Guadalest - The Old Town

Welcome to part two of my hub on Guadalest in this hub we are continuing where we left off at the  ‘Portal de San José’. The upper part known as the Castle village is entered through this 15 meter long, man made, tunnel through solid rock called the ‘Portal de San José  and it is a much photographed part of Guadalest as the tunnel frames photographs wonderfully.

Guadalest is a very popular day trip for holidaymakers on holiday in Benidorm which is only about 30 kilometers from Guadalest.

Guadalest was in existence during the time of the Muslim occupation of Spain in the thirteenth century and was itself occupied by the Moors. It came into the hands Bernardo de Sarrià in 1293 when King Jamie II after its conquest gave the castle of Guadalest to the Sarrià family.

It remained in the family’s hands for 42 years during this period the castle and all the county belonged to the Sarrià family.

Guadalest was given to a succession of noble families until in 1543 when the king and queen D. Carlos and Dª. Juana gave Don Sancho de Cardona and his descendants the permanent title of Marquis of Guadalest. The last Cardona, Marquis of Guadalest, died in 1699 without any descendants.

Once through the ‘Portal de San José’ the first thing you will see is the Orduña House which was built after the great earthquake in1644. This earthquake demolished much of the original housing in Guadalest, the Orduña house is named after the family Orduña, who came to prominence in Guadalest during the time of the Cardonas.

The Orduña family came to El Castell de Guadalest as friends of the Cardonas. They served the Cardonas as guardians of the castle and governors of their estates. The Orduñas were Mayors of Guadalest from 1669 and the last of the Orduñas died in 1934 without any descendants and all his property was given to distant relatives. The house eventually came into the hands of the Town Hall in 1994 when it was turned into a MunicipalMuseum which you see today.

Next door to the Orduña house is the Baroque style Church or Iglesia called Nuestra Señora de la Asunción which was originally built in 1740 but it was burnt and looted during the Spanish Civil war. The church that we see now was altered in 1962 and renovations of the inside were carried out in 1995

They made a good job of the renovations and the inside of the church is quite pretty. Unlike most Catholic churches which tend to be very ornate this church is very simple in its decoration and layout. If the church doors are open you are free to go inside but it is good to remember that it is also a place of worship and to respect that.

Next door to the church ‘Nuestra Señora de la Asunción’ is this very pretty shop that is filled to the brim with quality items which are ideal as mementoes of your visit to Guadalest or as presents for friends and family back home.

Just opposite this gift shop is the Museum of Miniatures of Manuel Ussa. In this museum you can see such curiosities as the Guernica of Picasso painted on a seed or the Statue of Liberty in the eye of a needle!

Walking a little further on up Iglesia Street we come to the main square any time you come to Guadalest you will have a good time as the scenery from the main square is breathtaking but there is one time of year when you will have an even more amazing visit and that is during its main fiesta. There are fiestas throughout the year but the main one being in honour of the Virgin of the Assumption is held in August (14^th to 17^th), during which you will be able to enjoy spectacular firework displays, parades, processions and dances. The Orduña house is dressed for this particular fiesta in one of the photos at the begining of this hub.

The Tiny Town Hall was formerly a courthouse and prison though as you can see from the photograph it is quite a pretty building not at all prison like. In the main square visitors can enjoy everything from drinks and snacks to a full meal in one of the restaurants, while taking in the magnificent scenery as they do so.

I took this photograph of the painted roof tiles because I liked them very much and one of them featured the Painted Houses that Villajoyosa is famous for. We had a few of these tiles on our terrace as they are the same tiles I have on my roof and my son painted the picture of the Painted houses of Villajoyosa on one of them and it turned out very well so well in fact that he gave it to his sister when she came for a visit.

Peñon de la Alcalá is a striking looking rocky peak which rises straight up from the land below only the lower half of the cylindrical castle tower exists today. From the original tower it was easy to keep a watch over the valley from this strategic point and this structure was very easy to defend because of it inaccessibility.

The Castle crowns the Village but unfortunately very little of the castle of San Jose (Saint Joseph) remains today. As you can see from the photographs the castle is towering over the old walled town from its commanding position. The castle is built on the highest point of the cliff which gave it an almost unassailable position being only accessed through the portal of San Jose. Due to the strategic location of this castle it played an important role in the history of the region. It was originally constructed in the 12th century, and was later reformed in the 15th and in 16th centuries; unfortunately it was then almost levelled by the 1644 earthquake. However, it is worth the three Euros entrance fee and there are guided tours of the site at certain parts of the day when you can learn more about the castle and its history.

These photographs of the castle were taken in February when all the Almond trees were in blossom in the second photograph below you can see an Almond tree absolutely full of the pink blossoms. The countryside around Guadalest at this time of year is filled with acres and acres of Almond trees all in blossom.

Having paid over your three Euros you are free to roam the inside of the castle walls, the photographs of the newer part of Guadalest that were in the first part of this hub were taken from up here in the castle grounds. Dotted along the paths you will find the pretty blue and white Stations of the Cross each one having a painted tile depicting a different station.

Also located in the grounds is the cemetery which is very much a typical Spanish type cemetery. In Spain on the “Día del Muerte” there are festivals and parades, and at the end of the day, the people will gather at cemeteries like this one and pray for their loved ones who have died.

Well I hope that you have enjoyed your little virtual wander around our beautiful village of Guadalest and the next time you are in this region I would strongly encourage you to pay a visit to see this wonderful place for yourself.

Take some time out to see some of the other places I have travelled to. My travelling is not just limited to Europe there are Hubs on places in USA also.

Thank you for your visit please take time out to leave your comments.

If you have enjoyed this hub you might enjoy some of the other places I have visited and written about.

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Welcome to part two of my hub on Guadalest in this hub we are continuing where we left off at the ‘Portal de San José’. The upper part known as the Castle village is entered through this 15 meter long, man made, tunnel through solid rock called the ‘Portal de San José and it is a much photographed part of Guadalest as the tunnel frames photographs wonderfully.

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