Crafty in the Med

I am here to enjoy meeting other bloggers and to share my love of craft ,mostly crochet, my thoughts and my daily happenings here in Alicante,Spain, my adopted country. I belong to a local choir because singing and music makes me happy. Flea markets and book shops are two of my favourite places to be. I read lots......sci´fi/fantasy,buried treasure, and off world adventures. I have a passion for history! I walk and walk and walk for about 10 months per year during the hot months I swim.

Wednesday 3 November 2021

The Vikings got this far

 

☆A warm welcome to a new follower Deborah. Please feel free to comment and could you also send me the link to your own blog. 😊

Autumn has arrived here in the Med. Temperatures have dropped nicely when I say nicely I mean not too much but definitely Autumn style. I even heard the crisp crackle of leaves under my feet as I trod on them walking along the road yesterday. It is a good job I go for a walk at a time when there are not too many people about otherwise they'd probably think that nicely aged lady who is treading from leaf to leaf just to hear them crackle has definitely lost it!  

I am so looking forward to going up into the mountains for a trek as we can get the full Autumn experience up there.  


Looking at Halloween here in Spain. 

Although the American style Halloween is celebrated somewhat at the schools here where the children and teachers dress up and decorate their classrooms, Trick or Treat has not caught on as yet. The Spanish celebrate this time of the year differently.  On 31st October and the 1st November "Dia de todos los Santos" (All Saints Day) they mostly do so by honouring and caring for the deceased members of their families. The 1st November is an important national public holiday here where people return to their towns or villages to lay flowers on their loved ones graves. It is also traditional to go and buy special sweets and pastries that are made during this time.There are many different types depending on the region but two of the most popular are "Huesos de santos" and "Buñelos de viento".

Huesos de Santos (Saints' bones) :

Google image


Little rolls of marzipan with a custard cream filling. Sweet, sweet almond joy for some but excessively sweet for my liking.

Buñelos de viento  (choux puffs) :

Google image

Fried dough puffs filled with cream or chocolate. As always very sweet! I like the cream ones once I have scraped off the extra sugar coating.

  



PART ONE.                                  Warning photo heavy!

Inland Orihuela; the ecclesiastical city. 

Orihuela, still within the Alicante province, is just under an hour from Alicante City. There have been settlements there since before Roman times. This city has seen Phoenicians, Iberians,  Romans and Vikings. It became part of Muslim Spain up until the Middle Ages and later Christian.  It is a small city steeped in history, which ever way you turn there is something to see.  Last Monday being a fiesta day was a good day to go to Orihuela. The cemeteries were packed as is the custom on the 1st November but the City and Historical centre was relatively empty. Nearly everyone was at the cemeteries so we avoided those roads and the enormous queues of cars trying to gain access and parked near to the city centre. 

Glory be!  There were parking spaces there in the centre which is not the norm!  

It is a place where photographs are a must... DOORS predominately!😀 

Just before you take the tunnel into Orihuela  you pass this huge sentinel on your right which towers over everything at the entrance to the city 




On the left the palm groves in the distance



On our way to the historical centre of the city



Looking up! 

Beautiful antique ceramic tiles on the bottom of this balcony








Crossing the River Segura which runs through the centre of the city



The very same river, much much wider in those days, that the Vikings sailed up in the 9th century to attack Orihuela Fort, loot and take prisoners and then leave as quickly as they came.  


Fabulous door!  The Episcopal palace and former residence of the Bishops of Orihuela



The Diocesan Museum of Religious Art

We didn't go in as we had been there before.  








Impressive... Our Saviour and Santa Maria Cathedral built in the 13th century over a Moorish mosque mostly in the Gothic style. 



The Door of the Chains.  

Very gothic!  I still haven't found out why it is called "Door of the Chains"  

I was actually able to get into the cathedral and allowed to take photographs before the mass but I am leaving all those photographs for my post next week. 

Can you see who was watching us from above?


