photography

Valencia a través del objetivo

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Valencia a través del objetivo

Tumblr. Esa red social que, a primera vista, parece que se compone solamente de pandas de fans militantes de series de televisión o páginas dedicadas enteramente al estilo de pelo de Zayn de One Direction. Pero la verdad es que Tumblr es una plataforma donde se puede montar blogs, publicar obras o incluso exponer trabajo artístico. Y eso es exactamente lo que ha hecho un usuario detrás del alias streetseeds. El blog streetseeds.tumblr.com es una colección de fotos en blanco y negro que muestran un lado distinto de Valencia, donde las fotos se toman en rincones interesantes sobre todo … [Read more...]

Street Art Palermo

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Street Art Palermo

Sicilia es una isla mágica llena de sorpresas. Al estar emplazada en el corazón del Mediterráneo, inevitablemente han pasado por ella griegos, fenicios, romanos, árabes, aragoneses... hasta los normandos dominaron la isla durante algún tiempo en los siglos XI y XII. El impresionante legado normando es particularmente visible en su bulliciosa capital: Palermo. La capital siciliana fue hasta hace un par décadas una de las ciudades más peligrosas de Europa; la Mafia campaba a sus anchas por sus calles dejando episodios violentos y muertos casi cada día. Ahora las cosas han cambiado, y aunque … [Read more...]

Barrio de la Aguja: respite from the concrete jungle

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Barrio de la Aguja: respite from the concrete jungle

Avenida del Cid is a blot on Valencia's landscape - a busy, 6 laned monstrosity of tunnels and junctions that drives traffic down from the Madrid motorway exit towards Mislata, Abastos, Plaza España and the city centre. Although undoubtedly making sense in the grand scheme of things, Avenida del Cid is more likely to appear among the pages of Architecture of Doom than get anyone named Town Planner of the Year. But escaping the fumes and hustle and bustle is relatively easy if you know where to look. Barrio de la Aguja is located a mere stone's throw away from the Avenida del Cid metro stop, … [Read more...]

Viaje a Roma: luces y sombras de una ciudad única

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Viaje a Roma: luces y sombras de una ciudad única

Si hay una gran capital europea que sobresale por encima de todas las demás, esa es para mí Roma. Casi 3.000 años de historia, siendo durante buena parte de ellos el núcleo de la civilización Occidental -primero como capital de la República y el Imperio a los que dio nombre, después como centro de la cristiandad-, han dado para mucho y eso se nota. En mi opinión, lo que hace destacar a la capital italiana entre ciudades como París, Londres, Berlín o Estambul es su versatilidad. En Roma, historia, arte y religión se funden en un impresionante cúmulo que supone, casi con total seguridad, el … [Read more...]

A postcard from Istanbul

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A postcard from Istanbul

"You don't need seatbelt...", shouted the taxi driver, loud enough for us to hear him over the blaring Turkish radio and the incessant sound of car horns. He smiled, "...this is Istanbul!" We'd touched down at Sabiha Gökçen airport on the Asian side of Istanbul at approximately 8:45pm. Our first glimpse of Turkey saw the silhouettes of dozens of minarets rising up from the sprawling cityscape. One hour later and we were whizzing across the Atatürk bridge towards Sultanahmet while the taxi driver kept himself busy by scrolling through his Facebook profile pictures with seemingly no fear for … [Read more...]

Charisma meets creepy in La Punta

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Charisma meets creepy in La Punta

Paella, punk or an alternative route through Valencia... La Punta begins at the periphery of what we perceive to be Valencia city, a stone's throw away from the City of Arts and Science and the El Saler shopping centre on Bulevar Sur. Calatrava's futuristic works and a speckling of newly built (and practically vacant) high rise flats are the last things that separate the centre from the fields, vegetable patches and lonely neighbourhoods that lie to the south and south west of the city. While there's no doubt you can get a banging paella at one of the famed restaurants in the area, like … [Read more...]

#Fallas2015 in photos

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#Fallas2015 in photos

As the final tear trickles down the cheek of the fallera mayor, Valencia looks mournfully into the smoke-filled distance and, like a phoenix flying out of the ashes, announces the silver lining that is the arrival of #Fallas2016. That's it. It's over. Se acabó. But, like every year, emotional falleros take to the web to reassure each other that, in a mere 350 days, they'll be back to causing a nuisance.   Meanwhile for others: Peace and quiet return. Your liver breathes a sigh of relief. Spring is welcomed. Here are some photos of Fallas 2015: Caloret, misteleta, fallas y … [Read more...]

Street Art Valencia

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Street Art Valencia

It only takes a short stroll around Valencia to realise that if there’s one thing the city's got (apart from lots and lots of rice) it's great street art. By no means an in-depth study, I’ve dug deep into the archives of my aging laptop -and even trekked around town with my trusty Nikon- to bring you a quick look at some of my favourite pieces. El Carmen Probably the first piece of street art that anyone new to the city sees is Blu's Moses with the huge beard of snakes opposite the tumbling car on the corner of nightlife hotspot, Plaza Tossal. The car, by native Valencian Escif, has … [Read more...]

Day trips from Valencia

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Day trips from Valencia

There is absolutely no need to escape Valencia. It's one of my most favourite cities, a beautiful mix of old and new set on a clean, sweeping sandy beach. It doesn't get too hot, you can bike everywhere and it is dissected by a beautiful garden planted in the old river bed which snakes its way from the beach to the old town. If you fancy exploring though and you do want a day trip from Valencia, here are some of my recommendations. These trips came through endlessly flicking through my Discover Spain book in search of some culture (during the rainy Easter period) or the best "off the beaten … [Read more...]

A weekend in Cabo de Gata

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A weekend in Cabo de Gata

Rugged landscapes, hidden beaches and free tapas: Cabo de Gata Natural Park in a nutshell. The Cabo de Gata area, located at the south easternmost tip of Spain, is vast and sparsely populated. Apart from greenhouses and the odd hamlet, the area is mountainous and desert-like as far as the eye can see. All of the coastal towns, however, are charming and bustling and offer some of the best beaches in Spain. Base camp for the weekend was Níjar - a beautiful little Andalusian town famous for its pottery and jarapa rugs. Its central location means that nearly all of Cabo de Gata's beaches can … [Read more...]

La Albufera: Valencia’s natural beauty spot

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La Albufera: Valencia's natural beauty spot

The Albufera is one of Valencia's hidden gems. I say hidden, it's actually huge and just 20 minutes down the road in the car. But even so, it is often overlooked by tourists visiting the area. Who knew that Spain's third largest city sat next to a beautiful 52 acre natural park and freshwater lake - one of the largest lakes in Spain? The protected area stretches from 11km south of Valencia city to Cullera and includes many seaside towns including El Perelló and Mareny de Barraquetes. The surface area of the lake was once exceptionally larger than it is nowadays, but farmers drained … [Read more...]