Valencia, Spain: A City of Sun, Flavor, and Surprise

 Upon my arrival in Valencia I hoped to find a smaller and more peaceful Barcelona, lovely, seaside, and maybe in the shadow of the renowned neighbor. Instead, I discovered a city that has its rhythm, a city that perfectly mixes old-world appeal and new-world vigor in the most unobtrusive manner.

 Note: Always Long Stay Parking Stansted before travelling and book according to your needs.

 A stroll in the historic center was like you were in a storybook. Alleys led to sunlit plazas where people hung about and had coffee and the smell of oranges was in the air, not unexpectedly Valencia is known to produce them.

 The Cathedral of Valencia was proudly Gothic and I was elevated by the tower of the bells where I was able to see the terracotta roofs all the way to the sea.

 But Valencia is not all about history. A stroll took me to the futuristic City of Arts and Sciences, a glittering system of white curves and glass that resembled something on a different planet.

 I recall sitting on the shallow pools as the children would run across the bridges as the evening light illuminated the buildings to deconstruct them into sculptures.

 Naturally, it is impossible to visit Valencia without trying paella. It is here where it was born and the locals take it seriously. I went to a restaurant with a group of friends at the beach and the pan was almost the size of the table.

 The rice was smoky, with saffron, rabbit, and vegetables, and not like the tourist ones I had elsewhere. Eating that meal, and hearing the waves right outside us, was like being in Valencia as pure as possible.

 The most surprising thing, however, was the lifestyle. There was no haste in the mornings, no haste in the siestas in the afternoons, no haste in the evenings, which lasted late into the night. It is a city which makes you remember to breathe, to taste, to enjoy.