Day 5 - If You Get To Sydney, You've Gone Too Far!

Today was our last full day on holiday, and for some reason I woke up an hour earlier than usual. I wonder why... Anyway, I didn't bother getting up because I thought it might annoy Pete, so I lay in bed until quarter to nine. In the end, I did annyoy him by turning on the lights once he'd woken up - There's no pleasing some people! Anyway, we got ready and I contemplated that my beard was getting a little annoying - I couldn't stop scratching it! After breakfast, we got ready and set off for Javea. Unfortunately the GPS was a bit confusing, but eventually we turned up at Javea's nature reserve. In the sunshine we followed a small path up to a rocky point which was 59 metres above sea level. We had time to take photos, and the place reminded me strangely of that beach outside Sydney, the name of which I can't remember...
Before long it was time to move on again, and we took the steep climb back up to the car. From here we followed the coast to a place where we could do some rock-pooling, but unfortunately we didn't see any creatures, which was annoying because I always see at least a crab when I go to the beach! It was great to get some fresh air, though, rather than being stuck in the car all day. A little further down the coast we stopped off at a cafe but unfortunately couldn't find anywhere which did churros, o we had to give those a miss, which was a shame. I still managed to order, among other things, some hot chocolate, inspired by yesterday's museum visit. It was made differently to what I was used to at home, with warm milk into which you put the mixture, rather than starting with the mixture, and because it was made with milk rather than hot water there was not as much froth, which from my point of view is the best bit, but it did have a much smoother, more relaxed texture.
We went for a walk on the marina, but as this was only a small town it was nowhere near as extravagant as Darling Harbour, although there were a few good-looking yachts around. So next, we headed back to Altea, this time to get lunch on the promenade. We ended up in was a little basic, but adequate enough. The service was uite slow, as there seemed to be only one lady trying to do everything, but the orange juice really was freshly squeezed, and the lady even gave us some grapefruits from her garden! I haven't had a chance to try them yet, but Mum and Dad have and apparently it's pretty good. I managed to order sandwiches and a round of drinks, and soon I was tucking into a squid baguette! Unfortunately this combination wasn't brilliant - I could have done with some mayo, at least. No matter; before long we were on our way abck to the hotel.
Once there I started to think about packing, and managed to get a few things sorted out, but soon it was time to go swimming. I was still feeling quite stiff from yesterday, so the thirty circuits today were a bit harder work than in the past. Not that I'm complaining - swimming seems to be doing me a lot of good, so I might make an effort to get down to the pool more often when I get back - apparently it's really cheap. For a while Mum and Pete joined me, but they chickened out early! Afterwards, I showered and did some more packing, and then joined Mum and Dad to have a shandy, which made a change from the usual fanta. Everyone seemed to be in good spirits, and this continued through our final dinner in the hotel, during which we reviewed the holiday and chose our favourite moments. Mine was visiting the old village at Altea, and wandering through all the picturesque streets up to the amazing church at the top of the hill. On the other hand, I'll be gald to see the back of all the tackiness and depressing hotels.
Back in the rooms, having settled the bill, we reviewed the paperwork and packed some more, leaving out only the bare necessities for tomorrow morning. This occupied most of the evening, and soon we were sleeping away our last night in Spain.

So, almost there. How will this thrilling tale conclude? Will I finally get to a Spanish music shop? Will there be any showdowns in Customs again? And will the weather in England be as depressing as always? Bear with me one more day, and all these questions will be answered! In the meantime, go to iTunes and download this week's Single of the Week, by Emmy The Great - It really is great! For anyone who likes quiet songs, it's kind of a parody of Halleluja, but in a proper song....think Fall Out Boy's Hum Halleluja but with a girl singing instead. A lot of her stuff is quite samey, but at least it'll plug the gap until Rose Walker gets round to releasing her next CD. And in some of the songs the guy from the Submarines (or at least, it sounds like him) sings as well, so if you liked them, get this!

Jack

Day 4 - Sandcastles, Service and Sssschocolate.