CROCHET

I have finished a make but it is a Christmas gift and the person I shall be sending it to this month reads my blog so I can't show it off on here as yet.😞



Replies to comments on previous post completed





Happy blogging


Amanda :-)






24 comments:

  1. Good morning Amanda, thank you much for the history and all of the photos-I really enjoyed the tour. Is that a crow up there? hugs Kathy

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    1. Hello Kathy, It was a dove…cooing like mad LOL. Glad you enjoyed the virtual tour. A x

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  2. I think celebrating ancestors is a great tradition. Fabulous architecture - thank you for sharing it.
    Best wishes
    Ellie

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    1. I have to agree with you Ellie. The varied architecture here takes my breath away. A x

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  3. Good Morning! What a beautiful way to start the morning here in the U.S. I love the way that all of the attention to the holiday is on honoring the family members who have died. We aren't much into the scariness of the holiday. We took Piper to the cemetery a few months ago and told her about our family that is buried there and who they are to her. She's fascinated by it and asks to go with me to put flowers on the graves every month or two. The one most of our family is buried at is just a couple of blocks from our home and easy to visit. Then, the one that we went to last weekend with my sister is where my fathers family is buried. The way she asks questions about her great-great grandparents now shows me that this has made them "real" to her.
    The town looks completely deserted as you walked through! I especially love that last doorway and the balcony with the tiles on the bottom. It is one of the things that I love about England, the old buildings and beautiful gates and doors.

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    1. I am inclined to agree with yours and other bloggers’ comments about the tradition in some countries of honouring, remembering and caring for those loved ones who have past on. Some people think it is morbid I don’t! How can it be that if it brings forth happy memories of our loved ones. I like yourself are very keen that the young ones in the family learn about those members of their family who have passed on. They need to know where and who they come from. A x

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  4. What a wonderful stroll I feel like I e been on - I really want some sugary treats now!

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    1. Real Real sugary treats! Far too much sweetness for me 😊 A x

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  5. I think that is how it should be celebrated, remembering loved ones that have passed on. Lovely photos and the history is fascinating Amanda I love hearing about it. I love those tiles on the bottom of the balcony and the door of chains is amazing. You are very good to have finished a crochet gift already, I am still waiting for some inspiration nothing has grabbed me this year so far, I bet it will be frantic last minute crocheting as it usually is with me. xx

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    1. Yes, I think the same too. Halloween is becoming such a commercial event nowadays. It means so very little to me. The old ceramic tiles are everywhere here and some have a very Moorish look to them. A x

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  6. Great photos but very quiet streets. I guess everyone was at the cemeteries.

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    1. They were and yes the roads to the cemeteries were packed with cars. We picked just the right day to go to the historical centre there were very few people about ! A x

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  7. I think I much prefer the Spanish All Saints day rather than doing 'Halloween', great photos, thanks for taking me on a trip, I doo miss travelling.

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    1. I agree 😊 I think it is very emotive and a great way to honour our loved ones by remembering them. A x

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  8. It´s certainly cooler the last few days, we have had our log burner going. Great tour, there are some lovely architectural features around, especially the somewhat hidden ones xcx

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    1. All the years I have lived here in Alicante and I continue to find some really great buildings of course the hidden ones are the best. A x

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  9. The photos of the buildings are breathtaking. Again, thank you for sharing with us. But in perfect honesty, I scrolled back up to see the Halloween treats more than once. . .

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  10. Those are delicious sweets.
    Orihuela is a beautiful Spanish city, so special and so much to see!!
    Thanks Amanda for your beautiful photos ♥

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    1. It is indeed beautiful and so much there that you can't see it in just one day. Very popular pastries with funny names; bones of Saints LOL! A x

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  11. Thank you for your pictures! You have an eye for beauty. Reading all the comments, I could not agree more! We should honour and celebrate our shared moments with our loved ones. It is worth seeing a documentary program from BBC called ´The day of the dead´, which talks about the Mexican celebration held on the second of November. Mexicans believe their dead are watching and taking care of the living:
    therefore street parades, food offerings, family gatherings around graves and many more things are celebrated in their honour.

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    1. I totally agree with you death is part of life after all, isn't it! Interesting article about that Mexican tradition. A x

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Thank you for your comments. I do read them and try to reply to all as well.Please keep them coming. Amanda :-)