I did not know what to think as we prepared for our first journey out of the big city to Seville. We booked our travel plans, scheduled our overnight stay, packed our bags, and searched online for a plan of action – packing a city-wide adventure over the span of just one day and a half. Everything we read warned us that we were in for a real treat – that Seville holds itself out as one of the most enchantingly beautiful cities in the country. Without a doubt, despite our unwise decision to take a grueling 6-hour bus ride (as opposed to a two and a half hour bullet train) and a perpetual migraine for the majority of my time there, I have been convinced.
The motto of the city is “NO8DO” (Seville has not abandoned me), coined by Alfonso X when his son tried to usurp his throne and the city stood by him, loyal through it all. Continuing to remain true to its motto, Seville is a city that embraces you, feeds you, intoxicates you, revitalizes you. It is one that makes you wonder, “what have you been doing all this time, you fool, when you could have been wandering the streets of Seville.”
Travel and Sleep
There are three ways to get to Seville from Madrid via public transportation – plane, train, or bus. Plane trips are, unsurprisingly, the most expensive, and in all reality the least practical. It would have cost about € 400 each round trip (of course, if you are flexible about when you go, these could end up the cheapest option – you really have to look at your own plans), and when you factor in security checks, limitations on luggage, and getting to and from the airports, it may take even longer and been more burdensome than a train ride, especially to Seville.
Seville is fortunate enough to be a link in the growing business of bullet trains across this region. The trip only takes two and a half hours, and for this advantage, the tickets are reasonable. However, despite the unwavering contentions by some in Spain that the train is always the best, when you are on a budget and want to see the world, it is a little pricy. For two of us to travel round-trip, it would have come to € 400 total.
We did the math and, knowing that we would not have Friday evening in Seville, no matter what manner of transportation we took, it seemed most economically worth-while to take a bus – a six hour journey of twists and turns in a smelly, cramped vehicle. Round trip, on Socibus, this came to around € 90 total for the two of us. Anyone who has not ridden a six-hour bus ride can assume – and anyone who has toughed one out can affirm – that it is not a pleasant experience. You get what you pay for. I left straight from work, took the metro to Mendez Alvaro, and waited, with printed tickets in hand, for the screens to show my bus’s platform. Travel tip - if you are trying to avoid a seat by the bathroom - which is a good thing to avoid - do not sit in the middle by the bus exit, like we did…
As far as sleeping went, we assumed when we came to Madrid we would do what we had in the past and find reputable hostels to stay in. The word may, as it did for me originally, evoke gruesome images of a movie my parents forbade me from watching. In reality, there may be some establishments to stay away from - more because of the lack of cleanliness than the chance of having your toes chopped off, but all-in-all, setting aside my discomfort with sleeping in a room of strangers , I have had pleasant experiences with hostels in the past. Now, however, the world of overnight stays have evolved, and for a couple, the options on airbnb.com seem to be the best. While a hostel worth its salt will average at least € 18 per person with one uncomfortable bed each in a community room, and often the bare minimum excuse for a shower, airbnb stays in Seville are around € 30 per room with a clean place that is not constantly trafficking in guests. These are people’s homes, with a spare room, and while the hotel and hostel managers do not have to sleep in the place they maintain, airbnb hosts do. We found a wonderful, Irish couple who lived in a decent location with good reviews, and found we did not want to leave because the bed was more comfortable than the one that we are currently staying in. Our hosts were kind enough to leave us with a giant bottle of water and two glasses – much needed after a long bus ride – and the best part for me was that we got our own, CLEAN bathroom. We did not need to check out at some early hour and lug our stuff with us or find a locker to store it in, and we could come and go as we pleased. So long as the “hotel regulation police” do not descend upon Europe as they have in the United States, airbnb seems like it will be the way to go, giving traditional options a push to better themselves.
