38:50.406N      00:07.230E       Denia

15^th September, 2009.

The land of thunder and lightning and crazy torrential rain.  On 15^th we left the anchorage at Calpe and motor sailed up to Cabo Nao.  As we approached Thor sent some thunder squalls that past ahead of us and we missed them, but as we closed on Cabo Nao the world disappeared and an almighty thunder, lightning and rain storm hit us. The more we rounded Cabo Nao, an impressive volcanic cliff headland, the more we came out of the lee of the land and faced into the force of the NW wind.  It was soon approaching 30 knots over the deck and some large seas and this was only the start of about 10 miles from there to Denia.  We turned Ariel around and flew downwind 5 miles back to Moraira.   Here there is shelter from the NW wind and tranquil beautiful small bay.  Along the cliff are built many fabulous villas that one would need a good Lottery win to buy.  We anchored here overnight in relative peace and quite except for the thunder and lightning flashing and banging all around.

On the 16^th the weather in the morning was better so we sailed early and went up past Cabo Nao admiring the dramatic cliffs and the cliff top property  On past Javea and Cabo Antonio another massive volcanic cliff headland and onto the marina at Denia.  By the afternoon in Denia the thunder, lighning and rain had returned.

While Jim was shaking out the sail cover an English gentleman stopped to say hello.  As we chatted about where we came from and had worked, Ashlea Medical Practice was named.  This chap is not only a patient but also related to a member of staff.  What a small world!

Denia marina is modern and very interesting.  Lots of restaurants ground and first floor overlooking the boats, shops and yacht brokers the whole length of the marina.  At night the whole marina is lit with pretty lights everywhere.

Denia is a historic town that dates back to way before the Romans to the 1^st century BC.  We walked into Denia and visited the castle high above the town.  There is a lot of restoration work going on all around the castle which may take another two to three years to complete.  Inside the museum are many artefacts such as the casks which were filled with wine and transported on ships for supplies on board.  Many pictures have been painted or drawn to illustrate how these items were used. In an old cellar were large photographs probably that date back over 100 years  of the castle and surrounding area before a lot of land was reclaimed and the houses, blocks of flats and the large harbour was built in front of it.  There were also some old historic paintings that showed the scene many hundreds of years ago. We can recommend Tasca Eulalia restaurant in Marques de Campo where we had a lovely Tapas lunch.

We returned to Ariel in the marina before the thunder started again and then experience wild down drafts of wind from the nearby mountain and clocked 40 knots gusts in the marina.