Images from Seville

The Alcazabar from the extensive gardens that surround it.

Inside the main courtyard of the Alcazabar

Layers upon layers of finely carved decoration that manages still to have a restrained air

The Torreador stands close to the bull as it charges. A feat of skill and courage that needs to be seen to be believed - but only if you have the stomach for it)

The bull fight has enormous pageantry and tradition, and its colour and

drama can be seductive.

The wonderful old ceramics manufacturing building that now houses the city's contemporary art collection

The procession for Pentecost Sunday which winds through the narrow laneways, is accompanied by a full brass band playing appropriately dirge like music and can be heard for blocks away.

Youths spend time practicing to manoeuvre the heavy framework that underlies the highly decorated Eucharistic procession. We wondered what they were doing, and put it down to an Islamic thing, since their heads were covered in shawls that looked like Berber headwear - until we saw the above procession, that is.

Strollers on the bridge at Sunset in Seville

The Plaza Espana - a decorative, non functional folly containing ceramics at their most mixed and gaudy, still delights. Here the boats to hire to row a circuit of the "moat" around the construcion.

A large architectural structure found in the middle of nowhere, with no reference in the guidebooks, which covered the student protest now growing in Seville as well as Madrid. we think it was near one of the Universities.

Seville as seem from the bell tower of the Cathedral

The main, highly decorated altar of the Cathedral. A more constrained version of Spanish baroque

The facade of the cathedral

Hearing the “Clip clop” of horses hooves as they trot the cobbled pathways across the whole of the historical centre - the "Sound of Seville" for me.

Endless Nights of eating and drinking – how do the locals do it? (And could someone PLEASE put that young , screaming child to bed at once!)

The most beautiful Alcazar I have ever seen. Complete, well preserved with stunning gardens creating an oasis in the middle of the city and a place for a romantic stroll, complete with peacocks..

Warm nights walking through the park, home to our Hostal.

River cruise at sunset – water is silver, silence prevails, and the air is fresh.

Walking the Triana district and eating fish by the river

Political contemporary art was far too didactic for my tastes (is it visual art or political commentary??), but timely for Spaniards, considering the student occupation of the main squares across the country.

Trying to find eggs for breakfast –we did on the last day!

Why are there no real tomatoes left in Spain??? (“Tomate” just doesn’t cut it!)

I agree with Ernest Hemmingway that Bull fights are “a wonderful Nightmare”. The colour, the drama and the courage. The way the animal and the human dance together and eye each other off. I know animal rights people have every right to complain, and I was very conflicted about the bulls being killed, whilst respecting the tradition that started this, but there is some magic there, as well.

Barrio Santa Cruz and the Jewish quarter are wonderful places to get lost in.

The best food really can be in the tourist areas. We had the two best Tapas meals outside our hotel!

Three Days in Madrid

Students Protesting in the Plaza del Sol, which we passed daily on our walks to museums. The numbers grew rapidly from just a few with home made signs, to a large media scrum

Getting up close and personal with the fabulous exhibition by Leon Golub in the almost more fabulous cultural space in the Parque Real.

The interior of the almost deserted cafe at Reina Sofia. Seems the locals and tourists flock mostly to see the older, Name art. So what's different???

Loved this sculpture at the entrance between the old and new buildings at Reina Sofia, which is to my mind the best gallery in Madrid

Graphics in the Mercado, an experience in itself (rather like Simon Johnstons)> Quite Beautiful to stroll in and salivate

The gardens and cafes at the entrance to the Palacio in front of the Palace Real

The Cathedral near the Palacio Real (main Cathedral in Madrid). It is decorated in bright colours and modern designs and makes a wonderful change from all the other beautiful but traditionally decorated cathedrals visited on this trip.

View of Madrid from the Cupola of the cathedral

The Palacio Real, complete with headless dummies on Flamenco dress. Would be great to say this was a modern art installation - instead, it was another chance to take money in exchange for a photograph.

Creative Graffiti in Madrid town

A landmark in Madrid - The Circulogico

Trees in the Parque real - Alice in Wonderland, Anyone???

In the Foyer at The Prado Museum (Colour co-ordinated!)

They start them soooo young in Spain! This was a school group taken out for the day to the Prado - I'm guessing the kids were about 4 years old! So tiny. If we don't even try until they are in high school, how will our kids ever develop the same love of the arts?

Arrived via the very human sized airport at Marrakech, into the groovy designed one at Madrid. Good connections and a helpful cabbie had me in town in good time to walk the many narrow streets and explore the plazas, sit in the Plaza Santa Ana and enjoy some tapas before hitting the sack.

Over the next few days we took in most of the Prado Museum, The Chardin exhibition and Heironymous Bosch being the stand out for us as well as a happy visit to Velaquez’s “Las Meninas”. Again, racing past Rubens to see Tintorettos needs some rationalising, and in the end we did our tastes and the museum proud, being very disciplined in what we saw. I also saw most of the later art in the Thyssen Bournimisza Museum, a private collection made public which boasts an excellent Monet and Van Gogh, but mostly interesting because it presents some good works of a wealth of artists that may never make publication in art books. The German Expressionist Painters and the Fauves are very well represented, Pechstein being the rediscovery of a great artist, for me.

I also took two broken visits to see the art at the Reina Sofia, a truly magnificent building (being a former palace, as most of these museums are) with an outstanding modern extension which seems to house only the library and the café. I like their style! We spent some time in front of Guernica, which didn’t disappoint, as well as in the surrounding rooms which present studies and sketches and other related finished paintings and information. I then explored the rest of the museum, with Juan Gris being the re-discovered artist, as well as cementing my astonishment at Picasso’s output as well as versatility and willingness to experiment throughout his life.

The student protests, centred in Plaza del Sol, are growing at a great rate and I wonder whether Spain will be next in the revolution stakes. I think Daniel would fit in well here.

Other places of interest we visited were the Palacio Real, which for my mind, leaves Buckingham palace for dead in decoration, creativity, and sheer capriciousness –every room had a different theme, no “reserve” here – and its armaments collection. Never would I have imagined that Knights in armour could look so good, in delicately carved and well designed and engineered metal made by the best European craftsmen, Silversmiths etc of their time, from Italy and Germany. It would have been a truly awe-inspiring sight to be waving madly in a crowd, as those knights, astride their prancing, jangling horses, marched by. The horse armour was exceptionally sculptural and beautiful, and the lances unexpectedly long! Ouch!.

I also explored the Cathedral and the park Real, with the Crystal Palace floating near the duck pond, and saw an outstanding retrospective exhibition by Leon Golub in the beautiful palace building at the opposite end of the walkway.
We have still to find, great tapas mixed with great wine – local knowledge needed in this capital of Tapas.

If Madrid is about its art, it didn’t disappoint, although sometimes, too much art is just that. I need to rest my eyes…and some more modern art!

You shoulda seen that!

All Images: Rui Cóias, Vera Good Friday Procession

Here's some pictures taken by our Portuguese poet, Rui Cóias, of the procession in vera on Good Friday.

I was helping set up for the presentation of our studio work to the locals who had expressed an interest in seeing it. A mix up landed the organised time on Good Friday, so we were committed. Four of us stayed to entertain the guests whilst the rest went on a procession hunt.

Wish I'd seen it - Great photos, Rui.