Studying in Spain – Journal 19: Weekend at Sevilla – Monday
Seville Cathedral
Cathedral of Saint Mary of the See, or “Catedral de Santa María de la Sede” in Spanish, is also known as Seville Cathedral. The Cathedral was completed in the year 1528 and is the main church in Sevilla.
Our last day started with the Seville Cathedral, and we were not let down at all. The Cathedrals in Spain are usually quite impressive, and the Seville Cathedral was not an exception. The organ of the cathedral was tall and beautiful, and I stood there in awe for minutes just admiring it.
La Giralda
La Giralda is the bell tower of the Seville Cathedral and is 105 meters tall. It was just beside the Cathedral though tickets were sold separately. We went to La Giralda after visiting the Cathedral, and on the top floor of the building, we could see the whole Sevilla.
The view on the tower was incredible, though it was also very windy and chilly on there as well. We could hear the bells and the city seemed a lot smaller when we were standing up there.
Maccheroni & Co
After visiting the Cathedral and the bell tower, we went to an Italian restaurant called Maccheroni & Co for lunch. The restaurant had a wide selection of salads, pastas, pizzas and desserts.
What I remembered most about the meal was the pizza I had. They put whole buffalo mozzarella cheese on top of the pizza, and the pizza was thin and crispy. It was easily one of the best pizza I’ve ever had.
Plaza de toros de la Real Maestranza
Plaza de toros de la Real Maestranza de Caballería de Sevilla is the bullring of Sevilla. It is also one of the most well-known bullring in Spain, and is also considered one of Sevilla’s most enjoyable tourist attractions and is certainly one of the most visited. Bullfights during “Feria de Abril” are usually in March or April, and are the most important bullfighting event of Sevilla.
We didn’t know that only guided tours were available when we got there, so we had to wait for 20 minutes for the next tour available. I suggest that people who visit this bullring to book the tour online as it would save time waiting. After looking at their website, I found out that they also have an English version of the contexts as well, so booking the tour beforehand is definitely recommended.
The tour itself was in Spanish, and it started with a few rooms with paintings and documents of bullfighting history. Then we went to a room of bullfighting equipment and costumes. Though I am not interested in seeing bullfighting live at all, as it is a bit too gruesome for my taste, it was still interesting to learn more about the history of this part of Spanish culture.
The tour ended with a few minutes at the ring, of course we didn’t see any bulls as there wasn’t a bullfighting event that day. The ring was enormous and round, and the capacity of the ring was 12,000 people! We spent half an hour looking around at the ring before heading to the Renfe station.