Tuesday 21st November 2017
My sister flew into València yesterday and after collecting her from the airport we spent the rest of the day catching up, enjoying a few beers in one of the bars near the beach before dinner and bed. Tomorrow we were off to València for the day.
Ray had sought Tomás’ help regarding where to catch the train to València. He recommended we didn’t park the car at Moncofar station, as he didn’t consider it safe enough. His suggestion was to drive to the town of Nules, a mere 3 kms away. We would be able to park on the streets around the station.
Return tickets to Nules-La Vilavella to València Estación del Norte, €8,90 each. The journey was just over an hour, stopping at more than 10 stations.
We arrived at the beautiful station of València Norte located in the city centre next to the Plaza de Toros de València, the city’s bullring. The station looked particularly stunning as this year it was celebrating its 100th birthday.
There wasn’t an option to take the metro to our destination of the L’Oceanogràphic so we made our way by foot through the city, along the Gran Via del Marqués del Tùria, towards the old dry river bed, which is now a two kilometre long picturesque sunken park; a delightful place to escape the hustle and bustle of the city.
The City of Arts and Sciences in València is one of the largest scientific and cultural complexes in Europe. If you enjoy avant-garde architecture it is well worth just a look, if nothing else. It includes the:
Although we visited in November, the park was relatively busy but we had no problems exploring all of the areas, even though there was some general maintenance work going on, which you might expect during the low season.
The entrance ticket wasn’t cheap but it was without a doubt worth it. It was comparable in price to many other major attractions across the world. It is obviously more cost effective if you purchase ticket combinations with the Museum of Science and / or L’Hemisfèric.
Food available in the park was also limited, as where the places to eat (maybe because of the time of year) but if you are able to afford it, there is an underwater restaurant, surrounded by an aquarium, to enjoy traditional Valèncian cuisine.
We entered via the spectacular circular entrance building and headed downstairs to the temperate and tropical marine displays. We were certainly not disappointed. And that was the theme for the remainder of our visit.
The size of the aquariums, which are situated on two levels,(underground and open air), the tunnels and domes and the absence of visual barriers enable the visitor to get up close and personal with so many of the exhibits.
Words cannot do justice, nor can photographs when attempting to describe the experience. So here are some of our highlights.
Our final highlight was the dolphin show. Well, actually, not the show but the pre-show preparations.
We had not been in the park earlier enough in the morning to see the first show but were determined to be there for the final one at the end of the day.
With over 40 minutes to go before the start we headed to the Dolphinarium and to our surprise the trainers were just coming out to feed the dolphins and warm them up.
It was absolutely fantastic and we actually enjoyed it more than the eventual show. We got to see most of the dolphins in action, rather than the few that participated. We would highly recommend it.
The sun was now beginning to go down and there was a definite chill in the air so having seen all there was to see, we grabbed a taxi, right outside the aquarium and headed back to the station area. €7 was a bargain, as none of us fancied a 45 minute walk back to the city centre.
We headed across the road towards the Passeig de Russafa, and enjoyed traditional Valèncian paella washed down with a bottle of white Rueda Verdejo, in the open air, with added outdoor heaters before heading home on the very crowded train.