Alicante, chief town of its province, lies in a picturesque bay on the southeast coast of Spain, at the foot of Mt Benacantil, which is crowned by the Castillo de Santa Bárbara. With its many hotels and tower blocks Alicante, known to the Romans as Lucentum (the "place of light") and to the Moors as
Lecant or al-Lucant, is a town of modern aspect. Alicante, the chief place on the Costa Blanca, is both a summer and a winter resort. In recent years new parks and gardens have been laid out and many streets and boulevards have been widened. The town also has a variety of industry (chemicals, aluminum), and it is an important port for the shipping of raisins, southern fruits, oil, licorice and esparto grass.