I took an early bus from Bilbao. It ended being around an 8-hour trip. I had stayed up late the night before so I slept most of the time and it wasn't so bad. There were 2 other stops where more people got on and there was a stop to eat.
The country side that I saw was very beautiful - Lots of vineyards that made a good contrast to all of the trees that were still lush and green. Not much for fall colors, this Spain. When I arrived, I easily found my hotel which was just around the corner from the bus station. 
Check in was easy and I was off to explore a little before it got too dark. I found my way to the Torres de Quart. These twin towers formed part of the medieval wall that surrounded the old city of Valencia. I climbed to the top and got a good view of the sun setting over the city. It was already starting to get a little dark, so I strolled around to see some of the night sights of the old city. Ate dinner at Bocatta, A Panera-like restaurant that is popular in Spain. It was part of a huge shopping complex that surrounded my hotel. It wasn't too tempting because it was just a big mall and I can shop here in Bilbao. But there was also a big Christmas tent that had a lot of goodies inside. They really don't have a lot of Spanish stuff though. Everything says "Merry Christmas" and is covered in Santa. Could find it in a K-Mart back home. This was right next to my hotel and I went back to get my jacket and headed down to the metro. 
The Plaza de Toros Valencia was the sight of un Feria de Gastronomía = Food Fair. Inside the ring but in the outermost walkway, there were places to buy souvenirs and big stands with food and drinks. To buy things inside you have to buy some tickets and then pay with just the tickets inside. I bought afew and decided to try my luck in the arena. Inside the ring was more food - Arabic pastries, cheeses, wines, sausages, candies and much more. Some of the best stuff I've ever smelled and tasted! It was fun to just walk around the look at everything. There was also a man giving a life infomercial about some Teflon cookware, another with a floor
buffing system, and one of those vibrating platforms that help you get in shape. I had a sausage sampler, a chocolate crepe, a pistachio pastry and two types of wine. All very good! I had a lot planned the next day so I went back to the hotel and made my route for the next day before hitting the sack.
The next morning I was up bright and early in search of the Central Market. After getting of the metro I walked a way through the open bright streets. It was supposed to be cloudy all day but the weather turned out to be marvelous! I came to a square that held a bunch of Rodin's sculptures. Even the Thinker! I ran into a couple of other cool buildings and stores on the way to the market, most of which I had no idea what they were but looked pretty interesting anyway. 
The best building was definitely the Starbucks I visited and had some of the best coffee of my life! The Central Market was constructed in the 20th century in a Valencian style - lots of colors, ceramics and mosaics. It was bustling with people doing their grocery shopping. There were sections just for bread,
seafood, meat, fruits and veggies, nuts, herbs, and oils. I strolled down the isles sipping my white mocha and enjoying the energy. Some of the stuff though was too much to be surrounded by at once. Mostly in the seafood section!
My next site was just across the street. The Lonja de la Seda is the silk exchange that was built between 1482 and 1548 in a Valencia-Gothic style. It's currently protected by Unesco. There isn't anything to do inside except look around. It was incredible and would be interesting to see how the exchange operated inside the building back in the day. I got caught up in a Japanese tour guide so I got to hear a little bit of history but soon was on my way to the next destination.
On the way from the Lonja and Market, I saw some cool buildings and churches. Can't really tell you what any of them were though. The cathedral was located in the Plaza de Reina (Plaza of the Queen) so it must've been a pretty important one!
These are a couple different shots of the church from Plaza Reina
After this I went to see the other set of towers - Torres Serranos. After this I strolled down the main boulevard that takes you from the north end to the south end of the city. The River Turia used to run through the city but after a few devastating floods in the 1950s, they Valencian people decided to divert the course of the river and now we have the lush Turia River Bed Gardens.
Over 9km of gorgeous trails where people sit relaxing, run, bike, and play sports. There are quite a few soccer fields and other athletic fields along the way - at one point I stopped to watch a soccer and rugby match. I could've spent the whole day just relaxing and taking in the sights from the park! 
Then I came upon something that I discovered before I left for Valencia, but still couldn't believe it until I saw it. Gulliver in Lilliput. This is based on the story by Jonathan Swift and is a huge park in the middle of Turia that is always crawling with children that appear like the little Lilliputians from the story. Pretty intense!
