The next morning we walked around the magnificent cathedral again. This time we were headed for the Real Alcazar right when their gates opened for the day. D had been given a great tip about purchasing on line tickets for the tour which included the part of the palace where the Spanish royal family stay when they visit Seville, called the Cuarto Real Alto (Upper Palace). This also got us past the crowds waiting for admission.

These three arches link the Patio del Leon to the Patio de la Monteria.

From the moment we entered, we were enthralled. The second floor of the photo just above is where we awaited our private tour.

The artistry of the architecture was exquisite as well as the juxtaposition of styles.

The House of Trade was established to regulate Indies travel between Spain and the New World in the 16th Century.

The Palace of Peter the first.

All of these photos were taken through the milky glass of the second floor vestibule. No photography was permitted during the private palace tour. But let me tell you that the rooms were absolutely splendid and well worth the extra money & time.

I loved all the intricate tile work and discovered: “The geometric models used in Islamic art are not mere decorative motifs but the expression of a philosophical principle revealing divine beauty”.

The Patio del Yeso with a beautiful reflective pool.

The 12th century Almohad Palace.

The side section of hall is formed with multi foil arches displaying diamond pattern panels.

The Upper Gallery in the Court of Dolls added in the reign of Isabella the Second.

The Pond of Mercury is so named for the statue of Mercury pictured here.

Three views of the columns and arches adorn the windows (sorry about the smudge on the lens of the camera).

A window seat in the sunshine drew me to linger.

Rubber trees grew majestically in the palace gardens

as well as these beautiful palms.

Intricate iron gates were strategically placed in the gardens.

From a second floor vantage you could appreciate the geometric hedges of the gardens

My favourite views of the palace and gardens were through these archways. We had spent a splendid morning but by then it was time to check out and walk to the car park where we had stowed our vehicle. We were a bit peckish and decided to have a meal before we got back onto the highway but we discovered that most lunch spots did not open until at least 1 pm. Instead D ran back to the pastry shop that was right next to our hotel. This decadent treat held us why we began to navigate our way “home” to Alvor. We stopped for lunch just before the border of Portugal.

D had a pasta craving and chose this monstrous portion of penne in a bolognaise sauce

and I a “rock shrimp omelet”.  I was asked if I wanted fries with my omelette and that sounded like a lovely idea. It was the strangest omelet I had ever seen or tasted. It was mostly flour and I could not detect any egg. Apart from the embarrassment of ordering a mass of deep fried items, the “omelet” was actually pretty good. When we arrived back in Alvor, I really felt like I needed a very long beach walk to work out the stiffness from being in a car for 3 hours and that full feeling from all of the deep fried food. Stay tuned.

Kath’s quote: “The air soft as that of Seville in April, and so fragrant that it was delicious to breathe it”. -Christopher Columbus

Love never fails.

We decided not to take the toll highway so navigating the country roads was a wee bit taxing.

We stopped at one point to take pictures in each direction of this beautiful valley. The landscape reminded us of the hills of Tuscany.

But the views of the countryside from the car were worth the extra trouble.

Just before we turned onto the highway to Seville, we saw this scene which quite frankly astounded us!

The highway up to Spain was direct and fast but navigating the streets of old Seville was frustrating.

To top it off, when we finally found our hotel, we discovered that we had left our passports in the car. D walked back to the car to fetch them.

As I waited for D’s return I took this picture through our hotel front door to the cathedral.

This was the view from our room!

The room was teensy. One wall was immediately to the left and the window immediately to the right, but we were delighted with its location.

We had a quick lunch of patatas bravas and paella for 2. I thought that it as too expensive at 36 Euros and I was not overly impressed with it or the potatoes. But all of our meals couldn’t be home runs!

D and I had thought that the Cathedral was the third largest Gothic cathedral in the world behind St. Peter’s in Rome and St. Paul’s in London (both of which we have visited) but as I look at a brochure from the cathedral now, it states that with the dimensions of 126 m length, 83 m wide, 27 m high and the 96 m of the Giralda tower, the Seville Cathedral is the largest Gothic cathedral in the world.

The most fascinating aspect of the building itself was the fact that in 1184 it was built as a mosque. It was consecrated as a cathedral in 1248 and the construction of the Gothic architecture took place from 1434 – 1517.

We were definitely impressed with the grandeur of the building but what I especially loved were the tiny details, like the three cherub angels above.

The vision of St. Anthony by Murillo.

The tomb of Christopher Columbus by Arturo Melida.

The crucifix.

Clerical vestments.

The Giralda Tower was designed by Ben Basso also in the 12th century.

The night views of the tower were also exquisite.

The orange tree courtyard dates back to the 12th century. We could not believe this quiet sanctuary was smack in the centre of this bustling city.

We took a Devour tappas and wine tour that evening. Stay tuned.

Kath’s quote: “A rock pile ceases to be a rock pile the moment a single man contemplates it, bearing within him the image of a cathedral”. -Antoine de Saint-Exupery

Love never fails.

After our morning excursion to Lagos, we decided to have our lunch back at Praia de Alvor.The pics above of our beautiful beach walk.

Called a snack bar/restaurant; we loved the beach location,

the open patio and the food!

D had a shellfish salad that was chock full of shrimp. It was served with a cocktail/mayo sauce that I recalled from a Portuguese restaurant that used to be on Portage Ave. back home.

I was over the moon with my selection of seafood pasta. It was simply prepared with garlic, lemon and olive oil and had plenty of clams and shrimp. With a dusting of Parmesan, s&p, a bit more olive oil it was SENSATIONAL!

Unfortunately when it was time to pay up for our lunch and beer, I realized I had left my money in the knapsack in the car. D briskly walked back to the car and then drove to the restaurant.

There was a beautiful sunset that evening. I took these pics right from the elevator lobby on our floor. We decided to lay low that night as we were off to Seville the next morning.

Kath’s quote: “The ocean stirs the heart, inspires the imagination and brings eternal joy to the soul.”-Author Unknown

Love never fails.

After returning from the cliffs of Lagos we quite accidently discovered that Lagos had a walled city; so we spent the rest of the morning wandering around there.

This cheerful little building was found just inside the gate. We imagined that it was a muster station for guards at one point in history.

I saw the village church as soon as we entered the gates. It became more and more beautiful as it came into view.

We were impressed by the tile on the outside of the homes.

Lagos Harbour.

I spotted another one of my favourite Algarvian trees.

We came upon this beautiful sculpture. I could not determine the name of the piece or the sculptor but I was very fond of it.

We stopped in for refreshment at a beautiful pastry shop right off the square.

D couldn’t get enough of the Pastis Natal and

I loved the coconut cookie that I discovered.

We appreciated the location and beauty of this old timer.

It appeared to us to be inhabited by the flowers on the railing.

We appreciated the pedestrian only streets that wound their way around the old town and we loved that they rolled out red carpets for their guests.

The merchants of Lagos sold a variety of items. We even happened upon this surf shop. We enjoyed watching the surfers in their wet-suits on Alvor Beach just down from our hotel.

Kath’s quote: “You can’t stop the waves but you can learn how to surf.”-John Kabat-Zinn

Love never fails.