Surely after an incredible trip, you will want to take a piece of Seville with you. Or maybe you want to give a gift to someone. Luckily for you, Seville is a city of contrasts and great cultural richness, so here are some ideas to take you back home.

Traditional crafts

We are talking about famous accessories related to Sevillian festivities and traditions, such as the famous Manila shawls or fans, not forgetting embroidery, guitars or castanets, which can be true works of art.

Traditional ceramics

If the Triana neighbourhood is famous for something (apart from its charm, its people, its history and thousands of other things), it is its ceramics.  Something made here, closely connected to its pottery tradition, would be a wonderful object to take home. You can choose the technique that you like the most, maybe the Arabic tiles with geometric motifs or the painted ceramics with typical Seville colours. Of course, make sure you buy something made by hand here in Seville, being careful not to buy something “made in China”. The best place for finding what you’re looking for is, of course, Triana. You will see, it will decorate anywhere in your house. 

Gastronomy

Food is always a good choice, especially to take back to your family so you can enjoy it together. In this case the variety is wide: craft beers, Aljarafe wines, extra virgin olive oil, Iberian ham, typical sweets such as mantecados from Estepa (especially during the Christmas period) or Tortas de Inés Rosales, which are compulsory that you to try.

You will find shops for these products throughout Seville, but especially visit Triana (Calle San Jorge and Mercado de Abastos) and the Arenal area.

Convent sweets

They are mostly consumed at Christmas, which is a mistake, because delicacies like these can be eaten all year round. The characteristic thing is that each convent has its specialty in different sweets, so you have to choose!

In addition, buying these sweets means two things: the first is that you can try traditional Sevillian handmade sweets, and you will therefore not fall into the trap of buying something industrially made. And the second is: you will contribute to the preservation of the cloistered nuns sector and the maintenance of their sixteenth-century convents, since they hardly receive contributions for the essential maintenance of the buildings -which are of historical importance-.

If you decide to go to the convent of Santa Paula, you can buy delicious jams of all flavors; the one in Madre de Dios sells delicious muffins and almond sweets; San Clemente is famous for its pestiños and cortadillos; in Santa Inés you will find their sweet potato pies; San Leandro is known for its yolks and if you go to Santa María de Jesús, take its fried donuts.

Art in the flea markets

If you are a good collector of local things, you should know that in Seville there are two markets where artists show their work, usually paintings or craft, and they are normally related to Seville. What’s better than buying something made by a Sevillian artist?

The first of these markets is in Triana, on the Paseo del Guadalquivir (Paseo de la O), called the Paseo del Arte. It is every Sunday from 9:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

The second is mainly of paintings, but you can find many more things. It’s also on Sundays from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., in the square in front of the Fine Art Museum. You will be amazed by the beauty of the work.

So you know, if you’re here on a Sunday, take a little time in the morning to check them out!

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