When did you start coming here?
Lucas
“My grandma lived on this street
and I remember walking along it in fancy
dress as part of a procession for children
when I was little.”
What’s the appeal?
Manu
“Calle Castaños is the main street
for the new fashion of doing the
tardeo
–
going out on Saturday afternoons instead
of Saturday night. You start by the
Mercado
(8 Avenida de Alfonso X El
Sabio)
at about 2pm for tapas, then
go on to a terrace bar like the Globe
(22 Calle Castaños)
and end up dancing
somewhere like the Teatre bar
(4 Carrer
Tomás Lopez Torregrosa, teatrealicante.
com)
at 7pm or even earlier. It’s a strange
sensation when you´re in Teatre with a
copa
[a spirit drink and mixer], there’s
loud music playing, then you go outside
and it’s still day. It’s a bit of a shock!”
Lucas
“Four o’clock in the afternoon feels
like four o’clock in the morning.”
Who comes here?
Lucas
“It started with people a little bit
older than us, people of 27 to 35, wanting
to go out earlier so that they could go
to bed earlier and get up earlier the next
morning. Now it’s extended to everyone.
You see younger and older people.”
What’s your order?
Lucas
“We always ask for a
cubo de
quintos
[a bucket of 200ml bottles of
beer on ice]. It’s €7 for nine quintos at
The Globe.”
What keeps you coming back?
Manu
“In Alicante, we have a good
climate, it’s sunny nearly all year so we
make the most of it. It’s nice to be able
to sit out in the open air and talk to the
people around you. At night, the people
go out to dance, so there’s loud music
and it’s harder to talk to the people you´re
with. In Alicante, even in November and
December, you can sit outside and it’s
not cold. In most other cities this would
be impossible.”
Gimnástica (from left): Lucas Jurado Baños
(guitar), Juanma Pérez González (vocals),
Manu Garrote López (guitar) and Dani Gil
Ortiz (bass).
gimnasticabanda.com
T H E R E G U L A R S
The coolest places around the
network, by the people who
know them best
Gimnástica
Rock band
DRINK ON
CALLE CASTAÑOS
Centro
ALICANTE
alicanteturismo.com
AS TOLD TO
TREVOR BAKER
PHOTO
RAFA GALÁN
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