Real Alcazar Gardens

Hello again, hope your week is going well so far.

In my last post I mentioned the hugely impressive gardens of the Real Alcazar - what a treat they were, I really wish that I could share the scent of the myrtle and the orange trees along with these photos - it was intoxicating.

Palm and orange trees against the blue sky of Al Andalus...

Sweeping vistas...

The building on the left is a wedding pavilion, built by the King for his bride...

It was a very warm day, 21 degrees Celsius, so a shady part of the garden was a very welcome place for a little sit down and a rest...

These beautiful fellows are really quite tame...

Some amazing flowers and plants...

Running water everywhere, the engineering of supplying water to the population of a large city was something the Moorish designers put in place a thousand years ago, amazing...

Truly an amazing place to visit, absolutely magical - probably the best gardens I have ever visited (and that is saying something as I have been blessed to visit some very special gardens).

Hopefully back soon with our visit to the Catedral and our climb of the Giralda Tower!

Helenxx

Real Alcazar - the inside story

Hola!  I am back again with some more photos of Seville, this time our visit to the Real Alcazar (Royal Palace).

This imposing chap greets you at the gate...

The outside of the building looks rather formidable...

But inside, the beauty and refinement is amazing...

This dome is made of thousands of pieces of glass...

Breathtaking...

The inner court reminded me so much of the Alhambra in Granada...

There was also a slightly newer part, with a definite Renaissance feel...

But, for me, the real beauty is in the Moorish design of Al Andalus...this is the underground pool where the inhabitants of the palace would cool off during the summer heat (which can reach 45 degrees Celsius in the summertime)...

The patterns decorating the palace were simply stunning, oh if only I had quilting skills to replicate some of these patterns...

I fell in love with this place, but the inside of the palace is only half of what awaits the visitor - back soon with photos of the amazing (and huge!!) gardens.

Helenxx

Metropol Parasol

Good morning everyone, well, can't you just tell I am back in the thick of it at work?  Not even a chance to read blogs, never mind comment or post.  But, only 4 weeks until the next holiday (one of the joys of working in a stressful school environment is the regularity of the breaks, and boy, do we need them, especially for those of us in behaviour management!)

So, in order to keep the memories fresh of my recent break in beautiful Seville, I would like to share some photos of the stunning Metropol Parasol - you can read more about it here.

Sit back, put your feet up, and enjoy!

 
Photos can only give an idea of the sheer size of this amazing structure

Even though starkly modern, it sits well amongst it's more venerable neighbours...

The whole structure reminded me of toadstools...

I'm missing that beautiful Andalusian sky, a shade of blue not quite replicated here in the UK...or, in fact, in this photo, the shade is a really deep blue...

Incredible design and engineering...

What a view, and yes, the cake and coffee were absolutely delicious!

It is possible to walk on top of this amazing structure, so we chose to return in the evening...

From the top, the structure reminded me of a coiled snake...

What a view, Seville is beautiful at any time of day or night...

Even the lift is amazing!  I took a photo of DH in here (won't share or he will probably never speak to me again!) as the lift reminded me of the Tardis from Doctor Who, and, as DH is in fact a Doctor I just couldn't resist (the kids thought it was hilarious!!)

Walking back to our hotel, we passed by the Catedral and the Bishops Palace...

Hopefully back soon with photos of our visit to the Real Alcazar.

Helenxx