We raced towards Alicante as this is where Denise wanted to spend her birthday.  Unfortunately this meant we didn't take a look around in mar menor which looks fantastic, it's a kind of mini med, a totally enclosed lagoon on the coast of Spain, from the anchorage it looked like a mini Miami.  We anchored in 'the compound', it's a future new marina but is currently simply a dredged area enclosed with 8 foot high steel sea walls.  Where we were in the compound was very ugly and a bit smelly, but a good price and totally protected from a nasty swell.  Hopefully we will catch a look at this place on the way back out.

 

Literally racing into Alicante, this is Moxie at full speed 9.5 knots.

 

Alicante is beautiful, very touristy though.

 

 

 There's a real mix of architecture here, I suppose the crane in the middle is adding more history but I doubt it'll look as nice.

 

Love this cafe with these huge trees that sprout roots from their trunks.  We've seen a few cafe's like this. 

 Palms galore in Alicante.

 

View from our berth in Alicante Marina, there have been a succession of conquests and changes of ownership in Alicante.  My favorite tale is when the British occupied it the castle and the Spaniards reclaimed it by tunneling beneath and laying dynamite, they destroyed half the castle but reclaimed Alicante.

 

Alicante Marina form the castle 

Street urchins.

 

 

Where else could this be but the Med?