Remembering my visit to the Feria de Abril in Seville, Spain (II)

La Giralda, the tower of Seville's cathedral

The rest of the week in Seville was spent finding activities to fill our time. It wasn't necessary to spend every day at the Feria per se, as there were other activities that were just as worthy of our attention. Julia had plenty of friends of Seville and was indispensable in introducing us to Juan Iglesias, who was our contact for a caseta dedicated to flamenco called "Peña Flamenca Torres Macarena." He and I had an interesting conversation discussing whether or not flamenco could be considered "folklore." Juan didn't consider flamenco in the same category as folklore, and preferred to classify it as more of an art form, which meant that it could be subject to more innovation and individual shaping than folklore would. Of course, this is a topic that could be debated endlessly, depending on one's definition of folklore and what fits within its realm.

I learned that although flamenco dancers do perform sevillanas, flamenco and sevillanas are not one and the same. In fact, the Feria is usually not the best time to find the best selection of authentic flamenco, with a few notable exceptions: the previously mentioned caseta, and a wonderful place called "Casa de la Memoria de Al-Andalus," a small venue in the heart of Seville that presents flamenco in an intimate setting: a courtyard with a canopy high above to protect from any rain. Nancy and I attended one such performance and were blown away. If you go to Seville, do not miss this. Reserving tickets at the Casa de Memoria is an absolute must, as the place is small and tickets sell out quickly. The website is https://www.casadelamemoria.es/ . The Casa is used to accommodating English-speaking guests, so you will have no difficulty there.

Tom would take flamenco lessons during the day with friends in the city. Nancy and I would tour the city either together or separately. We decided that we would reserve a trip to Granada on one of those days to see the Alhambra, that marvelous palace from the medieval era when the Moors dominated Spain. We learned that only guided tour groups are allowed into the Alhambra, and they are moved through quickly due to the demand. Our tour group was divided into Spanish speakers and English speakers, so while Nancy and I were together on the bus, she went off to the English group and I went with the Spanish group. We convened again for lunch and met a delightful Irish couple, discussing the politics of the day. US foreign policy is always a hot topic for discussion, and while we didn't disagree, we still tried to tread lightly in that area.

There were two comforting routines that we fell into during evenings that we didn't go to the Feria grounds: a cafe that was convenient to our apartment, and a restaurant not far from there, where we could sit outdoors and take our time. Dinner was served very late. It would get dark at 9:30 pm, and our dinner would continue leisurely until midnight. I was hooked on paella and had it almost every time, along with a delicious dessert consisting of a large ball of vanilla ice cream with a crispy chocolate coating.

We absolutely had to go back to the Feria on Sunday night for the big sendoff before we returned to the States. The Feria grounds are absolutely packed as people waited for the finale at midnight, when the lights of the Feria gate are turned off in stages, followed immediately by a fireworks show. It was the perfect way to cap off a wonderful week in Spain.

You can learn more about the 2019 Feria de Sevilla, which is taking place now, having started on May 4 and continuing through May 11, at the website http://www.andalucia.com/festival/seville-feria.htm .

Remembering my visit to the Feria de Abril in Seville, Spain (I)

The 2006 portal to the Feria de Abril (April Fair) in Seville, Spain at night

I recall reading somewhere that it is incredible that the city of Seville, Spain celebrates two large festivals within two weeks of each other: first, the solemn Semana Santa (Holy Week) processions; and then the joyous Feria de Sevilla or Feria de Abril (April Fair), with all the planning that goes into each. Four of us, Julia López (then the director of a flamenco troupe in Philadelphia called Flamenco Olé), two of her flamenco students, Tomas (Tom) Dura and Nancy Hill, and myself, took this trip in April 2006 to do research on the Feria, which our local arts organization Raíces Culturales Latinoamericanas (Latin American Cultural Roots) was going to present the following year at the International House of Philadelphia, with support from the dance program of the Pew Foundation on the Arts. Of course, our festival would not approach the size of Spain's Feria, which attracts over a million people each year, but our goal was to absorb as much as possible from Feria to be as faithful as possible to detail in our much smaller event.

My plane arrived in Madrid early in the morning, and from there I had to take a taxi to the Atocha railroad station. After the all-night flight and the change in time zones I was really sleepy, but managed to see at least some of the countryside on the way south to Seville. I recall seeing wide open plains in between snoozes.

