About Valencia
Valencia is Spain's third largest city and has experienced a cultural renaissance in recent years. Located on the Mediterranean coast, it has everything from pristine beaches to fascinating architecture, a world-class soccer team and a nightlife that lasts 'til dawn. It's a wonderful place to learn Spanish because although it's a big city, it still has a small town feel that makes foreigners feel at home.

Valencia is also the home of paella and boasts a mouth-watering cuisine of seafood and other delicacies. Even more important is Las Fallas, the most riotous festival in Spain, and just one of Valencia's year-round fiestas that travelers the world over come to experience. During Fallas, every neighborhood ("barri") constructs a satirical papier-maché caricature, each of which is judged and awarded prizes. The madness culminates in the burning of all the caricatures, a truly amazing sight.

Romans, Visigoths, Moors and Christians have all left their mark in Valencia, but the city has been revitalized in recent years by Santiago Calatrava's futuristic "City of Arts and Sciences." This compound of intriguing structures is one of Europe's most imaginative millennial projects and has brought slews of new visitors to the city. Calatrava's buildings and a handful of pending cutting-edge projects have made Valencia a new hot-spot and one of the top desirable places to live in Spain.