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Spain

Caves del Canelobre

We went to Busot, Spain which is a small mountain town 18 kilometers from Alicante. The views were amazing on the way up the mountain on our way to see the Caves of Canelobre.

View from the entrance area of the caves in Busot, Spain

The entrance to the caves is on the northern slopes of the mountain ridge known as Cabezón de Oro.

Entrance to the Caves

We went to buy our tickets to go and see the caves but discovered that they just closed for the day. Our friend Felipe who is also a tourist guide spoke to the manager. He did his magic and the manager opened up the caves just for us. We went down a long hallway to the entrance of the caves.

The hallway to the “Coves del Canelobre”

When we reached the end of the hallway we came to an open cavern area. There was a platform which you could see the large cave area.

Ray in the Caves of Canelobre
The main platform area in the caves

We were able to go to the edge of the platform where we could see all the main areas of the cave. We looked at the main cave area which has a height of 70 meters and is shaped like a cathedral ceiling.

The cave which has many stalactites and stalagmites and is similar in shape as a cathedral ceiling.

It is amazing to see the caves, which were formed millions of years ago.  There were different size stalactites and stalagmites throughout the cave. They only grow about 1 cm every one hundred years. Stalagmites are formed by calcium salt deposits formed by dripping water and often unit with stalactites.

Stalactites and stalagmites throughout the cave.

It was neat to be the only ones in the caves and able to see them without any other people around. The main cave area is the candelabra formation, which is the official name of the caves.

Stalagmites formed over many thousands of years.

The caves are a true natural wonder and an amazing site. We enjoyed our visit to the caves and were very thankful to have a private viewing of the caves.

“Adios y que tenga un grand dia”

Spain

The City of Cartagena

We went to Cartagena and explored this wonderful city. Located on the coast of the mediterranean sea, it has a long and rich history. We walked through the streets in the old quarter of Cartagena and admired some of the unique architecture.

Architecture in the old quarter in Cartagena

What was very different was the walkway itself which was covered in beautiful marble and was polished smooth.

the polished marble on the walkways in the old quarter of Cartagena

We walked along the streets and came across city hall which had nice architectural features.

City hall in Cartagena Spain

We went into city hall and checked out the lobby area. There was security at the door and we were not able to explore the remainder of city hall.

Shelley and Ray at the base of the main stairway in city hall in Cartagena

The ceiling had beautiful features and was stunning to see.

Ceiling above the main staircase in city hall in Cartagena

The outside features of city hall were also impressive.

above the main entrance of city hall in Cartagena
A section of city hall in Cartagena

The building was attacked repeatedly over the centuries and there are remnants of damage from cannon balls hitting the building.

Damage caused by a cannon ball visible on the wall at city hall

We then walked down towards the waterfront and admired the views from the boardwalk.

Boardwalk area near the waterfront in Cartagena, Spain

We came across a sailor and decided to get our picture taken with him.

Ray and Shelley with statue of sailor near the waterfront in Cartagena, Spain

The views from the waterfront were great and we walked the full length of the boardwalk.

The marina area in Cartagena, Spain

We saw many beautiful boats and the view of the mountains was spectacular. Overall a very enjoyable day in Cartagena.

“Adios y que tenga un grand dia”

 

Spain

The Roman Theatre in Cartagena

One of our favorite sites in Cartagena was the Roman theater. When we first walked to the top of the hill and saw the theater for the first time it was spectacular. It was located on the hillside which made it quite large and impressive.

View from the top of the Roman theater in Cartagena, Spain

The theater was much larger than we expected and it could hold up to 7000 spectators. The theater was in use between 5 and 1 BC and it was in excellent condition considering how ancient the structure was.

Ray and Shelley with Roman Theater in the background.
section of the Roman theater

We were able to freely walk throughout the majority of the theater admiring the architecture. The design of the theater was similar to a modern theater with exit aisles and divided into sections to accommodate the spectators.

Aisles divide the theater into sections for the spectators

We walked to the lower section of the theater and could see some of the marble columns which held up the wooden sections of the structure.

