Or Sevilla as it’s properly known in Spanish! We took an 8 AM train from Madrid to Sevilla, and we arrived in Sevilla at 10:45 AM. The nice thing about trains is that it gives me a break from my fear of flying. 

Seville is warmer than Madrid, which was much appreciated. We felt it immediately when we got out of the train station and into our Uber. We checked in to the Honest Hotel Sevilla and walked out to Mercado de Triana for a quick lunch. Unlike Mercado de San Miguel in Madrid, this market actually looked like a place where everyday people would come to buy their produce and meats. It was here that I tried my first Spanish tortilla, and I loved it. Which makes sense because it’s potatoes and egg. The potatoes consisted of some that were mashed and some that were scalloped. Then they’re enveloped in an eggy outer layer. 

We then hurried to our 1:30 PM Real Alcázar timed entry tickets. My real intention for visiting the royal palace in Seville is because it acted as the setting for Dorne for the Martells in Game of Thrones! The husband and I had fun taking photos at various places they filmed at! 

We sat down for a snack at the cafe mid-way. My lower back is terrible during travel so I needed breaks now and then. We finished up the tour afterwards and then we headed next door to the Seville Cathedral for our 4:30 PM timed entry tickets. It was only about 4 PM but they let us in. 

The cathedral was quite beautiful! They had many stained glass windows adorning the walls, intricate carvings, and the biggest organ I’ve ever seen. The audio guide we were listening to told us that one of the domes in the ceiling caved in at one point and partially destroyed the organ in the process. That made me wary about the rest of the ceiling. Who’s to say those won’t fall too?? 

We left the cathedral and grabbed a quick bowl of paella across the street. I needed to make a stop back at our hotel because I needed my allergy pills. Seville is beautiful and there are flowers blooming everywhere. That also meant I was sneezing everywhere and I was getting sick of that. We stopped by for yogurt too along the way. 

We left the hotel to go to La Carboneria: a tapas tavern. This unassuming place also was the home to local flamenco artist performances throughout the night! Every hour or so, they’d have folks performing. We came at about 7:45 PM, which was a bit later than we were hoping for. That meant we couldn’t get a proper table. 

The concept of La Carboneria is very relaxed. There’s a counter where you order food from and a bar where you order drinks. Then you take your stuff and sit anywhere you want. Because we came a bit late, we were literally sitting next to the stage. The performance started at around 8 PM and it was very intimate. So intimate that the flamenco dancer came in with his hair fresh and wet, and when he did his spins on stage, we were in the splash zone. He was accompanied by a singer and a guitarist. Altogether, they put on a wonderful show. We tipped them after and got a pic! There are no pictures allowed during the show though. 

After the tapas, we wandered to Zara to get me a jacket. I didn’t pack warmly enough so I had to top up. It was also near the Setas de Seville so we got to admire the amazing architecture. 

Then we also stopped by McDonald’s and ordered some things we’ve never had in Canada! The McExtreme had a large patty (even bigger than the Canadian quarter pounder patties), bacon, and pulled pork with a slice of white cheese and cream sauce. It looked like a mess, but was delicious. We also had their fried wings and got the cheese truffle sauce. This sauce was amazing and I wish it was available as a mainstay. 

It was then time to head back and call it a night. My back was killing me, but at least the allergy pills kicked in. 

When morning once again greeted us, we ate breakfast at our hotel since it was included. Once fueled up, we went to visit Plaza de España. This was a part of Naboo from Star Wars! We had fun recreating this shot from the movie, and then observed the many street vendors hawking their wares. What a picturesque location! 

Neither of us were hungry enough for lunch, but we mailed off a few postcards and then hit up Bar El Comercio for some churros and chocolate. The Madrid one from San Ginés was better because the chocolate quality was nicer. But I did like the thicker, airier churro though! 

We did some souvenir shopping, and then we headed back to the hotel to avoid the hottest part of the day and take a quick rest. There was a massage place across our hotel and I did a quick back and shoulder massage there in hopes of easing some of my back pain. They were lovely and saw me off with a cup of tea after my session. 

After the massage, we rested a bit and then headed off to our “formal” flamenco show. It was at Teatro Flamenco Sevilla, and we had pretty front row seats. Which was perfect for comparing between the casual show we saw the day prior versus this theatre performance. 

