Blogs from Seville, Andalusia, Spain, Europe - page 76

Wow, I feel like I changed contries. Seville is so different to Valencia. After a lovely 10 hour bus trip where the strange man next to me kept leaning into me while he was asleep and two young Spanish boys constantly telling me how beautiful I was in an attempt to pick me up (maybe I should of told them how old I was, I probably could of scared them off) it was time for me to navigate a new city. I arrived bright and early on Friday morning and headed straight to the hostel. I was dead tired, I suppose that will teach me for partying all Wednesday night and then catching an over night bus which I only half slept on. Unfortunately the hostel would not let me check in until 1 o´clock so ... read more

"Don´t know about you, but I am une chien Andalusia, I am une chien Andalusia, I am une chien Andalusia, When I grow up I want to be, be a Debaser....." - The Pixies Hola everyone, it´s been a while, but I haven´t really had a chance to walk into an internet cafe. If you´re wondering about the Pixie lyrics, it´s because I am in Seville, the capital city of the province of Andalusia (You try making a pop culture reference about Andalusia). Ok, this will be kind of like a postcard where I´m sending it from Seville, but it will be about what I got up to before I arrived in Seville. By the way, it´s a sweltering 38 degrees here. What´s Melbourne like?? :) Since I last left you guys, I´ve stayed in Madrid ... read more

And welcome to Seville 34*, flat, sunny. Like being in Adelaide on a hot summer day. Dry heat, bright light. Not a huge city but the YHA was a mile out, they don´t have a metro, so you´re on a bus trying to get there and recognise street names etc etc .Hard work and somehow took 90 minutes to get 2 miles to the hostel. The YHA, Hostelling Internationals in Europe are set up like boot camps for student groups and when I arrived there were about 80 ten year olds in the foyer. I never have to share with them but the entire no alochol, no chill out areas and no free internet do not get the party crowd in and they seem pretty sterile. Luckily, changed to another hostel the next night, before going ... read more

Today we tour the Seville Cathedral and the Barrio Santa Cruz (old Jewish Quarter). I’m finally feeling 100% again, yea! So after breakfast we make the short walk over to the cathedral, touted as being the 3rd largest in Europe. It is impossible to imagine how large it actually is unless you are there in person. The exterior is a fine example of Gothic architecture at it’s most impressive. The interior seems enormous! In the center of the cathedral is the impressive 65 ft. tall altar piece depicting scenes from the life of Jesus, intricately carved out walnut and chestnut and layered in gold leaf (and dust), and the choir which holds 7,000 organ pipes. There are numerous side chambers and altars adjacent to the main area, and a large collection of fine art throughout, a ... read more

At 8am on Saturday morning, Laura and I took a bus ride to the 19th century. Well, not quite, but pretty close. We headed for Sevilla to see their festival that occurs every spring. The women dress in Flamenco dresses and the men in three piece suits or riding outfits. Horses and carriages line the streets, filling quicker with each hour, and the sidewalks are transformed into city-like blocks with ¨casetas¨lined from one street to the next, back to back with others, for five blocks one way and five blocks the other. In these casetas, there is dancing, the traditional flamenco, eating, drinking and fellowship with friends. However, for people who aren´t from Sevilla, it´s not as fun as it sounds. These are casetas privadas, or private areas, where you must be invited in or have ... read more