If you ever forget that Southern Spain was part of a great Muslim Caliphate then a visit to Seville will surely remind you. The city is stuffed full of Muslim relics with two of its greatest treasures, the Cathedral and the Alcázar built on Islamic foundations.

The Cathedral is immense. It is the third biggest in the World, after St Peters in Rome and St Paul's in London, but looks bigger inside mainly because of its cavernous interior soars to the top of the guided columns. It's full of relics of course. The finger-bone of St Barnabas, the left toenail of St Jerome, the pubic hair of St Anthony, its all here, crammed into a solid silver reliquary. (I may have made some of those up but you get the idea)

The tomb of Christopher Columbus stands in one corner. An elaborate affair it features four soldiers carrying a coffin high in the air. There is some doubt as to whether the old boy is actually buried there or not, as he seems to have traveled just as much in death as in life. His remains traveled from Valladolid to Seville before moving onto the Dominican Republic then Havana before returning to Seville in 1898. Not that there is much left to test after 500 years, but DNA tests on what there is seem to point to the bones actually being his.

The old Minaret is very similar to those across the water in Morocco. This one is now a bell tower and you can walk the path to the top. I say walk because you get to the top via a long long ramp, the idea was you could ride your horse to the top. Beats a chair lift I guess. The view from the top is tremendous and you can see the whole city streched out below

The Alcázar is just across the square. It is still the official Seville residence of King Juan Carlos and it is absolutely beautiful. While it may lack the stunning location of Granada's Alhambra Palace, it certainly makes up for it with amazing architecture and fragrant gardens flanked by refreshing water features.