First time visiting Andalusia, Spain. Heard so many nice things from various cities and decided it was time for me to know it. My first stop was in Seville.

Arriving…

We took a train from Madrid to Seville. Easy and fastest way to do so, I think. We wanted to rent a car, but it will take us about 5 hours or so. Plus, the train leaves every 20-30minutes or so. I love road trips because it made me enjoy the journey even better and we can stop at different points, cities or towns -which will make the trip longer-. However, we didn’t have enough days to do that kind of trips… maybe next time.

Once we arrived, we went to have lunch. I love strolling around the town by the narrow streets. And it was perfect because of the time, sun wasn’t as strong as noon, not so many people around (maybe because of ‘nap time’ o siesta time). Although, later, by 8pm with the sun out, still felt good exploring the town but started to be crowed. Seville welcomed us with open arms and we loved it!

After 5pm, we went to the Cathedral and Giralda, which it was about 5 minutes walking from the hotel. What an amazing area surrender by many restaurants and bars perfect to end the evening. In only few hours, I felt in love with this city. The Cathedral of Saint Mary of the Sea is a gorgeous place you must visit, including the tall structure by its side, the Giralda, which it’s now the bell tower for the Cathedral of Seville.

Few steps away, we walked to the Reales Alcázares de Sevilla (Alcázar of Seville), a gorgeous Royal Palace that invites you to get lost around its trees in the gardens. Perfect place to relax after a long walk – although you’ll be walking more inside – by the garden and enjoy the beautiful and typical architecture of this region.

From there, we relaxed for a couple of minutes at a bar close to the Cathedral. Even though it was about 8pm, we were still waiting for the sun to hide so we could enjoy a ride in a carriage around the town. The tour in the carriage took us by the Guadalquivir river, later by Maria Luisa park where the Plaza de España is located. I knew it was a beautiful area, but I felt in love with that square. GORGEOUS! I only thought, I needed to come back later!

After the ride, we just sat by the fountain located in front of the Cathedral for a little while. Just watching the people around, the horses, the cafes and bars steps away and enjoying a nice weather. While I was writing this, I was actually sitting by the fountain, in front of the Cathedral, listening to the bells coming from the Giralda, relaxing, enjoying the sunset time (by 9pm) and even though it was summer, which it’s usually very hot, it was fresh and a little breezy. Amazing!

One of those bars called us for a sangria to end our first day in Sevilla.

2nd day: Nice weather and flamenco

We were staying at Petite Palace Santa Cruz, where I thought it was really good and close to many sights.

After breakfast at the hotel, we walked for about 5 minutes to get to Casa de Pilatos. It’s a typical house from the region. You can visit the whole house or just the main level as I did. The 2nd floor, it is with a guide at an specific time, so ask about it when you arrive. The architecture and decoration is amazing. You’ll get to see more ‘azulejos’, typical tiles from the area, beautiful garden and get to hear more about the house while listening to the audio guide that it’s included with the price. Have you seen the movie ‘Knight and Day‘ with Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz? You might recognize this house from it!

We took a taxi to go back to Plaza de España (I’m telling you, I loved it). This time we got to walk around for longer. As soon as we entered to one of the sides, the north tower, there was a guy playing guitar that made the visit even better, or I just love the sound of the Spanish guitar. We walked inside the building and couldn’t stop taking pictures to the outside (from inside). What’s not to like? More pictures and videos once we were outside. A small canal where you can rent a boat and row around, bridges, people riding bikes or on a horse-drawn carriage. The area in general is beautiful! Decorated with ‘azulejos’ and you can even see every region in Spain by the walls. Then, you have the main fountain, that because of the very hot weather, I just enjoyed a slow stroll as near as I could to the fountain. The whole square has a lot of interesting details and history behind everything.

This magnificent square it was also featured in many movies as Lawrence of Arabia, Star Wars I and II and even The Dictator with Sacha Baron Cohen.

Another taxi took us to Calle San Jose, close to the hotel and where a lot of bars, cafes and restaurants are located. We had lunch and found out the meaning of ‘siesta’. It is really hot outside that you can get tired faster than normal, which made me want to get a cold beer, making me even tired, and then take a nap, siesta time! I barely take naps while in Venezuela or Florida. Besides, between 3 to 5pm the streets are empty! Although today, the weather behaved much better than yesterday.

We also visited La Torre del Oro (Tower of Gold). Once we arrived at the tower, we took a stroll by the river. There are boat tours that will take you through the river while telling you about different spots you pass by, but we decided to go to a Flamenco show since we were in Andalusia! It was our last night.

By the end of the day, by 9pm with the sun out still, we sat at one of the bars close to the hotel, to have some tapas and sangria.

I really hope I can go back to Seville to get to know her better! Amazing city, great people and lot of nice spots to see and enjoy.

Remember to keep the cities clean!

Here’s a video of this trip in Spanish, but you can click CC for subtitles.