Costa Blanca, fabulous weather all year round.

Suddenly, it was October and there were still so many things we wanted to do.  One of those was to visit our new friends Mike and Pam who live in the Costa Blanca region of south eastern Spain. 

We scheduled a week in early October and after a 7 hour bus ride, met them in the very strange coastal city of Benidorm.  They city is strange because it appears to have been built to be an apartment/hotel community for the Germans and Brits to flock to in the winter.  It was full of expats so I guess the strategy paid off.  We wandered the surprisingly crowded streets before settling in for a nice glass of wine and tapas (Mike had a Belgian beer).  We immediately realized why everyone was out, the prices for a drink and a tapa were absolutely unbelievably low.  We were told that many of the hotel and apartment packages include all three meals a day and that for some Germans and Brits it is actually cheaper to come to Benidorm on a package for the coldest months of winter than it is to heat their houses at home.  (Not being either we can’t vouch for this but Mike and Pam are both Brits and assured us it was possible.) 

Later we traveled to a really quaint Chinese restaurant where Mike and Pam were obviously regulars so we let them order.  We filled up on some very good Chinese food and drank our fill of wine (except for the other Mike who was driving) and were surprised at the incredibly low cost of around 30 euros for the four of us.  Each meal came with appetizers, soup or salad, egg rolls, a main dish, desert and a half a bottle of wine (your choice, red or white) for between 6 and 8 euros per person.  The food was great so we were left to wonder….how the heck do they make any money?

Then it was off to Mike’s very large, multi-story, recently remodeled home for bed. He bought the place years ago as a ruin.  Over the last several years he has transformed it into a showplace. 

It was beautiful in every way, with a large garden and  a swimming pool, huge terraces with outdoor cooking facilities, 6 bedrooms, 5 bathrooms, 2 kitchens, 2 salons, a huge dining room and an office.

  He can completely close off the top from the bottom level and sometimes rents out the bottom to vacationers from….yep, you guessed it…Germany or the UK.

In the morning it was off to explore the area a bit, we headed for Denia and had lovely views on the drive over.  These small towns are dotted all along this stretch of the coast between Alicante and Valencia, the areas has beautiful hills going right down to the beaches and the slopes are planted in grapes, oranges and olives.  After Denia we headed inland a bit to Orba where Pam has her lovely home high on a hillside covered with gardens abundant with all kinds of different flowers.  Spectacular views from the windows and terraces made a simple lunch feel like a special treat.

In the afternoon back over to Mike’s place in Benissa where we relaxed at home for a while and Mike cooked up a fresh fish pie for dinner.  Thursday morning we were off to see the coastline.  First stop, a fry up (British style fried eggs, potatoes, bacon, etc.) at a lovely little place right out on the water in Calp.

The weather was perfect and the Mediterranean was inviting but the water is a bit chilly in October for us poor Arizonans, so we settled for a stroll along the boardwalk, with a little bit of a stop for a champagne pick me up at the far end.

Next along the coast was a stop at Moraira where there is a lovely marina area where we found…an Irish pub…such as it was.  Then on to Xabia for a great view of the rocky point jutting out into the Med with the fishing harbor tucked right in underneath it. 

Fresh seafood of all kinds readily available for reasonable prices and great views in every direction, what more could you want?

In the afternoon we headed to Benissa for a wine tasting event that Mike was in charge of, we tasted several lovely Spanish wines all available for prices unheard of in the states.  This wine tasting club has a special charter, they only work with vineyards that have wine to sell at 4 euros a bottle or less.  Believe it or not, in Spain it is very possible to find excellent wines in this price range.

After a quick recovery nap in the afternoon we headed off to a lovely restaurant that over looked the valley below Mike’s place, they had a mouth-watering menu and some of the best food we have eaten in Spain.  Appetizer, salad, main course, desert and half a bottle of wine for 12-15 euros per person included great service and a chat with the chef.

Early Friday we were up and headed to Benidorm to catch our bus for the 7 hour ride back home to Granada.  Costa Blanca was lovely, thanks Mike and Pam for your warm hospitality and delightful company.