Valencia, Spain

Dates: 7/3/09-7/6/09

Transportation: To get to Valencia from Chicago you will take a one stop 13 hour 55 minute flight across the Atlantic. You will land in Valencia National Airport on July 3th at 12:45 P.M. Getting around Valencia should be easy since they have public transportation everywhere. Your estimated cost for that would be no more than $30.
* I have set up a flight package for your first four flights (Chicago-Valencia-Pamplona-Paris) for a cost of $3,933.

Geography: Valencia is located in the Eastern part of Spain. It is the biggest port on the Mediterranean's western coast. It is a very urban and busy city.

Climate: Summer in Valencia is generally warm and dry. July's temperature usually varies from 70 to 84 degrees Fahrenheit. Luckily, you aren't going to be visiting during storm season, so there should be mild weather.

Stay: You will be staying in Hotel Confortel Aqua 3, which is downtown across from Valencia's Center of Arts and Sciences. For three nights this will cost approximately 208 euro (282 dollars).

Activities: 1. For one activity, you will take a sailing or fishing trip off the coast of Valencia in the Meditteranean. You will have to take a bus to the Valencia Center of Aquatics, and it will cost you $50 for a two and a half hour trip. The supplies will be provided.
2. You will also be visiting La Pepica, one of Hemingway's favorite restaurants. It even includes some signature dishes that are named after Papa. This will cost between 10 to 20 dollars and is a 10 minute cab ride from the hotel.
3. Another place you will be going to see is the bar A Meson. This is where Hemingway met acclaimed bullfighter Vicente Barrera. It was also one of his favorite places to go in Spain. You can walk to it because of its proximity to the hotel.

Language: The language primarily spoken here is spanish. Some places you might hear valencian, but most likely it will be spanish.

Government: Spain is a Parlimentary Democracy. This just means that there is a king, but it is truly democratic, so the people run the country.

Currency: The euro is the offical currency of Spain.
1 Euro= 1.35 U.S. Dollars

Time Difference: Valencia is seven hours ahead of Oak Park in July. (+7)