There is a saying that one can choose their friends but not their family. Philip is Jim’s younger brother by five years and Phyllis is his wife of 43 years. We could not choose any better friends than these two. We invited them to spend time with us in Seville and were thrilled when they accepted. Philip has spent some time in Europe, but mostly prior to age five. Phyllis has never been to Europe so this was a first for her. They arrived in Seville at 2:30pm on January 30 after traveling for 20 hours from Asheville, NC. They hit the ground running and never stopped. They walked over 50 miles in 8.5 days, averaging almost six miles per day. Phyllis grew up a Southern Baptist and is now a Seventh Day Adventist and had never been in a Catholic Church. She has now been in more Catholic Churches than most good Catholics. Philip who is a multi-talented, meticulous artisan, craftsman, artist and blacksmith could not get his jaw off of the ground and took pictures of every little detail that wowed him. His phone was running out of power every two hours and he had to use Jim’s or stop at a cafe for a recharge. We also had perfect 70℉ weather every day which was a welcome change for them from a Western North Carolina winter.
While wandering we came across this magical little bar where we were serenaded by “The Maestros at the bar.” It’s worth watching the video with sound turned up.
Day 2, we took a very nice run while Philip and Phyllis wandered old town, getting lost but finding their way back. They say that it is a rite of passage for tourists to get lost in the maze of winding alleyways in the old town. We went out together in the afternoon.
Our plan was to visit the Basilica of the Macarena after this but Jim found out that it was closed until 5:30 so we returned home for siesta and went out again at 5:30.
Day 5 we took a train to Córdoba for the day and will write about that in a separate post. Day 6 Philip and Phyllis went to see Iglesia Colegial del Divino Salvador or Church of the Divine Savior which is an over the top baroque church which we have visited but not yet written about, more about that later from us but here are a couple of their pictures.
Day 7, their last full day in Seville we walk to Mercadillo Historico del Jueves which interprets as the historical Thursday flea market, on Calle Feria in the San Lorenzo district.
Philip and Phyllis spent their last afternoon doing a self guided audio tour of Real Alcazar. Here are a few of their pictures.
What a great week we had together. We so enjoy having family and friends visit us in each place that we decide to settle for a few months. We are houseless, but we always have a home. We are alone in foreign cities all over the globe but we are always making new friends and having old friends come to visit. We are very blessed and very happy doing what we are doing in our golden years. We are especially happy to have each other, best friends, lovers and partners in such a great adventure.