THE DETAILS OF TRAVELING
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| Janet getting it right |
Janet is driven and
meticulous. She loves details and will plan a trip that has no surprises. She
will hunt for the best deals and the best reviews. She does not rest until
satisfied.
Comparatively, I am like a goldfish swimming from one end of the
tank to the other. I turn around and it’s a whole new completely fresh
experience for me.
My version of traveling
is like a headless chicken running into walls and off cliffs.
Because of Janet and my
infinite intelligence in knowing when to stay out of things, our recent trip to
Seville was seamless.
Janet took care of
everything. She arranged our travel, arranged our apartment, arranged our tour
itinerary, arranged the train and the car rental, and even packed the bags!
Here are some of the
details of our trip (courtesy of Janet):
 |
Our front door on the
Plaza Alfaro |
GETTING THERE
Ryanair
This low-cost, bare
bones carrier flies nearly everywhere in Europe from England. The latest on
their website has flights starting at £25.19 each way to Seville, but we always
pay for upgrades like having priority seating and checked luggage, and even
carry-on luggage. The trip can be hectic; after we’re seated the hordes stampede
for the leftover seats. Navigating the website is arduous, even Janet gets
frustrated by it which is saying a lot.
Ryanair will get you
there but be prepared to pay for water.
Weather
Janet even monitored
the weather. Our trips to Europe usually piggyback off visits to Nantwich and
family. Janet planned this trip to Spain in early September, after the grandchildren
started school again, and because we thought the weather would be cooler.  |
| Janet getting it right |
Seville is one of the
hottest cities on the European continent and was suffering through an extended extreme
heat wave this past summer. Seville after all, is closer to Rabat the capital
of Morocco than Madrid.
We watched the forecast
in the weeks leading up to Spain and the days hovered near 110°F. By the time
we arrived though temperatures began to ‘cool’ into the high 80s and low 90s.
How hot was it?
We took a walking tour
of the Cathedral and the Alcazar Palace, and our tour guide spoke of the heat
stroke he had suffered earlier during the summer and was laid up for 10 days. Our
tour guide in Cordoba spoke about how she wanted to go to someplace cold for
her vacation. |
Our view of the
Alcazar gardens |
Here’s an interesting
article about the Seville heat:
STAYING THERE
Airbnb on Alfaro Plaza
Janet booked us an
Airbnb in the heart of the most touristed area of Seville, the Santa Cruz Barrio.
The massive wooden doors that led to our courtyard were on the charming Plaza
Alfaro. Despite the location and the parade of tour groups, we never felt overrun.
One end of Alfaro Plaza
led to the Jardines de Murillo, where I would run, and the view from one side
of the apartment overlooked the Alcazar gardens. Down below Calle Aqua followed
the wall of the gardens and if we were lucky, we’d see a peacock strutting
along the top. The interior courtyard of our Airbnb was serene with flowers and
a fountain. We were on the third floor, but there were elevators!
Santa Cruz was once the
Jewish section of town, and the winding streets and alleys of the barrio are at
times so narrow people can lean over from one balcony to kiss someone on the
balcony across the “street”.
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| Santa Cruz Barrio |
Nearly everything we
wanted to see in Seville was within a short walking distance of our roomy apartment.
Again, Janet found us
the perfect place. Here is the Airbnb listing:
AIRBNB LISTING IN SEVILLE
GETTING AROUND
Tours
Janet planned much of
our itinerary while in Seville and Cordoba and Ronda. She researched
availability and contacted the personal guides and negotiated the times and
costs. Here is a quick list of what she had us doing:
Cathedral and Alcazar
Palace Tour
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| The Giralda |
Through the Naturanda tour company we took a four-hour, very informative and entertaining walking tour of the Seville Cathedral and the Alcazar Palace. We paid for the tour in advance and had our tickets printed out before we even left the United States. The best part about taking this tour was bypassing all the lines getting into either destination.
Try to get Ismail for your guide.
Tapas Tour
Shawn runs Azahar
Tours, and she led us through 4 different Tapas bars, with drinks included. She also provided
us a “cheat sheet” with other places to go while in Seville, Cordoba and Ronda,
with recommendations as to what to order. She also introduced us to the dry,
aged, Oloroso Sherry.  |
| Casa Morales |
While we were in Seville
we went to several of the tapas bars she recommended and even returned to two
she brought us to on our tour with her. We went to restaurants she recommended
in Cordoba and Ronda.
This was another win for Janet.
Cordoba Tour
When we finally met
Isabel for our personal walking tour of the walled city of Cordoba the two
women greeted each other with hugs like old friends meeting up once again, so
meticulous was Janet’s planning with countless emails. |
| CASA ANDALUSI |
Isabel Martinez was a
great tour guide and even recommended several "patios" to visit in Cordoba before
our tour began in the afternoon. Patios are museum/homes open to the public which give a glimpse into 12th Century homes in Andalusia with Moorish influences. We chose to visit Casa Andaulusi.
Part of the tour was
visiting the massive Mosque Cathedral. We were told to purchase tickets before leaving
home. Janet came prepared with the tickets in hand. To contact Isabel:
Train:
Janet arranged for the
tickets to Cordoba online ahead of time and printed out our tickets before we
left for Spain. We had to pick out our departure and return times. The price
was approximately €18 for round trip tickets. Seats were assigned as well.
RENFE TRAIN SYSTEM SPAIN
Car:
Janet made all the
arrangements. I handed her my credit card.
She even prepaid for a
parking spot in Ronda. And, planning our trip she made sure that we stopped at
Oleum Virfide to buy Andalusian olive oil, making sure it wasn’t too out of the
way. We did linger a bit to admire a shepherd and his flock of sheep picking
their way down the mountain before driving through one of the Pueblos Blancos
of Andalusia, Zahara de la Sierra. |
| ZAHARA DE LA SIERRA |
OLEUM VIRIDE OLIVE OIL
ZAHARA DE LA SIERRA
Cooking Class:
Janet researched and
purchased two spots in a Spanish cooking class and a tour of the Triana Market
with the Taller Andaluz de Cocina.
My darling wife is already an accomplished cook!
We made gazpacho, a
Sevillian tapas of Spinach and chickpeas, Valencian Paella, and for dessert a
lemon sorbet with cava. |
| Getting it right |
TALLER ANDALUZ DE COCINA
Flamenco Show:
Janet researched and
purchased tickets to a Flamenco show at Tablao Los Gallos which was literally
just around the corner from our apartment on Plaza Alfaro. Just an hour and 15
minutes long the show featured two women dancers and a male dancer, three
singers and two guitarists.
Yep, Janet did it all. She
even worked on brushing up on her high school Spanish in the weeks leading to our
trip. By the end of our time in Seville she was ordering in Spanish.
I on the other hand
only know how to say: ¿Dónde está el
baño... rápido?
Thanks for reading and
thank you Janet!
Amor a todos.
© 2023 by Gregory Dunaj
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