The Guideless Traveller: España: Days 59 & 60 (El Campello & Alicante)

Day 59:
We started this beautiful Saturday off with a couple glasses of cava at a place called Sensacions and they brought out some complimentary salami type of tapa. It was pretty good and I am not usually one for cold cuts. We then had lunch at our new favorite pizza spot, La Espiga and tried an Ensalda Mitxa for the first time along with our usual pizzas. My wine pick of the day, a properly chilled Crianza....

Ready to start the day! At Sensacions Tapas y Vinos

A couple glasses of cava and salami at Sensacions

Lan Crianza de Rioja 2012 at La Espiga

Ensalada Mitxa at La Espiga

I have been using this website called Red Canina to find dog beaches around Spain because it is not as easy as it was in Santa Monica to allow Coco to get her chubby nubbins (paws) in the sand. This little one absolutely loves the sand...not so much the water but we are working on that! Based off the info on this site, we spent part of the day planning a trip to one of the beaches tomorrow. We would have to take a tram, a bus and walk a bit but we were ready for the adventure! Coco has not been on the tram here yet and none of us have been on the bus so we are mapping it out with the helpful assistance of Google Maps!

Siesta time for Coco

We headed over to Club Nautico for dinner and enjoyed our favorite Patatas Bravas....

Patatas Bravas at Club Nautico

Bohigas Brut Rosat Cava at Club Nautico

Day 60:
I am so excited to start today's dog beach adventure! First we have to take the tram from El Campello to Alicante (Luceros) and Coco was awesome on her very first tram ride. Once we got to Plaza de los Luceros, we had about 30 minutes to catch the bus, so we were able to relax. Coco had to get in her carrier in order to ride the bus, which is fine because we were prepared for that. She actually seemed to be pretty content in her carrier. We kept the top open and not once did she even try to get out. The bus was really nice (line 27, I believe) and we rode through parts of Alicante we have not yet seen. The closest stop to the dog beach was not that close (considering the heat) and the terrain was a little rocky at times but 20 minutes later, we made it to Playa de Agua Amarga!

Coco's first tram ride!

Coco's first bus ride!

I love the setup at this beach because not only do they have lounge chair & umbrella rentals for the humans, they also loan you a cute little beach lounge for the pup if you want it! The water today was a little rough so of course Coco did not want to go near it but the biggest downfall is the amount of rocks at shore, entering the water. First, smaller rocks crashing on your paws and then sets of large rocks you would have to climb over to get past the other rocks. It just was not suitable for us but that is ok because Coco loves the sand and that is really all she cares about. At one point, I sat down in a calmer, less rocky portion of water with her in my arms. She was not too happy about that but she did a really good job just dealing with it. Another rad thing about Playa de Perros Agua Amarga is the human/dog bar right there on the beach. You must keep your dog leashed once you enter the fenced area at Rock & Dogs Playa cafe bar. They have water for the dogs along with some merchandise for purchase. Nothing fancy but I did see a ChuckIt launcher, so bravo! What they need to get is some puppy ice cream 😉 We had a drink and a few snacks here, nothing special. A lot of Coco overload now....

Beach bitch at Playa de Agua Amarga

Spoiled at the dog beach Playa de Agua Amarga in Alicante

Rough waves for the smaller pups

Rocky entrance at Playa de Agua Amarga

Playa Agua Amarga dog beach bar

Dog beach bar Rock & Dogs Playa at Agua Amarga

Sunbathing time

"My beauty is not an invite" ~ Coco
"A girl should be two things: classy and fabulous" ~ Coco Chanel

Coco enjoying her Whimzee Alligator!

All is bueno when she is in her papa's arms

As we were getting close to the bus stop to make our way back, a lot of buses passed by and Scott made a joke about "hoping none of them were ours..." well, one was and it was about 20 minutes early than the scheduled time! So we had to wait at this lonesome bus stop for 40 minutes "mas o menos" (more or less). When we made it back to Alicante's Plaza de los Luceros, we sat down for a nice glass (or two) of sangria at a friendly and funky bar called The Duke. We were also grateful to use a clean bathroom with toilet paper. We then hopped on the tram to make our way back home to Campello.

Good sangria at The Duke!

I love when I get a good shot of my surroundings behind me...

The busy day continues with dinner at Bar Merfin! The two new dishes we tried were: Tomate al Pesto (think: pesto caprese) and the Rollito de Calabacín (zucchini roll)...both had a bit too much cheese for me and we could both do without the sprouts on top of the tomato but those are easily removed. I think we would get the zucchini again though.