Valencia
Valencia (or València) has nearly 2.517 million people in its metropolitan area,1 and over 809 thousand in the city proper.2 It is located near the center of the east coast, behind a bay with its name, and a few miles up the Turia River, in its eponymous province and autonomous community. It is best known for being one of the settings for the Medieval romance, the Poem of the Cid, which is interpreted to commemorate a successful Christian holy war against the city's Moslem rulers, although the original story was more nuanced. An ensemble of buildings called la Lonja de la Seda de Valencia, originally a silk market, constitute a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The main building is the Sala de Contratación, which is ornately decorated inside and out. The rest consists of a tower that includes a chapel, the Consulado and a garden.3
The tallest building is the Hilton València (384 feet, 2006), although a taller observation tower and a set of even taller mixed use skyscrapers are planned.4
External references
Interior of the Sala de Contratación, la Lonja de la Seda de Valencia, Valencia (València) Valencia Province, Velenciana Autonomous Community, España (Spain)
Historical maps
Footnotes
1. Eurostat Larger urban zone (2014) column of https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_metropolitan_areas_in_Europe, accessed December 28, 2015.
2. 2010 figure from the side bar of https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valencia, accessed April 22, 2016.
3. UNESCO, World Heritage Sites (Firefly Books, 2010).
4. Emporis.com, accessed April 22, 2016.
