Seville

Seville, is the capital of the autonomous community of Andalusia and of the province of Seville, Spain. It is situated on the plain of the River Guadalquivir, with an average elevation of 7 metres (23 ft) above sea level. The inhabitants of the city are known as sevillanos (feminine form: sevillanas) or hispalenses, following the Roman name of the city, Hispalis. The population of the city of Seville was 703,021 as of 2011 (INE), ranking as the fourth largest city of Spain. The population of the metropolitan area (urban area plus satellite towns) was 1,508,605 as of 2010 (INE).


Parks and gardens


The Parque de María Luisa (María Luisa Park), is a monumental park built for the 1929 World's Fair held in Seville, the Exposición Ibero-Americana. The so-called Jardines de las Delicias (literally, Delighting Gardens), closer to the river, are part of the Parque de María Luisa.
The Alcázar Gardens, within the grounds of the Alcázar palace, consist of several sectors developed in different historical styles. A Renaissance terrace garden fronts the space leading from the Gothic part of the palace, whereas the outermost part is an English style garden. The areas closest to the Mudéjar buildings were kept in Moorish style.
The Gardens of Murillo and the Gardens of Catalina de Ribera, both along and outside the South wall of the Alcázar, lie next to the Santa Cruz quarter. They were developed from parts of the Alcazar gardens after being transferred to the City. The appearance of the gardens is due to aesthetic improvements made at the beginning of the 20th century, following classic gardening styles with a predominant Moorish Revival influence.
The Parque del Alamillo y San Jerónimo, the largest park in Andalusia, was originally built for Seville Expo '92 to reproduce the Andalusian native flora. It lines both Guadalquivir shores around the San Jerónimo meander. The impressive 32-meters-high bronze sculpture, "Birth of the New World" (popularly known as Columbus's Egg, el Huevo de Colón), by the Georgian sculptor Zurab Tsereteli, is located in its northwestern sector.
The American Garden, also completed for Expo '92, is in La Cartuja. It is a public botanical garden, with a representative collection of American plants donated by different countries on the occasion of the world exposition. A shadehouse for shade-loving plants, and the cactus and palms collections are the best features of the garden.
Although it is not properly a park, most of the Guadalquivir's banks constitute a linear string of parks and green areas from "Delicias" bridge to the Parque del Alamillo. The Chapina green, between the Plaza de Armas bus station and the Isabel II bridge, offers a panoramic view of the Triana old quarter neighbourhood, and is a popular zone for relaxing and sunbathing. La Cartuja's rivershore has a well-developed shady river forest, panoramic piers, and floating walkways.


Economy


The economic activity of Seville cannot be detached from the geographical and urban context of the city; the capital of Andalusia is the centre of a growing metropolitan area. Aside from traditional neighborhoods such as Santa Cruz, Triana and others, those further away from the centre, such as Nervión, Sevilla Este, and El Porvenir have seen recent economic growth. Over the past twenty years, this urban area has seen significant population growth and the development of new industrial and commercial parks.
The infrastructure available in the city contributes to the growth of an economy dominated by the service sector, but in which industry still holds a considerable place.


Infrastructure
The 1990s saw massive growth in investment in infrastructure in Seville, largely due to the hosting of the Universal Exposition of Seville in 1992, which saw the economic development of the city and its urban area is supported by good transport links to other Spanish cities, including a high-speed AVE railway link to Madrid, and a new international airport.


Seville has the only inland port of Spain, located 80 km (50 mi) from the mouth of the River Guadalquivir. This harbor complex offers access to the Atlantic and the Mediterranean, and allows trade in goods between the south of Spain (Andalusia, Extremadura) and Europe, the Middle East and North Africa. The port has undergone reorganisation. Annual tonnage rose to 5.3 million tonnes of goods in 2006.
Cartuja 93 is a research and development park  employing 15,000 persons. The Cajasol Tower is an skyscraper under construction located in this park for the Cajasol's headquarters and offices. The tower was started on March 2008 and it is expected to be finished the first trimester of 2013. With a height of 180.5 metres (592 feet) tall and 40 floors, it will be the tallest building in Andalusia.
Seville has conference facilities, including the Congress Palace.
The city and its surrounding province have a number of large industrial parks and technology centres: Dos Hermanas accommodates an industrial park, while Alcalá de Guadaíra has an industrial complex; the Parque Científico Tecnológico Sevilla Tecnopolis, gathers companies, research centres and university departments directed towards the development of new technologies; the Parque Tecnológico y Aeronáutico Aerópolis is focused on the aircraft industry.
Outside of Seville are 9 PS20 solar power towers providing most of the city of Seville with clean and renewable energy. These towers use mirrors to focus sunlight on the tower, heating it and creating superheated steam. This steam drives turbines that in turn create electric power and provide electricity during day and night.


Famous natives


Maria Antonietta of Spain, Queen consort of Sardinia (1729–1785)
Roman emperors Trajan and Hadrian were born in Italica
Abu Marwan Abd al-Malik Ibn Zuhr (known in the West as Avenzoar) - 1091-1161 C.E - "Master Physician"
The family of the Arabic historian and sociologist Ibn Khaldun
Renaissance composer Cristóbal de Morales, Francisco Guerrero
16th century novelist Mateo Alemán
Playwrights Lope de Rueda, Hermanos Alvarez Quintero
Historian of New Spain Bartolomé de Las Casas
Explorer Juan Díaz de Solís, born in Lebrija
Spanish Linguist and Grammarian Antonio de Nebrija, born in Lebrija
Baroque painters Diego Velázquez, Valdés Leal and Murillo
Explorer and astronomer Antonio de Ulloa
Renaissance poet Gutierre de Cetina
Romantic poet Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer
Bullfighters Juan Belmonte, Curro Romero, Ignacio Sánchez Mejías and Joselito el Gallo
20th century poets:
Vicente Aleixandre (Nobel Laureate)
Antonio Machado
Manuel Machado, his brother
Luis Cernuda
Composer Joaquín Turina
Actors Juan Diego, Paco León
Actresses Soledad Miranda, Verónica Sánchez, Carmen Sevilla, Paz Vega, Azucena Hernández
Miss España 2003 (representing Andalusia), beauty queen and model Eva Maria González
Singers Isabel Pantoja, Juanita Reina, Lole y Manuel, Paquita Rico, El Caracol, Falete
Comedian Manuel Summers
Football (soccer) players José Antonio Reyes, Fernando "Nando" Muñoz, Ricardo Serna, Sergio Ramos, Jesús Navas, Antonio Puerta, Carlos Marchena.
Olympic swimmer Fátima Madrid
Politicians Felipe González, President of the Government of Spain from 1982 to 1996, and Alfonso Guerra, vice president from 1982 to 1991