16 August 2026

It’s been a quieter couple of weeks.

But this week was exciting with the arrival of my friends Scott and Luke from Denver. I think I’ve known Scott for almost 20 years. He was among the first friends I made, right after moving to Denver in 2006. Scott met Luke about that time and they’ve been together ever since. They planned this trip almost a year ago, specifically to see the eclipse here in Spain on Wednesday this week.

They arrived in Spain almost two weeks ago, going to Madrid, Sitges and Barcelona before arriving here on Wednesday. I met them at the train station after my Spanish classes and we took the metro to my house.

We went to a neighborhood pizza restaurant for lunch. Later in the afternoon, we met a group from my school to see the eclipse from a boat on the Albufera lake.

Valencia is situated along the east coast of Spain. The eclipse happened at 8:30 p.m., minutes before sunset. So, we wanted a place with a long western-facing view, with no buildings or mountains in the way. The Albufera is a popular place to take a boat and watch the sunset every night. How cool to be able to see both the eclipse and the sunset from such a beautiful viewpoint.

We arrived in the small town of El Palmar with plenty of time to relax before climbing aboard. We stopped for a glass of horchata. Horchata here is made of Tiger Nuts… not too sweet, but light and refreshing, a perfect summer refreshment.

The boats on the Albufera (albuferenques) are flat bottomed boats, traditional powered by a long pole used to push the boat from the bottom of the shallow lake and canals. They’re designed to carry large loads of rice from the surrounding rice fields. Ours was nearly 100 years old! And it was equipped with a car engine to power it!

The eclipse actually started right after we got out on the water. We used our special eclipse sunglasses to see the details of the moon starting to pass in front of the sun.

The energy in the boat was alive with anticipation.

And watching the approaching sunset, while the sun was being eclipsed by the moon was electric.

But then, moments before total coverage, a small cloud appeared and covered the main event!

Suddenly, it got dark and while it was hard to photograph through the cloud, there was enough light that passed through, that we were able to see the “diamond ring” effect as totality started and then passed.

As totality passed and light returned, we enjoyed the continuing show on the horizon.

Notice the crescent sun! As the moon continued its path in front of the sun, you could watch the sunset and remaining eclipse with the naked eye.

While that was happening, I started chatting with the boat “Captain.” While he drives these tours for his own relaxation and enjoyment, his full time job is teaching oboe and playing professionally! We had fun talking about classical music education and my experience with classical radio, all in Spanish! I wasn’t able to follow all that he said. But I got a lot, including that his wife is a pianist and they have a young son and daughter.

Miguel then “drafted” me as his first mate and had me steer us home.

On Thursday, I met Scott and Luke after my classes and we enjoyed a relaxing afternoon on the beach. But unfortunately, the heat in the apartment was too much for the guys, so they decided to move to a hotel that night for the rest of their stay in Valencia. Air conditioning is a life necessity.

Before the night was done though, we enjoyed a drink at El Boba y El Gato and then dinner at Metropolis, an Irish Pub…because, why not?!

Then, on Friday, Scott and Luke met me at my school and they got the full Valencia tour experience!

We started at City Hall, before going to the Central Market for lunch.

Lunch was at Central Bar, literally a bar restaurant in the market, with all of the food designed by a Michelin star chef. It’s one of my favorite things to share with my guests because all of the food is amazing and the prices are reasonable.

After lunch, we went to the Lonja de Seda, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It was built in the early 1500’s as a center of commerce and business.

From there, we went to the cathedral and saw “The Holy Grail.”

Then we stopped for Agua de Valencia, a traditional Valencian cocktail of orange juice, cava, gin, and vodka.

Our penultimate stop was Torres de Serrano, one of the two remaining gates to the city, from the old walled city.

Our last stop was for horchata at Santa Catalina, a traditional horchateria.

The guys walked back to their hotel and I made my way home, grateful for time with good friends and the privilege of living in such an enchanting city.

May your week be filled with enchantment.