A Weekend of Hurricanes and Virgins

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Joaquín is going to fuck up your weekend, my friend told me in a Facebook message. Who is this Joaquín and what has he got to do with my weekend, I wondered.

Joaquín turned out to be a hurricane set to tear through Andalusia last bank holiday weekend, when everyone had made travel plans. Including me. Sigh.

Well, a little wind and rain wasn’t going to deter us, and so my pal Noelia and I embarked on the five-hour drive down south on Friday evening to spend the weekend with some friends who had shamelessly abandoned us in Toledo and moved to Carmona, a small town about 30 minutes east of Seville.

In the end, Joaquín was very considerate, unleashing his unholy fury in the dead of Saturday night while we slept off our dinner.

However, despite being spared a torrential downpour in the daytime, it wasn’t the best weather for taking photos. But I shall post a few of them anyway. Coz my mum likes them…

A handful of shots of Seville:

Seville, River

Thanks for pointing this out, Noelia...

Noelia just making sure I didn’t miss anything.

Sevilla, houses along river

Sevilla Statue with bird

Torre de oro, Sevilla

Sevilla, gipsy church

Seville is obsessed with virgins...

Seville is obsessed with virgins…

A torero and some orange trees are an absolute must!

…and toreros

Seville is a stunner of a city, even on a gloomy day. Oh, and the food! But here’s the one thing I didn’t like: The town centre is thronging with hundreds of  horse drawn carriages, waiting to take tourists around. Nothing wrong with that per se, but at least one quarter of the horses I saw – though scrupulously clean and brushed up to the hilt –  were way too thin, too old and/or clearly unwell. Spain loves bureaucracy – so why is there no veterinary inspection service making sure that the only animals put to work were those that are fit and healthy??? I found this really quite distressing.

Get it sorted, Seville!

Get it sorted, Seville!

And a few shots of Carmona:

Carmona centre

A bar in Carmona, just about to open...

Carmona bar, just about to open…

And more virgins!

More virgins!

...and convent windows like these are designed to keep them that way

Forget chastity belts… how about chastity windows?! This one belongs to a convent, of course.

But it's not just virgins. There's also maids!

There’s also maids! There’s cakes in the back of that car, I could smell them…

Talking of which:

Some Middle-Eastern-inspired treats. Except for that big bulbous chocolate thing on the left, filled with marshmallow and Nutella(!) and scoffed by me.

Some Middle-Eastern-inspired treats. That big bulbous chocolate thing on the left, filled with marshmallow and Nutella(!), was scoffed by me. And no, I didn’t share.

A traditional Spanish dessert called

A traditional Spanish dessert called “leche frita” (fried milk), which is a bit like a semi-solid chunk of custard. Looks better than it tastes, though the sugar/cinnamon coating makes it somewhat enjoyable.

71 thoughts on “A Weekend of Hurricanes and Virgins”

  4. Trippmadam

    Ah, my puente de Triana! And this horrible Divina Pastora, I remember her well. Oh, the absolutely wonderful, gorgeous food! All my dreams coming true. I had similar thoughts about the horses, however.

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  6. Carissa Hickling

    It seems ridiculously unfair that you make it seem like every corner of Seville is picture perfect even with a hurricane!?

    As for the horses… you would have a coronary if you saw the typical horse condition for the carriages that ply touristy places like Marine Drive in India. Part of the reason I’ll never take my sis the vet along those spots either! 😉

    And you cruel creature continuing to tempt with delicious morsels of sweet goodness!

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      1. Carissa Hickling

        A pudder tat in front of your house? Seems like s/he has been semi adopted if being fed. Our old building cat tabby passed away and the kitten disappeared.

        The ‘village’ cats all have their regular supply of food and attention whereas the ‘street’ cats along our road feast on the garbage heap that spews out from the village to our doorstep daily. Unfortunately that same garbage heap, it keeps the bandicoots / rats so healthy they are as big as the cats!

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  7. tobyo

    I’m glad Joaquin didn’t muck up your trip. I think the U.S. was hardest hit by that hurricane. very interesting photos! who’s the guy pointing with what looks like a tree growing out of his head? love the Spanish tiles 🙂

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  8. roughseasinthemed

    Hurricane? What hurricane? Cakes look vile, but I always say that. T too have an issue with the carriages. Plenty in Malaga too. And then, there are the donkeys in Mijas. It’s never-ending. I’ve been to Carmona. Most people haven’t. In fact I was talking about it the other day although didn’t remember the name until I read your post. It was very sleepy. We got adopted by a Spaniard who taught English and wanted to practise. He said we were a nation of nomads. It was all very surreal and, there was no decent food.

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  10. Kim G

    Well, I admire your gumption, seeking cake even in the face of sure danger from Hurricane Joaquin. Lovely photos as always, in fact I even learned a technique from you.

    Saludos,

    Kim G
    Boston, MA
    Where we’re having the first genuinely cold morning of fall, ~2°C. Ugh…winter beckons.

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    1. ladyofthecakes Post author

      What?! I hate it. Balancing a brolly and trying not to get the lens wet, besides the shit light, is just a nightmare. Plus, city shots look so much better with a blue sky in the background. I guess a decent camera might make a difference…

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  15. Kim in Fiji

    I’m the only one who noticed the well-endowed matador?! Love the architecture, love the tlle work, would love the cakes since my vacation killed any vestiges of self-control I’d managed before. Alas alas, the horses…. but I’m glad you spoke up for them.

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  19. Lynda

    I quite enjoyed your photographs of everything! But must admit I enjoyed the visual humor found in the photo of the bust. I could almost hear him saying:

    “ARGH! Every day it’s those sh-ting pigeons! Why couldn’t the artist have at least given me a hat?” 😉

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  21. TheLastWord

    Some very intriguing photos. Little Bo Peep, the guy reacting to the bird on his head, that peculiar U-shaped sculpture, those pretty maids all in a row.. ( well almost )

    “fried milk” – In Bengal they make a similar thing called “Shor bhaja” or “cream fried” .

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    1. ladyofthecakes Post author

      I’ve never been much a fan of Indian desserts either… seems to all milk powder, sugar, food colouring and fried grease… but no doubt I’ve missed out on some good ones, never actually having been to India!

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  22. Jackie Cangro

    Divine desserts! The marshmallow Nutella cake is calling my name.
    I, too, am very unhappy about the horses. I find it so troubling to watch them in Central Park. Our mayor promised to do something about the situation during his campaign and he never did. But there is some good news that the pedi-cabs are becoming more popular.

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  23. Jenna

    Chastity windows, that’s a new one! Seville looks gorgeous, even with the crummy weather 🙂 Makes me miss Spain – there was so much I missed seeing, I think I will have to go back!

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  24. restlessjo

    I really need to get to grips with Seville some day. I’ve done a couple of day trips but by the time I get there and ‘home’ again 😦 Last time it was pouring with rain and the time before that, too hot. Next time I’ll get it right 🙂
    (You missed a Food Walk in Ljubljana, but it doesn’t matter unless you’re going there some time soon? 🙂 )

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    1. ladyofthecakes Post author

      I must confess, I only ever go to Eastern Europe if paid to do so (for work)… people are just so miserable there, nobody ever seems to smile! Am definitely going back to Seville, though, possibly in February/March when the temperature is bearable.

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