Eating out is a way of life in Seville, whether in a smart contemporary restaurant serving innovative modern dishes, or a more traditional tiled establishment offering carillada and fried fish. Restaurants are more formal, with smarter decor, and full-size portions, although even the smartest places will still offer tapas.
The aquarium is themed around the voyage of Ferdinand Magellan, 1519-1522, which was the first ever circumnavigation of the globe. Your journey will take you from the Guadalquivir river, across the Atlantic Ocean, up the Amazon and over to the Pacific.
Right in the historic centre of Seville, yet on a quiet street, this superb, luxurious boutique hotel spread across several traditional Sevillano mansions offers faultless service and sumptuous décor, from monogrammed linens to Lutron lighting, and all-round high-tech wizardry.
The city of Seville is known to dedicate February to carnival celebrations with all the usual song and dance performances. A well known savings bank always brings in the top performing Carnival singing group from the Cádiz festival for a special performance. There is also a children's carnival that can be scheduled on the weekends for up to a whole month.
Andalucia is not alone in its quest for the convenience of large out-of-town shopping centres or commercial centres ( centros comerciales) . Over the past five years shopping centres in Andalucia have become increasingly prevalent and in Andalucia today they form an integral part of most peoples’ shopping experience.
Strictly speaking this is a religious festival, but for most of the week, solemnity isn't the keynote - there's a lot of carousing and frivolity, and bars are full day and night with entire families, from grandparents to babes in arms staying up until three or four in the morning.
Seville’s April fair has a long and varied history. Here are a few facts and figures associated with its past, and its present traditions. The first thing you'll see when you arrive at the Seville Fair from the city centre is the portada - the gateway, where you traditionally enter the fairground. Everyone gets their photo taken in front of the portada.
Car: don't even try to park near the Feria, unless you have a micro-car like a Smart which will fit into the smallest spaces. Instead, leave it at the Charco de la Pava car park, and catch the shuttle bus to the main recinto. Bear in mind that the police will be out in force with breathalyser checkpoints, so don't drink and drive.
As tourists approach the Seville Fair in simple shirts and trousers, cameras in hand and sunglasses ready for action, it might appear that all the natives are simply dressed in some traditional folkloric costume that only varies slightly in colour and cut from one person to another.
The Seville April Fair takes place in the Los Remedios neighbourhood in Seville on grounds covering 1.2 million square metres. Part of this area is set aside every year for the amusement park known as “Calle del Infierno” (Hell’s Street).
If you're a guest who has been formally invited to a caseta, once in your host will buy the first round of drinks and raciones - cheese, prawns, ham, 'pescao frito' (fried fish). Let him - it's tradition, and offering to pay will be considered bad form. Then you can order what you want, to share with your host if appropriate.
As the capital of Andalucia, Seville has a wealth of history, culture and gastronomy to offer. From Roman and Moorish delights to contemporary architecture and interactive museums, you'll have plenty to keep you busy on your visit to La Hispalense.
A private golf club, where visitors can play if accompanied by a member. The original 9-hole course, dating back to 1939, was extended to 18 holes and opened in 1992. Sloping gradually towards the Guadiara River, it is reasonably flat and has three lakes and numerous bunkers.
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For many visitors to Seville, flamenco is one of its greatest treasures. People flock to the many tablaos (flamenco bars) and flamenco shows to see a little of this Andalucían culture while visiting the city. Without a doubt, flamenco is one of the wonders of Southern Spain and after you have been to one of the many flamenco shows that are on offer in the city, you may just want to further your education on the subject.
The sevillana is a colourful and exciting style of song and dance that originated in Castile and not in Seville, a variation from a style of dance known as the seguidilla. The sevillana is not flamenco, although today it is performed by flamenco artists who give it that special flamenco touch.
The Santa Justa train station is located to the north-east of the city centre, on Avenida Kansas City. Santa Justa train station opened in 1991, as part of the city’s modernization plans for the Expo 1992 when Spain’s first high-speed AVE train service was launched (Plaza de Armas, the beautiful old station, is now a shopping centre with cinema).
Like most new mothers, I am writing this in a few precious snatched moments of liberty. In my case, they are afforded by Baby Einstein DVDs, themed confections of classical music, glove puppets and plastic toys. My baby is entranced by them, gurgling and chuckling with delight at the little red cars and yellow birds.
Sevilla Fútbol Club was started first out of the city's two football clubs - officially in 1905, but the earliest football match took place in the city earlier, in 1890, against the newly-founded Huelva Club Deportivo. This club was started by British Rio Tinto mineworkers who brought the game to Spain, along with British sailorsn and Spanish students returning from Britain, where the first clubs had been established in the 1850s. Its name, Sevilla FC (Fútbol Club, rather than CF - Club de Futbol) reflects its British origins.
Francisco de Zurbarán was born in Extremadura but settled in Seville in 1629 where he had a very successful career accepting large commissions for the wealthy religious order. He was in Madrid from 1634 - 6 in the service of King Philip IV and on his return to Seville he began painting commissions for Spanish American clients.
