October Trip report: Cuenca, Valencia, Salamanca

Cuenca (2 nights)

Arrival: The Cuenca high-speed train station is several miles outside of town. Public transport to the historic Plaza Mayor area where I stayed entailed a bus to the bus station in the newer part of town and a second bus to the historic center. A taxi for 12 Euros (which I did use for my return trip) would have been a sensible alternative. The Tourist Information office in the train station offered to call a taxi. But because a bus was already outside waiting, and because I like to take public transportation on arrival day as a way of getting my toe in the water, I took the bus. Several Spanish women day-trippers on the bus were also heading to the historic center, though they were going up to the Castillo at the top of the hill/end of the line. Tagging along with them, we figured out where to get the second bus. It required a second fare paid to the driver in coins (locals had passes). I asked some local women on the bus to tell me when to get off for Plaza Mayor. They asked if I was going to the Castillo or Plaza Mayor. I said that my hotel was near the plaza. They asked which hotel and said they were getting off at the plaza and would direct me to my hotel. My successful use of my limited Spanish in these interactions made we feel like I had successfully broken the ice on arrival day as I had hoped. My hotel was a few doors uphill from the plaza.

Hotel: Convento de Giraldo is in a nicely renovated 17th century building with an elevator, air-conditioning, terracotta tiled floors, helpful staff and very convenient location for tourist sites and restaurants. My bathroom had one of the longest bathtubs I have ever seen. The room had lots of natural light but because of the steep roof, it was from a window so high up you would need a ladder to look out.

Food:
Gastrobar Piola is attached to my hotel making it very convenient for a first night dinner. It had high ratings and was mentioned on this forum. I tried one of the local specialities – wild boar meatballs. These were served on a bed of cauliflower puree and very tasty. I also enjoyed a glass of red wine. Although I hadn’t needed a reservation, the restaurant did fill up on a weekday night.

Parador de Cuenca Restaurant: I had seen recommendations, was curious to see the parador, and I visited a modern art museum housed in a chapel adjacent to the parador. I had a little time to kill between the museum and when the restaurant opened. I sat and read on comfortable seating in the lovely Parador courtyard. This was the most formal dining room that I ate in during my trip. There was a choice of white or rustic bread – I chose the rustic which was delicious. I was also served a complimentary amuse bouche that seemed similar to guacamole. When offered, I accepted the English menu. I ordered what was listed as grilled succulent baby lamb chops. I knew that along with wild boar, lamb dishes were traditional to the region. What I received was not anything I recognized as lamb chops. They were tasty but a dryer and more stringy texture than expected, served on skewers. I saw that large trays of these were being served to the party across the room. Although my menu had been in English only, the bill was in Spanish. I looked up zarajos and learned that I had eaten lamb intestines, a local specialty I had read about but was not planning to try! I tend not to be a very adventurous eater but was amused to learn after the fact that I had gone outside my comfort zone.

Posada de San Jose: This is another restaurant in a hotel. I chose it for the scenic view, moderate price, and easy walk from my hotel. I had Iberian pork, a glass of red wine and an interesting (good) pastry dessert with an apple sorbet.

Cuenca continued

General Impression: A color photo in my high school Spanish book of the iconic hanging houses of Cuenca put Cuenca Spain on my radar over 60 years ago. I loved Cuenca. In my yiew, it is a greatly underrated. It has some amazing natural scenery, well preserved or restored historic structures including the hanging houses, a 12th century gothic cathedral, ruins of a 9th century Moorish Castillo, several first rate modern art collections, a number of excellent restaurants, a well-developed tourist infrastructure, easy access by public transportation, and no crowds.

Sights I visited in Cuenca:
The Museo Tesoro adjacent to the Cathedral has 2 El Greco paintings and various interesting items.

I took the bus up to the Castillo at the top of the street my hotel was on and walked around the multiple lookout points appreciating some magnificent views of the gorges. There were hiking routes I did not attempt.

I walked downhill from the Castillo to the Antonio Perez Foundation Museum located within a former 17th century convent. This museum has a labyrinth of about 50 rooms of mid-20th century Spanish modern art with a range of styles and artists but none I heard of before. A second art museum I visited was the Museum of Spanish Abstract Art. This museum is located in the renovated space of 2 of the hanging houses, making the building and the views of interest as well as the art. The hanging houses are cantilevered over a cliff. The best view of the hanging houses is seen by walking over a footbridge to the Parador when I visited a third modern art museum, the Espacio Torner, which displays the paintings and sculpture on one artist, Gustavio Torner, in another former convent. The use of the convent space to stage some of the artwork was especially dramatic here. I walked to a 4th modern art museum but it was closed for a new exhibition installation.

