It's my Birthday!

What a difference a year makes! Last year I was in familiar territory, surrounded by friends, overjoyed by the many wonderful, lavish gifts that had been bestowed on me.
And this year? No parties, no birthday cards, no boxes to open (well, I had been given my presents earlier, before we left for this trip!) and yet, I am in a place I love the most with my best friend in the world-mom. And I couldn't be happier, despite the little "bumps" on the road.

Ever since having booked the suspiciously cheap car online, I had been wary of the day we'd have to go and pick it up... And, having landed in Valencia past midnight last night, we had to reschedule the pick up for this morning, which meant early wake up and no shower, make up, or breakfast time. Of course, things didn't go all too smoothly with either picking up a rental car at the airport, or me trying to save money on taxis and taking the subway, which ended up costing at least half the fare. So, after a near mental breakdown as I was being convinced that Spain simply does not have automatic transmission cars, a miracle happened! Turns out my beloved agency SIXT recently opened a new outlet near, but not inside the airport terminal, thus not many people even heard of it. And what do you know, they had the best little automatic Hyundai I10 for us, for a very decent price. With that , following the well-known "to the beach!" motto, we drove straight on until the sea was within reach. At this point I was emotionally exhausted,  unshowered and hungry. It only took a short stroll by the beachside restaurants for us to, unanimously, pick the best one, with the whole 3-course meal and wine! There, I had finally begun relaxing and believing that indeed, this is my birthday and I am in the best place in the world for that. Later, we managed to effortlessly navigate ourselves to the little wonder I'd been dreaming about seeing: "the City of Arts and Sciences"- I mean, could it be any more perfect for me, considering my interests? Rhetorical question.

I cannot express the stunning beauty of the park's architecture and just how thoughtful every detail is. The pictures don't even do it justice. Unfortunately, we came too late to see anything inside, but I was quite content just to walk around and  take all of that in. Here's a glimpse of it: