Our Spain Adventure -- Cordoba, Seville, Granada and Barcelona! (Part One)
Apr 19th, 2014, 05:49 AM
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Judy_Rosa wrote: "Should I keep the rest of the destinations we visited short and sweet?"
No. Please continue with lots of details. I'm going to Spain in June and I've already gotten some info from your trip report that I did not have before.
No. Please continue with lots of details. I'm going to Spain in June and I've already gotten some info from your trip report that I did not have before.
Apr 19th, 2014, 08:18 AM
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Sounds like flamenco really got under your skin! I got addicted in 2004, and almost all of my trips to Spain since then has been scheduled around particular flamenco performances ;-). Here's the two major Spanish online flamenco magazines with all kinds of info. The greatest artists tour theaters all around the world all the time. Major flamenco festivals every year in Jerez de la Frontera, Madrid, Barcelona, New York, London, Nimes, Amsterdam and Tokyo. And of course the greatest and most prestigious of them all, the Bienal de flamenco in Sevilla every second year: http://www.flamenco-world.com/
http://www.deflamenco.com/en_index.html
http://www.deflamenco.com/en_index.html
Apr 19th, 2014, 11:21 AM
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kimhe! great to hear from you!
Yes, I fell in love with flamenco, it is passionate, soulful and I could not get enough of it!
I didn't get a chance to see it in Barcelona -- not enough time.
Yes, I fell in love with flamenco, it is passionate, soulful and I could not get enough of it!
I didn't get a chance to see it in Barcelona -- not enough time.
Apr 19th, 2014, 02:07 PM
#31
Loving this, and definitely not too much detail!
I also prefer to keep the trip report together, rather than as separate TRs. Much easier to follow the flow that way. I don't mind scrolling down, but I don't like searching for separate reports.
I also prefer to keep the trip report together, rather than as separate TRs. Much easier to follow the flow that way. I don't mind scrolling down, but I don't like searching for separate reports.
Apr 19th, 2014, 03:48 PM
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Very nice report. It is not too long. you are very concise in your suggestions and how you re-tell your experience. it sounds so far like you had a wonderful trip.. and what a nice gift for your husband's 70th!
Apr 19th, 2014, 08:18 PM
#33
I'm thoroughly enjoying your trip report, Judy, thank you.
I agree about discarding the audios & cameras to just breathe in & absorb a place. I was fascinated by the Mesquite & Cordoba's other charms too.
But it was Granada that won my heart. I'd happily spend a couple of weeks there again tomorrow if I could.
I agree about discarding the audios & cameras to just breathe in & absorb a place. I was fascinated by the Mesquite & Cordoba's other charms too.
But it was Granada that won my heart. I'd happily spend a couple of weeks there again tomorrow if I could.
Apr 20th, 2014, 12:36 AM
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"It was the most amazing artistic performance I've ever seen. It was eloquent yet frenetic and passionate at the same time. Words cannot not fully express what I experienced ..."
Thanks for this lovely description. You make me want to go there tomorrow!
Thanks for this lovely description. You make me want to go there tomorrow!
Apr 20th, 2014, 01:17 AM
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Keep your report coming Judy Rosa. I'm thoroughly enjoying it as we are off to Europe in about 10 days time, part of which will be Granada / Seville / Cordoba / Madrid.
From first glance, it would appear that your travelling style and interests are similar to ours, so I am find it enthralling and with some very useful tips to boot.
From first glance, it would appear that your travelling style and interests are similar to ours, so I am find it enthralling and with some very useful tips to boot.
Apr 20th, 2014, 04:23 AM
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Due to popular demand, I will continue my TR within this thread, LOL.
SEVILLE
Ah....Seville. Land of churches and orange trees. I loved Seville the moment we arrived. The fragrance of orange blossoms was everywhere, it smelled Heaven. Unlike Cordoba with its white-washed houses (and equally beautiful), Seville was a splash of color everywhere I looked.
We arrived just before noon, after a pleasant and uneventful train ride from Cordoba. Our taxi ride cost about 8 or 9 euros (same cost as our taxi ride in Cordoba to/from the train station) and the driver had no problem finding our hotel, although he did leave us at the corner street because the hotel's street was too narrow for a car to navigate.
Speaking of train rides, I forgot to mention that we purchased all our train tickets directly from the Renfe website weeks before our trip. I believe Renfe posts their discounted fares 2 or 3 months ahead of time -- I purchased ours about 3 weeks before we departed for Spain and although I was still able to purchase tickets at a discount, I didn't get the cheapest fares because those tickets had already sold out. The Renfe website is a PITA, it took me 3 days to finally purchase all my tickets. My advice is be patient when you go to their site, it is not user-friendly and 8 times out of 10 an error message returns stating your CC didn't authorize the transaction. Just keep trying and you'll get your tickets.
We stayed at the Hotel Rey Alfonso II, right in the middle of Barrio Santa Cruz, up the street from the Cathedral. The location could not be more perfect, it was reasonably priced (USD89/night) and we had a room facing a charming little square that served as the outdoor space for 3 restaurants.
