Seniors in Spain 2018: 8/6/2018-Sevilla-Royal Alcazar, Sevilla Cathedral, pool, dinner at Hard Rock Cafe

Breakfast is at the same place as yesterday-El Jardin. Richard got the same thing-tea, orange juice, toast. I got a donut and coffee. Cost €6.15.

I got the glazed donut

ROYAL ALCAZAR. Originally a 10th c. palace built for the governors of the local Moorish state. Still functions as a royal palace today. 14th c. rebuild-Christian King Pedro I. Decorated halls, courtyards-Islamic style. Confusing. Sprawling gardens. Enter the site by way of Plaza del Triunfo. Cost €3.00 each senior rate. No audioguide included with our tickets. Pass through Lion Patio. Rough stone wall of the older Moorish fortress on the left-around 913 AD-through the arch into the Courtyard of the Hunt/Patio de la Monteria Ahead is the palace's main entrance. Elaborate facade. The palace complex built over many centuries from rulers who lived there.

Lion Patio

Courtyard of the Hunt

In the Courtyard of the Hunt looking back to the Patio of the Lion

Admiral's Hall/Salon del Almirante. Built by Queen Isabel for Spain's New World ventures. C. Columbus, Magellan, Vespucci. Chapter House/Audience Chamber-altarpiece painting. St. Mary of the Navigators-Alejo Fernandez 1530s. The virgin who is the patron saint of sailors keeps watch over the ships below her. Her cape appears to protect all beneath her. Next to the Virgin on the right is C. Columbus dressed in gold, hands like in prayer, and standing on clouds because this was painted after his death. Man on the left side of the painting with the gold cape is King Ferdinand. Model of ship Santa Maria. Reception room-big painting King Ferdinand II kneeling before the bishop giving thanks to God for helping him free the city from the Muslims in 1248. Room beyond has several mostly foreign ornate fans.

Audience Chamber altarpiece painting St. Mary of the Navigators

Dressed in gold is Christopher Columbus

King Ferdinand is man with gold cape on left side of the painting

Model of Columbus' "Santa Maria" flagship

Coat of arms of Columbus' descendants

Reception Room painting

Fans on display

Palace facade. Entrance to King Pedro I's Palace. Blend of Islamic tracery and Gothic Christian elements=Mudejar style.

Courtyard of the Maidens/Patio de las Doncellas. Open air courtyard surrounded by rooms. Long rectangular reflecting
pool. Stucco panels with elaborate designs, colorful ceramic tiles, wooden ceilings, arches.

Ceiling

Hall of the Ambassadors/Salon de Embajadores. Throne room of Pedro I. Room-cube topped with half dome. Walls-geometrical shapes, Arabic writing. Christian motifs. Shells, birds.

Ceiling

Courtyard of the Dolls/Patio de las Munecas Reserved for the king's private family life. Columns alternating white, black, pink male. Tiny doll faces base of one of the arches. Pedro's original courtyard-Charles V added upper floors and skylight 16th c. Mudejar below-elaborate tracery, lobed arches. Renaissance above-round arches, less decoration.

Columns-Black, white, pink marble

Ceiling

Doll face

Banquet Hall/Salon Gotico. Where Charles V and Isabel held their wedding reception. Tiles- blue, green yellow, orange. Whimsical human figures with vase like bodies.

Royal Bedroom. Chapel of the Gothic Palace. Maria de Padilla Bathrooms.

Hall of Tapestries/Salon Tapices. 18th c. Spanish copies of 16th c, Belgian tapestries. Shows conquests of Charles' reign. Map tapestry of the Mediterranean world. Artist of this tapestry bottom right is himself holding a scale in leagues and miles.

Map tapestry of the Mediterranean

Artist holding the legend with a scale in both leagues and miles

Mercury Pond. Bronze statue of Mercury, winged feet.

Mercury with winged feet

Gardens. Palm trees, myrtle hedges, roses. Carlos V Pavilion.

Carlos V Pavilion

Upper Royal Apartments/Cuarto Real Alto. Separate ticket. Today's monarchs. 15 rooms open to visitors. Decorated with Versailles-like furniture, chandeliers, carpets, portraits of 19th c. nobility. Highlight is the Audience Room-Mudejar style room overlooking the Pation de la Monteria/Courtyard of the Hunt. Tickets sold out for today. On this upper level are some rooms with displays of ceramic tiles and plates.

View from upper palace

Entrance doors to Upper Royal Apartments

Exit through Patio de Banderas.
Richard says he feels awful so he takes a taxi back to the hotel by himself while I continue sightseeing.

SEVILLA CATHEDRAL. Third largest church in Europe and largest Gothic church in the world. Used to be a mosque of brick on this site but was ripped down in 1401. UNESCO World Heritage Site. Not far from the Real Alcazar. Short walk. Another long line here but not for those who pre booked tickets. Cost senior rate €4.00-for me only as Richard went back to the hotel-which includes free entry to Sal Vador Church. By the entrance there is a full size replica of the Giralda's weathervane statue.

