Sevilla/Cadiz

This weekend Clark and I went down south to the city of Sevilla (or in English, Seville).  It was a great trip!  We left Friday morning by bus and got to Sevilla around 5pm.  After eating some delicious tapas of paella and potatoes we went to the Guadalquivir River and met up with Victoria and another teacher from our school.  We walked around and watched the sunset along the river.  The park was full of students relaxing and enjoying the fantastic weather.  Later that evening, we went to an international beer bar and I got a Belgian and a Czech beer.  

The next day we went on a walking tour of the city.  Our guide, Medi, was quite the character and made the tour incredibly interesting and fun!  It was my first walking tour (that wasn't a haunted walking tour), but it certainly won't be my last!  Clark and I actually want to do the walking tour in Madrid!  What's great about a lot of walking tours is that they are free (and you tip at the end), thus saving many euros!  The tour, and Medi, were so great that we went on another walking tour with him the next evening.  The second tour was about the Jewish neighborhood, and featured several interesting stories/legends.  On Saturday evening, we took a bus to Cadiz.  Apparently after Rio de Janeiro and Tenerife, Cadiz is the largest Carnaval celebration in the world.  I can believe it because the little peninsula/island was packed.  There were several stages which featured skits and dances.  Once these finished, people roamed the streets and plazas drinking/socializing with friends.   Everyone was dressed in costumes!  Here's Clark and Me! 

At 3am we caught our bus back to Sevilla and went straight to bed.  We got a late start on Sunday, seeing as we needed lots of rest after our Carnaval festivities.  We went up the Cathedral tower and went on the second walking tour.  Then we got a drink at the Alonso XIII Hotel which is above five stars!  Here's a picture of the 'grand luxe' hotel (as they rank it in Spanish).

The next morning we saw the castle and the inside of the cathedral.  Both were beautiful, especially the gardens of the castle.  And thankfully we got student discounts so it only cost 6€ total! 

Our last tourist activity before heading home was visiting the Archives of the Indies.  It houses thousands of documents that chronicle Spain's history in the Americas.  I found the exhibit very interesting, and since it was free, it was definitely worth the visit!  After the museum we grabbed a quick lunch at the restaurant we went to on Saturday which was recommended to us by Medi.  Both times were fantastic.  They have traditional Sevillian tapas and delicious sangria!  After this, we grabbed our bags and headed to the bus station to catch our ride back to Madrid!  Once again, I have fallen in love with another city in Spain!

(P.S. I'm so glad I can finally upload pictures again! Not sure why, but for a while it was impossible)