Sevilla Cathedral and Flamenco
Over the next few days, I will be catching up on blog posts for the remainder of our trip.
Oct 16 was our last full day in Sevilla. Tomorrow morning we’ll get up, get everyone dressed and fed, and take a train to Madrid. We still hadn’t seen the Cathedral (it was closed on Sunday and too much to fit in on Monday), so we headed over first thing in the morning.
When we arrived there was a huge line wrapping around the building. The kind of line that makes parents and kids alike melt down. I remembered how museum guards would seek us out in Paris and move us to the front of the line, and thought “I’ll ask what the policy is” With both kids in tow (and leaving P behind to hold us a spot) I nudged, poked and prodded until I was at the ticket counter, where I asked if kids were allowed to skip the line. The guard said “ok,” though his tone and manner implied more “no skin off my back” than “yes, that is our official policy and you are encouraged to go directly to the front of the line.” So I paid for our tickets, called P to join us, and moments later, we were in.
The kids were somewhat interested in the interior decoration of the building and its massive scale, but the real hit was the outdoor courtyard. Not only was there a fountain and lots of space for running, but there were little canals, originally intended to carry water, that were great for jumping over. If that wasn’t enough, there were gaggles of grandmothers in tour groups just waiting to fawn over the children and delight in their every movement. I cannot tell you how many times I heard “I am really missing my grandchildren on this trip.” Each of the kids had their picture snapped several times and proud mom that I am, I imagine that their images will feature prominently in many vacation albums.
After our run in the courtyard, we made our way up the cathedral tower, “La Giralda.” La Giralda was originally a Moorish minaret and stands 320 feet high. Luckily for us, it was designed for horses to be able to run to (almost) the very top so that the muezzin could recite the call to prayer. I pushed our stroller up a very long ramp while E alternated between walking and being carried up the tower. Both kids loved the view from the top (we think they were looking for playgrounds across the city). We hung out for a little while at the top peeking through various windows, and then headed down. In typical toddler style, E immediately asked to go up again once we’d reached the bottom.
In the evening, we left the kids asleep with the nanny while we went out to a flamenco show at “Casa de la Memoria”. The show was one of the highlights of our trip! It was staged in an intimate covered courtyard in the historic Barrio de Santa Cruz. There were no meals or drinks to buy, just music and dance. It seemed to be geared towards preserving traditional music and dance rather than capturing tourist dollars. The dancing was intense, and with only three rows of seating (in a semi-circle around the stage) we didn’t miss a beat. I wish that the kids were old enough to sit still in this type of environment as I know that they would have been absolutely enthralled, and we did see one little boy, about five years old, at the show. He was completely engrossed in the performance.
Related Links Seville Family Travel for Kids, Babies and Toddlers
3 comments |
Posted on October 31, 2007 |
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CYNTHIA MUJICA on June 28, 2011 at 9:03 a.m.
Love reading your posts as we will be traveling to Spain in OCtober with our 21 month old daughter.
We are very eager to see Flamenco, however concerned what to do with our daughter, is the nanny you mention someone that was recommended locally?
Debbie on June 28, 2011 at 11:43 a.m.
Catherine, our nanny came with us on this trip - Often the hotel is able to recommend someone to watch your child.
Good luck!
Ali on May 30, 2012 at 6:44 p.m.
Thanks for your blog! What size stroller did you use on your trip? Do you speak Spanish? I'm debating bringing our double jogger ... of if it's going to be too big finding an alternative before our trip next week.