Eldership 2025 Spain - The Magical Unicorn Pony God of Travel Takes on de-I & the VEFS

Up on the very lowest slopes of Mount Olympus, barely acceptable to any deity, no matter how lowly, the Magical Unicorn Pony God of Travel (MUPGT) resides. She looks down on the world  of travel, seeking opportunities to sow mischief. She is a bit bored. She really didn't have much to do with the shutdown of the U.S. government though it has certainly caused plenty of chances for travel chaos. She is old school. She relishes the more personal travel disruption interaction. Call it the clash of heroes from the classic Greek literature. 

Ah! What is this she spies. It is one of her favorite foes, de-Intimidator. He's getting ready to go to the Alicante airport evidently to return some mercenaries he hired to do some dirty deed. Since he is not himself flying, he will never be suspecting a bit of torment from MUPGT. That will be his misfortune.

Wife and I, Wednesday morning had the VEFS crew up and ready to head to the airport. We set off with plenty of time. It is hard to believe that the fearsome Vikings 3.1 and 3.2 have to fly as unaccompanied minors. This is always a bit of a pain at the airport but something we have dealt with numerous times.

We know our way to the airport quite well now. Many of our day trips have gone right by it. As we get to the exit off the highway, however, the traffic is completely backed up. Fortunately, I see vehicles pulling out of line and determine there is a breakdown in front of us. We've lost some time but not that much.

Now we head into the airport. We know where to go to park. Well we should know. For some reason, Wife and I miss the turn (which is for arrivals and then to the parking garage) and go to departures. What the @!%$. This is terra incognita for us. There is a HUGE back up. Turns out the only way through is to go through an express parking area. You get a ticket. Enter. It is a single lane. THEN you have to wait as cars BACK INTO DIAGONAL PARKING PLACES. Crazy. This takes valuable time. I can hear a snickering from the ether. I have suspicion. We finally get through, Exit and go around the airport, reenter and park where we should. 

Now we go to our airline (Norwegian of course for Vikings) to check-in and do the unaccompanied minor thing. The line is long but not too long. But there are some people ahead who have some issues and are taking a lot of time. By the time we get to the agent it is 45 minutes before boarding. In fact, we are a few minutes later than that. We know this because the agent says we were to be there 45 minutes ahead of time and the Vikings' reservations have been deleted. (Uproarious laughter on lower slopes of Olympus.)

Wife calmly says we were in line in plenty of time and cannot control someone ahead of us having a problem. The agent reluctantly acquiesces. She calls her supervisor and they reinstate 3.1 & 3.2. (Humph of disapproval on Olympus). BUT, the agent says, "Do you have the special form for each Viking that has to be filled out in duplicate?" #3 never told us of any forms (she says she checked on their website and there is no mention of it). The agent gives us the forms that we now need all of us to fill out as it requires information only known to the Vikings as well as our own. (Equine smirking..."Time is running out de-I"). 

We finally get the forms completed. Boarding passes and passes for Wife and I are provided. They tell us they've called the gate but we need to not tarry. Well conditioned from following the Vikings around their conquests, Wife and I hustle with them to security. Wife puts down her pass on the reader to gain entry. In she goes. 3.1 does the same. Nothing. Multiple tries. Nothing. 3.2 tries. Nothing. The security person tells us we need to go back to the check in counter to see what the problem is with our the boarding passes. (Raucous demi-deity laughter wafts over the supernatural communication pathway. "You will never make it now de-I.)

Back to the check-in counter. Wife is having nothing to do with lines and just muscles her way back to the agent (even the Vikings are impressed with this martial prowess...MUPGT, not so happy). The agent realizes she gave 3.1. and 3.2 the old arriving boarding passes, not the new ones. Updated boarding passes in hand, it is back to security. In go 3.1 & 3.2. But now Wife's entry pass isn't working. Since she used it once to get in, it is no longer valid. Wife talks the security agent into letting us all through.

(What the &@#!$ MUGPT shouts with dismay!)

Boarding has already started. We have to go through a huge long shopping arcade (typical of international airports) before we get to the gates. But the Vikings gate is the very first one. And unaccompanied minors are the last to board. We even have time to quickly get a drink for the two warriors. 

 

"You haven't heard the last from us Magical Unicorn Pony God of Travel! We are Vikings and know plenty of good recipes for Grilled Unicorn."

Europe Fall 2024 - Assault On Alicante's Santa Barbara Castle

This post done in conjunction with the official historian of VEFS (Viking Expeditionary Force from Sweden), 3.1

WE ARE REINFORCED

THE RE-RECONQUISTA CONTINUES

ONWARD!

