Orange trees, flamenco and Moorish palaces
Seville distils the romance of southern Spain. The Real Alcázar is a palace of tiled courtyards and gardens built in the Mudéjar style, and the cathedral next door is one of the largest Gothic churches in the world, its bell tower the former minaret known as La Giralda. The Santa Cruz quarter is a maze of whitewashed alleys, and the Plaza de España is a grand semicircle of painted tiles. Evenings are for tapas and flamenco in Triana. Spring brings Holy Week and the April Fair; summer is fiercely hot.