The Basilica and the Virgin
The Basilica de la Macarena was built in 1949 to house the Virgin of Hope Macarena — a 17th-century sculpture of the Virgin Mary that is the most emotionally charged object in Seville. The Virgin is dressed in embroidered robes and jewellery donated by the toreros she is considered to protect; Joselito El Gallo left her his medals, and they are still here. During Semana Santa, on Madrugá (Holy Thursday into Friday), the Hermandad de la Macarena carries the Virgin through the streets in a procession that can last six hours and generates a collective grief that is unlike anything else in European religious culture.
The Almohad City Walls
The Macarena city walls — a kilometre-long stretch of Almohad fortification built in the 12th century — are the best-preserved section of Seville's medieval defences. The walk along their base, between the Puerta de la Macarena and the Puerta de Córdoba, reveals the scale of the original Islamic city. The Puerta de la Macarena, a 12th-century gateway, is the most complete surviving Almohad gate in Spain. The Alameda de Hércules, a five-minute walk from the walls, is a tree-lined promenade that has been the neighbourhood's social space since the 16th century.
The Local Tapas Bars
Macarena has the least tourist-affected tapas culture in central Seville — bars that serve the workers from the nearby Mercado de la Encarnación, the office workers from the city administration, and the residents who have been drinking here since before the tourists discovered the city. El Rinconcillo, on Calle Gerona, claims to be the oldest bar in Seville, operating since 1670; the jamón hanging from the ceiling has been there long enough to develop its own geological character. Bodeguita Romero and Bar Eslava are nearby and equally serious about their tapas.
The Mercado de la Encarnación
The Metropol Parasol — known locally as Las Setas (the mushrooms), Jürgen Mayer H.'s controversial timber structure on the Plaza de la Encarnación — covers the Mercado de la Encarnación below it and contains a Roman archaeological museum in its base, unearthed during the construction. The structure itself divides Sevillans; the views from its walkway at the top are the best in the city at sunset, looking over the roofline toward the Giralda. The market and the archaeological museum are worth the visit regardless of your opinion of the canopy above them.
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