The wonderful city of Seville has a lot to offer: amazing food, great people, fantastic weather, gorgeous monuments and incredible history.
I have already talked about one of the city’s symbols, the Alcázar, and now I will walk you through the other main sight of Seville – or at least one of the most famous ones – the Plaza de España and the nearby amazing park, the Parque de María Luisa.
Plaza de España:
Located a bit further away from the centre, inside the María Luisa park, the Plaza de España was built for the Ibero-American Exposition of 1929. Now, it is an incredible example of architecture mixing a lot of different styles, including the Mudéjar style that you can see at the Alcázar.
After the Exposition, the plaza de España stayed where it was, and it quickly became one of the city’s most famous landmarks. And you can understand why.
You step into this huge plaza, with on one side the María Luisa park, and on the other side this very long, semi-circular wall with an archway on top of it. In between there is a small artificial canal, crossed by colourful bridges and, in the middle a big fountain.
First of all, it is so big that the crowd sort of disappears. You can see tourists gathering under the arches where street dancers dance the flamenco, to enjoy the show or just to get some shade.
However, the first thing you notice when you arrive is the stunning architecture. The circular shape of the building and all the bridges that are meant to represent the ancient kingdoms of Spain somehow give you a sort of “Venice” vibe. Each of them has amazing details and is adorned with colourful tiles.
Talking about tiles, there are many small alcoves on the wall surrounding the plaza that represent the provinces of Spain. They are all different and consist of a main picture, with a bench and, underneath, their location in Spain. They are a perfect place to just sit for a while but also to take nice and colourful pictures!
Parque de María Luisa:
After a visit of the Plaza de España, a stroll around the María Luisa park is almost mandatory, not only to escape from the heat that usually characterises Europe’s hottest city, but also to admire the stunning nature.
Apparently, the park serves as a botanical garden, and when you walk around it, it does not come as a surprise. You can see a huge variety of typical Mediterranean plants like palm trees, orange trees or other exotic plants. There are also many species of birds, and especially doves.
What I liked the most where the small touches that reminded you of the fact that this is not completely “natural”: nicely decorated fountains, archways, colourful benches, ponds, pavilions, etc. This might not be to everyone’s taste, but I thought that it blended in perfectly with the surroundings.
This is also at the María Luisa park that I had one of the strongest Dornish vibes, for all of you who watch Game of Thrones. Maybe it was the ponds, or the peaceful, sunny and relaxed atmosphere, or the nature – I don’t know, but it felt somewhat magical and out-of-this-world!
Finally, it is also a very peaceful place where you can easily get lost and forget about the many tourists that you usually encounter in the centre.
I hope that in this somewhat short post I managed to give you an idea of how wonderful these two places are. They are one of the reasons why I truly think I could live in Seville, and contribute to the city’s atmosphere, a deeply Mediterranean culture with an extremely rich history.
Have you ever been to Seville? What did you think of these landmarks?
Other posts about Spain:
– Day & Night at the Alcázar of Seville
– Life update from Dorne
Your photos look absolutely amazing and so cheerfully colourful. Seville ended up being the biggest surprise on our travels last spring, it’s a city unlike any other. Would love to go back to explore nearby towns because three days proved to be very little time to enjoy beautiful Andalusia
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Thank you so much for your kind comment 😊 I would also love to go back !
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what what what WHAT how have I never heard of Seville? It’s absolutely gorgeous, I’ve added it to the ever-growing bucketlist xx
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Ahah I was also surprised at how beautiful it is! Thanks a lot for your comment 😊
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The Plaza de España is stunning! I love the angles from where you took these pictures and how it allows us to see how splendid they are. Sort of dumbfounded by all the sun considering all the snow we’re having right now hahaha Great post, Juliette! Thanks for sharing it with us. 😀
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Thanks a lot Lashaan! At least it reminds you that the winter will eventually come to an end – or that it still hasn’t started in some parts of the northern hemisphere 😅
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Wow, Juliette! Your pictures are absolutely gorgeous! Every time I read your posts, I always learn something new. It’s awesome! 😊 Both the Plaza de España and Parque de María Luisa look stunning. Seville truly has incredible architecture. Thanks so much for sharing your travels!! 💞
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Thanks a lot for your kind message Nunzia! 😊 I hope I’ll be able to post a new post soon! Have a nice day xx
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Wonderful pictures 😍 The park looks fantastic, and I love all these Spanish-vibes tiles! 😍 I’d truly love to visit Seville now, thanks so much for sharing! 😍
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Thank you so much for your comment! The tiles are definitely one of my favourite things about Seville! I hope you’ll be able to visit one day! 😊
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gorgeous squae!
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Thank you ! It is really wonderful! 😊
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Plaza de España is my favourite place in Seville…my favourite visit was early on a Sunday morning, there weren’t many people milling about, a busker had already started playing and people were just starting to take the boats out. Was so peaceful, I absolutely loved it!
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Wow, that sounds lovely! 😍 I was also quite lucky as it wasn’t too crowded but I can’t imagine how incredible it must feel when it is almost empty… 😍
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