Valencia and Las Fallas!

Holyyyy cannoli. What a day. SO much fun!

So Friday night, I finally got to meet up with a friend of mine, Miss Sally Fehskens. We sat outside in Plaza Mayor and had cañas and just enjoyed the nice evening. Was so good to see her :) Then I got home and crashed around 9PM because I was EXHAUSTED. This past week really kicked my butt. Being sick didn't help either. Oh but after all that sleep, I woke up at 7:30 AM on Saturday ready to go! Seriously, I felt so much better.

Saturday. Like I said, up at 7:30 AM to meet the group by 9AM at Ciudad Universitaria. We all met and got on bus #20 (of, like, fifty-some) and it was off to Valencia. It was about a four and a half hour trip, I think. Not bad at all. We made a pit-stop in the middle of nowhere about two hours in. There were SO many people going on this bus trip, it was insane. We finally unloaded in Valencia around 2PM and we were on our own until 5:30AM, when we'd meet back at the bus.

So first things first. We went and got something to eat at a little restaurant.

Then we kinda wandered around the different neighborhoods looking at the different fallas. These things were SO big and SO pretty and SO well done. Each neighborhood makes one and then they're voted on. The best one gets saved and put in a museum while the other ones are burned. We also got to see the parade. Sort of. We got stuck in the back because there were a lot of people. But it was still cool. Thennnn around midnight, they started burning stuff.

They'd start each burning off with fireworks (ps. That's the closest I've even been to fireworks. That kinda thing would NOT fly in the states. I was picking bits of firework out of my hair), and then they'd set of fireworks around the falla. These fireworks would eventually set the whole thing on fire and then SHWOOMP. Big. Giant. Flames. It was just so awesome to see. Quite toasty, too. In a matter of minutes, this big giant structure was just a pile of ashes. This went on until about 3:30AM and we were able to see about three different burnings. Thennnnn we just kinda hug out different places, trying to find bathrooms and keep warm and stay awake. And finally, we got back on the bus and were on our way home.

I think I'm back to my sick self again haha my eyes are killing me and I'm just exhausted. SO WORTH IT THOUGH. Gonna pop some NyQuil and head to bed early tonight. But not before skyping the family and wishing mi padre a happy Dia de Los Padres, which was yesterday. Aka. Spain's Father's Day.