Although Madrid is geographically and politically the heart of Spain, there's no denying that the heart of authentic Spanish culture lies to the south, in Andalucia. Traveling through Spain is like visiting 7 different countries and the experience going from Madrid to Sevilla is no exception. These places are so different that the contrasts slap you in the face the minute you arrive.

In fact the first thing that slapped me in the face, we had been anticipating: it’s a lot hotter down in Sevilla. It was 96 degrees when we stepped off the air conditioned high-speed train, in the Sevilla train station.

Things move a lot slower here than they do in Madrid, which I love. There is less diversity in Sevilla but the people are so passionate about their way of life that you feel like you are constantly getting a less corrupted view of Spanish culture. The politics are more conservative but the tapas are a lot tastier. At the end of the day, arriving in Sevilla felt great.

We have been staying with these guys we know from 6 years ago when we studied abroad in Spain. They were all born and raised in Sevilla and they have been unbelievable hosts. No amount of money could buy the hospitality they have shown us. Especially since we’re staying—and often eating and drinking, for free.

Fran, Carmello, and Fernando are brothers. Alberto and Juanma are Fran’s best friends. They all work in the restaurant that Fran’s dad owns. It is one of the oldest in the city and the place is located in one of Sevilla’s most historic buildings. I’ll cover the restaurant later because it is a “must eat”, but for now suffice to say the whole scene is awesome. The place is packed every day and every night and these guys know everyone in the city.

They work their asses off and kicking it with them, we have begun to adopt a hyper-Spanish schedule. What the hell does that mean, you ask?

When we got to London on one hour’s sleep, our bodies were confused, tired and we always wanted to crash at the wrong times. Just as we lost the dizzying effects of jetlag and adopted Euro time, we arrived in Stockholm where it never really gets completely dark in the Summer. This was tough because it would still be light at 10:30pm and by the time you went to the last bar at 4am, the sun was on its way up again.

Although it stays light pretty late here in Spain during the summer months, it’s not the light that dictates your sleeping habits. Believe it or not, we have been having lunch no earlier than 9pm every night. We usually finish dinner around 3am, closing down the restaurant as our friends clean up and relentlessly coerce us into ordering more free “cervecitas” and “whikey—cokes”.

Getting home before sunrise doesn’t happen and has been a rarity on this trip in general.

Seville, in general, is awesome and I would highly recommend it to anyone traveling Spain. The high speed train from Madrid to Sevilla is pricey (72 EUROS), but couldn’t be any easier. It takes you from the Atocha Renfe Madrid metro station, straight to the central Sevilla station and it only takes 2.5 hrs. Seville is the perfect spot to hit up on your way to Granada (another one of my favorites)…where the tapa-hoppin’ only gets better.