Stopover in Alicante

Between the hot dusty deserts and sweaty loud markets of Morocco and the cool, quiet, rainy forests of Norway, my generic cheap airline carrier stopped over in Alicante on the Mediterranean coast of Spain. I arrived in the afternoon but my connecting flight was early the next morning.My first time in Spain: it seemed more laid-back, and more like a developing Asian country, but still European.

I made my way, as prearranged, to Jean Francois Queralt's flat in downtown Alicante. I decided not to couchsurf as this would mean catching an exorbitant taxi to the airport early in the morning, before the buses started running. Instead, I would only visit Jean-Francois in Alicante and then go back to sleep at the airport overnight. Although I could not stay longer than 10:40pm when the last bus would leave for the airport, Jean-Francois was kind enough to welcome me into his home, allowing me some rest and a Chinese dinner of dumplings and give me a quick tour of the Spanish town with a Chinese friend visiting from Germany.

The magnificent view from Jean-Francois' apartment of the Old Spanish castle on the mountain. My dad once told me that having a mountain behind one's house provided a sense of stability, magnificence and safety.

[Horchata picture]

For the benefit of Jean, this is the Vampire Weekend 'Horchata' song that I metioned: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bkUQ-OBazbc

A mosaic-tiled park bench that foreshadowed and psyched me up for Barcelona and my return to Spain with Aimee in six weeks time.

The 'Jerk-off' park, I cannot remember why, but perhaps it explains the virility and health of the Banyan trees.

An intelligent busking attempt: a man with ghoulish face-paint manually commands two other puppet heads and pretends to be three decapitated heads on a table, scaring passerbys.

Old town, new technology.

Alicante Town Hall and some crazy tourist doing a funny pose in the background.

From this point in town, one can see the profile silhouette of a man in the mountain. Coincidentally, he was meant to be a Berber like the ones I had just met in Morocco.