February, 2015
During the time I was staying in Cacela Velha, Portugal, I bought in Tavira a ticket at a Tour agency for a one day trip to Seville. It is only a one and half hour driving from Portugal and I was not too keen to drive myself to a town like Seville, where I never had been before and from what I heard the parking was supposed to be a nuisance, so why not going with an organized tour and relax. Our driver and guide picked me up in Cabanas, close to Cacela Velha around 8.00 a.m. We were just with a small group of around 8 persons and our guide was a very pleasant and knowledgeable person, who informed us all the way to Seville not only about the history of Seville, but also about the history of Spain and even Europe! A lot of information to take in, but that way the journey went very fast! Once in Seville, he drove us a little bit around, showed us some of the Expo buildings from 1992 and other sights of interest and then we got 15 minutes to have a look at Plaza de Espana, which was built in 1928, for the Ibero-American Exhibition of 1929.
Not enough time, as in 6 hours you only can see a part of Seville. After, we were dropped in front of the Cathedral and we had time for ourselves. I decided to visit the Cathedral, as it is one of the most important and third on the list of biggest Cathedrals of the world.
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I spent around three hours there. The grave of Cristobal Colon (Christopher Columbus) is impressive. There is still a dispute if his remains are indeed in Seville, as the Dominican Republic claims that his remains are in Santo Domingo, but historians say that DNA proves his body is indeed in the Cathedral in Seville.
You can walk up to the tower with the enormous bells and amazing views from all round. Every corner gives another view of this impressive town.
Later, I spent my last two hours enjoying a Tapas lunch in one of the small alleys, where people play flamenco to earn some extra money. A last stroll downtown Seville, to soak up the Spanish atmosphere, before joining the others for our bus ride home again. A town, where you easily can spend three days to explore all the churches, palaces, gardens and museums.
