Valencia is a pretty girl you date, but there's not really long term potential. Barcelona, on the other hand is the girl you marry. I'm a bit surprised to find that I have such intense Catalan feelings after just my first week there, but in finding myself in another Spanish city, I am able to solidify my feelings about and perspective on Barcelona. Valencia has the most ideal climate (it appears), and it is supremely pretty--especially the old town. It's very traditional as far as what seems to be going on, chocolatier'ing, handicrafts like ceramics and seamstry (that might not be an official term), and, of course, cultivation (I had some killer fresh OJ).
I visited the Museo Nacional de Ceramica y de las Artes Suntuarias today. The outside of the historic building is as ornate and decorative as the inside of the building and her contents. I'm not overly enthralled with decorative arts (usually the section I skip at the Getty too), but some of the ceramics and all of the jewelry were outrageously gorgeous. The interior of the building was to die for, but pics were forbidden, so I only was able to snap a single one on the stairway before tossing my camera into my purse and averting my gaze to otherwise imply the guilt of the unsuspecting couple walking ahead of me.
Especially since the day was so gorgeous, I spent a lot of time outdoors and ate lunch in a park. It's nice to watch the Spanish world go by.
It so happens that Mostra de Valencia XXXI is in full swing, so I caught a film that is part of the International Action and Adventure Film Festival. It was a French war flick called "Sangre en Indochina". Between the descriptive war images and the Spanish subtitles I actually understood more than I thought I would. Unfortunately a crazy old man sat next to me and muttered for the majority of the time that he was there before tripping over my feet and leaving.
Valencia triva fact: most of the buildings sport a plaque reading "asegurada" that confirms they are fire insured. In March, Valencia has a seriously explosive festival, Las Fallas, and, apparently, it involves ridiculous numbers of bonfires.
Valencia is a pretty girl you date, but there's not really long term potential. Barcelona, on the other hand is the girl you marry. I'm a bit surprised to find that I have such intense Catalan feelings after just my first week there, but in finding myself in another Spanish city, I am able to solidify my feelings about and perspective on Barcelona. Valencia has the most ideal climate (it appears), and it is supremely pretty--especially the old town. It's very traditional as far as what seems to be going on, chocolatier'ing, handicrafts like ceramics and seamstry (that might not be an official term), and, of course, cultivation (I had some killer fresh OJ).
I visited the Museo Nacional de Ceramica y de las Artes Suntuarias today. The outside of the historic building is as ornate and decorative as the inside of the building and her contents. I'm not overly enthralled with decorative arts (usually the section I skip at the Getty too), but some of the ceramics and all of the jewelry were outrageously gorgeous. The interior of the building was to die for, but pics were forbidden, so I only was able to snap a single one on the stairway before tossing my camera into my purse and averting my gaze to otherwise imply the guilt of the unsuspecting couple walking ahead of me.
Especially since the day was so gorgeous, I spent a lot of time outdoors and ate lunch in a park. It's nice to watch the Spanish world go by.
It so happens that Mostra de Valencia XXXI is in full swing, so I caught a film that is part of the International Action and Adventure Film Festival. It was a French war flick called "Sangre en Indochina". Between the descriptive war images and the Spanish subtitles I actually understood more than I thought I would. Unfortunately a crazy old man sat next to me and muttered for the majority of the time that he was there before tripping over my feet and leaving.
Valencia triva fact: most of the buildings sport a plaque reading "asegurada" that confirms they are fire insured. In March, Valencia has a seriously explosive festival, Las Fallas, and, apparently, it involves ridiculous numbers of bonfires.
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