Andalusia, Spain - Seville 4

March 22, 2023

Andalusia, Spain - Seville 4

We took an express train from Granada to Seville in the early morning. It was around 9am when we arrived at Seville. Once we checked in hotel, we went to El Comercio to have a little late breakfast. I guess that was a standard breakfast time for many people. The bar was crowded, which reminded us how popular the bar was and we should come there by 8am. The waiting line for the table service was long enough to make J say No, but we found a space for two at the counter. How lucky we were!

We both had a set 'B' that J had last time - tostadas con tomate, tortilla (Spanish potato omelette), orange juice and coffee/tea. I am usually a sweet breakfast person but I liked the breakfast so much. I would love to recreate the set at home.

We took a walk in the city. Seville was definitely warmer than Granada. Perhaps the city was more colorful and cheerful. Also, more orange trees, I supposed.

We visited Casa de Pilatos, an aristocratic home that was build in the 16th century by the Enriquez de Ribera family when the two novel families, the Enriquez and the Ribera were married. The mansion is still the residence of the 18th Duchess of Medinacelli and her family while it's partly open as a museum.

Through some changes over time, including remodeling in the mid-19th century, the architecture of the house is a fine blend of different styles such as the Gothic, Mudéjar, Renaissance and Romanticism. First we came into the main courtyard with the arches and antique Roman statues. Beautiful! The first Duke of Alcalá, a leading member of the Enriquez de Ribera family was a viceroy of Naples. He had a passion for classical antiquities. He brought a lot of pieces from Naples and added spaces to display them in the Casa.

The plaster works around the arches were remarkable while what really impressed me was the tile works. It was the best place to see the vast collection of Azulejos (Mudéjar tiles)! It would be easy to spend hours by just watching the lovely colors and patterns.

I didn't count but there were supposed to be the 24 marble busts of Spanish kings and Roman emperors, writers and historical figures on the tiled walls of the gallery. Some were collected from the ruins of Italica, an ancient Roman city near Seville.

More Azulejos in the rooms and chapel.

The garden as well as the buildings facing to the garden were designed by a Neapolitan architect, commissioned by the first Duke of Alcalá to "italianize" the entire space. It was very charming. The mushroom-shape trees were actually orange trees. I didn't know orange trees were so versatile.

More beautiful Azulejos.

Everything there, even a little wood door was adorable.

The staircase was marvelous. I don't know if I had ever taken so many picture of a staircase like this one. Not only the tiled walls but also the ceilings were gorgeous.

The rooms on the second floor were only open for a guided tour. Perhaps next time. This mansion was designed by following the Seville’s traditional domestic architecture, called the "double house" that has the two floors of identical layout, the upper one used in winter and the lower one in summer. So, the staircase played the important role for the family's seasonal migration.

We came back to the ground floor and stepped out to the room of the Sculpture Collection and the small garden. It would be nice to come back there when the flowers were blooming.

The visit to the Casa de Pilatos was splendid. Definitely one of my highlights in Seville. I was so glad we didn't miss it. We left the Casa and went back in the city for shopping. Since I couldn't buy any nun's cookies in Granada. Seville was the last city to get some. In Seville, we didn't need to visit a monastery or a convent; there was a tiny shop called El Torno. As a part of the Cathedral of Seville, El Torno represents fourteen Seville's monasteries/convents to sell their cookies (and other items like jams). We bought three kinds of cookies from three different monasteries/convents. What a brilliant shop it was!

By the way El Torno was located in the Plaza del Cabido, a semi-closed, semi-circular square with frescoed arcades. It was a nice hidden spot of the city.

We continued shopping in the neighborhood of El Arenal. We bought local olive oil, local honey, and Spanish vermouth. We also looked at the outside of the Plaza de Toros de la Maestranza, the largest arena for bullfighting in Spain.

The lunch of the day was pizza according to J's request. I guess he was a bit tired with rich tapas and craved his comfort food. Of course, pizza was available in Seville.

DiTaly is the capital of northeastern Spain's Aragon region, Zaragoza-based Neapolitan style pizzeria chain. Their Seville store has been receiving excellent reviews.

I had a simple Pizza Margherita. That was pretty good. J's pizza was, I think, Pizza Tartufata Piacentina (Tartufata (black truffle sauce), Fior di latte Mozzarella, portobello mushroom and Coppa Piacentina). We exchanged a couple of slices of each. His pizza was interesting and flavorful. It was my first Tartufata experience.

After the lunch we went to Museo de Bellas Artes de Sevilla, or the Museum of Fine Arts of Seville. It's located in El Arenal, less than 10 minute walk from the pizzeria. The admission was somehow free when we were there. Lucky!

The building is originally a 17th century convent. After the major renovations to be a museum, a lot of old features still remains.

Founded as a "Museum of paintings" by Royal Decree of 1835, the collection of the museum is basically painting works by mainly Spanish artists, from the Middle Ages, Renaissance, Baroque era and up to the 20th century. Many of them are religious arts because the original mission of the museum was to bring the arts of Seville's convents and other Christian properties together. On the other hand, the museum also has other sources such as donations from individuals. There were some non-religious motifs such as landscapes and bullfighters. I am not familiar with Spanish artists but there were some interesting works.

A tea time with a dessert was necessary (at least for me) before heading to the hotel. We went to the food court at the top floor of El Corte Ingles, a major Spanish department store. One of the vendors at the food court was Manu Jara, a local pastry shop that was on my must-eat list!

Ah, I wished I could taste all... but I had to pick one. I chose a "Flowerpot," a little ceramic flowerpot filled with cherry and pistachio cream topped with crumbly almond cake and decorated with a big cherry made with cherry mousse.

The food court had a lovely rooftop dining space, at where we had a relaxing tea time. It would be too cold and probably too wet to do so in Germany in the mid-February.