Day 4: Tuesday, March 5th: Alcázar not Alcatraz!

Lana set her alarm for 08:00 to ensure we both woke up much earlier and could be ready for our first appointment of the day some don't have a repeat of yesterday!! Very overcast day with a temperature around 14 degrees when we are up. Forecast is for possible rain around noon time and that is it. Lana was in the huge bathroom showering and within about 10 minutes, the fire alarm in our ceiling went off due to the steam. Opened both patio doors and eventually it stopped. Nobody from the hotel has made a visit though.

Yesterday morning we made plans for visits to the two main tourist attractions in Sevilla. We went online and reserved tickets/appointment times for the two attractions. Plus, I received a big discount for being a "Pensioner" or 65+. I just need to bring my passport to confirm my age. As well, we figured how to save a PDF of the barcode electronic tickets on my iPhone. OK Lana knew how to do this and told me what to do!!! Another good reason to purchase a Spanish SIM card. If we did not make a reservation then you wait in pretty long lineups or get your appointment time when you show up. Both venues were closed yesterday so they might be busier today.

Real Alcázar       appointment 10:30 inclusive of audio-guided tour (16.50 Euro total cost)

Sevilla Cathedral    appointment 14:00 inclusive of Giralda Tower visit (14 Euro total cost)


In addition, I thought it would be a good idea to text our three Airbnb hosts to confirm my Spanish SIM card # for when we are contacting them just prior to arrival. In two of the cases the hosts need to be present to admit us to their apartments and show us the parking areas.

Real Alcázar online photo

We head down for our buffet breakfast and this morning we can take our time. The Real Alcázar is only a five minute walk from our hotel. When we were on the walking tour Sunday our guide mentioned that some Americans seem to think it is Alcatraz and not Alcázar. Too funny. 

Wearing pants today as it is not sunny and with the potential rain in the forecast better to be safe. We are at the entrance (entrada) to Real Alcázar slightly before 10:30 and are quickly inside. The PDF with the barcode worked well. Plus, we need to pick up our audio guides with the accompanying map guide. I don't get asked to show my passport to verify my age and Lana says it's because I look old anyway LOL. Why are we at this place? Lots of important history here for the local area and for Spain itself. When the Spanish royalty are in Sevilla this is their official residence. Plus, it has its origins with the Moors. Our plan is to spend two hours and then for tapas.

Very quickly we learn that Real Alcázar represents Mudéjar architecture and influence. The origins of this sprawling complex is in the 10th Century with the Moors (Muslim religion) so this place is more than 10 centuries in existence. The Mudéjar architectural style is a blend of Castilian architecture (Christian) and the Moors (Muslim) sensibilities and aesthetics. The Alcazar is made up of four separate palaces that have been built over time.

Map inside that is large enough for anyone to read. There is a smaller brochure of course that has the same map. 

As you walk in you can see the three arches which originate from the original buildings by the Moors. 

Lana posing and wearing her thief-proof carrier and the long object hanging down is the audio guide. 

This is the main vestibulo or entrance to the Palacio Del Rey Don Pedro. 

Close up view of the vestibulo. 

Awesome Paintings. Lots of art in Real Alcazar. 

The ceiling design in one of the massive halls. 

The royal crown design. 

Sevilla is known for its ceramics and you will find ceramic tiles everywhere in this area of the city. The ceramics of Sevilla merge traditions from Islam, Gothic Europe and Renaissance Italy and are hand painted.

Another view of the main gate which has aspects of Muslim and Christian designs and details. 

Overview of the Arista tiles found in Sevilla. 

Example of ceramic tiles. 

Entrance arch to the Hall of the Ambassadors - Moor origins.

Domed ceiling of the Hall of the Ambassadors. 

Close-up of the same domed ceiling with the stars representing the Heavens. 

Ceramic wall in the same hall. 

Overview of the Hall of the Ambassadors. 

Beautiful symmetrical ceramic style with a star in the centre that pulls in a circle that ultimately forms a square. 

Maiden's Courtyard at the centre of the Palace. Check out the water feature. Very significant in Muslim culture. 

Tapestry Room with huge tapestries (15 meters X 5 meters).

Back gardens of the Palace with large fish swimming in the pool 

Instead of Where's Waldo - Where's Lana?

Back gardens with a very high and beautiful wall. Quite a long walk and great views of the gardens below on both sides of this wall. Can you see Randy aka Waldo?

Palm trees and other plants create a very relaxing atmosphere behind the palace. 

