Beyond the Beach III: Exploring the Santa Cruz neighborhood of Alicante
Alicante has come a long way in the past decade - evolving from the ugly duckling on the Mediterranean to an attractive metropolis with diverse neighborhoods and modern infrastructure. Traditionally one of the most conflictive areas of town, the CASCO ANTIGUO of Alicante, its historic OLD TOWN, has undergone significant urban renewal in recent years. As we discovered during our nightwalk around Old Town Alicante, from the recently inaugurated Alicante Contemporary Art Museum near Santa Maria Church to the Alicante Water Museum near the ERETA Park ascending to Sta Barbara Castle, the neighborhood is buzzing with new developments, urban renewal as well as culture and arts projects. To help further dismantle Alicante stereotypes of only Sun, Postiguet Beach and the ESPLANADA seaside promenade, we set out to dig further into the small, twisted alleyways of OLD TOWN to discover yet another totally different world: the neighborhood of SANTA CRUZ.
Leaving behind the busy bars on Calle Labradores and Calle Mayor and ascending slightly towards the BENACANTIL mountain, we reach the square PLAZA DEL CARMEN, still within the boundaries of Old Town Alicante. Here we find one of Alicante's oldest cinema, ASTORIA, recently closed, and the elevated park area on top of Plaza del Carmen itself. From here, calle SAN RAFAEL can be seen ascending MONTE BENACANTIL as the gateway to the Santa Cruz neighborhood. This precinct is quite distinct and rooted in its own traditions, including the famous FIESTA DE LAS CRUCES celebrated throughout the Hispanic world every May. A colorful display of crosses is carried through the narrow alleyways of Santa Cruz en route to the small church of ERMITA DE SANTA CRUZ at the very top - also our final destination during our night walk here.
What is to follow is an infinite display of low-level white houses covered with flower pots, scenic, steep and narrow cobble-stone alleys winding uphill with sporadic vistas of CASTILLO SANTA BARBARA, numerous TASCAS inviting for a stop for tapas and cold beer. As we proceed slowly uphill, marvelling at ever-new scenic views of houses, flowers and the castle above, we come across cats and dogs dozing away near their homes during siesta time and tiled signs indicating the way further uphill to the neighborhood's famous church. Intermittently, slow plazas open up with benches overlooking downtown Alicante and its ST. NICHOLAS CATHEDRAL. We thus continue along the narrow alleyways of Calle San Isidoro, Calle San Luis and Calle Santa Lucia until we reach the tastefully ornate and decorated CASITA DE LA SUBIDA A LA HERMITA right before the gates of the Ermita de Santa Cruz church itself, open daily from dawn to dusk. Dating back to the 18th century and dominated at night by a huge cross illuminated in bright red, it looks over the whole neighborhood of the same name.
Once we have taken in the splendid views of central Alicante, the CASTILLO DE SANTA BARBARA with its mighty Spanish flag and whirlwind-like flock of seagulls, we slowly descend again, choosing a slightly alternate route but ending nonetheless back at Plaza del Carmen, from where our explorations began. We then settle for one of the nice pubs along Calle Mayor or for dinner at the Plaza Santa Faz in Old Town right behind the Ayuntamiento, Town Hall, and proceed for a mellow nightcap to the outdoor Cafe Soho just off the Ramblas. So although Alicante has often been dubbed "la ciudad que no pudo ser" ("The city that never was to be" alluding to the fact that it has always played second fiddle to Valencia as the regional capital), for us it truly is the city that rocks - and always will be!
Leaving behind the busy bars on Calle Labradores and Calle Mayor and ascending slightly towards the BENACANTIL mountain, we reach the square PLAZA DEL CARMEN, still within the boundaries of Old Town Alicante. Here we find one of Alicante's oldest cinema, ASTORIA, recently closed, and the elevated park area on top of Plaza del Carmen itself. From here, calle SAN RAFAEL can be seen ascending MONTE BENACANTIL as the gateway to the Santa Cruz neighborhood. This precinct is quite distinct and rooted in its own traditions, including the famous FIESTA DE LAS CRUCES celebrated throughout the Hispanic world every May. A colorful display of crosses is carried through the narrow alleyways of Santa Cruz en route to the small church of ERMITA DE SANTA CRUZ at the very top - also our final destination during our night walk here.
What is to follow is an infinite display of low-level white houses covered with flower pots, scenic, steep and narrow cobble-stone alleys winding uphill with sporadic vistas of CASTILLO SANTA BARBARA, numerous TASCAS inviting for a stop for tapas and cold beer. As we proceed slowly uphill, marvelling at ever-new scenic views of houses, flowers and the castle above, we come across cats and dogs dozing away near their homes during siesta time and tiled signs indicating the way further uphill to the neighborhood's famous church. Intermittently, slow plazas open up with benches overlooking downtown Alicante and its ST. NICHOLAS CATHEDRAL. We thus continue along the narrow alleyways of Calle San Isidoro, Calle San Luis and Calle Santa Lucia until we reach the tastefully ornate and decorated CASITA DE LA SUBIDA A LA HERMITA right before the gates of the Ermita de Santa Cruz church itself, open daily from dawn to dusk. Dating back to the 18th century and dominated at night by a huge cross illuminated in bright red, it looks over the whole neighborhood of the same name.
Once we have taken in the splendid views of central Alicante, the CASTILLO DE SANTA BARBARA with its mighty Spanish flag and whirlwind-like flock of seagulls, we slowly descend again, choosing a slightly alternate route but ending nonetheless back at Plaza del Carmen, from where our explorations began. We then settle for one of the nice pubs along Calle Mayor or for dinner at the Plaza Santa Faz in Old Town right behind the Ayuntamiento, Town Hall, and proceed for a mellow nightcap to the outdoor Cafe Soho just off the Ramblas. So although Alicante has often been dubbed "la ciudad que no pudo ser" ("The city that never was to be" alluding to the fact that it has always played second fiddle to Valencia as the regional capital), for us it truly is the city that rocks - and always will be!
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