Everyone except Blake and me had decided to leave Seville and go to the town of Huevla on the coast almost to Portugal. I felt that I hadn't seen enough of Seville and I didn't want to rush another city as I had with Amsterdam and Brussels. They would pick us up at 6:00 in front of the Plaza del Toros.
I took a quick shower and ate the mediocre breakfast of tasteless cereal and warm milk. (The non-refrigerated milk is one of the few things that I don't like about Spain. I shop at one particular market just to buy cold milk).
We checked out of the hostel and returned our keys. The hostel was cool as they let us stow our bags behind the counter so we wouldn't have to carry them all day.
Trying to walk under the canopies of the shops to avoid the pouring rain, we headed in the direction of the cathedral. It didn't open until 2:30, but I had seen an advertisement for an exhibit about Spain's relationship to the US that was being held at the "Archives of the Indies" right across from the Cathedral.
Escaping the rain, there was no admission as we entered the beautiful old building and climbed the wide marble stair case to the second floor where the exhibit was held.
Thousands of boxes containing archives and historical information lined the walls from floor to ceiling. Set up along the long spanning hallways were large cabinets and posters, each describing a historical period of time of the Spanish influence and relationship to the North American continent and the subsequent interaction with the United States.
It was an incredible exhibit and I learned so much that I didn't know about my own country. I had only been taught that France had helped the US in the Revolutionary War, but according to the documents and archives, Spain had played a huge part by giving a large amount of money and military assistance to the colonies. The most ridiculous thing was the history of the dollar, which was originally a Spanish currency borrowed by the US to pay the revolutionaries. After the war we kept the name and the currency. There were also descriptions of the Spanish perspective of Manifest Destiny and the Mexican-American War. Why I had not learned any of Spain's significant contributions and influence before was very surprising as I didn't feel that it was random facts, but rather large and very important information regarding the development of the United States.
At 2:00 we went over to the Cathedral and got in line. We talked to an older couple from Michigan and then met up with our other UC friends who had come on the bus yesterday and this morning. With our student discount entrance to the cathedral was 2 euros.
The cathedral in Sevilla is one of the largest in the world with towering ceilings, incredible, decorations, and exquisite design. I loved seeing Columbus' tomb, held in the air by 4 giant statues.
We went straight toward "La Giralda" the ancient 100 meter high watch tower that had ramps instead of stairs so that the guards could ride their horses to the top. From the top of the watchtower, we were treated to spectacular views of Seville. If I hadn't already enjoyed the city, I definitely felt a connection at this point as I looked out at the city lined with palm trees and the river. We finished touring the Cathedral and then decided on a restaurant. As it was siesta, many restaurants were closed, so we ended up going to a Chinese restaurant for a great, inexpensive lunch.
Blake and I had to meet up with our group at 6:00 so after playing in a gift shop and walking once more around the centro, we said goodbye to our American friends and headed back to the hostel. We thought we knew where we were going, but ended up getting really lost. We eventually got to the hostel, grabbed our bags and then met up with everyone in front of the Plaza del Toros. I guess they had a good time in Huelva, but I was very happy that I stayed the extra day in Seville.
The drive back to Granada was easy and we reached the city around 10:00. For dinner we went to the "EuriBar" where all of the tapas with drinks are only 1 euro. The grand total for the entire trip including car rental, gas, hostel, restaurant food, and admission to museums was 50 euros. My friends who had taken the bus had paid 33 euros just to get there. We still had the cars until tomorrow evening and with no school due to a national holiday, we decided that we would explore the Granada Province by heading to the city of Guadix tomorrow morning.
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