After waking up and dressing as with the day before, we headed down to breakfast, which was essentially the same as ever. Before long we were on the road again, this time to Villajoyosa, where the chocolate museum could be found! Because the museum was also part of the Valor chocolate factory, we weren't allowed to just wander around for ourselves, so we became part of a tour - along with a massive class of Spanish schoolchildren! The others seemed annoyed by this but I thought it was great! Not only did I get to find out about chocolate, I also got to see what Spanish school trips were like! The first part of the tour was a video which explained (in Spanish) basically about the origins of cocoa in Mexico, and how the Conquistadors spread it across the world and how the technology they used has got more and more advanced over time. The machines they use these days seem extremely clever, and I couldn't wait to see them in action.
Anyway, we were then sheperded through the museum section, where we could see all the old machines and different ingredients they put in the chocolate. I glanced over these with vague interest, more keen on practising my Spanish reading than actually learning the minute details of chocolate's history. But after this it got really interesting. We crossed a small courtyard, picking up the unmistakable scent of chocolate - it was everywhere! Through windows we saw mountains of sacks of cocoa beans, all ready to be made into thousands of slabs of chocolate. As we walked, the kids in the school party began to sing a silly song (something about going to the Doctor...), but eventually we arrived in the factory building. The smell got stronger, and suddenly we were looking down on massive vats full of chocolate in its various stages. As the staff guided along the walkway, we passed some strange lab-ish rooms, where I guess they try to invent different flavours, and the tasting room - the people in there must have a great job! Mind you, I'm sure even chocolate gets boring after a while.
In the next room, the actual bars started appearing on conveyor belts, so they could all be packaged up. There were so many crates of rejects; I wonder what happens to them. Are they melted down and recycled, or does someone eat them?! Hmm... Apparently, each day they make a different type of chocolate, and today was hazelnut day. Yum! Round the corner, there were three or four humungous chocolate sculptures, perfectly preserved since however many years ago. They were fascinating, and I wish I could have taken pictures, but unfortunately photography wasn't allowed in the factory. At the end of teh tour we were given a goody-bag full of samples of chocolate and leaflets about chocolate-related stuff, and directed into the shop. Here we could taste different types of chocolate - there was one with strawberry pieces, one which was sugar-free (is that even possible??), a dark one, and one with nuts in. My favourite, though, was the nougat - I could have had the whole lot! It's probably pure sugar, though, and all my teeth would fall out!
So we carried on down to the beach after that, and found a nearby cafe. Mum wanted some churros, but something must have been lost in translation, because she ended up with orange juice! Regadless, we eventually got down to the beach and I made an awesone sandcastle - there were turrets and arches and everything! Pete gave me a hand with the moat and walls and, I must admit, it was probably the best we'd ever made. Then I spent half an hour digging myself into a hole - literally! After this, it was time for a spot of lunch. The restaurant we went to was brilliant! The service was quick and it was quite cheap as well, plus I got a chance to practise my Spanish. They even gave us olives and peanuts while we waited!
After this we returned to Benidorm for a spot of shopping. We split up, but I got stuck with Pete, and before long he started poking me again - tedious! We cruised around the tacky tourist shops, but what I was really after was a music shop, and unsurprisingly there weren't any. It's a shame; I was looking forward to getting out to actual Spanish shops which sold actual Spanish things, rather than just garish tourist boutiques offering swimming costumes and plastic beach toys.
So we returned to the hotel, and I updated the diary, whilst listening to the raw and undiluted Indie-ness that is Little Man Tate. Their songs are great - nothing particularly original, but perfect for anyone craving more Arctic Monkeys, Fratellis, SFG or the rest of that 'gang'. With this up to date, I visited the pool for my usual swim. Soon it was time for dinner, which wasn't quite as good a selection as yesterday's. After we'd finished, we returned to the common room just as the jazz duo started up. They had a fairly good selection of cross-genre songs, though their imrpovisation wasn't brilliant, and I had a sudden urge to get up and start ballroom dancing, but I had no-one to dance with. No matter, time passed by, the others played cards and I carried on listening to the music. Dad says that I could do better than the duet, but I didn't believe him. Before long, the others had finished their games, and it was time for bed again.

Day four over and out. As you may ahve gathered, I can't promise these posts will come every day, as I have a lot of work, although with the weekend coming up I should now be able to get this finished and resume normal transmission without any interruption. So tune in tomorrow for the final full day of our holiday, in which the hunt for churros reaches its gripping conclusion (It really is gripping) and we reflect on the best moments of the holiday. See you then!

