So Jess, Nik and I are on holiday in Alicante, Spain for three days and as it's quite warm I'm really keen to get a run in. Selfish, I know, but I've planned it out so that I get up super early, before either of them wake up and be back in time for breakfast. Makes sense and is less selfish.
Except it doesn't happen like that.
The alarm goes off at six but I promptly turn it off and go back to sleep. I roll out of bed at ten and am unsure whether it is fair to still go. I hop about on one foot and they both wake up and tell me to just go and they'll meet me back here at the hotel at one. I grin and thank them.
I'm out the door five minutes later. I skip breakfast as I don't want to waste extra time getting it so just put my gear on and go. We're staying in the centre of the city in between a few bars and late night cafes. As it's only ten o'clock in the morning no one is up, what with it being Saturday in Spain. There's a lot of rubbish piled high and we've been wondering if the bin men are on strike. But on the other hand it's nice to not be staying in the incredibly touristy part of town that's incredibly clean and incredibly...western.
All the shops are closed and the place are pretty empty as I weave my way through the streets and alleyways until I burst out onto the coast less than five minutes later. As I've been surrounded by two or three story buildings it's not until now that the sun hits me. I'm surrounded by the marina. It's not roasting yet but is a very nice temperature to be moving about in. Especially when nearly no one else is around.
I'm running down the promenade that's lined with restaurants waiting to fill with staff then customers. I cross the road to the beach and stop a moment to stare out at the sea glinting back at me. It's a nice view here.
I debate whether or not to run along the sand but remember I'm on a three hour time scale as to when I said I'd be back so opt for the footpath instead to keep the speed up a little. My aim is to just follow the coast along until I reach around fourteen kilometres then turn around and come back. I had considered heading inland to the hills but made the split decision when I came out of the hotel to turn left instead of right as I figure this route may not be quite as scenic but will be faster and still really nice.
Near the end of this section of the beach there is a sand bank just off the water so I take a moment to run over to it and take a photo. It really is nice here.
From here it's a decision to either run along the path still or follow the beach along so I decide I will follow the beach for a while instead as it is that bit nicer. There is a road lined by boulders which drop down into the sea so I have to go along beside it. It's not actually that nice looking with chain link fences all over the place. It soon rejoins the road though so I continue along there and notice that there are quite a few runners coming back the other way so this must be a fairly popular route.
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| I'm really sorry for making you look at these lily white thighs, Spain |
There is the option of heading down toward what looks like a business estate. I head that way as it's closer to the beach then remember the chain link and think better of it so head back to the road. I'm eager to get out of the city and the concrete but realise that the quickest way to do so is probably going to be to follow the road out.
It rejoins the coast almost straight away anyway but is still blocked by a chain link fence which feel like I'm on the wrong side of urbania and starts to drive me a bit crazy when I can see the ocean less than twenty metres away. So when I reach a hole in the fence it's a bit of a no brainer.
It's a bit rocky on the other side but I instantly feel better about it and it feels like a world apart from the other side of the fence. Strange how such a minor, simple thing can make such a difference to your mood. I notice that I'm running down what appears to be a disused railway with the road now starting to slope up above and beside me and again am glad I'm down here.
Ahead there is an old rail tunnel through a small outcrop of rock jutting out from the land and I begin to worry that the reason the fences were there was so that people can't come down here as you can't get out easily. I really would prefer not to have to back track so become a bit nervous as I continue on, hoping I'll be able to botch a route together.
Then I see a train on the other side of the tunnel heading straight for me. I start to panic. There is a wall on one side of the tracks as the road is now far above me. On the other side there is not much gap between the tracks and the sea. I start to wonder if this is what the fences were for...
But I don't understand? The tracks I'm standing on don't appear to be in use anymore and it looks like there is a fence on this side of the tunnel so I don't understand where the train is planning to go? An irrational fear builds up inside me and I've no idea what is going on. This train is hurtling toward me and it feels like I'm going to die even though in truth I know that's silly and impossible and even if the train was coming this way I could probably jump in the water.
