Be A Local Valencia

Discover Valencia (Spain) through the eyes and belly of a local.

[Be A Local Valencia @bealocalvlc]

#xelon is a popular Valencian #streetartist most famous for his depiction of robots.
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This mural behind a college in #Mislata is titled "The Power of Education" and was created in 2018 for a biannual street art festival known as Mislatas Representan

[Be A Local Valencia @bealocalvlc]

This little street the Plaza del Ayuntamiento is the unofficial seafood street as is home to two high end restaurants that specialise in seafood. Taberna Alkazar has been open since 1950 whereas Civera Marisquería appeared a few years later in 1967. ⁣

[Be A Local Valencia @bealocalvlc]

These hanging umbrellas were installed for International Women's Day and I was hoping that they'd become a permanent installation but unfortunately they got taken down.⁣ #mislata #valencia

[Be A Local Valencia @bealocalvlc]

#Valencia was put on the international map because of its unique futuristic architecture at the City of Arts and Sciences but it's historic city centre is often overlooked despite being one of the best in the country. ⁣

[Be A Local Valencia @bealocalvlc]

The main door to this residential building was open so obviously I peaked in to take a picture of this #artnoveau jewel in #valencia.

[Be A Local Valencia @bealocalvlc]

If I'm walking down the street and see an open door I feel compelled to stick my nose in and discover what beauty lies behind doors that are normally closed.
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Tell me I'm not the only nosey parker here.

[Be A Local Valencia @bealocalvlc]

You'd think this doorway with a rather prominent carved statue of the Virgin Mary and Baby Jesus is part of a religious building but it's just the entrance to one of the many Art Nouveau/Eclectic buildings found on the Gran Via Marques del Turia.⁣

[Be A Local Valencia @bealocalvlc]

Have you ever thought how lovely it would be to go to the beach and watch the #sunset over the #Mediterranean? ⁣
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You might be in for quite a surprise when you realise the sun's spectacle is going on behind you so head to the #Albufera instead.
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[Be A Local Valencia @bealocalvlc]

If you want to truly discover everything that the #Albufera Lagoon has to offer, you need to hop on one of these traditional boats known as Albuferencs.⁣

[Be A Local Valencia @bealocalvlc]

The #Albufera, particularly the island of El Palmar, is most popular on Sundays as families come here to eat #paella right where the dish was invented next to the rice paddies. ⁣
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Do you eat paella on Sundays like the locals or do you prefer to eat something else?

[Be A Local Valencia @bealocalvlc]

Chalet Cortina. ⁣
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José María Manuel Cortina Pérez was a pioneer of Valencian Art Nouveau architecture. Many of his creations (those that have survived) are dotted around #Valencia city but this particular example is a private house in a residential area in #Paterna.

[Be A Local Valencia @bealocalvlc]

There ain't no #CrossFit or poor souls hyperventilating and sweating like pigs in this "exercise house", this is actually a religious thing where people come to be one with #God and take part in a set of spirituality exercises that were developed by St. Ignatius of Loyola.
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[Be A Local Valencia @bealocalvlc]

Watch out! The Dragon de la Calderona is finally waking up!⁣
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This dragon shaped building was part of a cultural art project that was forced to shut down following a forest fire. It was unbelievably left abandoned for 6 years but it seems the project is back on

[Be A Local Valencia @bealocalvlc]

Roll on the Easter long weekend! Going somewhere across the border might be out of the question but we are lucky to live in a place that has so much to offer. ⁣
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The Valencian Community is chock-full of #medieval villages filled with charming streets like this in #Bocairent.

[Be A Local Valencia @bealocalvlc]

#Bocairent is a village in the Sierra de Mariola Natural Park and boasts of the the most spectacular #medieval neighbourhoods in the whole Valencian Community, so much so that in 1975 it was put on the national heritage list.⁣

[Be A Local Valencia @bealocalvlc]

Going back in time and strolling along narrow cobbled streets in a picturesque medieval village is one of life's little pleasures.

Can you guess the village? Hint: a village in #Valencia famous for Herbero, a liquor made with herbs from Sierra de Mariola.

[Be A Local Valencia @bealocalvlc]

@TurboLangs Hahaha yeah it was a typo, I meant 1900. 😉😂

[Be A Local Valencia @bealocalvlc]

For locals, this building will forever been known as Banco de #Valencia (Bank of Valencia) despite closing down due to bankruptcy.
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Did you know that it was founded in 1990 and was the oldest bank in the Valencian Community? ⁣

[Be A Local Valencia @bealocalvlc]

Looking towards the start of Calle Colón. Did you know that it was built over the Christian city wall that once encircled the city? When Colón Metro was being excavated, the foundations of the Jewish Gate were discovered and have been left in situ.

[Be A Local Valencia @bealocalvlc]

Today would have been the culmination of the #Fallas Festival when over 700 Falla monuments throughout the city of #Valencia would have been burned down to usher in the Spring. ⁣
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Did you know that Fallas is the celebration of St Joseph, patron saint of carpenters?