The third largest city of Spain and the largest Andalusia is a place that impresses both admirers of art, monuments and lovers of spending time on the beach. It is known primarily from the modern complex of the City of Arts and Sciences standing on the seafront. But here you can also find interesting monuments from earlier eras, including the 13th-century cathedral.
Valencia was founded as a Roman colony in the 2nd century BC. In the Middle Ages, it shared the fate of other Spanish cities and was under Arab rule. Liberated from it as a result of the reconquista, it began to develop dynamically as a port and center of silk trade. The Silk Market inscribed on the UNESCO list is considered to be one of the most beautiful secular Gothic buildings in Europe.
The symbol of the victory over the Moors is the cathedral, the construction of which began immediately after the reconquest. Because several hundred years passed between the beginning of construction and its completion, Romanesque, Gothic and Baroque influences can be seen in the body and design. The octagonal belfry rises by the cathedral, which is one of the city's symbols.
However, today Valencia is known primarily for modern architecture. The huge City of Arts and Sciences consists of an opera room, planetarium, IMAX cinema, Palace of Arts and one of the largest oceanariums in the world. In Turia's gardens founded in the place of the former riverbed stands the Palace of Music, known for its rooms with excellent acoustics.