When I arrived in Seville, I was really fortunate because Julia, Tom and Nancy had arrived ahead of me and had already settled in the apartment we were renting. Tom was available to help me get acclimated, but Julia and Nancy had gone to a flamenco show. Nancy begged Julia to show her what fake flamenco looked like, and so they went to a place where glassy-eyed, emotionless dancers went into their routines. Unfortunately for them, they got caught in a thunderstorm walking back to the apartment at night and were thoroughly drenched.

The apartment was modern and slightly north of the center of Seville, so for the most part it was convenient for us to walk into town and ultimately cross over the Guadalquivir River to Barrio Triana, the site of the Feria grounds and the subject of many sevillanas (traditional songs representing Seville). Feria has existed since the 1840s and over the course of the years has outgrown its locations, but this Feria site was more than capable of handling the million or so tourists who visit it every year.

Julia López (left) and Nancy Hill presenting a gift from Philadelphia to Antonio Silva, director of the Feria de Sevilla

One of our first activities was meeting the then-director of the Feria, Antonio Silva, and learning about the history of the Feria, which is fascinating. One of the interesting aspects of Feria is that there is an annual competition among the city's architects for the portal design. The goal of the design is to incorporate some aspect of Seville into the portal. The top photo shows the design that won the competition for 2006.


The official start time of the Feria is midnight Monday going into Tuesday, so when I went to the Feria grounds on Monday afternoon, the people who were there were busy setting up their casetas or tents for the six-day celebration. It was fun watching the preparations and some friendly people who were just walking around.

Young people at the Feria grounds prior to the start of the celebration

As the bulk of Feria activity would take place at night, we had the daytime to do a variety of activities. From our apartment it was easy to walk through Seville and take in some of the sights. We had to be mindful that the hours of stores were reduced due to the Feria, and that it was best to shop in the morning. The department store El Corte Inglés was an exception, as it had afternoon hours and was a great place to find books and CDs.

On Monday night, as Tom and I approached the Feria grounds, there was a huge crowd waiting for the alumbrao, or lighting of the Feria portal, which would take place at midnight. As the entrance to the Feria was closed until this occurrence, the crowds were pressing on us. When midnight did arrive, there was a huge cheer with the crowds flooding the entrance and grounds to take in all the sights.

We learned that most of the casetas or tents at the Feria were private affairs with particular clubs or groups of people who had reserved their space and took care of their decoration and food sales. There were also public casetas in specific locations, which were much noisier. Tom and I presented ourselves at Seville's municipal caseta. My goal was just to say hello to Antonio Silva, whom I had met earlier in the day, but much to our surprise, we were invited in and were able to take in all the activity, including the delicious fish that was served along with plenty of manzanilla (a variety of sherry) to wash it down. Tom felt somewhat like a fish out of water because he didn't speak Spanish, but he came alive when some women approached us to invite us to dance sevillanas, and he went off to dance with them while I continued my Spanish conversations, not being much of a dancer myself.

The Feria celebration continues well into the night. Tom and I finished up at around 4 am and went to the bus stop to pick up one of the well-organized free buses that ran continuously and took people from the Feria grounds to the center of Seville across the Guadalquivir River. From there we walked back to our apartment.

Interior of a caseta with its lanterns or farolillos

You can learn about the 2019 Feria de Sevilla, which actually takes place between May 4 and 11 because Easter Sunday was later this year than in most years (April 21), at the website http://www.andalucia.com/festival/seville-feria.htm .

The Relationship Between My Travel and Our Nonprofit Arts Organization "Raíces Culturales Latinoamericanas" (Latin American Cultural Roots)

One of countless performances by our organization Raíces Culturales Latinoamericanas (Latin American Cultural Roots)

In an earlier post, I gave some thought as to why I have never had the desire to become a "travel nomad" as many have done, in order to sample the world and experience the freedom that being tied down to a specific place does not provide. While there are plenty of practical reasons related to family obligations and other considerations, one that is especially relevant is that, from the time I started traveling, I always had the desire to bring back what I had seen and learned in my travels to the people back home in the States. This especially took root after I returned from a year of graduate study at the Universidad Javeriana in Bogotá, Colombia in 1981, under the auspices of the Fulbright program. After a decade of interacting with the Latino community of Philadelphia, I decided to start a nonprofit arts organization in 1991 showcasing the culture of Spain, Latin America and the Caribbean, which we named Raíces Culturales Latinoamericanas (Latin American Cultural Roots). Fortunately, I had met a short time before a woman named Yolanda Alcorta who happened to be a co-worker of mine at Wyeth Laboratories and who shared the same passion, so together we started Raíces and worked together nonstop for 15 years until she moved to Washington, DC.

