Valencia Favorites

Favorite thing: The best moment for coming to Valencia is during Fallas (from 15th to 19th of March).Many great activities are done during the fiesta. The main one are the "fallas" themselves: they are huge sculptures made of wood and cardboard that are painted with fine colors. There are some artist that are the whole year working just for making them.The greatest ones can be as tall as a 5 floors building (check the pictures).So there is a competition for making the most beatiful sculpture. During the fiestas week, more than 700 sculptures fill the streets of the city. The fiesta finishes with the burning of all the sculptures (fallas) the 19th at midnight, saying welcome to the spring. It is just spectacular see the whole city in flames with all these monuments burning. Besides this, there are fireworks during the whole week. At 2PM there are fireworks (Mascleta) in the Plaza del Ayuntamiento (during the whole month), they are just for making noise and you can even feel the building around shaking because of the noise, it's sounds like a war and feels as earthquake.At midnight there are fireworks in the river bed, the best night is the night of 18th, "La Nit del Foc" (the Night of Fire).As well in Plaza de la Virgen a 15 meter virgin is made of flowers.The whole city is full of colour, noise and music bands. People from all around the world come to Valencia just to see the Fallas.
It is a must!!

Fondest memory: Go to mascleta in Plaza del Ayuntamiento. Go at least 1 hour before, because there will be thousands of people there. The best place for watching it is close to Post Office. It is really impresive. Go to see close to fences if you dare (for me, it is the best place for seeing it)
Go around the city and see the Fallas. The best ones are: Plaza del Ayuntamiento, El Pilar, Sueca-Literato Azorín, Convento Jerusalem, Na Jordana y la Merce. All of them are close to the city center.
Visit the virgin made of flowers (the last day).
Go the fireworks every midnight, specially the 18th night.
Go to the burning of the fallas the last day, this is, probably, the most beautiful.

Favorite thing: Valencia has lots of things to show and offer to tourists.
It's the city with the largest historic center in Europe. Most of this center is composed by lots of narrow and picturesque streets, and is a great pleasure to wander along them with no scheduled route: the most common neighborhoods in this zone are:
El Carmen (around "calle Caballeros" and "plaza del Carmen"), La Seu-Xerea (around and East from the cathedral), el Mercat (around La Lonja), and Velluters & El Pilar (from Torres de Quart to parque(parc) de l'Hospital).
The most traditional zone for shopping in Valencia is in the southern part of the historic center and surrounding area (streets Colón, Roger de Lauria, Don Juan de Austria, Poeta Querol, Barcas, Pintor Sorolla, Cirilo Amorós).

Fondest memory: When I'm away from Valencia, the most missed of it are my family (of course), the weather, nightlife and the most quiet activities, such as walking through a park or sitting on comfortable terrace of a bar.

Favorite thing: (photo:Manolo el bombo & I in Manolo's pub) Go to the 'sanctum of fooball'-theMESTALLA STADIUM and see a match if you can!Valencia CF is one of the best team in the world!It was finalist two times in the Champions League (2000,2001).The atmosphere of the stadium is fatastic!Unfortunately they sold out their stars(do you remember the Mendieta-Kily-Claudio Lopez trias?),but it's still on the top of primera division.More info about the club:valenciacf.es

Fondest memory: What I missed from Valencia?Well,the great hospitality,friendly people,and tequila.I think you can have it in every part of Spain.

Favorite thing: The place you should visit in Valencia, is the recently opened Science museum, one the biggest in the world, and the best thing about its a interactive museum, they want you to participate in it. Beside the museum you also have a buidling called Hemispheric which is a Imax theatre.

Fondest memory: The best time to be at Valencia is during its local festivals called 'Fallas', its the festival of fire. Its during march, the main attraction of it are the wood and paper sculptures that are made during the whole year and then burnt on the 19th of March. That same month they have fireworks during the day and nite, so it becomes quite noisy and colorful too. That is for me the Image of Valencia.

Fondest memory: Even in Feb the weather was lovely and warm.It was about 20c every day.It was warm enough for t-shirt and it was warm enough to sit outside and eat.Calpe has everything you might need.Here is the villa we stayed at,so quiet and scenic.A real getaway.

Fondest memory: There are oranges everywhere in north costa blanca.The pic below is the beautiful villa we rented at Calpe.The scenery here was breath-taking.Calpe has a beautiful beach and a promanade with lots of nice bars and restarants.
We had many a good meal down on the waterfront.

Favorite thing: This tower called Miguelete is part of the Cathedral of Valencia, and its where the bell is alocated. You also have the option of paying a entrance ticket and go all the way up, to have a excellent view of the historic centre of Valencia.