Hello!
Welcome to our fifth newsletter - Fallas may be over but there is so much coming up in Valencia. Not least, the America's Cup, which all begins on the 3rd of April with the 13th (unlucky for some!) Louis Vuitton Regattas.

Valencia is about to celebrate the America's Cup in an epic way, closing the centre of the city to traffic this coming Saturday and giving over the streets to no less than 30 spectaculars - more on this on the following pages.

This Thursday, the 3rd International Tourism Fair takes place at The Feria de Valencia - it's a trade show, but is open to the public from the 30th.
Great place to collect loads of bumph on places all around the community and the country.

Mike Oldfield and a host of other guests including members of the band Tears for Fears are on at the Velodrome this Friday in A Night at the Proms, a mix of classical and rock music. The Velodrome is next to the Feria de Valencia.

Semana Santa is nearly upon us. If you haven't ever been to the parades in Cabanyal, it is worth the trip to the village by the port to watch these sombre marches - more on the following pages.

Fancy a career in cocktails? Now's your chance! There is a great cocktail making course in Valencia, starting 12 April - more on the following pages...

Finally, if, like us, you love the Mascletàs of Fallas and missed any, or just can't live without them, we have them all on thisisvalencia.com. if you want to see them click here

To Celebrate the Start of The America's Cup...
Valencia is holding a White Night, They have called theirs Nit en Vela, and it will take place in the city centre from 8pm on Saturday evening until 3am in the early hours of Sunday mornting.

What is a White Night? I hear you ask.

Well, cities like Paris, Rome, Madrid and Barcelona have all held them in the past couple of years. A night in the city when galleries and museums open and there are performances and events in the streets. Valencia is planning no less than 30 spectaculars on the night and are closing the streets around the Centro Historico to traffic , they have organised two seperate routes which interconnect so that visitors can easily get from one performance to another..(We have delayed putting this newsletter out, waiting for the organisers to publish the map- no sign yet so check the blog and thisisvalencia.com before the event, for, hopefully a map!)

There is dance, theatre, aerobatics, music, brass bands, a procession, projections, mural painting and oh yes, fireworks! And it's all free. The organisers are expecting around a million people to attend.

The routes are around the river park, Rio Turia. through to the Plaza de la Virgen and the Plaza de la Reina and Ayuntamiento and also round the Grandes Vias.

There will be special buses running around and between the routes for the duration of the eight hours.

So, what's in store?
Read on....

Los Kings Nomadas
Following a parade through the City of volunteer performers the French company Compromises Express, will perform 'Los Kings Nómadas¡ on 30metre high structure in the riverbed between the Calatrava Bridge and the Flower Bridge. It is described as an aerial spectacular - photo on the opening page, all sounds a little like a Cirque du Soleil show -very sensational.
Viewing from the Alameda and the City side of the riverbed from 23.00hrs.
Heliosphere and Diamond
The Paradox Company will perform the Aerial Ballets, 'Heliosphere' and 'Diamond' in especially erected clear plastic structures in La Plaza de la Reina. Three performances during the night, so everyone should be able to catch it, 21.00, 22,00 and 23.00 hrs.
Bailando Luz
Les Passagers present, in the Plaza Ayuntamiento, 'Bailando Luz' a dance with light, during which a giant mural based on a Sorolla painting will be painted. 22.30hrs to 02.00hrs
'La Nature de la Luz'
New York company Luma offer, in the Botanical Garden 'La Nature de la Luz', theatre of light, with lighted objects and projections.
Laconic
There is a spectacle of Chinese Shadow dancing called Laconic in the Beneficència Museum.
Possessed and Mecan Dede
In The Plaza de la Virgen there is 'Possessed' and 'Mecan Dede', a fusion of electronic music and dance. 21,00 to 03.00hrs.
Banda a Pop
Brass bands from the community will play Pop Music in the Alameda from 0030-01.30hrs.
Correfocs
A spectacular of Fireworks and demons, not for small children and spectators are asked to wear head protection and cotton or natural fibre clothing!! Dance, music and fire - you can all join in if you are brave enough!

