Испания. Валенсия. Что делает ее такой особенной? Все самое интересное без гида.

Испания. Валенсия. Что делает ее такой особенной? Все самое интересное без гида.

I had never prepared to go anywhere so unexpectedly. Getting an invitation to Valencia was really awesome. Spain. But what’s so interesting in Valencia? I had no idea at all. I expected anything. A small cozy town or a noisy resort. And at first it seemed ordinary to me. Well — sea is just sea, warm, sand, people. Everything’s clear. But with each passing day it surprised me more and more. Valencia. The third largest. And one of the oldest cities in Spain. In its mild climate. Right on the Mediterranean coast. Where the sun shines almost three hundred days a year, and greenery all year round, about eight hundred thousand people live today. Bright, clean, with wide, straight streets and an endless flow of cyclists. That’s how I saw it. Despite its two‑thousand‑year history, through which the city accumulated monuments from various eras, beginning with the Roman Empire. Valencia does not look old at all. It’s an interesting combination of ancient cultures, modern architectural solutions, and the locals’ love to decorate their homes, creates a special atmosphere, which is easy to remember and seems liked by almost everyone who visits here. The first thing that truly impressed me. A project that was conceived thirty‑five years ago, but still looks like something from the future. Here it is — a spaceport of glass, water and shadows. This complex is the City of Arts and Sciences. Here you’ll find a theater, a museum, and a planetarium, and an oceanarium — one of the largest in Europe. But once this project was called a failure. Construction stretched more than fifteen years, the budget rose from one hundred fifty million to nearly one billion euros. Locals long considered it something like an architectural whim, criticized it. So the city did not promote this project as its pride. It was too expensive and scandalous. But then tourists began to come exactly here, shots of the complex became the city’s symbol on social media. Yes, it was built longer than planned, spent more than intended, but now without it Valencia is no longer Valencia. It turns out Valencia is the green capital of Europe. But, as they say, there would be no happiness, if misfortune hadn’t helped. In nineteen fifty‑seven because of heavy rains Valencia was flooded. The Turia River, which then ran through the city center, overflowed its banks. And it was a dreadful tragedy. The water rose then to the level above my head. And so the city made a radical decision — to divert the river aside, and in its place to arrange a park. Now the Turia Park — is one of the longest urban parks in Europe: nine kilometers of greenery under dozens of ancient bridges. Here people run, ride, walk dogs, play. There are different recreation zones: fields for football, rugby, baseball, an ice rink, a botanical garden, a zoo, a mandarin grove. By the way, the City of Arts and Sciences is built here too. Not far from it lies a giant figure of Gulliver, which you can climb, climb over it, ride. It’s a real play area, and it’s definitely worth a visit, even if you haven’t been a child for a long time. On the way to the old town the park touches a few gardens. The best known are the Monforte and Viveros gardens. Symmetrical alleys, fountains, statues — quiet, well kept, and as if a little out of time. And if you walk straight from the City of Arts and Sciences, the park itself lays out a route to the old town: from futurism to history, from water to stone. I noticed, that despite an impressive list of landmarks and a firm intention to follow the map, somehow you constantly turn into those small medieval narrow streets. There are many like that here. They seem arranged deliberately so that the shade lasts longer, and you walk more slowly. The architecture of these seemingly simple buildings should serve as a backdrop to majestic cathedrals and plazas and not draw attention. But it is precisely here that somehow you always stop — at a door with a pattern, under a balcony decorated with something, near the cat houses. In these quarters you don’t need to look for something specific. You simply walk aimlessly, and everything important emerges before you. In my view, that is the main pleasure of old Valencia. Probably in every old city there are main city gates, and Valencia is no exception. The Torres de Serranos — is one of the oldest urban fortifications, in the past part of the city wall and the main city gate, constructed in the 14th century. Through this gate ran the road toward the Los Serranos region, into the mountainous parts of Valencia. Through them passed merchants, travelers, warriors, later — prisoners. In the 19th century the towers were used as a prison for nobility. Now it’s simply part of the scenery, but when you pass beneath them, it seems the city slightly changes its sound. The old town — Valencia’s center is not very large, but it is like an architectural puzzle: Gothic, Baroque, Modernisme, Neoclassicism — all together, century upon century, style over style. In 2022 Valencia was awarded the title of World Design Capital. This also applies to architecture. So if you plan to explore it, there’s a lot for you here. For example, one of Valencia’s most significant buildings — the Lonja de la Seda (Silk Exchange). It looks like a medieval castle. The trading hall with its seventeen‑meter spiral columns that resemble stone palms, the trade tribunal with its unique gilded wooden ceiling, the courtroom and twenty‑eight gargoyles observing from above. It is a masterpiece of late Gothic architecture, dating to the late 15th century — the time when Valencia was a major trading port. Here deals in silk were struck, maritime trade and navigation matters decided. Right opposite — the Central Market (Mercado Central), one of the largest in Europe and, of course, still operating, a gem of Valencian Modernisme. Next to it — the Royal Parish of Santos Juanes (Church of Saints John). Originally built in Gothic style, but after fires the façade was