The rain in Spain falls mainly on the plain

Soo... I woke up this morning and guess what the forecast is? Cloudy and some rain for the day...high of about 26C(still trying to figure out the math conversion...its somewhere in the 60's)

After a traditional Spanish breakfast(pastry and coffee) I embarked on my new Seville with not a clue of what I was going to do. I haven't planned much of this trip as I'm trying to slowly let go of my need to plan details out. So I decided to take a little walk around the city. I do have a guide book, but accidentally left my big DK book on Spain neatly on my coffee table....at home. I have only my Top 10 book for Andalusia. I take a quick peak and decide to go to the Hospital de la Caridad, which used to be a charity hospital in the center of town. It was nicely redone and the architecture is traditionally Moorish. It's a cool little spot and not too hard to find. Afterwards I try and go to Casa de Pilatos which is supposed to be a mansion that has Christian-Islamic, Gothic and Renaissance architecture. It appears to be at the top of my map(east of the city as I later realize) and not too terribly far, 30 minute walk is what the guard said. I'm thinking that it cannot be THAT difficult to find.

Sure the streets thought the old section is slightly confusing, but they have signs pointing to the tourist destinations. Surely I'll find my way. I wander through the plazas and just have a look around. Trying to get my bearings strait...but all the small streets look the same to me. All cobblestone, all with orange trees(the region is full of orange trees) and all with picturesque brightly colored buildings.

I follow my map and think I'm getting close. I've been walking for a while now, so surely I must be getting close. Columbus had a better time finding India. Naturally I stopped for directions, thank goodness I speak Castellano, Castilian Spanish(which is the main Spanish.) Unfortunately, alot of people speak Andalus, a dialect of Castillian Spanish, and the Castilian they do speak is fast and Spaniards drop their 's' with every word. Thankfully I've been slightly used to this for a while now because of family, but it still take time to adjust. Once I find out where I am on the map I realize that I am a good 2 miles from my point of destination. Fantastic. I manage to make it to the Casa de Pilatos(it's one of the greatest examples of Moorish architecture they say) and I do a little happy dance when I find it. An hour and half later I'm there. As I walk to the massively large front door I notice a white piece of paper taped to the front. "Oh no" I think. Yup, the building is closed(just for today) for a private event. But I am assured that it will reopen tomorrow. Fantastic. I can't help but chuckle at my luck. But I try not to be upset, seeing as how I did get to know the city's atmosphere during my little trek. I turn around and decide to do the Bella Artes art museum as it closes at 8 and it's around 6pm or so now. It's supposed to be the second best art museum next in Spain next to the Prado in Madrid. I'm tired, lost, getting kind hungry and on the totally opposite side of the museum. So I decide to be lazy and take a cab to the museum.

I probably should walk, but figure that it'll take about 30 minutes to cross the city, provided I don't get lost. And only and hour in an art museum is not really enough for me. Five euros later and about 20 minutes I'm outside the museum. I go in and use my student ID(hey it's not my fault I still look so young) and save myself the entrance fee. It look around until close and really enjoyed it. It's full of mostly Spanish artists and does have a few modern pieces, namely Impressionism and Neo Classicism which I tend to favor over the Renaissance portraits. OH and it does have a very good selection of El Greco paintings if you like his expressionism. Overall, a rather solid art museum for a smallish city.

After I leave the museum I meander my way back to the center and heart of the city. It's time for the paseo a time where spanish couples go for walks around the city. Mostly I see elderly couples hand in hand strolling the streets. Very sweet. It's still bright outside and the sun doesn't set until 930ish or so. I stop at the Plaza Nuevo which is more or less the main plaza in the city. There are about a hundred plazas, but this one is the biggest. Not many couples are out because it's been drizzly on and off throughout the day and the sky looks like it's about to open up any second. I decide to head back and see what my new friends are up too for dinner. Dinner here isn't until about 9pm or so, so it's still pretty early. Meet up with them and go for tapas nearby. I love spanish food, it's stuff I grew up on so I wasn't too surprised with the menu. We ordered some potatoes, squid, meat and vegetables and some sort of meat dish that we find out later is cow liver and rib meat. It was tasty I'll have to say, but not something I'd order again. Paired with some sangria(delicious) and we made for some happy times. Headed back early due to the rain and I went to bed, tired and pretty exhausted. But happy.