Leisure |
The province of Valencia is famous for its discotheques, where the music plays until dawn. They are situated on the outskirts of the city and on the Valencia - Cullera road, crossing numerous residential estates and beaches. A lot of bars and clubs are situated in 'Calle Juan Llorens'. Friday's and Saturday's are naturally the busiest days, with many people out. The atmosphere is always lively and usually rather hot too! It is a 'must do' - to go out after dining at El Carme and or perhaps before you visit la Floridita down by the beach.
If you're in Spain around March 12th and need some good reasons to travel to Valencia, Las Fallas is about the best one. Between the 12th and 19th of March, the people of Valencia block traffic with towering sculptured statues that artisans have spent the past year making. All day and night, crowds of locals and foreigners fill the streets and the sounds of exploding firecrackers and fireworks fill the air. If firecrackers scare you, it's always wise to be careful, but within a few hours of the explosions, you'll probably find that you're lighting some yourself. At the end of the week, the huge statues are awarded prizes and then all are set on fire, which marks the end of Las Fallas and the beginning of spring. |
| Shopping and Handicrafts |
| In ceramics, the shopper will find a wide range of qualities and sizes, with Manises as the undisputed traditional centre of production. Tavernes Blanques is the home of porcelanas Lladró, a firma which exports all over the world. To earthenware and pottery must be added the craft of vegetable fibre applied to furniture and household equipment, as seen in the towns of Vallada, Montesa, Navarrés and L´Olleria. This last town, together with Llosa de Ranes, also supplies a full catalogue of handmade glassware. Craftwork in wood, which led to the thriving furniture industry, is to be found in Alboraya, Xirivella and Torrent, while Sagunto is the place for handicrafts in cork. Connected in a way to this raw material, the towns of Aldaida, Alacuas, Godella and Valencia show fine craftsmanship in fan making, going from the simplest to the mos sophisticated models, made with mother of pearl and patient by hand. If the shopper is on the lookout for foodstuffs, he will find a wide variety of sausages, confectionery a bakery product at the bake houses and cake shops, not to mention rice and citrus fruits and other fruits which are more usual in the inland area. The visitor should also taste the delicious red and white wines. |
| Fairs |
Valencia is a popular place for business travelling. Its International Trade Fair (963861100), founded in 1917, is the oldest in Spain. In the course of the year, about 50 different shows take place in the spacious fair enclosure situated in Benimamet. The most important ones concern the promotion of innovations in furniture, market gardening, toys, ceramics, textiles, children's fashion and jewellery. There are also regional and local fairs displaying farm produce and machinery, handicrafts, old and modern books, sausages, wine and antiques. |
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| Index