Leaving Ibiza for Cartagena, Part 1 of 2.

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Hello dear friends. In our previous blog we took on the challenging 340 Nm sail from Tunisia to Mallorca, met up with our friends Jonalyn and Victor and explored the “Dalt Vila” of Ibiza. In this blog we will sail further to the South-West to Cartagena, mainland Spain.

Leaving our anchorage near Dalt Vila (Ibiza town) in the afternoon of Tue Nov 14, for a 15 Nm sail for Cala Llentrisca on the West side of Ibiza island, where we dropped anchor for the night.

The distance from Ibiza town to Punta del Albir, NE of Benidorm would be 80 Nm. Being November this would implicate an arrival after dark, which we want to avoid. Positioning our boat in Cala Llentrisca would cut the journey short by two hours so we could comfortably cross the shipping lane at Cabo de la Nao, and arrive at the anchorage with daylight.

A one night stay North of Punta del Albir. The name of the town with that beautiful beach? You guessed it; l'Albir.
The lighthouse on Punta del Albir the following morning. We basically were at anchor behind this rock. Today's sail is 23 Nm and will bring us to Playa de la Huerta, NE of Alicante.
November mornings are chilly on the water. You start with three layers of clothing and end the day in a T-shirt.
A beautiful waterfall along this coast?? Don't be deceived! It is the discharge of treated water from the Benidorm Waste Water Treatment Plant. Smelly too!
Sailing past Benidorm also known as the "New York of the MED", and the birthplace of the "package holiday" since 1952. As if this concrete jungle is not large enough, recently the Benidorm council approved its largest-ever urban plan which will see 20 hotels, 2,300 homes, and three shopping centres built.
8.30 am the following day and anchor up at the Playa de la Huerta for our 42 Nm sail to the Mar Menor.
Mar Menor is a large, shallow inland sea NE of Cartagena. Upon arrival we anchor at "1", the outer harbour, at what looks like an abandoned marina development. During the bulk of our stay we are anchored at "2". Los Nietos is well protected against the prevailing SW wind. There is a train station at walking distance for a direct 20 min ride to Cartagena, the city we want to explore. A few days in, we had to temporarily relocate to "3" to shelter for a NW storm. On a boat your life is dictated by the weather.
At anchor at "1" waiting for the bridge (near the control tower) to open. Out of season the opening hours are irregular and sometimes you don't even get an answer on the VHF radio since the control tower is not permanently maned.
At 10.00 am the following morning the bridge finally opens and we can cross the narrow channel into the lagoon.
Visiting Mar Menor is one place we can now take off our bucket list. Yess!

Seeing is believing. Never, have we seen sooooo many jellyfish. It is the “fried egg jellyfish” (Cotylorhiza tuberculata) and the whole lagoon is full of them. We caught one for a closer look.

Fried-egg jellyfish top view.
Bottom view.

From the top they look like a fried-egg, sunny side up. They have short tentacles at the bottom and it is said that their sting is not too painful. We didn’t try to confirm that (LOL). It are strange animals that do not have a brain. They also lack a heart, stomach, and many of the other organs we are familiar with. They are among the oldest animals on earth, at least 500 million years. As a boater we have to be aware that they can block the water intake for engine cooling, deck wash and water making. In case you are hungry; they are edible!

Fisherman at sunset. Amazing how he can find fish among those jellyfish.
The cute diesel train that commutes back and forth between Los Nietos and Cartagena.
A striking building along the route; The public market opposite the train station in La Union.
At the first roundabout outside the train station we saw this model of the "Peral", the first successful submarine to be entirely powered by electric batteries and the first fully military-capable submarine in history. It was built by the Spanish engineer Isaac Peral for the Spanish Navy in 1888. The original is preserved in the Cartagena Naval Museum.
Walking further towards the ancient city we saw this beautiful mural painting of a Philippine Tarsier.

“Qart Hadasht” (Cartagena) was founded around 230 BC by the Carthaginians (Punics). After the Romans conquered the city during the second Punic war in 209 BC it became known as “Carthago Nova”. Much of the historical significance of Cartagena stemmed from its coveted well protected and easy to defend port, one of the most important in the western Mediterranean.

The Ancient Town is limited to the area between five small hills indicated by the green icons above. In the past, there was an inner sea around the isthmus called the Estero, that eventually silted up. The main entrance gate was on the East side, left of the roundabout where the N-332 ends. Compare image below.

