Rocking out in Requena

In less than 2 hours from Albany, you can drive to a lovely, picturesque town called Chester. You can leave the overbearing, Gotham-like skyline for a refreshing Vermont landscape with windy roads through magical mountains. This time of year, that part of Vermont looks like a snowy scene on a Christmas card. Houses were far apart, stone cottages were blanketed in fluffy snow, and there was a comforting aroma of a wood burning stove.

I didn't take any pictures. (I only saw the landscape from the car and I was in a bar the rest of the time because it was cold outside.)

Fortunately, I took pictures when I went to Requena, a small town outside of Valencia's city. I already thought Valencia was cool for having century-old watchtowers and churches. When they told me that there's a castle in the middle of Requena, I was speechless. Don't try and convince me otherwise--living next to a castle and on its ruins is pretty amazing, even if there are possible ghosts involved.

Welcome to Requena, where everything is within stepping distance.

From Valencia, it took about an hour and half to get to Requena on train. Leaving the city, we passed orange groves, vineyards, and views like this. It's times like this where I wish I were a photographer and I knew how to get a print of what my eyeballs see.

Just like a royal red carpet, this street connected us from the train station to the castle and the rest of the town. (Javi's photo)

At the end of that giant street, we were greeted with the fountain of ducks. They explained to me that this fountain is a very stupid tourist attraction. I concur. (Note: This photo was stolen off someone's website. This guy's website says that you don't need to travel to the other side of the world to discover things because their own country is awesome. Go figure.)

Weaving through the tiny, narrow streets was like getting lost in a corn maize. These homes were actually part of the castle and where knights used to live. Now, they are ghost-factories-turned-residences.

This is one of the churches near the castle. (Javi's photo)

Every church had an intricately carved facade. During their civil war, angry republicans chopped off some of the statue heads. I don't understand why people do this when they're angry. Angry people also cut off the heads of Buddha statues in Ayutthaya, Thailand.

Some Americans have impenetrable shelters for bioterrorism attacks or Y2K. In Requena, some people dug enormous holes/caves under their homes for various reasons. These caves, located under the main plaza, are centuries old and were used as wine cellars and silos throughout different civilizations. (Javi's photo)

People from Requena take their wine seriously (because they're Spanish). This mural is a couple in traditional clothing standing in front of a bull plaza/stadium. Note the man's smug smile and perfect hairstyle. (Javi's photo)

This monument, like the mural above, represents the importance of Vendimia in Requena. I found the sculpture particularly interesting because it had a USSR style and feeling. (Javi's photo)

Just like going to Vermont, you don't need to travel too far to find an exotic adventure. Where I'm from, we joke that we can get from Israel to Haiti in a 15 minute drive. This is 98% true. And yes, Vermont is an exotic place.