Seville

On the Avenue El Cid; sure enough, looks just like Charleton Heston

On the Avenue Constitucion (or close) is a humongous,

stately building that used to be a cigar factory, employing

some 10,000 persons...where Carmen worked...

(Nietzsche's favorite opera)

The convent bakery outlet, where we purchased some fine

muffins

The Barrio Santa Cruz features very narrow

alleys, called "kissing lanes"--I stretched

out my arms and could easily touch both

sides; anyhow, they contribute to keeping

the neighborhood cool during the hot season,

as much as 3 degrees cooler; anyhow, further,

this one leads to the square with the statue

of Seville's other most famous character...

Don Juan; interesting that the city's two

most famous personages are fictional...and

the subjects of opera...

The old town is a city of plazas and patios,

this one beautiful and relatively typical

Where Murillo lived

The Bodega de San Something or Otre; very popular 

despite smallish drinks

The bar where, for 2 euros, I had a beer and

a plate of very decent paella marisco; the

bartender was a big Obama fan (as are nearly

all foreigners)

The main landmark, the Giralda, the now

Christianized Moorish minaret, outside the

cathedral

River front

In 1929, Seville hosted a world fair; many of the national

pavillions remain, now restaurants, museums, galleries;

this one Peru

Of course, once you get out of the old city, it's apartment-

world, and supporting infrastructure, mile after mile, sort of

a mini-China

We spent a beautiful long day in Seville, seeing mostly the cathedral, the Alacazar, and the Barrio Santa Cruz. Above are some shots along the way. Someone once wrote that other cities have ambience, but Seville is ambiance. On a Saturday afternoon, you could sense the ease, the ambience, the grace, all around. But then you can sense it all over Spain.

Did I mention the oranges? There will be pix, I am sure, but we are here in high ripe orange season. Imagine a fairly green city, the old town, where every tree--thousands of them, in squares, tree-lined avenues, boulevards--is an orange tree and every one of them is straining to hold on to hundreds of plump ripe oranges. It is an incredible sight. Alas, the oranges are not for eating...very bitter, used mostly for vitamins and perfumes. But it is something to behold. Our campsite, out in the burb of Dos Hermanos, is in what was an orange grove.