Not many people know that the symbol of Valencia is the bat. According to legend, it was this animal that saved the life of King Jaime I of Aragon - during a battle with the Muslims, an arrow fired at the monarch hit a bat that had been flying around him the whole time.
There is another version: they say that the bat landed on King Jaime's helmet, warning him of the danger. In any case, the townspeople still honor this toothy, hand-winged animal - that's why we suggest that we dedicate our walking tour of Valencia to finding the legendary Valencian bat!
Let's start our Valencia itinerary at Corrida Square and take a look at the Art Nouveau building of the North Station. Its brightly colored facades are mosaic-like, with fiery bundles of Valencia mandarins, sultry Spanish women in traditional costumes, and even red 5-pointed stars.
The next stop on the Valencia tourist itinerary is the City Hall (check out the stone bat lurking on the facade) and the impressive General Post Office with its lion-headed mailboxes.
We continue our walk around Valencia at the Central City Market - by the way, it's the biggest market in Europe (it's open until 2pm, Sunday is a day off). The seafood selection is particularly impressive - there's everything here, including live eels and cuttlefish.
After admiring it, we move on to the silk exchange, find the narrowest house in Europe and go to the Tower of St. Catalina. We recommend to finish the walk at the Basilica of the Blessed Virgin Protector of the Destitute, one of the most important places for Valencians on the map of the city.
The image of Our Lady Protector of the Deprived dates back to the 15th century, when the Valencian authorities founded a psychiatric hospital and a brotherhood to help the insane, orphans and other destitute (there were many of them, as the city had just survived a plague epidemic).
Since then, Maria has been considered the patron saint of all Valencians, and the townspeople have even given her an affectionate nickname, Geperudeta, which translates as "humpbacked".
Where did this strange name come from? It turns out that the statue of Our Lady used to be used in a horizontal position - for example, it was placed on the coffins of the dead to escort them to the place of burial. Now, however, when the statue is made upright, its head tilts slightly forward - hence Heperudeta.
