Looking at the cathedral through the Portal el Perdon. This gate is part of the original mosque.
Today’s breakfast was the last official Country Walkers event of the tour. Rita had already left before breakfast to catch a plane. When we came down about 0730, Caroline, Ralph, Teague, and Cindy were already present. We settled in at an adjacent table and were joined a bit later by Judy, and then Nick. In between the other Country Walkers arrived and the leave-taking began, as Caroline, Ralph, Teague, and Cindy had to catch a taxi to the airport and were joined by Judy as she was also catching a plane to Vienna to catch a concert by her percussionist son.
We sat a while with Nick and were joined later by Bruno as we discussed the philosophy and business of Country Walkers tours, including thoughts around country vs. city walks. My viewpoint is that the value that CW brings (besides the hotels and meals) is access to the countryside with its experience guides. City walks are much more available from other sources or the sites are well publicized and developed by the local tourism authorities that they can be accessed easily by individuals. In looking at this trip, both Granada and Sevilla fall in the category, where I think the tour of Ronda was something folks aren’t always going to find on their own.
Nick also looked at our itinerary for the next few days and made recommendations for restaurants he was familiar with. I also took time to catch up on my diary.
After breakfast, we walked to the cathedral, getting there 10 minutes before it opened. The day was warm and humid, but would have been pleasant if there had been somewhat of a breeze. When the bells announcing the hour range, the doors opened and the line moved quickly to the ticket counter where we paid our 7.50€ each to get in.
The first areas were side rooms and courtyard with paintings, then a low hallway led to the main cathedral. The cathedral is the third largest in the world as measured by the length of the nave, although the largest if measured by area. The placement of the choir in the center of the cathedral breaks the space so the magnitude of the space does not impress like Saint Peter’s in Rome. Nonetheless it is a magnificent space. We wandered around snapping what photos we could without flash (to abide by the local restrictions). Frequently we’d brace our cameras against a column or some other immobile ledge to avoid moving the camera during the long exposure time caused by the low light and no flash rule.
The tomb of Christopher Columbus is prominently displayed, carried on the shoulders of four crowned figures. According to our city guide from the previous day, Virginia, the archeologists and historians have had the bones in the tomb evaluated by DNA analysis compared to the remains of his brother. The mitochondrial DNA apparently matches which would confirm the identity as this form of DNA is inherited matrilineally, i.e. you get it all from your Mom. Apparently Columbus’ remains were moved around periodically from Sevilla, to Cuba, to Santo Domingo, and somewhere else that escapes me. So there is apparently confusion as to just where the remains are located. However as Virginia pointed out, given the amount of bones left, he could be present at all four sites.
We wandered through the assorted chapels, sacristies, treasuries, chapter house, and back into the nave. From there we walked out into the last feature of the original mosque (not counting the bell tower the Giralda), the Patio de los Naranjos, the Courtyard of the Orange Trees. The patio was where the Muslim faithful would perform ritual ablutions before entering the mosque for prayers. The typical brickwork and horseshoe arches were evident all around. After a quick walk through of the gift shop and a backtrack to the men’s room, we left the cathedral by the patio via the Portal el Perdon, the Gate of Pardon.
Looking at the cathedral through the Portal el Perdon. This gate is part of the original mosque.
The Courtyard of the Orange Trees is also part of the original mosque.
Some details of the gate.
The cathedral entry - a replica of the Giralda's weathervane is to the lower right of the image.
Inside the cathedral, stained glass in the rose windows.
One of the massive columns undergoing repair.
Looking down the apse.
Sepulcher of Cardinal Sir Juan de Cervantes - carved in alabaster dating from 1453-1458.
Some pink marble although the mercury-vapor lighting alters the color in the image.
The organ.
The tomb of Christopher Columbus.
The height of the space is impressive.
An example of the vaulting in the ceiling.
One of the side rooms, the main sacristy. That's Jonathan on the right.
Another ornate construction - I have no idea what its purpose is.
An enclosed courtyard / atrium - the Patio of the chapter.
An oval dome in the Chapter House - these aren't very common.
Altar plate used in communion shows the Giralda, the bell tower (a former minaret) of the cathedral.
Some of the light coming through the stained glass windows.
The cathedral is huge - the column being repaired is towards the end of this aisle on the right.
Another shot showing the height.
Jonathan exiting the cathedral, entering the Courtyard of the Orange Trees.
The orange trees.
One of the fountains in the courtyard, the Portal el Perdon behind.
A fountain in the park.
Checking out some of the information placards.
Although the roof bar was closed, we were able to take some shots of the skyline and cathedral.
Looking away from the cathedral.
While we were taking photos, the lights of the cathedral came on.
Jonathan and the cathedral.
We worked our way down Avda. de la Constitucion, where they were tearing up the pavement to install trolley tracks that is part of an urban rail system/subway that Sevilla is building. Our goal was the Parque de Maria Luisa which was the private gardens that she (Maria Luis of course!) donated to the city. There are still a number of pavilions left over from the 1929 Exposition on the grounds. The park is moderately well tended, but it shows its age in a number of ways – fountains and ponds not kept up, missing tiles on park benches and the like. Ultimately it was just a park.
We went back to the area around the cathedral to look for lunch and settled for some excellent tapas – air cured Serrano ham on toast for one, and cured salmon and cod wrapped around white asparagus for the other. Jonathan had a glass of red wine, but I was sticking to Coca-cola until I was sure my pipes had truly settled. As it was, I was feeling the strain on the muscles in my chest and abdomen from the exertions a couple nights before.
We came back to the hotel and had a nice siesta where I got some good shut-eye before adjourning to the hotel lobby to write in the diary and a glass of wine. We were joined by Deena and Harvey, Oakley and Nadji, and Marilyn and Joel who also stayed an additional day in the hotel. After some pleasant conversation, we all went our separate ways for dinner. Jonathan and I walked up into the Santa Cruz district, but didn’t want to get lost, so we stuck to what appeared to be the main road. We didn’t find anything we liked, so we ended up back near the cathedral at a somewhat nondescript restaurant. We both had gazpacho while I had pork with mushrooms, Jonathan had a pork cutlet. Visually I was reminded of the venison that had caused me such grief and I ended up eating only about a third of it, although it was tasty.