Switzerland Diaries - Day 1 : Geneva to Montreux

As soon as the plane touched down and we were out on the tarmac, there was a certain sense of calmness and peace in the air. Geneva (or Genève as it often referred to) is the second most populated city in Switzerland and has the presence of numerous international organisations including the UN headquarters. Having relished on a fresh chocolate brioche, coffee and a swiss chocolate on the plane, the husband was keen to use his red book gifted by Her Majesty, The Queen to beat me at the immigration queue. Fortunately for me (and unfortunately for him) there weren't too many non-EU people in my plane, and I was soon greeted by a very warm & friendly 'Bonjour' at the immigration desk. The official language in the city and the canton of Geneva is French as its in the French speaking part of Switzerland. The immigration officer asked some questions on how many days I was visiting, which places etc. and thud - he stamped the passport. 'Au Revoir', he said. I had no clue what that meant but I gathered from his actions that I could leave and since I had no objection to that - 'Thanks and Bye' I said. Thinking back now I could have made an attempt to respond in French specially because - Immigration Officer + French + Polite = Impossible Combination. But later I found out that Swiss French are not really 'French' in any way and in fact they dont like to be called French at all. Anyways, thanks to this rare element in the periodic table and his super fast clearance techniques, I actually beat the husband in the immigration queue.

In most of the cities that I have travelled in Europe, the airports have always been extremely well connected to the city via extremely good and convenient public transport. This is such a stark contrast to what I have grown up seeing in India - now they built a whole new terminal in Mumbai and then they built the new Metro line and the two are far from connected. When I first heard of this 'Airport Road' station on Metro, I could not believe that we as a country had come so far that we were so well planned that one could now come out of the flight and directly board the train to the destination. Naturally this myth was busted very soon when I first landed on that new terminal. The station is so far that the person might collapse either due to fatigue or dehydration or both if he decided to drag his bags from airport to the station, but I digress.

Geneva airport, offcourse, was super well connected and all we needed to do was come out of the airport, lookup the train timings, and climb down the escalator where the train would be waiting for us. The husband and I did not plan to stay in Geneva, so we ran towards the next train for Montreaux which was due to start in five minutes (Like I said before, we are always running).

As soon as the train started, there was an announcement that the next station is 'Geneva'. The husband and I were confused & worried both - confused as we had already just landed in Geneva sometime ago and worried if we were in the right train. Whilst we were thinking this in our mind in a very low volume unaware if there was any decibel limit put on the thought volume in this country, the couple sitting next to us shouted at the top of their voice 'But aren't we already in Geneva. Is this train going in circles!'. I mean its one thing to have foolish thoughts but another to say them loud, but I figured they were Americans by the loudness of their voice so I let it be. As the train was coming to a halt, the husband made an impromptu plan to get down at Geneva (meaning the main station) and go around the town for a while. Now normally it would be impossible to make me get up from a window seat in a train but I am always up for walking around a new city so we pulled our backpacks from the racks above and ran to the door lest it shut on our face before we could get down (Like I said, we are always running).

Geneva has a vibrant feel - its sleek and cosmopolitan yet quaint and cultural. As soon as you step out of the main train station, its amazing to see the trams and the cycles both going side by side making way for each other. Numerous watch shops of you-name-it brands line both sides of the road. In between, the time machines are interrupted by the aroma of the dark chocolates reminding you that you are in Switzerland. The husband was fascinated by neither - he stopped and stared at a glass shelf filled with Swiss knives. The criminal psychologist will view this husband's enchantment differently but I am just a poor software engineer so I remind him that our austerity measures mean that we can only have a hand bag so we cannot carry back the swiss knife home in the cabin baggage, so we move on. While walking to the Lake Geneva, the husband stopped and pointed at numerous hotels where he had stayed on his multiple business trips to Geneva during the good times of the bank. I had no way to verify so I nodded my head and trudged along.

After about a good fifteen minutes walk with our heavy backpacks, we finally reached the Lake and it was totally worth it. The lake is so big that you can only see a vast expanse of clean blue water as far as your sight can travel. About 60% of the lake is in Switzerland and 40% is in France. Multiple ferries traverse the water each day and are often used by commuters. We stood over the Mont Blanc bridge - whilst there is nothing extra ordinary about this bridge, we got amazing views of the lake and its situated over the river Rhone at the point where it meets Lake Geneva. The name of this bridge is given to honour the mountain that overlooks the city from afar. You can also see the famous fountain from the bridge. Unfortunately for us, the fountain wasn't on that day so we satisfied ourselves by enjoying the views of the lake. The bridge is well decorated with the flags for all the twenty six cantons of Switzerland which adds colour to the pristine blue water of the lake below. There are several options for cruises and even paddle boats to get around the lake if one wants. There is so much more to do and see in Geneva but our tryst with Geneva was limited today as we started to make our way back to the train station to catch the next train to Montreux. There is always a next time..