Yolanda Alcorta and I in front of the Raíces banner

The Raíces concept was to showcase several Latin cultures together in a single performance so that the audience could see the diversity. To achieve this end, we reached out to many performing groups and individuals in the Philadelphia area to invite them to collaborate with us, which they did. Ultimately, we presented at least some manifestation of the culture of every Latin American nation, as well as Spain. Groups came and went, but we always had the assistance of several of them when it came time to perform, or deliver a workshop to a school. Such was Yolanda's devotion that she quit her job at Wyeth to become our first full-time Executive Director, while her husband Chris supported their family financially.

Yolanda's mother Elvira Gaitán was born in Guatemala, and as such Yolanda gravitated toward her family in Guatemala and the richness of that country's culture in her travels. She brought back much research material from Guatemala, while I did the same in Colombia while visiting my wife Adriana's family there. We both tried to take in as much traditional culture as we could during our visits. Later, with the assistance of organizations such as Pennsylvania Council on the Arts and the Pew Foundation, we traveled to other regions, among them Puerto Rico, Spain, and Trinidad to do research to assist us in organizing performances in Philadelphia.

Visiting Seville, Spain in 2006 with Julia López (seated, right), flamenco instructor and then director of the  Philadelphia flamenco troupe Flamenco Olé, to do research on the Feria de Abril (April Fair) and learn more about flamenco. I'm standing with Juan Iglesias and Nancy Hill, one of Julia's students. Juan Iglesias' wife is seated at left.

It goes without saying that traveling to these locations helped us enormously in our mission to render faithfully the cultures we witnessed, as well as create a storehouse of memories and "between the lines" anecdotal experiences that found their way into our events. Attendees would notice these subtleties and sometimes consciously, sometimes unconsciously, felt an air of authenticity that would have been impossible without our travels. For Yolanda and myself, the events and the audience's reaction provided us with great satisfaction.

A footnote is that our direct involvement in Raíces initially ended in 2006 for Yolanda, and for me in 2009. Verónica Castillo-Pérez succeeded Yolanda as Executive Director from 2006 to 2012, and Mary Rivera from 2012 to 2015. To provide the Raíces Board an alternative to closing the organization in 2015 due to funding issues, I offered to take back the organization's management, which was accomplished in 2016. Yolanda enthusiastically joined me, and since then, we have created events both in Philadelphia and Washington, DC, helped by Yolanda's freelance cultural work in DC since moving there. You can read the story in my article Michael and Yolanda, Raíces Co-Founders, Retake the Reins.

You can follow Raíces more closely via our website , our Facebook pages Raices Culturales Latinoamericanas (in English) and Folklorelatino (in Spanish), and our Twitter account @RaicesCultural .

I learned the real meaning of "breathtaking" in Seville, Spain

I can't count how many times I've heard the expressions "breathtaking views" and "it will take your breath away." However, I didn't really understand its meaning until I traveled to Seville, Spain in 2006 to attend the April Fair (Feria de Abril). Because the principal Feria activities take place in the afternoon, evening, and late into the night, I did my sightseeing in Seville in the morning. On one of these trips, I walked into the patio pictured at the right, and at that point it literally took my breath away. At that moment I finally understood the meaning of "breathtaking" because I don't remember this ever happening to me before, and it hasn't happened since then.

This patio is called "El Patio de las Doncellas" (The Patio of the Maidens) in the Reales Alcazares in Seville, and I think that it was the elaborate stucco work that had that breathtaking effect on me because it caught me by surprise. What surprised me is this breathtaking feeling didn't happen when I visited the Alhambra in Granada two days earlier, beautiful as that was, and I saw a lot of elaborate stucco work there as well.



The Reales Alcazares (loosely translated "royal gardens") has been the residence of the rulers of this region since the Middle Ages, and its various parts, built at different times throughout history, likewise represent different architectural styles starting at about the 13th century. When you first walk into the courtyard, you can see the Giralda tower of Seville's cathedral in the background over the wall. The residence, with its elaborate gardens, still serves as the residence of the king of Spain when he travels to Seville on official business, and the second floor, where he resides, can be toured when he is not there, though the security is tighter on that floor than on the first floor and the garden area.

Something else remarkable happened while I was there. Before traveling to Seville, I had heard the saying "When you're in Seville, you can kick a stone and witness history." Something like that actually happened to me in the Reales Alcazares; while walking in one of its rooms, I accidentally kicked a piece of loose tile that had come up from the floor!

