Regent Seven Seas Voyager: Day Two in spectacular Seville, Spain
PHOTO: Plaza de Espana (c) Sery Kim
There were ten variations of official "Shore Excursions" for our second day of the cruise, and I really have to commend the Regent Seven Seas Voyager Excursion program for putting together a wonderful, albeit super-melty day, in Seville, Spain. Despite the blistering heat wave going through Europe (the hottest it has been in Europe for nearly three decades), the staff did as good a job as they could to balance the time spent outdoors (hot, hot, hot!) and the time spent inside (God bless the invention of air conditioning).
PHOTO: Selfie in Plaza de Espana (c) Sery Kim
Located a relatively easy 1 hour and 45 minute drive from Cadiz where we docked for the day, Seville's architecture is absolutely stunning and really sets the scene for a picturesque day trip in Spain. The Regent Seven Seas Voyager team thought of everything and even hired out a coach which had USB plugs to charge up our phones. As a young person obsessively on social media (see selfie above), this one factor alone really set up the trip as exceptional.
We landed in Seville and the town was pretty empty. "Everyone goes to the beach during August," is what our very helpful tour guide explained, so it was quite great being able to wander through each of the stops without a lot of high volume traffic.
Our first stop was the Plaza de Espana and the photos barely do it justice. I didn't realize until I got there a little moat goes around the interior courtyard and there were several guys valiantly pushing their girls around in the boats. Bless their hearts ... the things men do for love!
PHOTO: Seafood crostini at Robles (c) Sery Kim
After Plaza de Espana, we went to this mouth-wateringly tasty restaurant Robles. Every dish was perfectly seasoned but the seafood crostini dish which came out first was probably my favorite although the dessert, named for the Infanta Elena on her wedding day, came a close second. We also had a shrimp and potato salad with a beautifully bountiful seafood risotto for the main course. Every dish made my tastebuds sing with its singular genuinely fresh taste. I don't know if everyone can make it onboard the Regent Seven Seas Explorer just to get to this restaurant, but if you get to Seville you must eat at Robles.
Robles
+34 954 21 31 50
comercial@roblesrestaurantes.com
Sevilla
PHOTO: Dessert named after Infanta Elena on her wedding day (c) Sery Kim
After lunch, we wandered over to the Cathedral of Seville. The third largest cathedral in the world, with tremendous design, your breath it taking away at knowing it took the Spanish over a century to build the masterpiece. Every detail is fascinating, particularly the main altar which is a living replica of the entire Bible. Each scene was hand-carved into its own artful design, bringing to life the parables and stories of the B.C. and A.D., and is over-layed with gold.
PHOTO: The view of the Cathedral of Seville from Robles (c) Sery Kim
Also within the Cathedral is the final resting place of Christopher Columbus. The four alabaster men carrying his tomb are absolutely massive. I couldn't get an answer on how tall each of the men were but they seemed more than twelve feet, if not fifteen.
PHOTO: The final resting place of Christopher Columbus (c) Sery Kim
We also walked over the Palace in Seville. Still used by the Royal Family of Spain, the palace has a great deal of Moorish influences. Actually I was quite surprised by how much of Spain has influence from the Middle East.
PHOTO: View of one of the palm trees in the courtyard of the Palace of Seville (c) Sery Kim
PHOTO: The Lion's Courtyard in the Palace of Seville (c) Sery Kim
Another interesting fact about the Palace of Seville, for the Game of Thrones fans around the world, the interior actually plays the part of the Kingdom of Dorn. The photo below, on the second tier, is one of the main courtyards in the HBO hit-series. The second level is where the current Royal Family sleep when they are in the Andalusia area of Spain.
PHOTO: The Kingdom of Dorn in HBO's Game of Thrones (c) Sery Kim
I really had a great day in Seville and can't thank the Regent Seven Seas Voyager team for putting together such a great outing. The free excursions are really wonderful and I highly recommend them!
Today was Malaga so be sure to tune into the blog tomorrow for a full re-cap! I LOVE CRUISING!!!
PHOTO: Me in Seville (c) Sery Kim
