If a trip of 8 hours wasn't long enough, a woman in the bus decided to sneak in her little dog against all rules, to get discovered in the middle of the night by the driver... she got yelled at and delayed the whole trip one extra hour. Oh snap!
The bus arrived to Valencia at 5.00 am., allowing me to squeeze in a couple of hours of sleep before heading to the hair stylist at 09.00 am. The hotel room at NH Center was amazing... well, it was more like a small apartment, with its entrance hall, a complete bathroom with a big bathtub, a spacious double bed and a small relaxing area next to a glass wall. All the people at the hotel were very nice and polite, making me feel 10 years older by calling me by “usted” and carrying all my luggage to my door - they didn't event let me hold my suit, which I carried in a travel-cover. The hair salon was right next to the hotel, managed by two blonds who gave me tips to move around the city. There was also a nice small restaurant next to the hotel where I got breakfast and lunch for 2 and 9 Euro respectively... Full menu, first, second, dessert and wine... Amazing.
The company I was going to interview for is right in the center of the city, in an old and charming area, among very picturesque buildings. When I arrived, I had a cup of green tea in the most lovely tea-house in the very same street... Valencia was just gaining brownie-points left and right... Until I actually got to do the interview: it was awkward, uncomfortable and very nerve-wracking... Hence killing my mood to go exploring the city some more that day. Thus, I decided to stay in the hotel Thursday evening, swimming in the outdoors pool, drinking mojitos and sunbathing. Moreover, I got to talk to Sara, Matt, Jenni, Sarai and Ivar between glass and glass of white wine, which the waiter at the terrace kept coming all evening and never charged me for - nice. I also got to do a lot of resume-sending and organized some stuff for London; it was a very productive and relaxing time. The only pato-aventura I had was when I ran to my room after letting my battery die in the middle of a conversation, to plug in my computer in my room, killing all the lights in the floor... C'est la vie. I fell asleep watching the channel “Cosmopolitan” and woke up very late the next morning to “Never been kissed.”
On Friday, Valencia-city got another chance, when I ventured into the center and the old part. In my opinion, Valencia has a certain Mediterranean touch, like Barcelona, although it is more welcoming than Barna, due to its smaller and more manageable size. Moreover, it also has a Southern Spanish medieval-city atmosphere to it sometimes, like when you enter the old part through medieval massive towers or when you find medieval churches buried amongst tall, modern buildings. Other parts, like the big avenues with tall decorated buildings of the early XXth century reminded me of Madrid, although Valencia definitely has its distinct character seasoned with palm trees, orange trees and the green park of the Turia river crossing the city.
My “mordisquitos”-side was also very pleased. I had an awesome lunch - first, second, bread, dessert and wine - at a small restaurant right in front of the cathedral for less than 9 Euro. This was very surprising given the amazing location. The waiters were very friendly and gave me directions to try to find my bank to get some pounds for the UK - which I couldn't get in San Sebastian because of the 2-day-order rule. On my way there, I got stopped by the TV crew of “Gente,” an evening program of the main Spanish national TV network. I tried avoiding them for some reason.... I thought they might had been asking tourists stuff about the old part or the tourism industry in the Fall... but they ran after me, to tell me that they loved me outfit and wanted to interview me and pass a fashion's designer's test... Which I passed with a good grade! Thank goodness! haha I wish I had been better dressed though... I was just wearing a comfy skirt and a t-shirt with “merceditas” and Sarai's latest black bag. At least my hair was ok... haha :) Anyhow, my search for pounds was tiring, long and ineffective, given that even in the big banks in the center of the city, they followed the 2-day-order rule... (After-editing-note: There are no exchange-places at the airport either!!! So I'm flying to London without a single pound in my pocket.... Hopefully there will be an ATM or an exchange place at the airport so that I can take the train to London Bridge!) 
On the other hand, there were also a couple of sketch moments in my trip... When I left the hotel in the morning on Friday, two sketch-balls followed me for 20 minutes , until I got very nervous and approached a security guard standing in front of the entrance of “El Corte Inglés.” The guys turned around right away and never saw them again... Thank goodness! Later that afternoon, I approached a traffic policeman for directions, when I was looking for my bank's headquarters and he politely indicated me the way. However, two streets down, when I stopped to take pictures of a church, he crossed my way and told me not take pictures of him, to which I smiled and said “don't worry sir, I wouldn't do such a thing.” Another couple of stores down the same street, he approached me again and told me that he was joking and that he would walk me to my destination if I didn't mind... To which I agreed, given that I actually had no clue if I was on right street or not. On our way there, he asked me where I was from, joked that I didn't have a Basque accent, what my plans for the day were and even offered to pose for a picture of both of us... When I told him that I was flying to London, he asked me if he could have my phone number.. to which I replied that I didn't know when I was returning. He smiled and watched me enter my bank... and even waved a couple of times while I waited in line... Oh snap! Is it even allowed to approach happy, non-disturbing innocent citizens like that??? Way too much concern for your citizens Valencia...
Late that afternoon I returned to my hotel, picked up my bags and took the bus on the 150 line. It is so convenient! It stops in the main spots (including my hotel), costs 1,50 Euro and leaves you at the airport in 50 minutes. Valencia got tons of brownie-points for its efficient and safe public transportation system. The airport is small and manageable - kind of boring actually. There is only one overpriced fast-food place once you pass the security point, so make sure you eat out in the city before your flight back.
Au Revoir Valencia, you are a nice city, with great-cheap restaurants, good transportation systems, interesting sightseeing spots, way too many palm-trees and creepy traffic policemen... and I got to be on TV! :) My only concern now is how I will get pounds in London so late at night....
