SEVILLA

Another 100+ km day and we arrived in Sevilla. As Grady says, it gets easier, but NOT easy. Temperature barely made it over 90' and a light breeze so it seemed positively cool compared to our 99.1 degree day in the desert. Did we mention the buzzards that circled us for a while that day in the heat of the afternoon? What's with that? We must have looked pretty weak by then.
We left Monestario in the dark and after a short climb we coasted for nearly 10 kms as we dropped down to the flat valley bottom. Cool, downhill and a beautiful sunrise.  Not bad! We stopped for coffee in a little roadside bar that was open for the odd trucker and the locals in need of a little white lightening eye opener. A fellow was frying chorros across the street so we had to try that - think deep fried waffle batter strung out in strings the thickness of your thumb. Grease, white flour and salt, a healthy breakfast. As the day wore on we got into the hills and stopped for brunch of eggs and ham in a biker (motorcycle) bar run by dad, mom  and the two girls, all run off their feet. There was no smoking inside so we stayed in to avoid the smokers who are very prevalent over here. National 630, which we'd been on for days, is newly paved, wide and winds its way over and through the hills between Extramaduro and Andalucía. It must be one of the best motorcycle roads on earth, and on Sunday there are hundreds of them roaring down the road single file in large groups.  Two passed us on a corner with their knees almost dragging the ground they were over so hard. Sanchos foursome not so much.
We had one very long hard climb over a major pass. grade was about 6.5% for miles and it took us over an hour to climb, but from the top it was easy going all the way to Sevilla. Rather than fight the suburban traffic, after a chat with 2 friendly traffic cops who kicked us off the freeway, we made our way to a new hotel in a failed condo development in Camas, a bedroom community of Seville, and  instead of rooms we rented one bedroom apartments, kitchens  included. Very nice, 45 EUs including breakfast.
We took a taxi into El Centro, Seville, and touristed around the cathedral (unbelievable) and the Alcazar (likewise), before dinner in a nice streetside restaurant and back to the hotel for bed.
Today we had a late breakfast and long argument about what tondo and where until finallybRoss was put in charge and chose to take the train to Cordova. We road to a Metro station and jumped the subway to the station closest to the train station where we rode to on bike paths, right across the center ofntown.