The real reason it's nice to visit a place a second time.
Two days ago when we walked out of the archeology museum I noted some white dots off in the gardens and made a mental note to return. Thinking that they were some sort of lily, we went back today in search of the spring gardens in the Maria Luisa Park. There were none, and the Calla Lilies turned out to be white pigeons sitting on the top of the park benches. So much for long range vision.
We spent the better part of today just roaming around. Being able to do this is an unexpected benefit of visiting a place for a second time. The first trip is dedicated to checking off all the boxes, seeing the things you have to see and learning your way around. The second trip has no schedule so you can do whatever you want. And today, like yesterday and the day before, was dedicated to just walking the streets and taking in the different sights.
The day began as always with coffee at Las Milagritos, our number one place next to the Giralda. It was empty and pretty much remained that way until a German tour group dropped in for coffee and cokes. From there we wandered down Avenida de la Constitución towards the park and the pigeons. But we never made it, choosing instead to spend a few minutes investigating Sevilla's rather suboptimal subway system (one line, stops in weird places) and then crossing the bridge to Triana, the grittier part of town on the far side of the river. All the best bullfighters come from Triana which is not surprising. It seems like a pretty tough place. We walked through it last year, concentrating on the highlights in the guidebooks. This year we just wandered through neighborhoods.
After a break we went out again, this time towards the park and for a spin through the Plaza de España, site of the 1929 Iberoamerican Exposition. It's quite an impressive place, all red brick and colorful ceramic tile. Our last visit had been like a trip to a solar furnace - late April being the beginning summer of in Sevilla - this year's temperature was far more pleasant.
We ended the day at l'Oca Giuliva, the italian restaurant that we'd tried two nights ago. Once again the place filled up almost instantly after we sat down. I asked the head waiter about this and he told us that they had two seatings, one around 8:30 and another at 10:00. Walk-ins were almost never catered to, and so we were lucky. I had another tortellini dish, MLW Genovese pesto pasta. A couple of glasses of wine and two shots of limoncello and we were good for the evening.
By the time we got out, it was raining again so we cancelled our plans for people watching, instead heading home to sample some cookies we'd bought in a little bakery up the street. Tiny cannolis filled with a light almond creme. Perfect.
We spent the better part of today just roaming around. Being able to do this is an unexpected benefit of visiting a place for a second time. The first trip is dedicated to checking off all the boxes, seeing the things you have to see and learning your way around. The second trip has no schedule so you can do whatever you want. And today, like yesterday and the day before, was dedicated to just walking the streets and taking in the different sights.
The day began as always with coffee at Las Milagritos, our number one place next to the Giralda. It was empty and pretty much remained that way until a German tour group dropped in for coffee and cokes. From there we wandered down Avenida de la Constitución towards the park and the pigeons. But we never made it, choosing instead to spend a few minutes investigating Sevilla's rather suboptimal subway system (one line, stops in weird places) and then crossing the bridge to Triana, the grittier part of town on the far side of the river. All the best bullfighters come from Triana which is not surprising. It seems like a pretty tough place. We walked through it last year, concentrating on the highlights in the guidebooks. This year we just wandered through neighborhoods.
After a break we went out again, this time towards the park and for a spin through the Plaza de España, site of the 1929 Iberoamerican Exposition. It's quite an impressive place, all red brick and colorful ceramic tile. Our last visit had been like a trip to a solar furnace - late April being the beginning summer of in Sevilla - this year's temperature was far more pleasant.
We ended the day at l'Oca Giuliva, the italian restaurant that we'd tried two nights ago. Once again the place filled up almost instantly after we sat down. I asked the head waiter about this and he told us that they had two seatings, one around 8:30 and another at 10:00. Walk-ins were almost never catered to, and so we were lucky. I had another tortellini dish, MLW Genovese pesto pasta. A couple of glasses of wine and two shots of limoncello and we were good for the evening.
By the time we got out, it was raining again so we cancelled our plans for people watching, instead heading home to sample some cookies we'd bought in a little bakery up the street. Tiny cannolis filled with a light almond creme. Perfect.
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