Our room was large by European standards and had 2 french style small balconies. It was perfect!
The only downside is that when we arrived it was warm and sunny (which was actually fantastic!), but the air conditioning was not on and our room was stifling as warm air was coming out of the vents -- opening the balcony doors fixed the problem -- but the noise level at night from the partying in the square forced us to close the balcony doors. It was cooler at night (and we had a few days of torrential rain) so turned out OK. But, if you are a light sleeper and noise bothers you, I recommend you stay in a room that does not face the street -- whichever hotel you stay in.
Also, and I believe this is true for most hotels in Seville (maybe other cities too)....air conditioning is controlled at the main desk and at this time of year (early Spring) the air conditioning is OFF and cannot be turned on. This is what I was told, even though I wasn't buying what they were selling me on this point.
Our room wasn't ready so dropped we off our now over-bulging bags (of course we bought stuff in Cordoba) with the front desk, grabbed the camera and the Rick Steves guidebook and made our way over to the Cathedral.
Maybe it was from spending all those summers as a kid in Portugal (my parents are Portuguese) wandering the cobblestone maze-like streets in Lisbon, but I immediately found my sense of direction amongst all the little winding streets -- my poor DH was consistently lost with no idea of where we were and where we were heading. I loved it! LOL
The Hotel Alcantara was on the same street as our hotel, which is also the location of La Casa del Flamenco Auditorio Alcantara, so we stopped in and purchased our flamenco show tickets for later in the week.
I had my handy list of restaurants with me (researched before our trip) and although I was unfamiliar with their exact location, I put my list together by barrio (Santa Cruz, Arenal, etc.) which made it easier to find eateries I was interested in.
La Azotea Santa Cruz was a tapas restaurant at the top of my list and as it turned out it was just a few blocks away so we went in for lunch. We were ready to 'do tapas' and we were not disappointed with this place. It was SO GOOD in fact that we returned for lunch a few days later.
Here are some of the standouts we tried:
Sangria (drink it!)
Pork Cheeks (eat it! It was delicious -- sort of like a cross between osso bucco and Sunday pot roast)
Blood pudding (eat this! OK, it does sound kinda gross, but it really was delicious. It was deconstructed blood sausage with onion and other spices. It melted in your mouth and was so good I ordered it again the second time we went there.)
Jamon Iberico (OK -- just want to say that we ordered Jamon Iberico EVERYWHERE we ate -- it was that good!)
Chocolate souffle -- no explanation required.
We ordered 'tapas' size of everything and it was the perfect size to share. (Did I mentioned I gained 10 pounds within the first 17 hours of arrival in Spain? Thankfully, we walked so much I was at a net zero gain when we got home!)
La Azotea was not only delicious but also reasonably priced. I think we paid under EUR35 each time and this included sangria and dessert.
With our tummies full, it was time to explore Barrio Santa Cruz!
SEVILLE
Ah....Seville. Land of churches and orange trees. I loved Seville the moment we arrived. The fragrance of orange blossoms was everywhere, it smelled Heaven. Unlike Cordoba with its white-washed houses (and equally beautiful), Seville was a splash of color everywhere I looked.
We arrived just before noon, after a pleasant and uneventful train ride from Cordoba. Our taxi ride cost about 8 or 9 euros (same cost as our taxi ride in Cordoba to/from the train station) and the driver had no problem finding our hotel, although he did leave us at the corner street because the hotel's street was too narrow for a car to navigate.
Speaking of train rides, I forgot to mention that we purchased all our train tickets directly from the Renfe website weeks before our trip. I believe Renfe posts their discounted fares 2 or 3 months ahead of time -- I purchased ours about 3 weeks before we departed for Spain and although I was still able to purchase tickets at a discount, I didn't get the cheapest fares because those tickets had already sold out. The Renfe website is a PITA, it took me 3 days to finally purchase all my tickets. My advice is be patient when you go to their site, it is not user-friendly and 8 times out of 10 an error message returns stating your CC didn't authorize the transaction. Just keep trying and you'll get your tickets.
We stayed at the Hotel Rey Alfonso II, right in the middle of Barrio Santa Cruz, up the street from the Cathedral. The location could not be more perfect, it was reasonably priced (USD89/night) and we had a room facing a charming little square that served as the outdoor space for 3 restaurants.
Our room was large by European standards and had 2 french style small balconies. It was perfect!
The only downside is that when we arrived it was warm and sunny (which was actually fantastic!), but the air conditioning was not on and our room was stifling as warm air was coming out of the vents -- opening the balcony doors fixed the problem -- but the noise level at night from the partying in the square forced us to close the balcony doors. It was cooler at night (and we had a few days of torrential rain) so turned out OK. But, if you are a light sleeper and noise bothers you, I recommend you stay in a room that does not face the street -- whichever hotel you stay in.
Also, and I believe this is true for most hotels in Seville (maybe other cities too)....air conditioning is controlled at the main desk and at this time of year (early Spring) the air conditioning is OFF and cannot be turned on. This is what I was told, even though I wasn't buying what they were selling me on this point.
