Seville, Home of Flamenco Dancers
Ağustos 16, 2010 | Cities in the Mediterranean
Seville which has a history of more than 2000 years old is the most important an largest city of Andalusia and the artistic, cultural, and financial capital of southern Spain. The town is situated on the plain of the River Guadalquivir possessing an average elevation of 7 metres above sea level. The inhabitants are referred to as Sevillanos
CULTURE: The city owes its distinct personality and well-preserved historical centre to the various civilizations established in this region throughout history. Sevilles has received heavy influences from Arabic culture on top of the strong medieval, renaissance and baroque heritage it offers its visitors.
A great architecture of the city is expressed through historical buildings such as the Cathedral of Santa Maria, a gothic-style construction with an outstanding collection of art. It is also the place where the rests of Christopher Columbus and San Fernando lie. Seville is also the city of great monuments and among them one can find the Giralda, the Alcazar Palace (a Moorish building), and the Torre de Oro.
On two occasions in the 20th century Seville has been in the spotlight of the world’s attention. In 1929, it hosted the Latin American Exhibition, which left important urban improvements in the city. More recently, Expo 92 reinforced the image of Seville as a modern and dynamic city.The city also assumed an important role in world literature and was the birthplace of the myth of Don Juan.
ECONOMY: Due to its size and location, Seville is economically the strongest of the Andalusian cities. The infrastructure available in the city contributes to the growth of an economy dominated by the service sector, but in which industry still holds a considerable place
NIGHTLIFE & TAPAS: Nightlife in Seville is an incredible and lively social celebration that involves people of all ages and also an array of activities. Generally it develops in stages, starting after 21.00 with dinner at the tapas bar.
The tapas are very unique of the town and something that should not be missed out in Sevilles.
There are thousands of these bars where the choice of food, is virtually unlimited, from seafood to ham and sausage and from vegetable to cheese. The tradition for the Sevillians actually is to make a meal of them, moving from bar to bar and trying one dish at a time. At these places it is very common to see entire families sitting and eating together. These are considered to be special socializing times as well and the meals usually take a while as Sevillians like to speak and sample different tapas one at a time along with sipping a small,, the traditional beer of Seville called Cruzcampo.
From tapas, people mostly move on to other places to further celebrate the night: the Bares de copas (a normal bar), a flamenco bar, or a discoteca are among such. In any case it iss quite a habit over here to move around a lot throughout the night, stopping only for a couple of beers in any given place before heading back out on la marcha. This is supposed to be a walk from place to place to burns off some of the calories.
The nights could be a little different for younger inhabitants of the town: On weekends they mostly prefer to gather around midnight in plazas and squares and in the street. This is called a botellón and everyone brings their own drinks, ice, and cups for the festivities. These types of gatherings can go on for hours and reach huge numbers in some places. Young people tend to prefer the discotecas as the next stop, to finish off the night at 6 or 7 in the morning.
Seville also boasts a number of Irish, English, and Scottish type pubs, a lively gay and lesbian scene, and a variety of live music venues. Basically, whatever you are into, you can find it in Seville.
FLAMENCO & SEVILLANAS: Flamenco dancers in Seville.. The Sevillanas dance, commonly presented as flamenco, is not thought to be of Sevillan origin. But the folksongs called Sevillanas are authentically Sevillan, as is the four-part dance that goes with them.
Seville, and most significantly the traditionally gypsy barrio, Triana, was a major centre in the development of flamenco.
Festivals: Semana Santa and the Seville Fair, La Feria de Sevilla (also Feria de Abril, “April Fair”) are the two most well-known of Seville’s festivals. Seville is internationally renowned for the solemn but beautiful processions during Holy Week and the colourful and lively fair held two weeks after. During Feria, families, businesses and organizations set up casetas, marquees, in which they spend the week dancing, drinking, and socializing. Traditionally, women wear elaborate flamenco dresses and men dress in their best suits. The marquees are set up on a permanent fairground in which each street is named after a famous bullfighter.
TEMPERATURE: Seville has a hot-summer Mediterranean climate. The annual average temperature is 18.6 °C which makes this city one of the warmest in Europe. Winters are mild: January is the coolest month, with average maximum temperatures of 15.9 °C and minimum of 5.2 °C• Summers are blazing hot.