A Taste of Valencia

Saludes A Ustedes! Ready to read about my week-

end?

Right: Paella

This trip was my second organized by the University (Seville was the first) so we got to stay in a hotel, treated to great food, and day activities. No high-speed train this time we took a charter bus (brought me back to high school days… band trips!!) to Spain’s third largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Everything was tightly wedged into our 2-day visit to Valencia, and we were lucky enough to go during the city’s biggest holiday of the year- the Fallas Festival.

Although still in Spain, Valencia is within the Catalan region so Valencian’s don’t speak European Spanish, they speak Catalan. Both languages are similar. Below: Fallas

Las Fallas - “the Fires” in Catalan - is a celebration of St. Joseph of Valencia. Joseph was a carpenter and felt as though forming bonfires of all the years’ junk to be burned was as good a spring-cleaning if anything. Over time this holiday has become one of Spain’s most unique and crazy festivals. It is the creation and destruction of fallas; built by groups of artists from different neighborhoods around the city, they sometimes cost up to 700,000€ to make and take the whole year to create. There are hundreds in all sizes around the city and some are several stories tall.

Because of this festival the Valencians have a fascination with fire and fire crackers, which were going off all weekend. It took me awhile to get used to the constant booming noises - it was normal to see a six year-old throwing poppers! There is a two-week festival leading up to March 19^th when at midnight all the streetlamps are turned off and the 300+ fallas are set to fire and burned.

During the two weeks prior, the fallas and ninots (puppets or dolls in Valencian) are shown off in parades, mounted on a firecracker-filled cardboard and papier-mâché monuments displayed in main streets throughout the city. Thousands of people come to partake in the festival while feasting on paella (the traditional Spanish dish is specifically from Valencia) and carnival food. Stands on the streets sell bunuelos (like a churro but made with pumpkin) and churros and hot chocolate, popcorn and kettle corn, roasted chestnuts, candy and Orxata (Horchata) – this is similar to the rice drink from Mexico but is made from water, sugar, and the sweet root plant tigernut, chufa, or earthalmonds.

We weren’t there for the actual burning of the festival but got to experience Mascletá. At 14:00 o’clock (2 pm) a firecracker and fireworks show was put on in the central square of the city. I have never been in the midst of such a deafening, thunderous explosion

– and by the time it was over the city looked as if it had been bombed. Mascletá (left) takes place every day leading up to March 19^th.

On Friday with the group at La Lluña our stellar vegetarian lunch spot, we were brought salads and 4 different kinds - and colors - of hummus with fresh grainy bread to start with, than a main course of veggie lasagna, spinach cake and rice, than desserts - different flavors of custard, tea and espressos. Even the boys didn’t seem to miss their meat. Also as a group we went to the Silk Exchange, and the School of Arts and Sciences. On Saturday we went to the Oceanográfic Aquarium and visited the Las Fallas Museum where the winning falla from each year’s festival is saved from being burned and held on display. Sunday we took a 3-hour bike tour that spanned the entire city. Unfortunately we never made it to the beach, because it was still quite cold.

The girls and I shared a pitcher of “Valencia Water” which is a special drink made from freshly squeezed Valencian Oranges and champagne. We visited the Merkat Centro early Saturday morning for the best market experience of my life. They had everything from coffee and tea to bulk spices, olive oils, eggs, chocolates, cakes and bread, meats, cheeses, fruit, vegetables and nuts. We tried the carnival food (the chocolate churros were better than they are here in Madrid) and I had paella twice. And I set off a firework. We also went out at night for tapas and drinks then partied in the streets with the rest of the city after the grand parade.

Above, from top:

The Aquarium

Valencia oranges at the Merkat Central

Beluga Whale, Aquarium

The Bike Tour

Part of the School of Arts and Sciences

Unfortunately the only souvenir I came back with other than a couple post cards is a flannel I bought off the street because I was so cold. Alicia and Chrissy bought the same ones so our attempt to be warm was seen as the joke of the group who made fun of us the whole trip.

So it was another long week at school after another exhausting weekend away – in a good way of course! Today is St. Patrick’s Day so I wore green and had a few beers. I am watching the Spanish version of “Dancing With the Stars” with Marta. It is some kind of special night because a 75 year-old woman is dancing with a 30 something-man… I am still feeling a bit foggy and have school tomorrow so here ends my Irish Holiday celebration. Til later!