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| Panic |
As the train reaches this side of the tunnel it takes a sharp turn to my left into the hillside. It now makes sense why the road has been sloping up. It's going over a separate tunnel. My world is restored and all is suddenly well again.
I laugh at myself and go right up to the tunnel to face my next dilemma. How the hell do I get around it? There is indeed a fence here and a big rock pile next to it so I figure I'm just going to have to scramble up that. Every couple of steps I slip back down again but eventually I get to the top to rejoin the road that I probably should have just stayed on to save myself a whole lot of hassle.
It slopes back down the other side and follows right by the water a bit longer until I've reached the point it goes back inland slightly. Not having learned my lesson I decide to go rogue again and continue attempting to follow the coastline.
Again I'm struck by how much better I feel about myself just getting off the road. It's not particularly simple getting around here as the coast line has no beach. Rather, just piles of rocks jutting out. There are buildings and other private land directly next to it so there is very little space to get around and no path as such. There are quite a few points where I'm literally having to clamber around the edge of a building and just hoping that there will be somewhere a bit wider on the other side. I really hope I don't have to backtrack this section. The train track earlier would have been annoying but as this section is quite a bit longer I'd have to backtrack for quite a while which I'd really prefer not to do if at all possible.
My hands start to get cut open on the barnacles lining some of the rocks I'm climbing over but I really don't mind as I'm having a pretty good time climbing over them. Eventually I do rejoin a walkway and am pleased to be able to open up the pace a little again as I was going quite slowly and want to make sure I get back when I said I would, but likewise I want to get a fair few kilometres in.
This path opens out onto the Playa de la Albufereta beach and it's nice to feel the sun on me again and trudge through the sand over to the other side. There is a wooden walkway over the other side so I figure I should be alright to try to follow that along rather than the road heading through the town which doesn't look particularly appealing to me.
It's an easily navigable pathway so I'm able to keep an okay pace through here which is good as I'm still feeling that I perhaps spent a bit too long clambering over rocks back there and it's good to be getting some actual speed in as well.
I arrive at a marina and as I pass all the boats and it strikes me as quite an antithesis to how things seem here. Back in Alicante there is rubbish everywhere and there doesn't seem to be a lot for people to do. Things seem dilapidated in a lot of places and really bitten by the recession and yet right next to it, and again here, there are marinas with boats that only rich people could afford. I'm no expert on the Spanish economy but perhaps the rich to poor divide here is more prevalent than in other countries currently.
It's also made more starkly obvious by the fact that there is also a side of Alicante that is ridiculously fancy for tourists and I won't even start on what looks like Benidorm in the distance now. It's just a shame that it's only foreigners on holiday who get to enjoy the luxury and residents don't seem to have things as easy. I may well be reading things completely wrong but this is just what I'm seeing in front of my eyes.
So I pass the Marina and am back on another beach. This one has a walkway down the middle of it lined by palm trees or something similar (do palm trees grow here?) and I'm soon back off the beach onto unknown coastal territory, unsure whether I'm on private land or whether I will be able to get around or not; but figure it's worth trying and will still be more enjoyable than the road.
It continues on like so for a couple of kilometres. I reach a small beach or inlet and it's soon followed by more rocky areas. I'm getting into a bit of a rhythm with this then something I'm not expecting happens.
I pop round the side of a rocky cliff end area into another bay and there is a man standing there about to go for a swim. He is old. He is fat. He is naked. He is proud. He then moves down into the water but as it's not solely sand here he occasionally stands on something sharp and jerks back. Unfortunately for me that means I then have to watch his dingle-dangle bouncing around each time as I approach to go around behind him (to the other side of the beach before you suggest otherwise). It's not something I'm often exposed to, naked men, in England so it's a bit of a surprise. I'm used to finding it a bit odd when British people wear shorts instead of their usual trousers in summer so this is rather unexpected. I don't really care that much but I'm definitely keen to get back to doing my own thing so he can do his (whatever that may be) so I hurtle around to the next bay.
There does now appear to be some sort of a coastal trail along the way. I start to notice some bins around and a few bollards which I gather to be waymarks so, whilst not particularly needed in my case now as it's easy to know here to go, it's good to have the knowledge that I'm finally on a regular walking route.