I realize that multiple modern art museums would not be everyone’s choice, but I had a wonderful time. Without as much time in the museums, Cuenca is easily a daytrip from Madrid or Valencia on a high speed train. I should note that Cuenca is very hilly. Although you can take a bus, a little tourist train, or a taxi to some places, it might be difficult for people with mobility restrictions.

Valencia (8 nights)

Rain alerts
During the train ride from Cuenca to Valencia, emergency alerts on everyone’s phone went off at roughly but not exactly the same time. This happened twice. There were yellow, orange, and red (most severe) alerts for predicted rain starting later that day. Yellow alerts seemed to extend all week. At the tourist information office at the Valencia station, I asked what to expect. I was advised to “buy an umbrella” (I already had one), and that museums might close. When I got to my hotel, they were more helpful. I was shown on a computer the predictions for coming days and assured that subsequent days should be ok. I was advised to be back in the hotel for the night by 7pm just that day. It was fine to explore within a 15-20 minute walking range which covered most of the city center. It didn’t actually start raining until later that night and the rain stopped by daylight. I never opened my umbrella or needed my rain jacket at all during this trip. Most days were sunny with blue skies with rain overnight several times. However, the Tourist Information offices and some other public buildings were closed for several days due to the rain alerts. There was loss of life due to flooding somewhere north of Valencia and trains going north were affected at least one day.

Valencia Lodging: I stayed at B&B Zalamera. This was a perfect choice for me. About 5 minutes from Plaza Ayutamiento, the location was great for walking to all the old city sights, to the trendy/hip Russafa neighborhood, and to the old and new train stations; bus and subway stops were nearby. A generous breakfast buffet was included. Rooms have a small fridge and there is a microwave, coffee and tea maker, filtered water, packaged cookies, paper plates and plastic utensils available 24-7. There is a large, lovely terrace for guests, with covered spaces, parts open to the sun, tables and chairs as well as couches and chaise lounges. I like not having to eat out every day but I was not interested in cooking or the isolation of an apartment. Rental bikes were available. It was more of a small hotel with 20 rooms over 4 floors than a B&B. Staff were available only until 1 pm. A couple gestures I especially appreciated: When I asked where to buy a Suma card for bus or metro excursions, I was handed one left by a previous guest. When I was walking out the door my last morning about 45 minutes before breakfast, the person setting up for breakfast called me in so she could pack me a picnic bag to go.

Eating in Valencia
B&B Zalamera is located on Pelayo, one of the 3 (I think) streets that comprise Valencia’s Chinatown. There are all sorts of Asian restaurants and shops up and down the street. After checking out online reviews, I had inexpensive but good takeout from Min Dou. For other takeout, I appreciated the selection of prepared foods available at a Mercadona supermarket a couple blocks away. A couple times I bought empenadas with tasty veggie combinations at Mercat Central.

Valencia Restaurants I tried and liked
- Taska de Reina in El Cabanyal neighborhood a couple blocks from the beach.
- Trinquet – recommended by and near my B&B. I had a delicious fish dish with roasted potatoes and broccoli florets with a very nice white wine.
- Bar La Pilareta in El Carment neighborhood is known for mussels which is what I had. They were very good, served in a slightly spicey broth.
- El Ocho Y Medio in Plaza Lope de Vega. The food was good though not outstanding. The setting was lovely, outdoors behind the Cathedral which was lit at night.

• Bar Cremeat was recommended in several posts on this forum. I was interested in trying a part of the city – across the Turia – that I had not been to. The food was very good but the outdoor seating (indoors was fully booked when I reserved) had the constant sound of passing vehicles. Getting there and back was a bit of an adventure. I had planned to take a bus but I could see that buses were not moving in traffic so I walked about 30 minutes which was fine. I took a bus back but something was weird with bus routes or traffic. First, the bus stop digital display showed 3 different buses that all worked for me coming within 5 minutes; then the times changed to over 20 minutes or not coming at all. The driver on a bus to Plaza Ayuntamiento said he was not going there. Local people checking their bus apps couldn’t figure out what was happening. But it eventually all worked out. I have no idea whether this is typical on aThursday night or if it was due to the start of a long holiday weekend.

