We found a great little bar called “Wine O’clock” It is located in the heart of Athens near the Acropolis.
Entrance toWine O’clock in Athens, Greece
The inside of the bar was decorated with wine as the main focus.
Behind the bar area of Wine O’clockWine corks made into the outline of Greece.
It was a quaint spot and our server Andreas was very friendly and helpful. We even had a glass of wine and our photo taken with him.
Ray, Shelley, Vicki, Mark, Andreas and Raf in Wine O’clock bar
The owner came out to meet us and took us for a tour of the bar. We went through the main floor looking at the decorations and artwork before heading up the stairs to the second floor.
The second floor had a wooden table set up for larger groups. The table was unique in that it had wine sayings on it.
Second floor of Wine O’clock bar in AthensWine sayings on table in Wine O’clock bar
Some of the quotes were quite entertaining and included a quote from the pope.
The Wine O’clock bar was one of the little gems we found while visiting Athens Greece.
On May 1st we went to see the “fiesta de las Cruces” in the barrio of Santa Cruz. The fiesta is held every year around the end of April and beginning of May. The oldest neighbourhood in is decorated in flower crosses and ornate decorations throughout the narrow streets.
Street in the barrio of Santa Cruz, Alicante
We began walking up the step narrow streets admiring the different decorations of flowers on the houses.
Along the way we came to several flower crosses mounted on the wall.
Crosses mounted on the wall in the barrio of Santa Cruz
Some of the crosses were very detailed and made of different types of flowers.
Shelley in front of a cross made of rosesCross made of different types of flowersA cross made with red and white flowers in the barrio of Santa Cruz
Each cross was unique and was detailed with many flowers. We took our time walking through the streets admiring the flowers and quaint streets of Santa Cruz.
One of the many decorated streets of Santa Cruz
We continued walking up the steep streets of Santa Cruz towards the top. We stopped along the way to take a break and enjoy the views.
Shelley and Ray relaxing in the barrio of Santa Cruz
The view of the city and of the Castle of Santa Barbara were beautiful.
A view of the castle of Santa Barbara from one of the streets in Santa CruzView of the city of Alicante from the top of the Barrio of Santa CruzShelley and Ray along the 14th century wall of the castle of Santa Barbara in Santa Cruz
We walked through the streets for several hours looking at all the flowers and decorations. We came to the display with the winning cross located on a corner.
Winning flower cross in the Fiesta de las cruces de Mayo 2019
It was an enjoyable way to spend a beautiful sunny day.
Semana Santa week in Alicante is full of activities and parades. We participated and enjoyed some of the activities during the Semana Santa.
Procession on the Promenade
We went for a walk down the promenade and came to the procession also known as “penance procession” which was underway. We stopped and watched some of the procession including the Nazarenes dressed in their traditional “Vesta”.
Members of the brotherhood of Nazarene in procession
The history of the Nazarenes dates back to the 16th century. They are members of a brotherhood who do penance during Semana Santa. Their faces are covered for mourning and the colourful clothing represents the cloak that Jesus wore when he was being lead to be crucified.
One of the floats being carried by mourners
The floats or “pasos” which can weight in excess of 500 kgs. (1000 lbs) are carried by people dressed in white hooded gowns. These gowns cover their faces in mourning and represent the shame of sinners for the sins they committed.
The procession was interesting and we watched it for approximately an hour before we left.
Procession Santa Cruz
The second procession we watched is one of the most popular and is held in the narrow streets of Santa Cruz. Thousands of people gather early to get a good spot to watch the procession.
People gathering early to watch the Santa Cruz procession
We were very fortunate to have friends who invited us to watch the procession from their balcony which overlooks the procession. We could see the procession from a great vantage point.
View of the start of the procession from our friend’s balcony
The streets of Santa Cruz are narrow and there is one section in particular which is the narrowest in the procession route. At this section the people carrying the floats (known as the brotherhood) must be very careful to lower the float below the edges of the balconies which line the street.
The floats in Santa Cruz are very heavy and the heaviest one is over a ton. You can see the strain and effort on the people trying to move the float slowly and carefully down the stairs.
Moving the float through the narrowest section of the street
It is considered good luck if you are fortunate enough to touch one of the floats as it passes by. Shelley was able to reach out and touch the statue of Jesus as the float went by.
