my torrevieja diary

Ride the train

Before you get the wrong idea: Torrevieja doesn’t have a train station. Once upon a time, it had, but all that’s left today are a few rusting rails and a derelict building. Another of several eye sores which mar a town with otherwise a lot of potential for being really pretty. Sometimes I don’t understand the priorities of the town planners, but, not for me to argue.

You have to go to Alicante to go on the train trip I have in mind. No hardship, car or bus will take you there. Then, make your way towards RENFE, turn right into the Avenida de la Estacion (right opposite) until you see signs with a capital T in a red circle followed by the word TRAM. The station is called Luceros and there is another one, Mercado, but don’t follow if someone tells you you can get on on the beach. That stop is not in operation.

Descend to the station, buy your ticket and be on your way for a memorable day trip or even longer, as your fancy might take you.

The little train, which some call a tramway and others refer to as the gorge train(rightly so, as you will see later) is a light railway which leads along the coast all the way to Denia.

No better way to see the coast and one pretty town and resort after another. L1 takes you from Alicante to Benidorm, passing the incredibly beautiful and long beach of Campello.

Change train to L9 by just crossing over. Connections tend to be very good and, anyway, you will be given a timetable together with your ticket at Luceros.

From Benidorm onwards, it gets really nice.  A highlight is Altea which you reach after approx. 30 minutes from Benidorm passing by the gorge. After that you can admire the peon of Calpe and then onwards to Teulada which is the stop for Moreira.

I didn’t go all the way to Denia yet, but I will on another outing and stay there over night. It really is the best way to see all the pretty coastal towns and villages on one side and the steep mountains on the other. And it’s cheap too.

I missed last year´s, but I wasn´t going to let this year´s Carnival parade escape.

February is carnival time all over Spain, the most famous ones being those of Cadiz and Tenerife. Good old Torrevieja isn´t missing out as far as any festival is concerned. They do a tapas tour, flower offering to the Virgin Mary, they celebrated the arrival of the Three Kings by boat and Easter will see a lot of festivities too.

Carnival in Torrevieja sees more than just one day of colourful parades. The cofradias and comparsas compete during three days, a day parade, a night parade, a carnival for kids and the queen has also already been crowned.

Yesterday´s event was the day parade, starting at 4.30 pm (or thereabouts) and culminating in the awards ceremony in the plaza opposite the Town Hall and Church. Along Ramon Gallud, there were walking, plenty of chairs thoughtfully provided , music livening things up.

I made my way to Ramon Gallud, prepared to wait. Luckily, the sun was shining, but it was bitter cold and, still suffering from a terrible cold I caught when I visited the Medieval Market in Orihuela, I started getting uncomfortable and, much to my regret, decided to pack it in and go home.

But, as is so often the case, the travel Gods were with me. I live close to Playa de los Locos in Avenida de las Habaneras and I was half way home when, to my right, I heard music and saw the sun glinting off a lot of gold. I turned towards it and, totally unexpectedly, had come upon the point where all the participants were gathering and lining up for the parade.

Surprisingly few spectators were around and I could freely move among them. It was like an open air dressing room, as the girls and guys were putting the final touches to their make up and costumes out of carrier bags and warming up with coffee and drinks piled onto makeshift tables.

They were only too happy to pose for photos, valiantly hiding their goose bumps behind broad smiles. I chatted to them, asked about their cofradias and even helped one guy to fix his false eyelashes which were coming off.

This was a far better and really  close up carnival experience than I could ever have had among the crowd lining the street.