Amazing Alicante

After leaving Gibraltar we were able to get our sea legs with a 50 hour passage from Gib to Alicante.

We didn’t really know much about Alicante other than it was a big yachting town and was perfectly positioned for us to arrive during the middle of the day after a couple of nights on passage.

While this boat is so much more comfortable under passage than others - its still really nice to arrive at a port and put your feet on land.

Alicante turned out to be a magnificent spot that we would have loved to stop and enjoy for longer. Meandering through the beautiful cobblestone streets and stopping to look at the shops and refuelling at the many Tapas bars was a delightful way top spend our time there.

View of Alicante town with the Castell in the background from our marina berth

Cobblestone laneways of Alicante

Enjoying some of the local fare

After the night passages we thoroughly enjoyed the full night sleep tied up in the safety of the marina and so after a nice sleep in we decided it was time to get the blood pumping. The local Crossfit gym that Glenn goes to were kind enough to create a bunch of work out plans that we could do together as a family on the boat or on shore so we decided to give one of these a go. Its been super hot here in Spain so we were well and truly hot and sweaty after a workout involving lots of burpees, sprints, push ups and improvised box jumps!!

After our “sweat-fest” we topped up the reserves with some fresh orange juice and toast with tomato and olive oil - which seems to be what the locals do for brekky here and we are definitely fans of this simple little dish.

We probably didn’t do our maths too well on our step count for the day because straight after breakfast we trekked up the considerably steep hilltop to view the Castell de Santa Barbara which towers as an impressive backdrop to the old town of Alicante.

Second workout of the day - the climb to top of Castell de Santa Barbara

This castle was first built by the Arabs in around 700AD and they continued to occupy it and the surrounding area until the Spanish Castilian forces, led by Alfonso of Castile, conquered them in 1296. It was named Saint Barbara Bec cause it was her feast day that the castle was recaptured from the Arabs.

The view from the top is definitely worth the climb and we always find it so incredible to visit sites like this that have such a rich history…if only the walls could talk.

View from the top…and Baruch parked right at the end of the finger.

With enough stair climbing for a week under our belts we set out to top up the fridges with some produce and then dropped our lines to head further east ready to make the 60 mile crossing from the mainland to Ibiza the next day.