A drive out today to the town of Arahal in the province of Seville, a fairly large town of just over 19,000 inhabitants approximately an hour's drive north of Olvera (our route here). Arriving at about 11am we parked our car and headed for the centre of town.
The first of several landmarks was the 18th century "Iglesia Parroquial Santa Maria Magdelena", unfortunately closed.
Nesting storks seemed to occupy all the tall buildings.
We wandered in the direction of the Town Hall passing by this plaza with a bust dedicated to Pastora Pavón "La Niña de los Peines" (The Girl of the Combs), considered one of the best Flamenco singers in the world. An annual Flamenco festival "Al Gurugú" in her memory is held in the town every June.
We came upon this Plaza with what looked like the Town Hall on one side and sat for a while at a cafe.
The "Casa del Aire" houses the Flamenco Museum. We walked into the entrance and asked if the exhibition was open only to be told that it was closed on Monday's and Tuesday's. However, the lovely guy in the office, rather than turn us away, opened up the museum especially for us allowing us to see the many exhibits on display.
The impressive facade of the Chapel of Veracruz, again unfortunately closed.
We found Arahal to be a friendly, clean and pleasant town although to be honest it would have been more interesting if some of the attractions, mainly the churches, were open to the public. However, the goodwill and kindness of the guy in the Flamenco Museum did offer some compensation.
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