29th May – 2nd June 2013: San Juan & Alicante (Spain)

San Juan de Alicante is a small village in the east of Spain. It does not really have much by my parents use it as a base for my father’s diving trips. I sometimes tag along. We usually drive there and believe it or not, I found the Windows XP background.

We usually stay in something akin to a resort that is not stupidly expensive because it is not close to the beach. It has a big garden and a swimming pool and it is generally quiet, especially when it’s not school-holiday period.

On the 30th we went to have dinner near Playa de San Juan, the town’s beach, and we were treated to a pretty sunset.

There is not much more to do there, so on the 31st we went to Alicante, to visit the Santísima Trinidad, Holy Trinity vessel, which was anchored at the harbour. The original Santísima Trinidad was a galleon built in Cuba in 1769. It had three decks, but a fourth was added during a later restoration after it was severely damaged in 1797. In 1803 it was put in action again with 140 cannon guns. On the 21st of October 1805, the ship took place in the Battle of Trafalgar against the English, and it was eventually made prisoner and sunk with all the wounded and defeated soldiers on board. The galleon moored in Alicante is a replica, which dubs as café and restaurant, of the three-dock Holy Trinity.

The ship also offers some nice views of the city of Alicante and the Castillo de Santa Bárbara (Santa Bárbara’s castle).

We walked around the Paseo Marítimo, Seaside Walk.

On the 1st we took a walk around San Juan (and I floated like a seal in the swimming pool).

Not an exciting trip but mostly a laid-back, relaxing weekend.