Blogs from Alicante, Valencian Community, Spain, Europe - page 6

I sit here writing this in the hazy sunshine with cup of milky tea in hand (I am still British after all) and enjoying the peace and tranquillity of a Sunday siesta in Spain. Lesson plans can wait until manana, best make the most of this weather… It’s easy to paint a perfect picture of our new life here in Spain, but the truth is I’m quite glad to see the back of February. Okay, so we’ve been lucky enough to have found someone daft enough to employ us as teachers (even more so because there are two of us and not just one) and we’ve managed to forge some sort of semi-normal routine, but it’s been a slow process. It’s not been helped by the fact today is one of the very few days this ... read more

So this is it. The start of our new life. I’m not sure if I’m meant to feel any different or not but I don’t really. Well, I do feel quite nervous and slightly weird about looking for work whilst staying in our flat in Spain which has up until now always been a holiday home. As per usual whenever we arrive somewhere new, we head out to the supermarket to stock up on the essentials and food to live on for the week. It feels really good to be able to get back into cooking our own healthy stuff again (my waistline has suffered over Christmas and seems to have expanded slightly…) and it’s also a novelty having a car to carry everything in (walking for a mile there and back in the baking heat ... read more

Saturday 18thOctober 2014 TRIP PREPARATIONS “The World is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page” Saint Augustine Many people in the world are less fortunate than we are. We count ourselves most fortunate because we have the opportunity to travel; many do not. So we are off travelling again! It is five years since we were last backpacking and so the forthcoming journey is well overdue. We want to read more of the book! So, in just seven days’ time we shall venture forth on a six and a half month trip to South America. We believe that the preparations have been sufficient to provide a structure to the journey, yet flexible enough to allow for spontaneity. In other words, we have a roughly planned itinerary, have booked a few sections ... read more

We visited the towns south of Alicante, Torrevieja, Pilar de Horadada and Cartagena. Until 1802, Torrevieja existed only as an ancient guard tower, which gave the town its name (Torre Vieja (Spanish) means Old Tower) and some labourers' cottages. The town is known for its salt production. Although by the dawn of the 20th century, a quarter of all the salt harvested from the lagoon in Torrevieja was sold in Spain itself, and the rest exported was to foreign markets. Today, it is still an important industry in Torrevieja and a major employer. There is a Museum of Sea and Salt. The population is approx 50% spanish approx 25 % other european. We stayed one night at the harbour and walked the quiet streets in the evening, not much happening in mid november. The town looked ... read more

On arrive à l'aéroport d'Alicante pour un road trip vers le sud,sans réservations,et avec un itinéraire a composer au jour le jour. L'aéroport d'Alicante est grand,extremement moderne et bien fichu,nottament la zone d'embarquement,avec plusieurs endroits pas désagréables pour bouffer. On va prendre la voiture chez Goldcar (meme avec la mauvaise surprise du plein d'essence a payer à la prise du véhicule,ca reste tres bon marché) , zou,en route! On a traversé un paysage relativement plat, avec du coté de Santa Pola de grands marais salants peuplés de flamands roses,avant d'arriver à Guardamar del Segura,a l'origine village de pecheurs transformé dans les années 60-70 en station balnéaire. Ce n'est pas spécialement charmant,mais c'était la fete au village,et c'est assez impressionnant de voir ce que les espagnols arrivent a faire en matiere de fete,y compris dans un petit ... read more