rebuilt in Baroque style. Also here — the Basilica of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, façade in 19th‑century eclectic style, inside Baroque, often open, and you can enter without queue or tickets. And if suddenly you feel Valencia is too restrained — take a look here. Tinsel, wreaths, plush bears, red bows — and it doesn’t matter it’s not December. Locals call it Papa Noel — a sort of Santa Claus house, and it seems it lives up to that year‑round. We are at Plaza de la Reina (Queen’s Square). This is Valencia’s reference point. From here the city’s radial roads fan out and house numbering begins. In 1930 the first Valencia traffic light began operating here, manually controlled by city guards. Here intersect routes, styles, people, sounds. From this square you see multiple architectural epochs at once. The Cathedral of Valencia — a gathering of fragments of history. It was constructed and renovated over many centuries, since the early 13th century, so you can find Gothic arches, Romanesque and Renaissance elements, and a Baroque main façade. One of the cathedral’s chapels houses the main relic of this place — the **Holy Grail**, legendary from the Last Supper. Once there was a Roman temple here. Columns remain from it. During the period of Moorish rule it was transformed into a mosque, and after the city’s Christian reconquest in the 13th century on the same site they began building the cathedral, using the old foundations and some of the same stones. And so, admiring the beauty of the churches, I constantly think that many things in the world came into being simply because someone believed. Believed so strongly that they built cathedrals for it, painted frescos, created music. And just as much was destroyed also because of faith. And where does the spiritual end and the human begin? And perhaps a little more on the spiritual. Beside the cathedral is attached the Royal Basilica of Our Lady of the Forsaken — the city’s main shrine. Here the Virgin Mary is called the patroness of Valencia, her image — one of the most venerated. We entered in the midst of a service. In this place everything returns again to water — to the Turia, which is personified by the figure of a man. Eight female figures around him — these are eight tributaries. The fountain symbolizes the ancient irrigation system, which is still used in Valencia today. The river that once ran through the whole city now simply reminds us of itself by stone, by figure, by coolness. And now this is not exactly the old town, but the architecture here is still historical — on the boundary of the 19th to the early 20th century, the era of Modernisme and Neoclassicism. Right at the metro exit — Valencia North Station. More like a theatre or a palace, than a transport hub. The façade is decorated with ceramic panels, and inside — stained glass, ornate ceilings, ticket booths like museum counters, yet trains depart from here every day. How many beautiful buildings there are in Valencia! Wherever you turn — facades everywhere, towers, domes, fountains. Every view is almost a postcard. The Plaza del Ayuntamiento — large and triangular, is the central square of the city. Here is the city hall with clocks and flags, as is proper. Opposite is the Main Post Office building, which also looks like a palace. And underfoot — warm brick‑colored pavement, so smooth, you want to walk on it barefoot. Here city festivals are held and most tours begin here, and in the center they set up a giant papier‑mâché figure for the Fallas festival — a large spring celebration, which takes place in mid‑March. On one of the alleys we decided to land for lunch. What to order? Of course — paella and sangria! Words that sound like part of the landscape — like the smell of the sea or the clink of spoons in a street café. Yellow rice, crispy edges, the scent of rosemary, wine and fruit — you sit at a table, watching passersby, and on the table — vivid, steaming. And that moment is remembered not for taste, but by a feeling: we are on holiday. Everything is going as planned — you are free, calm and in no hurry. A few words left about the museums, of which there are many here, and many of them are open on Sundays completely free. Certainly, not all of them, but some are definitely worth mentioning. First — the Museum of Ceramics. Everything starts here with the façade — it is so lavish, that it’s hard to believe that it’s just the entrance to a building. Some frescoes on the façades are not even preserved. Inside — the history of the development of ceramics in Spain: porcelain, tiles, tableware, furniture, carriages, a reconstruction of an old kitchen — and all this is also in the old Palace of the Marqués de Dos Aguas, whose interior you can examine for hours. Another is the Museum of Fine Arts. Here, by contrast — everything is very restrained: spacious halls, soft light, few people, on the walls — Goya, Velázquez, El Greco. If you are interested in painting — this is definitely worth a visit. I like sometimes to look at paintings, but photography is closer and more understandable to me. And this — the Casa de las Rocas, the museum of the Corpus Christi procession. Small, here are kept floats, dragons, giant figures and masks, which once a year, in June, go out into the streets of the city, to participate in the procession — “Corpus Christi”. The ritual is ancient — imagine, since 1516, loud and spectacular. And until the festival begins, all the figures stand silently in the half‑light of the halls. It seems I have told almost everything I wanted, though Valencia is one of those cities that you can never fully tell. However much you show — there will always remain something not filmed, unnoticed, worth telling. And this story is not yet everything. There is another Valencia — not the city, but mountains, caves, waterfalls, fortresses. About it — in the next film. Soon. Most importantly, what I’d like to convey on screen — not names and dates, but this feeling… I don’t know, flight — when you’re free, calm and in no hurry. And if even a little of that was passed through the screen — it means it all worked!

