This month, Valencia is celebrating two important religious festivities that are intrinsic to the town’s identity: San Antoni Abad and Saint Vincent. You may have seen billboards around town, your kids are getting a day or two off from school, and even here at Pont de Valencia we’ve highlighted them as major events — partly…
Saturday: Animal Parade for San Antoni Abad Kids love animals—and what better excuse than watching them parade through the city? The San Antoni Abad celebration is one of those quietly charming traditions: farm animals, beloved pets, and owners lining up for a blessing. Superstitious religious fanfare? Maybe.But it’s also beautiful—and honestly, having all the gods…
Joy to the world: kids are back to school. There’s a very particular kind of happiness that happens right after drop-off—the gate closes, backpacks disappear down the corridor, and suddenly you’re free. Free and loose in that final dance of Dirty Dancing kind of way. You walk back to the car, keys in hand, and…
It’s today—the very last day of the year.By now, you’ve probably heard more than enough about the elaborate parade of New Year’s Eve traditions and paraphernalia the Spanish adore: red underwear, grapes, bells, cotillón… Spaniards like to celebrate, and when they do, they spare absolutely no detail or imagination. Many of you likely already have…
The Christmas race is officially in countdown mode. The big day is just hours away and, somehow, you already feel Christmas-saturated. Everything around town is festive to the point of chaos: streets packed with people, public transport taking its sweet time, public parking full by 11 a.m. It’s loud, busy, and relentless. And while all…
The 22nd: the first official day of Christmas.This is something you can count on if you ever need to know when Christmas truly begins in Spain. The kids will be out of school for sure—the Friday before if the 22nd falls on a Monday, or the day before if it’s midweek. The variation is minimal….