Day 22: Jerez de la Frontera & Cadiz

We took a bus tour south today. We started at Jerez de la Frontera with a sherry tasting and tour of a very small bodega. We learned so much including info about the sherry I have at home. Great start to the day. The owners have displayed their labels from over the years. I absolutely love these.

And some of their sherries.

Instead of seeing an Andalusian horse show (which we had seen before) we wandered around Jerez. It was a lovely town with an Alcazar, which we toured on our own.

Then it was off to Cadiz--a really nice seaside town. It was Phoenician, then Roman, then Arab. Lots of history and great strolls.

This is our last full day in Seville. It is so lovely, we could have stayed longer.

 

Day 21: The Seville Cathedral & Book Fair

Today was a leisurely day. During our trip in 2017 we visited the Alcazar, but not the cathedral. Today we went inside.

One of the first things we saw was the tomb of Christopher Columbus. It's weird--he was buried in a number of places and then moved. So he traveled both in life and death. 

There are two women who kept showing up around the cathedral. They are Saints Justa and Rufina. They were potters from Seville which means they probably lived across the river in Triana. The first photo is a Goya painting. Then we saw them in a stained glass window and finally on an alter painting. I'm sure there were more images of them that we missed. It was fun looking for them.

We went for tapas and drinks on the terrace at the famous Alfonso XIII hotel. It was lovely.

On the way back to our hotel, we ran across a series of stalls--all with used books. When we got to the end, Steve spotted the sign for the book fair.

A very relaxing and fun day.

 

Day 20: Cordoba

Today we took a tour to Cordoba. I really wanted to see the synagogue and the mosque/cathedral.

When we arrived we walked through a street of homes where some were open to show off their patios. Apparently every May there is a competition for the best patios.

I especially wanted to see the synagogue since it is only one of 3 pre-inquisition synagogues that are left standing in Spain.  This one made it through since it was small and had the walls covered for other uses.

The size of the mosque is unbelievable. Our guide said it could fit 40,000 people. The outside was stunning, but the inside blew me away. I had seen pictures of the arches, but didn't realize they were everywhere in the building. There are 365.

When the Catholics reconquered Spain they built a church right in the center of the mosque. I am so glad they didn't tear the mosque down as happened in a number of places.

Cordoba is on the same river as the one that runs close to our hotel here in Seville.

After the trip we were wandering around town looking for a place to eat dinner and we heard this band playing.

 

It turns out it was one of these neighborhood associations that has their own Virgin and we got to see her in a procession through the streets.

Seville seems like it is from another time.

Day 19: Neighborhood Virgin and Plaza España

 When we left our hotel room to go across the plaza for breakfast there were tons of people hovering around a small chapel. We spoke to one of the men who told us that there are many neighborhood associations who are aligned with different images of the Virgin Mary. People were going in the chapel to kiss this one's hands for luck. We found out she would be paraded through the streets next weekend. There was also a youth band that went inside the chapel and then came out and played. There were kids of so many different ages--pretty amazing.

We went to Plaza España in the big park in Seville. This structure was built for the 1929 world's fair. It is stunning and we spend quite a lot of time there.

Around the circle there are little pavilions for each of Spain's states. I think they said 46, but not sure. This one is for Barcelona.

There are ceramics everywhere. Even on the railing of a bridge. We spent a ton of time here.

There were street flamenco dancers--loved it.

We took a horse carriage ride around the park and the city. It was actually tons of fun. Got this shot of the Cathedral and Alcazar together.

It was Saturday evening and it seemed like most of the town was on the street. This folks set up speakers and music and were dancing by the river.

We ended up at a good Italian place for dinner. Our margharetta pizza was good, but what I really love were the pizza scissors. They worked great. I'd never seen them before. I'll be on the lookout for these when I get home.

Day 18: Wandering Seville

Today was a walking day. We wandered over the bridge close to our hotel to go to Triana. It's a lovely part of Seville.

We went into the Mercado de Triana. A lively place, bustling with people and great looking food.

Then we went to the ceramics district. Love the work here. All through Triana you can see ceramics on the sides of buildings.

We went into the Ceramics Center which was a combo of modern and ancient work.

As we strolled around Triana, you can look in doorways and find amazing things.

We took a cruise along the Guadalquivir River. Very relaxing and beautiful.

We're back in our room doing a load of laundry. I can't believe that we have a washing machine in our room. Yay!