At Geneva Airport - Am busy clicking photos while the husband looks for the next train

The Swiss Knife shelf that caught the husbands attention

Lake Geneva  

Canton Flags on the Bridge 

Switzerland Diaries - Day 1 : Fly Away !

No matter what time our flight is, we are always late. That is how our trips usually start. We never need to specially plan to recreate the famous DDLJ scene, where Shahrukh Khan aka Raj helps Kajol aka Simran to jump on to a moving train before the journey of their life begins. Offcourse, we like to be a bit original here and have modified this epic scene to 'Raj' and 'Simran' running together to catch the flight. OK, I get it, I am nowhere close to Kajol and there can be only one SRK, but what the hell, we were flying to the land where Bollywood romances so its perfectly alright to be a bit filmy.

The excitement has started to seep in when our Interrail Golden Pass tickets had arrived. Now depending on the itinerary, country of residence, places of interests to visit etc. you need to carefully sit down and decide which is the most suitable option.

For starters, there is a Interrail pass that can be used by European citizens and official residents of EU. The Interrail Global Pass is for trains and ferries for over 30 countries and it wasn't really of our interest as we were travelling only in Switzerland. So we looked up the Interrail One Country Pass for Switzerland. You cannot use the Interrail One country Pass to travel in your own country of residence. For us however, we found the perfect option of the 6 flexi days pass - meaning we could use it on any 6 days on as many trains within a month. There are several benefits of having this pass which are listed on the Interrail website. But the most important one is that you get to travel in the heart of Switzerland on the Golden Pass scenic train from Montreaux to Lucerne. If you are in Switzerland, I would recommend not to miss this amazing experience and recreate your DDLJ memories. The only point to note is that this ticket is not valid on most mountain railways. So if you are only planning to do the mountains then it may not be economical to buy this. For non-EU citizens, a Eurail Pass can be bought (Link).  Either ways, please ensure that you fill your personal details correctly as they will be printed on your pass. There is no option to print this pass, it is mailed in paper form, so allow enough time for delivery. The other two options are Swiss Rail Pass or the Swiss Half fare Card. Again depending on how and where you plan to travel and what you want to see, some amount of planning and analysis is required before deciding the best option.

This task was left to the husband under the pretext that he has travelled to Switzerland before and that he has a proven higher IQ than me. Some days later, while travelling to Matterhorn, I would question the economics of the InterRail One country pass versus the Swiss Rail Pass before settling back on my seat and enjoying the amazing views outside.

Where Mumbai is struggling to build a second airport ever since I remember, London has five airports in different directions and all but one are pretty far away from where we live. Now the husband and I had vowed to make this trip a leisure trip, which is almost impossible with the kind of travellers both of us are. But trying to keep up with our promise, we booked our flight from the London City airport at 830 am which is significantly late considering that usually our outbound flights are at inhumane timings in the morning and also that this airport is barely fifteen minutes away from our house. But we were running late. Locks - check, gas off - check, boiler switched off - check, iron unplugged - check, plants watered - check, I quickly finished all my checks while waiting for the Uber and we zoomed towards the airport.

Husband and I are backpackers and after several discussions on the weather in Switzerland we had finally come to a conclusion that we needed to take summer clothes but also take warm layers as we had planned to go up the mountains, goggles but also scarfs and gloves, sandals but also sport shoes, meaning in short we had to stuff a lot into the tiny backpack that we carry. It was like preparing for the worst but hoping for the best. The London City airport is quite small and since we did not have anything to check-in, we were past the security fairly quickly and in no time we were at the gate. 

London doesn't have an outward immigration check unlike Mumbai, the visa is usually just checked at the gate by the airline authorities. The husband has now taken an oath of allegiance to the queen and in return he has been awarded a red book that gets him a visa free  entry into the EU. My passport, on the other hand, was examined with hawk eyed suspicion before allowing me into the waiting area. 

