Today we made the three hour fast train trip (199km/h) down the coast from Barcelona to Valencia. Our first attempt at navigating the rail system was a tad confusing but we made it without getting lost or missing any trains!
Valencia is an interesting place - with beautiful old buildings sitting alongside modern constructions like the new arts and sciences precinct.
Part of the new City of Arts & Sciences...
...and then just around the corner!
We jumped on the hop on-hop off bus and learnt that Valencia used to have a river running through its centre but, after regular flooding over the centuries, they made the decision in the mid twentieth century to divert it around the city. Now the old river bed is home to beautiful gardens and various community venues - it still has all its bridges though! The river feeds an irrigation system that is centuries old - much of it built by the Arabs who once controlled this area of Spain - and this system is controlled by a group of eight men elected by their fellow farmers who decide how the water is allocated to the farmland that surrounds Valencia. They meet once a fortnight at the stroke of midday in a local hotel and wear black shirts that identify them as part of this group.
We went for a wander through the streets and found the local cathedral.
Catedral Santa Maria.
Interior of the Valencia Cathedral.
Well we came to Valencia for paella and the bull fighting paella queen delivered! The restaurant we went to was next to the bull ring (we think they still use it) and there were photos of bullfighters all over the walls including a female fighter! We are sure she made our paella!
And then we had churros!
A message from Jo-Anne: gracias for all the well wishes on my birthday!
Adios!!
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Things to see and do in Frankston: there are lovely markets, plenty of shopping, fishing and boating, parks and gardens, a cinema ... there's even a travel agent for when you decide to go to Spain ... show us a photo with you in it and Spain in it ... yesterday I paid for my new stage, bloke needs his own stage, so now I have no money to eat. I think the blog is lovely and I'm glad to see you seem to be seeing some amazing things. You two still playing nicely together?? Tell Father. Nobody's listening.
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