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Spain

Birthday in Valencia

We went to Valencia to celebrate Shelley’s birthday. Our day began with a 1:40 minute train ride to the city of Valencia. We arrived to a beautiful warm day in downtown Valencia. We settled in to our hotel before heading out for a walk through the city. We started out walking through the beautiful “Jardin del Turia.”

Path in the “Jardin del Turia” which leads under one of the bridges in the city.
Jardin del Turia in Valencia

The park has a very interesting past. It was originally the Turia River which overflowed its banks in October, of 1957. The flooding reached heights of over five meters (17 feet) high. At least 81 people died and thousands were displaced during the flooding.  As a result of the devastation caused by the flooding the city decided to divert the entire river through fields south of the city. After much debated and public protest the former  seven kilometres of riverbed was converted to the current park in 1986.

Map of the Jardin del Turia Park

We walked through a section of the Jardin del Turia and then headed towards the centre of the city. Along the way we came across some beautiful  building architecture, parks and statues .

Building in Valencia with ornate decor
Ornate building in Valencia

We stopped along the way to enjoy the views and admire our surroundings.

One of the arches in Valencia
Shelley and Ray in front of one of the many statues in Valencia
Shelley in front of the fountain near city hall plaza in Valencia

We walked along the streets until we reached city hall plaza.

City hall Plaza in Valencia

The streets around the plaza were cordoned off and there was a large street party going on. We stopped to check out the live music and walk through the area.

Street party with live music at Valencia City Hall Plaza

After exploring the city centre,  it was getting dark so we decided to walk back to our hotel, which was a fair distance away.  On the way back the city views changed as it got darker.

Valencia city view in the evening
The view of the City Hall Plaza at night in Valencia
Ferris wheel in Valencia
A section of “Jardin del Turia” at night

It was a long walk but very enjoyable. The city of Valencia has some beautiful features and architecturally interesting buildings.

“Adios y que tengas un gran dia”

Spain

Snorkeling in the mediterranean sea

Felipe and Ray decided to go snorkeling at a spot called “El baño de la reina” which translates to “the Queen’s bath”. It is located in Campello, a short distance from the city of Alicante.

The Queen’s Bath located in Campello

We went down to the tourist centre located in Campello and got some information on the Queen’s Bath.

Felipe and Ray at the Queen’s Bath in Campello

There are former Roman pools located at the Queen’s Bath. These pools were used by the Romans as a fish farm. The tourist centre provided us with snorkeling information including an identification card of different fish and plants.

Fish identification card from the tourist information centre

They also provided us with an audio player which you wear on your arm during the snorkeling.  We headed down to the Queen’s Bath with our gear.

Felipe and Ray at the Queen’s Bath

We swam for about one hour around the rocks at the Queen’s Bath. There were different types of fish along the rocks and we even saw a sea urchin.

Sea Urchin

The snorkeling was great, it was very interesting and enjoyable.

“Adios y que tengas un gran dia”

Spain

Fireworks on the Mediterranean Sea

There is an international fireworks competition held in Alicante each year. Our friends Mike and Liz invited us to go on their sailboat to watch the fireworks from the sea.

Jorge, Ceci, Mike, Paul, Shelley and Ray on the sailboat before heading out

We went out and anchored off the coast near in front of the Castle of Santa Barbara. The view was quite stunning to see the city and the castle in the evening from the sea.

View from the Mediterranean Sea of Alicante coast line.

We enjoyed the views and warm evening while we waited for the fireworks to start.

The view of the fireworks from the boat

The fireworks were beautiful and lasted approximately 20 minutes. There were some unique fireworks and the show was great to watch from the water.

Ray and Mike on the “Hegeldi” heading back to port of Alicante after the fireworks

We had a great time with friends, there were lots of laughs and lots of fun.

Ray with friends on the sailboat waiting for the fireworks to start

We still find it hard to believe at times that we are living in Spain. It is an adventure almost every day.

“Adios y que tengas un gran dia”

Spain

Cycling tour of the Fogueres

We went with friends to a cycling group to tour some of the fogueres in Alicante. We arrived at the meeting place which was near the Plaza del Toros.

Shelley, Sonja’s daughter, Sonja and Ray at the start of the cycling tour

It was a very hot day and we were surprised to see so many cyclist there.

Cyclist gathered near the Plaza del Toros preparing to tour the fogueres.