Then it was time..to fly away with the Swiss Air hospitality onto Bollywoods second home

The Wimbledon Experience - Part 3

Link to Wimbledon Experience Part 1 & Part 2


The security tent was in sight, so the excitement level in the group was sky rocketing. Our queue cards were checked one last time to make sure we had not jumped the queue in the 4 hour or so long wait. Just as we were about to be allowed for security check, the 'Head' gets a call from another head (head hunter in this case) and decides that it is absolutely the perfect time to give an interview for which he gets told off by the steward. There are no left luggage facilities inside the grounds and only one bag per person upto specific size is allowed past the security check point. The husband had also pre-warned 'Thakur' that alcohol could be taken into the ground only to the equivalent of one bottle of wine/champagne or two cans of beer and 'Thakur' had used this excuse to pretty much gulp down all the cans of beer during this waiting time.

Once past the security check point there is a flight of stairs, stairways to heaven if I may say so because they take you up to the bridge, across the road and into the AELTC. The entry ticket to the grounds is twenty five pounds in cash only, therefore its important to carry enough cash as you dont want to be turned away from the ticket counter after standing hours in the sun and the rain.

When we entered the grounds, the play had stopped due to rain. The husband promptly directed everyone to get done with the shopping in the Wimbledon store. Everything inside the store is obviously overpriced - keyrings, magnets, tshirts, towels, water-bottles, bags etc. but we went berserk shopping. Although knowing very well that you are being ripped off, its almost impossible to come out of the store empty handed, I guess this is also part of the experience. To reduce the guilt of spending enormous amount of cash in the store, the husband took us to the HSBC stall. Apparently all HSBC customers get a coupon for a free strawberry & cream bowl at any food stall on the ground. Now the husband being a veteran member of the bank suggested we avail this offer and spend some money instead on the other overpriced thing sold at Wimbledon - a glass of Pimm's. The Wimbledon experience is incomplete if you dont settle down on the Henman Hill  with a bowl of strawberries&cream or pimm's.

The play was resumed by now and we we were done with the touristy stuff, so we did what we actually came to Wimbledon for - we watched a few games on the outside courts. We settled down on court number 11 and watched the ladies single game of Navarro who beat Marina Erakovic. You can feel the power of the game when you watch it live. Then there was a mens double game where Rohan Bopanna was playing. Everytime Bopanna was scoring a point, POITR, Head & Thakur were shouting and cheering at the top of their voice which I think was making him really uncomfortable. While watching the game, POITR had settled down not very far from a pretty Indian lady whom he promptly tagged as Bopanna's wife. Determined to prove that he is right, POITR pulled out his phone, googled 'Rohan Bopanna wife', went to the 'Images' tab and shoved their marriage picture on our faces. Now first of all, no one looks really how they appear in their marriage pictures so there was no way to really confirm but we did not want to get embarrassed further so we accepted his analysis. Only if IT showed so much efficiency at work! We had watched a few games by now, and we were getting restless as Federer was going to play the last game on the centre court and we were desperate to watch him play but we did not have the tickets for the centre court.

Very little is known about the second queue, the resales queue that is found at the top of the complex near the Hellman Hill. This queue is to resale the tickets from people who had the show court tickets but have left the ground, and this resale money is given for charity. Prices are pretty low - in the range of 10-20 pounds. The husband was obviously well versed with the resale routine and we all paraded to line up in the queue. The resale queue was quite big as no one wanted to leave the chance of watching the man himself, Federer play on the Centre Court. We were alternating to queue up and watch some games. Suddenly while Gluten Free, husband and I had stepped away to watch a Leander Paes game, one of the stewards came around asking if anyone was interested in Court 1 tickets. The Head made a decision and moved to the Court 1 queue and we got 6 tickets to court 1 where Djokovic was about to play.

We did not get 6 tickets in the same place so we had to split 4-2. When we entered the Court 1, Venus Williams was wrapping up her victory against Daria. When Djokovic entered the ground, there was a huge cheer in the court. Unfortunately, it was not his day and he got off to a bad start. Sam Querrey's serve was nonreturnable and even djokovic's finesse could not help him win the points and he lost one game after another until he lost the first set.

The husband was getting restless as the Federer match was drawing close and decided to step out of the Court No. 1 to give a try for the centre court tickets. After another game, Thakur decided to join him too. Djokivic had now lost another two games in the second set when the husband suddenly asks us to make a mad dash towards the resale queue. Now, no one is allowed to get up, move, come in or leave while the game is on, so we had to wait until Djokovic lost another game to Sam Querrey. We ran towards the resale queue.

