Costa Blanca, Cartagena and Lorca
Saying a fond farewell to Valencia, we headed further down the Costa Blanca and took a few nights at various idyllic park-ups right on the beach and secluded from most of civilisation. One of these was between two the notorious resort towns of Alicante and Benidorm. Thankfully this park-up was nothing like these resorts and was in-fact a gorgeous spot to hang out for a couple of days. We had a bit of a nasty storm whip up on the first night here but the second was gorgeous and we really didn't want to leave. But, the grey tank was full and we were running low on fresh water.
So, onward we continued toward Cartagena. We pulled in on the way to dump the grey tank, then ended up waiting for a German couple in a motorhome to use the only fresh water tap to wash their motorhome. Yes, wash their motorhome as a queue formed for the one and only tap. This is bad etiquette at the best of times, but considering Spain has had giant forecourts with multiple car and motorhome wash facilities in nearly every town we have passed through, this just wound us up.
Eventually we got water and could continue on our way. We pulled into the not so glamourous car park of FC Cartagena, where it's tolerated to stay if not doing camping stuff (sitting outside vehicles, stuff outside, awnings out etc) and as long as no events are on at the stadium. The weather was a bit touch and go and a storm was due overnight and into the morning next day. But Ellen had a meeting to do and that meant I could spend the afternoon doing the laundry a short walk into the city. Obviously I just sat and scrolled Instagram rather than doing anything productive (like maybe writing this blog!) but after an hour I was back at the van and Ellen was wrapping up as I packed away the overly fragrant laundry. The van now smells... floral, I think is the best description.
When Ellen was done we went for a wander into the town to get our bearings and pick up a few bits from a local Carrefour. Then as the heavens opened headed as quick as we could back to the van for dinner and to catch up on Daredevil on Disney+.
That evening we had a strange experience though...
Around 9pm we heard the unmistakable tap of marching feet and the clap of hands on the butts of rifles combined with a group of people whistling. We did what we usually do when "stealth camping" and turned off all the lights and poked our eyes through the cab curtain. In the middle of the car park, within metres of the front of the van and all the vans alongside us, was a group of men with old bolt action carbine rifles marching up and down.
Obviously this is a bit unsettling but we've started to expect the unexpected in Spain after our experience in Valencia. However the French motorhome next to us found this too much and promptly moved on, despite having only been there 2 or 3 hours. It was probably for the best as it never really quietened down until midnight. The bin lorries arriving at 11pm was a particularly fun experience. We do wonder if this is all intentional. We're tolerated in the car park but the locals don't like it? We have (since) realised that even in March there is a bit of a problem along the coast with too many campers and motorhomes everywhere and we are of course contributing to that problem. Like everything, there's nuance to it, we try to leave little trace of our being somewhere and try to contribute to the local economy with buying things in the nearby towns etc. But there are those who don't care about the locals, the town or the environment. Only the day before had Ellen gone for a walk whilst I stayed and did some website updates and she had interrupted a French motorhomer who was emptying his chemical toilet, blue liquid and all, just out on the side of the road.
So yes, I can understand local frustration if indeed this was the reason for the noise so late here in the car park at FC Cartagena! It's like anything I guess, there's the majority, then there's the small minority who don't give a rat's ass and ruin the image for everyone else.
I digress.
The next day we headed out into the rain for full day in the ancient city of Cartagena. A bit of a reality check for those following our Instagram who could easily see this as all sunshine and beaches, this definitely wasn't. Well, not at first.
Cartagena is an amazing city and I will likely write some tips and itinerary ideas on here someday, on which Cartagena will definitely feature. This city was founded by the Carthaginians, (Ancient Carthage, Punic Wars, Rome didn't like them very much. Yes that Carthage!) in a natural harbour and between 5 prominent hills. But the city then transferred to Roman hands after the fall of Carthage. The Romans built a forum, (like they do) a theatre and amphitheater during their custodianship of the city, but these slowly changed use after the Empire's "crisis" and the city shrank in size. Over the centuries the city has seen many rulers come and go but has always maintained, even to this day, it's importance as a major, if not the most important maritime city in Spain. The reason for this is clear when you reach the highest point in the city at the Castillo de Conception and see the natural harbour laid out in before you.
