TRAVEL || VALENCIA
I cannot believe it's over 4 months ago already that we went to this beautiful place.
I think I've never been more ready for a break as at the time. Valencia is a great city to visit in March. It's still winter-ish and cold at home, but in Spain spring is on! I was fantasizing about all the summer clothes I could wear on this little vacay (and the outfit you can find here, here, here and here) weeks before we left.
We only had 3 days to explore the city, 'cause we were visiting my folks at Altea for a few days as well. We decided to split the city into 3 walks: El Carmen, Ruzafa & Cánovas and the Turia Park and Alameda & Colón.
Day 1: El Carmen
We arrived at the hostel around 10 in the morning the first day and after a quick shower we went into town. El Carmen is the historic center of Valencia, with narrow streets (and the most narrow building of Valencia!), el Mercado Central, a lot of street art and trendy bars. And we were pleasantly surprised when we came around the corner to find the Cathedral and the fountain. All this beauty!
After our walk we went to the hostel for a late afternoon sleep. Because we left so early in the morning we skipped a night and we felt pretty jetlagged! Around midnight we went out for something to eat at our favourite fast food chain in Spain: 101 montaditos. Yaaay!
Day 2: Ruzafa & Cánovas and the Turia Park
When we were in town the preparations for the Las Fallas festival were in full swing. Fireworks everyday at 2. Yes, 2 o'clock in the afternoon! I found that a bit odd, 'cause fireworks aren't that amazing by daylight... But the local people went insane over it! Around 2 everybody stopped working or going to school and they gathered around the square. We were just passing after lunch and decided to stop and see what was happening. At 2 o'clock sharp the fireworks went off. No beautiful colours, but huge pops and a lot of noise. Everybody started to yell and cheer. And then suddenly it's over and everybody walks away. We were laughing our asses off, but it was great to be part of a local cultural thing. Lol!
It's a long walk from the center to the structures of Santiago Calatrava.... We crossed the Central Station, which is really beautiful (it took 11 years to build it!), and Plaza del Toros. I hate bull fighting, but it's an interesting building from the outside. Most of the stores in rich neighbourhood of Ruzafa were closed because of siësta, but they were way out of my budget anyway! ;) So instead of shopping we had something to drink at one of the many places in Cánovas and we continued our way.
When we reached Turia Park and the amazing structures of architect Santiago Calatrava, it was definitely worth the walk. See for yourself, it's magnificent!
At night we broke the Spanish tradition to eat tapas in the afternoon and had them for dinner. Bodequilla del Gato has the best in town, and there's a great atmosphere as well!
Day 3: Alameda & Colón
The last day my feet were sore from all the walking, so we decided to take it easy. The weather was beautiful, around 25 *C and sunny, so we walked across the Puente de la Trinidad and relaxed a little at the park, had an easy walk around the neighbourhood for some sightseeing, walked back over the Puente de la Exposición, did some shopping at Calle Colón, had a cupcake at Cupcake Republik and ended the day with some very good tapas (again)! Holiday feelings! When we went out for a drink at night, people were dancing in the street of Plaza de la Reina. Free tango lessons! So cool!
The morning after we walked the streets of the center of Valencia for one last time on our way to the station, where we took a train to Alicante, where my mom picked us up.
Valencia is a beautiful city, the people are so nice and there's muchos to see! It's a real recommendation for a citytrip or a holiday, it has it all! Hope to be there again very soon!
♥