I cannot tell you for sure but probably due to the rain showers and frequent start and stop of play, a lot of people who probably had got in the morning had left and the resale queue had moved pretty fast since the husband had joined. We all sneaked in one by one and we could not believe that we got tickets to the centre court for a Federer game. By now, the rain gods were showering their love again and Djokivic's game on Court No. 1 was suspended, what a perfect time to get out we thought ! The centre court roof was on, game was set to begin and we settled down to watch Federer game.

Gluten Free took out his bottle of wine and poured some for the husband in plastic cups. Two American girls sitting beside Gluten Free were throroughly impressed by his meticulous planning. While Gluten Free was busy leaving no stone unturned in impressing them further, I was engrossed in the Federer game.

Federer's serve is top class, his forehand has power, his back hand is like a whip. His sense of speed, his reactions to the moves, his footwork, and his degree of placement is so good that it just flows effortlessly and brings out the beauty of his game. So much is said and written about his play that I need not say more. All I can say is if you haven't watched this man play live, please do, on the grass court of Wimbledon and as dramatic as it sounds, it is near religious experience. Federer eventually won the game and one item of watching Federer play live was ticked off the bucket list.

All in all, Wimbledon is something that one has to experience as it cannot be described. Its something that I keep coming back for as I cant get enough. As for now, I take back wonderful memories and a whole bunch of photos, until next year...

After crossing the security tent

Stairways to heaven

Watching Bopanna play

Novac Djokovic - ready to play

Federer at his best

Centre court roof is on

Henman Hill

The Wimbledon Experience - Part 2

The Wimbledon Experience Part-1 link here

Part - 2

As soon as we settled down in the queue, there was high amount of random banter from the diverse group. The discussion started by a friendly argument about a not so friendly subject - business versus IT. Now 'Thakur' and I are on the business side (often referred to as the arrogant, demanding end users) and the 'Head' and the 'POITR' are on the IT side (often referred to as the lazy, non-delivering coders). 'Thakur' and I suspect that there is a imminent IT non-cooperation movement going on in the office, the head of which was with us in the Wimbledon Queue (hence the name - the 'Head'). Like for example, the other day, a critical production bug was raised by the business at around 5:30 pm, to which his answer was - 'Its past the close of business'. Now, I find it quite funny how IT in our office defines the close of business for the business but needless to say, our request was ignored. Also, in our project we reverse engineer, or rather, are forced to. So the IT develop a new code, then write the design documents and then tell the business to document the requirement accordingly, but I digress.

In all this banter, the husband and the 'Gluten Free' decide to stay at a distance, lest they would get pulled into an ugly battle. As time passes by, different people have different demands. The 'Head' demands a pack of playing cards and the husband obliges him with one due to the meticulous planning done in the morning. I demand a good hot coffee from a van standing in the golf park. The bags open and the 'Head' shows off the midnight trip done to the Tesco store. Barring a few odd food vans parked in the golf course, there are not many food options when you are in the queue, so its a good idea to stock up.

Suddenly, the 'Thakur', who mind you had not even brought a bottle of water, demands chilled beer. The good thing about the queue is once you have the queue card, you can step out for a while, which turned out to be a bad thing for 'Thakur' as he was commissioned to go back to the Sainsbury store near the Southfield station to get some cash accompanied with a variety demand of drinks. Meanwhile, I manage to get a hot mocha that helps me to keep warm as I can see dark clouds gathering up in the sky.

Hot coffee, cool breeze, crisps (oh yeah, I am in Britain and I don't call them chips) and cupcakes - it was a perfect combination for me, but not for 'Gluten Free' who refused to eat it. I personally believe that its absolutely rude to decline if someone offers a double chocolate muffin with chocolate chips, no matter how full you are. All of us had our mouths wide open and eyes rolling rigorously when the 'Gluten Free' did not obey this simple rule of 'muffins and cakes' and made us highly suspicious of whether he was from Mars. 

'Gluten Free' tells us that the polite decline was due to the fact that he only has gluten free food. I sympathise with him on his dietary restrictions but am secretly happy that I can gulp down his share of muffin too. Just then, he adds that this whole gluten free thing is voluntary, meaning he is not really allergic to gluten and all of us become suspicious again, this time we feel he has come from a even far off place, probably Pluto. The group gets a new topic to discuss on why anyone would give up the pure joy of eating gluten filled food and jokes about Gluten Free's food habits about being gluten free will last till the end of the day.

