Index | Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3-5 | Day 6 | Day 7 | Day 8 | Day 9 | Day 10 | Day 11 | References
Day 3 to 5 - Alicante
I must confess that the thought of Alicante did not appeal to me, I spend my time trying to get away from the crowds at the seaside. My vision of Costa Blanca was high-rise flats and all-day-English-breakfasts, kiss-me-quick sombreros and noisy nightclubs that teenagers fall out of, unable to stand, at 4 am.
Although only just up the road from Benidorm, Alicante or Playa Muchavista (which is the precise location of the apartment) was a far cry from the nightmare alluded to above. Firstly, the apartment was very pleasant and had a balcony looking seaward (facing east). Secondly, we were out of season and there were no crowds of tourists. And thirdly, this particular spot is not frequented by the English, most of the area comprises of holiday homes owned by the Spanish. As a result very little English was spoken in the restaurants which suited me as I wanted to practice my Spanish.
True it was high-rise, but the planning and architecture is a lot more sympathetic and pleasing to the eye than the 60's flats we saw in other parts. They are also trying to maintain some space around the new buildings.
For families with young children looking for sun and sand and safe swimming this part of Spain is ideally suited.
The apartments
The Carrefour was a totally new shopping experience. You could buy anything from a kilo of olives to a new car. You could totally equip an apartment and you could also buy batteries for an alarm remote for a Sprint ST! Still the alarm didn't work as I didn't at that time know the little trick of re-initialising, so I continued to use my spare but didn't keep it on the key fob which was an irritation but not a major inconvenience.
On day 5 we all piled into the car and took a trip into the hills to have a look at some properties inland in Ontinyent that had been advertised in the Daily Telegraph (Spanish edition). We didn't find the apartments but Ontinyent didn't do justice to it's description - estate agents are the same the world over, it would seem.
We then headed off to Calpe with the intention of having a seafood dinner. The roads Cv70 and Cv755 were fantastic - if you were on a bike. Mandy didn't enjoy driving them in the little hire car.
We stopped for lunch at the excellent restaurant L'Obrer just on the edge of Benimantell N38.67621 W0.21196, 1866ft, and nearly 2 hours later left. The Tapas would have been sufficient we decided as we waddled back to the car. Consequently none of felt like eating when we got to Calpe.
The menu
Flan
Index | Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3-5 | Day 6 | Day 7 | Day 8 | Day 9 | Day 10 | Day 11 | References