Seville Can Really Make You Fall In Love
One of the nicest aspects of Seville - surely Spain's most enchanting
, iconic city - is that the majority of the truly spectacular places to visit are within a one kilometre square near the river Guadalquivir; good, flat walking around an area teeming with history. If you arrive by bus the Estacion de Autobuses is, literally, just one minute's walk from one of the most elegant bullrings in Spain, built in the eighteenth century when bull fighting on foot first began. If you arrive by train or by plane, then you are going to be less than ten minutes away from the heart of this vibrant, colourful city. As is the case with most Spanish cities, car parking in and around the city centre is not always easy - the earlier you arrive the better it is - but driving into the city via one of the wide, orange tree-lined avenues from the south will take you past some of the spectacular buildings constructed for the 1929 Iberoamericana Exhibition, such as the magnificent semicircular Plaza de Espana, featured in Star Wars films, and up to the old Tobacco factory. This enormous neoclassical building, now part of Seville University, was the setting of Bizet's opera Carmen.For many people, a city "tour bus" is often an ideal way to see the most important places in a city for the first time. They can give you a good idea about the geography of the city and the distances between different places. Seville is no exception to this - in fact, in my opinion, the Seville city tour is one of the better ones in Spain. Taking this tour will enable you to get a first class view of the wonderful Gothic cathedral, the minaret bell-tower La Giralda and the nearby fortress palace, the Alcazar, with its elegantly formal ornate gardens. You can also see the old city walls, some of the fabulous pavilions from the 1929 exhibition, the Isla de la Cartuja, the enchantingly baroque San Telmo Palace and many impressive churches and palaces.
The starting point for the Tour Buses is the famous Torre de Oro, near the San Telmo bridge, the Bull Ring and the recently refurbished Teatro de la Maestranza. Not only is this the place where the treasures of the Spanish Empire which made Seville such a wealthy city were stored, it is also the embarkation point for the river cruises that take sightseers along the Guadalquivir. These give an interestingly different perspective of this fascinating city and also take visitors close to the wonderfully atmospheric old gypsy quarter of Triana as well as going through the modernist constructions of Expo '92 and the theme park, Isla Magica. On a hot summer's day, the welcome breeze experienced along the river is a delight for many visitors.
There are so many places in Seville that you will want to spend time in - and not just the plethora of bars and restaurants, incredible though they are. With hotels often fully booked, you are advised to make your reservation for accommodation as early as you can. Online booking is now by far the easiest way to ensure you can obtain the room you want in the hotel of your choice.
Seville, the home of flamenco and tapas, is a city that will remain in your memory for many years; it is a very special place.
by: Gaizka Pujana