Day 140: Alicante, Spain … Exploring Elche

Friday, 26 May 2017
At Sea — Mediterranean Sea … En Route to Almería

Stats @ Ship’s Time 8:15p (CEST) … UTC 6:15p (26 May)
Temp: 69.3F (20.7C)
Position: 37.51.57N / 0.28.70W

A man practices the art of adventure when he breaks the chain of routine
and renews his life through reading new books, traveling to new places,
making new friends, taking up new hobbies and adopting new view points.
~ Wilfred Peterson ~

[A bit sexist, don’t you think?  This certainly applies to women as well!]

We are back in the western hemisphere!  When I checked at 6:30a this morning, the NavChannel was showing us 4 minutes into the hemisphere.  We were in familiar waters that ships sail through along the coast of Spain after departing Barcelona.  At that particular moment I was viewing the high-rises of Villajoyosa.  With the sun’s big red orb breaking the horizon directly behind the ship, there was a pastel pink hue to the sky that was soon replaced with oranges and yellows.  Another day … another one that brings us that much closer to the end of this adventure.  Not something I want to dwell on today … better to focus on the new sights we explored during our port of call in Alicante, Spain.

The Terrace Café opened at 7:00a, so we headed up there for breakfast before getting ready to go ashore.  It was not quite 9:00a when Ray announced that Insignia had been cleared.  We were first off the ship.  If anyone else followed in our footsteps, we didn’t see them.

Perched on Mount Benacantil, the Santa Bárbara Castle looms over Alicante.

There was a free shuttle from the port to the city … the first bus due to leave the terminal at 9:15a.  We didn’t want to wait for it, so we asked if we could walk instead.  The bus driver said sure and proceeded to give us directions to the city center.  It took us about 20 minutes to make it to Plaza del Mar … no sign of the shuttle bus behind us.  We later learned that there were no early riders, so the bus didn’t leave until 9:30a.  Hoofing it kept us on track time-wise, so I’m glad we didn’t wait for the shuttle.

Our morning constitutional did not end at the plaza.  No sirree.  We planned to visit the town of Elche — Elx in Spanish.  To do so we needed to take the train … so we walked some more, following narrow back streets to get to the station.  Google had timed the walk from the port to the station at 47 minutes … that’s how long it took us … OK, maybe 50 minutes.  At the station, we skipped the automated machines and went to the counter to buy our tickets (€4.25/person).  We were on the 10:00a train for the ±½-hour ride … the third stop was the one we wanted … Elx Parc.

Colorful murals catch my eye on the way to the train station.

So why did we want to go to Elche — some 15 miles (~ 23 km) away — instead of staying local and exploring Alicante?  Simple.  We wanted to see the officially-protected palm trees … ranging in number from 200,000 to 300,000.  It is generally accepted that the origin of the palms — date palms, to be precise — goes back to the Phoenicians.  Some say, however, that the first palms were planted as far back as the 5th century BC.  It was the Moors, however, who developed the irrigation system that ensured the palms flourished.  The system is essentially the same one still in use today.

We picked up a map from the Elche train station, but neither it nor the one outside the building helped us to get oriented.  We were totally discombobulated.  So, we asked a local how to get to El Palmeral — the palm grove that is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  She told us that the municipal park was just a two minute walk and pointed out the way.  Sure enough, there were a zillion palm trees in the park … OK, not that many, but it sure seemed like it to us.  But where was the kiosk where we were supposed to pay the admission to enter?  Turns out that there is no fee.  Nor is there just a single palm grove … there are many scattered around town.

Of course I can’t resist a quick snapshot of this mural at the municipal park.

We planned to follow the river as we walked around town.  The guy at the visitor info center at El Palmeral said it was beautiful and encouraged us to do so.  Well, from the overlook, we didn’t see a river … just a concrete canal with high walls and a narrow strip of water running down the center.  So, we followed a path through the parks instead, walking from one grove to another until we came out into a square and found ourselves in front of a castle.

Built during the 12th-13th centuries, and restored 200 years later, the Altamira Castle used to house a fabric plant.  That was in 1913.  In later years it served as the town hall, and during the civil war it was used as a prison.  Today visitors come to the castle to visit the archaeology museum.  Though it was rather hot by this time, we didn’t want to spend time indoors.  Instead, we crossed the street to check out the basilica.

