Coming from the desert, the Mediterranean Sea is a good change for us. In several, small daily stages we drive comfortably towards the north. The destination is Alicante. On the way along the Mediterranean coast, we visit Cartagena and the Mar Menor lagoon. From Cartagena it is not far to Alicante.

Region around Cartagena

Near Puerto de Mazarrón we find a comfortable parking place directly at the beach. That’s the way to live. Unfortunately, the weather does not want to play along gently. Since we stand on a 10m high hill, the strong wind blows the whole slope up to us. We have pity with our van Ben. It sounds as if we had landed in the middle of a sandblast. Before still real damage develops, it pulls us further to the Mar Menor.

Mar Menor Lagoon

The lagoon Mar Menor is really big. From one end of the lagoon to the other it is far more than 10km. Accordingly, on a hazy day we can’t even see over to the other shore. The lagoon is popular with all water sports enthusiasts and that is exactly why we are here. There is a nice beach section in Los Alcázares with a super cozy atmosphere. There are also two kite centers to rent a kite. As we often do when kiting in Europe, we have to wait for the wind. There is a little wind, then again not anymore. The rental equipment was not available in all sizes, so this has to be taken into account. In the meantime, the locals are on the beach with their equipment, have set up everything and dare to kite one or two lengths. But nobody really stays on the heights, because the wind blows a bit too weak to go upwind.

It was not to be and so we decided against further waiting and to continue to Alicante.

Alicante – a tourist stronghold

We choose a parking place directly at the water for the next one or two nights. Since we drive from the south to Alicante, we do not notice at first that we have landed in the middle of a tourist stronghold. Of course, only by chance there is a free place directly at the water. Perhaps we do not have this luck a second time. So, we stay for three nights at this picturesque place. As we drive on towards Alicante, we see the full extent of the camper flood. At least 80 campers stand here on the parking areas along the sea close to each other. If we would have realized this from the beginning, we would have probably directly continued. This is definitely no longer our understanding of decent and respectful treatment of nature and the locals.

We change the pitch to the Barranc de las Salinas. Near Alicante we find a large hiking area. Here it can be endured. We are in the middle of nature, little used roads lead to small hamlets. The views are breathtaking and mainly characterized by the Barranc de las Salinas. The water course, which is dry at the moment, has washed out the terrain in impressive formations. This view is so special for us that we almost can’t get enough of it. The colors in the rocks contribute to an extraordinary sight. Green, red, red-brown and other color facets come to the foreground through the washouts and compose a unique natural play of colors.

Now we really feel like coming back to the middle of civilization. Especially Mimi is drawn to a brunch, which we actually never make that rich and with pancakes in the bus. Normally, we make the breakfast sufficiently rich but much simpler. Perfect – this is possible in Alicante.
The brunch is also very good. An all-around happy Mimi makes Paddy happy too. While driving through the city, however, we noticed that the city is extremely accustomed for tourists. In addition, it is apparently much less well-kept than other major Spanish cities that we have already visited.
Alicante will probably not be our case, but we still find two nice corners. Of course, we don’t let our first impression of the city deter us from a little sightseeing tour.

Alicante

Castell de la Santa Bàrbara

First, we climb the city hill of Alicante. But we do not climb by muscle power. The height difference can be bridged comfortably by a lift ride. This also makes sense, so we don’t arrive at the top drenched in sweat.
From the castle we enjoy the view over the harbor, the promenade and the city. The castle itself is very simple. There are isolated, larger rooms but without much pomp. This is certainly due to the early laying of the foundation stone in the 9th century.
After the view, we walk down from the castle hill and land directly in the old town of Alicante.

Old town of Alicante

Alicante waits with a small old town. Here we can refresh a small insight into already visited, Spanish old towns. All in all, however, it is not as inviting and well-kept as in other places. Perhaps this is because tourism in Alicante is more focused on other experiences. The beach and the shopping facilities are very much in the foreground here.

Cala del Moraig

Cala del Moraig beach is located northeast of Alicante in a bay directly on the turquoise Mediterranean Sea. The bay is framed with rugged cliffs, making for a dramatic photo scene. We are content with a short visit on foot, without swimming or lingering long on the beach. We want to move on soon because we want to keep to our – for once – timed itinerary.

After this stopover, we persistently continue on our way north. Finally, we have to be in Valencia at an agreed date. More visitors are waiting for us on our trip!