Tuesday, 11 October 2016

Valencia, Spain

Oct 2 - 5

Every time I go to a new city in Spain I immediately think "Oh, I love this place. I wanna live here one day!" So... I now want to live in Valenica!nI think it's the combination of the beautiful buildings, the quiet streetd, the big long beach, the friendly people and the delicious food that has me so inspired. (It's only missing the mountains!) It's just got an awesome chilled out vibe that I love too.



When I arrived I was feeling a bit flat, so I went for a run in the Turia Gardens - a park which borders the city centre and used to be a river. When the river dried out, the locals were given an opportunity to vote on what should be done with it, and they decided on a park. They then paid 4% extra tax for the next two years to pay for its construction. Hopefully the locals would agree that it was worth it. 


The park has something for everyone: bike paths, outdoor gyms, playgrounds, ponds and lakes, memorials, plus a zoo and the Arts & Science centre (I didn't get that far on my run - but more on that later)


I met a Brit (called Lucy!) in my hostel and we went out for pintxos and sangria. Then we popped up to the hostel rooftop terrace bar for a chilled out night, playing cards and chatting to Germans.


I had a lovely long sleep before a walking tour in the morning. The highlight of the walking tour for me was the silk exchange building. The rich Christian folk had the poor non-Christian folk build it for them. The clever non-Christian builders sneakily created some rather inappropriate gargoyles, including a woman masterbating and a man pooping onto the building. Apparently it is considered a "sign of weakness" to remove anything from a religious building, so they will forever remain there!


I also really liked the central market. Not only is it full of delicious fresh foods, but it is also a lovely building. 


While there, we got free samples of the local ham (Delicious! I'm obsessed!) and I tried some Horchata - a Valencian drink that tasted more or less of sweet milk. Not a fan...


We also saw heaps of stunning buildings around the city. 


One standout was Palacio del Marqués de Dos Aguas. Just cos it's pretty and unique!


Valencia is just so beautiful. And clean. And not toooo touristy or crowded. I love it.


After lunch, I climbed the 207 narrow steps up to the top of the Miguelete Tower, a part of the Cathedral. The view was lovely but to see it you had to climb up onto a step and peer over the edge, through cross-wires. Not exactly a place where you can sit and admire the view for a lengthy time. That said, you can see ALL of Valencia, so it was worth the €2!


Upon further exploring I came across many beautiful plazas, as well as the bull ring and train station.


Lucy and I found more pintxos for dinner and again spent our evening on the hostel's rooftop terrace.

I started off the next day with a walk through the Turia Gardens, heading towards the Arts and Science Centre. But before I got that far, I found a rather interesting playground. It was a huge human figure lying down, with various steps going up and slides going down, plus ropes and climbing nets at various spots across the body. It reminded me of Gulliver's Travels! (And what do you know...further research proved that this was exactly the intention - it's even called Parque Gulliver)


I don't even know how to begin explaining the Arts and Science Centre.. It was like something from the future! And yet it was built in the 90s. All the buildings were white and shiny and curvy and just so pretty! 


I didn't go inside any of the buildings, I just admired them from the outside and found a nice spot to eat my lunch nearby.


A slightly longer and far less scenic walk eventually led me to the beach. A huge beach covered in nice soft sand, perfect for a lazy afternoon. Given that it would probably be my last beach day for a very long time, I even went for a swim! And the water was perfect - refreshing, but not icy cold.


Yet again, I had pintxos for dinner. Yum!

After a quick stop at the market for some fresh fruit, most of my final morning in Valencia was spent at the Silk Exchange. As well as it's aforementioned hillarious gargoyles, it is a stunning building which was once used as a marketplace.

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