We left the Plaza del Toros and headed toward our first foguere. It was tricky cycling at first because of how close we were to other cyclist.

Cyclist along the route to see fogueres

We went a few blocks and then came to our first stop. The foguere was interesting and focused on a specific topic.  It was people of all different type and nationality. The focus of the foguere was that we are all inter-connected and co-dependant.

Shelley at our first stop of the fogueres.
Foguere of different people in the world

After checking out the foguere we saw another one which was close by. This particular foguere was very impressive with ornate designs and detail. The focus of the foguere is the government corruption that is an issue in Spain.

The political Puppeteer pulling the strings
The political parties being caught up in scandals
Mariano Rajoy -Prime minister of Spain and other politicians as clowns
Mushrooms on the ground representing the public which is being fed manure by the politicians.
A maze showing the politicians actions before being ousted from office.

We enjoyed reading and looking at the different pieces of the foguere. We then got back on our bikes and headed towards our next foguere. We arrived at a huge foguere which had some spectacular art work. This foguere also focused on world politicians.

Kim Jong Un and Donald Trump with missiles pointed at each other.

The fogueres had some very pointed opinions about the nonsense that is taking place across the world. We would take our time and read each sign. It was the regular people making statements about the politician and policies that affect their lives. The signs below Trump and Kim translates roughly as “they enjoy moving boats, for them it’s just a game, we’re fed up with their big show of ego” and “poisoned songs are these serene of war, two countries face massacre our future.”  “in the “summit” we saluted and we all breathe, this is well that they speak even if they are lies to one of the other”

There were lots of details in the fogueres. Everywhere we looked you would see small details and ornate decorations.

Detailed sections of the fogueres
Shelley and Ray in front of a three-story high foguere
Some of the small detailed sections of the fogueres

We cycled for approximately three hours and then came to one foguere which was different. This one was giving away free drinks of horchata.

Shelley and Ray at a foguere during the cycling tour.

This foguere was sponsored in part by a company that made “horchata de chufa” which is a traditional Spanish drink. It is made with the chufa sage bulb and is a refreshing natural drink .

Sonja and Shelley at one of the fogueres on our cycling tour

We enjoyed the free horcheta and looked at the foguere.

Foguere focused on water use and supply
Large crowds of people throughout the viewing of the fogueres.
Foguere creatures of the sea with clocks showing time running out.

Throughout the cycling tour we saw many different fogueres and enjoyed seeing the many different pieces of artwork. We came to our last foguere of the evening which was also quite interesting.

Three story high foguere
Foguere against violence

There were so many things to see that the evening went by quickly. We really enjoyed the tour and seeing different fogueres along the way.

“Adios y que tengas un gran dia”

Spain

Mascletàs At Luceros In Alicante

We decided to walk down to the area of the Plaza del Luceros to watch and hear the mascletà’s on Sunday.

Statue in the Plaza del Luceros

The mascletàs are popular in Spain and particularly in our area. Masclaterà’s are pyrotechnics that focus on noise and rhythm.  The Mascleterà’s are started at 2 p.m. and last approximately 12 to 15 minutes.

As we got closer to Luceros the crowds became thicker and larger.

crowds gathering towards the Luceros Plaza for the mascletà’s

People gather early and try to get as close as possible to the barrier fences to be as close as possible. The percussion of the noise can be felt in the entire body, when you are fairly close to Luceros square.

We walked to an area that was not too close to the front of Luceros and found a good spot to watch the mascleta. The noise is very loud and we brought ear plugs to protect our ears.

Shelley and Ray with hearing protection at the mascletà

The mascletà last approximately 15 minutes and escalates in loudness and speed throughout the event. The smoke and sound can be seen across the entire city.

Smoke from the mascletà’s in Luceros plaza

It is a cultural thing here in Alicante and families bring children and even babies to the mascletà.

Young family at the Mascletà’s in Alicante

The mascletà is part of the fiesta called The Bonfires of Saint John.  In Alicante, the fiesta has been established since 1928 and is celebrating it’s 90 anniversary this year.

Mascletà gets its name from the masclets (very loud firecrackers) that are tied by a wick to form a line or firework display. You will hear them throughout the video below.

It is an interesting and amazing thing to see and hear. It is one of the many unique things about living in Spain.

“Adiós y que tengas un buen día”