Life: Idiotropic

This is the day that the weather was supposed to be horrid and we'd decided that Kirk and the littles would be perfectly satisfied staying in for the day in the dry while Tiara and I ventured out for some mother-daughter "shopping and photo taking at our own pace" time.  Then, quite magically, just before we were ready to go, the sun appeared and I was struck with quandry of going and enjoying one very relaxing easy sort of vacation day or taking the rest of the family for a nice day, but may be not quite as easy a day.

"Nice mom" won out and the six of us went out again taking a different route towards the river, by the Plaza de Toros, near the old Tabaco factory, to the Plaza de España, then back along the Alcazaba gardens to the Jewish Quarter where the hail dumped heavily and we all took to the protection of trees and doorways.  Dinner at a really nice tapas place, shopping on one of the main streets, and home to sort and pack for Cordoba the following day.


That last paragraph is the "tapa" version.  The taste, summary, or sample of the day.  I'll spare you the "Super Sized Meal" as I'm really not in the "writing" mood, but for a reasonable "plato," with photos, you may continue below. [Ok, so a different day, different hour and upon finishing this, although I didn't dwell too much on some details, it is a little more "Super Sized" than I'd thought.  Sorry.  It's just Seville, NO8DO.]


We took a different route this morning, one that took us through the half-empty market with the first strawberries I'd seen since spring, big red and oh so tempting, down a different narrow cobbled street with rather nice graffiti on closed shop doors, back around to a church we'd walked by countless times without noticing it was there, until today.  On top of that pretty church bell tower was a very large nest - most likely the nest of the very two storks who had flown over Kirk and I just two days before.  There they were standing there proudly fussing about with whatever storks fuss with, perhaps readying their nest for spring.


Seville seems to be the city of a thousand churches, all significant, all beautiful in some way, yet most almost invisible.  Of course, from the Giralda I saw the towers, but when walking through town, they are so tightly sandwiched in wall to wall with all the other buildings, that except for the large ceramic tile art on the facade, you'd never know that it was religious at all.  This morning on a random street I was lucky enough to catch a door open - one that led to a beautiful little church courtyard with a blue and white ceramic Mary and rows upon rows of red glowing candle holders.


In a city like Seville there is too much to see.  We passed by museums and churches as if they were a 24-hr mini mart.  Here, they show up with that much frequency.  Actually, if we saw a 24-hr mini-mart here, I'd probably be jumping up and down, tugging on Kirk's sleeve, and snapping photos relentlessly.   But anyway, the point is, that Seville is too packed with "stuff" that is beautiful or significant, so unless you have oodles of time and a really detailed travel guide,  you just have to be content with the walk sometimes, to soak up what you can and just appreciate that you've been there.


We made it to the Guadalquivir river which runs through the city.  Like Portland, it too has a wide green waterfront park running along one side with paths winding throughout.  A nice place to walk dogs or run children.  Just not today as record rains have created tiny lagoons all throughout the park.  We walked here until we saw the yellow and white Plaza de Toros, then cut into that neighborhood to find some food.


We ate a a place with a row of bull heads mounted proudly along one wall with a row of pig legs hanging over the bar opposite.  Lunch was good.  The fam played it safe with burgers and salads.  I tried some sort of local beef stew that ended up being quite good though we worried and joked about what parts of beef would be used.  I'm never quite sure here.


Up to this point, the rain had waited.  It seems though, that any time that we stop for a meal, that the weather decides to change.  Like it's playing a trick on us.  Sunny?  Well, after a good lunch it will rain.  It doesn't matter where we are.  I think we've stumbled on some sort of Narnian wardrobe of weather.  Step through and it will be something different entirely.


So after this good lunch, a very short while after, it began to pour.  And it poured for a bit, then let up just to tease.  My photos of the Tabacco factory were taken from under the protection of my pink camo umbrella.  


The sun came out in time to see the Plaza de España, a place I didn't really want to see.  We'd stood in the rain huddled under umbrellas debating.  I wanted to walk back to the Jewish district for shopping and lunch.  Kirk wanted to see the Plaza de España.  I really didn't see how some little plaza could be worth a walk with little people in the nasty wet.  This is one of those moments, I was glad he got his way.  It is amazing!  A tour of Spain through the painted tiles, the monstrous crescent is lined with beautiful alcoves each depicting a different Spanish city in a large tile painting.  A map with the city is below and both sides are decorated with beautiful ceramic tiles.  Each one is completely different.  The ends have large towers and there's a large royal looking structure in the middle.  Linking them all is a grand hallway with colums - a place where Star Wars Attack of the Clones was partially filmed.  There's a grandiose fountain in the front center of the plaza where the carriage drivers bring their horses for a bit of fuel "sin plomo" as one told me.  Unleaded.

I didn't want to take a taxi.  It wasn't that far to the Jewish district.  Of this I was sure.  Nope.  No taxi for us.  And I was right.  It wasn't that far along the Alcazaba gardens back to the barrio, not far at all.  And then the hail started.  Big white pellets from the heavens.  So the jokes on me because my Spanish friends told me that Seville is always warm and I didn't need to pack heavy, and I am so glad that I didn't listen because it's cold and now it's hailing.  Warm, Seville?  So we made it to the Jewish quarter and huddled under a doorway and a large tree until the hail stopped, then scurried through the winding streets in the rain.  Our umbrellas left a trail of raindrops in each shop we stopped in, so eventually we gave up and decided to get some food.

Ay Maricru got our business because last night the girls saw the placard outside advertising chicken wings among the list of tapas.  Bright red walls, red and lime green polka dotted chairs, ruffled lampshades like flamenco skirts.  Tiny, atmospheric, and fun.  The waitress was incredibly nice and the place was empty.  It wasn't the dinner hour (for the Spanish), but they serve food all the time.  Chicken wings were a hit with the girls.  Kirk and I tried a zucchini dish that was really delicious with cheese in a tomatoe sauce.  And Tiara and I both had the most amazing round of goat cheese covered in a warm raspberry sauce. 

The walk home took us to the Calle Sierpes, a very nice shopping street where we ducked in and out of shops until Tiara, Elise, and Arianna had all found a souvenir.  Luci got hers in Granada. 
 
All day today I've seen NO8DO, Seville's motto, on ceramic tile signs, man-hole covers, street signs, buildings and banners.  It's beautiful.  A skein of wool wound into a figure 8 is called a "madeja."  So, this reads, "No madeja do."  When spoken, it sounds like "No me ha dejado," which means "It has not abandoned me" or "It has not left me."  So, once you've been to Seville or if you're from Seville, you needn't worry, for it will never leave you.  Sitting here writing this, I can assure you it's true.  It doesn't leave you.  There is something special that finds its way into your heart and lingers there.  And I'm glad.  Seville, of the three magnificent cities I saw on this trip, is the one that I wish to hold onto, the one that I will return to if life allows.



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