Things not to do around Valencia

Some websites offer useful advice about things to do in and around Valencia. So at Rawlins & Holden we thought we would take the opportunity to mention a few things that shouldn’t be done in and around Valencia.

 Don't :

• Visit museums or galleries or theatres on Monday or public holidays. They are invariably shut.

• Gently pull out into the middle of the road while awaiting a gap in the traffic. Spanish drivers will not understand this manoeuvre ­ and if you attempt this you will probably be rewarded with a free vocabulary lesson.

• Say hello in English. Very few shopkeepers and sales assistants around Valencia speak English. However, everyone will be as helpful as possible – especially if you make an attempt at Spanish by saying, for example, ‘hola’  or ‘buenos dias’.

• Try to pay with a cheque. Cheques are viewed with great suspicion and most Spaniards write few, if any, cheques. Travellers cheques are also rarely accepted. Try cash, credit cards, or direct transfer.

• Form a physical queue where none exists. You may have to wait to be served, in say, a bakery or government office, and the best way to take your turn is to say in a loud voice – ‘El ultimo?’ Somebody in the waiting crowd will then say ‘Yo’. You then simply keep a beady eye on him, or her, and move to the counter immediately after they finish. If you try and form your own neat and tidy queue then you will probably be there all day. Of course, if there already is a queue when you arrive then join it.

• Ask a government or utility worker to make a photocopy for you. Government offices never offer to make photocopies for the general public. Always arrive armed with photocopies of every document you are carrying.

• Go shopping or sight-seeing in the early afternoon. Many British and European tourists can be seeing wandering around Valencian towns and cities in the early afternoon. They usually look a little vacant and bored. Everything is, of course, closed. After lunch you should stay at home, or in the hotel, until about 5pm. Only then will the urban streets begin to come alive.

• Try to order lunch before 1.00 pm. Restaurants usually begin to take orders for lunch from around 1.30 pm - at the earliest. However, if you want to be sure of a good table then be sure to get seated before 2.15. Valencians eat punctually.

• To see a selection of panoramic images of Valencia and Lliria click here.

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For more information on Valencia and our range of property go to:

www.rawlinsholden.com or in Spanish at www.rhinmobiliaria.com

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For more news and views on Valencia property visit:

http://valenciapropertymen.blogs.com

Web www.rawlinsholden.com www.valenciapropertymen.blogs.com