Valencia!!!

It rained and the museum was closed, but we had to go see la Ciudat d'Ciencia i Bellas Artes, a new complex of a science museum, auditorium, aquarium, and IMAX a good walk south of the old part of Valencia. We took a bus back!!

The heaviest bell in Spain and Portugal, located on top of the Miguelete Tower of the Cathedral of Valencia.

View of one of Valencia's many pretty plazas and fountains from the Miguelete tower. I love Spanish cities simply for the architectural diversity: modern office buildings beside roman-inspired churches and gothic cathedrals, next to the many and continually beautiful expressionist buildings, facing out onto plazas with lovely fountains and sculptures...

The Serrano Towers, one of two remaining gates which used to form part of the wall surrounding the city. However, when the city wanted to expand, rather than continue to use the gates as portals to the old part of the city, they decided to destroy the wall and all the gates but two. Having hollow backs meant that invading forces, should they take the gate, could not shelter themselves inside and use it as a tool against the city. The towers were for defense and defense only.

World-famous Valencian oranges! Valencia is famous for its oranges, its paella (a Spanish rice dish flavored with saffron and traditionally made with rabbit and pig), and its horchata (a drink made from pressed tiger nuts, milk, and sugar) - and oranges, rice, and tiger nuts were all brought to Valencia by the Arabs!!

Tile is a rather mudéjar contribution to Spanish art, and seeing as Valencia was once a jewel of Arab Spain (although the Christians later destroyed about everything), it abounds. This depiction of the making of horchata decorated the Horcatería Santa Catalina, the oldest and best horchata place in the city. Across the street were some Christmas carolers (since Three Kings Day hadn't happened yet, Christmas was still in full swing), adding even more ambiance!

A stained-glass window of particular beauty in the Valencia cathedral. Also in the cathedral is the left (or right?) arm of San Vincente de Paul, and the holy grail. What?, you exclaim, why didn't Dan Brown just send everyone to Valencia instead of all the Lourve and Da Vinci stuff? Because the real story is boring: the guy who had the holy grail needed money, so he asked the Valencian church for a loan. They agreed, but wanted the cup as collateral. The guy later defaulted on his loan and so here it stayed. (And I totally stole all that information, including the Dan Brown line, from our wonderful tour leader from Valencia Non-Stop. Free tours for those in albergues...)

Another lovely view of the cathedral.

A nighttime panorama of Valencia from the Serrano Towers.

Colegio Otra Vez

After a lovely Christmas break with trips to Barcelona and Valencia, host family meals, and lots of pages of Atlas Shrugged, I'm excited to be back in school and to see everyone again. Valencia was wonderful! We tried its famous horchata (tiger nut milk) with fartones (light pastries) in the oldest horchatería in the city, saw the left (or is it the right?) arm of San Vicente de Paúl, climbed El Miguelete and to see the heaviest bell in Spain and a panoramic view of the city, and met people from Italy, Germany, Romania, Australia, and England in the hostel.
My days in Zaragoza were filled as well. On the night of my return from Barcelona, my host mother took me to a jota concert with a few of her friends - I had a great time! The jota is the typical dance of Aragón, and it is the happiest dance I have ever seen, and I am absolutely in love with it. The concert began with a few songs sung by the winners of the Aragón jota contest, which even has a children division. Seeing an 8-year-old girl singing a song filled with laments about her drinking husband was hilarious!!
Yesterday for the typical Three Kings Day lunch, my host mother, her sister's family, and my host grandparents went to a Chinese restaurant close to my house. However, the food was definitely given a Spanish twist: everything contained jamón!!! Regardless, they scrounged up some vegetables and rice for me, so I enjoyed it thoroughly. We followed up the lunch with roscón, a typical Three Kings Day dessert, at my host grandparents' apartment. I had baked lemon-ginger mini muffins (thank you Mom for the tins - my host mother couldn't believe that silicone was oven-safe) as a little gift for everyone, and my host cousin had brought me a little stuffed dog that looks just like the beagle their family owns - I was so touched that they'd thought of me!
More details on Valencia later...and now, on to some schoolwork.