We did indeed love this city and we actually managed to fit a lot in one day and for not much money. Before lunch we spent an hour or so at the naval history museum. Which conveniently glossed over the details of some key events in Spain's maritime history involving encounters with the British Royal Navy... you have to laugh, history is always at risk of bias after all. We're just as bad in the UK.
After a packed lunch we moved on to the Roman Theatre museum and explored the fascinating history of this monument. It was slowly built upon over the centuries since it's construction and layer upon layer of the city slowly hid it from view. Now archaeologists are working through the removal of the old city and the old slums to reveal this marvel of the Roman era. I won't give too much away, it is a seriously spectacular place to visit and you'll just have to visit for yourself!
A quick drink in a local bar and we then headed up into the Archeological park on Molinette Hill where the ancient roman acropolis once stood. Over time this had become a slum but the discovery of the Roman remains meant there was now a reason to begin the demolition of the slums and the creation of a public park around the remains of Roman "Cartego Nova". At the bottom of the hill was the Roman Forum, most of which now lays under crumbling blocks of apartments which, if I'm being honest, I feel like the city are eager to destroy to remove them under the guise of discovering the city's past...
We visited the Forum museum on our way back down, where there are the remains of the Forum, the Curia, the harbours baths and the Atrium all still under meticulous excavation and showing a fascinating insight into the Roman city that once stood here 2000 years ago.
Following on, we realised we still had time and the sun was still shining, despite the wind having picked up considerably. Just how considerably would soon become clear as we ascended the hill toward the Castillo de la Conception. This castle was built by the moors in the medieval period and only the keep really remains to this day, the outlines and ground works for the towers are there, but its hard to imagine them really. The castle grounds are inhabited by peacocks and Muscovy Ducks which allowed us to get extremely close on our ascent to the castle which was a nice surprise, although neither are native to Spain as Ellen pointed out. The castle itself had a few interesting points to consider and the views from the top were incredible out across the harbour and inland toward the mountainous interior of Murcia. The other thing I noticed was, this was the first place I had actually seen anything about the Inquisition and what happened... although it was very fleeting in explaining much about this dark era of Spain's history.
We left the castle in the late afternoon and battling the rising winds we headed back down through the city and back to Noodle so we could move on tonight via a shop and find somewhere to spend the night further down the coast.
The next morning after a not so great night's sleep thanks to the pouring rain, we hit the road and headed inland. The treats that lay in store on this road served as a great reminder that Spain is not all about the sandy beaches. Get away from the coast, head inland and you will be greeted with some of the most incredible sights and beautiful villages!
Our destination was Lorca, a once frontier town for the kingdom of Castille on the border with the kingdom of Granada. A beautiful small city that is renowned for it's incredible holy week festival celebrations for the last week of Lent. Of course this isn't holy week, but the youth bands were marching the town practicing for the main event. We called into the Artisan's gallery 'Casa del Artesano' and splashed out on some ceramics to take back home when we come grab the motorbike in May (oh yeah, that's the plan at the moment) and a rug for the van. We've been talking about getting one for ages and we finally found a cool one made by a local artist from Lorca! It's nice and comfy on the feet, we do wish we'd had it in the colder climates back in France a month ago though. Never mind, it'll be useful later in the year, and for now, it's just that little bit more homely.
After lunch, we drove up the steep winding cliff-side to the Castillo de Lorca that overlooked the town and the vast valley on the ancient Castilian frontier. The castle was a little confusing but we visited the medieval synagogue ruins that are so well preserved due to them not being repurposed into a church following the expulsion of the Jews during the inquisition. A reconstruction of the synagogue is now available to visit too. We then wandered the grounds and couldn't resist passing some time playing with the giant chess set. We had to call it early, but two young girls had come to watch Ellen and I play probably the worst game of chess ever witnessed so we let them take over when we had to leave to visit one of the towers. If their chess was as good as their grasp of the English language then I'm sure they did a far better job than we were doing! Seriously, we brits are put to shame with our language abilities when compared to other countries in Europe. My sincerest apologies to Mrs Rubio-Westen my Spanish teacher at secondary school!
The tower dates back to the Moorish occupation and the views from the top were simply breathtaking. After a wander back past the English fluent, Spanish chess champions and through the rest of the grounds, Ellen and I returned to Noodle to head for a quick supermarket supply stop and then onward back toward the coast for another night.
We're discussing it now, but looks like we are going to head further west across the Sierra Nevadas and toward Granada!
