The sun is out in Seville!
Slept in this am! Naturally, Ken was already up and says, “Let’s go to the Cathedral and climb the tower.” Not a chance. My eyes have been open for 4 minutes. I’m gonna need you to bring that energy down. Luckily for me, the cathedral didn’t open until 11am. I have never been so grateful for Spain hours.
Tapas & Tinto de Verano
Walking history and tapas crawl this afternoon. Went to a traditional tapas bar, founded in 1870. Gorgeous old bullfighting photos and posters on the walls. Ceiling was lined with leg after leg of jamón. Would not shock me to find out one of them was *from* 1870.
Forgot how much I enjoy the Spanish drink, Tinto de verano, which means, summer red. It’s red wine mixed with lemon soda, which is way better than it sounds – and great for day drinking since it’s lower in alcohol. And yes, I do realize it’s winter. I’m a rebel that way.
My girlfriend nearly caused an international incident at the bar when she asked for a calimocho, which is red wine mixed with Coke. Our guide audibly gasped, and said it’s sacrilegious to order this in the south of Spain. She got one anyway, because she is also a rebel.
Sidebar
You wanna know what the world could use more of? Shower shelves. Just a small footrest for the ladies, so we can shave our legs without risking an international slip and fall incident.
Flamenco Show
Flamenco show tonight. 
No photos allowed, so please enjoy this photo I took of a flamenco painting in the bathroom. Performance was incredible. So much energy and passion. I loved the costumes – those ruffles! And the fans!! I need a fan. Cannot imagine ever moving my feet that fast, and with such power and precision. But I can hold a fan. 
We have tickets to the cathedral in the morning. I got Ken the tower climbing ticket, but paid extra for my *not climbing* the tower ticket.
Salud!
Red wine and coke?? That’s disgusting. I think we went to the same bar though. So many things to love about Seville.
Honestly, I didn’t try the red wine and Coke. But damn if the red wine and lemon soda wasn’t delicious!!
Beautiful photos. I made the Porto tonic! Wow. It’s so different and delicious. Thanks! We saw flamenco in Argentina. Up close. Really impressive. My head could only handle about 30 minutes of it, but it was entertaining.
Thank you – and I’m so glad you made it – and liked it!! It’ll be a great summer cocktail. Agree, flamenco is a LOUD experience. My Apple watch was sending decibel alerts all night!
Love your photos as usual . . . the ham and oranges draw the most – am a practical gal! Am not a big flamenco lover – I simply lack the depth of knowledge of the deep feelings brought forth by the sounds and movements . . . but wine – never ever mixed with anything for me. Want to taste the soil in the fruit and the art of the vigneron . . . 🙂 !
Thank you, Eha. I do think you have to “feel” flamenco. But I know almost nothing about it, so that’s just my instinct. I got so caught up in the costumes. So colorful and all that FABRIC!!
Valencia is the home of the red wine and coke thing, you would definitely be able to order it there, except you would get funny looks because it’s considered a teenager’s drink, a way of getting nurtured into drinking wine. Sacrilege as far as I’m concerned. And a waste of a glass of red. Surely.
I’m not a fan of calimocho myself, but the Tinto de Verano (wine and lemonade) is lovely. I mean, it’s basically just sangria without all the fruit. It’s a great lunch drink for me – when I want a little something, but not a full octane drink. Cheers!
Fabulous photos of a favorite city. Mixing wine with lemon soda or Coke seems a bit nuts (although I love adding a touch of Creme de Casis de Dijon to make a kir), but I’ve never tried it so what do I know?
Seville is a photographer’s dream, isn’t it? I climbed the Giralda tower because I can’t help myself, and I was intrigued at the notion of riding a horse up those ramps.
I could not stop taking pictures in Seville! I must have a hundred alone of oranges!!