Our room wasn't ready so dropped we off our now over-bulging bags (of course we bought stuff in Cordoba) with the front desk, grabbed the camera and the Rick Steves guidebook and made our way over to the Cathedral.
Maybe it was from spending all those summers as a kid in Portugal (my parents are Portuguese) wandering the cobblestone maze-like streets in Lisbon, but I immediately found my sense of direction amongst all the little winding streets -- my poor DH was consistently lost with no idea of where we were and where we were heading. I loved it! LOL
The Hotel Alcantara was on the same street as our hotel, which is also the location of La Casa del Flamenco Auditorio Alcantara, so we stopped in and purchased our flamenco show tickets for later in the week.
I had my handy list of restaurants with me (researched before our trip) and although I was unfamiliar with their exact location, I put my list together by barrio (Santa Cruz, Arenal, etc.) which made it easier to find eateries I was interested in.
La Azotea Santa Cruz was a tapas restaurant at the top of my list and as it turned out it was just a few blocks away so we went in for lunch. We were ready to 'do tapas' and we were not disappointed with this place. It was SO GOOD in fact that we returned for lunch a few days later.
Here are some of the standouts we tried:
Sangria (drink it!)
Pork Cheeks (eat it! It was delicious -- sort of like a cross between osso bucco and Sunday pot roast)
Blood pudding (eat this! OK, it does sound kinda gross, but it really was delicious. It was deconstructed blood sausage with onion and other spices. It melted in your mouth and was so good I ordered it again the second time we went there.)
Jamon Iberico (OK -- just want to say that we ordered Jamon Iberico EVERYWHERE we ate -- it was that good!)
Chocolate souffle -- no explanation required.
We ordered 'tapas' size of everything and it was the perfect size to share. (Did I mentioned I gained 10 pounds within the first 17 hours of arrival in Spain? Thankfully, we walked so much I was at a net zero gain when we got home!)
La Azotea was not only delicious but also reasonably priced. I think we paid under EUR35 each time and this included sangria and dessert.
With our tummies full, it was time to explore Barrio Santa Cruz!
Apr 20th, 2014, 08:02 AM
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<It was the most amazing artistic performance I've ever seen. It was eloquent yet frenetic and passionate at the same time. Words cannot not fully express what I experienced ...>
The first cut in flamenco can be very deep, and you obviously experienced the mysterious "duende" that genuine flamenco is all about. The Spanish poet Federico García Lorca wrote that the duende in flamenco is a "power which everyone senses and no philosopher explains". It "brings to old planes unknown feelings of freshness, with the quality of something newly created, like a miracle, and it produces an almost religious enthusiasm".http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...tions_Bibelot_
The brilliant US flamenco critic Brook Zern says that the duende "dilates the mind's eye, so that the intensity becomes almost unendurable... There is a quality of first-timeness, of reality so heightened and exaggerated that it becomes unreal". http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duende_(art)
A bit of flamenco promo and three of my deepest cuts:
- Sara Baras danced this martinete in Oslo a few weeks after the 11M Madrid train bombings in 2004:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WUs3WvO2HWs
- José Mercé and late Moraito Chico in Nerja in October 2004. Something very like this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q1eMW9Ia_xA
- Rocío Molina in Antequera in September 2007 is the deepest. Here in Gran Teatro de Córdoba, an unforgettable night in July 2011: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MfSclwEVzGk
And now, back to reality ;-)
The first cut in flamenco can be very deep, and you obviously experienced the mysterious "duende" that genuine flamenco is all about. The Spanish poet Federico García Lorca wrote that the duende in flamenco is a "power which everyone senses and no philosopher explains". It "brings to old planes unknown feelings of freshness, with the quality of something newly created, like a miracle, and it produces an almost religious enthusiasm".http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...tions_Bibelot_
The brilliant US flamenco critic Brook Zern says that the duende "dilates the mind's eye, so that the intensity becomes almost unendurable... There is a quality of first-timeness, of reality so heightened and exaggerated that it becomes unreal". http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duende_(art)
A bit of flamenco promo and three of my deepest cuts:
- Sara Baras danced this martinete in Oslo a few weeks after the 11M Madrid train bombings in 2004:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WUs3WvO2HWs
- José Mercé and late Moraito Chico in Nerja in October 2004. Something very like this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q1eMW9Ia_xA
- Rocío Molina in Antequera in September 2007 is the deepest. Here in Gran Teatro de Córdoba, an unforgettable night in July 2011: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MfSclwEVzGk
And now, back to reality ;-)
Apr 20th, 2014, 12:43 PM
#40
Sounds like a wonderful visit to Seville! I'm saving this for my trip next year--wonderful details!
Kimhe, I love the youtube selections you provided, and am especially taken with the video of Rocio Molina. Beautiful and so soulful & deep. Thank you for these.
Who wants reality?!
Kimhe, I love the youtube selections you provided, and am especially taken with the video of Rocio Molina. Beautiful and so soulful & deep. Thank you for these.
Who wants reality?!
