Today was the day I had been eagerly awaiting since October! I remember it was recently after I had decided that a summer-long European adventure was just what the doctor ordered. I was reading an Entertainment Weekly magazine feature article on the filming of this season of Game of Thrones. Being a GOT fanatic, like most inhabitants of planet earth, I’ve dreamed of making pilgrimages to most GOT filming locations at home and abroad, so when I saw that a significant portion of filming took place in Seville, Spain at the mystifyingly beautiful Alcazar, I knew Seville had to be a destination on my tour de Europa. Every Sunday night when having my mind blown and my heart broken by R.R. Martin and HBO, whenever scenes from House Martell in Kingdom of Dorne would grace the screen, I would excitedly remind my viewing companions that I was going there this summer. Greg and I reminded each other via text every episode as well. So as you can now gather, I had created quite the hype around this visit to the “Kingdom of Dorne.” I’ll go ahead now and say that it absolutely did not disappoint and only delivered. 
   
   
The Alcazar was first largely constructed in the 11th century when the Moors gained control of Seville, but the palace gained its GOT-set-worthy grandeur once Pedro I set his sights on this property as a palatial haven during The Reconquest.  

   
    
   
When you enter through the arches into the gardens, the exotic, tropical beauty overwhelms you. Stone walls engraved with mythological figures and faces frame a seemingly endless quilt of gardens, each square a different blend of flora and fauna, delicately and precisely arranged. “Is this where the water garden scene was?” Greg and I questioned as we rounded every bend. Regardless of not knowing exactly which portion of the gardens was the location of the water garden scene, we strolled merrily through the palatial haven for hours, imagining Myrcella Baratheon/Lannister being courted by Trystane Martell, stopping only to smell the roses (literally) and capture a squawking peacock on film. We met a fellow GOT fan as we were piddling about near a gated fountain, and after enjoying a shared moment of fandom, she requested we take a GOT inspired action photo (evidence below). 

   
    
    
    
   
   
    
    
    
   
After our Alcazar afternoon, we walked to the Seville Cathedral that allegedly houses Christopher Columbus’s remains in addition to an incredible bell tower called La Giralda. The tower provides able bodied tourists with the best view of the entire city. Though unairconditioned, visiting the cathedral is a must. It’s truly a stunning piece of gothic architecture. Different chapels line the perimeter of the interior, each chapel gate and altar competing with one another for most ornate and gold-encrusted. Regardless of genuine authenticity, the sarcophagus that encases Christopher Columbus’s remains, or at least remain (some say it’s only a body part), is worth viewing. It’s kind of an eerie experience to see this tribute to America’s controversially celebrated discoverer.

   
    
    
    
    
    
 The climb to the top of La Giralda is not as strenuous a hike as other steps-happy towers because it is entirely ramps to the top. We can thank the original bell ringer for La Giralda’s somewhat easy accessibility, as he was handicapped, and therefore needed to take a horse to the top daily. Climbing to the top of La Giralda is another must-do in Seville, the views are unmatchable. Greg and I enjoyed locating all the sites we had seen, as well as our hotel’s rooftop pool from this bird’s eye view. In fact, once we spotted our hotel’s rooftop pool, we both immediately decided that it was time to retire the tourist hat for a couple of hours for a much needed submersion into water. Seville: though she be beautiful, she is scorching.

  
Our rooftop pool reminded me of what a Lego house rooftop pool might feel like: compact, colorful, with uneven, square levels . We could barely scamper across the stove-like pool deck without sandals. Upon initial submersion, it was sheer bliss. I think I may have emitted steam upon entering. Greg and I enjoyed some cocktails in the pool and met some interesting retired Americans from Detroit. It felt glorious to relax a bit and to take a vacation from the vacation, if you will. Touring and exploring are fulfilling and rewarding passions of mine, but relaxation days or hours in between are vital to my adventuring well being. 
For dinner we decided on a quintessentially European looking street, or lane I should really say, combed with cafe after cafe. We enjoyed another tapas meal, though Greg may have splurged for a burger here I think, and shared a bottle of vino blanco. After dinner, we walked off our food by getting a tad lost, but ended up finding ourselves in one of the liveliest squares of Seville, brimming with young, hip, and beautiful locals drinking under halos of street lamps, barricaded by open air cafes and bars. We stopped at one, really to use the bano, but got a drink as well. We are pretty sure the good looking young waiter who served us had a big fat crush on Greg. While I was in the bathroom and Greg was scouring our map, our waiter had flirtatiously greeted Greg and offered to walk him back to our hotel, seeing that Greg was lost. I don’t think he was pleased to see me join Greg at our table, but nonetheless he sent us complimentary shots and continued to shoot Greg smiles throughout our midnight cocktail. I teased Greg about breaking hearts in Sevilla until he could stand it no longer, and then we paid a different waitress and fled the scene unnoticed before Greg’s Sevillana Romeo could bat another eyelash.
Coming up: celebrating America’s birthday abroad with a patriotic run and another tower climb.