Its time, the gates open and the queue starts moving. The excitement in the ground doubles up. Since we were 'just above the ground capacity', our queue starts and stops intermittently. The stewards know exactly where to take the queue around in an serpentine fashion. When the queue stops moving, we put down our mats and settle down quickly, when it moves, we move barefoot picking up our stuff - the pure joy of walking barefoot on the fresh, green, manicured grass is just beyond words. This goes on for a while and the queue has moved significantly. 'Thakur' is now back in the queue grinning ear to ear with a box of chilled beer cans in his hands.

As like on most London days, the rain gods decide do their job and there is a hustle bustle on the ground. The mats are lifted, the chairs are folded, the umbrellas are opened up and the raincoats are on. 'Gluten Free' takes out his Wimbledon special umbrella and everyone is quite jealous that he has one. Later on we find out that the umbrella was lent to him by his friend few years back which he never managed to return. All of us make a mental note of never to lend him anything.

Just then a police patrol chopper hovers above the golf park. Everyone starts waving to the chopper - now I don't get it, who on earth waves to the police for fun but this is Wimbledon so I dont question and I wave back towards them. The play inside the Wimbledon park has halted and the queue intake has slowed down. Around two and half hours have passed now and we are inside the first gate after a thorough check of our queue cards while the rain and the sun continue to play hide and seek.

Once inside the first gate, there was a similar wait but there were some fun things to do. First of all, we all took a mandatory group photo with a nice Wimbledon gate in the background. There are some small screens put up which were showing some fun interviews with the players. There were plenty of stalls - like one was giving out free drinks, Haagen-Dazs had a fun photo booth where you could take photos and put a centre court background, HSBC has a mini tennis court to pass time. Another one and half hour passes by quickly and we are now hungry.

I have been extremely efficient and packed sandwiches filled with home made green chutney for the chutney. Everyone gulps them down telling me how delicious they are but I am pretty sure that it was a factor of their hunger. 'POITR' takes out the second set of muffins, this time Gluten Free eats them too ! As the queue moves further, we can almost see the finish line.

We have survived the queue and we are there. A small security check now stands in between us and the Wimbledon Park !!

When the rain gods showered some love on us

Dog patrols on the queue

We have passed the first gate !!

So apt for the Wimbledon .. Patience is really rewarded !

Passing some time at the photo booth ...

We are there !! Just need to pass that security check tent !!

The Wimbledon Experience - Part 1

Wimbledon is not just any tennis tournament but its a experience.

A large number of tickets for the tournament are sold on lottery for which you need to apply by post in advance by December in a ballot process  - something that extremely confusing and is beyond the discipline of the husband and me, both. So unless you are Sachin Tendulkar who miraculously shows up with a finale ticket at the centre court every year, the only other affordable way to get the tickets is to queue.

Wimbledon is one of the few major sports in UK where one can still buy the premium tickets on the day of play and its pretty fun queuing. A limited number of tickets are available daily for Court 1, Court 2 and the Centre Court except the last few days of the tournament. Queuing is such an integral part of Wimbledon and is often referred to as - 'The Queue for the The Championships' and it has pretty strict rules as well.

The approval - The plan for the Wimbledon starts with choosing a right day when you hope that the sun gods would shine upon you - which in London is almost an impossible task. Now the husband being a keen follower of almost every sport on the earth and specially Tennis, kept moving the day by studying the rain forecasts. Eventually, he settled on Friday. Considering that I am not a doctor who saves any lives, getting a day off should be a very easy task no ? Wrong. Apparently the fate of the whole bank whose shares are already trading at a pretty low price rests on me showing up at work. Finally after many meetings armed with power point proposals on who can help save the bank in my absence for a day, my leave was approved.

The Group - There are plenty of ardent tennis fans who show up on their own however we Indians like to flock in groups. I think the fun of queuing just multiplies with the number of people, the quirkier the better. So the husband, his colleague (lets call him 'Gluten Free (GF)'), two of my colleagues (lets name the first one as 'Head of the IT non-cooperation movement - Head' and the other one as 'Thakur'), friend of the IT Support ('Protector of the IT realm' - POITR)  and I, we all paraded to the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club (AELTC). More on these names later.

