Sevilla

Sevilla loves a religious procession — carrying statues of saints from favorite churches through the streets on big floats. People from other towns go through their lives never marching. But in Sevilla, these parades are huge.

When you meet a Spaniard, it’s common to ask them which football team they support. Here in Sevilla, you also ask which Virgin Mary they favor. The top two in town are La Virgin de la Macarena and La Esperanza de Triana. On Thursday during Holy Week, it’s a battle royale of the Madonnas, as Sevilla’s two favorite virgins are both processing through the streets at the same time.

I bumped into a street-clogging procession that was actually a practice parade for the kids who carry the float. It’s an honor to be one of the 15 or so young people who stand shoulder to shoulder under the float, shuffling slowly through town.

If you can’t see the video below, watch it on YouTube.

The best stop in southern Spain is Sevilla. The city is a delight from a sightseeing, eating, and live-music point of view. And it’s always changing. After a few days in town with the help of excellent local guides, I am right up to date for the 2014 edition of our Rick Steves’ Spain guidebook. Here are a few updates in advance:

Recently Sevilla unveiled a giant, mostly wooden canopy in an attempt to revitalize the formerly nondescript Plaza de la Encarnación. The gigantic, undulating canopy of five waffle-patterned, mushroom-shaped, hundred-foot-tall structures provides shade, a gazebo for performances, and a traditional market hall. It’s nicknamed “The Mushroom,” and, while the market is busy each morning, locals still don’t quite know what to make of the avant-garde structure. (It’s pretty lifeless in the afternoon and evening.) One ramp leads down to the ancient Roman street level (where a museum displays Roman ruins found during the building process). From the basement, a €1.30 elevator takes you up to a terrace for a commanding city view and a big walking loop. Doing this scenic stroll, you feel like you’re walking a roller-coaster track without the train. While “The Mushroom” is a bit newsy, I found it not worth the time or trouble. (You can get a fine view for free from the rooftop bar of the EME Catedral Hotel, across the street from the cathedral.)

All over Europe, cameras are photographing cars entering central zones where only taxis, locals, and those with hotel reservations are allowed. With hard economic times, traffic cops are enforcing these laws mercilessly with stiff fines. In Sevilla, the hotels recently softened the situation. Scary as the signs are, those with hotel reservations in the off-limits zone can ignore them: Drive to your hotel, park where they tell you, and — as long as your hotel registers your license-plate number within 48 hours — you are legal. But in general, driving in city centers throughout Europe is getting tricky…and potentially very expensive.

Sevilla loves its religious processions. Any time of year, you’re likely to bump into a giant crowd following the slowly plodding entourage of a float with a blaring marching band.

The Church of the Savior (Iglesia del Salvador), Sevilla’s second-biggest church after its cathedral, has a chapel featuring the city’s second most important procession statue. The Christ of the Passion chapel is filled with the sadness of Jesus’ crucifixion. It features a gripping 1619 statue of Christ carrying the cross to his death. For centuries, the faithful have come here to pray, and then kiss Jesus’ heel (up the stairs behind the altar). Like many churches in southern Spain, it’s built upon the site of a ruined mosque. In the courtyard, which served both houses of worship, you can really feel the presence of the earlier mosque. The former minaret is now the bell tower, and the arches, which date from the days of the mosque, are half-underground. The surviving mosque, now underground, functions today as part of the church’s crypt.

The heel of Sevilla’s beloved Christ of the Passion is kissed all day long throughout the year by pilgrims and local Catholics alike.

Seeing the faces of statues chiseled out throughout my travels, it seems our inability to tolerate each other has been a challenge for a long long time. Seeing this statue, once again I thought that “Can’t we just get along?” is a universal plea.

I really enjoy the emails people send me sharing magic moments and offering not only practical tips, but philosophical ones. Eric shared a magical midnight in Spain that will stay with him and his family for the rest of their lives.

When I travel, I know that serendipity is a friend. She leads me to unexpected magical moments that come with a warm welcome and leave me with a lifelong memory. We all need to take those crazy detours and embrace the experiences they offer. Here’s Eric’s letter. If it reminds you of a time you were proactive in making it happen, I’d love to hear about it in the comments.

Dear Rick,

I wanted to share a comment with Mr. Steves and the rest of your team. I have attended a number of sessions taught by Rick during your all-day travel events in Edmonds, as well as reading a number of his books. One bit of advice he shares that has always stuck with me is to be flexible ‘ and be prepared to go off the typical tourist route ‘ in order to experience the culture. That bit of advice was running through my head when the following occurred:

Last May, my wife, our 25-year-old daughter, and I travelled to Sevilla, Spain, to spend a week with our 21-year-old daughter who was ending her semester of studying abroad in Sevilla. The four of us had taken a side-trip to Granada for a couple of days, and were returning to Sevilla by bus. It dropped us off just before midnight, and we began the mile-and-a-half walk back to our Sevilla apartment. As we walked, we heard what sounded like amplified live music in the distance. At that point I asked myself, “What would Rick Steves do in this situation?”

I turned to the rest of the family and said, “I know it’s midnight, but let’s go find out where this music is coming from!”

They were all game, and off we went, following the music. We came to a large park that turned out to be the venue for a type of Renaissance Fair. Being Spain, at midnight the place was packed with people visiting various booths containing crafts and food. At the far end of the venue was a stage where the live music was coming from. It was a group of Spanish musicians playing Celtic music.

At this point I need to add that both our daughters have been trained in Irish Dance. In 2004, we’d travelled to Ireland, where one competed in the Irish Dance championships ‘ another two-week Rick Steves-inspired vacation that resulted in both daughters doing some impromptu dancing in an Irish pub in Doolin.

Okay, back to the story. As the group was coming to the close of their set, they announced that they were going to play an American song that, although not really a Celtic tune, had a similar beat. Then they launched into “Oh Susannah!” So here we were, watching a Spanish band playing an American song, trying to make it Celtic, and singing the American words with very heavy Spanish accents. It was an experience!
During the entire performance, a few people directly in front of the stage were dancing and moving to the music. All the while our eldest daughter was tapping her feet to the tunes.

Finally, the group announced its final number. As they began to play, our eldest daughter launched into her Irish dancing and moved to directly in front of the stage. As the band played, she danced, and the rest of the crowd parted into a large circle to watch her dance to the music. When it was all over, the band ‘ AND our daughter ‘ all received a great cheer and applause.

We would not have experienced and of this had I not asked myself: “What would Rick Steves do in this situation?”

Thank you to everyone at Rick Steves’ Europe for helping us to get more out of our vacations.

‘ Eric in Mount Vernon, WA