Plaza de Espana at Blue Hour
Although this large open square, Plaza de España, may look several hundred years old, it was built relatively recently, 1929, when Seville, Spain hosted the World’s Fair. Access to this plaza and the huge adjacent gardens is free and it is so large it is never very crowded. Great local music was being played and echoing around the tiled hallways as I explored this plaza.
Visiting popular sites such as Plaza de España is what the double decker Hop-On-Hop-Off (Ho-Ho) buses are good for. Irritating as they are, we keep riding them, for multiple days at a time. They give you an OK overview of the area when one does not have a rental car. It was unbearably hot when we were in Seville, with high humidity, or we would likely have explored more. It doesn’t help that we do not get around till mid afternoon….. Turns out a Segway is a great way to explore on such days so I took my first lesson and then a 90 minute Segway tour around this landmark and adjacent gardens. A very enjoyable tour, on several levels…
Ana, the Tour Guide from Natureway, Segway Tours
If you are ever in Seville and need a good Segway Tour, I had a lot of fun on this one: Natureway Segway Tours
Plaza de España Seville, Spain
Plaza de España has a canal encircling about half of it where one can rent rowboats and paddle around a while, under bridges and past fountains.
Plaza de Espana Fountain Rainbow
Plaza de Espana Canal and Boat Panorama
Rub a Dub Dub, Peeking through the banisters of a bridge.
Espana Yellow and Blue Tiled Bridge
Plaza de España row boat peeks out from under a bridge
Plaza de España row boat couple, plus the ever present evening swallows.
One section had what appeared to be colorful burial crypts or coffins so I was disappointed to learn they are simply tiled benches from all of the many provinces of Spain.
Plaza de Espana and its 50 Alcove Benches
Not only was this vast plaza and adjacent huge park created for the World’s Fair, but the streets surrounding this plaza were lined with beautiful, opulent homes for the wealthy citizens of Seville of the time. The goal was to build some lasting structures to prevent “ugly commercial buildings” from encroaching on this area after the fair.
The Plaza de España has been the site of movies from Laurence of Arabia to Star Wars.
Goodnight from the Plaza de Espana
Gracias desde Natureway, mil gracias!!!!
Tuve un gran tiempo en la gira, gracias
That looks wonderful.
The only thing missing is a barber.
Because you are such a dedicated fan…. I promise to soon post ‘Tales of the Barber of Seville’….. Thank you for following my posts.
I especially like the photo with the rainbow. . .
Thank you. The rainbow was constantly there due to the fine spray of water.
Great post. Even the sky helped your beautiful pictures. Thanks for sharing.