Seville, Lisbon and Porto

By
irmanadz

15th June 2015

Hola from #irmanadztravels again!

After a goodnight rest over at Seville’s hotel, we head for city tour. In particular, we couldn’t forget the visit to Parque De Maria Luisa and Plaza de Espana which is one of Seville’s most beautiful buildings. The Parque de Maria Luisa is Andalucia’s most seductive city. Perhaps, it is a smart choice for those in search of history, culture and romance. Combine seeing the main sights with exploring its interesting neighbourhoods – and of one of Europe’s most charming parks. For a moment there, I thought we were experiencing autumn. As we walk down the park, we reached the Plaza de Espana! It is a massive building in Seville. I’d say most impressive here for its sheer scale and grandeur. Plaza de Espana is a semi-circular brick building with 2 towers at both ends, making it so visible from afar. This place reminds me a lil bit of Venice, especially when you can actually rent a boat to go round the canal.

One interesting fact about Plaza de Espana: It has been used over the decades as a location for filming several movies, such as Star Wars, Lawrence of Arabia.

Parque de Maria Luisa

Anyways, it was at this plaza, that Irman was hooked to some Spanish Instrumental Song – El Pastor Solitario (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6l5ZpCbQAOM). After admiring the tour round Seville, we head over to the gothic Seville Cathedral that lead us to the entrance of the Giralda Tower (aka Bell Tower). The Catedral de Sevilla was built on the site of a mosque, being the 3rd largest church in Europe and largest Gothic building in Europe. The interior is covered with gold. I mean it, no kidding. The highlight of it all was the Giralda Tower. We looked forward to some form of ‘exercise’ – climbed up 34 levels just to get a panoramic view of Seville. No regrets 🙂 After all that exercising, it’s time for lunch at Hotel Eme (down the road) – creamy carbonara and tomato ravioli. Wah, zhen de hen hăochī.

Exterior of the Seville Cathedral

The Bell Tower

Interior of the Seville Cathedral

More exterior – taken from the Giraldar Tower

After lunch, we head to PORTUGAL – Lisbon and Porto! At Lisbon, we visited the Jeronimos Monastery. It is the most impressive symbol of Portugal’s power and wealth during the Age of Discovery. Then, the Belem Tower, a monument to Portugal’s Age of Discovery, often serving as a symbol of the country, and UNESCO has listed it as a World Heritage. Lastly, we reached the Navigator’s Monument (by the sea, ahhh chilly cold). This monument was believed to honor the great Henry the Navigator, who led Portugal’s discovery expeditions into the New World during the country’s heyday in the 15th century. Honestly, I find it bloody hard to remember the places we visited at Lisbon – it was just too many at one go. i had to do some research just to come out with a brief description of each place. Guess what – it seems like I had some learning for post-holiday? But one thing for sure – I remember Lisbon for its creamy egg tarts. I’m a sucker for egg tarts especially from KFC. These egg tarts from Lisbon are phenomenal, I’d say! We want more!

Belem Tower

Jeronimos Monastery

Navigator’s Monument

After lunch (in which we made friends with the Bangla waiter), we head to Porto – to tour around. Unfortunately, it was at night (again). I do feel that they shouldn’t do tour of city after sunset. I literally can’t see how beautiful the whole city. Anyways, our tour started fairly late due to the fact that we spent over an hour at Graham’s Port Wine, where we bought gifts for our respective bosses. By then, its too late to enjoy the city tour. This city has 6 bridges in total due to the Douro River that separates Gaia and Porto. Such a pity we can’t really admire the beauty of all those bridges.

Eggtarts from Lisbon

Lunch at Lisbon

The next day, we head over to Segovia, in which we witnessed the Roman Aqueduct, Gothic Cathedral and Alcazar of Segovia. We are so amazed by the Roman Aqueduct of Segovia that was probably built in AD 50. It was remarkably well-preserved! This impressive construction, with its two tiers of arches, forms part of the setting of the magnificent historic city of Segovia. Unlike the Roman Aqueduct, we could only admire the beauty of the Gothic Cathedral and Alcazar of Segovia from outside. By then, I think we were too tired to even tour round another….. cathedral. Ooops. Anyways, the Alcazar de Segovia somewhat reminds me of the Cinderella’s castle in Walt Disney World. Enjoy the pictures below!