Seville, Day 2

Day two of class, day four of vacation, and we had clouds. Class this day was really hard. My brain was tired, and I was frustrated. Although one of my professors told me how well I speak, I wasn't hearing it. Of course, speaking has to do with pronunciation, intonation, inflection, etc., and all I cared about was my inability to convey information. For one of my classmates, it seemed so easy! As Wendy tried to remind me, I really shouldn't compare myself with a native Italian speaker. I also realized that I had a crush on my other professor, and so felt like a teenager.

Our plan for after class was to go to the Plaza de España and the museums in the park, because they were open until 8:00. This was Wendy's favorite spot in the city and the place she most wanted to return to. The clouds were still with us, but we took off. Sadly, just as we arrived at the Plaza, it started to rain. We did what we could until the rain turned into a downpour, then took refuge under the eaves.


Plaza de España is a favorite spot in the city, constructed in 1929 for the international fair, the Exposición Iberoamerica. It's all brick and tile, and quite amazing.


Tile tile everywhere.



Looking out to the central fountain, then trying to stay dry upstairs.



Looking out at the bridge and central portico.



The ceilings were incredible!



Another angle to the fountain.

Finally, the rain cleared, and we headed back out.


The old states of Spain surround the outside. I took this one because I've been to Cuenca, Ecuador. Below, you can see the tilework on the bridge better from this angle.



Beautiful walkways, of tile and stone.


We headed over to the museums, wanting to see both the Museo de Artes y Costumbres Populares (Decorative Arts) and the Museo Arqueológico (Archaeology). These are housed in some of the really fantastical buildings from the fair.


This is the Decorative Arts Museum.



The courtyard of the museum.


Oh, this was wonderful! The museum covers all kinds of amazing work, including reproducing household rooms and shops. Near the restrooms downstairs they had all the casks which smelled of sherry! It was an unexpected and lovely smell.


This is from the archaeology museum. Amazing material, much from Roman times. But it was having some trouble too, and one room was closed because of the inside rain.

Unfortunately, the rain which had come and gone for the afternoon was back, and in buckets. We watched amazed as they swept gallons of water from the entryway of the museum. Finally we decided that we could wait no longer for it to let up -- because it clearly wasn't going to -- and we made a break for the nearest bus stop. Of course, they weren't going where we needed, and with the rain, it took us more than 20 minutes to hail a cab. Finally we did, and it was remarkable to watch the cab carve its way through the narrow twisting streets in our neighborhood. We made do for dinner with whatever we found in the fridge, and set to homework. I felt badly for Wendy, fighting a cold and having the place she most wanted to go drowned out in what turned out to be our only bad weather day.