Columns in Roman theater in Cartagena
Columns at the outer wall of the theater.

The entire theater was well designed and had spectacular features. The stone stairs were even cut out and designed.

Stairs carved out of stone in theater

We walked throughout the theater for almost an hour enjoying the beautiful historic site.

Section at the base of the theater
Corridor to the section behind the seating area
Ray in section at base of the theater

It is truly hard to imagine the amount of history that occurred in the theater since 5 BC. It was a great experience and a very enjoyable time

Adios y que tenga un grand dia”

Spain

Cartagena Medieval wall and Crypt

We went to check out the Cartagena Punic Wall Interpretation known as “El Centro de interpretacion de la murall Punica”. The Punic wall interpretation center was built to the same dimensions as of the wall height and width of the original wall. The center highlights the recovery of remains from the ancient Carthaginian wall which was used as a defensive wall system in Cartagena.

The design of the wall is known as the Hellenistic model. It has two parallel walls constructed with large sandstone blocks. The walls were 10 meters high (33 feet) and inside the walls, there was space divided into different sections. Each section was used for a specific purpose, horse stable, weapons storage and living quarters etc.

View from above of the ancient wall

We walked through the center looking at the remains of the wall. It was hard to imagine that the walls were built around 200 BC.

Punic wall build approximately 200 BC

We then came to the stairs which led to an area that was discovered to contain a funeral crypt. The crypt belonged to the hermitage of Saint Joseph and was built during the XVI and XVII centuries.

Stairs to Roman catacombs

We went down the stairs and saw the crypt which contained actual remains from that time period. At the base of the stairs, the crypt was opened on one side and it was sealed on the other side.

Funeral crypt built during the XVI and XVII centuries

Inside the open crypts, there were remains from that time period.

Crypts dated from 16th and 17th centuries

The one side of the crypt was intact and was not opened. The original wall along with a painted image which was slightly visible.

Painted image visible on the crypt wall
The original sealed crypt section

The wall and crypt were very interesting and something we enjoyed seeing. There is an amazing history of Cartagena and it was an enjoyable visit.

“Adios y que tenga un grand dia”

Spain

Ostrich Egg Breakfast

We went to the central market and decided that we would buy an Ostrich egg to try it. We went to an egg market stall called “Huevos Yolanda” that sold ostrich eggs. We asked for an egg and she explained that they are ordered and she would call when it arrived.  We ordered one which took three weeks before we received it. We picked it up at the market and was surprised at the size and weight of the ostrich egg.

Ostrich egg being sold to us from the central market

We walked home carrying the egg like a football, being careful not to drop it.

Ray bring in the ostrich egg into the apartment

The egg was bigger than we expected and weighed 2.6 kilograms. Apparently, one ostrich egg is equal to approximately 2 dozen chicken eggs.

Ostrich egg compared to an extra-large chicken egg

We invited some of our friends over to enjoy an ostrich egg brunch. The brunch began with Champaign and orange juice and the breaking of the ostrich egg. I gathered up my hammer and a screwdriver to gently crack the egg. Everyone gathered around the table for the event. It was quite the adventure cracking the egg.

We put the egg into a medium-size stainless steel bowl.

Stainless steel bowl for the Ostrich egg.

We whisked the egg in the bowl and then cooked scrambled egg.

Cooking up the egg required two large frying pans.

Ray cooking up one scrambled Ostrich egg

After cooking the ostrich egg everyone enjoyed brunch. The egg was similar to a chicken egg but was a bit creamier in texture and taste. The one egg was big enough to provide enough scrambled egg for eight people.

Liz, Barbara, and Denise eating Ostrich egg brunch
Mike, Filipe, Ray and Mike having Ostrich egg brunch

Although the experience was very enjoyable and fun, I am not sure I would buy an Ostrich egg every week. The cost of one Ostrich egg is  33 euros or $46.5 Canadian dollars.

“Adios y que tenga un grand dia”