The Basilica of Santa Maria sits on the site of a former mosque and subsequent Gothic and Renaissance churches that have long since disappeared.  We went inside to take a few photos and that’s when I saw a sign that one of the best views of the extensive palm groves was from the 130-foot (40m) high bell tower.  So, we paid the €2/person fee and started climbing up the narrow circular staircase.  There were three interim stops — the first one overlooking the inside of the basilica.  Nice … but would have been even better had the center balcony been open instead of just the side balcony.  Next up was a series of three terraces at different levels that gave glimpses of the town with palm tree groves in the background.  Going up one more level, we came to a room that held an exhibit of historic photos.  There was an old cot here, too — might have been where the caretaker used to sleep before the ringing of the church bells was automated.

Mui had gone up ahead of me, so I was surprised when he was nowhere to be seen once I reached the bells.  He’d apparently continued up into what a sign said was the attic — more like an outdoor observation platform at the very top of the tower.  The tiny, tiny square staircase, with the steps going up in a semicircle, was a very tight fit.  But the views were well worth the effort.

Next up for us was El Huerto del Cura [Priest’s Garden] … described as the jewel of the palm park … as well as a national artistic garden.  Admission was €5/person … we later agreed that it was worth buying tickets to go inside.  A huerto is essentially a plot of land on which palm trees are grown.  Each plot is named after the owner or some anecdote connected with the owner.  This particular park is not just about palm trees, however.  There is a large variety of other trees typical of the Mediterranean as well.  This made our visit more interesting … as did the peacock chicks I found pecking around the ground cover … so cute.  They didn’t stand still for a photo op, but a white peacock I came across later obliged me.

The highlight of the park is the imperial palm tree that was dedicated by the owner — Chaplain Castaño — to Empress Elisabeth of Austria when she visited Elche in 1894.  What makes this tree so unique — and grandiose as well — is that its offshoots grew from the tree when it was 30 years old.  Thus, instead of branching off from the base, they branch off about 6 feet (2m) off the ground … and in a way that makes the shape reminiscent of a multi-armed candelabra.  Really amazing.

By the time we left the park, it was after 1:30p … time to feed the beast.  Mui had found a tapas restaurant halfway between the park and the train station, so we headed there.  Mas Q Tapas was on a side street in a residential area … well off the beaten path … perfect.  We sat at a table on the sidewalk and ordered five different tapas … a mistake, as the portions were rather on the large side.  We should have just ordered a few and added on as necessary.  But meals in Spain tend to be leisurely and we didn’t want to dally too long since we wanted to catch the 3:13p train back to Alicante.  As it was, each dish was prepared fresh and served individually, so we had a leisurely meal anyway.  The food was very good — Mui especially liked the grilled octopus that was prepared and served on a slate plancha [griddle].

Tapas anyone?

It was past 2:30p when we left the tapas place and went in search of ice cream for dessert.  I was all set to get my ice cream in Alicante, but Mui remembered seeing a gelateria — La Coquette — not too far away.  We walked a couple of blocks back and got some delicious ice cream to enjoy on our way to the train station.  By 3:00p we were on platform #1, waiting for the train to Alicante.

One of a series of murals that tells the story of “The Coming of the Virgin.”
This scene represents the discovery in 1370 of an image of the Virgin of the
Assumption — Elche’s patron saint — inside a chest that washed ashore.  The
event is celebrated annually with a procession from the beach to the basilica.

After we detrained, we took a different route back to Plaza del Mar, strolling slowly to enjoy the ambiance of what felt like a very cosmopolitan city to us.  When we reached the plaza, we walked over to check out the beach.  It was crowded — and I mean really crowded — with sun seekers and swimmers.  Brrrr … the water would have been way too cold for me.  Following the waterfront promenade towards the port, we found the shuttle stop … with a waiting bus.  Since there was no shade anywhere along the way back to the ship, we decided to ride back to the port.  By 4:30p, we were back on Insignia to find the veranda in the shade and the castle and the shoreline beautifully lit by the afternoon sun.

Plenty of people are enjoying the beach … we’re satisfied with viewing it from a distance.

As I sit writing, the temp is only about 69F (20C) … way down from the high I noted in Elche earlier today — 86F (30C).  But the breeze is very light tonight so it doesn’t feel cold.  Tomorrow is another port of call in Spain.  Almería is the gateway for Granada, but we don't want to have to travel two hours to get there.  So we’ll be staying in town … which means we won’t need to rush off the ship in the morning … that’s a good thing.

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