Fantastical and whimsical, the Metropol Parasol rises 85 feet from the paved streets of Sevilla. Also known as Las Setas de la Encarnacion (incarnation’s mushrooms) Sevilla claims it to be Europe’s largest wooden structure.
The roof of the structure is crisscrossed by undulating walkways and provides a 360 degree view skimming over the expanse of Sevilla. Walking it inspires mild vertigo and some trepidation.
It is constructed of straight-grained Finnish birch braced and even, in some places, glued together. Architect Jurgen Mayer found his inspiration for the design in the vaults of the Cathedral of Seville and among the ficus trees in the nearby Plaza de Cristo de Burgos.
Long before and after its unveiling the Metropol swirled with controversy. And its final cost is rumored to be an astronomical 100 million euros, a sore point for many Sevillanos.
MedFlies 
Hey there, I am just catching up on your adventure. This structure looks amazing! Thanks for sharing and the tapas look so yummy!
Going out on the Guadalquivir river today to see the city from a different perspective.
Super.
I miss this. How is your cuerpo?
Do you know when it was built? I don’t remember ever seeing it when we were there. Besides being a sculpture, does it provide a lot of shade?
The construction took about 6 years and was finished in 2011. When digging the foundation crews found a site rich with Roman artifacts. The find caused a great public controversy. A subseqent dig led to recovery of a significant number of Roman artifacts. These are now in a museum (the Antiquarium) created in a below ground floor of Las Setas. The massive structure does provide shade on the surrounding plaza and streets below.
That’s amazing. I’m sure I’d get vertigo but I’d do it anyways.
It was definitely worth it.