Alicante Con Mis Padres

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Our flight arrived in Alicante around 10:00am Monday, and after getting our checked luggage (which, unlike my last time in Alicante’s airport, actually arrived) we headed to the hotel where Mom and Dad would be staying. It was a small hotel, located right in front of the beach, and was operated by one of Puri’s close friends and her family. It’s about half way between my apartment and the city center too, so the location was great.
When we all had our things arranged, we headed down the Esplanada so I could show Mom and Dad the city I love. Dad was craving a beer to take with him, so McDonald’s (which serves beer on tap here) was his first Spanish restaurant. Kind of sad, but he love it 😊 After walking past the port and back, I headed to class. When I finished we went out for tapas, typical Spanish appetizers. My new goal here, according to Mom, is to find a Spanish cookbook and translate it into English for her.
After I had class Tuesday morning, we met back up and explored some of the shopping in Alicante. Dad was stoked!! Or not. Mom seemed to love all the little shops though and also the unique wedding dressed in the countless wedding stores here. She thought they were all so pretty, she agreed to come back to Spain with me some day when I get engaged to buy my dress for me!
No? I guess I misunderstood 😊
After shopping we headed to the central market, and after that the plan had been to spend some time on the beach However, lunch was in order first, and by the time that turned into a disaster, the beach weather had passed. Lo siento mucho. For some reason, I had it in my head that there was this awesome paella place down the beach a little ways, and I wanted Mom and Dad to try some traditional Spanish food so we set off walking. And walking. And walking. We ended up having to retrace our steps and walk back again because when we arrived next to the restaurant , we were separated from it by two fences and a train track. Dad was more than willing to jump them, but Mom and I? Not so much. Sooo….. thirty minutes and two miles later, we were finally there. Only to be disappointed by some much too strong, much too expensive, not-so-much-paella paella. Again, my apologies. That and leaving/losing maps a handful of times were my downfalls of the trip.
Anyway, after that disaster it was time for a siesta and then a hike with Puri to the castle. It was beautiful as the sun set, and I was glad that Mom and Dad got to see the full layout of the city. When we had climbed back down, we all relaxed at Puri’s apartment with some Spanish wine, and then Mom and Dad went to guac. night at one of the local bars with me to meet my friends. I think they really enjoyed themselves, and I really enjoyed being there with them.
Wednesday morning we took a quick tour of Alicante’s basilica and cathedral before boarding a bus to Valencia, where our flight to Rome left from. We saw Valencia’s cathedral square, but the market and La Lonja were closed for siesta when we were there. I think more time in Alicante on the beach would have been better than that day and was sorry we didn’t fit that in. I was glad Mom and Dad got to see Alicante for the two days they did though. Even though the days were full, it was still a bit more relaxing than London had been or Rome would be.

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Photos

Dos Cervezas Grandes
Beer from McDonalds. They were fascinated.

Alicante At Night
View from the castle.