Replica of the weathervane

Art Pavilion. Room of paintings that once hung in the church. Murillo. Zurbaran.
Beautiful stained glass. This cathedral is huge and beautiful. So much to see.
High Altar. Behind wrought iron Renaissance gates. Scenes tell the story of the life of Jesus and Mary. Carved from walnut and chestnut with gold leaf on top. Silver or Jubilee Altar/Altar de Plata. Silver altarpiece. Statue of the Virgin.
Choir. Organ of more than 7,000 pipes.

St. John the Baptist in the Desert-Zurbaran

Santas Justa y Rufina-Miguel de Esquivel around 1620

St. Ferdinand-Murillo 17th c.

High Altar

Wrought iron Renaissance grille

Silver or Jubilee Altar/Altar de Plata

Ceiling

Choir

Organ

Rosette 16th c. stained glass

Tomb of Columbus. Four kings carry the tomb. They represent the regions of Castile, Aragon, Leon, and Navarre. On the left is a 1584 mural of St. Christopher, patron saint of travelers. The clock above has been ticking since 1788.
Chapel of Our Lady Virgin of La Antigua.
Chapel of St. Anthony. Used for baptisms. Renaissance baptismal font with carved angels at the base. Murillo-Vision of St. Anthony. St. Anthony is the patron saint of lost things. Stained glass 1685.
Glass case holds pennant of Ferdinand III. Raised here 11/23/1248 when Christian forces finally expelled the Moors from Sevilla.

Tomb of Columbus

Chapel of Our Lady Virgin of La Antigua 14th c.

Baptismal font base with carved dancing angels

Vision of St. Anthony-Murillo 1656

Pennant of Fredinand III

Chapel of San Hemenegildo
Sacristy/Vestry of the Chalices.
Main vestry/Main sacristy. Ornate 16th c. dome in main room. Intricate masonry. Three rows of figures. Nearly 1,000 pound silver-plated monstrance which is used to parade the holy host through Corpus Christi festivities.

Justa and Rufina

Silver plated monstrance

The Descent from the Cross-Pedro de Campana 16th c.

Chapter House. First elliptical area built in the Spanish renaissance, possibly the first in Europe. Immaculate Conception and 8 round moldings with portraits of Spanish and Sevillian saints by Murillo. Flooring inspired by Michelangelo.
Treasury.

Ceiling

Treasury

Giralda Bell Tower. Former minaret. 35 ramps and 17 steps. Graded ramps designed for a donkey riding muezzin who went up 5 times a day to give the Muslim call to prayer. The bells are supposed to ring on the hour and every 15 minutes but I stayed up there from 2:41-3:30 PM and those bells never rang!! Lovely views though.
Court of the Orange Trees. Once the mosque's patio for ablutions-washing before praying.
Puerta del Pardon. Christian doorway. Relief above shows Bible story of Jesus ridding the temple of merchants. Plaque-Miguel de Cervantes 18th c. writer. Huge green doors predate the church. Bits of the pre-1248 mosque-wood covered with bronze.
Cathedral Gift Shop. Lots of nice things. But I only buy a bottle of water and bitter orange hand cream. Cost $8.68.

One of the ramps going to the top

Great views

Bells

Court of the Orange Trees

Puerta del Perdon

Giralda Bell Tower

Hand cream I bought at the gift shop

Sevilla Cathedral

I have spent more than 3 hours here. Taxi back to the hotel. It is so hot. Almost unbearable. Richard is feeling no better. I've researched food poisoning on the internet and it's supposed to work itself out in 2-3 days. Fingers crossed. I feel bad about going to the pool by myself but Richard doesn't want to go.

Not too crowded this hot day

Dinner-Hard Rock Cafe. Richard is coming with me as the hotel needs to clean our room. They couldn't before as Richard came back to the room early and spent the day in bed with the "Do Not Disturb" sign on the room door. We're at the Hard Rock because my step daughter collects the shot glasses. I've gotten her this souvenir from Barcelona and Valencia Hard Rocks. Decide to have dinner here was well. I order the big cheeseburger and Richard has ginger ale. He doesn't feel like getting anything to eat. My cheeseburger and fries were perfect. I also had 2 glasses of juice-think maybe pineapple?? Service was good. Cost without tip $28.97. Over in the Hard Rock Shop I get the souvenir shot glasses. Cost for 2 was $19.10. Back to the hotel we find our room has been cleaned with fresh towels, etc. Tomorrow is our last full day in Sevilla. I hope Richard starts to feel better soon. Unfortunately I didn't pack anything for diarrhea so will have to look for a pharmacy.