Top Valencia Attractions

The Machistre

The Machistre or the El Machistre, this is located in the Alboraya, Valencia. This is a traditional farmhouse in Valencia that has been made a farmhouse museum.  This has been the icon of the traditional farmhouse in Valencia. The farm house has been here for many centuries and recently it has opened its doors to the public. This building is of eleventh century building and is four hundred years old and it is on an 18,000 square meters of garden. There have been architectural structures of Arab origin like the towers. You will also find the kitchen, the classrooms and the chapel of hundred years old. This has been an important historical and cultural site for the Valencians, they have opened its doors to the public in order to share the historical and cultural heritage of this place.

This is where the traditional drink in Valencia can be found, this also houses the Museum of Horchata de Chufa. This is where you can find the famous traditional drink, the horchata de chufa of Valencia, this is also called the drink of gods; this was brought by the Arabs or the Moors when they came to Andalusia Spain. This is a famous refreshment in Spain and it is eaten with a farton, this is a like donut pastry that should be dipped in the horchata when eating. They also have horchata in Mexico but they don’t have the same ingredients. The Mexicans’ horchata are made of rice while the horchata of Valencia is made of Chufa which is a nut that is from Africa although you can use almonds as a substitute of the chufa nut. A legend would say that the King James I discovered the said drink. It was said that when the King James I came to Alboraya Valencia, a girl offered him a milk-like color of a drink, he asked if what it was. The girl said it’s milk but the King said, ‘it’s not milk, its gold.’  The Machistre became known for this famous drink that you actually taste when you get to visit this place. This is also where the chufa nut has been marketed and cultivated for over centuries and traditional methods of farming are still being practiced here.

The Machistre is now a museum. This place has been an important place for the Valencians. There have been cultural activities that were held here and being held and also other agricultural and social activities. There are also other activities being held here such as conventions, meetings and so on.  This is one of the best ways where you can learn of the culture of the Valencians, culture that is four hundred years old and experience it also in a setting of four hundred years old, Machistre and garden and on how the locals give importance to its culture. There are fees when you want to get to take a tour but the fees vary every season. The fees go to the preservation of the museum and the implementation of the services that they have.

There are guided tours that they offer here. You just have to book earlier for that. They will also give you a DVD that will explain the history and the development of the famous drink horchata. This is open from Wednesdays to Sundays only from four in the afternoon to eight in the evening but you have to book it in advance like two to three days before you go there. During autumn and winter be sure to check on their schedules. They have a small shop here where you can buy its locally produce and traditional products.