Four Reasons You Should Drop Everything and GO TO SEVILLE
Everyone who has been blessed to both go to Seville and cross my path says it is the most beautiful part of Spain. World travelers we encountered on our honeymoon urged us to visit Seville. My former classmate insisted it was necessary and was jealous to hear of our impending decision to do so. Even my die-hard, loyal-to-his-city-Madrileño co-worker admitted to me that Seville may be better than Madrid. When you encounter such strong sentiments about so many places, buildings and food – which you often do in the outspoken city of Madrid – you believe them less and less. But they may have had this one correct. Seville is beautiful, inside and out, and while there may be more, four reasons for this stared me in the face every day.
Opulent Oranges
While everyone talks about the Cathedral and Plaza de España, the flamenco and the food, they all fail to mention one predominating theme intrinsic to this city: Oranges. They are EVERYWHERE- loading down the vibrantly green leafy branches, falling hazardously into the streets and plazas, and filling the air with their fresh citrus smell. In the evening we would find the fruits gathered under a tree, swept up and out of the way. Yet we still had to take care not to be constantly stepping in or on them. Having been in Madrid for the past four months were people blatantly let their dogs shit in the middle of the sidewalk and leave it there with the garbage they toss, next to the garbage cans, it was a welcome ring in our ears to hear each other saying “look out for the orange” instead of “look out for the dookie.”
Pristine Pathways
This brings me to my next impression of Seville – it is CLEAN. The people here seem to have a sense of pride in the way they maintain themselves and their city, and as a result, we were hard-pressed to find even a patch of the city littered with vile assortments or random trash. It can’t just be that employment in the city’s cleaning crew department is up either - because I never saw one reflective jumpsuit the entire time I was there.
Nice Neighbors
The lack of grime and trash and the smell of acidic fruits seemed to have an effect on the people. Maybe it is because they can look up and enjoy the beautiful sites around them, or maybe it is because they do not have to perpetually scrunch their noses as the sewage smell that I find characteristic of Madrid and Toledo. Whatever it is, they smile when you pass them, they wait in line calmly, and even though we cannot understand them, they like to pleasantly comment to us strangers about whatever happens to be around us.
Terrific Treats
If it is not the beauty around the Sevillanos that makes them so chipper, it must be the deliciously economical food within them. When we were planning our trip to Seville, I ask my former classmate for any insider tips on where to go and what to do in Seville. His response was a litany of amazing restaurants. But his final word of advice was that “you will have a great experience if you just go with the flow, hit up whatever bars and tapas places look appealing”. We admittedly did not make it to any of the places he suggested directly, adhering instead to this final tip. Now, many would say Madrid is the better place to go for food, and truly Madrid seems to have boundless options available. However, we have found in our time in the big city that if you neglect to read the reviews or research where you want to eat, you are taking a huge gamble. The scenery of the place, the price on the menu – none of that really matters in Madrid. We have paid 20 euro for a sub-par meal, and less than 11 for a satisfyingly delicious engorgement. In Seville, it seems like the pride of the region carries into its culinary practices. Every gamble we took was absolutely delicious, and I even found myself becoming braver, trying anything from ox-tail to whole fried squids. A common accompaniment to several dishes here was cold, creamed tomato puré – on toasted breads in the morning, as soups for lunch. I love a good tomato. I was in heaven.
As I mentioned earlier I had quite the unrelenting headache through the bulk of our trip – all through Saturday. Adding to the misery, and further affirming our interminably bad luck, the rain that never comes to the south of Spain, showed up with fog and grey skies for the majority of our Saturday. We were sore from the bus ride, and all-in-all I was despairing that all this time and money spent getting to Seville would be for naught. But even every setback could not keep my spirits down. Like never before, I did all I could to endure the pain by gazing at the beauty around me - and graciously welcoming the random neck massages of my husband as the day continued on. Eventually, the sun made its long-awaited appearance, and by Sunday as we were departing, it was shining happily down on the wonderful Sevillano community.
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