Seville, Spain

Seville, What can I say about Seville? Other than if it possible to fall in love with a city this one is "the one". Walking into Old Town Seville is like walking back into time where castles and horse-drawn carriages still exist amongst the hustle and bustle of everyday life. Maybe that is why they chose to film Game of Thrones there. The city is beyond beautiful. The vibrant colors of the old buildings, tiled archways and tall wood panelled ornamented doors. The architecture of muslim meets spanish gothic is beyond enchanting, but it is more than just that. The people are in love with their city and you can feel it. It's like they've mastered the secret to happiness and it's simple, love what you do, eat well, and take it easy. Have a two hour lunch break it won't kill you. If anything it will make you more proficient and whatever it is that you do and I agree.

  

The view from our window

There are tons of hidden gems to wander into in Seville. One night we came across a small hole in the wall by the name of El Librero.  I was lured in by reading the written menu on a chalkboard that said they had a Paella arroz negro. My mission out of this whole trip to Spain was to try a Paella, but negro paella made with squid ink sounded beyond palatable. Let me just paint the picture of how this went down. When you walk into El Librero the aura is like walking into someone's kitchen meets dining room. There are wooden tables with shelves lining the walls behind them holding books and bottles of wine. The other patrons seem to be deep in conversation in the midst of their vacations or locals on romantic dates where their eyes are locked on each other and nothing else until their food arrives. This place is definitely special. The waiter/owner I presume had probably had this business passed down to him through his parents and maybe even his parents parents because the authenticity seems too well crafted. The Paella arrived at the table in a hot metal pan and steaming. The pan was filled with rice, clams, calamari, and shrimp. The only problem I had faced was that the shrimp came with the shell still well intact to its steaming body. So I looked around to see how other people were eating theirs, but I couldn't catch anyone taking a bite out of the same dish. So I attempted to use a fork and knife to take the skin off, but that wasn't working. So what else could I do, but use my fingers right? Well, sure I guess that's how us animals used to do it, but this is Paella arroz negro we're talking about. The first few bites were fine. When I went to grab my glass of wine is when I had realized the mess I had made with the squid ink. It was everywhere and a napkin wasn't helping. Not to mention that squid ink stains your skin. I looked like an auto mechanic and all I could do was laugh because there was no way I wasn't finishing that whole plate of Paella and I did, I had too!

  

After our late dinner we found a gelateria that was just about to close, to help wash it all down. 

 There are tons of cute places like this in Seville. There is so much character and color in this town it seems like editorials could be shot on every corner. It's the perfect place to escape for a romantic getaway. I kept having this sensation like I was on someone else's honeymoon while I was there.

We did a tapas tour with a Devour Seville tour guide. They showed us the best local eateries of the city. The places we went to would be nearly impossible to find on our own because they seemed like the sort of places you would only come across after years of living there.

 This sandwich will change your life. It's marinated in whiskey and garlic. Maybe that doesn't sound appealing to you, but it was something I will never forget the taste of. I would fly back just for this baby. You can get it from a place named Casa Moreno.

 I'm not a photographer by any means, but I had my camera out at all times because I wanted to capture the essence of each city that we were lucky enough to visit on this trip. So if I've enticed you at all I beg of you... go to Seville! The Devour Seville tour is worth every penny because there is no way you can come across that much expertise on a compilation of local flavor other than taking a tour. That tour was definitely a day I will remember forever.

Xo,

Rach