Porto Barcelona Day 20 - Second Day in Valencia

The highlight of the day was to participate in a free walking tour in the city centre of Valencia. Our bicycles were left in the apartment while we took a tram from the nearest station (100m away) from our apartment at Francesc Cubells Stop to Marítim - Serrería Station to change to a metro train. .where we stopped at Colon Station.

Emerged from Colon Train Station where we started wandering the streets of Valencia for a day city exploration.

The tower of Santa Caterina Church as seen from the street as we were approaching a city square.

Somewhere near the square a demonstration was seen and apparently it was a common scene in Spain to have a peaceful rally.

We were early for the Free Tour and had time for a cup of coffee and a decent toilet break at the Square.

Free Tour Valencia is a company that specializes in tour guides services, and also it's the only company offering daily walking tours with a free price which the tourists will decide how much to pay.

The Plaza de la Virgen (Virgin Square) is a square in the centre surrounded with three iconic buildings the Cathedral of Santa Maria, the Basilica of the Virgen de los Desamparados and the Palace of the Generalitat .

Our Tour Guide Helena Ve Sa whom will be taking us for a two and half hour tour together with a group of tourists from the various parts of the world. We started from Tribunal de les Aigües de València.

Where Helena told us about the weekly meeting held every Thursday of the year, on the right side of Gothic Door of the Apostles of the Cathedral of Valencia. If the timing is right one could wait and witness the bells from the "Micalet" ringing at the stroke of twelve o'clock to watch session.

The Serranos Towers are considered to be the largest Gothic city gateway in all of Europe, and were constructed at the end of the 14th century by Pere Balaguer as part of the city's fortification. They were once served as prison cells and used as a triumphal arch for many festivals. You can enjoy splendid views of the city and the river Turia from the top.

Construction on these large guard towers was finished in 1391. They were once the main entrance to the city. The structure are both pentagon-shaped, connected by a common gallery of Gothic design with parapet wall the entire structure as seen in the remains of this old moat.

Església de Sant Joan del Mercat - Santos Juanes is a Roman Catholic church located in the Mercat neighborhood of the city of Valencia. The church is also denominated the Royal Parish of the St Johns or San Juan del Mercado due to its location adjacent to the city Central Market and facing the Llotja de la Seda building.

The Central Market of Valencia is one of the largest in Europe, covers more than 8,000 square metres, with a predominantly Valencian Art Nouveau style. Its unique roof comprises of original domes and sloping sections at different heights, while the interior lined with a range of materials such as iron, wood, ceramics and poly-chromed tiles. The beauty of the building stands out especially when the light that enters through the roof at various angles and also when through the coloured window panels.

Most of the vendors are selling food items with others selling souvenir shops. There are restaurants are located inside the market as well. It is a popular location for tourists and locals alike.

The style blends a modern Valencian Art Nouveau style but mirrors some of the architectural influences of nearby buildings such as the Valencian Gothic style Lonja de la Seda and the eclectic Gothic-baroque church of Sants Juanes.

Let's try the fresh orange from Valencia since it the city of oranges.

Thank you Helena for a wonderful tour and a welfie with the entire for the record in front of the Central Market of Valencia. 

Catedral de Valencia is a remarkable 13th century church stands on the site of an early Roman temple and 8th century mosque. It is situated between Plaza de la Virgen and Plaça de la Reina.
The exterior of the Cathedral is unique a mixture of architectural styles. With a narrow Main Entrance decorated with a façade of Baroque style.

It was lunch time everyone engaging their time for a good meal and we were looking for a place to chill. After all it's siesta time.

A set lunch for 11 euro seem a good deal for us.

Found a table in a crowded joint and happily enjoying the crowd for our lunch.

An excellent starter before the main course with preserved olives and beer.

The place where we took our lunch at Restaurante El Kiosko at Carrer d'Ercilla, GPS : 39.474262, -0.377692

The church of Sant Martí , of Sant Martí Bisbe and Sant Antoni Abat , is one of the oldest in the city of Valencia , located at the beginning of Sant Vicent street . Its origin must be sought in the conquest of the city by James I , being in principle a mosque dedicated to the Catholic cult.