There are so many students and their teachers here. In addition, many families and of course fellow tourists with many different languages and ethnicities. It was a good idea to get an audio guide given the sheer size of this area. There are many gardens and green spaces as well. Also, hundreds of orange trees in the green spaces and even the inner grounds.

We finished our self-guided tour of the Real Alcázar around 12:30 so we were here for two hours which is just about right. We sit down before we leave to figure out our tapas destination. We decide to head to Bodeguita Romero as it is known for the Pringa Montadito. Plus, described "opened in 1939 and serves high-quality tapas." It is about a 10 minute walk so fairly close. Very slight drizzle as we walk to the tapas joint.

Online picture. The pringa sandwich (montadito) is in the bottom left-hand corner.

We arrive about 12:45 to the restaurant and we are one of the very first arrivals. We decide to sit at the stainless steel counter so we are across from the bartenders. We need to ask for a food menu and then ask for the drinks menu. Very weird to have to ask for a drinks menu? We presume that most patrons know what they want to drink so not necessary to provide a drinks menu?

I had made notes from my research about five tapas to order in Sevilla. To date we have ordered two of the tapas. This restaurant has two of the other three tapas so we are definitely ordering those tapas for our lunch.

We are keen on ordering our food, but are told that the kitchen will not open until 13:00 so we have a short wait. At 13:00 we ask to make our food order but are told that the kitchen is not ready and will be another 10 minutes. Yup, an example of the Spanish approach. Interesting that we can see into the kitchen and there are four employees in the kitchen and they are mostly just standing there. Oh well, need to chill out. We order four tapas dishes and eventually a total of three glasses of wine. We are hungry and I am thirsty. We like this tapas restaurant/bar and it seems to have filled up very quickly with customers.

We receive a complimentary dish of olives. Lana ordered a Moscatel Infinitus glass of wine and it was excellent. Not too sweet and with good body. As you can see the menu has an english explanation of each dish. 

Pavia de Bacalao (cod in batter). Yummy and yes it is like fish & chips. 

Tortillita de Camarones (shrimp fritter) which tastes pretty good.

The famous Pringa Montadito sandwich which is beef and blood pork black pudding. Given the ingredients Lana wouldn't try it, but I absolutely loved it! I can see why this is a top tapas dish in Sevilla. Many other tables were ordering these montaditos.

We missed taking a picture of the Montadito de Solomillo with Mojo sauce. Pork loin and another tasty dish. I ordered two white (blanco) wines with the Verdejo Jose Pariente being my favourite and a Amaten Blanco which had a very powerful nose like diesel or vinegar. Our total lunch bill was 20.10 Euro which is a fantastic deal given all that we were eating and drinking. Again, drinking in this city is so cheap compared to where we live. 

Off we go to be on time for our 14:00 reservation at the Sevilla Cathedral. Use the Google Maps app and we are quickly at the Cathedral which really dominates this area given its sheer size and height. After entry using our PDF on the iPhone we decided to get in line and rent an audio guide for 3 Euro. It really improves the experience when you can have so much explained in english. Good companion to the brochures. 

Online picture of Sevilla Cathedral

At the official entrance to the Cathedral this statue is a replica of what sits on the top of the Cathedral (we posted a different picture of the statue the other day).

The audio guide is excellent and we find out it is the largest Gothic cathedral in the world. Overall, it is the third largest Christian church in the world. St. Peter's in Rome is the largest and then St. Paul's in London. Pretty impressive company. When you enter the cathedral you are in awe of the scale of this place. For example the ceilings are more than 30 metres high. The many columns supporting the roof/ceiling are so sturdy and wide. The rectangular plan is derived from its origins as a Mosque built by the occupying Moors. Many beautiful stained glass windows.

The cathedral is very busy with official tour groups. A high percentage are Asian tour groups. In addition, many local and international school groups. What is a major draw for everyone is the tomb of Christopher Columbus. We will get to him later. Another historical note is their main altar took 80 years to complete.

Picture of the Cathedral's vaulted ceiling.

Massive organ!

Eventually, we decided to gain entrance to the Giralda Bell Tower and begin the long walk up to its top observation deck. It was built in 1184 by the ruling Caliphate as an Islamic Minaret. The purpose for the religious leader to go up to the top five times a day to call the city to prayers. There are 34 flights and it is all ramp until the very top. As our guide covered a couple of days ago when the minaret was built the Imam needed to get to the top and used a donkey. The ramp was on such an incline that it was a fairly easy walk to the top.

