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Today we toured Old Seville, with stops at the Seville cathedral (the 3rd largest in the world by area), the Alcázares Reales de Sevilla or Royal Alcazar of Seville (Ferdinand & Isabella loved this palace - and BTW, Isabella was the dominant monarch in this relationship, not Ferdinand) and simply walking all the back alleys and twists and turns of the Antigua Central.
The Seville Cathedral is the 3rd largest in the world and Seville argues it is the largest. I have been in this one and in St. Peter's Basilica (#1) and they are both pretty damned humongous! It is so large, that you cannot fit the entire thing in my camera lens no matter how far back you stand. On the trolley that runs in front of it, it takes 30 seconds at 15 KM/HR to pass from one end to the other - AND THAT IS WIDTH-WISE, NOT LENGTH-WISE, which is longer. Both Inside and outside, it is stunning.
The Royal Alcazar was exquisite!! Just to clarify the point I made above about the respective standing of Isabella/Ferdinand, this is one of the few examples in history of two Monarchs with realms of there own who subsequently married and only sort of joined their kingdoms together. In reality, Isabella became Queen of Castille in 1474, and Ferdinand was King of the Kingdom of Aragon. Castille was by far the larger, wealthier and more powerful of these two Kingdoms and throughout their marriage, each retined sole dominion over their respective realms - accept in cases of war or other emergencies, when Ferdinand was placed at the head of the combined military forces. In fact, when Isabella died, Ferdinand's title reverted back to just plain old King of Aragon, because he had no legal rights to retain kingship of Castille.
But I digress. Back to the Alcazar, it was beautiful and offered excellent example of Moorish, Mudejar and typical Spanish architecture. It is not difficult to imagine the palace at the height of its majesty and grandeur. Seville is - at least to me - the capital and gateway of Al-Andaluz or Andalucia. It was the primary port into which all the riches of the New World were shipped and, for a brief time in history, might have been the center of the world's shipping/trading industries. Even today, it remains a vibrant city and the Land of Flamenco continues to exude "Caliente"!! Oh, by the way - The Flamenco show was a hoot, except for Rayne becoming ill during the event and single-handedly dismantling the tail-end of our journey.
And so, Seville has become the terminus of this most excellent family adventure. We have had the most wonderful time in Spain - In Barcelona, with its Catalonian/seperatist culture (as they say, "You are not in Spain, you are in Catalunya!!"), we experienced the history of Spain from Roman times to the prresent Cosmopolitan city "Barca" has become.. In Madrid - the capital of Castille and Greater Spain - and at El Escorial, we revelled in Imperialist Spain - that very brief period in history when Spain ruled the waves, the continent and the world - and we were fortunate enough to see some of the greatest works of art ever produced. In Segovia, the Roman past remains in the present and their Cathedral remains a testament to Roman Catholicism. Cordoba continues to take pride in their Moorish roots and La Mesquita continues to reflect the art and arc hitecture of the Muslim world, despite the changes the "Reconquista" brought to her interior spaces. Finally, Seville became our respite from fatigue and illness and worry (poor Coco). As Seville was once the entry way to the New World, it will now serve as our point of return to our lives back home. I will always remember and treasure our visit through Spain and expect that I will return at least once more in the future (I WILL SEE GRANADA AND THE ALHAMBRA BEFORE I DIE). We have enjoyed the journey, but, more importantly, the love and experiences we have shared over the last fortnight will remain with us forever. Hasta Luego, Espanya!!
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