Jack

Day 3 - Jack Argent and the Fountain of Youth (Closed for Lunch)

Today I was woken by Pete's iPod's alarm, which was only slightly more forgiving than the phone, and I almost jumped out of bed with enthusiasm. Only I was still half-asleep so it was more like a fall! After I'd got ready and done some diary and Pete had showered, we made our way down to breakfast, which was much the same as the day before, so there's no point in me going through it. Once we'd finished and got our travelling gear ready, we set off to explore the more inland villages.
Our first destination was a waterfall near the town of Polop (which Dad and Pete joked sounded like "plop", but after much travelling through twisty-turny roads and through picturesque villages, we couldn't find the waterfall! It was as if someone had hidden it! Instead, we ended up taking the car uphill to take some pictures of the dramatic scenery, which was sadly ruined by the glacier-esque coverings for the farmers' plants which covered the sides of every hill. Eventually we headedback downhill, past 'Cactus-Land' (great!) and through Polop.
We now headed on to Guadalest, a beautiful village atop a rocky hill (almost a mountain!). For some reason we weren't allowed in the castle, so we contented ourselves with exploring the pretty backstreets and taking photos of the breathtaking panorama. When we were bored of this, we headed to a nearby cafe where I had a very chocolatey hot chocolate! It was like liquid chocolate fudge cake! Mmmm... ALso, in the cafe, they were playing a LOVG album. I couldn't tell which one, but it had Muñeca de Trapo and Dulce Locura, as well as some other pretty good stuff. I really want to get out to a music shop and bag some good deals on old LOVG.
Anyway, tired of Guadalest, we headed back to Polop to look around. To begin with, we headed uphill again past another interesting church, and to a castle...which was also closed! We weren't doing very well today! Instead, we decided to bask in the sun like lizards. To be honest, I could probably have stayed there forever. However, no sooner had we sat down than someone decided we should go and look for a fountain of some kind. So back down the hill we went, and after a little wandering we found what we were after: a mosaic fountain running around the outside of a quiet plaza. It wasn't quite what I was expecting - I was looking for a centrepiece or something in front of a building. But, one way or another, it was another thing to take pictures of. Apparently there are 221 spouts, but I've no idea why that's significant.
So, once Mum and Dad had taken enough photos and Pete had made sure that there were exactly 221 spouts, we headed back to the first beach from yesterday to grab an ice-cream. This proved to be almost more trouble than it was worth, but eventually Mum and Dad found an heladeria that they liked, and we tucked into a mountain of nougat and chocolate ice-cream, brazil nut pieces, toffee syrup and whipped cream. Mm-mm! Pure sugar never tasted so good! Sadly the bowl was only soon deep, and soon I was drinking the melted remains at the bottom. ¡Que pena! With the ice-cream eaten and the bill paid, we headed quickly back to the hotel, a journey once again without anything significant happening. Back at the hotel I made use of my wi-fi hour to browse the web, update my blog and catch up with Georgia. Apparently the snow is almost gone where she is, so it should be clear by the time we return. That's good - no more embarrasing slips up! The hour passed far too quickly, but it passed nonetheless, so I returned to the room to update this diary.
With that done, I headed down to the pool for my regular 30 circuits. It was a little busier than yesterday, but eventually I got the pool to myself again. After this I returned, showered and joined the others for dinner. It was very similar to last night, but with different selections again in the hot food section. After the meal, we played card in the common room. There was some live music as well, but I was too engrossed in the card games to really appreciate the music. Anyway, after I'd won twice, we returned to our rooms and chilled out until it was time for bed again.

So, another day gone. Sorry I didn't put this up yesterday as I was planning to - I came down with some weird tummy bug that was probably from the sanwiches at the CDC meeting thing in the morning. I dunno, I'd just got back into cheese and pickle and this is what it does to me! Evil food... But I digress. Tune in tomorrow for awesome sandcastle action, some more tourist shopping chaos, and of course.....The Chocolate Factory!!! This is an instalment not to be missed - So don't! WHat was that thing they used to say on 'Live 'n' Kicking'? MIMO - Miss It, Miss Out! Or something. I dunno...See ya 'round!

Jack

Day 2 - Sunshine, Seagulls and So Many Steps!

