Mont Rebei Lleida and the Alcázar in Sevilla- stunning scenery and historical culture

Hi hive friends,
have you ever hiked in Spain? I discovered a really beautiful place in Spain that is great for hiking! It's been a long time since my family and I went hiking there, but I would like to introduce you to this place. This is the place of Mont Rebei Lleida: there are many gorges around the Noguera Ribagorçana river and therefore the area is not only suitable for hiking but also for kayaking (for 25 $ a day). Some of the walls of the gorge are more than 500m high; we were impressed by the nature here. The contrast with the shimmering turquoise river made it even more beautiful. With a view like this, it was a good hike!

A very large part of the gorge belongs to the landscape protection area, also because of the flora and fauna. What we really enjoyed was that the gorge is not crossed by a country road or a railway road. The river today separates Aragon from Catalonia. The rocks rise vertically and appear gigantic due to their height. In some parts of the gorge it is only about 20m wide! The rocks rise vertically and appear gigantic due to their height. From Barcelona we drove about four hours (with breaks) to explore the still relatively untouched area. What a few tourists did: They took a kayak for the way back - of course it's relaxing and you get a different view of the gorge.

However, the hike is not entirely without danger - there are a few very narrow stretches where you could easily fall into the river. But these are usually attached to wire ropes in the gorge, which you can hold on to. However, for some who find the heat too much, they jump into the river at flatter spots to cool off a bit. I, on the other hand, was just looking forward to an ice cream at the end of the day.I have to admit it was a bit tiring, especially when we walked all the way back later, but it was definitely worth it for the view.







Real alcazar de Sevilla
Which of course should not be missing in my post about the trip to Spain: The Alcazar of Seville: The medieval royal palace of Seville. Whenever the Spanish royal family stays in Seville, they still use it as their residence to this day. The gardens used to be larger than they are today and everything is relatively small divided by walls that are supposed to curb the warm winds a bit. There are many statues in the garden, as well as the Pavilion of Charles V. We were able to visit most of the gardens, only one was cordoned off. What particularly delighted me was the degree of sophistication in how everything was decorated and trimmed here.

In 1987 it was declared a World Heritage Site, which is partly due to the various influences it carries. For me, the entry cost only 6 euros, which I found quite ok (this was the price for pensioners, pupils and students), for adults it was 13 euros as far as I can remember. If you also plan to go there: Book a ticket in advance, then you avoid unnecessarily long queues in the heat or having to drive back again.



"Alcazar" derives from "castle" in Spanish and in Arabic it means fortress or palace (from al-qasr). The palace has a Mudéjar style, derived from Moorish and Christian cultures.


Salón de Embajadores
The Salon de Embajadores formed the main hall of the palace, used as a reception hall by King Pedro I for his guests. The room has a square floor plan, like the Muslim "Qubba", in which the square is supposed to represent the earth and the dome is supposed to symbolize the universe.



After entering the Alcázar at the Puerta del León, you first find yourself in the Patio de la Montería. There we also admired the facade of Palacio Pedro I. It is built in the Mudejar style.

The attention to detail is particularly noticeable here.

We spent a relatively long time in the gardens as it was very busy inside and the outside allowed for a little more relaxation and fresh air. What should also not go unmentioned: The Real Alcázar was a location of a very popular film series: From Game of Thrones!


Here you can see a peacock: I think it actually looks pretty cute, but the peacocks in the gardens were super greedy, as soon as you sat down or ate something they jumped onto the bench next to you. That was a bit scary because they had relatively strong beaks:D


Baños de María Padilla - an incredibly beautiful underground chamber with Gothic arches. You can get to this chamber from the so-called "dance garden", the Jardín de la Danza.




I hope you enjoyed my little trip to two completely different places in Spain - which of the two would you prefer? I have to say that I can't really decide, as both have their advantages and are definitely worth visiting. Have a nice day!