Phew!

Got back from Spain early yesterday morning - had a great time. Visited Seville, Cordoba and Granada, and ticked off most of the touristy things (ie. tapas, jerez, flamenco, architecture, pickpocket victim, visit to the police station etc).

Here are a few of my impressions of these places, along with a couple of tit-bits of potentially useful info for the discerning traveller:

Seville

Impressions:

Friendly people, amazingly on time for everything; excellent transport system (buses, tram and cycle routes); tasty tapas; beautiful gardens and interesting Moorish architecture (although not as much as I'd expected). Feels like a 'real' city (particularly the El Centro district).

Tips:

1) Albergue Juvenil Sevilla
Otherwise known as Seville YH. Not so out of town as all that, whatever the guide books would have you believe. #34 bus takes you directly to the city centre in 10 mins or so. Get a bonobus card to make using the bus cheaper (10 journeys for 5€ (no transfers) or 6€ (transfers included)). Particularly fab as one card can be shared between several people.

Tends to be very noisy at night as there are a lot of school parties staying here, and the 11pm curfew does not seem to be imposed at all. Also, the building seems to have been designed to allow all residents the opportunity to hear a pin drop several floors and corridors away.... Other than that, the facilities are great (all 2 and 3 bed, ensuite rooms; breakfast included).

2) Flamenco
Don't pay loads to see a flamenco show - go to La Carboneria (c/Levies 18) on a Thursday night instead for the price of a locally produced Cruzcampo cerveza. Flamenco starts around 11pm.

3) Barrios
Barrio means quarter, of which there are several in Seville.

Santa Cruz is the much raved about barrio near the Cathedral. However, we found it to be a pleasant but rather false place - stuck in time, but for tourist purposes.

Triana is where the gypsies used to live and some gypsy families apparently still live there. Rough Guide raves about this area being a good place to go if you're after finding flamenco.

If you need the loo, Triana market has some, but watch out - it is also a good place to have your purse knabbed by a pickpocket...the less said about that the better, although I will just mention that at times like this it is very handy to have a Hubby who speaks Spanish.

La Macarena - didn't visit this area much but did go through it on the #5 bus (we had already walked miles and my legs were aching). Don't think there's much to see here anyway really.

El Centro - the main shopping area. Lively and pleasant. Wide range of shops and an El Corte Inglés with supermarket in the basement, should you wish to shop for a picnic in a slightly more purse-friendly environment than the Mercado de Triana.

Loos and good granizada de limón available.

4) Don't spend ages looking for a statue of Carmen around the old tabacco factory. The statue is across the road from the bull ring.

5) Trains
The train from Seville to Cordoba is very fast (approx. 45 mins) and is quite expensive if you buy your ticket 4 mins before the train departs. Ticket desk people don't seem to be able to speak; they just swipe your card through and before you know it you've spent nearly 60€ on two one way tickets. As an alternative, you can catch the bus, although this takes 2 hours or so.

6) Important Food
Churros and chocolate - a good place is Calenteria, c/Cano y Cueto 7. Murillo gardens are close by if you fancy sitting outside.

Ice cream - we had a very tasty one at Heladeria Rayas, c/Almirante Apodacha 1.

My Seville Top 10 (in no particular order):

Gardens - Parque de Maria Luisa and Alcazar Gardens
Real Alcazar
Museo Arqueologico
Casa de Pilatos
Museo de Bellas Artes
Tapas at El Rinconcillo
Cycle paths and buses
El Centro
Flamenco at La Carboneria
Churros and chocolate

Hmmm...actually feeling slightly tired now, what with reliving the experience and not being able to sleep at night due to the lack of banging doors and screaming adolescents. Will continue later, after my siesta.