Valencia

Valencia was fantastic. I was originally planning to travel there to visit a Valencian friend that I knew from Mizzou, but unfortunately it turned out that he was going to be in Dublin at the time. I still wanted to see the city though, as I studied abroad in Alicante, a city in Valencia the region, and while there I heard many great things about Valencia the city. I somehow never made it up there though, and therefore, friend or not, I wanted to go.

The first day I walked around the city quite a bit. Previously a river had run through the city, but it has since dried up and the bed has been converted into a huge park that runs the length of the city. (city city city ? ? ?) Its filled with palms, flowers, bushes and other greens, statues, fountains and beautiful walkways, and was packed with joggers, walkers, bikers, roller-bladers, loungers, everyone seemed to be there There was also a skate park there, really impressive. At the end of the park was the Ciutat de les Arts i de les Ciencies, a huge complex housing an IMAX theater, a planetarium, a science museum, an aquarium, and an opera house. I didn't go inside any of them, but the buildings themselves were amazing. The architecture was ultra-modern, futuristic-looking; the buildings could have been grounded spaceships. All of the buildings were a brilliant white and were surrounded by crystal clear reflecting pools and fountains. Other buildings throughout the city were very interesting as well, rising and cutting through the sky at various angles and in various shapes. Really visually pleasing.

Excellent paella and wine that night.

As Valencia is on the Mediterranean, I spent the next day entirely on the beach. Not that I was in any way unhappy before I went there, but the being on the beach just elated me, my spirit/mood/disposition was risen soooooo much. Slightly burnt, not quite bronzed, but extremely happy by the end of the day.

I stayed in a great hostel and met some great people. That night I went on a tapas tour with a bunch of people from the hostel. Great night. Delicious tapas, Cruzcampo, Paulaner, and tequila blend very well. A few Italians came out with us, and as they only spoke Italian, I spoke, or tried to speak, a lot of Italian that night. When spoken at a snail's pace and accompanied by hand gestures I understood most of what was said to me, but I all but crashed and burned when attempting to reply, to formulate sentences of my own. One year of Italian six years ago simply did not suffice. The attempts were fun though, and appreciated.

I enjoyed Valencia so much more than Madrid. The city was smaller, I guess therefore superficially more intimate, more personal. The city reminded me a lot of Alicante: the people, the beach, the food, the pace, the language. The influence of the Valencian language was definitely present in Alicante, but secondary to Castillian Spanish, whereas in Valencia, Valenciano held primacy. All signs were in Valincian first, Castillian second.

Really nice place, laid back yet full of vitality. Beautiful city.