Valencia - place of paella

A small city that you can visit if you are traveling from Madrid to Barcelona for 1-2 days. The main reason to visit here is for the paella, because this is the place it originated from! Though most paellas have seafood, the original paella consists of chicken, rabbit, and snails... despite this I still chose the seafood paella.


Tips

  • If you go during March, you can check out the festivities called "Las Fallas" where they decorate the streets with pretty lights and build wooden figures.


Transportation

  • There is metro and bus system, but the city is small so you could walk to most places.
  • It's less than 2 hours train from Madrid, and about 3 hours train from Barcelona.

    Where to stay

    • near Joaquin Soralla train station: most likely you are taking trains in and out.

    Things to do

    City of Arts and Sciences

     A very nice site with museums with futuristic architecture. You don't really have to go inside the museums unless you are interested as the outdoor is pretty neat.



     Turia Gardens

    On your way to City of Arts and Sciences, you can go through this outdoor path which is a nice stroll enjoying some nature and air.

     Mercado Central

    A market where you can find goods like saffron, olive oil, Spanish ham, salted fish. It has fresh fruit juices and very nice horchata (drink originated from this region).

    This is close to the "Plaza de la Reina" where there are various restaurants, and you can stop by the Valencia Cathedral.



    Russafa

     Neighborhood where you can find quiky shops.

    What to eat

    • Paella at "Casa Roberto", though it is slightly expensive, the seafood paella was out of this world, very fragrant and tasty, the rice not as moist as other places but this actually makes it better. If you have a large group of people, order the calamari as appetizer, it's wow.
    • Dessert at "Dulce de Leche", very solid selection and quality of cake, juices, sandwiches. Great service too.

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