SANTA BARBARA CASTLE, GUARDING THE GREAT PORT OF ALICANTE, AWAITS

 Our objective

Our Viking Mercenaries have insisted they be given command of this expedition since they will bear the brunt of the losses. As Wife and I, the ElderFleet Command's forces are only two, who are we to object. As so often in the past, we have to fill all the roles. We are assigned the duties to capture in pictures the glorious capture of the Santa Barbara Castle.

The rations for being a war photographer for the Vikings are meager at best

Viking Commander, Direct from Sweden, the Fearsome 3.2

 

 Or Point Two as she is known on this mission

She lays out the battle plan to second-in-command, Point One, and Wife

We will have gain access to the Castle via mining

The focused Point Two prepares us for the assault

She is a no nonsense commander

The lower part of the castle falls relatively easy. The upper keep will be much more difficult. 

 

The ElderFleet leaders have promised to send reinforcements. Point Two contemplates ravishing the city once the conquest is complete.

Where are those reinforcements?

Seriously? These are our reinforcements?

At least they sent us a supply of special grenades donated by the descendants of the Conversos of New Mexico

ASSAULT THE HEIGHTS!

"Point One, I fear we are going to be counter-attacked by a relief force"

We shall defeat them

My 'Duck Face' will cause them to flee for their lives and sanity!" Point One cries (This segment posted under protest of 3.1)

"But Point Two, I must tell you, as a mercenary, I work for the highest price. And I have been hired by the locals to take you out!"

"Then Die Traitor!"

Looking out over her captured domain

Counting the spoils of victory and the price of it

Triumphant March through the captured City

Europe Fall 2024 - Castillian Invasion (Or) Arrival Of The Niece

One of the lovely things about our stay here in El Campello is our being close to so many family members. Not only to do we have our Granddaughter 2.2 just a couple of hours away, but our closest niece and fellow blogger, RGM now lives in Madrid, only a bit more than 3 and a half hours away by train from Alicante (which is only 30 minutes drive from our apartment). So on Monday afternoon off we went to pick her up for nice five day visit here.

Our original plan was to spend Tuesday wandering about El Campello giving her a good feel for this beach side town so very different than the nation's capital of Madrid. However, a quick reconnaissance observation from our tower noted that all our local supermarkets were closed again???? This was when Wife went on line and we discovered there was yet ANOTHER holiday (the third in 9 days), this one specifically for the town of El Campello. 

With nothing better to do we decided to run into Alicant/Alicante itself. While El Campello has been very quiet while we've been there, Alicant was mobbed with tourists!

But before we go into that, we should discuss a bit about the local language, Valencian.

Valencian is generally considered by linguists to be a dialect or variety of the Catalan language. While Valencian and Spanish are both Romance languages spoken in Spain, they have significant differences:

• Valencian is more closely related to Catalan than to Spanish, belonging to a different branch of the Romance language family.
• It has distinct vocabulary, pronunciation, and grammar from Spanish
• Valencian uses Catalan orthography rather than Spanish orthography 
• Mutual intelligibility between Valencian and Spanish is limited, whereas Valencian and Catalan are mutually intelligible

  So you will note we often refer to Alacant instead of Alicante - the Valencian version rather than the Spanish version of the name. Also, we refer to 'Castilian' Spanish since it derives from the old kingdom of Castile that dominated the Reconquista during the late Middle Ages. There is tension between these groups and a feeling that the Castilian influence is a bit arrogant and overbearing. 

Visit to Alacant

 Valencian language be damned - It is the Spanish Flag we see

It was not a great light/sky day for picture taking and we were not really in photo taking mode. And as much as I like this area, I would not call Alicant/Alicante the most photogenic city I've been to (unlike Valencia for example)

 

A sad example of Lamps

But as Wife has noted, a FINE example of Butt Statuary

 

 😡

 

 The Ancient Enemy

Examples of the Famed Alicant Square Oak Tree

 Tell me...who WOULDN'T want to repaint their place after this.

 Alicant does have a rather interesting church whose exterior is quite different and from an earlier time than most of what we've seen in this area.

 A better example of a lamp

 The Niece

 Around Alicant

 Local Monument to Decisive Decision-Making

 We returned to our apartment, whipped up a wonderful pasta with cheese sauce and enjoyed a spectacular full moon over the Mediterranean.