The Days' single comes out today. Ah well, I can download it when I get back. Anyway, I slept well and was rudely awoken at 9:15 by an extremely noisy telephone; it was Mum and Dad, and we only had forty-five minutes left to have breakfast. So after hurried preparation we raced back downstairs to the dining room. Awaiting us was, once again, a plentiful selection of foods, and I immediately tucked in. Today was going to be an out-and-about day, so I'd need the energy.
It was sunny, a vast improvement upon yesterday, so I changed into shorts and sandals, and met up with the others, ready to go exploring. We all got into the car and set off for the other side of Benidorm, where the beach, so Dad tells us, is much more interesting. Everything seemed to look a lot happier in the sun, and the sea was a deep blue, rather than yesterday's green. Once there, we headed down to the beach and I took some photos of the others before accompanying Mum into the local tourist info. I grabbed some leaflets to cut and stick later whilst Mum got the lowdown on good places to visit, such as the Chocolate Museum, for example! That's for later, though. For now, we returned to find Dad and Pete on the beach...throwing pebbles at seagulls. Why am I not surprised?
After five minutes' relaxation, we managed to find the motivation to go and buy some sunglasses. Luckily shopping around was fairly easy and before long we were back on track and driving along thhe coast to our next port of call: Altea. Surprisingly, the country outside of Benidorm is a lot less tacky and consumerism-obsessed than the city, so the drive was quite enjoyable with the sun out. Eventually, we found ourselves in the picturesque town of Altea, and hastily made tracks to the old town, not wishing to get caught in the crowds. And so we began the three-hundred-and-something-step climb, both beautiful and tiring, to the summit of the hill on which this town is built. On our way, we spotted many picturesque examples of murals and mosaics, although many were sadly ruined by grafitti. The culmination of this art came in the form of the church at the pinncale of the hill, its white and deep blue dowes standing out in their splendour from the whites and browns around them. Inside, the decoration was even more ornate. I'd like to say I've never seen so much gold leaf in my life, but that would be a lie (just visit the Royal Palace in Bangkok to see what I mean!), although this was certainly a lot. And there were loads of really ornately-carved and -painted statues looking down from alcoves to either side, and rows of paintings and images of biblical events. It was an incredible building, and the slightly-tinted light streaming through the high windows only added to the aura of something from a dream.
Back to reality, and we stopped to grab a drink. I ended up with some kind of juice which tasted like a cross between grapefruit and mango. Even now I'm not sure what it was, but it was good. So we wandered around for a bit, took some more photos, sat in the shadow of the enormous church, and then decided it was time to move on. So we trudged back down the three-hundred-and-somthing steps, past the venomously bright colours of modern Altea, and made it backt to the car and on to Calpe without incident.
Having had our taste of art and architechture, Calpe was more appealing on a natural level. Our wandering led us to a nature reserve which contained a humungous rocky outcrop - actually a fragment from the Rock of Gibraltar, for all you fact-fans out there. It was an excellent place to start making proper use of my camera, and , to be honest, I was really getting into it. I was beginning to realise how artistic you can be with the composition and the perspective and stuff, and I can see why Dad enjoys it. Especially when some challenging targets are involved, such as the hundreds of seagulls swarming around the rock.
Once we'd been dragged away from our snapping, we went to find lunch near the marina. I had squid rings, for the first time in...well, at least a year, and they were every bit as great as I remember, although I could have done with some sweet chili sauce. Anyway, I'll gloss over shopping at Lidl and the uneventful trip back. Once we were safely in our rooms, I wrote some more for my diary and swam, although this time without Pete to distract me! Anyway, before long it was time for dinner, and tonight, among other things, there were meatballs, pate and lots of chocolatey puds up for grabs. There was a lot of deep conversation over this meal, but soon we forgot it because Pete and Dad were missing the Arsenal game. As a result, we relocated to the common room again and convinced the bartender to turn on the TV, while I took the advantage to try the other non-alcoholoic cocktail, which wasn't bad, but last night's was definitely better. Soon, I was feeling quite worn out, so I left the others to their game and got away from the screeching parrots which formed part of tonight's entertainment. Maybe we'll actually get some proper music tomorrow. Back in the room, I continued diarying and listening to some music, until Pete got back. That prompted me to get ready for bed and before long I was fast asleep.

So, another day, another adventure. Hope you're enjoying it so far. If you are, come back tomorrow when...well, pretty much everywhere was closed. But don't be discouraged! Some exciting stuff may still happen. No promises of course. See you tomorrow!

