Felipe and Ray went for a drive to explore some of the area around Alicante. We went along the coastline towards the town of Santa Pola. Along the way we came to a small church which looked like something out of an old western movie. We decided to stop and check it out.
small traditional church on side road near Santa PolaFelipe and Ray at the small church
The scenery along the coastline was great, with nice views of the Mediterranean Sea. There were bluffs of Santa Pola on one side and the view of the sea on the other. We could see in the distance the lookout near the lighthouse.
The Lookout of Santa Pola above the bluffs
We decided to go and explore the lookout and lighthouse of Santa Pola, which is called “Faro Cabo De Santa Pola”. The road to the lighthouse was long and narrow with numerous potholes.
Road to lighthouse and lookout of Santa Pola.
There was a raised metal platform that went slightly over the edge of the bluff.
The metal platform overlooking the Mediterranean Sea
The view from the lookout was truly breathtaking with a great view of the island of Tabarca and the coastline of the entire region.
View of the Mediterranean Sea and Tabarca IslandRay with view of the region of Alicante coastline
The views along the coast were beautiful with almost an amazing view around every curve.
Ray and Felipe went to a small traditional Spanish restaurant called “To Bar”. The restaurant is in an old house which was transformed into a restaurant.
The owner “Geroni”, who knew Felipe, met us at the door and welcomed us into the restaurant. We sat down at the table and ordered the meal of the day. There was a loaf of bread on the table as well as a “Spanish Porron” with red wine.
A traditional Spanish Wine decanter called a “Porron”Ray ready to enjoy the meal of the dayFelipe ready for the meal of the day
They began bringing out different tapas to our table.
Salad with bread sliversPineapple with a sweet sauce and octapussPastry base with fish and greens
They also brought us a unique tapa which was in a bowl and had a herb burning in the sauce.
Tapa with burning herbs in sauce
This tapa was extremely tasty and the sauce was very good. The owner then brought us the main course which was a seafood mix.
Sea food main dishChocolate mouse dessert
After enjoying the meal the owner came and chatted with us for a while. He brought us a complimentary after dinner Spanish traditional drink.
After dinner Spanish drink
We paid our bill which was very inexpensive for the quality and quantity of food we had. It was a fantastic meal and a great experience.
On Sunday we went to a small mountain town of Tibi about 30 kilometers from Alicante.
View of the main street in the Town of Tibi, Spain
There is a goat cheese store and small factory located in the town called “Quesería Del Valle De Tibi”. We arrived at the store to learn about goat cheese and how it is made.
Store front of the “Queseria Del Valle De Tibi”
We were met by one of the owners Lilian who brought us into the “factory” part of the building. They had a table set up with a sampling of several different types of goat cheese, goat milk, bread and wine. Lilian explained how the goats are tested yearly to ensure they are safe from outside diseases etc. This allows them to make cheese with unpasteurized milk from their goats.
Lilian at the table with different goat cheeses and goats milk.
We began our sampling by having some unpasteurized goats milk. It was fresh from the goats that morning.
Pot with fresh unpasteurized goats milk
The goat’s milk was surprising tasty and very creamy.
Ray sampling the fresh goat’s milk
After trying the goat’s milk, we sampled several different goat cheeses. One cheese was only a week old and others were up to one year old. Each one had a unique flavour and tasted different when sampling with the wine.
Shelley and Ray sampling different oat cheeses
Lilian then explained and demonstrated the making of the goat cheese. We watched her as she made some cheese in the stainless steel container she uses for the process.
Lillian demonstrating the making of goat cheesefilter screen that separates the milk brine from the cheese
Lillian then removed the cheese from the stainless steel container and packed it into containers to make its form.
forming the cheese into containersGoats cheese formed into containers
Lillian left some of the cheese on a tray for us to try.
It was very tasty and good but had a strange feel because it was still warm and very moist.
Fresh goat cheese
We finished the tour in the factory area, and then went to the store front to look at some of the cheese products for sale.
Different goat cheese for sale
It was a very interesting experience seeing how goat cheese was made. The small family business that still makes cheese in the traditional manner is very rare. They are very proud of their process and how they have maintained the traditional process of making goat cheese from unpasteurized goats milk.
We were invited to a local professional basketball game in Alicante. We were not aware that Alicante was the home to the “Lucentum” professional basketball team.
We arrived early to the game which gave us time to explore the stadium.
View of the one end of the stadiumView of the basketball court from the second level of the stadium
We found our seats and settled in to watch the game. The players came out and began to practice and warm up. We watched them do several different drills before the start of the game.
Players warming up before the game.
We had good seats and could enjoy a close up view of the game.
View from our seats of the basketball game
We watched the game go back and forth with a close score throughout the game. There were only a few points between the teams with only a minute and a half left in the game.
Scoreboard with only minute and a half remaining
We watched on the edge of our seat as the home team of Alicante won the game by one point. It was a very enjoyable experience and an impressive game.
We went to Benidorm and Polop on Sunday to explore the “Car Boot Sales” which is a traditional used goods sale. We started off early and enjoyed the drive to Polop which is located not far from Benidorm in the mountains.
View of the “Sleeping Lion” mountain near PolopBoot Sale in Polop
The people buy a space for five euros and they lay out their items for sale. There are four or five streets full of people selling every type of item imaginable.
view of part of the street in Polop
We walked along the main street looking at different items. They had some Spanish dolls for sale wearing the tradition Spanish dress.
Some dolls for sale in Polop
Some of the items were interesting and others were very common and considered junk by some people.
Used items on display and for sale in PolopShelley walking along the street in Polop
They had areas set up for food and drinks. There was even a bar area for people to have a cold beer and a truck selling roasted chickens.
Roasted chickens for sale on the street in Polop
We walked around for about an hour looking at the displayed items.
We found it interesting but did not buy anything.
We then headed to Benidorm where each Sunday they have a large sale of antiques and other used items. There was a permanent pavilions set up where people would sell antiques or other collectables. We walked through the different rows of items checking it out.
Shelley and Felipe looking at some of the items for sale in Benidorm
We came across a vender who was selling millitary items. There were some very interesting items for sale, including WWII books, photos uniforms, etc.
Military uniforms and WWII paraphernalia for sale in BenidormWWII books and photos for sale in Benidorm
We headed into the main enclosed pavilion and looked at the antiques. They had a large variety of antique furniture, paintings and other items which were quite interesting.
Some of the antiques on display in Benidormantiques on sale in Benidorm
It was an enjoyable day and very interesting looking at items from the European culture.
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