The Alcázar and surroundings

Though our rooms weren’t ready when we arrived, we were able to drop off our backpacks and change from trail runners to Chacos. We headed to the Real Alcázar, where we had different entry times because of availability (and this was several months ago!)

I had forgotten how beautiful the Alcázar is. I don’t think I had ever visited the Cuarto Real (royal apartments, parts of which are still used by the royal family when they’re in town), and that was a treat. The gardens are cool and lush, and the patios and interior rooms will definitely remind you of the Alhambra (no surprise there). The Moorish parts span the 10th to 13th centuries, and when Fernando III of Castilla took Sevilla in the late 1200s, the Catholics kept adding on to the original building. Even Fernando e Isabel added some rooms. Incredibly crowded but still gob-smacking.

I did not venture far afield but after a very good tapas meal in El Baratillo, I went through Santa Cruz and the Judería. Sevilla’s centro histórico is just beautiful. So happy to have had this time here, end of the 250 km Via Serrana.Read more