Tuesday, February 8, 2022 - Seville/Sevilla

 Wow, today was a packed day.  I arrived at my new “digs” last night.  It is a 500 year old house in the Santa Cruz area of Seville, which was the Jewish Quarter many centuries ago with more narrow and twisting paths everywhere.

Here are a few pictures of where I’m staying.  I thought it would be an interesting experience to stay in a place that was 500 years old, but it’s very cold.  Thankfully, the bed is quite comfortable and warm.

The Blue Door is the front of the house, that leads into a gated entry.

This morning I started out at the Royal Alcazar.  I knew that it would look similar to the Alhambra in Granada, the Alcazaba of Malaga.  And indeed, it looked similar at first, but also newer as the walls seemed higher and the colors were brighter, but as you moved through the rooms it began to change and had more gothic styling to it until it morphed right into a 16th Century Royal Palace of the Spanish Kings. Evidently, the Alcazar was a reconstruction of the original after Ferdinand had taken Andalusia in 1492.  Being respectful of what was once here, he brought moslem builders to recreate the original with a nod to the current architectural building trends.  As the centuries past, new rulers expanded the Royal Alcazar with architecture from the current era.  The current King and Queen still stay here when they are in Seville.

Across the square from the Royal Alcazar is the Cathedral of Seville.  I’ve been trying to think all day how to say this delicately.  I don’t think I can.  I’ve visited a lot of Cathedrals over the years.  Even on this trip, they’ve been spectacular, awe-inspiring, a true gift to the people of God for the worship of God.  Sometimes, I’ve found some of these Cathedrals to be a bit ostentatious but I do have an understanding of how these gilded worship spaces are called to invite us into the grandeur of God.  In this Cathedral of Seville, I found a museum, not a church.  I found it entirely lacking in that same reverence that other cathedrals, like it, evoke.  Everything is on display; behind glass or gate and lit up to show off it’s glory.  And there are a lot of sculptures, paintings, reliquaries, sarcophaguses or other various artwork of past church leaders - everywhere the eye lands.  After leaving, rather than feeling inspired, I felt depressed.  This is a church to the glory of man.  Again, I thought long and hard today about how I’d say this.  I know the pictures will not show this, they will simply show a display of another gorgeous cathedral.  But, that’s what I found in it.

Some stained glass windows to start:

Here are two music stands, that are quite different from one another:

Then I went to the Plaza de Espana, I talk more about this tomorrow, as I have a walking tour of the city scheduled at 10am and I know this is on it.  But watch the video:

For lunch I felt like I’d been missing my veggies, so I simply had a plate of roasted eggplant, red peppers and zucchini with olive oil and paprika - heavy on the oil and light on the paprika:

For dinner I had three tapas; sausage in a wine sauce, spinach and chick peas, and stewed pork jowl.  All three were delicious:

And finally, this evening I went to a Flamenco Show.  No pictures were allowed during the performance, but they did a little encore at the end when you were permitted to take photos.  First, I purchased tickets “for the heck of it”.  I’m not that interested in Flamenco, but Seville - from what I understand - is famous for their Flamenco dancing.  The little I know of it, it has seemed rather overly dramatic and a bit silly.  I’m glad I went.  Flamenco Dancing is amazing.  There are so many elements involved - the guitar music, the clapping, the snapping of fingers, the stomping of feet, the castanets, the singing, the dance, the costumes, and the story - all blended into this amazing performance.  I have found the Spanish people, as a group, to be very passionate people.  I’ve felt it in the people I have had the pleasure of knowing; some of my previous students, as well as those I’ve met on this trip.  It shows in their art, their food, their way of life, and in their culture.  The Flamenco Dance brings that passion to light.  It is simply breathtaking to watch.  I so wish I had even a small clip to share, but here are a few pictures.