Some things I realized after watching both shows: 

• you have to smell good because that twirling and whirling means people will catch a whiff of you. And all the dancers did smell nice! 
• Not sure this is a must, but both performances had a dancer with wet hair that catapulted droplets to nearby spectators. I don’t love this. 
• There’s a very specific way that the supporting ensemble claps and it looks so gentle and delicate. The clapping used in flamenco is called Palmas. 
• I never know when to clap since you’re not supposed to clap while the performance is happening as they’re clapping a specific beat.
• The main cast is made up of a singer, a guitarist, and a dancer. This was all there was in the more casual experience. For the theatre experience, there was still only 1 guitarist, but many more supporting members who sung, clapped, and danced. 

Otherwise, the more formal flamenco show had more elements to the performance like a castanets segment and different costume changes. There was also one girl who had to manoeuvre a long dress train as she tapped away. A great display of skill! Also with more supporting cast members, they were able to clap out layered beats which was very cool. There was one girl dancing at the theatre who had a flower fly out of her hair and an earring that escaped one of her earlobes. That stressed me out watching the dancers do their footwork near them and I was worried someone would slip on them. All in all, it was a great hour-long show! 

We got a frozen Greek yogurt snack afterwards and sat in a square to do some people watching. Then it was time for our 7 PM reservation at Cañabota.  

The concept at Cañabota was very interesting. We got the  Mesa alta con Taburete experience, where the menu changes every day, and even between patrons. We were asked at the start if there’s anything we didn’t eat. They already knew about my nut allergy. Then they designed and customized their menu according to what they have that day, and also based on your flagged preference. We were asked if we were ok with flavours like liver and oysters and we said we’d eat anything. 

Cañabota specializes in Andalusian seafood. We started off with a 3-set appetizer, with a broth, a skewer, and sardines on a flaky cracker. This was followed by a liver ice cream situation. Then a delicious raw shrimp (they instructed us to suck on the head), with shrimp tartare with a horseradish “yolk” that popped. We then had a bite of lobster with an iced vinegar quenelle, with an oyster leaf garnish (it really did taste like an oyster!!). A dish followed it that consisted of only 3 clams (this was one of the husband’s favourite actually!). There was an eel dish after that was yummy in taste but I did not like the gel/blubbery texture of the eel itself. An oyster was served on an alien looking plate, that was submerged in a light lemony butter. We then had squid “noodles” in a gravy. Then came the star of the show: the grouper that had been aged 14 days. We were instructed to eat the dorsal fin with our hands. 

Dessert came in 3 parts. First, as our starter, there was a savory goat’s milk ice cream that had caviar on top with an olive oil drizzle. Then we had a fennel ice cream with a mint base (this was my least favourite dish). Lastly, we ended on a pumpkin flan with tamarind. I usually don’t like tamarind, but surprisingly didn’t mind this. Also, was pleasantly surprised that the head chef noticed them serving this dessert without toasted pumpkin seeds and then he came over to ask “ah. But you’re not allergic to seeds though right?” With my confirmation, he then came over to add it back onto my plate! Even among the hustle and bustle, he caught small details like this. 

Watching the chefs work and seeing other patrons get slightly different dishes was a wonderful experience. The show itself was eye opening, and the dishes took us through so many different flavours and textures. We rounded off the night with an espresso that we added on. A wonderful dining experience at Cañabota (and definitely a splurge since we spent like $540 CAD there at the end of the day 💀). 

We called it a night after since we had to catch a morning flight to Barcelona on Thursday. But I still have some last thoughts on Sevilla. 

The streets in central Sevilla are very small. It reminded me a lot of the tiny streets in Venice. I had no idea how our Uber driver even drove us to our hotel in his van. But I guess everyone gets used to the tiny streets! I almost got ran over several times because there’s barely a ledge to use as a sidewalk on many of the streets! And then inside cars, every roundabout felt like a life or death situation. Both here and Madrid, I saw my life flash before my eyes at roundabouts. I have no idea how they work, but they certainly don’t function the same way in Canada!

Once we got to the train station, we were greeted by these purple flowers. We later found out they’re called jacarandas. They had these all over the city, adding bursts of purple everywhere. So beautiful! Thanks for a lovely experience Sevilla!