Let's recap Sevilla, a week or so later

Flew into Sevilla from Barcelona on Friday April 10 without any concrete idea of where we were staying. We were hoping to be able to stay at the apartment of a friend of a friend. Problem: the friend of my friend was in the states and hadn't gotten in touch with her flatmates. Well, we had their address and their phone number. We arrived at their apartment around 11 pm. As if we weren't tired enough, we had no luck there. It was so disheartening because we were exhausted, the potential resting spot insight and within knocking distance, their lights on and all, yet no answer.

Out of desperation I called a girl I had met on the bus from the Sevilla airport to city center. On this bus I'd shared Anna's and my 'we don't know where we'll sleep tonight' story and this kind soul, Brittney, gave us her number and said that if we got into a real bind that she might be able to help us out. We wound up in a bind. When I called her I could tell she was pressed, they already had another guest staying and her flatmates were out and we'd only just met (!) but she said yes, God bless her. Anna and I got a taxi over to her apartment and I don't think I stopped saying thank you from the moment Brittney opened the door until she left us to sleep on their living room couch and floor.

Next morning I was the first one up, and as I started preparing to make some oatmeal that I'd brought, two of the flatmates woke: Hannah and Jen. I greeted them with a "Hi, I'm Jillian, the girl Brittney met on the bus and let crash on your floor." Brittney had written them a letter explaining it all for when they got in that night. They were awesome and just found the entire situation highly amusing, no awkwardness at all, immediate new friends formed.

With only 2 days in Sevilla, Anna and I wanted to explore and asked them for their advice. Not only did we get advice, but Hannah took us out, showed us around, and worked as the best guide and new friend we could have ever asked for! Hannah took us to the center through neat backways, giving us a fun feel for Sevilla. It was a beautiful sunny day as we strolled through the beautiful streets, and as though she knew how badly I had to see the Giralda tower of which the Plaza's is a small imitation (yetnot half as impressive now that I've seen the real one). She took us to a lovely local eating place where we got cheap and delicious tapas that we would have never found alone. I had tortilla española (a potato and egg torte/omelet... delicious, I'm making it for you all when I come back) and a spinach,garbanzo and cod tapa. yes, they were that good that I remember them. Goodness I did so much eating in Spain. I think it is maybe a good idea I didn't study there, instead of coming back 5 or so pounds heavier, I would have come back 20 or so after 5 months there! Oh, and I would have come back a lush b/c I'm a fan of sangria and the wines, which are delicious and cheap there... so maybe Ireland was a better choice for my liver and waistline, haha.

So, with Hannah we saw the Cathedral, along with the Giralda, from outside of course, we didn't go indoors or up the tower, not paying to see the inside of a church, sorry. Some part of me just believe that the house of God should be open access, but that's just me. Anyways, we went to the Alcazar, a palace originally inhabited by the Moors, subsequent rulers have added their own touches. So, as classic Andalusian architecture shows, you get both the Islamic and Christian touches, a mudejar style. Basically I was obsessed. This was one of those places that I went to and it made me a little less upset about not visiting Morocco and made me really want to learn Arabic even more. The style is so ornate, yet not overly so, so light, open, I loved the gardens. It was basically a lovely afternoon!

So we explored the center quite a bit and had to come back for a siesta, or at least a descanso (rest). However, it wasn't long. Anna and I left later with the other flatmates, Marie, Jen, Nora and Brittney to go watch some of the procesiones (processions) for Semana Santa (Holy Week, which is done biggest and baddest, the good 'bad', in Sevilla). That there was amazing too. We went by the Cathedrals and stood on the fences to watch as the Pasos, or different altars, were paraded through the city. I still am amazed at how men can lift such huge and extremely heavy statues of gold or silver, with candles and flowers all over. People do a lot for religion. Semana Santa is a big deal in Sevilla. I heard that if it rains, people cry because they spend all year planning it and if it rains they can't do it because these pasos are really really old and delicate and can't be risked in such a way. But there were no worries, it was a beautiful day and it was highly impressive.

For dinner that night, Anna and I made our new friends dinner, gallo pinto Costa Rican style. Later, Brittney, Anna and I went out to catch a flamenco show, one of the few free ones. It was packed in that bar but it was lovely. There was one guitarist, one man singing and a female dancer. I can't quite comprehend flamenco. I can't hear the beat like they do, but they all know when to tap their feet or clap their hands and the dancer knows how to move to what. It is so fascinating and I'd love to learn, ahh! Oh, and on the way back, we stopped for chocolate and churros. Biggest bag of churros ever. Although I'm not a big fan of the fried dough, I thoroughly enjoyed sipping my chocolate and enjoying Anna and Brittney's company at 1 in the morning on a lovely pedestrian street in Sevilla.