I would highly recommend visiting the Reales Alcazares if you are going to Seville, because a "breathtaking" experience just might overtake you!

Learning and re-learning Spanish

It's no secret that, with 21 countries that count Spanish as their official language, there would be differences between these countries regarding which words mean what. Take the Ferris wheel, for example. In Spain the word is "noria," but in Colombia it's called the "rueda de Chicago" (literally, "Chicago wheel") probably because the first Ferris wheel was exhibited in Chicago in 1893 (see  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferris_wheel). By the way, the "noria" in the picture was taken at the April Fair (Feria de Abril) in Seville.

When I first studied Spanish in high school I learned that the word for socks was "calcetines" and the word for women's stockings was "medias," but when I got to Mexico the word "medias" was used for both, as it was in Colombia. I didn't get to Spain until 2006, and while conversing with a Spaniard on the return flight to Philadelphia, I used the word "medias" to mean socks, and he corrected me, bringing back that word "calcetines" that I hadn't heard since high school.

I found that people in Spain were not fond of Anglicized Spanish words or English words mixed in with Spanish. Another Spaniard I met corrected my use of "ok" in a sentence, something that I found common in other places I visited. They would probably cringe if I used the word "lonchar" for "eat lunch" instead of "almorzar", or "checar" or "chequear" to mean to check or review instead of "revisar." However, the Spaniards are not free of English or Anglicized words in their Spanish either. The word for "ticket" can be "boleto" or "tiquete," but in Spain you hear it called "el ticket." While in a restaurant in Seville I found that the waitresses were confused when I asked for "salsa de tomate," which is used in Colombia to mean ketchup, but they understood perfectly when I used the word "ketchup." I thought it was funny because not too long before that, there was a popular song called "Aserejé" sung by a Spanish female singing group called "Las Ketchup"! For more information on "Aserejé" or "The Ketchup Song, " see the article in Wikipedia. 

For tips on languages, see my webpage on language learning.

Spain: View of Guadalquivir River, Seville

The Guadalquivir River cuts through the heart of Seville. The older part of the city is on the north bank (where the boats in this picture are docked).
In colonial times the ships that came from Spain's colonies in the Americas would arrive here, and as a result Seville was the hub of Spain's economic activity during much of this period.

Nowadays the river is too shallow for the commerce that used to characterize it, so it is more the domain of the tour boats. The large tower toward the right of the picture is called the "Torre del Oro" or Gold Tower.


See my webpage on Spain at http://www.latinandcaribbeantravel.com/spain.html

Other websites:

Caribbean Folk Arts Network (Caribfolk) - Caribbean cultural network: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/caribfolk/

Raices Culturales Latinoamericanas (Latin American Cultural Roots) - a nonprofit organization I founded in 1991 that presents Latin American cultural shows, exhibits, and workshops: http://www.raicesculturales.org/

Raicesnews - Latin cultural events in the Philadelphia area: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/raicesnews

Spain: View from Ronda

From Seville there are opportunities to take several day trips to nearby towns with interesting architecture. They are collectively known as the "white towns" because many of the buildings of these towns are whitewashed.

I had spent most of my week observing the April Fair in Seville, but as I had seen most of the activity of the fair, I had the day to explore another town. My first choice had been Arcos de la Frontera, which was the closest of these towns to Seville, but the bus schedule was better to Ronda. I wasn't disappointed: Ronda boasts plenty of fascinating architecture and some phenomenal views, as Ronda sits on two hills with the huge Tajo gorge cutting through the middle of the town. This particular view you can see by walking the fenced perimeter, where there is a wide promenade.

See my previous entry on Ronda at http://latin-caribbean-travelblog.blogspot.com/2007/08/spain-bullring-in-ronda-2006.html

Also see my webpage on Spain at http://www.latinandcaribbeantravel.com/spain.html


Other websites:

Caribbean Folk Arts Network (Caribfolk) - Caribbean cultural network: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/caribfolk/
Raices Culturales Latinoamericanas (Latin American Cultural Roots) - a nonprofit organization I founded in 1991 that presents Latin American cultural shows, exhibits, and workshops: http://www.raicesculturales.org/

Raicesnews - Latin cultural events in the Philadelphia area: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/raicesnews

Spain: Favorite foods in Seville

One of the highlights of Seville, and the rest of Spain for that matter, has to be the food. There are many specialties: paella and other seafood dishes, cookies and other sweets baked at convents and sold with the name "dulces del convento", gazpacho or cold soup with tomato and other ingredients, and much more. What I remember most, though, were the delicious tapas that are served in small portions at many locations in Seville.

