Tag: feria

Made in Sevilla

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hecho en sevilla 2013
v hecho en sevillaThe 5th edition of the Hecho en Sevilla
(Made in Sevilla) Craft Fair starts today!

Sponsored by the Federación de Artesanos de Sevilla (FAS) in collaboration with City Hall and Sevilla Tourism, this year 23 artisans will have a wide selection of their hand-made crafts on display. Show your support for local talent and at the same time pick up some unique gifts or a treat for yourself.

Calle Fray Ceferino González
(between the Cathedral & Archivo de Indias)
3 – 15 April, 2013
10.30 – 2.30 / 5.00 – 8.30

Patios and Feria in Córdoba

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I’d been trying to do a day trip to Cordóba all during May, as that’s the month when everything seems to be happening there, and although I missed the Cruz de Mayo and the Festival of the Patios, I finally made it on the last Friday of the month, in time for the Cordóba Feria, which was also my 20th anniversary of living in Spain, so that turned out to be a good choice.  And the weather was perfect.

First stop was for late breakfast/elevenses, at a little café alongside the Plaza de Colón, with some rather yummy tostadas topped with olive oil, fresh tomato and tiny taquitos of jamón. Thus fortified, it was off past the Torre de la Malmuerta (tower of the bad death) to our first stop, and one of the main reasons for coming to Cordóba, the newly opened Palacio de Viana, the Palace of the Patios. As you can see from the photos below, this wonderful 500-year-old building has no fewer than eleven interconnecting patios, as well as a garden, each with its own individual design and character. Really worth a visit. Also nice that it’s a bit outside the main tourist area around the Mezquita, and wo walking back to the centre through the winding streets of the old town we saw a part of the city that we hadn’t seen before.

Palacio de Viana

Along the way we stopped off in the Plaza de la Corredera for a pre-lunch cold beer. This is a magnificent Castilian-style Plaza Mayor, apparently the only one of its kind in Andalucía, mostly built in the late 17th century, although the buildings on the south side of the square where the market (a former prison) is are even older. The name comes from the fact that it was once used for bullfighting, and it is also thought to be the site of the Roman amphitheatre. Then it was off to find some lunch…
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Córdoba Feria 2012

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[youtube=”http://youtu.be/PATKgtofgxs”]

[watch full screen if possible]

Some pics from my first visit to the Feria de Córdoba. Another fair, like the one in Jerez, that is totally different to the Feria de Sevilla and which, in my opinion, is much better. The casetas are larger (with air con) and are open to the public. Depending on what you fancy you can opt for traditional flamenco music (sevillanas), flamenco rock, salsa, disco… the casetas ranged from fairly rough & ready tents to solid structures decorated like country homes with servers dressed in maid’s outfits. You can get some great looking food, watch the crowds or join in, or stroll the streets and enjoy the parade of horses and carriages in the afternoon.

It really felt like being at a country fair – I even went on the ferris wheel! Too bad we were just there for a couple of hours in the afternoon. I found myself wishing that I could stay to see the fairground lit up at night but duty called and we had tickets booked on the 19.30 train (which we almost missed, arriving at the station with about two minutes to spare).

Note: at 2.44 is the horse of the day – a gorgeous beast, my photo doesn’t do him justice.

Travel tip: the Sevilla – Córdoba Avant (19.10€ one way)  is much better value than the Ave (33.20€) and takes the same amount of time (45 minutes). And if you return on the same day you get a 20% discount.

La Feria de Abril

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Today’s post is by guest contributor Kim from Becoming Sevillana

During my year and a half in Seville, I have been trying to find out what it means to be Sevillana. Some aspects of my British roots are ingrained in me, such as the incessant need to apologise and give thanks unnecessarily, but like most Sevillanos I long for the festive season, for Semana Santa (Holy Week), and most importantly, la feria de abril.

As its name indicates, it is normally held in April, two weeks after Easter, which is later this year, making it fall in May (2nd-8th). It is a week-long celebration revolving around friends, family, eating and drinking. It is a sensory overload – of colour: women sporting their vibrant trajes de flamenca and funnily-named pinstriped casetas lining the streets – and music: the constant melody of sevillanas will definitely be an earworm by the end of the week.

Feria takes place in the Los Remedios area, to the west of the city. The real (feria site) is an impressive 450,000m², a vast space that sits empty for the remaining 51 weeks of the year. The land is divided into 15 streets named after bullfighting greats, and accommodates 1048 casetas – temporary marquee style establishments, where people meet, eat, get merry and of course dance sevillanas.

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