Mushroom Street, Alicante

The narrow pedestrian street of San Francisco (Calle San Francisco) is located in the coastal part of the city center, and connects Plaza Calvo Sotelo (next to the department store El Corte Ingless) and Plaza Portal de Elche (next to the high-rise building of the hotel Alicante Gran Sol).

At the end of the 20th century, this quarter had a bad reputation, prostitution, drug trafficking and other illegal businesses flourished here, which were controlled by migrants from North Africa. In 2001, the city administration decided to restore order here, closing more than 20 dubious taverns and flophouses. This caused a scandal, leftist politicians accused city officials of racial harassment (a familiar story, isn't it?), nevertheless, the hotbed of crime was eliminated.

In 2013, at the initiative of the mayor of Alicante, Sonia Castedo, the street was decorated with large plastic mushrooms with insects sitting on them, and the pavement was painted in bright colors.

About 60 thousand euros were spent on reconstruction, but the costs were fully paid off - the street became famous as a tourist attraction, cafes and restaurants, including those focused on family visits, began to open like mushrooms after the rain.

Now, not only tourists walk on Calle San Francisco, but also locals who gave it the name "Mushroom Street" (Calle de las Setas).