This week, I take you across the Atlantic. The trip started with a message from my friend, Enrique. He asked if I could come to Alicante, Spain a couple of days early. I was going there to attend the national convention of URE (Union de Radioaficionados Españoles — the national society of Spanish Amateur Radio Operators). No problem. I’d be glad to join him for a couple of days on Spain’s east coast. On one of those days, we spent the afternoon in Guadalest.

Enrique drove this neat auto. He had to make a couple of business calls as we made our way to Guadalest. The final call was on a business that was feeding a couple of bus-loads of people. We accepted the invitation to have a nice lunch of paella. (Sorry, no pictures. But fine memories.)

The upper (older) part of the town is accessible only on foot and that through this single entrance. The heavy wooden gate was open as we entered the sloping tunnel that leads up to the top.

Guadalest was founded by the Moors. They carved the surrounding hillsides into terraces, which they planted with crops. These are still irrigated by the original ditches constructed by the Moors. The view from the upper town is incredible!

See how precariously the church’s belfry is perched on the rocks. Quite a view!

In four languages, the sign says, “Wanderer stop a while and think of the marvelous works of God and of your short passage on Earth. Guadalest begs you to respect its dead.”

All too soon our visit was over. We stopped in the lower town to buy a couple of souvenirs and visit another friend.

I hope you enjoyed this short visit to this interesting corner of Spain.