no one ever expects the Spanish Inquisition!

we couldn't spend another day in Albufeira when we weren't sure if Ze do Peixe Assado would be open, so we got on a bus out of Portugal, and on to Sevilla, Spain. the Spanish countryside changed slightly as we rolled North away from the coast. lots of vineyards, and lots of clay soil. once we got into an urban environment though, the first thing we noticed is lots of billboards and posters of Dewars Scotch advertisements featuring Ed Harris. (did i miss something? why do the Spanish love him so much? i guess it's like Bill Murray's character in Lost in Translation). get off the bus, and some American study abroad students suggest taking a cab to our hostel, because it's far and confusing. when all the cabbies refuse to give us a ride (we can't understand why), we say screw it, and start walking. on the map, it didn't look like a bad walk, but very soon we were on TINY streets that were not on our map, and we had no choice but to keep walking. not to worry though, because we navigated these crazy streets better than Columbus (not my favorite navigator, but i saw the tomb that holds his remains today, so i'm sticking with it).

catedral

changed up and headed out for dinner around 10pm. stared at the menu until we recognized some of the items from our guidebook and ordered. had some sangria that was disappointing, but i'm willing to try again. went to a bar where Michael was dumb enough to order a Guinness (in Spain?). it was terrible. we played pool for a bit against three Norwegians, a German, and a local Spanish guy (complete with stylish Euro mullet - they're everywhere in Spain) and called it a night.

catedral 01

walked all around Sevilla today, seeing the Catedral which allegedly was plannedin 1401 by Reconquistadores who wanted to show their devotion to god so badly, that they wanted to build a church so great that "those who come after us will take us for madmen." truth. this thing is HUGE! no wonder all the streets here are so tiny, they had to make room for the Catedral. inside we saw the tomb that holds Columbus' remains. we climbed to the top and enjoyed the view of Sevilla, but the way down was a trip, as a flock of 12-13 year old girls cat-called us. whistling, saying "gouapo!" and doing the famed "tsss tsss tsss!" that is usually carried out by Spanish men towards attractive girls. apparently, this younger genration is taking a page out of their book. we also took a stroll down to the bullfighting ring which is huge here, however, the tickets for the fight (if there is one today - we're not sure) are 75 Euros a piece... too steep for our pockets unfortunately. early train to Barcelona tomorrow!

catedral 02

catedral 03

catedral 06

catedral 07

catedral 08

tiny streets