The one thing about springtime is that you can't do much about the weather. The forecast was for rain, and rain we got. Lucky for us this morning was primarily spent in the car as we left Granada to cross Andalusia to Seville. Along the way we stopped in the town of Antequera. The rain was falling, but not too hard so up we went to discover a different kind of Spain from what we had seen up to this point. Antequera is a smaller town but one that in its day was important, as evidenced by the
Arco de Gigantes, a 16th century triumphant arch complete with Roman relics. We toured the 3 meter thick outer walls, and climbed the watch tower and finished the tour in the
Colegiada de Santa Maria, which was the church that was a trial run for the Cathedral of Granada.
A quick lunch stop and off we went to Sevilla. Our hotel being in the heart of the Santa Cruz district, our guide met us there to begin the tour at 4:30. Thankfully the rain, which during the drive had been a constant companion, seemed to have been waiting for us to arrive in Sevilla to call it a day, stopped. And blue skies were visible for the first time all day. First stop: the massive Cathedral. The third largest Cathedral in Europe, and the largest purely Gothic, it houses paintings by Murillo, amazing vaults and the tomb of one Hernando Columbus. As well as his father, Christopher. The well traveled and often disputed explorer's bones, which in 2006 were definitively proven to be his thanks to the presence of his son's tomb, are held aloft by the four kingdoms that made up the newly formed Spain.
The tour continued through the
Alcazares Reales where Concepcion explained to us the difference between Moorish and
Mudejar architecture, then showed us several key differences as we explored the different palaces of how we could easily tell that, unlike the Nasrid Palaces of the Alhambra, this was a
Mudejar building. The gardens of the Alcazar are a combination of French, Italian and English styles, and a pleasure to walk through on a springtime evening. As we made our way back to the hotel through the winding streets of the Jewish Quarter and the
Barrio of Santa Cruz, Concepcion explained the history and cultural expressions of the city and the neighborhood, bringing the streets and plazas into a different light which made it much easier to connect with.
After a nonstop tapas tour of Andalucia, the group decided it was time to sit down and have a proper meal. So we walked over to the Bullring, stopping along the way at the Guadalquivir River. We also passed what looked to be a wedding in the Bullring (hmm, high heels on the sand of the ring, can't imagine that would be too comfortable) before hitting the restaurant for oxtail, shrimp croquettes and other savory dishes.
For more information on how to plan your own private guided tour in Spain, contact
The Spanish Touch at 888-480-0013.
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