An Adventurers Tale: seville

Well that was easy. When we got off the bus in Cordoba we booked our tickets for this onward travel to Seville in advance. The intercity buses, particularly the popular tourist routes, get filled quickly so it's always advisable to plan ahead. Plus you have to account for public holidays. Religious festivals and special occasions. This is especially the case in Asia when there is some religious festival every other day to some obscure diety and or other. April is the month of Feria in Seville and both rooms and transport is at a premium. Feria is a spring festival and involves nightly bull fights, public cultural shows and lots of other activities. As such it is popular with both tourists and locals alike.

We arrived on schedule and quickly found our digs for the next three nights. Seville is a big city. Bigger than either Granada or Cordoba but I managed to book the bus that took us to the Estacion Autobus only a few minutes walk from our accomodation. It was easy to find.

It's a boutique hotel just on the edge of the old town. Very comfortable and quiet. Matilda's unpacked in minutes and out into the city to get our bearings. We strolled down to the bull ring, which is only a few minutes walk away, to see what was going on. We are there tomorrow night to watch a fight and as the closest we have been to a bullfight before was watching Tommy Steel in "A little white bull" we thought we had better suss it out. We are so glad we did. It seems there is a fairly strict protocol to follow for "guests of the bull" or spectators to you and I.

1. There is a dress code. Gentlemen in dark suits and ladies in elegent attire.

2. Respectful behaviour at all times in respect for both the bull and the brave Matador.

3. Handkerchief to throw into the ring in tribute. The list goes on. It's like a Spanish version of Ladies day at the races. Being backpackers we didn't fetch any evening attire so we will have to make the best of what we have. Crispy has bought herself an outfit and I'll have to make do with shorts and a shirt. We might raise a few eyebrows but I doubt the bull will mind as Crispy will look amazing. I on the other hand might not even be allowed in and get arrested.

After the bull ring, getting to grips with protocol, we meandered through the Barrio Santa Cruz. The old Cathedral quarter. Being the Feria there were ladies in fantastic Spanish dresses. Cabilleros on horseback and horse drawn carriages everywhere. It was certainly a sight to behold and an exciting atmosphere to be a part of. Although it has made transport more difficult and accomodation expensive it is a great time to be here.

Tomorrow we are going to see some of the famous sights of this amazing city and get spruced up, as best I can, for the bullfight at 18.30.

Some pics....