Jack

Day 1 - Plane, Spain and Rain

One a.m. starts are rarely good things, but I must admit, this one was close. It took us surprisingly little time to get out of town, under the cover of darkness, and before long we were off to Birmingham airport. We saw very few other people on the roads (as you'd expect), so we were able to make good progress and lop at least fifteen minutes off our estimated time of arrival. Turning up at the car park, we checked in the S-Max and boarded the bus which would take us to the airport itself. The seats on the bus didn't allow for much legroom, and the journey was longer than I'd expected, but eventually we were dropped at the terminal entrance. Checking in was a breeze, but then I realised I had packed some stuff I shouldn't have in my hand luggage, and I started to get in a bit of an unnecessary panic. After we grabbed a hot chocolate at Costa to wake us up, I managed to buy a plastic bag to keep my liquids in during Customs, and the only casualties were my scissors and deodorant, which are easily replaceable.
Anyway, with that sorted out, we passed through Customs without any hiccups, and soon we were having a full English breakfast in Departures - Just what I needed to prepare me for a morning of travelling. Even Mum had a full English - What is the world coming to?? After this, we still had some time to spare, so I went to locate a puzzle book for the flight, but unfortunately I couldn't find one I liked. James Bond would have to do! Other than that, the shops were very uninspiring, so I waited out the rest of the hour by playing Mah-Jong on my iPod - What fun! Not. Eventually, we were guided onto our plane, a Ryanair 737, so no second breakfast, sadly! After a short delay, we had left the glimmering lights of the city behind us and were shooting upwards through grey clouds we hoped to see the last of.
I passed the next two hours of flying by doing Su Doku, reading Moonraker and listening to La Oreja De Van Gogh's latest album, 'A Las Cinco En El Astoria', and it's not bad! I'm still not hooked on Leire Martinez, but the typical sunny feeling of LOVG is definitely present. In particular, 'Mas', 'Sola' and 'Inmortal' are really good fun, and deserve places on the next Grandes Exitos.
Soon we were touching down in Alicante - A decidedly overcast Alicante. With no time to dwell on the weather now, we went through the motions of getting our suitcases and picking up the hire car, a graphite Ford Focus. Armed with our awesome GPS (Just as well, because our maps were rubbish) we journied to Benidorm without issue, and arrived at our hotel, the Deloix. Unfortunately, we weren't allowed to check in yet because we were too early, so we traveled onwards to the waterfront for a walk and lunch. I must admit, I was less than impressed. The promenade was overlooked by a row of depressing flats of various shades of grey and brown, and the thousands of neon signs and posters made everything seem way too tacky. And every other person passing you by was either older than fifty or a chav. Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against old people, but it would be nice to be reassured that someone a bit more like me can have fun in Benidorm. Not only that, but the sky was grey and it even rained from time to time, so no-one was on the beach and all the recliners were stacked up. All in all, it gave me the impression that we'd left England just for it to follow us here. This isn't the Spain I was expecting!
Anyway, after wandering along the promenade and back, we decided it was lunchtime. Nipping into the nearest restaurant, Mum and I used our Spanish to order some sandwiches, and chicken and chips for Pete. I'm still not sure what was in my half-a-baguette, but whatever it was, I loved it! Also, the orange juice here is brilliant. None of this concentrated business: All of it is fresh, and as a consequence it's that much better. Not that you'd expect anything less from a region which prides itself on its oranges.
On the return to the hotel, we decided to stop in a supermarket to get some supplies (alcohol and fizzy drinks!), and I took the chance to have a look around. It wasn't that interesting, though: Just a sort of Londis-type shop with a really weird name (Maxi Dia % - What??), so no magazines or CDs or anything. Hopefully I can get out to a Carrefour for that sort of thing. So, by this time it was time to check into the hotel, and we pretty much flopped as soon as we got in. Pete grabbed a Coke Zero, and I a Fanta, and together we watched the skiers make fools of themselves on TV. Pete was out like a light before long. I stayed up to chatch up on this diary and to reappraise the LOVG. Nope, still the same thoughts as last time. Ah well, it was a good enough excuse to get out of reality for a while.
After a little more relaxing, we decided to get down to the pool. It's not brilliant, but it's good enough for exercise. The outdoor one looks better, but it was raining at the time. Despite having to wear a hat (!), I managed to get in my thirty laps. So then it was back up to the rooms to make use of the average shower facilities, and before long we were ready for dinner! Making our way to the dining room, we discovered a brilliant buffet full of different, interesting foods. In particular, the panga fish was wonderfully meaty and the desserts were...interesting as well. I knew I had all week so I moderated a little and felt all the better for it. Hooray for moderation!
Relocating to the common room, we ordered cocktails (mine non-alcoholic, of course) and enjoyed the atmosphere of the evening. Eventually it got late, so we returned to the rooms, changed into our pyjamas, and were asleep straight away!

