When my change of plans took place and I had to find somewhere that would suit my interests, I chose Valencia in part due to the beautiful cathedrals that I saw when I researched the city. That decision was one I do not regret because I found myself in the middle of so many astounding cathedrals with so much rich history. In Valencia, there are 13 Cathedrals. The ones most well known are La Catedral and Miguelete, and San Nicolás de Bari y San Pedro Mártir. These two cathedrals have absolutely remarkable interiors. I never made it into the San Nicolas, but it is tucked away and connected to many buildings very close to my school. Every time I tried to visit it was closed, but I could see a little bit from the outside and it was beautiful. What I did get to see, though, was La Catedral. The Valencia Cathedral stands tall as the face of Valencia. It was constructed in 1262, and I first got to see it on my school tour of the city on my first day. The cathedral itself has so much beauty on the inside, and is all so grand. There is so much color and history, places that have been dedicated to old religious figures, and most famously, the Holy Grail. Though it is not known for sure if this is the actual Holy Grail, the Chalice is believed to be here within this Cathedral, and it has its own room of display. It is supposed to be the cup that Jesus used at the Last Supper, and to see such a significant piece of religious history possibly sit right before me, to see all the people that would come to see this, I was overtaken with emotion. I walked out of that Cathedral knowing I had to go back just to see it all again. It was truly a beautiful structure. Next to it is a Church that was originally used to help the needy centuries ago, but now mass services are held there, and I saw amazing paintings, nativity scenes, and I got to sit in on a mass for a little bit while there. So many people would come to their altar to pray or sit in the pews there, so being able to be a tourist while at the same time respect and honor their culture was very humbling. Now the Miguelete is the tall tower of the Catedral, and when I say tall, I climbed stairs for a few minutes before I made the top! It was a wooden spiral staircase, and it is where the bell tower is. At the top, the view of Valencia was the only view I got of seeing the whole city from above. It was so gorgeous to look out and see the mountains around me and the villages tucked into them, to see the Torres de Serranos, a defense tower that was an entrance to the city centuries ago (used for military purposes. I also climbed that!), to see La Ciudad de Los Artes y Ciencias, to see the beautiful Mediterranean Sea, and I could even see my exact seat I sat in when I attended a Valencia vs. Cadiz futbol game! Valencia is a beautiful city, and I am so thankful I had the free time to appreciate the beauty of its architecture as much as I did. One thing I really learned is that the USA is so young, and we just do not have anything like what many places in Europe have, which is a history of a thousand+ years.
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