Prowling my world, camera in hand

31 December 2024

Week 51: Christmas in Alicante

Filed under: — Administrator @ 08:30

This was the last full week of 2024. I was not working anymore, so there was plenty of time for cycling and walking around, and then we celebrated Christmas at home and got together with friends on Boxing Day.

51_1
On the morning of the 22nd, I walked down to the beach to see the first sunrise after the solstice. While waiting for the sun, I looked at a man and his dog at the water’s edge:
DSF3216

51_2
Stretching:
DSF3220

51_3
The sun appears, and I feel a tiny bit pagan:
DSF3226

51_4
Another way to see the rays of the rising sun, looking at the small details:
DSF3229

51_5
Or looking at the grand vista:
DSF3230

51_6
Later that morning, I cycled north to Villajoyosa, stopping at a small beach just south of the town, Playa Bol Nou. I like the view of Alicante in the distance:
1040658

51_7
It may be late December, but a few people still enjoy the beach. Playa Bol Nou is mostly used by people who live in the immediate vicinity:
1040659

51_8
A big rock formation separates Playa Bpl Nou from the larger beaches closer to the town:
1040655

51_9
In the afternoon, my wife and I went for lunch at a local restaurant (5 minutes walk from our house) called Casa Segis. It is am amazing deal. For 37 EUR you get a great menu with several appetisers like this one, followed by a paella of your choice, with unlimited beer and soft drinks:
R000734

51_10
Our rice with lamb and artichokes was excellent:
R000735

51_11
On Monday I met up for lunch with my former trainee Romy, who is now studying at the College of Europe in Bruges but was back in Alicante, spending the holidays with her parents here. As always, Romy was more than happy to pose for an informal portrait:
DSF3233

51_12
On Tuesday I started the day with another bike ride, stopping in Verdegás to say hello to the cats there:
1040672

51_13
In the afternoon I went to the centre for some last-minute Christmas shopping. The city was crowded, many other people had the same idea:
DSF3243

51_14
Having done my shopping, I settled down for a beer at Malatesta to deal with the trauma:
DSF3244

51_15
Other people did the same:
DSF3249

51_16
Then Christmas morning arrived, and the presents were under the tree:
R000739

51_17
Our daughter has been to Barcelona a couple of times this year, and she contributed a Catalan feature to our tree, a tío de nadal:
R000740

51_18
Gifts were exchanged:
R000741

51_19
After the gift exchange, I put the camera on self-timer and we made this year’s official cheesy family portrait:
R000751

51_20
We had the Christmas lunch at the house of our friends Eliot and Assumpta. My wife contributed this creation to the table, an edible Christmas tree:
DSF3253

51_21
My wife with Eliot, who put a goofy hairpiece:
DSF3266

51_22
Balu looking for tummy rubs:
DSF3265

51_23
On Boxing Day I cycled to Jijona. I had noticed this embellished road sign during previous rides, but this time I stopped to photograph it:
1040676

51_24
Along the road to Jijona there is a large vegetable farm. The crops are varied, but here is a large field of artichokes:
1040678

51_25
1040677

51_26
On my way back, I stopped to photograph something else that I had noticed before but never stopped to photograph. The road on which I cycled passed under a motorway, and someone has painted the supporting columns. The murals are quite elaborate, well beyond the usual tagging, and I have no idea how they came about:
1040692

51_27
1040694

51_28
1040697

51_29
1040696

51_30
Inspired by our upcoming trip to Puerto Rico, my wife decided to make pasteles, a traditional Puerto Rican dish that is very labour intensive. Her mother used to make it when we visit, but does not do it anymore:
DSF3277

51_31
The filling is finely chopped pork, cooked in oil and a sofrito made from garlic, cilantro and other good things:
DSF3278

51_32
The base is a mix of ñame (yam) and plaintains, finely ground, everything placed on a banana leaf:
DSF3275

51_33
The banana leaf is folded to create the pasteles:
DSF3276

51_34
The pasteles are tied with string and then boiled:
DSF3279

51_35
A couple of random images from my walks. A guy outside Malatesta with a different Santa outfit:
DSF3268

51_36
A father playing with his children on the beach wall:
DSF3283

51_37
I finished the week with a long ride south to Elche and Santa Pola, passing Alicante airport. I stopped to take a picture of a Transavia plane taking off. This brought memories of my year in Seville in 2003-2004, when I commuted between Amsterdam and Seville on a weekly basis, most of the time on this airline, a low-cost subsidiary of KLM:
1040702

51_38
The southern-most point of my ride, the fishing harbour of Santa Pola:
1040706

51_39
I was being watched from the top of the fishermen’s association building:
1040707

51_40
On my way home, I cycled along the small coastal road, and looked up at the subdivisions in the hills above. The people living there certainly have a nice view:
1040712

And so ends the 24th year of posting weekly pictures.

No Comments

No comments yet.

RSS feed for comments on this post.

Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.

Powered by WordPress