Alicante Timelapse

I would really like to share with you a time-lapse video for Alicante Turismo done by the very talented photographer Javier Guijarro.  Below, I will tell you about the places featured.



Video turismo Alicante Timelapse from Javier Guijarro on Vimeo.

-Firstly, Javier shows us a sunrise starting over the Cabo de la Huerta and then the swimming pool of one of the hotels in the port area with stunning views of the Mediterranean Sea.

-The high-speed train service called the AVE (Alta Velocidad) now arrives at Alicante from the capital Madrid and the station has been enlarged to accommodate it.

-Alicante receives many visitors from the cruise ships on the Mediterranean Sea who arrive at its special dock and ferry terminal.

-The new airport terminal on the outskirts of Alicante (about 15 minutes from the centre of the city by car) was completed a couple of years ago and is a light and airy glass structure, pleasant to arrive to and depart from.

-The part-underground, part-overground tram service connects the very centre of Alicante from the stations Luceros and Mercado with many neighbourhoods in Alicante and beyond like the University town of San Vicente del Raspeig, running along the huge Playa de San Juan and further afar like El Campello.  The connections go through Benidorm and all the way up to Denia.

-The port area is a great place to stroll along and the new development now holds the Volvo Ocean Race, its offices and its own museum.  The space also regularly holds concerts and markets.

-The beach in Alicante is called the Playa de Postiguet.  It has a nice promenade with cafes along it open all year round.  It's very close to the centre, meaning it's a popular beach in the summer or whenever the sun shines!

-The beach of San Juan is 7km of uninterrupted sunbathing space with chiringuitos (small beach bars) set up on the sand in the summer, restaurants and bars on the promenade, beach volleyball courts all year round and fantastic views always.

-The famous wavy 3-coloured marble esplanade next to the port is always a pleasant stroll, whatever time of year lined with cafeterias, restaurants and market stalls.

-Next we see Javier taking a boat trip to the small island of Tabarca a few kilometres off the coast of Alicante.  The waters around are a natural marine reserve and you can go snorkeling or diving to appreciate the sea life or go for a day trip to bathe in the rocky waters.  Lots of people go to sample a local paella made from locally-caught fresh sea fish.

-The castle in Alicante, Castillo de Santa Bárbara, is the most dominant feature of Alicante sitting on top of the huge hill next to the sea.  The views from up there are stunning.

-The town hall (ayuntamiento) building is a beautiful baroque palace which was started in 1699 and finished some 80 years later.  The bicycle that the woman is riding in the images is one that you can rent from the special roadside bicycle stands with the system Alabici.

-The auditorium is a relatively new building that holds regular events, concerts, plays and is situated right next to the bullring.

-The 5-star hotel Amerigo is featured, which is just along from the town hall, and another local hotel's accommodation.

-Local wines and paellas demonstrate the wonderful local gastronomy, but there is a lot more to try.

-The area is excellent for cycling with many bicycle lanes through the city and special routes beyond.  Outdoor sports in general are possible all year round with this climate and sports in general are very popular, especially water sports, beach volleyball, golf, tennis, football... well just about everything!

-The fiestas are great here, especially the Hogueras de San Juan that I wrote many posts on last year.  The flower offering during this fiesta is shown in the plaza in front of the Cathedral... and my friend's bar and restaurant Piazza is on the right hand side.

-The theatre is shown which is near the Rambla, and then the contemporary art museum which is near the beautiful Basílica de Santa María.  The archaeological museum is shown outside and in which has a very interesting permanent exhibition of artifacts and descriptions of Alicante through the ages.  It won and award for the best European museum a few years back and is well worth a visit.  There are also temporary exhibitions of a variety of subjects.

-The year-round outdoor lifestyle of Alicante is second to none with the possibility of eating and drinking outside day or night.

-The huge pirate ship (I call it a pirate ship but its not really) is a museum and cafe and is permanently (for the moment anyway) in the port.  It's great to look at and fun to be on.

-The video closes with some views of Alicante from some of the few tall buildings in Alicante.  (There are not many thank goodness and the ones that were constructed are from the 1960s or 1970s).

I hope that you enjoyed the video.  It's a good summary of what Alicante has to offer... but I do hope that you still keep reading the blog for my personal insight into this enjoyable city.  See you soon!

The Kings are coming!!!

As mentioned in my previous posts, the Christmas festive period goes on for a little longer in Spain than in the UK.  The Twelfth Night (or Day), or the Epiphany (6th January), is usually a family celebration here.

Actually the eve of the Epiphany is when most of the action happens.  There is a procession early evening through the streets of towns and cities with the Three Kings arriving in many different ways to greet the children and hand out sweets or gifts.  Some come on horseback, on foot, on camels or, as I write from the village in Granada where I am right now, on a tractor!  This is called the Cabalgata de los Reyes.  It's a magical event for children and they write letters to the Kings with a list of gifts they would like to receive, just like the letters to Father Christmas.

Usually a family dinner is enjoyed this evening and then when the children go to bed they leave shoes at the foot of the bed, or a stocking hanging from the chimney if they have one...  so that the Kings can fill them with presents when they visit each house.