Museums
The following museums will stay open especially for the night and will be offering guided tours to visitors - The Historical Museum of the City, the Institut Valencia dArt Modern (IVAM), the Museum of Ceramics Gonzalez Martí, the Palau of the Generalitat, the Market, the Cathedral, the Almudín, the Museu Valencia of Il.lustracio i the Modernitat (Muvim), and the Patio of Vich the Ambassador in the Museum San Pío V.
Readings and performances
There are readings and lectures all over town as well. One is the reading of Tirant lo Blanch (the white Knight) these will take place in various libraries and La Lonja.

The weather forecast is good for the weekend and this is a once-in-lifetime event - not to be missed!
So get down to Valencia on Saturday!

VINO 1
In the riverbed just by the Alameda from today until the 01 April you can sample wines and foods of the region. It is usually around 5 or 6 euros to get in, which gives you a sampler sheet of tickets, and a Glass and an earthenware plate, to carry your samples. All great fun!

VINO 2
Vinoelite is a new trade fair which will 'bring together the greatest wineries in the world -wine producers fully committed with the highest levels of quality, respect for the land, and care for the environment, and a dissemination of wine culture and the creation of unique special wines, able to move us and to tell their own stories.' There will also be an area devoted to fine distillers. Open to trade and public at the Feria de Valencia from the 18-20 April tickets available from
http://vinoelite.feriavalencia.com

COCKTAILS
Everybody loves a drink, but can you mix a perfect Cocktail? Well now you can learn, from the 12th April in Bamboo, the ultra-cool restarant in the basement of the Mercado de Colon, the art of the cocktail - it's a pretty intensive course, but, as you will see if you read Lolita Devine's article here, a lot of fun. AND you get to drink the fruits of your labour.

Semana Santa - Holy Week
Semana Santa celebrates Easter and the best place to experience the solemn processions of Semana Santa in Valencia is in the old 'village' by the Port of Valencia, Cabanyal. Here it is known as the Semana Santa Marinera.

Semana Santa celebrates Easter. It is a solemn and very moving series of Processions, with slow marching music and the majority of the people taking part dressed in the long robes and hooded pointed headresses of the penitents.

There are 28 'brotherhoods' all with their own uniform - some are military style but most are the style shown to the right.

It's not all solemn though, as throughout the two weeks Cabanyal has a festive atmosphere. Well worth a visit. The most important events take place on Holy Thursday and Friday, as well as on Saturday with the trenca de perols and the procession on Easter Sunday. These are all good days to try local cuisine as well, especially paella made with cod and cabbage, marinades of all sorts, and Titaina, a stew made from garbanzos (chick peas), white beans and spinach.

FOR ALL YOU ROCKERS OUT THERE
The Rolling Stones Tour hits Spain in June, but the closest they get to Valencia is below:
Thu 21 JUN Barcelona, SPA Olympic Stadium 
Sat 23 JUN San Sebastian, SPA Estadio de Anoeta 
Thu 28 JUN Madrid, SPA Estadio Vicente Calderon 
Sat 30 JUN Almeria, SPA Estadio Santo Domingo
FOR ALL YOU FOLK ROCKERS
Jethro Tull, on the other hand, are coming slightly closer, you'll have to get up to Castellon to see them.
18 MAY Castellon, Spain -19 MAY Almeria, Spain
24 MAY Granada, Spain - 25 MAY Madrid, Spain
all Spanish dates sold via www.ticktackticket.com
GRAND PRIX VALENCIA
The Valencia Grand Prix Circuit, around the north of the Port to the City of Arts and Sciences, became more of a reality yesterday when the Generalitat published the authorisation in the Valencian Official Bulletin for the Conselleria for Infrastructure to undertake the studies necessary for the creation of the circuit. This follows on from the discussions that have been taking place between Bernie Ecclestone and the Valencian Community's President, Francisco Camps. An agreement between the two is expected to be signed in the coming weeks.

