Category Archives: Spain

Spain

The Fallas of Valencia 2019

Las Fallas festival in Valencia is a celebration to welcome the coming of spring and an opportunity to say goodbye to winter. As part of the Fallas festival there are giant “ninots” which means dolls. They are built using paper machè, cardboard,  wood and other combustible materials. The ninots have different themes and are sometimes political in nature.

We took a bus tour to Valencia and arrived early to explore the different ninots throughout the city.

Our Costablanca tour bus

We walked the crowded streets looking at the different fallas along the way.

The crowded streets of Valencia during the Fallas 2019

We came to some fallas, which were quite interesting and had specific messages.

Falla with naked Franco, Mussolini, Hitler and Trump with condom promoting no reproduction of these politicians.
Falla depicting the United Kingdom cutting ties from European union
A satire of a politician as a frog

Other fallas focused on the environment and in particular the issue of plastic in the oceans.

Falla depicting the dangers of plastics in the oceans.
Falla of a Turtle with plastics in its mouth.

We walked towards the “Plaza de Ayuntamiento” to see the “mascletàs” which is a pyrotechnic event that happens at 2 P.M. The mascletàs are focused on noise and rhythm rather than visual effects. As we got closer to the Plaza de Ayuntamiento the crowd became bigger and thicker.

View of the crowd in the streets at the Plaza de Ayuntamiento in Valencia waiting for the Mascletàs

The crowd was so large and big that we decided to go and find a place to have lunch instead of being in the centre of the crowd. We found a nice restaurant not too far away from the plaza. We enjoyed a nice meal and watched the mascletàs which were streamed live on the internet.

Watching the mascletàs live at the restaurant

After lunch we continued exploring and viewing the different fallas. We came to a parade and walked along with them for a while.

Ray walking along with the parade in Valencia

The parade had different traditional costumes, music and flowers. There were people of all ages participating in the parade.

After watching some of the parade we continued to explore the different fallas.

Shelley and Ray in front of a Falla in Valencia,

There are so many unique and different fallas that we created a small gallery of some of them.

During the evening the fallas and streets were lit up with decorated lighting. This made the fallas look completely different and they were quite beautiful.

We stopped at a bar for some tapas and a rest before heading back home after a full day of exploring the fallas. It was a very unique and enjoyable experience.

“Hasta luego y que tengas un buen dia”

Spain

The Aguilas Carnival

There is a carnival in the town of Aguilas Spain which is one of the most famous in the Murcia region. The carnival has received the status of “Fiestas of International tourism Interest”. We decided to go and check out the carnival and watch the parade.

We arrived in the early afternoon to Aguilas and explored the city before the big parade. We walked along the waterfront enjoying the beautiful views.

The colonia beach area of Aguilas
Ray, Shelley, Sonja and Marcelo on the beach in Aguilas, Spain

The boardwalk goes along the waterfront with a marina area.

Marina area of Aguilas Spain

After walking along the boardwalk, we headed into the city centre. The streets were already crowded with people waiting for the parade which was still a few hours away. We explored the area until it was time for the parade. We came across a small plaza which had lots of white doves.

White doves in the plaza of Aguilas Spain

We then went and found a spot to watch the parade. It was not easy to find a good vantage point because of the bleachers that were set up. You had to pre-purchase a 10 euro ticket to get a seat on the bleachers and we did not have one.

Bleachers with paid seating for the carnival parade in Aguilas

We found a spot to watch some of the parade. The costumes were very detailed and ornate.

One of the ornate costumes in the carnival parade.

We watched the parade for some time admiring the different dances and costumes. There were children, teens and adults all participating in the carnival parade. Below are only a few of the spectacular costumes and floats in the parade.

Children dressed in costumes of the carnival parade

Below is a small highlight video of some of the carnival.

The parade was very interesting and we enjoyed watching the different costumes and dancing.

“Adios y que tenga un gran dia”

Spain

The Mushrooms of Sevilla

We went exploring throughout the old quarter of Sevilla. We came across a very unique structure, called the Metropol Parasol. It is also known as “Las Setas de Sevilla” which translates as the mushrooms of Sevilla.

