…and Away We Go!

We walked to the colorful Triana neighborhood on the other side of the Guadalquivir River and found a nice place for a tapas lunch.

All around Seville, holiday decorations are in place and it looks like the streets will be quite festive when the lights are turned on the end of November.  The shops, especially the El Corte Ingles Department Store (below) has lots of ornaments for sale.

Seville has many small, elegant shops which make for fun window shopping.

The Royal Alcazar has been a residence for Spain’s rulers for many years.  We visited the beautifully decorated halls and courtyards which have Islamic-style designs.

Yesterday was a nice day and we spent quite a long time walking in the lush Alcazar Gardens.

Even outdoors in the gardens, we were required to wear masks.

We’ve been impressed by the preventive measures taken by many in Spain so far.  Now in Seville, bars and restaurants are crowded and even people eating inside aren’t wearing masks.  We wonder if Spain’s reputation for low virus numbers will hold in the future – we hope so!

The Cathedral is stunning at night but as you can see, clouds are rolling in and rain is on the way.  We are happy to have an apartment for dining “at home” if the weather is icky.

The rains came with thunder and lightning too!  We are happily inside but feeling bad for those stuck outdoors!

Until today, we’ve been so fortunate to have had warm, sunny days but the advance forecast for our next planned stop, Vitoria-Gasteiz is really chilly with rain every day.

We’ve decided to change our plan and we’ll go to Granada for sunnier skies.  It’s nice to be flexible enough to make changes as we go.

For now though, we’re dry and happy in Seville though dinner in tonight might look something like this!

On our last full day in Cadiz and we had a few things left to see.  We headed out to search for the Torre Tavira – it shouldn’t be hard to find as it’s one of the many (133 now) watchtowers in the city.  This one is at the highest lookout point in the old town.  The highlight of this tower is that it has a Camera Obscura which projects moving images of the city at the precise moment that they are “seen.”  This gave us a wonderful view of various points of interest around the town.  We couldn’t take photos of images from the Camera Obscura but recommend that it you have a chance to see images from one – do so!

Nearby, we bought stamps to mail some postcards at the Correos (Post Office) and Larry bravely dropped them into the mouth of the lion.

We are never seem to be far from the Mercado Central de Abastos so we stopped in for quick snack before our visit to the tower.  We are fascinated with its history – built in 1838 it’s Spain’s oldest covered market.  On this Wednesday, the seafood market was fully stocked!

We really didn’t know much about this city before we arrived, but we’ve concluded that Cadiz a gem.  We think that it deserves a few days visit to really get to know it.  There are many outdoor spaces to enjoy a coffee, glass of wine or a light meal.

Thursday we packed up and took the train to Seville.  It was super breezy in Cadiz – so much so that there was a warning for boats on the sea.  The steel workers are striking so police in riot gear were out en masse.  Just a little excitement as we walked to the rail station.

We miss cozy Cordoba and compact Cadiz but we have a nice place to stay near the Cathedral in Seville.  The city is larger and busier than we’ve become accustomed to.  We shopped for groceries and are waiting for the tour groups to depart so we can explore the city.  It’s not our first time here, but it’s been awhile.

Murillo Suites near the Alcazar is our home base for the next five days.

There is a nice view of the Cathedral from our room near Plaza Santa Cruz.

We’re watching the weather as the forecast for Vitoria-Gasteiz is rainy and chilly for the time we’re scheduled to be there.  If that continues, we might make an alternate plan but for now, we’ll enjoy Seville!

We rented an apartment at El Armador Casa Palacio.  It’s spacious and the small kitchen makes it handy to have breakfast and a light dinner in.  The location is perfect though we confess, we’ve walked more miles than we care to admit, trying to find our way back to our temporary home base.  Here’s the living room:

The Museo de Cadiz is just around the corner.  It’s under renovation but we were able to view a nice mix of archeological finds, Roman statues and fine art.  We especially liked this statue of Livia with flecks of blue paint from antiquity left on her gown.  Tiberius is seen lurking behind her.

Nearby, a cute shop sells handmade-in-Spain Lobe shoes designed by the owner and her friend.  If you like shoes, check out their website at: www.lobespain.com

The Mercado Central has lots of casual outdoor dining stalls with many fresh seafood choices.  Today we tried the fried calamari; crispy, tiny shrimp omelets; and grilled tuna sandwiches.  All good!  Small tapas-style plates make it easy to try several things!

In the afternoon we found the Cathedral rather by accident after stumbling around looking for something else!  The narrow streets of Cadiz wind and twist around in ways that confuse us, though perhaps we’re easily confused.  In any case, it turned out to be a good time to see the inside of the cathedral…

…and to make the climb up to the Tower.

It’s a nice view from this vantage point.

It’s been another good day in Old Cadiz!  So far, the weather is still nice enough in the evening for us to have an aperitivo at an outdoor cafe.  It’s a popular thing to do so we’ll join the crowd!  Cheers!

The weather has been surprisingly nice – warm days and not too chilly evenings.  So far, it’s still warm  enough for outdoor dining.  This morning we made a quick stop in the tourist office for a city map and then headed for the walkway by the sea.

There are many parks with lovely flowers like these Birds of Paradise.

We headed inland to check out the Mercado Central with many stalls for produce, cheeses, and cured meats.  Since the fishermen don’t go out on Sunday, the fish stalls are closed.  Still, there was plenty to see.

We had forgotten how fresh and delicious the food in Spain is and Cadiz has many fresh and tasty possibilities, very inexpensively-priced.  These cozy restaurant/bars are colorful with friendly waiters and a Menu del Dia.

We plan to visit the Museo de Cadiz and the Torre Tavira tomorrow.  It’s a nice time to be here!

We’re not necessarily fans of bullfighting but we’re fascinated by the pageantry and the colorful traditions.  The (Museo Taurino Cordoba) Bullfighting Museum was a good way to learn more.

The audiovisual presentations with closeup images of the bull and the fighter were interesting and the costumes elaborate and ornate.  

To the Spaniards, matadors are like rock stars or our American baseball legends.

The colorful posters show flamenco dancers…

…and images of the bull are ever present in the marketplace with straw bull images…

….and in the local Cafe La Gloria.

This evening we made the rounds of a couple of tapas bars and ended at the Roman Bridge.

Cordoba is has been a fun destination with more to offer than we expected!  They are beginning to put up the holiday decorations and it’s going to quite festive in a week or so!

We go round and round about the best time to eat a meal in Spain – it’s complicated and varies by region.  Some say that locals don’t eat out often but when they do, for many,  lunch is the main meal – usually eaten between 1:30 and 4:00.   Dinner begins in the  9:00-9:30 timeframe, and even later on weekends – typically a light meal or snack, like tapas.

To stay with Spanish tradition, today we ate (a big meal) lunch at Taberna Salinas which Rick Steves says:  “seems like a movie set designed to give you the classic Cordoba scene” .

There was a wait – even on a Thursday afternoon.   The menu is printed on a paper placemat and there are many choices – each served one at a time and large enough for sharing.  We researched before we arrived and ordered:

Espinacas con Garbanzos;

Berenjenas Freitas con Miel de Cana;

Rabo de Toro Estofado al Estilo Cardobes (Stewed Oxtail – Cordoban-Style) – not shown, but oxtail meat simmered in a wine, tomato sauce until very tender and delicious.

Postres (Dessert – Tarta de Queso):

Plus, a three-euro glass of local white wine.

On the way back to the hotel, we walked through Plaza de las Tendillas in the modern part of the city.  The square is beautiful with Art Deco-style architecture.  On a quick trip to Cordoba, it’s possible to miss seeing the newer part of the city.

Cordoba is a great city and we still have a lot more things on our list to explore:

• The Mezquita
• The Bullfight Museum
• The Archeological Museum
• Local markets
• …and a list of restaurants we want to try!

More adventure awaits!

The first day of travel is exhausting and exhilarating – we’ve just arrived in Spain feeling both!  We flew Atlanta to Madrid via JFK; took a bus to the Madrid Airport Metro/Train Stop; a commuter rail to the Madrid Atocha Station; and then an AVE Train to Cordoba.

The Atocha Train Station is easy to navigate with lush green space inside the huge grand hall.

The fast AVE train to Cordoba took only 2 hours  at speeds up to 267 km (166 miles) per hour!  The train was sleek, spotlessly clean, uncrowded, and everyone wore masks.

The end point of our train route was Malaga and we set our phone alarm to make sure we didn’t sleep through our Cordoba stop!

We arrived in Cordoba and walked 20 minutes to our hotel…the NH Collection Amistad in the Old Jewish Quarter.  The skies are blue and temps pleasant.

A tapas dinner at Bar Santos next to the Mezquita was just what we wanted…potato salad, roasted pork on a stick, wine and beer (tasted better than it sounds!)  The Bar is tiny so we joined others outside to picnic on the wall next to the Mezquita.

Our Spain itinerary is pretty simple:

Cordoba – 4 nights

Cadiz – 4 nights

Seville – 5 nights

Vitoria-Gasteiz – 4 nights

Madrid – 4 nights

If the Internet holds, we’ll try to post a few photos as we go so you are welcome to follow along!

We are fickle travelers – when we’re In Italy, it’s our favorite place, in Greece, it’s the best…but for today…Spain is it!