Sensory overload

What a day! Seville bowled us over today. First stop was a cafe for breakfast; the obligatory cafe con leche with toast and tomato. Then we strolled to the Alcázar, which kept us captivated for hours. It's much bigger than the Alhambra and contains more styles and periods, although you will certainly recognise this particular style from my Alhambra  blip. Actually we ended up spending as much time in the extensive gardens as in the buildings; again, much of the garden is relatively modern, but it is a delightful place to soak up sunshine, green shade, and peace. If we'd taken a picnic we could have stayed all day.

However, we eventually emerged after nearly three hours and hunted for lunch nearby. Needless to say it's all very touristy round there, but we ended up in a very popular and trendy-looking tapas bar, where the tapas were pleasant enough if not amazing. We tried the one that won the Sevilla tapas competition, a disc of pastry with tomato, avocado, and marinated salmon, and it would have been laughed at anywhere in the Basque country :) I was very taken with my soft cheese and membrillo dessert though.

Afterwards we took a stroll around the beautiful and very touristy barrio of Santa Cruz. I think there isn't a single street in central Seville where there isn't something to stand and stare at. Once we got tired, we went back to the flat for a little rest before the evening's entertainment -- a spot of googling had found a bar with jazz.

When we'd gone out in the morning I happened to look down the street and realised we were only yards from Las Setas, which I'd completely forgotten the existence of. So as it was getting dark we decided we'd go and take a look. The Setas (mushrooms) are a massive structure with reinforced concrete stalks holding up a grid of boxes made of plywood held together with metal struts -- the largest wooden structure in the world. Underneath are a market and a museum, but you can also go up in a lift and walk around on top.

To our astonishment there was a large queue for the lift. We nearly left, but having established that the queue was moving quite quickly we decided to stay, and it was well worth it. The views from the walkways are amazing, especially in the dark, as only Seville's many churches are illuminated. None of my photos did it justice as I only had the little camera and no tripod, but the extra gives a glimpse of the experience. Being in Spain, there's also a bar up there, and your 3-euro entrance ticket can be exchanged for a drink, so you can sit and admire the view, which we duly did.

From there, we walked up to the Alameda, a large square which is Seville's tapas central, and also only minutes from where we are staying. Who needs Trip Advisor? We just wandered along inspecting the bars and their relative popularity, and ended up at Casa Paco, a tiny and very traditional bar. What a find! If the waiters at last night's bar were like cruising sharks, the staff here were like darting shoals of small fish, in constant swift movement between tables and bar, while three staff in the ridiculously small kitchen turned out dozens of tapas. I could have watched the efficient ballet for hours. We had some bacon-wrapped dates that were so lovely that we had to order some more,  piquillo peppers stuffed with salt cod, and (slightly overcooked) swordfish in orange sauce.  Our best tapas by far, and cheap too.

We then headed to the Café Naima a few minutes' walk away. It was tiny and packed; we ended up squeezed in next to the bar, but after the first half a few people left and we managed to grab a couple of chairs. The trio of musicians (bass, lead guitar, and singer) played cool, traditional jazz in a laid-back way, and the atmosphere in such a small space was great. We really enjoyed it and finally left well after midnight feeling very happy to be in Seville and have another day here to look forward to.