The houses around start to thin out and the dry, arid fields become more prevalent. Things become easier to navigate and the pace becomes a bit steadier. There is still a bit of boulder hopping but on the large part I'm able to just keep going at a good clip until I reach the top of this section of land jutting out from the coast; not quite a peninsula but certainly making an attempt.
At the point where the land meets the sea I stand as the waves lap at the soles of my shoes and stare out at the horizon. I take a moment to stop, let out my breath, catch it once more; and just take in the minute, the second, the time and the place I am in. I close my eyes and feel the sunlight trying to make its way through and brighten up my day regardless. I smell the salt in the air. I look back at Alicante in the distance where I have come from, it's castle a speck on the horizon. I look at Benidorm in the distance where I am heading towards.
After a time I get moving again as the reality of not wanting to waste time on this run comes back to me. It's another half a kilometre or so before I reach the beach at Playa de San Juan and this one is quite a long one. I'm nearing the point where I've done the journey I was aiming for so I decide I should probably get a photo as the view from here out to the ocean is amazing.
I try my best to manage a selfie but it's just not happening for me as my fat head keeps getting in the way of the nice view so I opt for running up to a local and asking them. It goes like this...
Benjamin sprints up to an old couple on the beach.
Benjamin says 'Hola'.
The man warily looks at Benjamin's tights and says 'Hola'.
Benjamin points at his camera.
Benjamin says 'por favor?'
The man smiles, takes the camera and a subsequent photo.
Benjamin takes it back, smiles and says 'gracias!'
Benjamin carries on his merry way.
Benjamin is chuffed with himself for managing to hold down a four word conversation in Spanish.
Benjamin is not very worldly.
I carry on up the beach until I reach thirteen and a half kilometres then turn around and make my way back up the beach. As I'm on the hard sand right by the water it's solid and I can keep a nice pace. I smile as I pass the old couple again, now braving the water.
As I'm not having to work out where I'm going as much I figure it should be fairly easy to get back in time. The point I turned around at was exactly one and a half hours so my three hour maximum time estimation is still on.
As I pass back by the tip of the peninsularly jut of land I choose not to stop this time. I push on back to Naked-Man Bay and thankfully he is no longer anywhere to be seen. Just after this point, however the tide has come in, making some of the easily passable sections that bit hairier and there are also a couple of points where I have to back track, although it's only minor bits up to higher ground.
One thing that is a bit troubling however, is the fact that it's now extremely hot. I'm loving it a lot, however I do have a small problem in that I only brought a litre of water and that has nearly run out. And I've still got a good ten kilometres or so to go. Uh oh.
As I'm nearing the section that was particularly slow to get around on the way out, what with all those barnacles, I make the executive decision to head for the road to keep the pace up. I'm moving along one of the beaches and see some steps up three flights to the road above so head in that direction.
I also see a water fountain. My heart skips a beat. The thought of some cool water to guzzle is immensely favourable. I approach. I look a bit closer. There is water. There is also a little diagram of a cup with water gushing out of the tap into it. Then there is a bit red cross over the top of it. Curses ensue.
So I head up the stairs to the road and follow that back down the slope and up another side. I'm soon going past loads of ugly buildings and hotels and regretting my decision. But far in the distance I see a shop. I'm hopeful again. I get closer. I go in. There is a weird old fat man smoking inside. There is also a fridge with drinks. I purchase what I believe to be a sports drink. I thank him and leave. I go back in and ask how to get back down to the beach and he points in the right direction.
I open the drink and confirm that it is indeed something similar to Powerade and damn does it taste good on my now sandpapery throat. I guzzle it as I head back down the hill on the backside of the hotels until I find a turning to get back down to the beach.
From here I stick roughly just to the road to keep things ticking along. I skip the train tunnel mayhem and opt for the easier and quicker road option then soon make it back to the promenade which is now bustling with people and other runners looking far fresher than I; then press back through the narrow streets and alleys until I reach the hotel for a bang on three hour finish and a welcome shower. Soon after Jess and Nik arrive back and we head back out for a nice coffee in the sun.
I finally have a good old bit of breakfast.
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