So there you go. Hope you enjoyed the first installment of my holiday diary, and make sure you tune in again tomorrow for some fantastic architechture, a photo frenzy in a natural park and, at last, a glimpse of the sun!

Jack

Just come on and say you love me! One more time, whatcha waiting for?!

Hehehe...Rogue Traders are awesome summer music. I just feel in such a sunny mood today. It won't be long before we're outside having barbecues and sunbathing and listening to Jack Johnson and drinking orange juice with ice cubes in. Mmmm....But first I have to get through the massive storm that is AS exams. Cripes. Summer had better be good!
I haven't even said hello, have I? Hello!! I'm finally back from my holiday, and I have SOOOOOO much to tell you! More than that, I'm sure YOU have so much to tell ME! What's changed? How are the Days doing in the charts? Are there any Heroes trailers going round? Anything else I should know? Get in touch!
I'll be posting my holiday diary up here, starting tomorrow, so you can all see what i got up to. All three of you, that is. Three! Wow, it's even bigger than two! At this rate, I might actually have FOUR followers by Christmas! Yawn. Anyway, time to go and do Spanish essays. Great. It never stops, does it? So I'll see you all back here tomorrow! Stay tuned...

Jack

Hola, mis seguidores!

Hi folks. As I type this, I'm in the atrium of our hotel, and the weather is sun at 18 degrees. mmm. Haven't got much time, so I'll keep you hanging with a few tasters: So far we've had a fiasco at the airport, tons of tacky tourist terror and plenty of brilliant food. Want to know more? Stay tuned this Friday! Until then, Adios!

Jack

On the road again!

I'm due to head off to Alicante in about 5 hours, so I thought I'd better drop you lot a line beofre I leave. I can't promise there'll be wifi at the hotel, although it's 4 star, so you'd expect there to be. If I don't update this while I'm out there, I'll try and keep a diary and fill you in when I get back. Until then, all of you stay safe, and I'll be back before you know it!

Viva España!

Jack

"All I wanna do is find a way back into love..."

Hi folks.
Yeah, it may have been early Valentines' Day for everyone, but it was also Friday 13th. You can probably guess what happened. I could. But it still kinda annoyed me, getting rejected for...what, the 11th, 12th time? Probably more, actually. Nevertheless, it was a new excuse to add to my collection. I don't actually think I've had a "I'm afraid I like a different guy" before. I was watching Hancock yesterday, and there was a quote which kind of summed my state of mind at the moment. It went something along the lines of:

"I'm not the most charming guy in the world, so I've been told, but...nobody??"

Deep, huh?
Anyway, enough depression. The Teachers seem to have given me enough homework to last 2 half terms, even without a holiday, and as we're going away on Sunday, I'd better get cracking! And always remember, no matter who tells you otherwise, love IS a many splendid thing.

Jack

Snow Hope For School Closing

Groan. Bad pun. Someone had to do it. A load of jumbled thoughts going around at the moment; I can't seem to make sense of anything because of this darned headache. When is Heroes coming back??? The Americans have it so much better than us. Torchwood had better be less depressing than the last series, but I'm sure the trailer on Thursday will tell all. Also loving the snow, not just because it's brilliant and fun, but because it means there's a chance of not having any school. Breaking Dawn is...well... strangely tedious, probably because my cold-infested brain can't concentrate on any one thing for more than ten seconds. Also Valentine's Day coming up; I've got the card and everything, I'm just not sure what name to write inside it. I'm torn between two of my friends, and I can't decide which one I like better. And on top of all that, I have a pile of work THIS HIGH to get through. With that in mind, I'd better sign off. Stay off the ice!

Jack