Roscón de Reyes

The traditional roscón de Reyes is enjoyed together with the family of the 5th or 6th of January.  This 'Kings cake' is a brioche-like sweet dough made into a large ring shape with candied fruit on the top.  It is baked traditionally with a small porcelain figure somewhere inside and a dried bean.  When cut, whoever finds the figure in their piece is crowned king with the paper crown that is usually included with the roscón.  The person who finds the bean has to pay for the cake!

Roscón de Reyes, image courtesy of springhotelsmagazine.com

Quite often nowadays,  the cake is baked and then cut in half horizontally and then the 'prizes' are put inside, and filled with squirty cream.

Roscón de Reyes, image courtesy of  rgarciaandsons.com

This year I wasn't crowned king for the evening, nor did I have to pay for the cake, but I did get to enjoy my piece of cake!

In between New Year and the Epiphany

I know that some of you in the UK have already taken down your Christmas decorations at home and are probably in 'January Sales' mode but here in Spain the Christmas period continues until the 6th of January.  This is the date of the Epiphany, or the twelfth day after Christmas day.  This Christian feast day celebrates God the Son as a human being in Jesus Christ and The Three Wise Men, or the Three Kings (whichever you prefer), visit him.

This is all a part of the Christian festivities, but in the UK it seems that everything Christmassy has to be taken down and forgotten until next year.  In my opinion, it's a real shame how Christmas in the UK is now a one day huge commercial event and the Christmas traditions are almost totally lost.  I was quite angry the other day when I was watching a popular chat show on BBC 1 and no one knew what Boxing Day traditionally was.

It's quite embarrassing for me when I see Spanish people asking British people about what certain festivities are for and they don't know - myself included in some things.  It's unfortunate that our culture is to just take advantage of the day off work for various festivities and not think about what it's really for.  And I'm sure there's lots of people out there who don't even know what the word 'holiday' means and where it comes from!

The educated Spanish still have some kind of religious education at school and at home, and uphold traditions practised by the older generations, but I do see an influence of the 'commercial Christmas' creeping in.  

I was watching A Great British Christmas with Sarah Beeny on 4oD the other evening and it was interesting to see how some of our traditions came about and have evolved over time.  Some things have been around from pagan traditions, like hanging mistletoe - which is not allowed in Christian churches unless it is blessed apparently.

That's one of the reasons why I like the culture here, because it's still traditional and natural.  Spain, especially the many villages, in some ways is about 15 years behind the UK.  But I like it like that.

I took down my Christmas tree last night because I am spending Reyes (they simply refer the celebration of the visit of the Three Kings as 'Kings') in a village in Granada and when I return I don't really want to see all my decorations still up... The Christmas period can go on for longer than desired at times!

Seeing in the New Year in Alicante

This will be just a short post to wish you all a happy and healthy new year 2014 and to let you know how it is celebrated here.

New Year's Eve - Noche Vieja

The 31st of December is a normal working day here until about 6pm when shops start to close early to prepare for the family dinner (cena).  The day is quite busy with people going to the local market and supermarkets for last-minute provisions and preparations.

The evening meal is generally a family affair and could start at around 9pm or 10pm.  For this special occasion, seafood like prawns or lobster is usually on the menu and there are various courses hot and cold.

At midnight, people turn on their televisions to see the clock at the central Madrid square called la Puerta del Sol start chiming, first the four quarterly chimes and then the twelve individual bongs marking the hour.  On each of the twelve chimes, a grape is eaten (and has to be done rather quickly!) as a tradition.  Then there are certain other superstitions or actions that some do like:

-wear something red when the clock strikes

-put suitcases by the front door (if you would like to travel during the coming year)

-eat the grapes while standing on one leg only then hop onto the other leg when you have finished (to start off the new year on a good foot)

-write wishes and desires (deseos) on a piece of paper and burn it

-put something gold in your celebration glass, etc.

One year we went to the town hall square in Alicante expecting to hear the chimes and maybe see something special happen, but there wasn't even an hourly bell so we didn't really know when 12 o'clock was!  Won't be doing that again!

The Spanish (sort of) equivalent of Champagne is called cava and is popped open and drank to celebrate or a bubbly cider is used if preferred.

Once all of the well-wishing is over, the party continues or the younger people go out to a bar or nightclub to get together with friends.

Example of a Cotillón pack.  Courtesy of diy.ahorro.net

It is quite common here to go to organised dinner celebrations where you pay a one-off price which covers all of the food, alcohol and some paper party decorations (cotillón) like a garland, a hat, streamers and a hooter.  Lots of nightclubs also charge a fixed price for entry and a quantity of drinks (consumición) and maybe a cotillón too.  Nightclubs are usually open until 6am or 7am.

New Year's Day - dia del Nuevo Año

As with most people around the world, today is spent recovering from the night before, relaxing or visiting family.  The shops are not open here and there are usually no activities organised.  People go back to work on the 2nd of January if it is a weekday and start to get ready for the next fiesta on the 5th & 6th of January when the Reyes Magos (the Three Kings) come and visit...