Planning the route - The husband usually always has a plan and in this case knew exactly when to get there and how. There was much discussion on when to reach the grounds for queuing. The really really ardent fans start queuing the day before - which means they basically set up tents and camp overnight. There is a high probability that you will get tickets to the show courts if you camp. There is a second lot who arrive around 5 am the same day, and they almost surely get in and watch matches on court 3 to 19 but if they are lucky, they also get tickets to the show court. The husband vetoed both the options and explained that we needed to start at 830 am sharp. This was a feat in itself - getting 6 Indians living at different places to get to a place in time.

So everyone except the Gluten Free (who lives in Waterloo - not sure how they came up with the name because none of the loos here have water but I digress) decided to meet at the Canary Wharf station on the platform. Now anyone who has lived in Mumbai and travelled in the local trains in the era without cell phones would have atleast, once in life, used the best meeting point on the platform - 'below the indicator'. Now the 'Thakur' who is from Delhi could not fathom this concept and later on used this excuse for being late even though the platform is barely 200 metres with just 2 indicators.

Mind the gap - 'Mind the Gap' is an announcement often heard on the tube network to warn the commuter of the one feet black hole between the tube and the platform. Sometimes, so big is the distance that it should actually be called a valley, but I digress. Talking about the tube, the AELTC is not very close from the Wimbledon tube station. In fact, its closest from the station called Southfields on the District Line (Green line). So we took the Jubilee Line from Canary Wharf to Westminister. From Westminister, we took the train to Earls Court, then another train to Southfields. We were running late and the odds were against us. Just as we thought that we were getting there, there was an announcement in the tube that the destination of the tube has changed.

I mean, coming from Mumbai, I have done numerous mad dashes moving platform to platform because the local train driver thought it would be fun to bring the train onto a totally different platform but ever heard of the train changing the destination !! Anyways, we got down and the Parson Green station and guess what, the whole train was empty, meaning the whole train was going to watch Wimbledon. The next District Line train finally took us to Southfields where Gluten Free was waiting for us.

Approach - When you come out of the Southfields, I suggest that make a mad dash towards the Wimbledon Park Golf Club - this is where the queue is housed. Every slow step that you take towards the queue is another 10 people ahead of you in the queue.

At Wimbledon, Cash is King. You can only buy the tickets in cash so be prepared. Inspite of clear 'onboarding' instructions given the day before, the 'Thakur' did not have any cash, infact he did not bring anything, not even a bag with water. He had strolled lazily with just a jacket on and hands in his pocket - hence the name bestowed upon him - 'Thakur'. Now Thakur wanted to spend further 5 mins withdrawing cash meaning getting pushed back by atleast 200 people. After much social pressure and absolute disdain showed by the husband, he succumbed and kept walking with us. No one wanted to piss off the husband as he was the only one who seemed to be our ticket to Wimbledon.

Finally in the queue - When you reach there, you will see a number of honorary stewards who will explain you the process of queuing. The first thing you should do is go to the steward who holds a big purple flag with a big 'Q' written on it. This is where the serpentine queue is right now and as soon as you spot the flag, go to the steward and beg for the Queue Card. Once you get the queue card, preserve this more than a pot of gold as you will be asked to show this queeu card atleast 2-3 times to make sure you not trying to sneak in. Each queue card has a date and the number - this is your number in the queue and this ticket is non-transferable. Also each person gets only one queue card, so there is no way you can save spots for any other 'Thakurs' who plan to come late. The queue has strict rules and you will be literally given a 'Guide to Queuing' with a queue Code of Conduct. Apart from the usual 'do not jump the queue', the queue code of conduct has some very interesting rules like - barbecues and fires are not permitted or even rules laid out for pizza take-aways or loud music should not be played but use headphones instead. All in all, an extremely meticulously planned and amazingly executed queuing process.

Our number was around 8700 and were standing in the K9 queue. The stewards told us that we were 'just above' the ground capacity so that means that when the first lot goes in, the next in line will be allowed in on the basis of 'one out one in' basis. When we asked what was the 'capacity', the only answer we got was we were 'just over' so we let it pass. The husband as always, was fully prepared with enough mattresses for 6 people to rests their bums on so we settled down. This was just the beginning of the much fun-filled day ahead.

