A Day in Carmona

Panorama of the new town from the entry gate.

Carmona is a small town about half-way between Seville and Córdoba. It’s served by frequent buses from Seville—and rather infrequent buses from Córdoba. Our first thought was to stop there on our way back from Córdoba, but the only two buses from Córdoba to Carmona left at  8AM—too early! and 2PM—too late! So we saved the trip to Carmona for another day.

Now, having finally visited Carmona, we’re glad we waited. It’s larger and more interesting than we’d thought!

The city is located on a hill, a natural fortification, very steep on three sides with a long gentle slope facing west. There’s evidence that people have been living here, and fortifying that western slope, for a very long time. The Romans built massive walls which were reinforced by everyone who came after—the Visigoths, the Moors, the Spanish. The old town has a very impressive entrance!

But getting there was a bit harder than we thought. First we had to find the right bus station in Seville. We’ve spent a lot of time in this city and we know our way around pretty well. But once at the bus station we discovered, oops, this ain’t it! It was another 10 minutes’ walk, but we had plenty of time, even with fumbling around asking which bus we needed.

The spire of Iglesia de San Pedro (the Church of St. Peter)

The 30-minute ride to Carmona was pleasant enough. Then it was a 10-minute uphill walk to the massive gates, and the tourist office, conveniently located right in front. (Whenever we arrive in a new place, we always like to start at the tourist office: get a map, ask about what’s happening, what’s worth seeing.)

The massive fortified entrance to the old town.

The nice ladies in the office suggested we pay the two Euros (one each, with our “senior discount”!) to tour the fortifications, located right above the office. The view from the top of those massive gates made the whole trip worthwhile! As we gazed out over the fertile plains, impressive even with the haze (and air pollution, sadly), and the towers and domes of the old town, we were glad we’d dedicated a whole day to Carmona.

 

Part of the massive fortifications above the entrance gate.

A sweet little casita tucked into the old walls.

Narrow streets and tall church spires... must be Spain!

The 15th Century Convent of Santa Clara

The chapel in the Convent of Santa Clara.

One of our inspirations for going to Carmona was to see the azulejos (traditional tiles) in the courtyard of the Convent.  Every Sunday in Seville there is an art show and market in front of the Bellas Artes Museum, and one artist, Elisabet Conlin, does magnificent watercolors of traditional Spanish tiles. We had to see the originals that had inspired her work!

Some examples of tiles from the convent:

And Paula's watercolor response (which of the above tiles was the inspiration?)

Another view of the convent, this one with a stork. Note the nest on the spire in the lower right.

And, at the far (east) end of town, another magnificent gate.

The same gate seen from the outside.

Looking out the city towards the vast planes to the east...

             Finally… Christmas!

(I'm using a new video editor—it took me a long time to figure it out and finish this video!)

Christmas in Spain—as we have discovered repeatedly—is pretty low key. The big deal here is Three Kings Day, aka the Epiphany, the day in the Christian tradition when the three wise men met the newly-born Christ Child. It’s celebrated in Seville by a massive parade that encircles the town, dominated by huge floats with brightly-dressed folks throwing candies into the crowd. But, ‘nuff said, just watch the video. Oh, since the parade celebrates the Three Wise Men, who were from “the East,” there are always men in blackface representing the kings. The Spanish have a very different history from those of us in the USA, and nobody has a problem with white folks representing darker folks in this way.

Ah—and what was different about this year was, first, that we watched from a different spot, giving a less-attractive background to photos and videos. Also, this year we got a map of the parade route and found it lasted at least six hours. After dark we headed across town to see the parade again, this time in the dark.  Just… watch the video.

Three Kings Day video

We've been having a lot of rain here in Seville. The weather has been rather good, warmer than last year with lots of gorgeous sunny days. Some rain at the beginning... so maybe it's appropriate that we get some rain at the end, eh?

In a few days we'll fly to Marseille, which seems to be recovering from its gritty reputation.  So stay tuned!


                Parting shot:
We talked about feria, the Springtime festival, in this blog, but for Sevillanos it's a year-round concern. Passing by our favorite feria store we noticed the displays had changed.

Feria is still months away, but it's never too early to start getting ready...

A(nother) VIsit to Cordoba

The Mosque-Cathedral of Cordoba, seen from the bridge.

