It is an easy and cheap two hour bus ride from Cordoba to Sevilla. From what I had read, Sevilla represents the idealic Spanish city. Like Cordoba, it is very hot (85 - 90 degrees) and its only April--God love it in July and August. The architecture is elegant, there are many shady parks, and the city wraps itself around the Guadalquiver River, the same river that Cordoba turned its back on. Restaurants line the river with wide walking paths and built in benches with a fabulous view. Walking around at sunset time of 9:00pm, people strolled slowly everywhere. It kind of felt like Paso Robles in the summer as it had cooled to about 75 degrees.
Today was the last day of Feria, which is a springtime festival in Sevilla. Women were dressed in traditional flamenco type dresses with large flowers behind their ears. Hundreds of private, tented parties were held in the fairgrounds, but I didn't know anyone to get into any. To end the festival, there was a bullfight tonight. I watched it live on TV, in both horror and amazement. The event feels part dance, part bravado. All the bullfighters were dressed in beautiful gold braided suits. One of the helpers rode a horse who was protected by a bamboo-like skirt. The horse was blindfolded. This helper use a long lance to stab the bull. The other helpers were on the ground, held yellow and pink satin capes and used shorter, green ribboned knives to stab the bull. These guys would run and hop over the wooden walls like rodeo clowns when the bull chased them. When the bull had been stabbed enough, the matador returned with a red cape. He had removed his hat and was sweating profusely probably through a combination of heavy clothes, a warm night and nerves. After much sweeping of the cape in front of the bull, he would turn his back on its horns and the audience would clap for his bravery. I had to cover my eyes at the end as it was not entertaining to watch the bull die. This experience confirmed that I will not be attending a live show.
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