House hunting in our part of "Real Spain"

Last week we had Clare and John staying with us from Pembrokeshire. They were spending a couple of weeks in the Valencia region house hunting. We were delighted with the guest book entry they left.

Clare and John wrote -

We have enjoyed 4 memorable, if damp, days at the Casa Blanca Rural in Montichelvo. Our hosts, Neil and Caroline, couldn't have been more welcoming and helpful. Through emails, we explained that we were visiting the area with the intention of finding a simple retreat in rural Spain and, by the time we arrived, they had drawn up a list of trustworthy English speaking estate agents and even found a couple of local properties for us to consider.

Casa blanca Rural is beautiful – clean, comfortable, full of character and homely touches. Neil and Caroline went out of their way to help us in our search, keen to impart local knowledge. Having sold up and moved into a small Spanish community themselves, who better to ask for opinions and advice? Each morning we would chat about our plans for the day and each evening, discuss the results. They know the area, the people, the culture and the geography. They fit in here and have been accepted into village life – we would recommend anyone looking for property in Real Spain to spend a few days here – they have so much information that they are keen to share.

Although we did not see the village at it's best because of the weather, we could see from photos that the views are fantastic. The access to the coast via the CV60 is fast and easy. It is a perfect base to search – quiet and relaxed yet close to the amenities of towns where the estate agents are located.

We will be back to see Montichelvo in the sunshine. Thanks Neil and Caroline.

We have always been very fortunate with the guests that have stayed with us here at Casa Blanca Rural. It is always lovely to spend time with family and friends when they are able to visit and it is also lovely to meet new people such as Clare and John. Hopefully they will find their property in Real Spain and we look forward to seeing more of them in the future.

It's that time of year again......

Moros y Cristianos
Or, in English, Moors and Christians is a specular celebration held in many different Spanish towns and villages. This festival acts out a part of Spanish history demonstrating the battles between the Arabs and the Christians that took place in the region centuries ago.

Soldiers march, sergeants wave to the crowds and horsemen show off their skills.

Just one example of subjects for a photography holiday in Spain.

We visited our neighbouring village of Benicolet last evening....























Thanks for looking, please feel free to leave a comment.

To the top!!!

Today we climbed a mountain! Well, to be precise we walked up a mountain. Benicadell rises to over 3000ft and has a very sheer side that involves special climbing skills and a more gently sloping side that has become our top walk!

Keith, Alison and Sandra are visiting their home-from-home in Montichelvo this week and they love walking as much as we do. In fact it was Keith and Ali that first showed us a track up into the mountains of the Penyes Albas behind our village last year. So we decided to tackle Benicadell as a group, Caroline and I had made the summit before, in January, but it was to be a first for our friends.



We drove up to a refuge on the side of the mountain and started our walk from there. Moderate to hard going would be an honest description of the tracks that lead to the top but after an hour and a half of good healthy exercise we made it!





The scenery is truly breathtaking with 100 km views in all directions. We sat and ate our packed lunches at a comfortable spot just below the summit.



We were then treated to a fantastic display of ridge-soaring by two large eagles who came into view at a height lower than us, but soon swirled round and round in the gentle up-currents and moved away into the distance high above us – a very special moment and a great time to share with friends. (Click to photo for a larger view, although you may still not be able to make out the eagles – they are right in the centre, honest!)





When we got bored with the scenery (NOT!) we made our descent via a “Nevera” which is an igloo-like building built of stone for storing ice centuries ago.

Back in the car we called in at Beniatjar for a much deserved cold beer – a real “Ice Cold in Alex” moment, and the locals, not used to seeing strangers in their village, were entertaining to say the least…..

There is a wealth of information about Benicadell and the towns that surround it here http://www.valldalbaida.com/rutes/benicadell_en.php (this should show as a link that you can click on but,for some reason you will have to copy and paste the webaddress into your browser window to get to the website)