J'AIME JULY AUGUST 2018

T R AV E L
Victorious Valencia
RB COLLECTION’S DIRECTOR OLIVER AND HIS HUSBAND ROBBIE TRAVELLED FROM FROM BARCELONA TO
VALENCIA, SPAIN’S THIRD BIGGEST CITY, TO EXPLORE ITS HISTORY, CULTURE AND OUTSTANDING FUTURISTIC
OUTLOOK. ROBBIE REPORTS ON THEIR TRIP WHICH PLEASANTLY SURPRISED THEM BOTH
The first thing that struck me as we lined up to board
the train from Barcelona to Valencia, was how easy
it all was. No long airport security queues, no lining
up 20 minutes before your aeroplane has even hit
the tarmac just to make sure you can take a bag on
board. When we travel these are the necessary evils
that we have all come to expect, but on my recent
trip I had none of these stresses. After a few glorious
days in Barcelona I jumped on the metro at Passeig
De Gracia and travelled just one stop to Estacion
Barcelona Sants, where I boarded my Valenciabound
train. A standard seat on this train is on a par
with a first-class seat on the Eurostar with plenty of
leg room in a spacious cabin. The three hour journey
took me along aqua blue coastal horizons and passed
medieval hilltop towns. By the time I had watched a
movie and had a snooze it was time to disembark.
I decided to soak in the city and walk to my rented
weekend home so I could get my bearings. I was
instantly blown away by the amazing architecture
of Valencia. Almost every street corner looked
postcard perfect with pastel hues of lemon and
mint drenching the ornate buildings in a type of
cheeriness that you only see in movies. Elaborate
white floral moulds decorated doorways and
bordered windows adding even more prettiness to the
already breath-taking streets. My area of choice was
Russafa and as I meandered up and down its lanes I
passed quirky vintage stores and cute cafés. Although
the buildings were bright and busy I was surprised
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