Portugal at last

We retrieved the car, loaded up, dropped off the keys with Maria’s parents, and were away. The Seville ring road proved a bit hectic, but soon we joined the old Seville-Lisbon highway, and the traffic eased. The route took us through hilly country, lots of cattle ranches and one breeding fighting bulls, many of which were standing around not far from the road looking menacing. Unfortunately we didn’t get a photo.

There were several whitewashed towns and villages, this is Aracena, and the road surface steadily deteriorated as we approached the frontier. Plenty of potholes to avoid, which took some concentration. Finally after a couple of hours we crossed the border - and unexpectedly gained an hour, since Portugal, it seems, runs on different time from Spain and France. Same as the UK in fact. Anyway, here’s the marker post.

The road became a bit narrower on the Portuguese side, but the potholes were somewhat fewer. Particularly striking were the number of storks that had built their nests and taken up residence on the tops of electricity poles.

Our first impression of Portuguese drivers is that they either drive extremely slowly or extremely fast. Not much in between. Given the unexpected time bonus, we decided to make a stop at Beja, the only major town we would be going through before reaching our pousada for the night. Although ignored by our guidebook, Wikipedia filled in and told us there was a good castle to visit. And indeed there was

Sitting right in the hilltop town, with fine views in all directions, it is remarkable well preserved, and has a fine tower - which we did not climb (knees still suffering). But there were nice views of the town  from the battlements.

From Beja it was not much than an hour on to Alcacer do Sal, which is where we are now, in the pousada - Portuguese equivalent of the Spanish paradors. The building was originally a convent, founded in 1573, and it stayed that way until religious orders were abolished in Portugal in 1834, when it started to fall into ruin. The restoration to create a pousada was started in the 1990s, and it opened for business in 1998.

We have a pleasant room with a little terrace and a nice view, and took a stroll around outside after settling in.

The Feria is under way

Today we took a rest from culture and focused on folklore - if that is how one could describe Seville’s annual popular holiday. After a bit of housekeeping, we strolled over to the Feria ground, urged by something on the internet that said the parade of carriages happened at noon. We arrived at a quarter to, but the only activity involved people preparing and stocking up the casetas.

After a while we located a public caseta, and installed ourselves on the front balcony with a couple af drinks to await events. Eventually, things started to happen - people in costume, horses, mules and carriages:

More and more people walking hither and thither, many of the women and girls in traditional flamenco costume and the men increasingly formal in jacket and tie. Despite Maria’s warning, I managed to forget mine, so was the classic scruffy Brit at the feast.

But the carriages kept coming, and riders too, many men with a girlfriend (novia) perched sideways behind the saddle.

After a while, we got hungry, so made our way back to the Bodegon San Vincente, where we had an excellent lunch on Friday. It was packed, not surprisingly, but they managed to squeeze us in, and once again we enjoyed a selection of tapas washed down with a respectable tinto.

After lunch, carriages were bowling down Maria’s street in increasing numbers, and we photographed a few from the apartment too.

Then Carlos, Maria’s youngest son, got in touch through WhatsApp, and proposed another visit to the Feria. On he way we met Carlos’s beautiful and charming  girlfriend for a quick photo call!

Diana cried off with sore feet and exhaustion from this morning, but I went and had the pleasure of meeting Maria’s brother Eugenio and his family in the caseta where he is a socio. By the time I made my excuses and left - thinking that they had had enough of speaking English, though they all speak it extremely well - the Feria was really heaving with both pedestrians, equestrians, and carriages. Quite a sight! But also a bit overwhelming, and it was a relief to get back to the apartment.

A sunny day in Sevilla

We set off eagerly for a busy day of culture, but were somewhat stymied to find the local taxi stand not functioning because of various changes to the traffic caused by the Feria. So it was a long walk across the river, with the sun really quite warm. We were dressed for rain and cold winds, which was a mistake. Anyway, eventually we found a taxi which took us to the Casa de la Duenas, family home of the Dukes and Duchesses of Alba, one of Spain’s grandest, and richest families.

Only recently opened to the public, is has a wonderful courtyard, and a lemon garden where the blossom scent was gorgeous. The poet Antonio Machado was brought up in the palace, and wrote many poems about it.

It was fun to see six large mules in the stables being prepared to haul the family carriage through to the Feria.

Indoors was also magnificent, but something of a time capsule, despite the family photographs scattered here and there. But all in all, it was a thoroughly satisfactory visit.

This one is a Murillo, by the way.

After that we strolled down to the thoroughly modern Metropol Parasol, known locally as the mushrooms. There was a concert going on, well attended, which meant we couldn’t get up to the rooftop walk, which is apparently spectacular.

Then we headed for the Barrio de Santa Cruz, the old Jewish quarter, full of narrow winding streets, little squares, and hordes of visitors, many on guided walking tours which occasionally clashed, causing gridlock.

Finding our way was not easy, but we got there, and after a welcome beer, dropped into the Casa de los Venerables. This was once a home for priests fallen on hard times, but now it houses a Velazquez centre, with three paintings by the master and a couple by Murillo. A little exhibit, but well worth while.

It was now getting on for lunchtime, so we opted for the bar Casa Placido, as recommended by Maria, and had two or three excellent tapas, and a glass or two of tinto.

This gave us strength to face the Alcazar, Seville’s other great attraction, along with the cathedral. The line was long, and it took us half an hour to get in, but trees in pots had been thoughtfully placed along the queue, so we did not get burned by the afternoon sun.

Inside we enjoyed the wonderful Arabic architecture and decoration, a marvel of style and balance producing an atmosphere of calm and serenity, despite the hordes of visitors.

On our way to the gardens, we came across a hall of enormous and magnificent tapestries, which we paused to admire.

Then we wandered for a while in the gardens, enjoying the scent of the blossoms, the tinkle of fountains, and the screech of a couple of handsome peacocks.

By this time our stamina was exhausted, so we staggered out, located a nearby taxi rank, and sped home.

Here we are in Sevilla

After posting our diary entry last night, the sun briefly broke through and we were able to take a picture from our bedroom window. Quite a vista!

This morning started off looking promising, but after breakfast, as we were checking out, the rain started, and it was a wet entry to Seville. Thanks to the TomTom we found Maria’s parents’ address and got the keys to her apartment, then found that and unloaded. Parking was a mega problem, with the Feria de Abril about to start only a block or two from the apartment, but eventually I found a spot in an underground garage just 15 minutes walk away.

After settling in at Maria’s beautiful and comfortable apartment, we ventured out to a nearby bar/restaurant Maria had recommended, Bodegon San Vincente. We ordered six different tapas, more or less at random, and had a fabulous lunch. Then a little shopping for essentials before we ventured into the historic centre across the river. The day was improving by now - no more rain and the sun struggling to break through. We started off walking, but soon tired of that and took a taxi - wonderfully cheap in Seville.

After consultations at the tourist office, we decided to visit the cathedral first, and since it was within an hour of closing time, the queue was quite short. It is truly immense. At the time, the biggest in the world, and even today still the third largest church anywhere. A high spot is, of course, the tomb of Cristobal Colon, or Christopher Columbus. Very special for Americans.

But there is much else to see too, and I hope these pix give something of a flavour of the place.

(That’s a Goya, by the way)

Your can clamber to the top of the bell tower, the Giralda, but the knees have been objecting to too much stress with all this tourism, so we decided against and rested for a while in the Patio de Naranjas.

After that, we sought out the hidden semi-circular Plaza del Cabildo, a classic hidden gem where there is a Sunday market for stamp and coin collectors. And finally, we found a taxi to take us back to the flat.

The forecast is good for tomorrow, so we have lots more planned.