BARS - TOWERS - MUSHROOMS
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| Las Setas, Seville |
There are several
options to get a bird’s eye view of Seville. Each of these tourist sites offer
visitors sweeping views of this beautiful and historical city. Some are up
close and centered within the city, and a few have vantages located on the
edges, a few offer drinks! And all are worthy of your time.
LAS SETAS OF SEVILLE
Located at La
Encarnacion Square, this mostly wooden structure has on its rooftop a path with
a panoramic view of the old city area. Las Setas is now the official name of
the structure that was originally called the Metropol Parasol, but everyone
thought it looked like mushrooms. “Setas” is mushroom in Spanish.
There’s a fee to get to
the rooftop, but the rest of the elevated grounds beneath the “parasols”
are free. Las Setas of Seville is very impressive! Follow this link for the official
website and to see views of Las Setas from above!
LAS SETAS, SEVILLE
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| Torre Sevilla |
BTW...In the immediate neighborhood we found a lovely little bookshop where we purchased Spanish language versions of "Good Night Moon" and "Where The Wild Things Are" for our grandsons.
TORRE SEVILLA
Across the Guadalquivir
River on grounds of the Sevilla Expo’92 is the 40 story Torre Sevilla. This
office skyscraper was built after the expo and is the tallest building in
Seville with the Eurostars Torre Sevilla hotel at the top. Their Atalaya
Terrace isn’t just for guests of the hotel though, and for a small fee you can
have a drink and look out onto Seville.
BTW…The theme of Sevilla
Expo’92 was “the Age of Discovery” which commemorated the 500-year anniversary
of Christopher Columbus discovering the new world. He sailed from a port on the Guadalquivir
River.
TORRE SCHINDLER
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| Torre Schindler |
Another observation
tower that was built for Sevilla Expo’92 is the Torre Schindler. It is about 18
stories and right on the edge of the Guadalquivir River and from the observation
deck all of Seville can be seen.
Torre Schindler is
located on the grounds of Navigation Pavilion which features a museum and interactive
games about jobs of a sailor during the time of Columbus.
TORRE DE ORO
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| Torre de Oro |
Also along the Guadalquivir
River is a guardhouse created by the Moors in the 12th Century and
was meant to control shipping. A heavy chain ran from the tower across the
river preventing enemy ships from going further. Torre de Oro was part of the
city wall and today for a nominal fee you can climb to the small Naval Museum
and from there get a nice view of the river.
THE SEVILLE CATHEDRAL
The Giralda
We took a guided tour
of the Cathedral, the world’s largest gothic church, and the Alcazar Palace. Part
of the tour was to climb the Giralda belltower. Rather than steps the interior
is ramped, which evidently allowed horses to climb the tower. After a climb of
over 300 feet the panoramic view is worth the effort.
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| view from the Giralda |
Entry combo tickets for
the Cathedral and the tower are €11(€12 online) with an available audio guide
for €5, if you want to do it on your own.
Rooftop Tour of the
Cathedral
They call it a “visit
to the covers” and the guided tour of the Cathedral rooftop is not only a
unique way to see all of Seville, but to learn the whole process of the construction
of this massive church.
They are small group
tours, and you need to select your time and arrive 15 minutes early. They recommend
purchasing online: €21. The entry fee gives you access to the Cathedral and the
Giralda.
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| Cathedral rooftop tour |
VISITING THE SEVILLE CATHEDRAL
LA TERRAZA BAR at EME
CATHEDRAL MERCER
Never underestimate
serendipity.
After a long day of Tapas touring and Flamenco shows we decided to
stroll over to the Cathedral to see it as the sun set. Activity on a rooftop
across Calle Alemanes caught our attention and we decided to investigate. We
entered a sedate hotel lobby where the staff pointed us to the elevator, and we
went right up to the most charming rooftop bar. The Cathedral was
aglow in the waning sunlight and we managed to find a seat, ordered some drinks
and giggled at our luck.
It was the perfect end
to our day and perhaps this was the best view of all in Seville.
BTW... I had an oloroso.
Thanks for reading.
Love Janet and greg
© 2023 by Gregory Dunaj
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