Valencia is Spains third largest City so we knew we needed to spend a few days here in order to be able to have a proper look around. The historic centre of Valencia is largest in Spain so as you can probably imagine it is packed full of ancient monuments, views and cultural attractions. It is famous for its gastronomic culture and its where Paella originated from.
We walked up to the tourist information centre and got a map, albeit not a detailed one but it was better than nothing. First stop, Valor chocolatier and ordered hot chocolate and churros.
Plaza Redona was originally created in the mid 1800’s and was only renovated in 2012. It is a unique piece of Valencian architecture, the round plaza consists of craft stores and tapas bars.
Mercado Central, is a huge fresh food market and very similar to the market we visited in Barcelona. The market was built in 1914 and is constructed mainly of metal and glass. It hails a gothic touch with a modernist design. You can buy everything from meats, cheeses, fresh fish to chocolate and dried spices. We really were spoilt for choice but decided to buy a paella pan and some bomba rice to make our own paella. Although we had to try a Valencian Paella first so we could judge ours against the real thing.
After lunch we walked across the street to the Silk Market and quite surprisingly it is the only UNESCO World Heritage site in Valencia. This is also built in a gothic style with arched gates, window decorations and loads of small sculptures of gargoyles.
There was plenty for us to see but we also wanted to spend some time to start our Christmas shopping.
