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TOURIST ATTRACTIONS IN VALENCIA



PLAZA DE LA VIRGEN: La Catedral & El Miguelete.  

The El Miguelete is  was build in mid of the thirteenth century and it is located across from the Plaza de la Reina, in the heart of the city.

There are several architectural styles in its construction like Renaissance and Baroque in the chapels and the main door. The door Almonia is was build in Romanesque style while the  Miguelete, the dome and the Door of the Apostles were build in the Gothic style.                                                                                                              

Visiting hours are 10 to 18 hours on weekdays, Saturdays 10 to 17:30 and Sundays and holidays from 14 to 17.30 hours. Admission is € 2.70 and includes a visit to the Cathedral Museum.

The Micalet is octagonal bell tower adjoining the Cathedral. Is 50 meters high and can be climbed by a narrow staircase of 207 steps inside. The access costs  2.

The Plaza de la Virgen is surrounded by extraordinary buildings and it is a home to lots of pigeons. The Nuestra Señora de los Desamparados on the eastern side of the square, and on the western side is the Gothic Palau de la Generalitat are the seat of government for the Valencia region. Also in the square there are some cafes with plethora of outside seating for the obligatory people watching. In the centre of the square is a magnificent fountain which represents the irrigation of the Turia River.

 

PLAZA DEL MERCADO: Lonja de la Seda, Santos Juanes and Mercado Central  

The Market Square is the meeting point for merchants between Central Market and the Lonja and is  located on the square of the same name, close to Central Market and the Lonja de la Seda. Among the Central Market and the Lonja, the comings and goings of merchants in ancient times was constant.

The central market occupies an area of 8,000 square meters. It is made of metal, glass, wood and ceramics. Comprising a ground floor and basement. It is covered by original domes and roofs at different heights, full of light and color. It creates an effect produced by penetrating light through the stained glass windows. Stands its airy structure topped by a beautiful dome. It was restored and recovered as a leisure center. The interior now houses several restaurants, cafes and shops 

The building of Lonja de la Seda is designed on a commercial basis and has a marked symbolic  character looks like a fortress that give its thick walls and battlements. The representation of paradise was presented on them  in which the interior columns would be the trunks of palm trees and the domes represent the celestial dome. The set consists of four parts: the hiring hall where commercial transactions were conducted, consisting of one large room divided into three longitudinal naves by columns very traditional helical Levantine Gothic, with a height of 16 meters, the tower is composed of two upper floors and ground floor where the chapel stood the prison, the Consulate of the Sea, where they settled disputes between merchants that began in 1498 and was completed in 1548, hence the influence of Renaissance and finally Patio de los Naranjos.

The Santos Juanes is situated opposite the Lonja de la Seda. Built in Gothic style but ultimately finished in Baroque style after a fire that severely damaged it in 1603. It has a single nave covered by ribbed vaults and fine Gothic decoration outside. The interior is very luxurious. Inside are kept sculptures and paintings. Nostra, the image of Senyora to Peu de la Creu, the sixteenth century Etuve believed to be hidden for centuries from the Hispanic Church iconographic image may be the oldest in Valencia. It also highlights the painting that decorates the chapel, the altarpiece of the master Manuel Vergara or fifteenth century altarpiece with the theme of the mystery of the Trinity.  

 

LA CIUDAD DE LAS ARTES Y LAS CIENCIAS 

The City of Arts and Sciences in Valencia is an unique complex dedicated to scientific and cultural diffusion which is made up of five main elements: the Hemisfèric (IMAX cinema and digital projections), the Umbracle (a landscaped vantage point and car park), the Príncipe Felipe Science Museum (an innovative centre of interactive science), the Oceanográfico (the largest aquarium in Europe with over 500 marine species) and the Palau de les Arts Reina Sofía (which takes care of the operatic program). The Ágora gives the complex a multifunctional space.  

 

BIOPARC 

Bioparc in Valencia is a new generation zoo, where you can enjoy equatorial Africa, the African Savannah, and Madagascar in a huge space of 100,000 square meters.The most novel feature of this park is its design, which allows to observe the animals with barely visible barriers. There are no boxes or cages. The natural surrounding for animals were recreated and separate visitors from the animals by hidden to the eye pits, streams or crystals.                                                                                                                                                                         
In this new conception of zoo different African ecosystems such as savannah, Forests of Madagascar and Equatorial Africa  were faithfully recreated. They reproduce of the original vegetated bioclimatic zones in each area, as well as local vegetation and reproductions or replicas supports large rocks, caves and giant baobabs.
In the middle of the park, stands the amphitheater, ample outdoor multidisciplinary capacity for 1,000 people, which will offer visitors the opportunity to observe behaviors of birds and mammals.

 


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