I was one of the few guiris who managed to escape a semester abroad in Seville, Spain without a NO8DO tattoo as a souvenir*.
Seen on street signs, taxis, manhole covers, and more throughout Sevilla (the city’s actual name, which I’ll use from this point on), this symbol may look like a random assortment of numbers and letters, but it’s actually the city’s motto, which is said to date all the way back to 1282. As the story goes:
At that time, King Alfonso X the Wise ruled in Castile. Despite his many virtues, he did not have the ability to manage the economy of the kingdom, so he ended ruining its people.
His son, Don Sancho, rose against him to try to restore the order in the kingdom. Don Sancho was recognized as new King in all of Castile except in Sevilla.
Because of this, King Alfonso took refuge in Sevilla until his death, when he left this motto for the seal of the city: the syllables “No” and “Do,” with a skein of yarn uniting them (“a madeja” in Spanish).
Thus, the NO8DO symbol is the transcription of the phrase “It has not left me” (“no me ha dejado” in Spanish, or phonetically, “No madeja do”), recognizing that Seville was the only city that remained loyal to King Alfonso X the Wise—it did not leave him.
You can see how an international student might swoon at this story and at the idea of permanently marking their body with this motto to symbolize their love for this steadfast Andalucian city.
But we were so young, and the world was so big! While I was sure Sevilla would always have a special place in my heart, I wanted to return to it in adulthood (and experience it through clearer eyes after I’d had the chance to see more of the world) before I decided if it should also have a special place on my body.
So I returned to Sevilla last weekend, exactly 10 years after I’d completed my semester abroad there, to determine whether the reality of the city today lived up to my memories of it from a decade ago.
And it absolutely did.
If it’s possible, a decade of world travel might have made me love Sevilla even more than I did back in my university days.
I don’t know if this means it’s time for me to put my tattoo money where my mouth is or what—but what I do know is that my obsession with this city in the south of Spain continues, and I will continue to recommend it to everyone I meet for the rest of my days.
If you plan to follow that advice, here are my top recommendations for what to eat, drink, see, and do while you’re in Sevilla.
What to eat, drink, see, and do in Sevilla
*as mentioned in last week’s newsletter, the souvenir I brought back from my most recent trip to Sevilla was a concussion, so please forgive the lack of explanations accompanying each of these recommendations for now. I’ll come back and update this post in the future with more detail when looking at a computer screen doesn’t make me feel like my head’s going to explode.
EAT
Breakfast/Brunch
Lunch
Tapas
Dinner
Desserts
DRINK
Coffee
Wine
Beer
Cocktails
SEE
DO
Climb Las Setas
Get tickets to tour the Royal Alcázar
Go to a show at Tablao Flamenco El Arenal
Row boats at Plaza de España
Shop local markets and boutiques
Soak at the AIRE Ancient Baths
Bonus: A Google Map ft. the best of Sevilla
You can also see all of these recommendations on an easy-to-use Google Map of Sevilla recommendations.
What else do you want to know about visiting Sevilla?
Leave your questions in the comments—happy exploring!