How quickly Spring heads towards Summer!

To make the most of some quiet time between guests and the lovely weather we popped into Gandia and then spent a relaxing afternoon at a beach side restaurant and then onto the beach at Daimus which is about 20 minutes from Casa Blanca Rural. In Gandia the temperature was an impressive 29 degrees


and the wonderful scent from the roadside orange blossom was almost overpowering.

Daimus is a small town just south of Gandia. There are numerous bars and restaurants serving traditional tapas and main meal dishes, not quite as cheap as inland prices but very good value nonetheless. We enjoyed a couple of ice cold beers and tapas for two for the equivalent of about £10 at Tapas Rigo sitting outside at a table on the promenade watching the sea and the world passing by.

With a light breeze, sitting on the beach was a real pleasure. The beach is very clean, well maintained and has as much personal space as anyone could want. In fact when we left at about 4 o'clock ours were the only footprints to be seen.

A typical week on holiday at Casa Blanca Rural

Vicki, Perry and their two daughters, Georgia and Maddi, exchanged snow and sub-zero temperatures in the UK for a week with us in Montichelvo. They were in need of some R&R and a break from the routines of their busy lives at home.

The weather treated them very kindly with temperatures between high teens and low twenties and wall-to-wall sunshine. They had hired a car from the airport (which we recommend) so had the freedom to explore independently and to experience the thrills of driving in Spain!

Once settled in they were able to take advantage of our local knowledge and accompanied us on our most popular walk which is up a valley in the mountains behind us and across to a Moorish ruined castle for a picnic.



The girls installed their Barbie and Ken dolls as King and Queen for the duration of our visit!



We also took them on a mountain 4x4 ride to show some of the amazing views around these parts.

Luckily their visit coincided with Las Fallas and other festivities so we all went into Gandia, which is our local main town, to experience fireworks like you wouldn’t believe and burnings of the monuments late into the night.

Local cuisine was sampled at the Moli Canyar (a large converted mill) that serves a splendid all-you-can-eat menu del dia. They also had our in house barbeque and on another night our “Paella de la casa”.



A couple of different days were spent at the beach which Georgia and Maddi loved and became very relaxed too……..



We also took them on our most popular excursion which is a trip by 4x4 along an old disused railway line that winds its way along the route of the river Serpis. Beautiful scenery in every direction – we never tire of it. And before returning to the house we stopped for a very leisurely tapas lunch sitting in the sunshine outside a bar in a village mostly in the middle of nowhere – a world away from day to day life back home. And just to show that we really enjoy what we do - this is me being a very happy host...



Apart from the trips out there were shopping trips, visits to the local bar (25 yards away in our church square) meeting the friendly locals, practicing long forgotten Spanish. Amazing how jokes can be enjoyed between people who barely understand what the other is saying!

All too soon the week came to an end and our guests traded the warm sunshine for snow and sub-zero temperatures once more. So, were they relaxed and refreshed? – Yep, no doubt!

It's Fiesta time!

Our guests over the last couple of weeks have been able to enjoy some of what Spain does best!

Last week was Las Fallas and because Easter is early this year, that led immediately into Santa Semana.

Las Fallas lasts for 5 days and always ends on March 19th. The last night is when the fantastic detailed monuments, that have taken the last year to build, are burned where they stand in the streets. We watched the proceedings in Gandia where 20 odd of these monuments had been on display. The intricate detail is quite amazing to see. The monuments are cartoon like, the characters depicted with subtle humour and slightly risque poses!





A couple of photos give an indication here but there will be far more appearing shortly on our Casa Blanca Rural website.

On each of the Fallas days at 2pm a "mascleta" took place in the centre of Gandia. These are incredible firework displays that literally shake the town centre with violent explosions. An amazing spectacle!



On Good Friday was the silent procession in Gandia, a long procession of hooded participants slow marching to heavy drum beats and subdued music from brass bands.



Bare footed volunteers shrouded in black gowns and hoods carry heavy wooden crosses on their shoulders, the only sounds that accompany this group are the chains dragging behind them that are shackled to their ankles, a pretty haunting sight to see.



Back in the sleepy village of Montichelvo on Easter Saturday night was a midnight service at the church opposite our house this was accompanied by loud explosive fireworks during and after the service. Last year it caught us by surprise and we thought the house was collapsing - but this year we were ready for it!