Viva Valencia!

Valencia is probably most well known for its oranges, and during the three hour drive there from Barcelona we certainly did see a lot of them. But did you also know that Valencia is also home to the largest aquarium in Europe?

The Romans founded Valencia in 138 BC along the banks of the Turia River that flowed (and often flooded) through the city until 1957 when flooding had such a huge economic consequence that they decided to reroute the river. They carved out a new riverbed for the Turia on the outskirts of town, and used its waters to irrigate the fertile plains for agriculture.

Now, all along the banks of the former riverbed you find many of Valencia's museums. Some of them had been former convents that had been damaged in the floods and were later refurbished into museums. They include the La Beneficencia Arts Centre, the Sala Parpallo and the Valencian Institute of Modern Art, none of which we had time to visit, unfortunately.

Also on the banks of the old riverbed is the Saint Pius V Fine Arts Museum, whose sparkling blue dome can't be missed, and next to it, the Real Gardens, which are the oldest, largest, most popular gardens in Valencia. In the late 14th century, King John I created a zoo here with lions, bears, and other exotic animals. Now it is most often used in summer for open air concerts and plays.

In the 80's though was when the largest transformation took place. The former riverbed was landscaped and developed into a swath of greenspace, kilometres long, with bike trails, walking trails, parks, and gardens that runs through the entire city. This is where you also find the Palacio de la Musica auditorium, Gulliver Park, the Urban Wood, and the Monforte Gardens. We would have needed weeks to explore and truly enjoy all it has to offer!

We did manage to spend an entire day however in what I believe is the crowning glory of the transformed riverbed, 'The City of Arts and Sciences'. When you first arrive at this stunning complex, you feel like you've entered another world, somewhere in the distant future. The sleek, futuristic buildings were designed by the architect, Santiago Calatrava and include the Prince Philip Museum of the Sciences, whose exhibits reminded me of the Science Centre back home, the Reina Sofia Art Museum, which looks like a giant helmet, the Hemispheric, designed to look like a giant eyeball (it houses a planetarium, an IMAX theatre and a Laserium), and the Oceanografic, the largest aquarium in Europe. We spent most of our time here, marvelling at all of the fabulous marine life, walking through tunnels with sharks and stingrays gliding all around and schools of fish passing by from all sides. You feel like you're walking through the middle of the ocean. It was phenomenal!

We also spent a day wandering through the oldest part of the city and the Plaza del Ayuntamiento, and I could go on and on about the architecture there, the Cathedral, the Basilica of our Lady of the Forsaken, or about Valencia's most popular stretch of beaches, the Playa Malva Rossa, but I won't. You'll just have to visit this beautiful Mediterranean city and see for yourself! Viva Valencia!