What Did The Romans Ever Do For Us?
Well... They Gave Us Valencia!
By Tom TanseySponsored by Spanish for Beginners
I've always thought that as long I wasn't a slave or part of some underclass, I'd rather like to have been a Roman citizen during the great days of the Empire. They seem so civilized with their philosophers, water engineers, high culture and society and great cities. No, I would not have minded being a Roman of some worth. If you were a Roman soldier with a few campaigns under your belt you became a Veteran whose job it was to go to peaceful parts of the Empire with your fellow Veterans and create new cities. Brilliant job!
That is exactly how Spain's third biggest city Valencia came into being. At the time (about 150BC) there were two significant Roman cities on the Mediterranean coast at Tarraco (now Tarragona) and our old friend Carthago Nova (Cartagena) and it was ordered that a new city Valentia (or Strength) be founded slap bang in the middle of the two, where the River Túria meets the sea.
I know all this you see, because I visited the L'Almoina Archaeological Centre during a recent visit to the city and I enjoyed it too. Only three days and two nights; not enough I know but it gave me a flavour of the city and I want to pass that flavour on to you.
Whilst in our region we are blessed with three interesting and indeed beautiful cites in Murcia, Cartagena and Lorca, none can be described as major cities. To visit the nearest major city we need to head up the coast some 3 hours or so to the port of Valencia. Whilst Valencia is a big city with a population of some 750,000, its city centre or at least the city centre interesting to most tourists is most definitely navigable on foot; with one exception, but I'll come back to that later.
Valencia is a city that has worked hard to preserve its historic centre; a centre hemmed in to the north and east by the old river-bed of the Túria, (now lush gardens cum cyclists' and strollers' paradise, Jardines De Túria that leads all the way to the coast) and the stylish streets of Calles Castro, Xátiva and Colón to the West and South. Within this almond-shaped casco antiguo (old town), exists stunning architecture, tranquil plazas, busy markets and shopping districts together with the ubiquitous cathedrals and churches of all great Spanish cities; some very fine restaurants too.
We arrived during siesta on a Saturday afternoon, which made the traffic more manageable and so we found our hotel relatively easily. I say 'relatively easily' because if there is one situation I can almost guarantee will cause strife in our family, it is when I am driving and my wife claims to be navigating through streets unknown; not this time. Because of the landmark of the Jardines De Túria, navigation was stress-free, and on this occasion my wife was actually holding the map the correct way up, which helped.
We stayed at the three star Meliá Inglés Hotel, adjacent to the sumptuously baroque Museo Ceramica and but a stone's chuck from the Cathedral. The hotel was nothing fancy but the location made it a good deal, as we were no more than a 10-minute dawdle to anywhere. We paid 80€ per night per room. We opted to eat elsewhere as the hotel menu looked uninteresting and pricey but we enjoyed a bottle of decent dry white on the hotel terrace overlooking the Museum of Ceramics for just over 10?. The staff were very friendly and helpful too. The adjacent Museo Ceramica is certainly worth an hour of your time.
Around the Cathedral in the Plaza de la Reina there is a good mixture of the usual touristy eateries and a number of reasonably-priced independent restaurants. On the first night we opted for an Italian restaurant, La Pappardella, a bit back from the cathedral. I say 'opted for' but in fact this restaurant was fully booked and everywhere else was busy. I unashamedly put my two cute rubias, blonde children to the front and suggested they'd be good for business! The young 'maitre d' dropped the waiting time from 30 minutes to 10 and she looked after us marvellously all night. It's certainly worth booking your table in advance, or else take my kids with you!
La Pappardella was great. It has a lively, young ambience without ever being in your face. It looked funky, it was great value for money and my pasta dish was the best I've ever had. I mean it. I went for the pappardelle levriero, pasta ribbons in an amazing mushroom, bacon and chilli sauce. I'm salivating right now! 7.20? for pasta heaven and about the same for a bottle of the house red. The service was first class and I shall return. If you like Italian food and you find yourself in Valencia, just go!
On the second night we settled for a tapas combo in one of the many restaurants just off Calle San Vicente Ferrer down from the cathedral. The croquetas de arroz con setas, beican y mozzarella (rice croquettes with bacon, mushrooms and mozzarella) were the highlight.
On our final day we experienced the indoor central market on Avenida Maria Cristina. The building was impressive and the atmosphere inside and on the streets surrounding was delightful.
Now back to the one place of interest outside the parameters of the old city. I could write an article entirely on the City of Arts and Science in Valencia, but in a nutshell, the City is a collection of 4 astonishing buildings near to the port of Valencia, combining an opera house, a planetarium, a science museum and oceanographic park. It is worth a visit if only to look at these incredible edifices which to me symbolise Spanish modernity and confidence, and the highlight of the four attractions was the oceanographic park. The children loved it!
Perhaps my ed. will let me give you 1000 words in a future edition on the City of Arts and Science. For me it was the icing on the very rich and tasty cake that is Valencia.
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