• Gran Mercat: CWsocial mentioned this as her fallback restaurant. When I had no luck trying to get dinner reservations at a number of places for Saturday night, I really appreciated having a suggested fallback. I enjoyed the grilled artichoke mentioned by CWsocial. It was the only time on my trip when I ordered a glass of wine and was disappointed.

• Masusa Paella Bar in Russafa. I found online recommendations for this as a place that served “authentic” Paella for one and it was also mentioned on some food blogs on places to eat in Russafa. I went for lunch and ordered the traditional Valencian option. It seemed good to me, but I don’t have any basis to judge.

Valencia, continued

I had read beforehand that Valencians eat Paella for lunch, not dinner; that authentic Paella doesn’t have seafood, is ordered the day before and prepared for two or more diners. and that the best places are outside of town, in or near Albufera where rice is grown. However, I saw seafood paella served lunch and dinner everywhere, I seemed. On the Visit Valencia tourist office website, I had read about diy and organized day trip options for a bus to Albufera combined with a boat ride in the natural park and then paella lunch but I knew that the boat tours don’t operate during the more serious rain alerts and that the Albufera wetlands were hit hard by storms in the past. Since the tourist office was still closed for rain alerts, I decided not to try the Albufera excursion.

Valencia sights
The Valencia Cathedral with audio tour and San Nicolas Church with audio tour and light show were my top highlights. The Cathedral has two Goya Painting. I appreciated the Cathedral audio tour for the historical background on Valencia, and explanations of Christian iconography (which I am weak on). The Cathedral museum included some exhibits from archeological excavation. San Nicolas Church’s frescoed interior was amazing. However, the quote one frequently sees that it is “Valencia’s Sistine Chapel” is slightly misleading. The quote is from an expert involved with the restoration of the Sistine Chapel saying the restoration work on San Nicolas was comparable.

I was happy to visit the National Museum of Ceramics, especially given that the ceramics museum in nearby Manises was closed due to the rain alert when I tried to visit. The museum in Valencia had some pieces from Manises. Other museums I appreciated included the Ethology Museum, the Silk Exchange, the Silk Museum, the Belles Artes museum, and the CCCC contemporary art center in El Carmen. I saw the cat house across from the CCCC with its special door for the cats, but I didn’t see any cats entering or leaving. I walked around to see some of the street art in El Carmen.

Other buildings I found worth seeing included the restored art nouveau tiled section of Estacion del Nord, modernista Mercat Central and Mercat de Colon, and the very modern structures in the City of Arts and Sciences complex. At Horchateria Daniel in Mercat de Colon, I tried horchata, a local beverage made from tiger nuts. It was refreshing but a bit too sweet for my taste.

I did not buy a Valencia Tourist Card for sightseeing. I don’t believe it would have saved me money. The retired person/senior discount for most sights was the same as the Valencia Card discount; a number of museums I went to were free.

Local transportation: Mostly I walked everywhere. I took a metro to the beaches one day and to the City of Arts and Sciences another day. Both times, when I asked where to get the metro to go back, I was told there is none and directed to a bus. It turns out that when the metro comes above ground it becomes a tram. I figured this out at the City of Arts & Sciences.

Manises (pottery village): As a ceramics enthusiast and potter, this was a priority excursion. It is easy to get to by metro, a stop before the airport but covered by the Suma card for zone A. I had read that on Saturdays, workshops were more likely open. I had planned to at least visit the ceramics museum and the tourist information center plus some exhibits in the Edificio El Arte located in the former train station. It was 2 days after the red altert, blue sky and sunny. Much to my disappointment, the tourist office, Edificio, and Ceramics Museum were all closed due to the rain alert (yellow at that point). I found no open workshops or ceramic related shops. I did walk along the main street to see a series of tile murals that celebrated the ceramics history and tradition of the town.

Valencia, continued

Beaches: On a Sunday, I took a metro/tram to Malvarrosa beach and enjoyed walking on the broad expanses of barely populated sandy beach, sitting on the sand, and getting my feet wet in the water. I continued walking to the adjacent Cabanyal beach which had many more people playing volleyball and walking the promenade; all ages, bikes and
baby carriages. I ate at Taska de Reina, a couple blocks inland.

Sagunto (day trip): I wanted to do at least one day trip to a nearby, smaller, historic town of interest. I chose Sagunto because it has both Roman and Jewish ruins. Cercanias short distance trains run twice an hour and take about 40 minutes from Valencia Estacion del Nort which was a few minute walk from my hotel. I used my phone for credit card tap and go. I repeatedly had a little difficulty with Cercanias tap and go (entry and exit) but it always eventually worked, sometimes with assistance from an agent.