Southfields Station converted to a huge tennis court

On route to the queue

The Queue

Queue Cards

Rejoicing after being handed over the queue card

Settled down

Seville Day 1 - Semana Santa

If you are in Seville during the Semana Santa week, its almost impossible to miss the sheer excitement in the city. Its almost like the whole city comes to the halt for the evening procession.

So what is “Semana Santa”? “Semana Santa” means “Holy Week”. Starting with Palm Sunday, the last week of Lent leading up to Easter Sunday is a pretty big deal in Spain, but especially in Seville. Even if you aren’t religious, it is impossible to miss the incredible celebrations.

What’s the celebration about?  So the churches have hermandades (“brotherhoods”), which are like religious organizations/clubs that people can join. In Seville, the 55 or so brotherhoods take part in the processions carrying over 105 pasos (floats) that carry imageries of Jesus, the Virgin Mary, the Saints, etc. The icons are cared for all year long and then during Semana Santa they’re carried through the streets in grand parades/processions. The processions are managed by the city, which sets very specific schedules and provides other kinds of preparation and assistance, including police officers, barricades, blocking off streets and public transportation, etc.

How to view it? First thing to do is choose a procession to try and see, and then try to get there early so you can get a good spot. In some areas, we saw stadium-style seats which I am told are booked in advance and are pretty expensive. Husband and I were pretty tired due to the 300 am start and we didn’t intend to see the full procession. So we found a spot near the cathedral but it was a free spot – meaning people could just stand on the road and view the procession pass. It important to go a bit in advance of the schedule because by the time of the procession, it was pretty packed.

The Marching Order – We noticed that in the procession, the first thing was the Cruz de Guía (the guiding cross) and then followed the ‘nazarenos’. These are people that march in front of the pasos, and are members of the brotherhood who have volunteered to do this. Some carry small crosses or rosaries, candles, and some even hand out candy to kids that are in the crowds watching them pass by.

The nazarenos wear long robes and capirotes: pointed caps, along with hoods that cover their faces, except where there are slits for their eyes. The colour can vary with the brotherhood but we mostly saw either black or white. It can invoke an image of the Ku Klux Klan however let me reassure that there is no connection whatsoever. The people who wear the capirotes are respected for their religious devotion and commitment.

Then comes the “paso” – am image or a set of images set up on a movable wooden float. The structure is richly carved, ornately decorated, colorful, covered with flowers and magnificent to the viewer. Most hermandades have a paso with Jesus, and one with Mary, but some have an additional paso depicting a scene from the Bible. Many of these pasos are kept on display inside their churches so they can be enjoyed throughout the year.

The pasos were moving and stopping at intervals and that is when we realized that they weren’t actually moving on wheels. They were actually carried by members of the hermandades! I later found out that the pasos usually weigh around 4,000 pounds and between 25 and 50 people, called costaleros, carry the pasos on their back and shoulders. People volunteer to do this job! The team of men called the costaleros (literally "sack men", for their distinctive - and functional - headdress), supporting the beams upon their shoulders and necks, lift, move and lower the paso. As they are all inside the structure and hidden from the external view by a curtain, the paso seems to move by itself. 

As each procession leaves its home church, (an event known as the salida), at its return (the entrada), and along the march route, improvised flamenco-style songs may be offered by individuals in the crowd or from a balcony. These songs are generically calledsaetas (arrows). The high point of the procession is when the float exits and enters the respective church. 

For the people of Seville, it was generally just a time to be social. Kids enjoy holding out their hands to try and get candy from the nazarenos. The entire scene is alive with colour and sound, thanks to the polychromatic variety of tunics, hoods, ensigns and banners, in short, its one of a kind of experience.

The marching band

Nazarenos

Pasos

Seville Day 1 - Will the Real Alcazar please stand up !

By now, it was well past 300 pm and we managed to claim our right to the room. As we were heading out, we stopped by the reception to pick up a city centre map but mostly to see if we can get a few tips on where we can stand to get a perfect glimpse of the evening Semana Santa procession. During half english and half dumb-charades type banter, she told us that the ticket line to the Real Alcazar is usually massive and it’s important to book it online, we promptly agreed her advice and later found out how true it was.

