Valencia

[On a non-tourist-but-nonetheless-important note: my tax refund was deposited today! woo-hoo!]

I'm in Valencia today, Spain's third largest city, after Madrid and Barcelona. I wasn't actually planning on visiting Valencia, it was a split decision between Valencia and Alicante when I was at the bus station. I figured there would be more transportation options from Valencia, and I took one of the later buses from Barcelona which brought me to Valencia after 10pm. If I'd gone to Alicante, it would've been the middle of the night and it's the weekend.

Taking a 6 o'clock bus from Barcelona gave me more time to take photos, so after buying my bus ticket I went directly to Sagrada Familia, quite possibly the most visited tourist attraction in Barcelona. Rightly so, since the Gaudi-conceived structure is impressive. According to the guidebooks, Gaudi worked on it for forty years and it basically consumed him... the work still carries on today, and projected estimates for completion are around 2020. I wanted to visit the church thoroughly, but I didn't have time and the sheer crowds of tourists emerging from lines of coaches put me off, so I just walked around it and took photos. The detail of the exterior alone amazes. Gaudi didn't like straight lines (he's attributed with saying straight lines don't occur in nature), and there isn't a straight line to be seen. Google Sagrada Familia and you'll see what I'm talking about. I read somewhere on an Orkut forum that someone wasn't impressed by it, but he must've been of the straight-line variety of tourist.

After Sagrada Familia I took what felt like the thousandth metro ride, to Passeig de Gracia to get to the Post Office. Passeig de Gracia is a massive boulevard, and everyone plus their dog and granny was on it today, of course. I had to do the duck and dodge to get anywhere. Imagine a wide boulevard with a median, plus an extra vehicle lane or two BETWEEN the sidewalk and the main lanes. On each side. So just crossing the street involves four sets of pedestrian lights. I've discovered that here in Spain the drivers ignore those pedestrian lights if you aren't practically in the middle of the thoroughfare. So the initial step is gingerly, breaking into a sprint to cross. The trickiest ones are by the roundabouts, where cars can come careening out of seemingly nowhere.

I think I'm going to write a separate post about transportation.

Anyway, one thing I've noticed, at least on this trip, is that wherever I want to go is the complete opposite of the direction I think it is. I really should just save myself the trouble and go the direction I think is least likely. Anyway, I did find the Post Office, but the hard way. The woman at the counter didn't speak much English, but we did make it through my rather complicated transaction -- 20 or so self-made postcards with my portable photo printer, plus two small parcels. The post office didn't even take credit cards... it's a good thing I'm carrying around a decent amount of cash, but it just gives pickpockets a larger potential lode. Argh.

Back to the bus station, and then it was off to Valencia. The coach was very comfortable, and after some gesturing to my seatmate, whose friend was sitting a few rows back, I traded an aisle seat for a window seat, plus an empty seat beside me. The two friends got to sit together, and everybody was happy. I figure since it was Friday evening, the bus was probably full of people ready to escape Barcelona for the weekend. The ticket itself was pretty cheap -- 21 euros or so, for a trip that was 4.25 hours.

I was surprised how quickly we were out of Barcelona proper. With the ocean to the left and the mountains to the right, it was a picturesque journey for the most part. They showed the Kevin Spacey film K-PAX, but I had a feeling it would be dubbed (which it was), and I tried to follow along, but would've been more attentive if I was more interested in the film. The next movie was "The Panic Room" with Jodie Foster, which was far more interesting, but I'd already seen it exactly two years ago, with Berit in Zurich (where we sat in plush LEATHER seats!).

When I arrived in Valencia at quarter past 10, I immediately inquired about buses to Granada, after making another split decision to visit Alhambra. After more fun and games with the ticket agent who spoke nary a word of English (my broken English seems to be more effective than my Spanish, it seems), I decided on an overnight bus to Granada that leaves at 11:00pm and arrives at 7:25 in the morning. It was REALLY cheap, too, only about 35 euros. That way I can splurge a bit on accommodation in Malaga, and see the Alhambra without having to look for a place to stay in Granada. Plus, I can beat the crowds.

I'm almost out of time on this terminal, so I'll write more about Valencia later. The short version is I walked all the way from the bus station around the city centre, wandering in and out of the tiny laneways of the old quarter of Barrio El Carmen to find a place to stay... it's like a rabbit warren in there!! I kept getting turned away as everyone was full to the brim with weekend warriors taking over Valencia, and finally found a place to stay near Plaza del Ayuntamiento... very clean, but I had to pay for a double room. What a contrast from the Kabul in Barcelona!

When I return to England next week, I'll also complete my posts on Barcelona (Day 3).

Adios amigos! Happy Birthday Alvin!! Sorry I missed it yesterday!