Full Day of Touring

 We arose early to stroll the streets while the city was waking up.  Students, shop workers, and business people made their way through the mostly deserted streets on their way to starting their day.

Our first stop of the day was the Alcazar, which means palace.  This massive complex has been built and added onto during the years with ancient walls and shining rooms.  We spent quite a bit of time roaming the well manicured gardens while the light was nice.

Afterwards we stopped in one of the alleys for an al fresco breakfast.  We then strolled to Plaza de España.  This served as the Ibero-American Expo of 1929.  The tiles were all hand painted and at its peak took a thousand people to complete the project.  A small pond encircles the center plaza and has visitors canoeing around it.

For lunch we again dined al fresco.  Of note was the variety of croquettes served before the main course.  We also had Russian salad, which we would call potato salad.

After an afternoon break we walked to an art restoration business.  They specialize in wood and canvass work.  One of the restorers showed us an xray that had been used to determine the work they needed to do on a wooden statue. Small brushes and stops were used to clean dirt from both a statue and a canvas.

After the demonstration we boarded a bus to a Flamenco school.  This small facility teaches beginners the arid the dance.  A guitarist, singer, and two dancers performed several songs for us to show the breadth of the emotions captured in this dance form.

For dinner we went to Espacio T.  A private dining venue, the multi course meal was prepared and plated in front of our semicircular dining table.  The food was amazing!!!

Tomorrow: Out into the country