Sevilla is not normal. But I found a place that is. It has a few evergreen trees, kind of "forest"-like area, and is hilly - well is built on a hill.
Sevilla may be the most charming and beautiful city in the world, but it is flat and in the middle of the land, and only has a river going through it. Even Mara says the soil is weird here, and that's what she misses most about Madrid: the soil has substance there, and moss even grows.

I got up really early and caught a bus that only took a bit over an hour. I had been unable to make breakfast beforehand, so I ordered a mollete and two coffees in a bar high up on the hill. The jamon on my tomate, aceite and jamon mollete was not the usual. There was something special about it. The price also told me so.
I started seeing advertising about jamon on various buildings and soon remembered that Aracena is a special place for jamon, and that the pigs are brought up there eating acorns, giving the meat an amazing flavour and costing a lot more.
The whole idea was to do a sendero (hike/walk) through the forest. But I had not brought any directions so I climbed up the hill where I was told would be the tourist office. Then I had to check out the castle at the top. By the time I went down the hill to find the other tourist office which had maps, it was much later. I eventually found the trail, but had to walk out the highway a bit.

What can I say... no matter how great any city might be it kills your soul. I just might escape forever into the country.

In the morning it was sunny but cool enough to wear leggings under my skirt, and a summer jacket and scarf, which felt incredibly good sitting on a rock wall with sun hitting me. There were normal clouds in Aracena too. White, vague clouds, and later, big puffy ones. A smell of wood smoke, complete peace; nobody doing anything on a Sunday between 10 and 12. I sat glued to a spot by the church looking up the hill at the castle crying for desperate need of being in a place like this. Three little old men sat at quite a distance from each other, around me, just looking out at everything as well, nodding to each other a few times.

I could only walk an hour each way so as not to miss the bus back. But there was shade, just enough of it, unlike the areas south of Sevilla. I tried an acorn but it was bitter and despite it looking whole, there were bugs in it. Everything was cork and acorn oak with occasional olives and other bushes. The occasional horse was wandering around, and a herd of sheep.

In the town, walking up and down steep streets, there are views through narrow alleys of white buildings towards totally green hills (covered with pine or oak or other evergreens).