Sunday March 23 - Easter

Not a whole lot was open for visitors and tourists on Easter Sunday in a place that’s as Catholic as Seville. But you know what is open? The cathedral. And the Archivo de Indias. After breakfast at the historic and very pretty Horno San Buenaventura (a big cafe/bar/restaurant on Avenida de la Constitucion), we went to the Archivo de Indias, which is free and open pretty much every day. Inside is an exposition about the construction of the building itself, which is really beautiful (it was built as a merchant house, after the merchants were expelled from doing business in the cathedral). Built in 1572 by order of King Felipe II, the primary architect was Juan de Herrera, who also designed El Escorial. In 1785 it was turned into an archives house, to protect and organize all the documents related to the conquest and colonization of the Americas. Because of the volume and importance of the documents, the Archivo de Indias is considered one of the most, if not the most, important archives in the world. Photography isn't allowed inside.

Then we walked about 10 yards over to the cathedral, which, to my surprise, was not decorated for Easter. I guess the city was just a tiny bit too busy, what with every single Semana Santa procession going through the cathedral as part of the official route. The floor of the cathedral was covered with colorful wax from the candles that the nazarenos carry as they walk. Here are some images of the cathedral:

Biggest altar in the world:

View of the Patio de los Naranjos (Orange tree patio) taken from up inside the Giralda. The patio was built by the Muslims, as was the Giralda:

FLYING BUTTRESSES GALORE! Taken from inside the Giralda.
The Giralda, taken from the Patio de los Naranjos:
Definitely one of my favorite photos I've taken since I've been abroad. This is the exit of the cathedral (really, the exit of the patio), taken looking back at the cathedral. You've got a stained glass window on the left, flying buttresses on the right and a sweet Muslim horseshoe arch serving as a frame. What more could you wish for?

After seeing all the interior of the cathedral (which houses the tomb of Christopher Columbus and largest altar in the world as well as original artworks by Goya, Murillo, Zurbarán and others), we headed to the Giralda (the tower) to climb the approx. 100 metres up to the top. Look back to January posts to see more about the cathedral, the Giralda, and their histories.

Then it was back to the hotel for a bit of a siesta before dinner near the cathedral, with a really pretty view of it lit up at night.