To make sure the sights would be open and that I had correct information, I found a tourist information office in Valencia the day before. The main office in Plaza Ayuntamiento had been closed for rain alerts the first few days and then was closed for the housing protest encampment to rest of the time I was there. The woman who helped me at the branch office said we normally works at the main office. I explained my concern given my experience at Manises but was assured that everything would be open. She found me a map showing the main tourist sights in Sagunto, and that the tourist office would provide more details. Well, the tourist office in Sagunto was closed. A police officer I consulted in a municipal building confirmed it was closed (to his annoyance) and he did not know why or when it would open. He explained the sights and best way to proceed. I visited 2 museums that were interesting; one had a helpful video with English. It was a quite warm and very sunny day. I had not thought to bring my sun hat that I had used for the beach. The climb to the Roman theatre and Castlillo were more than I could handle in the sun. There is a museum in the Castillo that I was interested in. When I asked at the museums about getting to the Castillo, there didn’t seem to be alternatives to walking though I forgot to explicitly ask about taxis. On my way back to the train station, I ended up talking to 2 Romanian women who had lived in Sagunto for 20 years. They were surprised someone would come there from the U.S. They told me that everything would be closing down for the local Christans and Moros festival for several days, starting the next day. They also said that during the summer, there is a little tourist train that takes people up to the Castillo.

Language: There is a mix of Spanish and Valencian in Valencia. Some signs are in one, some in the other, sometimes both, and in museums often a third Spanish-related language which I assumed was Catalon. Written signs were mostly easy to figure out but I did get confused at one point that Paz and Pau were the same street. I noticed that the street name language given on google maps directions did not always match the language/name I saw at an intersection. Just something to be aware of for a first time visitor.

Valencia, continued

Housing Rights Protest Encampment in Valencia Plaza Ayuntamient.
If this topic is deemed too political, I hope the rest of my trip report doesn’t get dismissed or deleted. I am simply sharing what I observed that was a memorable part of my travel experience.

I had been following media reports on the housing protests in Madrid and Barcelona, and felt I was reasonably enough informed to feel support for the movement and form of peaceful protest. The encampment in Valencia didn’t start until the Sunday that I was there. Participants I talked to explained that they had put it off a couple days due to the rain alerts and a related planned housing rights march the previous day that had protested a real estate conference held in the City of Arts & Sciences. The first day, along with slogans and banners, there were signs with lists of donation items needed such as cleaning supplies and water containers to hold down tents. When I offered a cash donation, I was told that they were not soliciting or accepting money at that point and to know that anyone who asked for or accepted money was not authorized. I only saw one sign saying “your air b&b was my home” and only on the first day. My impression was that although vacation rentals are recognized as part of the affordable rental housing problem they were not at all the focus in Valencia.

Walking by in the mornings, I would see participants mopping the plaza in the spaces between the rows of tents, and small circles of young people sitting on the ground in discussion. There was no hostility to curious tourists, but neither were we the focus. There were assemblies/rallies in the evenings that I was there, attended by several thousand people (my guess), mostly young. One evening most everyone was seated and pretty attentively listening to speakers who appeared to be volunteers from the crowd who had a story to tell. I could not follow the speeches due to a combination of my limited Spanish, some of it was in Valencian, the PA system was not always great, and my hearing is not so good in that kind of setting. Another evening, the assembly was led by local feminist organizations and focused on violence against women in relation to housing needs and gender inequality. There were some silent participants dressed in ghost-like costumes. Names and ages of victims of gender-based violence were read.

Salamanca (3 nights)
Hotel: Gran Via Rooms by Gaia is the place I liked least of anywhere I stayed on this trip. Nothing terrible but very small sterile room with no color or décor; window onto an airshaft, very tiny sink. However, the location was very convenient – an 8 minute walk to Plaza Mayor and a little closer to the train station and to Van Dyck street tapas bars than hotels closer to the Plaza. I appreciated the electric kettle in the room. I had originally booked somewhere else but ended up shifting my dates a couple weeks before travel; my original choice was not available for my new dates.

Food: Enjoyed tapas and beer at outdoor tables at Tapas 2.0 off of Rua Mayor in the historic center, and Bar Van Dyck 50 (on Van Dyck) a little outside the old center. I also enjoyed lunch at Vinodiaria, a more upscale tapas winebar where I tried a Salamancan wine and was served a complimentary cheesecake dessert. I stopped at Santa Lucia confeteria several times for gelato and bakery treats. There were numerous places to pick up bread with cheese and jam or empenadas to go.

