I wandered the labyrinth of narrow, cobbled streets in the Barrio de Santa Cruz, past the timeless plazas and squares sprinkled throughout Seville’s old juderia (Jewish quarter). Among them are the Plaza de los Venerables, reputed to be the birthplace of legendary Don Juan, and the graceful Plaza de Doña Elvira, supposedly the birthplace of his mythical love, Doña. Flowering plants perfumed the courtyards of private homes and fountains gurgled in the public squares. Beautiful tile work adorned Moorish-influenced architecture with color, and artistic wrought-iron grates covered windows. Old men sat on tiled benches people-watching, while friends and lovers headed out for the evening. I was already falling in love with the atmosphere and charm of this ancient city before I even had a taste of the tapas and tablaos in Seville!

In keeping with local custom, I wanted to start my evening at a cerveceria for beer and tapas before moving on to my main course of a Flamenco performance. Tapas is a term for Spanish appetizers that covers a wide variety of hot or cold foods, typically served in snack-sized portions. In Spain, dinner is served late by American standards – between 9 and 11 p.m. Understandably, Sevillianos get hungry after work and before dinner, so having drinks and tapas before dinner (or in place of) is very common. Brilliant tradition, in my humble opinion!

In the Santa Cruz neighborhood, there are tapas bars in every nook, so I decided the only way to get a representative experience was to taste at as many as I could. The choices seemed endless –prawns, sardines and mackerel with olive oil; bread or potatoes with garlic aioli; meatballs or chicken with peppers and paprika in a tomato sauce; chorizo cooked in wine; and olives, oh, the olives! I tried one or two tapas at three or four different places. I wasn’t positive what everything was, so I did a fair amount of pointing to pictures or the warming trays. I shared standing space and smiles with lots of people, so although I don’t speak Spanish, I felt like one of the gang. After two and a half hours of snacking and sipping I realized I wasn’t going to need a real dinner and I was a bit more in love with Seville.

At 10 p.m., the time had come for me to find my way to the Tablao Flamenco Los Gallos. Tablaos are atmospheric venues where professional flamenco shows are performed. They feature singing, dancing and guitar strumming, some as dinner shows, others with only drinks. Although some label the tablaos as “touristy,” I couldn’t come to Seville without experiencing its most important performance art. I’m willing to admit that I don’t know a lot about flamenco, so I took the recommendation of my hotel’s concierge and she arranged my tickets for the 10:30 p.m. show.

When I arrived, I was ushered to my seat in the second row of an intimate venue that felt like an old tavern. A staff member took my drink order and as soon as it arrived, the house lights went down. I suppose I didn’t realize how much Spain’s Arabic history influenced what I thought of as a Spanish art form. The dance and song is filled with sentiment and sorrow for the persecution of Andalusian Moors and gypsies from centuries before.

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Three musicians played and sang while four women and two men danced individually for nearly two hours. Their performances were passionate, energetic, hypnotic and utterly authentic. What an introduction to the world of flamenco! While there was inherently some production value in the professional performance, I wouldn’t call it “touristy” and can’t imagine that an impromptu flamenco troupe in a bar (it happens) could be any more authentic or more skilled. It was an emotional experience that alternately had my heart pounding and my eyes damp. Now it’s official… I’ve definitely fallen in love with this place, its food, artistry, culture and people.

If you haven’t visited Seville, I can highly recommend it. If you want to check out the tapas and tablaos of Seville for yourself, let Covington’s expert vacation advisors arrange a custom trip for you.