Mostly Spain 2023 - Radio Silence Is Not Indicative Of Lack Of Activity

 The opposite. We have been going like crazy people. Well, we've been going like Eldership commandos who should know better than to be going so much! But we wanted to be sure that the grandchildren got a good experience of both the area we were in Spain and of our way of traveling (which they'd never experienced before). 

On Sunday, 1.2 wanted to do the major amusement park in the area (which as fate would have it was only 10 minutes from where we were staying). He and his sister did that on Sunday. 

On Monday, we went back to Alicante. We went by tram, went back up to the castle where the kids wandered all over. Then we took the elevator down to the waterfront (didn't do that the first time we went), and wandered all through the town until we got back to the tram line and came home. We had a rather interesting culinary experience which I will relate below in the pictures.

Tuesday was drive to Valencia day to go to the City of Arts and Sciences, and amazing architectural complex, and specifically to go to the Aquarium, the largest in Europe. Wife and I had hoped to do some photography, as well, but the sky was ominous as we were exiting the Aquarium and starting to rain. We managed to get to our car and make it out of Valencia (with the usual navigational chaos - had to give the grandkids the REAL Eldership Euro driving experience) before the heavens opened up. I had a good 20 minutes of very hairy driving before we broke clear. 

Wednesday, we drove to the beachfront of Benidorm for one last Mediterranean coast experience. Benidorm, is major expat and tourist destination. It has its own vibe compared to El Campello and La Villajoiosa.

Thursday, the grandkids had a 12:20pm flight back home from Madrid. So we were on the road at 5am for the 4 hour drive back. Actually longer, because I planned for and absolutely needed a number of stops along the way to rest, get caffeinated, and refocus as I was very tired from the prior days and the only driver. 

But we had got to the airport with plenty of time, got them checked in, saw them off through security, waited until we knew the flight was off the ground. Then we went to our hotel and collapsed. We leave tomorrow for our next stop, Florida.

Photos

City of Arts and Science (a fascinating place and story. For more information go here.)

We only had a time to take a few quick pictures on our way to the aquarium

 

 

 I didn't even notice there was a guy repelling down the face of this building until I was looking at the pictures afterwards.

In the Aquarium

It is a very challenging environment with the combination of dim light,  shooting through glass, and capturing moving objects. I took a lot of pictures but most were Meh.

Rays. Love Rays.

And I was able to get some good Jellyfish shots too. Love Jellyfish!

An Alicante Culinary Tale

After the long tram ride, getting up to the castle, and running around the castle when we went to Alicante again, it was mid-afternoon and lunch time when we got down. We were on the waterfront so we knew things were going to be touristy. We stopped at a place that had enough things for all the varied tastes of our group. It was pretty busy. We were outside, at a table that was partially in the sun and it was hot. We placed our drink order, then our food order. The drinks came out. A table opened up that was completely shaded. We asked if we could move. This for some reason got our waiter completely out of joint. From that point on we were fully ignored. We tried to get his attention. Finally after 20 minutes, I just had us bail. I left some cash for the drinks and we headed out.

Now we were looking at the various places with a different eye altogether. None of them were appealing to us. Wife and I remembered the excellent meal we had on the waterfront our first visit to Alicante. It was on the opposite side of the waterfront. I found it but it was closed on Monday (Boooooo). We sat at another place. But I took a close look at the prices and realized they were almost double the going rates. So we got up and left again. 

Now we decided to get off the waterfront. Just a couple of blocks inland, we bumped into this small place advertising real Alicante food. There were a few tables outside on a side street that were full but nobody inside. We went in. The waiter was so nice, so pleasant. The food was very different and very, very good. There were a couple of toppings for bread that defied my ability to analyze them (like the sauce I had on the chicken at Lami in El Campello). Then we went into our main meal.

A homemade falaffel

Fried Potatoes with a Mushroom Stroganoff topping. Very good flavor. A bit heavy considering the main course 1.1 and I got

Wife had salmon on a bed of potatoes and a cream sauce. She thought the sauce was a bit too much but the fish was very good.

 

And then the star, a rice dish with salt cod and a slew of vegetables. This was for at least two people.

Rice is a big deal in the Valencia - Alicante region. But there is a ton of mediocre versions, so I'd been reluctant to try it. This was off the charts.

The texture of the rice was firm but filled with the flavor of the fish broth. Each vegetable was cooked to its right texture and filled with flavor. I really wish I had skipped the potato dish to have more room for the rice!

When the meal was over, the waiter gave us each a small glass of sweet wine (and a fruit juice for my 13 year old 1.2). With wine and sangria, soft drinks and coffee, it was 71 Euros or $78.