luxemblog: Easter in Seville

After hearing our friends Claudia and Mike rave about their time in Seville for Semana Santa I was determined that Dave and I would also experience it. The thought of the constant fragrance of orange blossoms in the air, Iberican ham, manchego, and copious amounts of vino tintos in the sun was too much to resist.

One of the first things we saw were fans. Lots and lots of fans.

We stopped to see Plaza de Espana. It was built for the Latin American Expo of 1929. It has two 80 metre high towers joined by a gallery with arches which look down onto a semi-circular display of brightly tiled sections - each one displaying the map and cultural objects and motifs from the Spanish Regions arranged in alphabetical order.

We decided to pose here in the Alicante alcove. My grandmother's family is from this region. Also, I studied abroad in Alicante and Dave coincidentally visited this city a year later when he was studying abroad in Florence. He came here on his Easter break and I went to Florence on my Easter break. A year apart, but still- pretty interesting coincidences, don't ya think?

Another popular site is the Alcazar. A gorgeous medieval Islamic palace (thank you, Moors) in the center of the city. Its gardens are wonderful for napping--and peacock watching.

And then the cathedral of Seville. I have to admit that I'm getting a little unexcited about visiting cathedrals after seeing SO MANY but this one was special - again, the orange trees got me. The courtyard was full of them.

I don't know what this is but it's old and it's cool-looking.

We saw a bit of flamenco. I think the rule with Flamenco is that the older the woman, the better the dancing.

This woman was NOT "OLD" but she was the oldest of the bunch and she was the best- you really believed her emotions and her confidence.

The scent of the orange blossoms was especially strong (and intoxicating) at night.

These won award for most tacky flamenco dresses.

Orange trees and old buildings: a winning combination.

I had my own religious experience with orange blossoms.

Nearly everywhere you looked, the ground was "littered" with oranges.

In this age of technology-overload and virtual-everything I am so comforted by the sight of backpackers (especially college students) taking in scenery and getting OUT in the world, experiencing new places.

This was a common scenario: women (or kids) with bunches of rosemary would walk up to you, give you a sprig then tell your fortune. Then they would ask for money. I got suckered in because this little girl gave me the sprig and I thought it was some sort of Semana Santa thing- you give away herbs to strangers. What do I know.

Jamon, jamon!

Check out all of those stripped ham legs. This place goes through a lot of jamon on a sunny day during Semana Santa!

Even the ladies like a bit of jamon, then a nice strong cafe.

The creepy KKK-esque costumes of the processions.

I think you had to buy a ticket to get these front row seats.

These seats were free. We sat here.

We got lucky and a friend of a friend who used to live in Seville totally HOOKED US UP with the best list of restaurants. All filled with locals and all serving wonderful food. This place was our favorite. We would never have gone here if not for the recommendation. It's on a not-so-pretty street and the exterior is a bit scary-looking. However, you go inside and it's FULL of Sevillianos, all ages, talking and laughing and eating. We were there Easter Sunday and it looked like everyone piled in there after church. Such a great time.