Since we've been working for a couple weeks now, the Fulbright coordinator thought it would be helpful for us to meet to talk about our experiences so far. Given that most of the Fulbrighters in the region of Valencia are in the city of Valencia, it was decided that we would meet in Valencia.
Since I live in the city of Alicante, this meant a total of four hours in a train. Unfortunately, there are a limited number of trains going between Alicante and Valencia. Basically, we could take a train that would get us to the station at the same time as the meeting--meaning we would be 20-30 minutes late. Or, we could take the train that would get us there around 1:00.
Getting there around 1:00 meant that I got to try Valencian paella in Valencia for the first time! For those of you who don't know, paella is a rice dish that originated here in the region of Valencia. In fact, just last week there was a paella cooking competition in Valencia in the City of Arts and Sciences. It can be made with any number of things--seafood, chicken, vegetables, etc.
I've eaten a lot of paella while I've been in Alicante--in particular, because it is one of my favorite dishes. However, when I was in the city of Valencia a few weeks ago, I was disappointed to not have the opportunity to eat some traditional paella.
The restaurant that we ate at today was really amazing. We had the menú del día (menu of the day). This is a popular (and cheap) option offered at lunch here in Spain. Most restaurants offer some sort of menú del día in which you get two plates, dessert, and a drink. For the first plate, usually you get to choose a soup or a salad, but sometimes there are other options. For example, at this restaurant, I ordered bravas--which are fried potatoes with ali oli (garlic mayonnaise) and brava sauce. The second plate is the main dish and most menus offer paella as an option for this plate. At this restaurant, I had one of the best paellas I've ever eaten. It had a lot of flavor and the vegetables were so fresh! Lastly, dessert can be composed of a number of options. Of course, you have your traditional desserts--like ice cream, chocolate cake, and flan. However, you can also get coffee or the fruit of the day. The fruit of the day is sometimes my favorite option because they tend to be fruits that I don't usually buy for myself--like pineapple and melon. The melon here is simply delicious and not like anything you can get in the States! It's almost like honeydew, but it's much sweeter and has a fuller flavor. Today, I didn't go with my usual choice of the fruit of the day--mostly because I saw some other customers eating a delicious-looking chocolate cake. Of course, I had to have the chocolate cake, and it was glorious!
I also had some time to do a little sightseeing with some of the other Fulbrighters!
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