Last year while in Seville we took a day trip to Cordoba, home of the Great Mosque. This year we went again, only this time we spent the night, and we were accompanied by my daughter, Nina. Now, we’ve already published one blog on the mosque, and rather than repeat myself I’ll just send you over to that other blog, here: the previous blog. Go ahead, go take a look, I’ll wait…

OK, done? Good! On this trip we arrived in the morning on the train and checked into the room we’d booked. After getting settled—and warmed up, as Cordoba was a bit colder than Seville—we wandered through the city, heading for the mosque. It’s still fabulous, with its endless forest of red-and-white striped arches, and that jarring Catholic cathedral plunked down in the middle, with the sudden change of style giving a sort of esthetic whiplash.

 

Views of the interior of the Mosque--Paula calls it the Candy Cane forest

The cathedral within the mosque (oh, my neck hurts!)

We crossed the Roman bridge, originally built in the 1^st Century BCE, and rebuilt (probably several times) by Moors in the 8^th C. More recently, it was used in Game of Thrones (that again!) as the entrance to the Free City of Volantis. These days it offers a pleasant stroll across the river, and gives some great views of the Alcazar and the massive mosque.

 

The Roman Bridge.

Since we didn’t have to rush to catch the train home, after our visit to the mosque we wandered the streets a bit more. It’s a very pleasant town, very cutesy, heavily touristed. Even now, in the dead of winter (albeit a sunny and warm winter!) the streets were far from empty, and I wondered what it must be like with the full summer crush!

One of the endlessly cute streets of Cordoba.

Classic view of the belltower and the orange trees fronting the Mosque-Cathedral.

As in Seville, horse-drawn carriage rides are a thing in Cordoba; that's the mosque on the right.

One of the many impressive doors to the mosque.

Later in the afternoon we visited the alcazar, a residence for the king and queen of Spain since the Reconquista in the 13^th Century. The site has been in use for a very long time: the Roman governor of the province had a residence there, and it was subsequently occupied by the Visigoths before being taken over by the Moors in the 8^th Century.

 

The Alcazar of Cordoba, seen from the garden... at sunset!

Most of the present structure was built five centuries later by Alfonso XI. Ferdinand and Isabel, the Catholic Monarchs, lived there for a time, and met with Christopher Columbus prior to his first trip to the Americas.  When Ferdinand and Isabel departed for Granada in 1492 they left the Alcazar to the Inquisition. A few centuries as inquisition chambers and jail, and it was ready for Napoleon Bonaparte, who garrisoned troops there in the early 1800s. Today it is a national monument and tourist site.

 

Unknown knight greeting visitors to the Alcazar

View of the Alcazar gardens from the ramparts.

Paula and Nina discuss a Roman mosaic on display inside the Alcazar

By the time our visit to the Alcazar was over and we were back in the town it was mostly night, and we’d had some lovely sunset views from the ramparts. The three of us walked along a main street, following the river to another part of town where we began our serious search for dinner.

Moonrise over the Alcazar gardens.

The Unknown Knight bids us farewell as we leave the Alcazar

 It was early, by Spanish standards (not yet 8 o’clock! Serious diners wouldn’t be out for another two hours), and we stuck our heads into a number of cafes. One thing that I’ve noticed on our travels: we’ll always want to eat, and it often takes a while to find just the right place. And, however discouraging or disappointing our search, sooner or later we will hit upon something that will turn out to be really good. Not really taken by what we'd found in that part of town, we backtracked along the river road, and came upon a large, welcoming, and mostly empty restaurant.

 

The Roman Bridge at night.

We always enjoy traveling with Nina. First off, she’s a joy to be around. Plus, her command of Spanish really opens up the interactions we have with the locals. She started explaining the dishes on the menu, and before long we were laughing and joking with the waiter.

See, the thing is that the wait staff in Spain, and in Europe in general, are professionals. Serving customers is their career. It’s not just something to do until the big break comes along, nor a fill-in job while in school. Waiters and chefs tend to work for the same restaurant for years. It’s one of the things that make dining in Europe different from the US.

So, we had a good time chatting and joshing with the waiter. Before long the bartender had gotten involved, and the two of them told us stories of other restaurants, and their fellow employees. We eventually left to make our way back to our rooms, thoroughly satisfied with our evening!

We had considered rising early to visit another town on the road back to Seville, but instead had a bit of a lie-in the next morning, rising late and heading out for breakfast. We toured around the city a bit more, and visited the Synagogue. We were told it is one of only three original synagogues in Spain (the other two being in Toledo). Once upon a time there was robust Jewish community throughout Spain, but while Ferdinand and Isabel were busy driving the Moors out of Iberian Peninsula, they figured they’d drive the Jews out, too. The Christian population didn’t like Jews very much, and banning other religions pleased the Pope, who had a heavy hand in European politics. And when it came to politics, the Catholic Monarchs were nobody's fool! They knew what what the Pope could do for them, and what he wanted. (The descendants of the jews driven out of Spain are known today as Sephardic Jews.)

