Valencia | Prima Impressione

Wheee! I'm back to blogging again! SnailingRome is over, but before that, there is going to be a series of post-mortem posts on my Europe hopabouts ('the grand tour' on budget airlines!). Since I am travelling by myself and there is nobody to remember the travels with, posting helps me to remember of what happened. So, lets start. I spent the first four days in Valencia. Here's the first look at the city:


A sweeping view of the city from the high towers of Catedral san Catalina (can you spot the famed white Calatravas?
Hint: Squint! See those aliens near the sea on the horizon?).


Cozy cafés under the dappled shade of the trees at Calle de Cuarte. Valencia sets the standard too high on what a café should be like for my trip. Though, I still vote for the Italian coffee!


Another lovely café to spend siestas at (because everything is closed!). This one sits by a quiet piazza under an old olive tree. And that's a vine-leaf wrapped dish from the middle east, with yogurt sauce and balsamic vinegar.


A peek at the typical look of downtown Valencia from Plaça de l'Ajuntament. The well-preserved gothic architecture from the 15th century seems to be regularly cleaned, since it still maintains that ivory-white glow that is long lost in the dirty gray buildings of the cities that I visited later in the trip.


Estación del Norte or the North Station, is the central station of Valencia. It has a charming art deco pillar+lamp+seats at the main hall. I want a copy of this for myself one day!


Even the trees express similarly elegant sense of taste.


This courtyard appeared on a postcard, and I decided to search for it. I tailgated a delivery man into this estate, and was kicked out within 5 minutes by an angry Spanish man. Thankfully I know no Spanish, and his angry words went unheeded in my head. So, savour this private view! Not everybody gets to go in!


Lovable graffitis. Look at the door!


And this is the staircase at the youth hostel!