OXTAIL CROQUETS IN CARMONA AND SEVILLE IN THE SPRING

Some places are so beautiful it is like walking into a painting. This happened on a recent trip to Spain, where I took the train from Malaga to Seville and then a bus to the town of Carmona, famous for its olive oil and wine. Perched on a ridge overlooking the central plain of Andalusia, Carmona is one of the oldest towns in Europe, and the oldest in Spain. Miguel de Cervantes (Don Quixote) lived here while preparing for the Spanish Armada, and you catch the same spirit of adventure as soon as you arrive, navigating your way through the narrow streets of this enigmatic town – best experienced on foot. 

            This region is best visited in the Spring because from June till mid September the temperatures are oven-hot.  Fly into Seville direct, or do as I did and take the train from Malaga. (I took the train in Spain and it rained mainly on the plain). 

In Spring, the orange blossom is out in Seville, making it the most unlikely of things – a fragrant city, and you are able to enjoy private walking tours of Seville’s UNESCO World Heritage listed monuments, see the imposing Giralda tower, the symbol of Seville and visit the largest cathedral in the world, as well as see where Christopher Columbus is buried, explore the Royal Alcazar, and the beautiful Santa Cruz quarter., without breaking into a sweat. 

Taking the bus from Seville to Carmona is only forty minutes, although make sure you go to the San Banardino bus stop and not the Prado de San Sebastian, as I was told to.  I walked through that park in that square five times, asking different bus drivers where to get the M124 bus, to eventually be told be a policeman I was in the wrong area entirely. This is what the locals call Spanish chaos. I got there eventually.

The Alcazar de la Puerta de Devilla, Carmona’s distinctive fortress and Necropolis Romana and Prioral de Santa Maria de la Asuncion, are on the well organised and free tourist trail, but pick midweek and away from the midday sun even in the Spring months.  There are phenomenal views from the northern part of the old town over the Cuevas de la Batida, a series of caves set in a wall of rock and another on the east side overlooking the valley below. 

I stayed at the Casa Palacio de Carmona. At any moment I expected Dame Judy Dench and Dame Maggie Smith to walk through the door.  Like a scene from Room with a View, in a hotel where every wall, corner, crevice and staircase looks like something out of a Merchant Ivory film set, Casa Palacio de Carmona embraces nature and light in its architecture, creating a perfect symbiosis of beauty and space.  Mr Beebe would approve. This place makes you want to be a better painter or writer or poet to do it justice. Casa Palacio de Carmona is like walking into an Italian Renaissance painting, although it’s actually in Spain. This is not surprising as the owner’s mother, Marta, has designed the hotel and restaurant, which dates back to 1561 (according to the sign outside). “The renovation has been a labour of love,” Philippe, the owner tells me.  Educated in England (Norwich) he speaks perfect English and nothing is too much trouble. On my arrival, he prepared clams in garlic and ox tail croquets. I haven’t eaten meat in over a decade but these, I’m ashamed to say, were utterly delicious.  It’s the sort of hotel you could happily spend hours in silence, sitting, staring and soaking in the atmosphere. There’s something positively monastic about it, but in