Valencia: Books and Bookshops

Keltin and I love finding bookshops when we travel and we actually found a decent number of used bookshops in Valencia. Only one issue – I don’t know enough Spanish to read it. This presented an issue when it came to my love of finding regional literature. That being said, I did find something wonderful but it took some time.

I didn’t get a chance to explore this pocket sized bookstore below, we saw it on the way to the archaeological museum with the Roman ruins. That being said, it was a neat find. After the museum, while exploring the city, we did wonder through a larger used bookshop but a need for lunch didn’t allow us to linger too long.

In my tapas post I mentioned the Ubik Cafe, which is this wonderful combination of bar and used bookstore. I didn’t find a book at this shop even though they did have some in English, the selection was small and they weren’t texts that I was interested in. That being said, having a drink in a bookshop is a great vibe.

Get drunk on literature because your hangover will be culture.

– Libreria El Imperio, translation

Our last night in Valencia we made time to find one more bookshop before heading out to dinner. Funny enough this shop was right around the corner from our hotel in Ruzafa. They didn’t have a large English selection but look at the artwork on these book covers! I fell in love with all of them the moment I laid eyes on them any knew I had to take some home even if I would have to translate them. The illustrations on the insides of these books are just as beautiful as the covers. Here is a brief synopsis of the two books.

Hijo de Dragones: The story of a young boy who goes on a journey to earn a place among the dragons.
Las Brujas: This is a collect about different witches from different places throughout the world from Circe to Baba Yaga among others.

Funny story, we typically only travel with carry-on luggage (yay for laundry services) and these books are large. They aren’t thick but they are long. On the way home we flew into Detroit and after going through customs had to go back through security to catch our flight. My bag got flagged to be searched because they thought I had a laptop that I hadn’t removed. Nope, just very large books. So just be aware of what you fly home with and how it might look on an x-ray machine. No, they didn’t keep the books and I’m pretty sure the TSA guys were laughing about it.

I am super happy with these book finds. They aren’t what I typically go for when traveling and looking for my version of regional literature but honestly I’m happy with the change. Honestly, they were way too pretty to not bring home. Besides, they are in the language of the country we visited so I think it counts. What type of things do you look forward to bringing home from vacation? Let me know in the comments! Leave no trace and safe travels.

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