Benidorm...

We set off from Mojacar at 7.30am this morning.

We had decided to travel up to La Zenia Boulevard Shopping Centre prior to visiting Benidorm just to have a quick mosey around and see what it was like...

This shopping centre has been open since 2012 and has 180 shops, plenty of coffee shops and restaurants too..As we were tight for time, we just popped in quickly to Primark for a few travel essentials and had a quick scoot around to see what was on offer.

The shopping centre is set out as boulevards and there are plenty of plant and flower displays around to give it a very pleasant feel. Extremely well maintained and spotlessly clean...

Great array of shops, and although we didn't have a lot of time, what we saw we liked...

Plenty of clothes shops, furniture, lighting, cosmetics, shoes, bags etc...

We'll be back for sure!

Onward then to Benidorm to meet up with Bridget and Erica who were staying at the Gran Bali...it's one of the tallest hotel in Benidorm..you can see why! I couldn't get the whole of the hotel in the photo!

After joining them for a few drinks and admiring the view from their hotel balcony...

We walked along the Paseo to look for somewhere to eat our evening meal..

We decided upon Tony Roma's Steakhouse & Rib Restaurant..

After totally stuffing ourselves to the limits with scrumptious burgers and fries, we decided on an early night as we had all been up since the early hours. Also we have decided to visit the La Nucia Rastro tomorrow morning, so it will be an early start.

We are staying at the La Estacion hotel, which is a 4 star on the outskirts...suits us fine as its away from all the noise!

We've all had a fantastic day, and really looking forward to tomorrow...so until then...

Buenos Noches...! xx

 

Posted with Blogsy

The day before Benidorm!

Woke up this morning to bright blue skies and a warm breeze.. Looking good..

 

The day before we set out for our Benidorm weekend!!!!! Yippee....can't wait...

We are meeting up with Bridget & Erica who are flying out from Bristol early tomorrow morning and staying in Benidorm for 5 nights... We're just travelling up for the weekend..

Anyway this morning we set out for Garrucha market..our usual early Friday morning haunt to stuff ourselves full with Ana's hot chocolate and churros..

To counteract this indulgence we parked half an hour away and walked into Garrucha via the labyrinth of narrow back streets..I love meandering through here as we always see a different house or a piece of architecture that we may have missed before...

Many of these houses look very small from the outside but they are actually quite large inside, like a Tardis! Also many have 70's decor on the outsides and plenty have very interesting tile decor..

The local church has the most magnificent door with a metal plague attached detailing Jesus and the Virgin Mary....I'm not religious but it is very impressive I must say!

Anyway...as I said, after stuffing said face with copious amounts of chocolate y churros we made our way back to the car....couldn't resist this photo (it was JD's idea!)..

Just before we arrived back at the car we came across an abandoned Cortijo...

It must have been very impressive in its day?

I had a midday appointment at the beauty salon in the Parque Commercial for my pedicure, so I'm all set to 'party on down' at the weekend now....

Benidorm here we come....!!!!!

 

Posted with Blogsy

Rain didn't stop play.....

This morning we awoke to grey skies...again...but that didn't deter us..we set off for Garrucha market. We parked outside the town so we could have a brisk walk along the promenade to warrant the calories we were about to consume!

Today's Friday....so that means Spanish chocolate & Churros at Ana's in Garrucha market. I like Garrucha market...it's one of my favourites that we visit....maybe it's because the wool man has his stall there??!! Anyway there are plenty of other stalls to feast your eyes upon..

Cold cuts...meats, cheeses, dried fish etc..the Spanish love this stand...

Potted plants, bunches of fresh flowers, always colourful! ....

The roast chicken man....pollo asado ( roast chicken )...

Sweets, nuts, dried fruit stand...always popular!....

Plus stunning displays of fresh fruit and vegetables....mind boggling!..

After we had gobbled up our chocolate & churros we set off back to the car and the heavens opened...I really mean opened...we got soaked!!!

Once back at the car we cranked up the car heaters to dry and dry off some. We had also planned to visit one of our longstanding favourite restaurants later this afternoon.

After a bit of shopping in Iceland ( the only place we can buy Shredded Wheat!) and a quick dip into the Chinese Mart next door for yarn supplies, we set off for our lunch.

We have been coming to Restaurante Cristobel for over 12 years now and it's still one of our favourites. It is situated in Sopalmo...just a few minutes drive outside Mojacar, in the way to Carboneros.

Sopalmo is a very small, pretty, typical Spanish village, and the Fiat Panda in the front of this house filled with plants always makes me smile!

The restaurant has moved across the road from its original location and is prettily decked out with flag bunting, so you can't miss it!

