BRUITNEWS

VALENCIA

Maravillosa ciudad

Valencia is the capital of the autonomous community of Valencia and the third largest city in Spain after Madrid and Barcelona, with around 800,000 inhabitants in the administrative centre. Its urban area extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of around 1.5 million people. Valencia is Spain's third largest metropolitan area, with a population ranging from 1.7 to 2.5 million. The city has global city status.The Port of Valencia is the 5th busiest container port in Europe and busiest container port on the Mediterranean Sea.

The Valencia Cathedra

The Valencia Cathedral was called Iglesia Mayor in the early days of the Reconquista, then Iglesia de la Seo (Seo is from the Latin sedes, i.e., (archiepiscopal) See), and by virtue of the papal concession of 16 October 1866, it was called the Basilica Metropolitana. It is situated in the centre of the ancient Roman city where some believe the temple of Diana stood. In Gothic times, it seems to have been dedicated to the Holy Saviour; the Cid dedicated it to the Blessed Virgin; King James I of Aragondid likewise, leaving in the main chapel the image of the Blessed Virgin, which he carried with him and is reputed to be the one now preserved in the sacristy. The Moorish mosque, which had been converted into a Christian church by the conqueror, was deemed unworthy of the title of the cathedral of Valencia, and in 1262 Bishop Andrés de Albalat laid the cornerstone of the new Gothic building, with three naves; these reach only to the choir of the present building. Bishop Vidal de Blanes built the chapter hall, and James I added the tower, called El Miguelete because it was blessed on St. Michael's day in 1418. The tower is about 58 m high and topped with a belfry (1660–1736).

PALAU DE LES ARTS REINA SOFIA

Opera House Building

A spectacular building, designed by the Valencian architect Santiago Calatrava, dedicated to promoting the performing arts. With an extension of 55,000 square meters, the Palau de les Arts Reina Sofia will become one of the finest international venues for theatre, dance, opera and music concerts.

Prince Felipe Museum of Science

This museum belongs to the City of Arts and Sciences complex. The building is over 40,000 square meters in area and it was designed by Santiago Calatrava and reminds a whale skeleton. This is one of those museums where forbidden NOT to touch. It is orientated to learning the sciences through experience, so everything is graphically displayed, with huge texts and pics, experiments, buttons to touch and experience... perfect to go with kids of 7-12 years!

The Estació del nord (North Station)

Public transport is provided by the Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat Valenciana (FGV), which operates theMetrovalencia and other rail and bus services. The Estació del nord (North Station) is the main railway terminus in Valencia. A new temporary station, Estación de València-Joaquín Sorolla, has been built on land adjacent to this terminus to accommodate high speed AVE trains to and from Madrid, Barcelona, Seville and Alicante. Valencia Airport is situated 9 km (5.6 mi) west of Valencia city centre. Alicante Airport is situated about 170 km (110 mi) south of Valencia.

The City of Valencia also makes available a bicycle sharing system named ValenbiSi to both visitors and residents. As of October 13, 2012, the system has 2750 bikes distributed over 250 stations all throughout the city

Muslim Balansiya

The city surrendered without a fight to the invading Moors (Berbers and Arabs) in 714 AD, and the cathedral of Saint Vincentwas turned into a mosque. Abd al-Rahman I, the first emir of Cordoba, ordered the city destroyed, but several years later his son, Abdullah, had a form of autonomous rule over the province of Valencia. Among his administrative acts he ordered the building of a luxurious palace, the Russafa, on the outskirts of the city in the neighbourhood of the same name. So far no remains have been found. Also at this time Valencia received the name Medina al-Turab (City of Sand). When Islamic culture settled in, Valencia, then called Balansiyya, prospered from the 10th century, due to a booming trade in paper, silk, leather, ceramics, glass and silver-work. The architectural legacy of this period is abundant in Valencia and can still be appreciated today in the remnants of the old walls, the Baños del Almirante bath house, Portal de Valldigna street and even the Cathedral and the tower, El Micalet (El Miguelete), which was the minaret of the old mosque.