  

A menorah, artfully placed in the Synagogue.

Carved plaster walls of the Synagogue with Hebrew inscriptions

The cathedral belltower. Probably the most photographed view in Cordoba!

The day wore on, and soon it was time to return to the train station, for the relaxing, hour-long ride back to Seville. We were very satisfied with this little outing!

Nina, Paula, and Paul in the Alcazar gardens.

Our initial plan for this trip included stop in Carmona, another picturesque town on the way back to Seville. But, the bus to Carmona was pretty early, and we just didn't feel like getting up. Now, just this week Paula and I have returned from a day trip there, and I'm glad we didn't stop before--there's a lot to see, and a quick trip would not be enough. It deserves a whole day! 

In the next blog we'll talk about the day we spent in Carmona.

Our time in Spain draws to a close. Soon we'll fly back to France, spending a few days in Marseille before returning to Montpellier....

The Streets of Seville

             The Streets of Seville

One of the great joys of Seville is wandering the narrow, winding cobbled streets and coming across magnificent buildings…

The pink building on the left is one of our favorites... we walk by it nearly every day.

It's always a treat to see elegant steeples like these appear down the narrow slot of a street.

Plaza de Jesus de la Passion on a quiet day

Every time we pass this plaza (Plaza del Salvador) it's filled with people, mostly drinking beer. Love those twin steeples on Iglesia de la Paz (Church of Peace)!

Santa Catalina (I think...)

The massive Seville Cathedral (Cathedral of Saint Mary of the See), finished in 1506 and still one of the largest in the world. La Giralda, the bell tower, was the minaret built by the Moors 300 years earlier for their mosque.

Another view of La Giralda, from a rooftop garden.

The bridge to Triana, known for its fine tiles and, some say, the origin of Flamenco.

The 13th Century Torre de Oro, built to guard the river. In the background is a more modern tower, part of a 21st Century commercial center. We call it the Lipstick Building.

It's always fun to see La Giralda peeking out...

No matter how many times we've come around this corner, the sudden appearance of the cathedral in all its magnificence is always impressive!

The Alcazar of Seville, seat of power in Andalusia since at least the 7th C. These walls were built in the 14th C.; the current Spanish royal family still has a residence in the Alcazar.

             Mudejar Architecture

Mudejar  is a style of art and architecture that arose from the confluence of Moorish (Islamic) and Spanish (European) influences. The result can be seen in many buildings in Seville, and some are specifically designed to showcase this style.

The magnificent Pabellon Mudehjar (Mudejar Pavilion), built for the Ibero-American Exposition of 1929, incorporates many features of the Mudejar style. It now houses the Museum of Arts and Popular Customs of Seville   

A detail from the Pabellon Mudehjar. We see many of these same elements in the traditional buildings of Morocco.

Another of our favorite residence buildings near where we stay. The Mudejar influence is clear!

Another amazing building, this one more contemporary. The ground floor houses a wedding botique.

             Feria de Abril de Sevilla (Seville April Fair)

Originally a livestock fair started in 1846, this event is held annually two weeks after Easter. We’ve never been (indeed, many locals leave to avoid the noise and crowds), but its influence is easy to see in the city. There are any number of shops open all year selling the distinctive flounced polka dot dresses that are the typical costume for this week-long celebration.

This store, open year-round, specializes in both off-the-shelf Feria fashions, and materials for the seamstress.

Other stores offer more upscale Feria fashions, both contemporary and traditional...

...and of course, with your dress you will want to accessorize!

At last! After 4 years Paula completes her fantasy of trying on a Feria dress!

Our daughter Nina gives it a little shake...

And, just to be fair, the men are not ignored at Feria, although this is the only store I've seen with these clothes!

We'll close with this stunning interior of a Sevillano mansion, the Palacio de la Condesa de Lebrija (Palace of the Countess of Lebrija). Built in the 16th C., it was owned by a series of noble families, bought and remodeled by the Countess of Lebrija in 1901 as her residence and to house her extensive collection of art and antiquities; now a museum. This photo is of the entryway that grabbed us as we were walking down the street.

Entrance to the Palacio de la Condesa de Lebrija. Another example of the Meudejar influence, with Roman marble and showcasing classic tilework from Triana (across the river from Seville)

            

Another two weeks and we will be back in Montpellier. We may have one more blog from Seville...