Sevilla

We started our Spring Break adventures in Sevilla, a southern Spanish city known for its deep authentic culture and true Adalucian feel. It was Rachel's second time visiting the city, and Devin's first. We only had two nights there before we would be heading west to Portugal, so we wanted to get the most out of it. Beginning in its famous Plaza Espanya, we strolled through the beautiful Maria Luisa Park and explored the maze of tiny streets in the Santa Cruz neighborhood. Sevilla has a lot of moorish influence, and at times the tile and vivid colors feel more like a medina in an Arab country than Western Europe. We love the mix of Arab and Spanish architecture!

After a full day of walking around, indulging in the cheap tapas, gelato, and coffee, we found a seat at a roof terrace to watch the sun set on the Cathedral and the giralda. Sevilla's Cathedral is the largest gothic cathedral in the world! It is truly a sight to see!

The food options in Sevilla are endless! We had trouble deciding which restaurant to duck into, as they all have affordable and delicious options. After researching about some classic joints in the city, we settled in Bar Alfalfa for our first evening meal. We were fully pleased with our decision!

Our second day in the city started with a walk along the river to see the famous Torre de Oro, and continued with more street wandering. We never tired of walking these streets and finding new cafes to order another cafe con leche.

Sevilla's Semana Santa processionals are truly a unique experience. We had heard that all of Andalucia was extremely crowded the closer it got to Easter. Not loving crowds, we decided to spent time in Sevilla at the beginning of the week so we could hopefully avoid the crowds. However, on Palm Sunday, the city was absolutely packed. There were processionals all over the city and family's dressed in Sunday's best all day long. It was fun to witness it all for one day, but one day was all that we felt we needed.

After breaking through the crowds, we crossed the river into the neighborhood we were staying in called Triana. Triana is known for being a quieter section of Sevilla with a more local feel. We did our own tapas tour through the neighborhood, going to about four different restaurants and getting one tapa at each one. It was a fun way to eat our way through the city and get a real sampling of Triana's most loved spots.

Sevilla actually has "Semana Santa" bars, which have walls covered in pictures of Saints all year round.

After two extremely full days in Seville, we picked up our rental car and headed west to Southern Portugal. We adored our time in Adalucia, and love seeing the difference between a typical Spanish city, and our beloved Catalan Barcelona. But the time had come to move on to the next part of our Semana Santa! On the road again...