Valencia

We left Madrid mid morning on another hot sunny day on a high speed train. It was great to see some of the Spanish countryside. Dotted amongst the farmland were a number of wind and solar farms, reinforcing Spain’s commitment to renewable energy sources. Also to note is the commitment by the Spanish community to recycle. All garbage bins are segregated into paper, plastic and general waste. This includes all public and community garbage bins.


We arrived in Valencia around 3pm and set off in 35deg+ temperatures to the hotel to dump our bags then back out toward the beach. We caught another great metro system straight to the beach and walked out to the America’s Cup pavilion. This building looks fantastic from afar, with its shifted floor plates creating large cantilevers each shading those below. The building sits upon a raised plinth overlooking the harbour, the working harbour in the distance and numerous specialized buildings specifically for the Americas cup race in the immediate harbour. The buildings podium is open to the public, allowing a good view of the harbour. I did find it unfortunate that the building does not seem to be ageing well. The soffit of each floor plate is lined with square tiles, all of which are warping in the maritime environment. The timber flooring is weathered badly with numerous boards broken and warped. On the podium level, empty retail spaces lie dormant and in need of maintenance. This is an iconic building for Valencia’s harbourside, it's a shame that it is not better maintained.










We then walked out along a long stretch of sand to the Mediterranean, where thousands of locals and tourists alike had come to escape the sweltering summer heat. The water temperature was so warm, around 28 deg at a guess. We didn’t stay long here as the sun was too hot if you were not in the water.



We wandered back to the metro and caught the tram / train back to the city. Here we disembarked at Calatrava’s Alameda station. The walls were lined with Calatrava’s signature mosaic tiles, with steel and glass structures in abundance. The exhaust vents are made a feature part of the architecture as is very much the structure. A great part of Calatrava’s work is the ability for the architecture to animate. The metro entry shelters are hydraulically operated, able to completely open and closed allowing the metro to be secured without the need for doors – ingenious! This has certainly made me think differently about design.











Hot Tip #5: Doors are for architects who haven’t thought of hydraulics!

It was beginning to get dark so we grabbed some dinner and headed back to the hotel for a well deserved sleep.


22/08/10

We rose early to grab a quick breakfast and head out to the city of the arts and sciences, Probably Valencia’s most well known area architecturally.

We walked out along the Jardin de Turia, a long sunken park which runs directly though the city. It seems to follow a path of a long dried up river. This Park is stunning beautiful, the well manicured gardens and paths weave its way through the city. The anticipation steadily built as we headed towards the southern most end of the park where lies the city of the arts and Sciences.



These buildings are just magnificent, like something out of a science fiction film, they are like nothing I have ever experienced before. I have seen dozens of pictures before, though they do no justice to these works of art. It makes one think if there is any division between art and architecture, these buildings certainly blur that line if there is one.




Again these buildings are clad in the same tiled mosaic that the Alemeda station is. Calatrava’s signature structure features soar out from the earth, weaving their way up each building. There is just no way to describe the feeling when you walk around these buildings. There is no angle, no side nor view where these buildings look bad. Whilst they may not be environmentally sustainable (they are heavily air-conditioned), they certainly do their bit on a global scale architecturally as works of art. It is evident on the look of each visitors face that they had definitely been moved by the experience of being here.




We entered the Science Museum (Museu de les Ciencies Principe Felipe) and were immediately struck by a stunning colonnade under which ticket booths, cafeteria and shops reside. Going up to the museum proper through a porthole escalator takes you to another world of steel and glass. Again, exposed glass everywhere meant that the buildings heat gain was enormous, however due to the height of the space and the floor mounted AC diffusers meant that you didn’t really notice the heat. Once you start to look closer, you realize how Calatrava has managed to create the shapes that make up the structure of the building. Only structural elements are made from a combination of either concrete or steel. Lightweight clad sections make up the ornate elements of the buildings, usually fibre cement or plasterboard clad and set to the structure. Many thermal cracks had formed in the lightweight elements where the different materials meet, although not overly noticeable to the average person. These buildings, unlike the Americas Cup Pavillion are very well maintained. It is impossible to mention all the features of the building in this blog, So I will let the pictures tell some of the story here.






From here we walked over to the L’Oceanographic, ie the Aquarium passing the still under construction Agora. Not sure of the history of this building, though it fits well amongst the precint, and is clad again in a mosaic of tiles in a navy blue colour. The aquarium was spectacular also, with its signature buildings (designed by Felix Candela) Surrounded again by water and shaped in the form of a watter lilly, the aquarium was well presented and well worth the visit.






Getting late in the afternoon, we then headed back to the city for dinner and a freshen up. I was very keen to go back to the precinct after dark to take some night time shots of the precinct. At night, the area takes on a different feel, a full moon made for some cool shots.










Hot Tip #6: If you dont know of this area, or Calatrava's work. I highly recommend that you check it out.! This is a must see destination.

We decided that we would walk there and catch the bus back. However, since it didn’t get dark until around 10pm we weren’t ready to head back to the hotel until midnight and we found out the busses stopped running at 10:30.

Hot Tip #7: Check the bus timetable before you plan your trip.

So we had to walk to entire 10km round trip….. on my still very sore feet…. It was worth it! I did get a little carried away on the photo’s though, A total of more than 400 for the day.