Shelley touching the arm of the Jesus statue during the Santa Cruz procession.
There are women dressed in black mourning throughout the procession. Some of the mourning women carry symbols of the stations of the cross.
Women in Mourning carrying a crown made of thorns.
The procession in Santa Cruz is very emotional, You can feel the emotions of people as they sing and cheer throughout the procession. It is definitely one of the highlights of the Semana Santa in Alicante.
Below is a video of the procession in Santa Cruz.
Santa Maria Church Procession
We went to a roof top bar to see the Santa Maria procession which begins at the Santa Maria Church. The bar has a great view of the castle of Santa Barbara and overlooks the Santa Maria Church.
Ray and Shelley on the roof top bar with a view of the castle of Santa Barbara
The bar was full of people waiting to see the procession from the rooftop.
People on the roof top waiting to see the procession.
The procession began with the church bells ringing and people on the church roof throwing rose pedals onto the procession.
People throwing rose pedals onto the procession from the church roofProcession float starting the procession out of the Santa Maria Church
The float is carried out of the church while crowds align both sides of the street. We watched from the rooftop as the procession went along the street.
View of the procession float from the rooftop along the street near Santa Maria Church
Below is a video of the procession from the Santa Maria Church.
Each of the three processions were unique and different. We enjoyed each one for their uniqueness and style. Semana Santa is a great time to be in Spain and in particular Alicante.
We went to the Museo Telefonica which is located inside the beautiful national Telefonica building in Madrid.
National Telefonica building in Madrid
The entrance which was free is at the side of the main building. We went into a lobby area which had a small model of the Telefonica building on display.
Shelley beside the model of the telefonica building
We took an elevator up to the top floor and explored the exhibit which was a history of the phone company in Spain.
Display of different phones that were used over the years.Ornate telephone used in early 1900’s in Spain
There were exhibits of different pieces of equipment that was actually used in Spain.
Telegraph decoder of morse code which was used until 1950.
The telegraph decoder was used in Spain beginning in 1875 and was in use until 1950. The importance of the telegraph decoder was its ability to instantly decode into printable and readable text messages from morse code. This particular telegraph decoder was used to send news of the movement of Spanish soldiers during war.
Breaker switches and circuit wall which was in actual use at the telefonica companyThis switchboard was used in connecting different customers manually.
After exploring the history of the telephone in Spain we went to the third floor to check out the digital exhibit. This exhibit was truly unique and very enjoyable. It is divided into three different parts. The first section called “Black Waves: Lost, Immersed, and Reborn” which is the largest part of the exhibit. When we entered the exhibit it was truly spectacular. There were large digital waves throughout several different large rooms.
View of the digital waves throughout the exhibit.
We walked through the rooms and were immersed into the 3D digital art.
Shelley and Ray in the 3D digital exhibit
The telefonica museum was an interesting spot and the 3D digital exhibit was very enjoyable.
It was a rainy day in Madrid so we decided to go to the National Museum of Art to see some of the exhibits which included Salvador Dali, Pablo Picasso and H.C. Westermann.
Entrance to the Museo Reina Sofia
We explored the museum which had many different exhibits. We explored some of the ones which were of interest to us. The first one we went to was the cubism exhibit which featured some famous Spanish artists, including Salvador Dali and Pablo Picasso.
Bust and Pallet, (1925) Pablo PicassoFace of the great masturbator, (1929)- Salvador Dali
Some of the exhibits were quite unique and interesting, in particular we enjoyed the Horace Clifford Westermann exhibit.
Ray looking at some of the HC Westermann exhibits
He is known for his folkloric sculptures and works on paper with playfulness and humour,
We saw some interesting pieces that were very unique including the “Memorial to the Idea of Man If He Was an Idea,”
Memorial to the Idea of Man If He Was an Idea, HC Westermann
We looked at the different pieces and some where quite interesting while others were simply strange.
Antimobile (1966) HC WestermannShelley “just missing the bullseye”“In God we trust” HC WEstermannRobot by HC Westermann
The Museum was well worth the visit and we enjoyed seeing the different styles of art on display.
Ray in mirror art
It was a great way to spend a rainy day in Madrid.
We saw some interesting pieces that were very unique including the “Memorial to the Idea of Man If He Was an Idea,”
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