I have been to … the Real Alcazar, Seville, Spain

The Real Alcazar (Royal Alcazar) is a major tourist attraction in Seville and still functions as an occasional royal residence when required.

We had to queue for about fifteen minutes before we were able to enter the Alcazar as they scanned every bag that was taken in.

Once through the main gate we bought our entrance tickets (it cost 9€ each) and passed under an arch that was decorated with a decorative wrought ironwork fan.

The arch took us into a small paved courtyard …

… and we passed under another arch …

… into the Patio de la Monteria (The Hunting Courtyard).

This is the main courtyard of the palace, and gives access to the Mudéjar Palace, the Admiral's Hall, and the Gothic Palace. It was constructed in 1364 over the foundations of the earlier Almohad palaces that occupied the site.

We first visited the Salón de Almirante (The Admiral's Hall).

This name is derived from the fact that the headquarters of the Castillian fleet was located here as part of Queen Isabella I's 'House of Trade with the Indies'. The latter was set up in 1504 to control trade between the Americas and Spain.

From there was passed into the Sala de Audiencias (The Chapterhouse).

We then walked back out into the Patio de la Monteria …

… with its incredible decorated friezes on the main tower.

In one corner of the Patio de la Monteria was a staircase to the Cuarto Real Alto (The Upper Palace) …

… but when we climbed it we discovered that this section of the Alcazar was hosting a special exhibit to which we could not gain entrance.

On our return to ground level we made our way into the Casa del Asistente (The Assistant's House) …

… which housed an exhibition of decorative tiles made in Seville.

A door from the Casa del Asistente led into the Patio de los Levies (The Levies Courtyard) …

It is so called because it has a gallery that was originally housed in the Jewish Quarter of Seville.

A door in the corner of the Patio de los Levies gave us access to the Patio de Romero Murube (Romero Murube Courtyard) …

… which in turn led us into the Jardin de Principe (The Prince's Garden).

Passing through a small decorated gateway in one wall of the Jardin de Principe …

… we entered the main gardens of the Alcazar.

One of the first things we came across was a pair of peacocks.

This section of the gardens seemed to consist of a number of tree-lined paths …

… with several fountains …

… and an ancient-looking tower.

The gardens then opened up somewhat, and we walked passed a small colonnaded pavilion.

We then came to a long dividing wall, the upper part of which was a colonnaded walkway.

Passing through the arched gateway in the wall …

… we entered a much more formal series of gardens.

We re-entered the main building of the Alcazar via the Puerto de Marchena (Marchena Door).

The Puerto de Marchena was originally the main door of the palace belonging to the Dukes of Arcos, which is now known as the Gothic Palace. One feature of this part of the palace is the large fish pond and fountain near the entrance.

The Gothic Palace has a very distinctly different architectural style from the rest of the Alcazar, and most of the roofs have high ceilings and vaulted arches.

This is very noticeable in the Capilla de Palacio Gótico (The Chapel of the Gothic Palace).

We completed our walk around the Real Alcazar by crossing a courtyard, …

… and passing through a gateway into the palace's former covered coach entrance.

This is now the Alcazar's main exit, and led us out into the street running alongside Seville's Cathedral.