Life: Idiotropic

You truly never quite know what you may run into here in Spain, so I've learned not to be too surprised.  My latest shock came with warning from my Spanish friend, Elisa who told me that I'd be staying just near the Russian church.  The only problem is, that I arrived into Altea beach late at night, so I had no idea where it was.  Then we're leaving the next morning for a few hours of snorkling and climb out of the thickly tree lined road into an open place at a roundabout and there it was, just sitting there, looking really like someone dropped it on accident and just hadn't returned to pick it up.

A real Russian Orthodox Church in Spain.  Valencia is known for the big blue ceramic domed churches.  They are especially beautiful here near the sea.  This one is shiny and bright gold.

It's the first Russian Orthodox Church to be built in Spain and has only been here for three years to be home to the Parish of San Miguel, the parish of mostly Russian attendees who live in the Altea Hills.  An exact replica of a 17th C Russian church, nearly all the materials came from the Ural Mountains in Russia including the beautiful engravings that adorn the Valencia made alterpiece.  There are detailed mosaics on the outside and bright shiny domes.  The inside is small, so the details are almost overwhelming.  Everywhere you look there is shiny gold metal or paint and the ceiling has deep colored frescoes.

It was a quick trip. The girls waited in the car.  I ran around snapping with my camera.  I heard Russian spoken outside and though no photos were allowed, no one was there to stop me on the inside.

A quiet place, but a bit eerie.  May be I've watched too many movies.  Elisa told me that the Russian Mafia lives in these hills and the church is for them.  She's read about it in the news because the police go up there a lot.