Путешествие в Валенсию (Испания): город, где встречаются история, архитектура, солнце и апельсины.
Авторский взгляд на лучшие места, атмосферу улиц и неожиданные открытия.
Что посмотреть в Валенсии — без спешки и с любовью.

В фильме использована музыка:
Carnivale Intrigue (исполнитель: Kevin MacLeod)
Лицензия Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 на использование трека Carnivale Intrigue (исполнитель: Kevin MacLeod): https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Источник: http://incompetech.com/music/royalty-free/index.html?isrc=USUAN1500028
Исполнитель: http://incompetech.com/

Good Times by Alex-Productions | https://onsound.eu/
Music promoted by https://www.chosic.com/free-music/all/
Creative Commons CC BY 3.0
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Beauty by MaxKoMusic | https://maxkomusic.com/
Music promoted by https://www.chosic.com/free-music/all/
Creative Commons CC BY-SA 3.0
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

#испания #валенсия #путешествие #путешествиевиспанию #чтоувидетьвиспании
#чтоувидетьвваленсии #туризм #городискусств #архитектураиспания #старыйгород
#музеи #парквтурии #кафедральныйсобор #шёлковаябиржа #центрваленсии
#испанскаякухня #паэлья #сангрия #отдыхвевропе #чтоувидеть

#spain #valencia #visitvalencia #travelspain #thingstodoinvalencia
#valenciaspain #valenciacity #europeancities #oldtownvalencia #cityofartsandsciences
#valenciaarchitecture #valenciamuseum #valenciacathedral #valenciamarket #paella
#sangria #traveldocumentary #slowtravel #walkingvalencia #beautifuldestinations

Наш Телеграмм: https://t.me/DnevnikIsrael

Эпизоды:
00:00 — Сюрприз: неожиданная поездка в Валенсию
00:47 — Валенсия: история, климат и атмосфера
01:11 — Город, где древность и современность живут рядом
01:47 — Город искусств и наук: символ новой Валенсии
03:00 — Трагедия, подарившая Валенсии парк
03:42 — Зелёное сердце города: Парк Турия
04:00 — Парк Гулливер
04:13 — Сады Монфорт и Виверос: старинная зелень города
04:46 — Узкие улицы и магия старого города
05:43 — Башня Серанос: ворота в историю
06:33 — Центр города: архитектура веков
06:56 — Шёлковая биржа: готика и торговля
07:38 — Центральный рынок и духовные храмы
08:24 — Площадь Королевы и Кафедральный собор
10:51 — Королевская базилика Богоматери Отрекшихся
11:41 — Фонтан Турия и водная символика
12:31 — Северный вокзал: не вокзал, а дворец
12:54 — Ратушная площадь и почтамт: центр жизни
13:42 — Паэлья и сангрия: вкус отпуска
14:19 — Музей керамики: пышность и фарфор
15:04 — Музей изящных искусств: искусство в тишине
15:44 — Дом повозок Рокас и Корпус-Кристи
16:33 — Финал: город, который невозможно рассказать до конца