Date: Thursday, 9 October 2003, 8:51 (2:51 pm in France)
Subject: Hello from Seville

Hello to all,   Here I am in Seville. After my hotel problems, I resolved to stop early in the city of my choice and reserve a room immediately. I have just arrived in Seville and my hostel room is already reserved, my car is parked, and the Tourist Bureau tells me that one street is closed to traffic on Thursdays for a giant flea market. I am going there as soon as I write this message.   So, after having visited the fabulous Prado museum on Tuesday afternoon, I took the road for Toledo. As usual, I flung myself neck and crop toward the central city, come what may. It takes a lot of luck and flair in order not to get lost, but I must have an over-developed sense of direction, because I always succeed in getting myself out of trouble. In Toledo, for example, I went round and round until I arrived by chance at the outside of the city to find a superb view that I would have missed if I had succeeded in finding a parking spot when normal people stop. I therefore had an opportunity to cross a bridge out of the middle ages and to come right up to the old city wall.

The cathedral is easy to identify, it's the tallest monyment and of course the farthest. I therefore climbed on foot to arrive at last at the summit at 2:18. Yes, you guessed it, it's closed from 2 to 4. The Spanish take their siesta seriously because most monuments take a break in the afternoon. That is probably why they are still going strong at 9 in the evening. So I let the cathedral go and went back down to the car. I was flanked by souvenir stores and restaurants along the ascent and the descent on the tiny little narrow streets. The city is very pretty and the stop here was well worth the trouble.

I wanted to find a good place to stop and I decided on Ciuded Real, a city that was not on my initial itinerary. After having reserved my room, I went out to visit the town a little and I discovered a marvelous little museum devoted to Cervantes and Don Quixote. I was there outside of the normal season, and there were not a lot of people, but they still gave me a personal multimedia presentation. It was of course in Spanish, but I am beginning to understand the language more and more. It is like English and when my parents left me in England when I was 13 after returning from a trip in Europe. One has to figure it out, and I am becoming bilingual again!

Ciudad Real is a little town that has an undeniable cachet. There is a large section for pedestrians only in the center for stores and a park with fountains a little to the side, to walk and rest. The two places were full of people and very animated. In sum, an unexpected stop that turned out well.

The next destination was Cordova, and I left early in the morning after a good night's sleep. The road was free of traffic and the countryside magnificent. The mix of plains and mountains that follow one another breaks the monotony and presents a lovely view. I saw villages built right into the side of the mountain, with orange groves nearby. All that while climbing and descending because I never chose a single tunnel. One has to stroll between the mountains while doing a slalom from one to the next.

Once I reached Cordova, I was really missing the precise sign-posting of France. I must have passed the famous cathedral-mosque six times without seeing it. Finally, I took the wrong route and found myself outside the city where I stumbled by chance on the other side of the city walls with a fabulous view of the old city. All normal tourists arrive from the rear and have to cross mazes of narrow streets, while in taking the wrong route I found a free parking lot only two steps from old Cordova. I think that the tourist officials in the town did it on purpose in order to have the best places for their friends. There is no other logical explanation.

So I was able to reserve my room early in a hotel situation with its back to the mosque. I immediately put on shorts ecause it was very warm here, at least 30 degrees Celsius (86 Fahrenheit). With a map of the city in my hand, I left to discover interesting sites, but there also the museums were not in the right places, and there were no signs to tell us where to go. It was easy to identify the tourists, it was like a treasure hunt and everyone was stopping and consulting their maps. People went into the grounds of private homes, thinking they were museums. A real farce.

By contrast, the place that wanted to visit was difficult to miss since it dominated Cordova, the cathedral mosque. From the outside, not very impressive, but the interior -- WOW! Many columns and chapels encircling the cathedral in the center were impressive. I went around the exterior a couple of times without it feeling overwhelming. I had to stay in the interior at least an hour to take the tour and see everything. Very impressive.

After the visit I continued to stroll around a little in the narrow streets. As for night life, there is none. The shops close a 7:30 and that's the end of the visit. I went back early and watched TV. I needed to rest anyway, and it was a good excuse.

I am in Seville for three days and I am going now to that famous flea market.

til next time

Paul

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