Today was an attractions-heavy day with so many great photos that I thought it best to split the post into two, so as not to cause any loading problems.
We'd decided to join a free walking tour, as recommended by our hotel reception, as they do a pickup at our hotel. Free walking tours are terrific - basically the organisers lead you around the city, and at the end, you decide how much you want to tip the guide. These guides are usually students or enthusiastic citizens, and you can feel their passion as they share their knowledge about their beloved city. The one we joined was the purple umbrella group.
We joined the tour only for the Seville cathedral. A fascinating piece of info from our guide, Manu, was that the cathedral (as well as the adjacent Alcazar), was originally a mosque! It was built by the Muslims who occupied Seville in the 12th century. However, when Ferdinand III invaded Seville, he was so astonished by the splendour of the cathedral that he didn't destroy it, as was typical of conquerers back then (thank goodness!) Recognising it as a gorgeous piece of architecture, he merely put crosses everywhere and commissioned statues and paintings of saints to "christianise" the structure and turn it into a cathedral. LOL.
It explains why a lot of the design details look Middle Eastern. It's a gorgeous cathedral - the third largest in the world (the largest is Saint Peter's in Rome). The bell tower, called Giralda, was previously the minaret of the mosque. Carved at the top are the words "Proverb 18", which state that "The name of the Lord is a fortified tower". It was believed that the bell tower was so high that one could speak to God up there.
After the visit to the cathedral, we went to La Brunilda for a spot of lunch. Andre did most of the food research for this trip and this was one of the must-go to places on his list. It's a tapas restaurant and only opens from 1-4pm on Sundays. We arrived just before 1pm and there was already a line!
Luckily we managed to get a table and here's what we ordered:
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| Squid and egg with breadcrumbs |
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| Mini burger with soy chips |
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| Tenderloin and potatoes |
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| Hake with spinach |
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| Duck confit with carrot puree |
There were some misses (the burger was unmemorable and the squid dish a little flat, but the hits were right out of the ballpark. That duck confit was exceptional and that hake! I think I've found my favourite white fish. Their portions are crazy generous - apart from the duck confit, the others were all tapas sizes. No wonder the restaurant is so popular (we saw many Asian tourists there, some even dragging their luggage to the restaurant!)
After lunch, we paid a visit to the Royal Alcazar, which is right next to the cathedral. It's the royal palace of Seville, again original built by the Muslims, and is the oldest palace in the Western world still being used. This is the official residence of the Spanish royal family when they're in Seville.
It's truly magnificent. It's very middle eastern in style, with open courtyards, fountains and palm trees.
The decor is exquisite - with intricate carvings and vibrant tiles. Utterly breath-taking.
The gardens within the Alcazar are gorgeous as well. If you find the Alcazar familiar, it may be because you recognise it from the many movies and tv series it has been featured as a setting, including Game of Thrones (as the House of Martell in Dorne in season 5).
Part 2 to be continued!
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