Museo Nacional de Cerámica y Artes Suntuarias González Martí. The National Museum of Ceramics and Decorative Arts "González Martí" is a museum dedicated to ceramics, porcelains and other decorative arts such as textile art, traditional costumes and furniture.

Saw a group bicycle tour in progress while the guide was giving a brief at Plaça del Col·legi del Patriarca GPS : 39.472078, -0.373472

The bat at the top most is a heraldic symbol commonly seen on crest everywhere in municipals of Valencia, Catalonia and the Balearic Islands. This one was taken at the monument of King James I.

The monument of James I the Conqueror (2 February 1208 – 27 July 1276) was King of Aragon, Count of Barcelona, and Lord of Montpellier from 1213 to 1276; King of Majorca from 1231 to 1276; and Valencia from 1238 to 1276. He was an important figure in the development of the Catalan language, sponsoring Catalan literature and writing.

Brompton Junction Valencia at GPS : 39.468902, -0.367582

Brompton Junction Valencia opened its doors on November 16th 2017. Brompton Junction Valencia is located near Colon market is the 13th flagship Junction store. It was nice meting Alvaro and his colleague at their shop.

That's was our 20th day at Valencia.

Porto Barcelona Day 19 - Hello Valencia

The bus arrived at Valencia Bus Station (Estació d'autobusos de València) on the dot located at Carrer de Menéndez Pidal, GPS : 39.480278, -0.387586

There were only a handful of travellers at the station in the early morning and we had coffee from the cafeteria with a flock of pigeons salvaging food that was left on the tables.

At the outside of Valencia Bus Station and were ready to ride on the streets and locate our lodging. Our direction was kind of towards south east. The weather was cold but bearable.

València is a bike-friendly city that is perfect to pedal around. It is easily accessible, flat and surrounded with many historical places.

A garden that cuts through the urban heart of the city that you can bike without any rush, whilst enjoying the lovely climate.

The city belongs to the Network of Cycling Cities, has over 156 kilometres of cycle paths and is home to the old course of the Turia River.

Still on the bicycle lane as we were approaching our destination after covering a distance of 7km.

That was it our accommodation in Valencia and will be staying for the next few days at Flats for You. GPS : 39.462640, -0.334313 along Carrer d'Ernest Anastasio.

A decent apartment with two rooms with basic facilities that would be ideal for a short stay.

A simple and clean bedroom.

A short walk to a cafeteria called La Cocineria Bistro for lunch before we start our sight seeing.

The neighbourhood where we were staying is quiet with couple of old buildings being refurbished for new occupancy.

Within less than 3km from our apartment we reached the amazing futuristic park.

Valencia's Science Museum sits at the heart of the City of Arts and Sciences - Valencia's 2 km long cultural centre. It spans four floors and offers both temporary and permanent exhibitions. It is a place to bring the whole family as there is the opportunity for the kids to play and for the grown-ups to learn some interesting facts. The building itself is also worth a visit - it is surrounded by 13,500 square metres of water a has a unique futuristic shape.

Queen Sofía Palace of the Arts is the final structure built of a grand City of Arts and Sciences concept designed by the Valencia-born and internationally known architect Santiago Calatrava, which began in 1995. The building was constructed by a joint venture of Dragados and Necso and it was opened on 8 October 2005.

L'Hemisfèric (1998) — an IMAX Cinema, planetarium and laserium. The building is meant to resemble a giant eye, and has an approximate surface of 13,000 m². The Hemesfèric, also known as the planetarium or the "eye of knowledge", is the centerpiece of the City of Arts and Sciences. It was the first building completed in 1998. Its design resembles an eyelid that opens to access the surrounding water pool. The bottom of the pool is glass, creating the illusion of the eye as a whole. This planetarium is a half-sphere composed of concrete 110 meters long and 55.5 meters wide.

