The Alcazar, Seville’s Mudejar delight: a perfect example of the synthesis between Spanish kings and Moorish craftsmen. What defines a city? What is that essence which gives it an identity all of its own – the strange, arcane customs? The architectural…
Up with the gods: Seville cathedral cubiertas tour, part one
Last weekend, we made one of our day trips, to Sanlucar de Barrameda, a coastal town near Jerez and Cadiz, just across the mouth of the Guadalquivir river from Doñana National Park (seen in the distance in this photo). The…
Feria fashion: back to black
This year, Feria fashion has some interesting trends. The first is black – this isn’t a colour I’ve seen much in previous years, but this year there were a number of black trajes de flamenca. Maybe they’re a commentary on…
Expo 92, 20 years on
Today is the 20th anniversary of the opening day of the Exposicion Universal 1992. I wasn’t here for this momentous six-month event in Sevilla, a global cultural fiesta which welcomed representations from 111 countries, but I sure as hell wish…
Oh brother!
This year’s Semana Santa here in Seville has, sadly, been almost as much of a washout as last year’s so far. Only a tiny proportion of the processions – consisting of nazarenos (hooded and robed members of local hermandades, brotherhoods),…