Hot Spain – Part 1

»Que viva España«

We departed early from the main bus station in Maribor where we took GoOpti to the airport in Treviso, Italy. Since we still had a few hours to go before the take-off, we wandered around the airport and outside it. After landing in Valencia, we took the underground to the old town where our accommodation was waiting for us on one of the narrow streets, filled with the hubbub of the city. To wrap up our day, we only went for an evening walk, which was followed by delicious dinner which was pasta with jamón – a Spanish dry-cured ham. We filled our hungry stomachs, but our wallets became considerably lighter. The whole experience was made even better by a street singer dressed as a matador, singing »Que viva España«. Before going to bed, we observed people hanging out below us from our narrow balcony and enjoyed the evening humidity.

Travelling through time

We started the next day with a walk around the old town that included the former defence towers (Torres de Quarts & Torres de Serranos), the former Silk Exchange that is protected by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site and is known for its illustrious “Hall of Columns” (La Llotja de la Seda), the city cathedral with Plaça de l’Almoina, Plaça de l’Ajuntament with the city hall and its interior, the city market (Mercat Central), the bullfighting arena and the train station (Estació del Nord). After the noon break, we decided to take a walk through the famous city park called Jardí del Túria, which is one of the city’s largest parks. It’s approximately nine kilometres long and there are 18 old and modern bridges spanning across it. And why is that, you may ask? The park was built in a former river-bed that was diverted away from the city in order to prevent flooding. The river-bed has been transformed into a popular paradise for hikers, joggers and bikers as well as all those who want to get away from the hustle and bustle of the city and take things more slowly. When we arrived to the City of Arts and Sciences after crossing the green oasis, we were blinded by the bright white collection of buildings. This part of the city is composed of numerous modern buildings that house a science museum, a cinema etc.

Paella night

Despite everything we saw and experienced that day, it was the evening we were looking forward the most. We called it “paella night”, since we celebrated our anniversary with the traditional dish of Valencia, which is paella. The one we tried was called “paella de castello” (rice, beans and chicken). Of course, we couldn’t leave out the evening walk filled with conversation and bonding. We had been walking for so long that we became thirsty and ended up sitting on a bench with a view of the city’s awakening nightlife together with a litre and a half of store-bought juice (in order to protect our wallets from the high prices).

»Vamos a la playa«

The coolness. The sea. The beach. These were the only words that somehow popped into our heads in the morning. The underground train took us to the outskirts of the city where, after walking for half an hour, we arrived to the endless beaches. We visited three differently named beaches, but it was all just one big sandy motorway. The reason why we went to three different beaches was quite simple and expected. The crowds. Despite worrisome situation due to the rising number of Covid-19 cases in Spain, there were lots of tourists flocking to the beaches and people there rarely kept a safety distance. Our expectations were considerably higher than the actual image of the beach. There was more of the colour brown than blue, the one we admired in the photos. We did, however, cooled down and admitted to ourselves that there’s nothing like the good ol’ Adriatic. Sadly, this was quite an insignificant disappointment compared to what we would experience in the second half of the day.

Taking better care of tourists than the animals

We visited the famous Oceanogràfic, which is said to be the largest oceanarium in Europe. Despite its attractive and illustrious architecture, we left the oceanarium outraged and appalled. Even though we saw lots of different marine animal species, there were a few things that bothered us. Firstly, when you walk from one part of the complex to the other, in addition to the crying children and bad-mannered visitors hanging on their phones, the oceanarium plays music very close to the animal enclosures. Instead of hearing the sounds and singing of rare bird species, we attended a Bruno Mars concert. The second and third negative remarks refer to the confinement of animals. We watched a beluga whale that had multiple wounds throughout its body and swam in circles in what was obviously a too small enclosure. The penguins, who were also stuck in a too small area on their theatrical stage, kept pecking at their flipper bands and tried to cheer up the audience under the spotlight. This was enough for us to leave one of the most popular tourist attractions outraged, despite having spent more than 60 euros for out tickets! It was sad to see people with their phones taking photos, talking very loudly and laughing, while animals were clearly suffering nearby. It was also interesting that the oceanarium almost had more land-dwelling animals than marine organisms. Our anger only subsided after having spent some time lying in the park and our neighbour from the balcony two metres from ours greeting us.

Museum marathon

We dedicated the fourth day to museums. The first one we visited was the Museo Nacional de Cerámica, which is located in an impressive baroque building, inside which are majestic chambers that house a collection of ceramics of a famous ceramic industry. We continued our tour with the La Almoina archaeological museum, which is located under a glass skylight that also serves as a floot of a market. The museum exhibits the remnants of the former Roman settlement with a spa, a forum etc. and of the former Moorish fortress. On our way to the history museum, which is located in the former underground reservoir and resembles an ancient crypt, we also stopped at the wonderful Gothic church. Most of the museums that we visited had free entry at the time of our visit. Even though we bought a 72-hour tourist pass, which cost each of us about 20 euros, it was interesting that the pass also granted free access or discounts to many museums, in addition to free public transport in the city. We realised that most museums had free entry even without the pass, so you should check the information on the museums online.

Las Fallas de San José

Next on the list was the museum that fascinated us the most. We visited the Museo Fallero. The museum houses a collection of wonderful figures created for one of the country’s most famous festivals. Las Fallas de San José is a traditional festival spanning over multiple days in Valencia and its surroundings and represents the arrival of spring. During this time, there are concerts, paella competitions, street events, bullfights and firework displays. But the main attraction is the making of the famous sculptures called “ninots”. The figures comes in various sizes and they can reach a height of up to 15 metres. Each neighbourhood sponsors its own artists who, in a single night called “plantà” (create the figure overnight), erect the figures and put them on display. The jury then judges these figures and gives out prizes for each of the categories. The largest spectacle takes place after midnight on the last day of the festival, which is 19 March when the sculptures are burned at the bonfires. This is called “cremà”. There is, however, an incredible figure that does survive the bonfire. It’s the best prize awarded for the best sculpture, the one that receives the most votes and the best rating. The sculpture is then transferred to the Hall of Fame – a museum where the figure is displayed alongside all the previous winners. Las Fallas is dedicated to St. Joseph and was listed as a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2016.

Our visit to the museum concluded the four days we’ve spent exploring Valencia, and in the next article we’ll visit other places, including the royal Madrid.