Seville

Entance to the Casa de Pilatos, Seville
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Today starts with an included tour of the city and a house call on the Duchess of Medinaceli – well okay she wasn’t actually there at the time, but the family do open their house for tourists. This was the Casa de Pilatos. The first thing that struck us about it wasn’t the architecture; it was the heady smell of Jasmine that could knock you off your feet. It really must relish the tropical conditions here.

Once past that we found ourselves in a wonderful Moorish style courtyard, surrounded by arches and featuring a not very Islamic fountain. The house was built by the first Marquess of Tarifa and he clearly couldn’t make up his mind between Renaissance Italy and Holy Land understatement.

The main highlight inside the cathedral is the fabulous tomb of Christopher Columbus.

Decoration at the Casa de Pilatos, Seville
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Despite the cultural confusion it does offer us our real taste of Moorish design. Roll on Granada! Everywhere we look there are amazing tiles (azulejos) and stucco plasterwork, decorated with plants and geometric patterns. Tucked away, enclosed by the building, is a beautiful shady, lush green garden. We keep getting views of it through windows and we can hear water bubbling away in its tiny pond.

Next we head to the Parque Maria Luisa, named after the Princess who donated it to the City in 1893. It’s full of unusual buildings that were originally built for a 1929 exposition. Today most of the buildings are museums or Consulates for various countries.

Tiled decoration, Casa de Pilatos, Seville
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We park the coach and walk across the park, taking care not to step on a rather dozy lizard, to the mad and over the top Plaza de España. It demonstrates how the skill of tile making developed once the Moors had left. There are tiled alcoves representing each of the provinces of Spain, all thoughtfully depicting their location as well as scenes that illustrate their buildings, trades and customs. There is also a fake river running in front of the building, crossed by four tiled bridges. Sadly I can’t quite remember what they symbolised but it may have been the Countries four major rivers (answers on a postcard please).

Casa de Pilatos, Seville
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Sadly the whole building is looking tired and in need of some renovation – which is currently underway. The river has been drained and some of the bridges are closed off whilst they under go a facelift. All of which looks quite promising until I take a closer look at the postcard I’ve just bought. Yes there is water in the river, but the fencing still features on it. When I try to work out the date (the publisher didn’t really understand Roman numerals) it looks like it was taken between 6 or 10 years ago! I hope they manage to restore it before it crumbles into dust.

Casa de Pilatos, Seville
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Another quick trip across town finds us in the beautiful Plaza de Santa Cruz. The area has had a varied history. It was built by the Moors before being occupied first by Jewish refugees and then, when they were expelled, by Christians. The buildings are painted white and the meandering streets are narrow to help keep them cool. Each home has a garden at its centre, usually with a pool or well. You can seek peaks at these through barred windows.

The centre of the Plaza is marked by a wrought iron cross surrounded by a lushly planted garden. We are left to wander for a while and nose around some of the tiny gift shops that sell all kinds of souvenirs. The girls are up to their normal tricks and are spending madly!

Casa de Pilatos, Seville
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From here we can see the cathedral and its massive tower, The Giralda. It was originally a Muslim minaret, but has been added to over the years and is now topped by a distinctly Christian figure holding a cross. However it is still very much a Moorish building.

The main highlight inside the cathedral is the fabulous tomb of Christopher Columbus. It is held aloft by four figures wearing crowns. At the feet of one is a pomegranate (or grenadine), speared by one of the figures lances. It is supposed to symbolise the fate of the city that shares its name, Granada. The sarcophagus is Columbus’ fourth resting place. He was moved from Valladolid in 1898, and finally returning to Seville via Cuba and Santo Domingo.

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Another remnant of the earlier mosque is a tranquil courtyard full of orange trees called the Patio de los Naranjos. It was used by Islamic worshipers to ritually wash their faces, hands and feet, before heading into the mosque.

From this haven of peace we can look out through a wonderful Moorish archway into the bustling streets beyond. These are cleverly covered by cloths, stretched from roof to roof. There really is a strong Arabic influence here. I meet up with the girls and we head out into the street and back to our hotel. Along the way we find a rather less traditional McDonalds. Always know where the local burger bar is – you’ll never be short of a loo!

Plaza de Espaa, Seville
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Despite still being a bit under the weather, I head up to the terrace on top of the hotel and the rather lovely swimming pool. I spent my time basking in the sun and cooling off in the pool. I’m sure my mum would not be impressed; I should no doubt be wrapped up in blankets with a hot water bottle. But personally I think the sun is doing me the world of good. In fact I’m not the only one recuperating up here. Several other members of my trip are also making the most of it.

However I can’t stay here all afternoon. I have to get ready for an evening cruise and meal. We head for the Torre del Oro (Golden Tower) on the banks of the Guadalquivir. The tower gets its name, not from the colour of the stone but, from the gold tiles that used to decorate it. Although in the early evening sunlight it does look a bit golden.

Decoration from the Plaza de Espaa, Seville
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We board our ship and get a bit of a surprise. Normally this kind of cruiser has fixed benches for people to sit on, but not this one – we have plastic patio chairs. Still this does mean you can move them around a bit. The sunny side of the ship fills up first, it is closest to the shore, but I’m more concerned with keeping out of the direct sun. I figure if we go up the river one way, we’ll have to come back down it again later.

The cruise itself was fine, in the evening light it was very beautiful, but I’m not sure you really see the city at its best from the river. However it did give us the opportunity to see some of the modern buildings on the isla de la Cartuja. These were built for the Universal Exhibition of 1992. In particular I rather like the harp bridge that we reach before finally turning and heading back.