The next day we headed out to the old city, taking in its history visiting the central markets, the cathedral and getting lost among its many shop-lined laneways and streets. Today, the temperature hit around 42 deg, so we indulged in an afternoon siesta back at the hotel before hitting the shops for the evening.





Cant wait to head to Barcelona Tomorrow.

Mick.

Madrid

The first impression of Madrid, is one of grandeur. The Barajas Airport by Richard Rogers Architects was fantastic. This is an airport of such size, it has its own internal railway system to carry passengers through the airport. A series of rainbow colored colonnades make up the main passageway. Unfortunately, I was too fearful of being pulled up by customs to take any photographs of the building.

We continued into the city via a very easy to navigate series of metro lines, and arrived at out Hotel at around 4pm in the afternoon. Exhausted, we (my wife and I) had a shower and went to bed with the full intention to get up in a few hours and head out for dinner.
I then woke up at 6am the next morning…. Needless to say, I was jetlagged!

19/08/10
After a quick breakfast we headed straight into the city. From our hotel we walked along some of the narrow streets of Madrid to the Puerta Del Sol, a main road junction that is considered the nerve centre of Madrid. Here, there are a number of icons which have been associated with the square over many years. Namely the clock that rings in the new year and a statue of the bear and strawberry tree (the symbol of Madrid)

There was also an interesting Metro entry which sat just off centre in the square.
It was then onto Plaza Mayor which is a porticoed square at the focal point of the city since 1561. In the centre of the square sits a statue of Phillip III on horseback. No sooner do we get there and I drag out my camera a woman who appeared to be talking to herself on a bicycle stops and starts ranting at me in Spanish. At first I think she is asking if I would like her to take my photo. No sooner do I decline and she then (I think) is warning me not to take my camera out as thieves might pinch it. She carries on her merry way and starts harassing other tourists in the square.



Hot Tip #1, Don’t talk to crazy people!.


We then headed up to the main thoroughfare in Madrid, the Paseo Del Prado. This is a beautiful tree lined roadway which extends from the south of the city to the north where the newer developed city lies.



To the West is the botanic Gardens and the Parque del Retiro. A huge park in the city which is free to enter containing museums, palaces and lakes. We spend quite a lot of time in this park, partly due to its size, but also touring the free museum within it which had an interesting display including Food art and Art of war. Of particular interest was a room full of furniture covered in Toy Soldiers. Hundreds of thousands of white toy soldiers were placed in differing patterns covering a number of items. Of particular interest was a wardrobe. See pics.






The park itself was meticulously maintained including many pathways and areas with unique functions and themes.

Onward from there we passed the Puerta de Alcala, Madrid’s version of the Arc de Triomphe.

It was not long before our feet began to ache, so we headed back toward the hotel late in the afternoon during the siesta period.

It wasn’t until we got back to the hotel I realized the seriousness of the pain in my feet. I had spent the most part of the day, walking around in a pair of thongs, my feet filthy and aching severely. I could barely walk!. I decided to “Harden up”! After all, I’m in Spain!!

The sun here doesn’t go down until after 9pm, so we headed back out, aching feet and all towards some of the oldest parts of the city. First down to the Plaza de Espana and then up to watch the sunset at the Debod Temple, an ancient Egyptian temple presented to spain as a gift over 2000 years ago.





My feet now in excruciating pain, we headed over to the Royal Palace built in the 18th century and houses treasures comparable to other great European palaces.

Getting hungry, we headed baack over to the Plaza Mayor for dinner on in the terrace of a small restaurant within the square.

Hot tip #2: Don’t eat at restaurants that mainly have tourists in them. The food is horrible!!

Bizarrely, all of the restaurants have pictures of the food on their menu. In Australia, this is a sign of bad food in my book, and it seems that this may be similar also over here!

After getting up from dinner, I was in so much pain I literally hobbled back to the hotel and went to bed hoping that my feet would be better in the morning….. They Weren’t.

Hot Tip #3: If you are going to walk around a city for an entire day, don’t wear thongs. Weirdly they don’t provide any support for your feet?

The next day, I gingerly rose back onto my swollen and aching feet and headed over to the Reina Sofia Museo. Here houses many fantastic artwork by Salvatore Dali and Picasso. Sorry, no pics as photography was prohibited.

To the rear of the museum lies a 3 part extension by Jean Nouvel incorporating exhibition space, Library and Auditorium. The 3 buildings are arranged to create a central courtyard space which is partially covered by a roof with open air skylights creating an interesting light pattern on the ground whilst illuminating the space and allowing natural ventilation.



To my disgust, My feet were hurting so badly, I could only stand for a few minutes at a time, So unfortunately I did not get to look around this building much at all.

After we left the Reina Sofia Museum, we headed up to the newer part of Madrid, Or what we thought was the newer section. Here, along the Paseo De La Castellana we found 3 highrise towers which looked as though they were constructed in the late 80’s. Not the Forster and Partners Tower I was looking for!

I could no longer bear the pain in my feet and we headed back to the hotel via the fantastic metro system weaving its way under the city.

Hot Tip #4: Use the metro system. It is cheap and easy to use… It also saves your feet!

That night, we got some dinner close to the hotel and went to bed early in the hope that giving my feet a rest would make for a better journey tomorrow.

Tune in for my next post. We leave tomorrow for Valencia. Cant wait to lay my eyes on some Calatrava!

PS. Im still learning this Blog Software, So I apologise for the awkward Formatting. I will try to get better at it for next time!