Category Archives: Spain

Spain

Christmas music in the Castle

We walked up to the 9th century Santa Barbara Castle to enjoy a free concert by soprano singer, AscensiĆ³n Perona and Pianist Daniel CatalĆ”. Our walk began at 7pm and we walked up the steep incline towards the Castle. The views along the way were stunning and you could see the Castle light up in the night.

Castle of Santa Barbara in the evening

There were beautiful views of the city of Alicante along the walk up the mountain. We could see the city lit up in lights.

View of the city of Alicante at night.

We reached the entrance of the castle after a 15 minute walk up the mountain.

Entrance to the Felipe II hall at Santa Barbara Castle

We entered in the Felipe II hall located in the main area of the castle. There were seats set up and we found seats at the real of the hall.

The view from our seats of the front stage

We were entertained by a soprano named AscensiĆ³n Perona. She was well-known and had studied technical vocals and interpretation in Los Angeles. She was also accompanied by pianist and composer Daniel CatalĆ”.

Soprano AscensiĆ³n Perona and pianist Daniel CatalĆ” performing Christmas songs in the Santa Barbara Castle.

They played a mix of Christmas songs from different countries. There were a selection of songs from “Pie Jesu” – Andrew Lloyd Webber to “White Christmas”- Irving Berlin. It was quite interesting to listen to songs from around the world as well as from regions of Spain. Below is a small sample of some of the songs.

The event was one of the many free events throughout Alicante. It was certainly worth the climb to enjoy this free Christmas concert.

“Adios y que tenga un grand dia”

Spain

Is Van Gogh Alive?

We went to see the Van Gogh Alive exhibit at the “Lonja Del Pescado” building in Alicante.

We went through the entrance and the exhibit began with some photos and write ups about Vincent Van Gogh.

Entrance to the Van Gogh Alive exhibit

We walked through the room looking at the displays and reading the information. After a few minutes we were brought into another area of the exhibit which had chairs along the walls. We found some seats and waited for the interactive show to begin.

Multimedia area of the exhibit

The interactive show displayed Van Gogh’s art works through digital imagery. It went through his life from the early years until his death. It was an interesting way to see an art exhibit.

Digital displays of Van Gogh

We put together a short video of the exhibit to give you a sample of the exhibit.

It was a very enjoyable experience and a unique way to view artwork.

Ray and Shelley in the Van Gogh Alive exhibit

“adios y que tengas un grand dia”

Spain

TurrĆ³n Festival in Jijona, Spain

We went to the quaint townĀ  of Jijona, which is located in the mountains in the province of Valencia. The town is located a short distance from Alicante and is known throughout Spain for its production of TurrĆ³n.Ā  We went to take part in their annual Christmas fair which features many different types of turrĆ³n.

We arrived and found a parking spot at the base of the hill to the fair. There was a “train” that was providing free rides up to the fair, but we decided to walk up the hill.

Along the walk we came to a large nativity scene set up on the side of the mountain. We stopped to take a closer look and admire the nativity.

Nativity scene in the town of Jijona Spain
Jijona Nativity scene

After looking at the nativity scene we went up to check out the Christmas fair. We came to the main street and there was a large Christmas tree on display near the front of city hall. We stopped to get a photo with the tree.

There were tents and vender stalls lined up along both sides of the entire main street. They were selling and promoting turrĆ³n products.Ā TurrĆ³n is a sweet which isĀ made of sugar, honey, almonds and eggs and it is the most typical sweet eaten during Christmas here in Spain.

TurrĆ³n on display at one of the booths

People were gathered around trying free samples of different turrĆ³ns.

People lined up to sample some of the turrĆ³n

We slowly walked along the street looking at the different products on display.

Different honeyĀ for sale which are also used to make the turrĆ³n

We would stop and sample some of them that interested us.

Shelley waiting to try a sample of turrĆ³n

One vender was selling a specialty liquor and was providing samples., so we just had to stop and try some.

Vendors providing samples of specialty liquors
TurrĆ³n liquor

We walked through the entire street enjoying the odd sample and seeing the different types of turrĆ³n. It was a great way to spend a beautiful afternoon.

“adios y tengas un gran dia”

Spain

Now that is a church choir!

We went to the Cathedral of San Nicholas de Bari which is located in the old quarter of Alicante. The beautiful cathedral was built in the mid 16th century on the site of a former Moorish mosque. It has a large dome located more than 45 meters high.

The Cathedral of San Nicholas de Bari in Alicante

We went to watch the ceremony and the concert for the twentieth anniversary of the Pontifical Coronation of the “Virgen del Remedio” We arrived almost an hour early and the church seating was full. We did manage to find some seats near the back of the church with a view of the altar.

The view of the Symphony from our seat at the back of the church

At the front of the church near the altar, there was a large orchestra and singers lined up in rows. It was theĀ Symphonic Band of Alicante and the Tabaquera and CantĆ”bile corals.

The choir singing a hymn during the ceremony

The acoustics of the church made the music even more amazing to listen to.Ā  We stayed for the entire ceremony which lasted almost two hours. The hymns and music played was very moving and enjoyable. Here is a small sample of the music we enjoyed.

“Hasta luego y tengas un buen dia”

Spain

A Typical Sunday in Alicante

We went for a nice leisure walk throughout the city of Alicante on Sunday. The weather was nice and warm at 21 degrees and the sun was shining bright. We began our walk by heading towards the coastline of the city. We came to a lovely walking trail which had orange trees along the path.

Orange trees along the walking trail in Alicante

We followed the walkway until we came to a beautiful water feature along the trail.

One of the water features in Alicante

We had to stop and take a selfie and enjoy the moment.

Shelley and Ray at a water feature along the walkway in Alicante

We then walked along the waterfront on the beautiful boardwalk area of the city. The boardwalk has rows of palm trees that align the walkway. The views from the boardwalk were spectacular, you could see the castle and all the boats in the marina.

Boardwalk along the harbour in Alicante

We walked along the boardwalk until we reached the beach area. We could see the dates on the date palm trees and people were enjoying the beach and walking along the shoreline.

Postiguet beach in Alicante with date palm trees

We walked along the beach walkway and came across a tent which was set up along the walkway. They were doing a fundraiser and selling Paella and drinks. People were lined up to sample some of the traditional Spanish food.

Tent on the beach walkway selling paella and drinks.

We continued our walk until we reached the end of the beach area and then decided to walk along the “Explanada de EspaƱa” which runs parallel to the marina and port. The walkway on the explanada is made up of 6.600.000 marble tiles. The three different colours of tiles form a unique pattern.

The explanada de EspaƱa in Alicante

We walked along the explanada and came across an area where people were gathered around listening to music. As we got closer we could see that people were also dancing on the explanada. We stopped for a few minutes to check it out.

After watching the dancing for a few minutes we continued our walk along the explanada and came across a vender selling roasted “castaƱas” nuts.

Shelley buying some roasted nuts at a vender on the Expanada in Alicante

We had to sample them so we stopped and bought a small “cone” of chesnuts. They were very tasty and the shell came off very easily.

A shell on a roasted chestnut
A roasted chestnut

The chestnut tasted similar to a roasted potato and was quite enjoyable. We continued our walk along the explanada and enjoyed the day. It was a great way to spend a leisure Sunday in Alicante.

“Hasta Luego and tiene un buen dia”