Town Centre Falla

Following on from yesterday, and after eating my giant ice-cream! I continued walking along the promenade down towards the "Old Town" part of Benidorm.

The palms reached to the sky, enjoying the warmth,

and some ladies took refuge from the heat in the shadows of the beach huts.

This delightful iron goatherd looked over his flock,

who were scattered all over the grass,

while on the beachfront, enormous intricate sandcastles were watered down to prevent them from crumbling, and destroying the artists's work!

I turned off the prom just as I reached the area called centro, which is more or less the town centre of Benidorm,

and discovered some more fun childrens' rides, waiting to be ridden,

I especially loved this cheerful wizard, on the kiddies' ghost tren.

This is the Centro falla, in the style of a gypsy caravan,

with a rather austere lady looking down from the top of it! I wonder who she is?

The theme was the circus, as you can see by this weight-lifting bruiser!

but the statue was far less adorned and ornate than the one in the Rincon de Loix.

Again, there were placards explaining the figures which I struggled to understand... but "the crisis has arrived to the fallas" was written on every note, the crisis denoting the worldwide financial crisis at the moment... so maybe this is why the centro falla was not quite as spectacular this year, what a shame, but perfectly understandable.

In the streets, there was also a "porrat" or street market, this stall above was selling dried herbs to cure all manner of ills and ailments!

and this brightly tagged stall had a variety of jamon serrano (cured ham), speciality cheeses, and jars of olives and pickles.

I thought the coconut pieces in their shells looked cool and inviting - the way they trickle cool water on them constantly is such a good idea - and essential in this baking climate!

To complete my sightseeing I took a few photos of the beautiful floral displays in the Plaza de Hispanidad, known locally as Plaza Triangular, where many fiesta parades and shows start and finish, and where New Year is always rung in with music and "lucky grapes"!

This huge old tree is a welcome resting point for everyone, with it's large amount of leafy foliage to shelter under,

and its' incredibly long roots to marvel at,

and what more exotic note to end on, than this stunning Bird of Paradise flower, enjoying the rays of sunlight, along with the rest of us.

See you tomorrow! x