Sights: The afternoon I arrived, I did the RS guidebook walking tour of the historic center and thought it was very good, covering the impressive facades of Plaza Mayor, the Cathedral, and University buildings among others. The next day, I walked around the covered market and had breakfast coffee there before touring the new and old Cathedrals (one leads into the other), and then the Art Nouveau & Art Deco Museum. The Cathedral(s) and this museum were the highlights for me but I also visited and found interesting Convento Esteban, the Spanish Civil War Archives, and the historic University lecture halls. Convent Esteban had strategically placed angled mirrors to enable visitors to view decorative ceiling features.

On my last evening, I attended a free choral concert in the main chapel of the Old Cathedral. I learned of the concert from the Tourist Information Office digital bulletin board. When I asked where and how to access the performance, I was advised to walk around the Cathedral until I found people queueing up somewhere about 30 minutes ahead of the concert time, which I did. The choir was from Cordoba. The acoustics and setting were amazing.

Overall impression: I was very pleased that Salamanca felt sufficiently different in appearance and vibe from other Spanish cities I have visited. I had some tentative daytrip options researched (Segovia, Avila, Zamora, Ciudad Rodrigo) in case I felt the need, but I found I was quite content to spend my time in Salamanca. There were more tour groups (with microphones) everywhere I went in Salamanca than what I encountered in the other cities on this trip, but I never experienced crowds.

Madrid (1 night). To be added.

I really enjoyed reading your report. I must admit I had to laugh at you eating lamb intestines not the chops you thought you ordered. We have eaten some things we did not know too (that how we first tried octopus) but so far not innards!

I spotted Cuenca a few years ago in a website and thought it looked interesting so fun to read your account. I will have to get there.

Loved your report. We hope to get a return visit to Spain and I was told on my first visit that Valencia has the best Paella.

Wonderful trip report, thanks so much! Valencia definitely went on our list after CWSocial's trip, The Other Marty & now your wonderful addition. You can't possibly go on too long if it's because of your enthusiasm for the places you visited!!

I love it when a trip report brings up good memories of a place, and I adored Cuenca. We spent our time mostly hiking in the region, but it’s great to reinforce that in inclement weather you can enjoy the many art museums—always good when a place can do double duty so well (and a reminder to mind the weather reports because those gorges could be especially dangerous).

Very nice trip report CD. Fun and interesting to read.

Here in La Rioja, we have Embuchados, which are lamb intestines. They are cleaned, cooked and dried then wound into a ball. They look a lot like a baseball without the cover. Then they are sliced into to coin like slices, cooked on grill til crispy and usually served with red peppers and a Rioja. They are very popular, especially if you like lamb.

Thank you CD in DC! I love smallish towns and will look at Cuenca.

I would love to hear your overall impression of Valencia. I’ve read a mix of opinions here and on Fodor’s. It sounds like a big, pretty city, though a few people mentioned some graffiti and a handful of tired buildings in the historic center. I’m curious what you thought about it from an aesthetics and charm perspective.

I was in Madrid and Sevilla a couple of years ago and both cities were stunning to me. I had no idea that Madrid was so majestic.

Thank you for the report! Cuenca is on my list for the future - and I have 5 nights in Valencia coming up next month. I liked your selection of cities. :)

CallMom: I thought that Valencia had numbers of attractive and/or architecturally interesting buildings, plazas, streets and areas but I guess I wouldn't call it a beautiful city on the level of Paris or Prague or Budapest, and I found Madrid and Barcelona overall more impressive visually. On the pro side, Valencia has lots of green space, some modernista (Spanish Art Nouveau) buildings such as the Central and Colon markets, a whole complex of striking futuristic modern structures in the City of Arts and Sciences, as well as lovely old Romaneque, Baroque and Renaissance buildings. I strongly disagree with "a handful of tired buildings in the historic center." Part of what attracted me to Valencia is that it is not overrun with tourists and that there were no sights that needed advanced reserved tickets while I was there.

On graffiti, certain neighborhoods of Valencia such as El Carmen and Russafa are famous for street art. I walked around specifically looking for and at street art. In those areas, I also saw a good bit of what I consider ordinary graffiti without artistic merit. These neighborhoods are also known for trendy or interesting restaurants and bars.

On Cuenca, I should note that although the historic center felt like a small town, overall Cuenca is more of a smallish city with a population of about 55,000.

TexasTravelMom, Sandancisco, valadelphia, and dlindstrom: thanks for your responses.