The nights here start at eleven and end right before the sun starts coming up. Some folks may start out at swanky lounges or neighborhood bars, but for those people with limited fear and even more limited budgets, there is the botellón option, in which teenagers and college kids partake in supermarket alcohol and socializing by the river as preparation for the long night ahead. Once everybody is sufficiently less inhibited, they head to any one of the lively bars and dance clubs, most of which do not start picking up until two at the earliest. These establishments serve as spectacular hubs for international bonding and places where people are enthralled by hypnotically throbbing music and the romance of the summer night.

When the whirlwind of excitement finally ends, the exhausted Sevillanos and visitantes emerge from the bars and clubs searching for available taxis (or simply a bridge across the river, if they are especially impatient) and a late night/early morning snack. This is when my beloved churreria sees the most business, a beacon in the night holding all of the deep fried treasures a craving body desires. As I find my way home, the Puenta de Triana with the illuminated Torre del Oro in the distance is the most welcoming of sights after the liveliest of nights. Even though I know that myself and many of my study abroad comrades must get up within mere hours of crawling into bed, it always feels worth it to know that I have experienced the goings on of such a spirited and warm-hearted community, the caliber of which is difficult to find anywhere else.

Bilindo photo courtesy of: http://www.andalucia.org/media/fotos/image_148788_jpeg_800x600_q85.jpg

Guadalquivir photo courtesy of: http://damhyul3s75yv.cloudfront.net/photos/2293/original_Guadalquivir%20River%20by%20Night-Seville%20Spain-TravelSort.JPG?1305568921

Cityscape and New Media Final.Paco Gonzalez.Summer2014