 minute walk along the river, we got there. The bus ticket lady told us that we had the wrong station and to go back to the Prado de San Sebastián. Good to know.
At least on the way back we found a mini-market where we bought nuts, oranges and beer. Plus it was the hottest day yet so we enjoyed the heat and 26C temperature.
After a snack in our room, we went back to the Cathedral. It took only 5 minutes to get in. The Sevilla Cathedral is so massive and so filled with ornate artistry, it’s hard to believe. The altar piece, reputedly the largest in the world, is 65 feet high and 45 feet across, made up of carved wooden panels covered in gold leaf depicting the life of Jesus from birth until crucifixion.
In one corner is the coffin of Christopher Columbus held up by 4 kings. Yes, he’s really in there. They proved that with DNA testing in 2006, 500 years after he was interred.
The bell tower used to be a Muslim minaret. There is a spiral ramp that goes up 330 feet so armed guards could ride horses up 5 times a day to escort the muezzin as he performed the call to prayer. We walked up and were glad to finally get to the top.
When we had seen all there was to see in the Cathedral, we went back to the Bodega Santa Cruz near our hotel, where we had eaten the night before. It’s an experience. We noticed when we got back to the hotel that it’s recommended in both our guidebooks and is described as a “forever-crowded bodega where eating tapas becomes a physical contact sport”. That sounds about right. Great place.
Internet here is slow. We have lots of pictures but will put them in later.
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