Sevilla’s Saving Grace

Travelling through Spain, I met many different people who told me that they loved Seville. However, I dare say that I was not quite a huge fan of Seville, and I think it was in part due to the fact that I had before that spent five glorious days in Granada (more on Granada later), just three hours away from Seville.

Seville, to me, felt like a bigger version of Granada, but not quite as charming. For instance, the Alcázar of Seville felt like a lesser version of Granada’s Alhambra – the architecture of the fomer Alcázar, while still very arabic in style, lacked the grandeur of the latter palace.

That said, if I had to recommend one thing about Seville, I would say – go to Seville to visit the Plaza de España, for it will be sure to take your breath away. And I would perhaps even go so far as to say the Plaza de España, is Seville’s saving grace.

The gorgeous Plaza de España was built in the late 1920s for the Ibero-American Exposition of 1929, and in modern times, is perhaps more famously known for providing the backdrop in a scene of George Lucas’ Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones.

Today, the Plaza de España is a bit of a tourist trap, providing tourists an opportunity to row boat around the moat, not quite Venice gondola style, or ride a horse-drawn carriage around its premise. That said, I found that the Plaza de España and the Parque Maria Luisa (Maria Luisa Park), where the former is located, is a great place to simply spend half a day to sit around, take in the beauty of the building, and soak in the summer sun.

The Plaza de España. Enjoy:

To read more about the Plaza de España, go here.