We are standing here on the hill called Molinete, facing East. There is an incredible amount of history in this photo, that can be clicked for a full size view. (1) Monte Sacro, (2) Monte de San José, (3) Basilica de la Caridad, (4) Despeñaperros, (5) Molino Harinero, (6) Area Sacra, (7 & 8) Punic & Roman wall, (9) Wall of Charles III, King of Spain from 1759 until 1788.

(1) The structure to the right on Monte Sacro is a Punic temple dedicated to “Baal Hammon”, the chief God of ancient Carthage. His female cult partner was “Tanit”, the Goddess of fertility. The structure is still maintained but in a questionable condition. The windmill to the left was used as an observation post during WWII. It is now privately owned and restored as a house.

(2) Remains of Punic walls were found at the bottom of Monte de San José. The fortress, or what is left on top of the hill dates from 1765 and was designed by Juan Martín Cermeño, or Zermeño, a Spanish architect, military engineer and lieutenant general who also designed the defences for Melilla, Santiago de Cuba AND Intramuros, Manilla, Philippines. 

The exterior of the museum dedicated to the Punic Wall gives an impression of what the 10 meter high (double) wall looked like. The main access gate into the city was in this East section of the wall, between Monte de San Jose (in the background) and Despeñaperros.

The wall consists of two parallel curtain walls of up to 10 meters high. Every 3 to 4 meters a transverse wall provided the required structural integrity. The resulting rectangular rooms were used as casemates, housing troops and weapons. 

(7) and (8). The design of Punic and Roman walls was largely the same in this city and the Romans re-used / restored much of the Punic wall after the conquest.

Wooden beams were used for intermediate floors and the roof. Note that the walls are quite thin. Siege weapons to attack a wall directly were not yet developed. Instead, the wooden gates were directly attacked and the ballista (catapult) was used to shoot fist-size objects and spears over the wall. If this wall was designed in 600 AD it would have been solid.

During the excavation of the Carthaginian walls a burial crypt belonging to the small church of San José was also found. The church was destroyed in the 1829 earthquake. This burial area was reserved for members of the Brotherhood of San José. It is elliptical in shape with a niche as an altar for the picture of the patron saint at one end and an access stairway at the other and was probably covered by a vaulted ceiling.

(3) A close up of the rear side of the “Basilica of Nuestra Señora de la Caridad” as seen from Molinete. Once the church of the Caridad Hospital, it is dedicated to the Virgin of Sorrows.

The entrance to the church is located on Calle Caridad, caridad meaning charity or handout. Caridad is also the name of the barangay where Liza followed high school, neighbouring to her place of birth.

The church’s facade, difficult to photograph in those narrow streets.

The church was closed, but we could make a photo through the glass panel in the front door, with the “Virgin of Sorrows” in the centre.

The Virgin of Sorrows (Virgen de los Dolores) is no other than the Virgin Marry with 7 arrows in her heart symbolising her 7 sorrows. She is often depicted as a sorrowful mother, mourning the crucifixion of her son, Jesus Christ. Photo from internet before the restoration of the statue.

(4) Despeñaperros as seen from “Parque Del Batel” outside the city walls. The castle on top of the hill was built in the 18th century, probable the same time Charles III built his wall, also visible in this photo. Very little has remained of the castle.

(5) Molino Harinero. For the last five centuries, dozens of flour mills have stood out on the city’s 5 hill’s. The mill pictured above was built in the eighteenth century over the structure of an older mill. All these mills supplied the local bakeries with the flour they needed for making bread and cakes for the city’ inhabitants, for the fleet and the military barracks.

Reconstruction drawing of said mill. The design was based on the Greek windmills. (see; https://www.twobatsea.com/kos-greece/).

(6) Area Sacra. Hasdrubal is the founder of Punic “Qart Hadasht”, which the Romans later called Carthago Nova, present day Cartagena. He had a palace on top of Molineta. The shrine, indicated “B” was dedicated to the Syrian Goddes Atargatis and linked to the palace. The shrine indicated with “A” was built by the Romans. Its dedication is unknown.

(9) A fine example of Charles III’s wall can be found along the Calle Muralla del Mar opposite the marina. In the photo looking down from Bastion No: 18 towards the Victor Beltri stairs. A bust of King Charles III on a pedestal in the pink circle. Marina (not visible) to the right.

The final structure we saw on Molinete worth mentioning is this bomb shelter, built and used during the Spanish civil war in 1937. There are many more interesting sites in Cartagena, but that is subject to the next blog.

Thank you for reading our stories. We hope it was interesting, Liza and Frits.