NEWS
If you have something you want to share with the whole world, email it to us here. If you have suggestions for future issues or the main website - email us here
ADVERTISE WITH US
Want to spread the word about your product or service - advertise on this newsletter and/thisisvalencia.com - excellent rates - email for more information here
BLOG
Have you seen the blog recently? It's full of little snippets and interesting facts and photographs - well worth a look.

Sailing
The America's Cup starts 03 April with the final, 13th act of the Louis Vuitton Regattas. The first week, for four days only, will be the only chance you will get to see all 11 challengers race against the current Cup holder, Alinghi. After this, Alinghi will be on its own perfecting its performance against whoever the winning challenger is for the America's Cup from the 23 June.

After that, from the 16th April are the round robins - knockout races where only four boats will go through to the next round robin and so on.

More at thisisvalencia.com

Valencia Tennis Open
Starts on the 07 April (until the 15th) at the Valencia Tennis ClubTickets are reasonably priced and you can even get a season ticket (bono) for the Category One matches for only 150 euros.
Club de Tenis de Valencia
C/ Botanico Cavanilles 7
46010 Valencia
Spain
Tel: +34 96 3690658
Fax: +34 96 3695170

Superbike World Championships
First World Championship this season from the 13-15April and featuring riders such as Troy Bayliss, (who dominated last season), James  Toseland, Troy Corser, Max Biaggi, Fonsi Nieto and Rubén Xaus. At Valencia's Ricardo Tormo Circuit, just off the A3 at Cheste.

WHAT'S ON AT THE CINEMA IN ENGLISH THESE NEXT TWO WEEKS ?

There's still a great selection of films in English this week, at Babel, Albatros and Cine Cite.

The Painted Veil, based on the classic novel by W. Somerset Maugham, looks wonderful - Set in China in the 1920's. Starring Naomi Watts and Edward Norton.

Tara Road, starring thisisvalencia.com favourite, Andie McDowell, is on here before the rest of the world! Based on a novel By Maeve Binchy with a great cast.

El Ultimo Show, (A Prairie Home Companion) with a host of stars including Woody Harrelson, Tommy Lee Jones, Kevin Kline and Meryl Streep, sounds a riot.

Diario de un Escandalo (Notes on a Scandal), based on the bestseller, stars Cate Blanchett and Judi Dench, and is highly recommended.

Peter O'Toole's Oscar-nominated performance in Venus, an odd film about an old man falling in love with a young girl, with a great performance from Leslie Phillips as well.

Shortbus, the rude film to ever go on general release, by that you know it's all about sex, is still showing ...

Then there is Bobby, Little Miss Sunshine(very funny) and Scoop, Woody Allen's latest - There's always a Woody Allen on in Spain, they just love him.

More and links to the cinemas timetables here

VOTE FOR US
If you like thisisvalencia.com and find it useful, click this link and vote for us at the Internet Users of Spain website.
If the link above doesn't work copy and paste the following link into your browser
http://premios.aui.es/index.php?body=prem_v1cat&id_rubrique=189
Thanks very much!!!

And now, without further ado, the Newsletter, we do hope you enjoy it - if you do, tell your friends or better still, sign them up to the mailing list here. (signup@thisisvalencia.com)

If you came here by clicking from thisisvalencia.com and like this newsletter enough to want to receive it regularly click here (signup1@thisisvalencia.com)to sign up

Don't be afraid to email us (newsletter@thisisvalencia.com) and give us your thoughts on anything you read and anything you think we, and therefore others, should know about.
www.thisisvalencia.com
www.thisisvalencia.blogspot.com

Valencia - it's all here this issue of thisisvalencia Newsletter Number 5.

thisisvalencia.com
everything you need to know about valencia -bars - restaurants- sightseeing -museums and galleries -
city of arts and sciences -america's cup