Seville, Spain

Bievenidos a Ethspaña! 

Don't forget the lithsp!

It was so refreshing to arrive in a country where we understood and could speak enough to have our immediate survival needs (tapas and wine) met at any time. 

Seville, pronounced Saveeya in Spanish, is a fascinating little city that played a pivotal role during the European "Age of Exploration". During the exploration heyday from the 1400s to the 1700s, Spain (then technically Castile) was as busy as a bee navigating the globe, exploring and mapping new land, and bringing anything worthy back to the nest. And what a productive nest it was! 

During this time, Seville served as the hub of exploration for the Castile/Spanish empire. On the Guadalquivir River ships were built, expeditions approved, captains and crews licensed, trips departed, and ships returning home were unloaded and taxed. 

We were fortunate to meet some new Ultimate friends, Rafa and Elena, who kindly allowed us to stay in their perfectly situated flat with an awesome view of Seville. 

We arrived in the morning and ventured out right away to begin our arduous search for Spain's best tapas (small plates), which stretched both our intestines and wallets to an unhealthy extent. 

After an advised aperitif of orange wine, we got some quick and dirty tapas at a place near the Cathedral. They write your tab on the bar and constantly update it, which is pretty helpful since you are constantly ordering new stuff, and probably inebriated by the end so won't remember all the delicious things you ate. 

A common decor choice: jamon! Spain is so crazy about their jamon (specifically the large leg of pig you see hanging), that they have a whole different kitchen gadget for holding and cutting the leg. As you can imagine, it takes up a large amount of much coveted kitchen counter space, so I've seen at least 2 families keep it in their laundry room. 

First stop post-tapas was the Alcazar Palace (pronounce Alcathar), originally built by the Islamic Almohad caliphate in the 10th century when they ruled over the Iberian Peninsula from Northern Africa. After the Reconquista (reconquest of the land by Christians, can I stop explaining that now), the Christian kings/queens began to use it for a part time home and to house a few key government departments. 

 We continued to see evidence this all across Southern Spain, but Islamic architecture is just so much cooler than most of the Christian architecture we came across. So much more dynamic and pleasing to the eye. Common themes include rectangular courtyards in the middle of houses (often with fruit trees, odiferous plants, and subtle water features to keep it cool), the Horseshoe Arch or Keyhole Arch door (see below), and beautiful and incredibly intricate tile work. So a lot of what is considered "Spanish architecture" today is actually due to Spain's Islamic influence.  

 Keyhole or Horseshoe Arch, typical of Moorish architecture. This is actually from the Indian Archives building (Archivo de Indias) which I'll get to in a bit. 

Mind blowing detail on every square centimeter (metric, baby)!

Despite the fact that this is a terrible picture, it's a cool topic. This painting, The Virgin of the Navigators by Alejo Fernandez, depicts the Virgin Mary watching over the ships exploring the Americas. It was commissioned by the Casa de Contratacion in the 1530s to hang in the chapel, and they claim that is the first known painting depicting the Spanish exploration of the Americas. 

By far the most interesting part of the Alcazar was the aptly named Casa de Contratacion (House of Trades). After the Spanish "discovery" of the Americas in 1492, Queen Isabella I of Castile realized it would behoove her to regulate the new booming industries of exploration and colonization. In 1503 the House of Trades was developed, which was the governmental center for all things related to Spain's international ambitions (Americas, Philippines, and Africa). This was a totally centralized system and no privatization was officially allowed. 

The most interesting things they did was collect all of the colonial taxes and tax goods coming back into Spain (apparently at a rate of 20 - 40% at times!), but they also managed the Padron Real. The Padron Real was the official, required and super secret map used by every Spanish navigator in the 16th century. It was constantly being improved upon and updated by the map making experts hired by the Casa. Returning officers were required by law to report any new lands or discoveries and would testify under oath to the Casa before giving them the new coordinates, which would then be added to the Padron General (General Map) to be copied for future expeditions.

Later on, the Casa de Contratacion not only controlled the American colonies, but also the African slave trade. History lesson of the day!

After the Alcazar, on Rafa's recommendation we went to check out this gigantic wooden structure Metropol Parasol (nicknamed, The Mushrooms), which is a controversial piece of semi-useful art. When digging to build an underground parking garage Roman ruins were discovered, and so began a years-long political and public conversation on what to do with this place. Like many European cities, the line between deciding what of the varied past to preserve, how to preserve it, and what to build on top of is many tones of grey. Here, they achieved what seems to me a good compromise: on the underground level is a small museum showcasing some of the Roman ruins (to appease the history buffs), second level is shopping and restaurants and 3rd level is a public square (to appease the residents), and top level is a viewing platform (to appease the tourists)! 

