Valencia, Spain - the Silk Exchange

 

After exiting the Cathedral, we were hungry, there was some discussion of eating at MacDonalds, which was handily in the square next to the Cathedral. I told them they were welcome to, but I wont eat at MacDonalds at home, let alone here.

We made our way

through narrow streets

and open squares

to the central market.

Here we searched for

appropriate lunch items.

I bought 3 mushroom croquettes and shared a plastic cup of assorted cheeses and another of divinely sweet strawberries. Chris and Kristin each chose baguette sandwiches filled with ham and cheese. Kristin also bought some seafood paella that we shared for dinner when we returned home.

Christine again tried to get her bank card to work (no luck)

 

while I took pictures of the surrounding buildings.

So many spires.

Down a side street was the entrance to the Silk Exchange (1Euro for me, 2 for the youngsters) and we walked into a lovely little courtyard.

From there we walked into the Sala de Contratacion. My photos just can't do it justice. A huge room, with high ceilings and 8 columns that spiral from a black marble floor to

a stone vaulted ceiling.

In the very heart of Valencia stands the Silk Exchange (Lonja de la Seda), one of the most beautiful examples of European civil Gothic architecture. Declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1996, the Lonja is not just a monument: it is a journey back in time to an era when the city was a key hub of international trade.

Built between the 15th and 16th centuries, the Lonja was the setting for transactions, agreements and meetings that shaped the economic destiny of Valencia and the Mediterranean. Today, it continues to impress with its monumental scale and its spaces, from the Columned Hall to the Orange Tree Courtyard.

from visitvalencia.com 

 

From there into

a small chapel in the base of the prison tower. Built to house merchants who failed to pay their debts or went bankrupt.

Next to that, the Consulado del Mar which housed the trades tribunal, has an elaborate wooden coffered  ceiling.

Then back out to the courtyard to take outside stone stairs up to 

the Sala Dorada with another magnificent

ceiling and

marble floor. Both of these later 2 rooms had videos playing on the walls with English subtitles, explaining the history, purpose and architecture.

Back out into the streets and we opted to head home

Making our way to the nearest Metro station

we passed this elaborate building.

I will certainly be back to explore this.

From the train; an Azulejos  tile manufacturer.

Beside the road where we parked the car was a row of these trees with what looks like roots hanging from their branches. 

I googled and this is what I came up with;

 The banyan tree has roots that hang down from its branches, called aerial roots. When these roots reach the ground, they grow into a woody trunk, creating a unique and sprawling tree structure. shutterstock.com

Valencia, Spain - La Catedral

 Today we again drove to the metro station, took the metro and a tram and arrived near

the Serrano Gate.

 

We weren't in a rush. We weren't following a guide.

So I could stop and take pictures of whatever I fancied.

Christine and Kristin going through the Serrano Gate.

3 cafe con leche for 6Euro. Kristin said you can pay $6 for one in Toronto.

We thought we remembered the way we had gone with the walking tour

and we got caught up with a school group but found our way.

The door onto the Plaza de la Virgin was not the entrance so we walked around

to the much more impressive entrance on the other side. Our entrance fee, 6Euro for me as a senior, included the audio guide.

Not the most impressive cathedral I have been in but they all have a quiet magnificence, architecturally solid and delicate simultaneously.

The audio tour directed us to the chapels (there are 24) that line the main church, and described the art, history and religious purpose of each.

The audio guide invited us to sit on pews while it described the magnificent altar area.

The area is lit with a dome of alabaster windows. There are just a few stained glass windows, most are thin, translucent, alabaster.

My favorite part of the whole complex was these beautiful frescoes. They were discovered, during repairs to the apse ceiling, hidden behind the Gothic dome for 300 years. They show angels playing musical instruments and had been painted in the late 15th century.

Of course you could pay to light a candle. Either a real one

or a battery operated one.

The chapels had paintings, statues

and relics (this is the arm of a saint, creepy!)

Once we had circled the church

we went into the Cathedral Museum with its displays of valuable gifts, vestments, old manuscripts and more relics.

Stairs took us down to the foundations of the church and layers of Roman, Visigoth, and Mosque buildings that had all been sited here.

Back upstairs and into

the final chapel

and what this Cathedral is truly famous for;

The Holy Grail

From Christine's "Top 10 Valencia" book

"There are hundreds of claimants to the Holy Grail, the cup that Jesus drank from at the Last Supper, but only the chalice here at Valencia's Cathedral has been recognized by the Vatican." It goes on to give the providence of the item, transported from one location to another, bouncing around Europe, to keep it safe until it was given to the Valencia Cathedral by Alfonso the Magnanimous in 1437.