I don't know what it is about Seville but these last two days we've been lazy - maybe it's the water (or Sangría)!
It was a bit before midday when we left our apartment and meandered through the lane ways towards Plaza España.
On our way we took a detour through the old Fabrica Real Tabacos - as the name suggests, a tobacco factory. It's a lineal descendent of Europe's first tabacco factory. We passed rows of these beautiful tiles...
Since the 1950's this building has been home to the University of Seville.
We spied rows of bikes for hire...
And beautiful sun-kissed statues...
And we finally made it! Plaza de España.
The colourful ceramic tiles are beautifully detailed on the floor, walls and ceilings!
The Plaza is huge and architecturally majestic. Horse drawn carriages take it in turns to take laps, showing off the Plaza to tourists.
We took a bypass through the gardens, past the orange trees, and spotted ducklings, swans and a fat, grey resident rat who was thankfully shy...
... and wove through the alleyways back to the apartment.
Having had an afternoon siesta and a shower we went in search, weaving through the streets and allyways, for the famous La Arenal to buy tickets for the Flamenco. Using my rusty Spanish skills to ask for directions, we found it around the corner and purchased tickets for the 10pm performance.
Tickets in hand, we still had 1 1/2 hours to kill, so we popped into La Bulla restaurant - another of Javier's recommendations - literally around the corner from La Arenal.
The food was bursting with contrasting flavours!
Between the two of us, we selected the mushroom risotto...
The tikka chicken...
And the honey duck (my favourite!) all to share.
We chatted for a good half hour to a lovely well-travelled English couple at the next table who've been married for 48 years! They asked us if we were on our honeymoon and I told them I classed this as our second!
A half hour later and with a warm handshake, we ended our intriguing conversation to make it in time or the Flamenco show.
Unfortunately no photos were allowed during the show but I was able to snap a few before it started.
The Flamenco included four female dancers and one male dancer, three singers an two guitarists. It was intensely fiery and passionate - I couldn't drag my eyes away from the dancers. By the end of each set, their faces glistened in the light with a sheen of perspiration. The dance ebs and flows, building to a climax... It's like nothing I've ever seen! I would highly recommend to watching a Flamenco but it needs to be in an intimate setting like this one, I'd stay away from the bigger shows to keep to the authenticity.
We got back well after midnght. As I lay in bed, my mind was replaying the intense gazes held by the dancers, the stomping and shouts of 'Olé!' but soon enough I drifted off to sleep.
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