Rafa and Elena took us out that night to what was, by far, our most delicious meal in Spain! Me encanta tapas. 

The next day we developed an ambitious sightseeing plan. Rafa and Elena loaned us their bikes for the day, and in conjunction with an awesome bike sharing program for Ellen's bike, were able to bike gang it around the city. 

We started at the Tower of Gold (Torre del Oro), a watch tower that guarded the canal of the Guadalquivir River. Now a Spanish naval museum with some really neat replicas of many historic Spanish galleons, it originally served as the collection house for all the riches brought back from the New World, hence the name Tower of Gold. 

Mike and Ellen on top of the Torre del Oro. 

Cool view of the Cathedral and Spanish flag atop the TdO. 

We then headed to the Cathedral of Seville (Catedral de Seville), which is a gargantuan Catholic edifice (and apparently the largest cathedral and 3rd largest church in the world, did you know there was a difference?) taking up a city block. According to lore, the people that designed it said, "Let us build a church so beautiful and so grand that those who see it finished will think we were mad." It took a hundred years to build, from 1402 to 1506, and is almost exclusively Gothic in style.

Among other reasons, it's famous for being the *partial* burial place of Christopher Columbus. The other part of his body is purported to be buried in the Dominican Republic due to a political tug of war over his bones. 

Gooooold! This wall of gold was the life's work of one artist, and I'm guessing used a healthy amount of gold from the Americas. This picture captures approximately 1/6 of the height of this nave. 

Like so many other things, they took what the Moors had done and adopted it, so they literally built the Cathedral on top of a mosque. The Giralda, or bell tower, was built on the former minaret of the mosque, so 2/3 of the way up it changes style and color a bit. 

View from atop the Giralda. 

View of Cathedral and our next stop, my favorite in Seville, the Archivo de Indias. It mainly functions as a research library and clearinghouse for over 80 million documents related to the Spanish exploits abroad, but it has a few totally awesome exhibits open to the public. 

Dorky history warning! I saw the original Treaty of Tordesillas (the agreement between Spain and Portugal in 1494 to divide the conquerable lands straight down a line of longitude that goes through Eastern Brazil, hence Brazil being historically under Portuguese control and almost all of the rest of South America under Spanish)! 

Also on display were original maps from Amerigo Vespucci and many other Spanish and Portuguese explorers (some of the Portuguese explorers defected to Spain and some were done under Spanish control)! I was having a field day taking pictures until a guard came in and told me it wasn't allowed. Old maps are the coolest; heavy on design and low on detail.  

The other fascinating exhibit was on "Animales del Nuevo Mundo", where Spanish explorers had documented, sometimes accurately and sometimes not so much, the species they came across on their travels in the New World. Above is just further proof that the chupacabra does exist! 

We then went to lunch with Elena's parents because her father (Manuel, or Manolo) is a retired history teacher, but still a teacher at heart so kindly offered to give us a walking tour (entirely in Spanish, but thankfully translated by Rafa) of the old Jewish quarter of Seville. 

But first, we had to fill up on gelato! 

Jews had lived in Seville, and all over Spain and Western Europe, since the diaspora from Palestine. After a productive period where many Jews held positions in the Spanish monarchy (treasurer) and had good relations with the king, unfortunately the pattern of scapegoating and prejudice eventually followed them to Spain. The reasons probably sound familiar. Since many Jews were involved in industry and commerce, they drew negative attention for having more money than some of the population. Some were jealous that they held positions of high regard with the former king (who was deposed). Also, some people blamed the Jews for the Bubonic plague of the 1300s because the Jewish communities were surviving the plague in higher numbers due to their hygienic practice of ritual washing, or ablution. Whatever their reasons, anti-Semetic fervor rose to a climax in Seville in 1391, when a series of pogroms (organized massacres) were committed across the city and country (Cordoba, Toledo, Barcelona, etc.). Jewish homes, businesses, and synagogues were burned and many Jews were killed or forced to renounce their faith and convert to Catholicism. 

The results of the pogroms was mass emigration of Jews (mostly to Portugal, who hadn't yet begun the expulsion of the Jews, and Northern Africa). The Spanish Inquisition began in 1478, partially due to the fact that they believed the "conversos" (Jews newly converted to Christianity) had not truly given up their Jewish practices and beliefs. In 1492 (a big year for Spain), the Jews were officially kicked out of Spain. 

Rafa, Manolo, Ellen, and Mike at the end of our unofficial tour. 

The city, food, and hospitality of Seville blew us away! 

Adios Seville y hola Grenada!