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You talkin' to me?
Check out the bullfight we caught in Sevilla.
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A wounded bull tries to turn under the cape,
forcing the torero out of position. There's no graceful recovery in
store for this bullfighter. Score one for El Toro.
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Have you ever wondered about what
goes on backstage at a bullfight? I found the behind-the-scenes activities
to be as colorful and also as gruesome as the events in the ring.
I don't think you can really debate the sport, nor enjoy the
spectacle, until you have seen the aftermath.
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A horse team and handlers hustle a bull out of the ring.
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It just would not be a Spanish street scene without a moto.
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A mixture of the new, the old, and the quite dilapidated in
Sevilla.
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In 1195, La Giralda was built as the minaret of a mosque on this site. Now,
it is the belfry of Sevilla's Cathedral.
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Buttresses, pinnacles, crests and all sorts of Gothic goodies of
Sevilla's Cathedral.
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Three iron crosses in Barrio de Santa Cruz, Sevilla.
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Plaza de España built for Sevilla's 1929
Exposición Iberoamericana. The tilework is really something
else.
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A wooden dome ceiling in the Alcázar of Sevilla. The gold in the star patterns reflected nicely off the flash.
I think this may be the Salòn de Embajadores.
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A little whitewashed village north of Ronda.
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An abandoned farm building, north of
Ronda.
We found the countryside of Andalucía and Extremadura
eerily de-populated.
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Plaza de Toros -- Ronda's bullring.
Ronda is the home of modern bullfighting, but
fights are now rarely staged in this out-of-the-way agricultural town.
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A tapas masterpiece!
These guys at a little tapas bar in Granada are
maestros just like master sushi chefs.
Just when the platter looks done, they pull out five
more ingredients and start chopping, slicing and carving like crazy. These
plates took about ten minutes to prepare.
BTW: The Spanish are crazy about ham in all forms,
especially if the hoof is still on the ham. Yike!
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Motos aren't just a good idea, they're the law.
The Tele Pizza service, not pictured here, must own an armada of 10,000
motos, scattered throughout every major town and city of Spain.
These bikes are ready for action in Madrid.
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A juxtaposition of four crafts at the Alhambra
in Granada. The wood door, the tile, the plaster relief and the leather
chair all clash together -- fit for a sultan.
I believe that this door is on the Patio de los Arrayanes (Patio of the
Myrtles).
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A view from the Generalife towards
the Alhambra in Granada.
If you visit the Alhambra, don't miss the Generalife, the
"Garden of the Architect". The vibe is completely different than over
at the Alhambra.
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We happened to pass through Granada on the
Festival of the Cross. The holiday is a great excuse for grandparents
to dress up the kids in traditional dress -- and for the rest of the
town to walk around Plaza Nueva drinking some sweet local hooch.
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The alcaicería in Granada
is a pretty good place to pick up a flamenco dress.
There is plenty of moorish influence throughout the narrow little
alleys. Take away the dresses, and you could
be at the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul.
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A 14th century castle transformed into a parador in Oropesa, west of Madrid in Castilla-La Mancha. The paradors are a collection
of old, charming, and sometimes spectacular inns run by the national
government to promote tourism.
If, for some very strange reason, you would like to see the hotels that we stayed in, have at 'em. These pages will be quite boring unless
you are planning a trip to Spain.
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The bullring in Toledo. Check out the
moorish arches that are echoed throughout the building.
Ahh, Sombra.
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The belltower of the Catedral de Toledo (Cathedral of Toledo), reflected in the window of an armor shop.
In centuries past, if you needed a good knife, a sword, or
even a whole suit of armor, Toledo was the place to go. Come to
think of it, Toledo is still where you would go...
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These monkeys, at the top of the Rock of Gibraltar,
seem cute and cuddly. We were warned, however, in no uncertain
terms: "Beware the Rock Ape," and steered well clear.
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