As I mentioned we've been coming here for well over 12 years and the menu and price has always remained the same....10€ per person..

For that you get a starter plate of cheeses and cold meat cuts, a large plate of salad, a drink of your choice, bread basket...

A choice is starter...I was so hungry I forgot to photograph it! ( I opted for the soup!.. It was divine!)

You then have a choice of Pork, Chicken or Lamb..we opted for the Roast Lamb chops(Cordero chuletas) which is accompanied with a few chips..

After polishing that off, you are offered a Postre (dessert), well it would be rude not to wouldn't it!!

Lemon meringue flan it was then....Whoops nearly forgot to photograph it!!!

All finished off with a cafe con leche and we're done! How much is all this you ask??

10 euros per person...fantastic value and highly recommended to all that pass this way!

All in all a very pleasant morning and afternoon...now it's back to the grind stone to continue with the crochet garlands...there's a wedding happening on May 3rd!!!!

 

Posted with Blogsy

Mojacar Carnival

As promised, here are a few photos of the Mojacar Carnival which took place on Sunday 15th February. It started at 5pm (ish)... You know how it is here..nothing ever starts on time!

We caught the local bus down to the Parque Commercial and walked along the Paseo Maritime down towards the Hotel Continental. Here we had a good view as the floats meandered along......slowly!

This float was named "super heroes" and had Batman and Spider-Man. The little kids jump on and off the floats to catch a ride along...

These were definitely my favourites....they all had cake stands and cakes on their heads!

All the troupes dance along as they go to VERY loud music which is pounding out of the lead car in front of them...they'd have to dance a lot today to keep warm!

These were very good, dancing all along the front and looking as if they were thoroughly enjoying themselves!....

As you can see the troupes can be quite scantily dressed...rather them than me...it was blowing a gale!...(as you can see from the palm trees)...

The sun has now gone down behind the mountains, so sorry the photo quality has diminished somewhat! The Apple iPad mini is an excellent piece of kit...BUT....one thing I would like to see improved is the night time photo quality..

All in all a very pleasant evening....even though it was extremely windy. Also it seemed to us that there were less floats this year?

We walked back to the Parque Commercial and caught the yellow bus back to our end of town..

Will finish off now, as it's Shrove Tuesday today and I have to go and make my Pancake mix for later!!!

Adios......x

 

Posted with Blogsy

Cuevas del Almanzora

We decided to take a short drive to Cuevas del Almanzora today to have a wander around the town.

Cuevas del Almanzora is one of the oldest towns in the province. In the early 19th century Silver was discovered in the nearby area, and Cuevas del Almanzora became home to many a fortune hunter.....the town got its name from the many artificial caves in the nearby hills once inhabited by the miners. This was the start of an age of splendour for the town.....

The impressive legacy of this silver rush can still be seen all around, especially in the elegant family houses of the mining barons, the grand avenues, churches and statues.

Many of these houses still remain, and it is well worth a meander through the narrow streets to gaze at the impressive bourgeois architecture, many of which are still inhabited today...

This one instantly caught my eye because of the incredible mosaic outer...completely covered on all floors!

Some of the buildings date back to the middle of the 1800's...

They must have been very, very grand in their day..

In the Plaza de la Constitution there is the Heroe de la Caridad (Hero of Charity) statue.

This is a dedication to a humanitarian benefactor who helped the area during the terrible floods of 1879..

Carrying on through the back streets we arrived at the Castillo. It is a palace/fortress built in the 16th century in the Gothic style and sits high up in the town..

Within the extensive grounds there is a keep, the Marquis Palace, a well and a Tercia. This was built in 1773 as a granary..

Great little nooks and crannies everywhere to peep out of!...

Exiting out of the main gate we were back into the plaza and took a right hand turn...

Just off the square we spied a cute little hostelry and peeked inside to see what it was all about...

El Castillo, is a really excellent tapas bar. Extremely friendly and great ambience. We weren't really certain what some of the dishes were, however, we were more than happy to taste 5 of the dishes on offer! Totally authentic atmosphere and the Spanish customers that were already there warmly welcomed us in and instantly shared a freshly cooked plate of whitebait with us!

By the way the dish on the far right that looks like liver is in fact Sangre which turns out to be congealed blood!!!! Yikes... Can't believe I ate that...

Of course hubby had to have the snails too...The total bill came to €9...bargain!

We would both highly recommend a visit here if you enjoy tapas and you are looking for the "real deal"...

All in all a very, very pleasant Saturday was spent meandering around, never knowing what was around the next corner, plus the weather was warm and the sun was shining!!

Until next time... Mojacar Carnival tomorrow so may list some pics of that for you...

Adios...xx

 

Posted with Blogsy