Every April, Valencia holds an amazing kite festival on the Malvarosa beach. In the past, these days herald the beginning of spring with sunny weather and plenty of breezy opportunities to fly kites and get the family outside. This year, however, Mother Nature had some significantly different plans. It was cold. It was rainy. It was windy at times and not windy at others. You might think that the wind festival might even be cancelled. Think again, gentle readers, think again.
The kites were here. All sizes and shapes, a cacophony of colors and motion, the kites fluttered in the wind over the beach. An enormous red octopus was one of the first big kites to take to the air, but the sky was peppered with smaller kites of all shapes and sizes. There was an assortment of sharks, fish, dragons, manta rays, airplanes, and even an enormous orange teddy bear.
One of the more visually entrancing highlights was a free-spinning circle kite that was mesmerizing to watch as it spun around and around. There were so many beautiful kites to see, though, and the spectacle was truly amazing despite the sub-par weather. I was only a little surprised to see a fallera walking in the crowd, although I didn’t see any fallera-shaped kites!
Maybe next year.
The mascot of Valencia… the bat.
Very cool…and that cold snap didn’t last long. I read that it was over 100 today there!
It’s true… it was hotter than the devil’s underpants today. 108 was the highest that I saw! Yikes! Hopefully, the weather goes back to normal tomorrow…
There is such a sense of creativity and playfulness there! Your stories of these events are such a delight!
It was really a lot of fun! I got a chance to meet up with some folks and we really had a blast, regardless of the weather. I hope all is well with you!