June 21: Andalucia - Sevilla

Sultry Seville. Seville regards itself as one of the eternal cities with a rich past draped in lost dreams; Romans, Phoenicians, Moors have all passed through here. No matter how long the wait, Seville is always longing for its renaissaince to happen again one day. Keep believing in your dreams, Sevilla, as they are important. For this is one of the most seductive cities in terms of its mysterious past - Seville is the birthplace of Carmen, the gypsy girl who could roll cigars between her thighs, according to Bizet's opera. A statue of her stands proudly with a hand on her hip outside the giant Maestranza Bullring near the city's river - still waiting for her lover Escamillo to return to her. The actual cigar factory she was supposed to have worked at is now the University of Seville, a giant tobacco fortress impregnable from the outside.

The Moors who came from North Africa and settled on these Iberian plains changed this mystical land forever. With them came the teachings of Islam and new mosques were built - some of the finest the world had ever seen. In the new world of al-Andalus places like Sevilla, Cordoba and Malaga became centres of learning for philosophy, art, religion and geometry. In Sevilla such monuments still remain. The minaret of La Giralda (built 12th century) is visible from all over the city and stands tall next to the city cathedral. The Real Alcazar of Seville is just breathtaking in terms of its absolute beauty, size and Moorish architecture. You wander through these places and are transfixed in wonder at how men can create such places of immense beauty, evoking deep feelings of humility and peace within.

As for the city, you get the impression that Seville would also be one of those wonderful places to be naughty in. During the heat of the day, during that unreasonable increase in temperature, that would be the time to be alone with your woman. Door locked. Curtains drawn. The world outside elsewhere as you make love before siesta. And what a siesta it would be. Long and deep. You'd wake again, late in the afternoon, refreshed, empty, heavy, happy, content, alive. Ready to share a shower, maybe watch a sunset, maybe an encore. But whatever you'd choose, you'd know Seville would be waiting for you. The place to be? A bodega, tucked away out of sight in a narrow street, far away into the shadows where voices echo and the sound of church bells carry. That's the time to be awake.