5 Fallas musts while in Valencia in March!
Living in Valencia myself, I have 5 top tips for anyone visiting this fabulous city during the fiesta!
1. Don’t expect to sleep much! – The Spanish are notorious for drinking late, eating late and partying late! Valencia is no exception to this rule. Make sure that you have a siesta during the day to prepare for a big night on the town!
2. Buñuelos & chocolate – while wandering around the city taking in the spectacle of the monuments you have to stop by a traditional stall that sells these delicious sugar covered batter balls! Even better, dip them in the hot chocolate that comes with them! Not good for the waistline but taste fantastic!
3. Check out the street light displays - many of the Fallas committees decorate the streets with the most amazing street lights! While not very energy efficient, the thousands of garland lights are impressive. The best are in the Ruzafa area of town near where I live (Calle Sueca has the best!).
4. The firework displays - on the old Turia river bed are some of the best you will ever see in the world. They rival Sydney’s New Year ’s Eve ones I think! They take place every night between the 16th and the 19th March at about 1am! (See what I mean about no sleep!)
5. The Ofrenda – happens on the 17th and 18th March. This is the most religious of any of the Fallas celebrations and the streets are full of thousands of traditionally dressed ‘Falleras’ and ‘Falleros’ carrying flowers as an offering to the Kingdom of Valencia’s patron saint, Our Lady of the Forsaken. A true visual spectacle that shouldn’t be missed! (Even I’m a Fallero’ this year and will be joining in dressed in traditional Valencian costume!)
For more information on the Fallas celebration visit this website. There is also far more that you can do during the fiesta and a great city guide to Valencia that is also in English can be found here.
Ultimately it is a time when the city erupts with fireworks! It is a brilliant time to be in Valencia with nearly every street corner having an enormous monument that is either traditional or represents current affairs in some way. (Some are really quite risqué too!) During the three weeks they are judged and then burned on the night of the 19th March when the party ends for another year! Madness I know, but great fun!
And finally (OK, maybe my list contains six musts!), everyone has to experience the Mascletá at 2pm each day! Below is a video of today’s madness I filmed! I think I am still slightly deaf! Enjoy!
