Despite our righteous indignation at having been turned down for press access to the America’s Cup, duty compelled us to head for the harbor today on the first day of racing and check out the scene.

And so we did, for about an hour. I can say in all honesty, and without the slightest amount of sarcasm that it was the most thrilling, gripping, intense and wonderfully ecstatic hour of my entire life.

Allow me to assist you in imagining the scene: under the austere auspices of the Veles e Vents building, a sparse crowd had gathered! With no way to see the actual race, people had congregated around a large screen! Heavily tanned gentlemen in polo sweaters were everywhere! Alinghi clowns danced among children and possibly delighted one of them! A palpable sense of boredom permeated the air!

Workers darted in and around the crowd, chanting “Or-ac-le!” “A-lingh-i!” That’s right: paid employees were trying to generate excitement by goading people into chanting the names of corporations. Like the spirit of the Olympics, only much more moving and authentic!

Hundreds of schoolchildren were bussed in before the race’s scheduled start time. A brilliant strategy! Children are loud, generate a buoyant atmosphere without prodding and, besides prisoners, are the only people who can be forced into attendance. And you can’t expect sailing fans to mingle with prisoners! The kids made up about a third of the crowd. I felt sorry for them when the race was postponed 6 hours and eventually rescheduled to Wednesday. But at least there were Alinghi clowns.

This America’s Cup is an unmitigated disaster for sailing fans, for the event itself, and especially for the city of Valencia. Friends tell us that the 32nd edition held in 2007, was fantastic; not just exciting on a sporting level, but successful in bringing fame, money and tourism to Valencia. This time around, the constant (and still on-going) litigation has snuffed out any legitimate interest.

So if you don’t get down to the port to check out the action for the 33rd America’s Cup, don’t feel like you’re missing out on too much. You’re not.

More pictures from the 33rd Americas Cup, taken this morning:

- Get ready for Fallas 2010

Valencia is truly the place to be this weekend, with one of the year’s most anticipated events kicking off. Of course, I’m talking about:

That’s right, from the 5th to the 7th, you’ll be able to check out products and costumes that are approximate replicates of products and costumes from Medieval times! You’ll find it next to the Mercado de Ruzafa.

(There’s some other event kicking off, too, featuring spoiled, petulant rich people and their toy boats. But they didn’t deem us worthy for press access, so screw ‘em. The Medieval market is where it’s at, anyway.)

-Neat Ruzafa Youth Hostel

“I gave myself up, during my sojourn in the Alhambra, to all the romantic and fabulous traditions connected with the pile. I lived in the midst of an Arabian tale, and shut my eyes, as much as possible, to every thing that called me back to every-day life; and if there is any country in Europe where one can do so, it is in poor, wild, legendary, proud-spirited, romantic Spain; where the old magnificent barbaric spirit still contends against the utilitarianism of modern civilization.” – Washington Irving on his stay in the Alhambra, 1832

The Nazrid Palaces of the Alhambra, one of the world’s great architectural and cultural treasures, is the pinnacle of Granada’s plentiful touristic offerings.

The very fact of the palace’s survival, let alone its pristine state, is a miracle. Washington Irving, the American author who lived there for months as a guest, relates in his popular collection Tales of the Alhambra a legend about an ancient blessing, carved into the stone entrance, which has protected it over the centuries.

I find it more likely that even the most vicious and intolerant of marauding armies were unable to destroy such beauty.

The Alhambra (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) was built in the mid-14th century by the Moorish rulers of Al-Andalus, who had chosen Granada as their capital. Walking through the palace’s incredible quarters, it’s impossible not to sense 700 years of history encompassing you. The beauty and intricacy of the construction is unreal, but we’ll let the pictures speak to that.

For visitors to Granada, the Nazrid Palaces (palacios nazaríes) are a must-see. But take care: you’ll have to book tickets in advance. A limited number of people are allowed into the grounds at any given time. Once inside, though, you can take your time. Too many people don’t realize this, and show up at the Alhambra hoping to get tickets, only to leave disappointed.

Buy your Granada guides here. Click for: USA, UK, Germany, Spain
More from Our Granada Trip

You’ll find the Backpacker HOME hostel in the heart of Valencia, El Carmen, offering rooms in an old church. On top of the unique building, there’s a huge 200m² rooftop terrace. It’s perfectly located near hip restaurants, bars and shops, and a nearby bus station takes you directly to the beach. This is also the perfect place to stay during Fallas – one of the main Fallas groups usually has a stage with music right in front of the hostel. So, you either can party all night long or make sure that your room is not facing towards the plaza.

The hotel is within walking distance of many of Valencia’s best attractions, for example:

• Botanic Gardens
• Viveros Gardens
• El Micalet & Cathedral
• Central market of Valencia
• Centro del Carmen

Also very close to the hostel are 2 flamenco venues: El Duende (our favorite) and Radio City.

We can recommend these nearby restaurants:

• Las Cuevas
• Sidreria El Molinón
• Crêperie Bretogne
• Orient Express

Hostel features:

• Roof terrace
• Kitchen
• Multi-lingual staff
• Internet access
• Telephone facilities
• Luggage storage
• Open 24h

Book here: HOME Backpackers
Location on our Valencia map

-More hostels in Valencia

Hotels in Granada – Hostels in Granada – Flights to Granada

At the end of January, Jürgen and I took our first major Spanish road trip, and we chose to visit Granada. After almost two years in Spain, this was the first time we’d really explored anything outside of the Valencian Community. But we’re going to do so more often, because we had an incredible time in Granada.

Our stay was just 5 days, but we packed it full and saw a lot of what the city and province have to offer. Even though this is the Hola Valencia blog, we’re going to be writing about our Granadino experiences over the next couple weeks, and sharing some of the pictures we took of the extremely picturesque city.

Granada is about 5 hours away from Valencia by car, which makes it an ideal trip for a long weekend. We stayed in Casa de Federico, which has good prices (and very small rooms) in a great area of town, within 2 minutes of the Cathedral.

The universal response among our friends & neighbors upon hearing our destination was one of jealousy. Everyone loves Granada, and though I might not choose to live there (hills! students! cold!) I would return to visit in a heartbeat.

We’ll still be blogging about Valencia, but for the next few weeks expect the site to indulge in a bit of Andalusian flair!

- Hire a car in Granada