The large thing on top is referred to as the "Plume"
And then I saw it....The space ship. The aliens came down the platform 2 by 2 and took all of the dogs in the city and every magnet from the souvenir shops to fix their sick and wounded. Okay, mostly kidding. But when I saw these next few building in the distance they looked completely out of this world! The first was the Palau de les Arts Reina Sofia - An opera house. I have no idea what was inside...maybe aliens. Or opera house type stuff. This is part of the Ciutat de Artes and Ciencias - City of Arts and Sciences that includes many buildings that I saw on Saturday. Construction began in 1995 and it was inaugurated in only 2005and designed by Valencia-born architect Santiago Calatrava. It's 14 stories tall and has 3 additional levels below ground.
This building was also designed by Calatrava, with an ovoid roof over 100 meters long that contains in its interior the large sphere that constitutes the projection room. They show planetarium type stuff and other educational and entertainment shows. Probably alien propaganda. 
The Hemisfèric, Science Museum, and Oceanografíc
And in this corner: The Príncipe Felipe Science Museum is known for it's interactive science exhibits and was inaugurated in 2000. Guess who designed it? That's right - ALIENS.....
Or maybe that Calatrava guy. The current exhibit was about space, flying, and super heroes. I'm not sure how scientific that all is, but cool anyhoosen.
Hey look - More Plants. The Umbracle or the shade house that actually sits on top of the parking
ramps for visitors. The plants inside it are Mediterranean and there are also some cool sculptures inside as well.
Okay but really, let's get to the good stuff that the aliens let us keep. The largest aquarium in Europe. Drum roll please, the Oceanográfico. It wasn't just one building called an aquarium - It was a whole park with different buildings for each type of marine life. Including: The Mediterranean; wetlands - aviary; temperate - fish, seals and penguins; oceans - sharks; arctic - belugas and walruses; antarctic - penguins; dolphinarium; red sea auditorium; islands - sea lions; tropical - corals.
Now I've seen my share of fish but there was some freaky ish in this one that I had never seen before. in the aquarium, over 100 million gallons of water support the 500 species of water critters. That's 15 Olympic swimming pools of creatures! Also, it was cool because in between certain buildings there were underground tunnels you could walk through and feel like you were right there among the fish. I spent a good couple hours in there and it was absolutely beautiful and worth it!
At this point I was getting pretty hungry and couldn't get my hands on any seafood as easily as I would've thought. i walked a little ways and then took a trolley/metro the rest of the way to the beach where I decided to scrounge up some grub. The beach wasn't completely deserted, but it was a very calm day - on the sand and in the water as well.
I had a late lunch (around 3PM) at a place called Cafe Zaragoza. I had the traditional dish of the region, Paella Valenciana. Rice with veggies, chicken and rabbit. It was DEEEELISH! I went down to the water afterward and man it was cold. I didn't expect it to be swimmable or anything, but it was like ice! Strolled back to the metro and made my way to the Royal Gardens - Jardines Real. These royal gardens were once home to a castle built almost 1000 years ago. This is a perfect park. People were jogging, sitting and enjoying the evening air, having picnics and just relaxing.
From the royal gardens, I walked via the Turia gardens back towards my hotel but my last stop of the evening was the botanical garden. The garden was originally founded in the mid 1500s to study plants for medicinal use. It was relocated to its currently location on the outer edge of the old city in 1802 and restored in 2000. It had lost of tropical plants, cacti and green houses with some other more exotic plants. It was a cool stroll. I did see a lady in there with like 8 cats and others that were straggling behind. It was kinda creepy. there was even a sign at the exit of the garden that said in Spanish, "Do not abandon your cat." I wonder if it was installed just for that woman...
For the evening I relaxed in the hotel for a little bit and then headed back to the bull ring for a second installation of foodies. This time I had the most delicious bratwurst looking thing. It was just sausage that they grilled right there and then it was covered in this buttery, chili garlic sauce. mmmmmmm. What else, a couple small glasses (sample size) of wine, a plate of different Spanish cheeses and some chocolate covered pistachios. Def some great cuisine! Then I did call it a night.
The bus ride back was legit and I again managed to sleep though most of it.
I think my experiences on the eastern coast of Spain have been the best here. My trip to Barcelona and now Valencia (little less that 500 miles) have me already wanting to come back. Valencia was a gorgeous place full of art, history, modern attractions, and some of the most gorgeous parks I'm sure I'll ever see!
No comments:
Post a Comment