La Giralda Bell Tower online photo. Just to give you an idea of how this dominates the skyline and how high it is for us tourists in the observation level. 

View from the top of Giralda Bell Tower. There are 24 bells at this level and on one occasion they started ringing! This is actually an aerial view of the Alcazar which is next door. 

Gothic architecture.

The ornate ceiling of the main chapel. 

Christopher Columbus' tomb. 

Yes those audio guides are huge and I am wearing a longer sleeve shirt as it isn't so warm today. 

The underside of the tomb. 

Lana's video of orange tree picking within the Cathedral grounds. Apparently these oranges are not very good to eat--they're very bitter and stringent with lots of seeds. But they make great jam apparently!!

We spend close to two hours at the Cathedral and Giralda Bell Tower. Easy walk back to our hotel. Lana is asleep pretty quickly for her afternoon nap while I am loading the 40 photos for what we have covered to date. Lana gets a good rest and we are trying to figure out our dinner destination. A challenge is that of the two tapas places we want to visit they do not open until later and in fact not until 20:00. Remember we are in Spain and people don't eat dinner until much later in the night.

While we are trying to figure out our options for dinner there is a lot of noise coming from somewhere. A very loud woman's voice for certain. Lana checks the hallway and our two rooms and we aren't sure where this loud noise is coming from? Lana heads downstairs to the concierge and he indicates there is a work function occurring in the ballroom space below us. They were giving speeches and showing videos which explains the extreme noise. The concierge offers her free cocktails downstairs to make up for the noise. 

Lana returns to our room and it is an offer that is too good to refuse. As we are walking down the long hallway the concierge appears to confirm our choice. He escorts us to their cocktail bar which is fashioned after a speakeasy from the American prohibition era. The bar area is hidden behind a door from the dining room. The room is very art deco and really cool. We take seats at the bar and chat with the concierge. Super nice guy. He tells the bartender to take our order and no cost to us. We are provided complimentary peanuts and potato chips. Lana orders a Cucumber Elderflower Fizz and I ask the bartender to make a drink for me that he enjoys. I receive a cocktail made of Tequila, Lime and Passion Fruit. Wow, it is so tasty. I don't normally drink cocktails so this is a real treat. We eat, drink and chat until about 19:50 as our 10 minute walk will take us to the first place around opening time. This was such a surprise and so appreciated!

Our cocktail orders!

We decide to head to Casa Moreno to purchase canned seafood and then head to Casa Morales about 2 minutes away for our tapas dinner. Navigate using Google Maps although we have been in this area numerous times over the last four days. The store owner does not speak English, but we communicate regarding purchase of canned seafood. We can access Google Translate to explain what canned seafood we are keen on and we know the first three Spanish numbers. We wanted Anchovies but these cans need refrigeration so not possible for us with our travel. We purchased Tuna (2), Sardines (2) and Squid (3) for a total of 20.80 Euro so pretty cheap and we could never find these in Vancouver. 

Casa Moreno storefront. 

Casa Moreno rear where you can sit at the counter and order cold tapas and drink beer/wine. We thought about this but decided to head to a tapas bar for warm tapas. 

Yup, they have Sardinas!  I love Sardines!

Short walk to Casa Morales and we find a high table but there are no seats. Very few seats in this very small establishment. Within a couple of minutes Lana notices a number of people come in, look around and then head out the other door. Lana decides to follow one couple and they are going to the back part of the restaurant which has another bar but more tables. Yeh!

We find a high table and two chairs so we are in luck. Within about 10 minutes the place is full of customers although most are at the bar counter. There is a menu that provides food and drink choices although only in Spanish. We decide to order two large plates and Lana gets a glass of Cava and I get a glass of white wine "Andaluces Castilla San Diego".

Facade of Casa Morales although we ate in the larger room around the corner.

We are not sure what these large containers are used for, but maybe wine fermentation/storage?

Incredibly delicious plate of Pulpo a la Gallega (Galician octopus with Paprika). Tender, juicy and our bread mopped up the sauce.

Papas a la Brava (spicy potatoes). We thought they might be spicy but they were not spicy at all. They were delicious but not up to the standard set by the octopus!

We enjoyed our walk back to our room as it was a beautiful night. No rain and not so many people milling around although we were out a little later than normal. Need to upload the photos and then complete the blog for today. It is now 22:30 and we are both pretty tired. 

Tomorrow is our first travel day. We pick up a rental car and then drive to Granada. We have really enjoyed our time in Sevilla, but there is so much more to explore in Andalucia.  

13,700 steps & 9.9 kms & 29 floors