 The shutter is built of elongated aluminum awnings that fold upward collectively to form a brise soleil roof that opens along the curved axis of the eye. It opens to reveal the dome, the "iris" of the eye, which is the Ominax theater. The City of Arts and Sciences is divided in half by a set of stairs that descend into the vaulted concrete lobby. The underground spaces are illuminated with the use of translucent glass panels within the walking path. The transparent roof is supported by concrete arches that connect to the sunken gallery. There is a remarkable echo in the building and if two people stand at the two opposite pillars inside of the eye they can speak with each other.

The City of Arts and Sciences is situated at the end of the former riverbed of the river Turia, which was drained and rerouted after a catastrophic flood in 1957. 

The old riverbed was turned into a picturesque sunken park.

The City of Arts and Sciences is a cultural and architectural complex in the city of Valencia. It is the most important modern tourist destination in the city of Valencia and one of the 12 Treasures of Spain.

This museum belongs to the City of Arts and Sciences complex. The building was designed by Santiago Calatrava and reminds a whale skeleton. 

This is one of those museums where forbidden NOT to touch. It is orientated to learning the sciences through experience, so everything is graphically displayed, with huge texts and pics, experiments, buttons to touch and experience... perfect to go with kids of 7-12 years!

Bumped into a bicycle shop that sells Brompton bicycles but it was closed and having an unique siesta time (2pm to 5pm).

Colon Market ( Mercat de Colon) located at Carrer del Comte de Salvatierra, GPS : 39.469175, -0.367847

One of the most emblematic modernist buildings in the city. It was built in 1914 by Francisco de Mora y Berenguer.

 It is an open, circular area occupying the whole block and brings to mind the old awnings of the traditional market places. 

An important restoration project, working on the structure, brickwork, ceramic work and wood has returned the market to its former glory; the trencadís that decorates the original entrance is of special interest. The market is a city meeting point with its colourful, Valencian façade reminiscent of the modernist designs of Gaudí.

We settled down with a beer cum coffee break at this beautiful market.

Puente de la Peineta – the white comb like work by Santiago Calatrava– spanning the riverbed between the ancient ashlars of the Puente del Real and the colourful splendour of the Puente de las Flores bridges. The bridge is built in high-tensile steel and is set on one single span, with a 14-metre high arch running from one end to the other. Alameda underground station is below. GPS : 39.473045, -0.366358

The Puente de la Mar is framed between Calatrava's construction and the Puente de Aragon and surrounded by palm trees. It was rebuilt after flooding in 1591 that destroyed the simple wooden bridge that stood in its place, and for centuries was the natural route connecting the city with the port. In 1933, the Puente de la Mar was closed to traffic thanks to a project by the architect Javier Goerlich, who also built the magnificent access stairways well into the 20th century. GPS : 39.470246, -0.364180

The Turia Gardens or Jardines del Turia, lie in a former riverbed which snakes through Valencia city centre like a long green ribbon, stretching all the way from the Bioparc to the City of Arts and Sciences and on towards the sea.

The building opposite the road is Museu de Belles Arts de València along Carrer de Sant Pius V, GPS : 39.478928, -0.371280

Torres de Serranos located at Carrer del Comte de Trénor GPS : 39.479413, -0.375905 also known as Serrans Towers or Serranos Towers is one of the twelve gates that formed part of the ancient city wall, the Christian Wall of the city. It was built in Valencian Gothic style at the end of the 14th century (between 1392 and 1398).

It is an important landmark and one of the best preserved monuments of Valencia.

We mingled around the walled city with narrow alley and paths.

Fuente del Turia (Turia Fountain) in the vicinity of the cathedral of Valencia GPS : 39.476438, -0.375334. This lovely square represents the Turia River and depicts Neptune. At one end, you’ll find doors leading to the Cathedral, known as the Apostle Doors with the carvings of the 12 apostles adorning the entry.  

It was getting dark when we saw this market, we shall visit it tomorrow, that's the Central Market of Valencia.