Here we have a plate of the famous jamón serrano, which loosely translated means ham from the sierra or mountain range. This ham is also referred to as "pata negra" (black hoof). It is served along with other tapas such as queso manchego ("cheese from La Mancha"), olives, fried shrimp, and other foods, accompanied by a glass of sherry, particularly the variety of sherry known as manzanilla.


See my webpage on Spain at http://www.latinandcaribbeantravel.com/spain.html


Other websites:

Caribbean Folk Arts Network (Caribfolk) - Caribbean cultural network: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/caribfolk/
Raices Culturales Latinoamericanas (Latin American Cultural Roots) - a nonprofit organization I founded in 1991 that presents Latin American cultural shows, exhibits, and workshops: http://www.raicesculturales.org/

Raicesnews - Latin cultural events in the Philadelphia area: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/raicesnews

Spain: Granada, Views from the Alhambra, 2006

The Alhambra in Granada sits on a hill that overlooks the rest of the city. From here you can see a section called Sacromonte where former gypsy caves exist. They appear in the photo on the hill in the background, and you can see them if you click on the photo to increase its size.

Most of the gypsies no longer live in the caves, but the caves can still be visited. Flamenco shows can be seen there in the evenings, though I have read that the shows are sometimes of questionable authenticity.


These views were a treat that we had while we waited to enter the Alhambra. The amount of visitors to the Alhambra is controlled and it is indispensable to purchase tickets ahead of time. In my case, as I was staying in Seville, I obtained them as part of the price of a tour that left from Seville to Granada. Because of the time and distance, the only things that are possible on a day trip from Seville are the visit to the Alhambra and lunch in the city of Granada. To visit other sites in Granada more than a day trip is needed.


See my webpage on Spain at http://www.latinandcaribbeantravel.com/spain.html

Spain: Seville, Giralda tower at night, 2006

In 2006 I took a trip to Seville, Spain to observe the famous Feria de Abril or April Fair. This traditional celebration of spring comes only two weeks after the city has celebrated another huge festival, the observance of Semana Santa or Holy Week. There are so many traditions revolving around the Feria that it takes a book to describe them all.

April is a good time to visit Seville, not only because of the Feria but also because of the comfortable temperatures of that season, with highs typically in the 80s. Seville can get really hot in the summer, and 110 degrees Fahrenheit is not uncommon.

The most famous building in Seville is the cathedral, with its adjoining Giralda tower. The cathedral is huge - one of the largest in the world - and features artifacts of all kinds in addition to the altars, stained glass windows and other things you would expect in a church. The tower is actually older than the cathedral itself, as it dates back to the 13th century and was originally a Muslim minaret. The original top was destroyed in an earthquake and was eventually replaced by an ornate bell tower in the 16th century, but it blends well with the rest of the tower. The picture gives a good idea of how well lit this part of the city is and in particular the Giralda tower.

See my webpage on Spain at http://www.latinandcaribbeantravel.com/spain.html

Spain: Bullring in Ronda, 2006

This bull statue stands at the entrance to the bullring in the town of Ronda, which is regarded as the birthplace of modern bullfighting. The ring also includes a small museum with information about the development of the sport.
Bullfights take place during certain seasons depending on the location, and when I visited in late April, there were no scheduled bullfights here, as the most important events at that time were taking place in Seville. That meant that people were free to walk around the bullring, and it was inevitable that some of the visitors played matadors and bulls in the center of the ring.






If you walk along the outer ring behind the wall, you can see the places designated for the matadors, the picadors, the banderilleros, the press, and certain dignitaries. The tourists with the red shirts in the photo were part of a group from Germany.




See my webpage on Spain at http://www.latinandcaribbeantravel.com/spain.html

Spain: La Alhambra, Granada, 2006

Back in April 2006 I traveled to Seville, Granada and Ronda in southern Spain. One of my trips was to the world-famous Alhambra, a palace for the Muslim rulers of the kingdom of Granada. Modern Spain began in 1492 when the kingdom of Granada, the last Muslim stronghold in Spain, fell to the Christians. This picture of the palace was taken from the gardens called the Generalife, which are a little up the hill from the Alhambra. These buildings date from the 12th century and are typical of Muslim architecture of the time: plain on the outside, lavish on the inside. Particularly striking is the stucco work on the walls and ceilings; often times the walls are covered with Arabic script with a message repeated over and over.

See my webpage on Spain at http://www.latinandcaribbeantravel.com/spain.html