Hhhmnn – it’s a tad embarrassing to be posting a blog a mere 18 months after a trip….but here we are! Back in May 2024, I had a great trip over to Valencia, Spain with Jo B and Jo H (yes it did occasionally get confusing!) from Sidmouth Photographic Club, to photograph the delights of the city. Although we did spend some time wandering the streets of the old town, our attention was mainly focused on the City of Arts and Sciences (Ciutat de les Arts i les Ciències), a collection of amazing futuristic buildings that looked as if aliens had left their craft littered around pools of water!

We managed visits both at sunrise and sunset, as well as during the day, and it’s fair to say that the light definitely changed the mood and appearance of the structures significantly. Although the buildings lent themselves perfectly to photography, it was extremely difficult to take a shot that hadn’t already been taken…and we noticed when putting images into subsequent club competitions (making sure we didn’t all enter our images at the same time!!) that several of the judges had seen similar images in the past.

I did find it tricky trying to do justice to the magnificent buildings, as architectural photography isn’t my genre, but enjoyed playing my usual game of hunt the silhouette…and managed to find a few of course!

Of course we sampled the foodie delights of the city, enjoying paella, tapas and churros with hot chocolate, along with a couple of the local drinks; Horchata (a sweet drink made from tiger nuts – definitely an acquired taste!) and Agua de Valencia (a cocktail of cava, vodka, gin and fresh orange juice – rather moorish!)

We packed a lot into our 3 night stay and came away with some memorable photos – even if it did take me til 2025 to start processing them! I would definitely recommend the city for its relaxed vibes, great food, good transport links and interesting architectural photography.

(Click on any image to enlarge photo)