00:00The city's main square is Plaza del Ayuntamiento with the opulent town hall.
00:05And here I can't help but appreciate one of Valencia's best features.
00:09One of the great things here is that Valencia's city center has become largely a pedestrian zone,
00:14so you can walk everywhere.
00:17And the main sites are pretty close to one another too.
00:20Here I'm on the Plaza de la Virgen, one of the most beautiful plazas in the Old Town.
00:25And right around the corner we have one of the most iconic sites in the city.
00:30The Valencia Cathedral.
00:35A historic cathedral is always impressive, but I'm ready for a different vibe.
00:40The oldest part of the historic center is El Carmen.
00:43And this neighborhood has gone from being one of the roughest in Valencia to an artistic hotspot.
00:49El Carmen takes its name from a former convent that's now a contemporary art museum.
00:54I'm very excited for our next stop, Mercat Central.
00:57I've invited Valencian tour guide and food and wine expert Valeria Valdebenito to show me around.
01:04So what makes this different than markets you can find in Barcelona or Madrid, for example?
01:10Well, the central market of Valencia is an operating market.
01:13And it's for the locals, for people who live here.
01:16Then tourists they know and they come to enjoy the fresh food.
01:20But I'm still up for getting some exercise.
01:23I head to one of the many bike rental shops around town.
01:28Valencia is flat and has over 200 kilometers of bike lanes, making it a perfect city for biking.
01:34This was part of the city's strategy to reduce pollution and prioritize pedestrians and cyclists.
01:42The highlight is the Turia Garden, a nine kilometer long urban garden in a former riverbed that was diverted after
01:49devastating floods in 1957.
01:51This creative solution to an environmental problem also helped make Valencia a European green capital in 2024.
02:03The garden leads directly to the City of Arts and Sciences, Valencia's futuristic architectural highlight.
02:09It is so impressive in person. It's otherworldly, really.
02:15Built between 1996 and 2009, it was designed primarily by Valencian architect Santiago Calatrava.
02:23Calatrava wanted each building to represent something from the natural world.
02:27So the opera house resembles a fish, the IMAX theater, a blinking eye, and the science museum, the skeleton of
02:35a whale.
02:35You could easily spend all day here without even going inside any of the buildings.
02:40But it's time for me to go to...the beach!
02:45One of Valencia's best features.
02:48A long promenade connects three beaches.
02:51Cabañal, Malvarosa, and Patacona.
02:54These sandy beaches are super close to the city center.
02:57I really think they're some of the nicest city beaches you can find in southern Europe.
03:01They have blue flag status, meaning they meet high standards of cleanliness and safety.
03:06It's too windy for a swim today.
03:08And I heard about something special happening on the other side of town.
03:15I came to Campanar, which is a neighborhood right outside the city center.
03:20And they're having a celebration for their patron saint today with a procession and traditional costumes
03:25to get a little feel for Valencian traditions.
03:31This is so cool.
03:32So they are wearing these traditional 18th and 19th century outfits
03:37that are typically worn for the big celebration of Las Fallas,
03:40which is a huge folk festival happening in March here.
03:44So they're also worn for traditional events like this and other occasions.
03:48So it's cool we get to see them.
03:53Last but not least, the star of Valencia, paella.
03:57La Pepica has been serving up this rice dish since 1898.
04:02I've invited Valeria and her husband, who are making an exception to eat paella at dinner time.
04:07Most Spaniards only eat it for lunch.
04:12This is the traditional paella valenciana.
04:16Chicken and rabbit are the main ingredients with a little bit of rosemary.
04:21And what many people know as paella is seafood paella.
04:25But the traditional recipe here is with chicken and rabbit.
04:29Let's try it.
04:30You do it like this and you've got a little bit of that caramelized rice.
04:34You see?
04:35It concentrates all the aromas and flavors from the dish.
04:42Mine is great. No complaints.
04:46Well, that wraps up my trip to Valencia.
04:49I feel like we really saw a lot today.
04:51And I will see you next time.
04:54Salud!
04:54Salud!
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