Las setas de Sevilla in the center of Sevilla, Spain
View from the base of the Metropol Parasol

We walked along the base of the Metropol Parasol exploring the large structure.

The Metropol Parasol in Sevilla Spain

This project to create the Metropol Parasol was by the german architect Jürgen Mayer, and is the largest wooden structure in the world.

Shelley at the base of the Metropol Parasol, in Sevilla Spain

The Metropol Parasol has different levels, each one with interesting things to see. On the underground level we came across the Antiquarium Museum. It was created to allow people to visit the archaeological remains that were found during the early excavations for the Metropol Parasol.

Shelley in front of the museum in the lowest level of the Metropol Parasol in Sevilla

The Roman ruins on display are behind a large glass, which gives the appearance of an aquarium.

Roman ruins on display at the Antiquarium museum in the Metropol Parasol in Sevilla.

After checking out the Roman ruins we took the Elevator to the third level. On that level there is a restaurant with seating which provided great views of the city.

View from the sitting area of the restaurant

We walked around the restaurant and came to the 26-meter-high walkway which crossed over the top of the parasol.

Walkways on the top of the Metropol Parasol in Sevilla, Spain
We walked along the walkway enjoying the views of the skyline.
Ray and Shelley on the 26-meter high walkway of the Metropol Parasol in Sevilla
Shelley on the 28-meter high walkway of the Metropol Parasol
The parasol is quite interesting and you were able to look down through the structure to the ground below.
View of the people below through the structure of the parasol
We walked around the parasol enjoying the different views of the skyline. It is an impressive size 150 by 70 metres (490 by 230 ft) and an approximate height of 26 metres (85 ft).
Image of the Metropol parasol from the sky
The Metropol Parasol was a very unique wooded structure and we enjoyed exploring the different levels of it.  It was one of the highlights of our trip to Sevilla.
“Adios y que tenga un gran dia”
Spain

Flamenco show in Sevilla

When we were Sevilla we decided to go to a traditional flamenco show. After doing some research we decided to go to the “Casa De Flamenco” which is the only show in Sevilla that is totally acoustical.

We had excellent seats and had a great view of the stage.

View of the stage from our seats.

The performance began with the guitarists “El Perla” and the singer “Emilio Florido”  coming out on stage. They began with a guitar solo and then Emilio doing a song before the dancers joined the performance.

Flamenco dancers in the Casa de Flamenco in Sevilla.
The flamenco performers of the Casa de Flamenco.

The four performers were spectacular and entertained us for two hours. The acoustical performance was very intense and was set in an intimate environment. The limited amount of spectators and the small venue made the atmosphere almost magical. Everyone was mesmerized by the spirit and emotion of the traditional Flamenco. It was a very enjoyable and a unique experience.

“Adios y que tenga un gran dia”

Spain

Plaza del Ángel de Torres

We were in the city of Cordoba in Spain and came across a small plaza called “Plaza de Ángel de Torres”.  The plaza was located in a quiet area in the old jewish quarter.

One of the ways into the Plaza de Ángel de Torres

The small plaza was secluded and was very pretty with orange trees, benches, and a fountain. We walked through the plaza admiring the ornate building which was one of the main features of the plaza.

The ornate building which was located at the plaza de Ángel de Torres.

We then noticed that the plaza floor was made to represent tiles using small individual stone. Upon a closer look each “tile” was actually a symbol or image. They were made using small smooth stones of different colours.

Some of the “tiles” were very interesting and creative. We saw religious images, creative designs, words and images of ordinary daily items.

Small stones used to made represent a tile with the word “PAZ” which means peace in Spanish.
A bike “tile” in the Plaza e Ángel de Torres.
A dove with an olive branch, which signifies peace.
A bottle of wine in the Plaza de Ángel de Torres
A key with heart shaped handle in the plaza

We spent time looking at the different “tiles” and admiring the creative work that was done in the plaza.

Ray looking at the different tiles in the plaza

The plaza also had some large orange trees which were full of oranges.

Orange trees in the plaza de Ángel de Torres

The plaza was very quaint and a very inviting spot to spend some relaxing time. We enjoyed finding this secluded plaza in the old quarter of Cordoba.

“Adios y que tenga un gran dia”