Originally founded as a fort governors of Seville in 913, the Alcázar has been expanded or reconstructed many times in its existence. The history goes that in the 11th century, Seville’s prosperous Muslim rulers developed the original fort by building a palace called Al-Muwarak. Later on, in the 12th-century, the Almohad rulers added another palace. However, in 1248, the Christian monarch, Fernando III captured Seville and moved into the Alcázar. Fernando’s son then replaced much of the Almohad palace with a Gothic one. The credit for the best part of Alcazar however goes to Pedro who between 1364 and 1366 created the Alcázar’s crown jewel, the sumptuous Mudéjar Palacio de Don Pedro. Needless to say, this is a UNESCO world heritage site and the palace is still used by the Spanish royal family when they are in Seville

The palace can be entered from the Plaza del Triunfo through the Puerta del León or Lion's Gate. From the ticket office inside the Puerta del León (Lion Gate) you emerge into the Patio del León (Lion Patio), which was the start of the original Al-Muwarak palace. Off to the left of the Patio del León one can enter the Sala de Justica (“Hall of Justice”). This room was likely used as a residence of Peter I during the construction of his palace.  Also, it is said that Peter’s step-brother, Don Fadrique, was murdered in this room by order of Peter himself.

Passing through the rear arch of the Patio del León, one enters the heart of the complex which is called the Patio de la Montería.

Patios De La Monteria

Patios de la Monteria is named after the hunters (monteros) who met here with the King before they went out hunting. 

In front is the Palacio del Ray Pedro I de Castilla (“Palace of King Peter I of Castille”), built in 1364. On the left is the Palacio Gótico (“Gothic Palace”), built in the mid-13th century.  On the right is the Casa de la Contratación (“House of Trade”) where Columbus signed his contract with Queen Isabella.

At this point the husband needs a restroom break. It is extremely important that the husbands visits every bathroom at every place – be it a restaurant, a café, a theatre, a cinema or any other location so why leave out the Real Alcazar. Once the husband is back, we continue on the most magnificent part of the Alcazar - Palacio del Ray Pedro I

Palacio del Ray Pedro I

The Palace of King Don Pedro I starts with a facade which harmoniously marries Moorish features - horseshoe arches, Arabic lettering ("No one is victorious but Allah") - with Christian words (the very noble... Don Pedro... ordered ordered these Alcazares built"). It is amazing how the both co-exist.

Hall of Ambassadors – This was the main hall of the palace and the throne room of the king Pedro I. It’s a sqaure room similar to Muslin “Quba” where the square represents the earth and the dome represents the universe. A decoration of the combed muquarnas forming a star joins the square to the circle.

Patio De La Doncellas

The Courtyard of the Damsels was the centre of public area of the king Peter I palace. Its surrounded by the poly lobed arches, one of the most characteristic motifs of the Almohad dynasty. This was named for the legend that the Moorish rulers of Andalusia would demand 100 virgins from the Christian kingdoms each year.  This story was used to spur  the Christian reconquest of the Moorish territories that took place during the Middle Ages.

Patio de las Muñecas (“Court of the Dolls”)

Private life in the Palace of Pedro I revolved around the Patio de las Muñecas, which leads to the bedrooms and private halls. The small hall is enclosed by a gallery with marble columns and lobed arches. The name of the Patio de las Muñecas - Patio of the Dolls - is derived from four small heads that decorate one of the arches.

From the Mudéjar Palace we passed without realizing it into the Gothic Palace, and entered the Gothic Palace Chapel. From the palace we passed out into the massive Gardens of the Alcázar.

The Gardens

A visit to the Royal Alcazar also allows entry into the royal gardens. The expansive area is divided into a number of separate gardens some of which are terraced. 

The first thing that caught our eye was the lovely Pond of Mercury. It is said that the This pond was originally an irrigation reservoir that was fed by a Roman aqueduct!  In 1575, it was converted into a more decorative pool with a theme based on the Roman god Mercury, the messenger of the God.

From the pond you have a view over a walled-in section of the garden, laid out in a formal style. To the right of the pond are a number of smaller terraced gardens all connected to each other via gates and small staircases. The gardens are decorated with fountains, grottos, a labyrinth and even a small artificial mountain.

The arch is connected to a gallery - the Galeria del Grutesco - which was once part of the original Moorish palace. 

Mercury Pond with the Galeria del Grutesco in the background

Garden View from the Gallery 

All in all, the Alcazar is a must visit when you are in Seville and specially if you want to avoid going all the way to Granada to see the Alhambra. 

Few weeks later, when husband and I are watching Game Of Thrones season 6, we will get excited to see that the Alcazar gardens are the gallery are being used to show 'Dorne'.

Perhaps, this will make us go back again !