The National Art Honor Society

The Ocean County YAM celebration was held today at the Jackson County Library in Jackson, NJ from noon to one. Ninety three pieces of art from over fifteen schools were on display in one of the library’s special art galleries.The art can also be seen online at: www.artsonia.com/schools/school.asp id 110103 Students, teachers and families attended the festivities put together by Ocean County YAM Chairs, Holly Callahan and Karen Blenner. Everyone walked around and admired the artwork and congratulate each other. The National Art Honor Society from Jackson High School was also on hand to volunteer their time painting the children’s faces. A proclamation by Senator Lautenberg was also on display next to AENJ’s YAM Sponsor Donation form and a Jug …. Which already had a few dollars in it! Color copies of Ocean County’s State YAM selections were also on display. These students were honored with personalized YAM Totebags 2009 as a special gift. YAM It was a wonderful afternoon! Ocean County Great job!

.

Valencian Community

Requena is one of the municipalities with greater extension of Spain, the most extensive in the Valencian Community, and is situated in the upper basin of the River Magro. Requena offers us the rural face of the Kingdom of Valencia. In fact, a good part of the supply of rural houses in Valencia can be found in this municipality. Culturally speaking Requena is a simple, but rich in history people. Its name comes from the Arabic Rakkana, meaning the strong. In fact, the fortified town established from 1201 division between the kingdoms of Toledo and Valencia, making it a border city that would suffer in the late Middle Ages the conflicts between Castilians and Aragonese.

Finally in June 1851, Requena and a good part of his County were added to the province of Valencia. Vestiges of the past that deserve the attention of the visitor are: El Barrio de la Villa: is the oldest neighborhood in the city that hosted the first populations and served as a medieval enclosure. The streets full of legends and its caves beneath our feet us back to past times. The neighborhood of las Penas: on we find the Church of San Sebastian, a single sample of mudejar art. The neighbourhood of Arrabal: del Carmen church stands out in this neighborhood. Essential to admire the plinth of Valencian tilework at this former convent of the Carmelites.

Will anyway, if what you are looking for is cultural tourism, in Requena do not get bored: its hamlets offer wide variety of attractions for visitors: the Wine Museum, the Ferris wheel of houses of the River Yes, Yes, but where we eat? Wherever you want. You go where you go, you will enjoy delicious cold meats, wines and cavas. Dishes we recommend killing rice, potatoes in broth, the cachuli, buns of meager and sardines, the morteruelo or the ajoarriero. The most famous sweets of the area and a great experience for the palate – are the blessed bread, the turroncillo and chichorritas cakes. Festivals in the area an opportunity to learn about Gites de Valencia are the celebrations of Requena. They are held the last week of August and become one real parade of colors with the parade, the offering of flowers, the wine night all the people to celebrate the harvest festival, declared already for decades of international tourist interest. Carnivals are also held big by the residents of this municipality: floats, parades, the burial of the sardine or the proclamation of the King strains are different acts that are performed during this festival. With other dyes is celebrated Holy week Requena, famous for his austerity and sober character. Nature deserves special mention the Parque Natural of the Hoces del Cabriel, a space located between Castile – La Mancha and Valencia, unique geological features. This park offers visitors precious landscapes sculpted around the River Cabriel, with fauna and flora of the region. For all these reasons, and for his own, Requena’s town well worth a visit. However, we cannot fail aside an inseparable part of this municipality that is guilty of attracting tourists in recent years: wine tourism. There are several routes of wine tourism of the denomination of origin of utiel, in which we can visit wineries, enjoy tastings led by specialists, all this in addition to traverse the above-mentioned natural and cultural environment and be able to enjoy the gastronomy of the area. Routes to the wineries that produces Cava, a different experience in accordance with the tastes of visitors are also famous.