The Almuñécar town hall is determined to get the football stadium finished, either with municipal public funds or donations from private enterprises. It has already closed a deal with Estructuras y Construcciones San José in which, in exchange for financing the complete seating arrangement within the stadium (around 3,000 seats), the company will have the right to have its name on the back of every seat during the next five years.

At last the rubbish tip above Cotobro, between La Herradura and Almuñécar will be closed and cleaned up. The work will be carried out by Certificados Ecológicos S.L. They will also transport and recycle the accumulated building rubble. About three months ago it was mentioned here in the Gazette that the Mayor of Almuñécar had given an ultimatum to the provincial council, calling on them to appoint a company to carry out the closing down and cleaning up of this eyesore (and nosesore!), otherwise the town hall would do it themselves. It seems to have had effect, thank God. Certificados Ecologicos have the contract over the next 15 years, during which time they will process all the building waste coming from the urban expansion in Almuñécar and La Herradura. It also means that the ex domestic waste tip will be under round the clock vigilance to stop the sneaky old fridge and dead sofa bandits leaving their wares.

Yet another hotel for Almuñécar, this time near the beach, El Pozuelo, Taramay. It will be a four star hotel called Hotel Mayoral Costa. Costing some 10m euro, this new hotel of 91 rooms will be built on a plot of 1,800sqm between Calle Rambla de Caballero and Taramay - in other words, right next to the Maradona restaurant. However, the commencement date hasn't been given. The mayor, who was there at the presentation, put great faith in the new coastal motorway and the hotels of Almuñécar and La Herradura. He pointed out that the two towns could count on an extra 2,000 and 2,500 beds in four-star accommodation. Felipe Mayoral, the representative of the hotel group, hinted that they also had plans to build another hotel in the town at some point in the near future. However, the mayor made reference to the possibility of extending the building plot via a modification to the Municipal Urban Development Plan - a comment that lends credence to the accusation by the opposition party that the full 1,800sqm mentioned does not really exist.

Depressing combination: windy dry weather + pruning season + a farmer with a box of matches = plenty of ashes and goodbye to square kilometres of diminishing forestland. It is for this reason that the Junta de Andalucía is going to put the local farmers through a crash course in the disposal of dead branches without barbecuing half of Andalucía's flora & fauna. During April and May there are even going to be extra classes incorporated into the normal school curriculum for the kids of Lentejí, Jete, Molvízar, Otívar and Salobreña on this subject so that the next generation won't turn out so match-happy.

Finally something has been heard about the three municipal policemen of Almuñécar who were each facing eight years in prison for allegedly keeping back 500 kilos of hashish from a drugs bust. These three 'combat trained traffic wardens' surprised four Moroccans with a van full of hashish but only handed over the lightened Moroccans and not their hazy grinning weed. Anyway the provincial court has absolved two of the policemen because it could not be proved, despite there being a very pronounced suspicion, that they had committed the crime. The third policeman was sentenced to four years imprisonment and a further twelve years of being barred from the profession. His lawyer tried to get the proceedings annulled because of a series of phone tapping carried out during the investigation - the judge told him to piss off because nothing was gleaned from the phone taps that caused him to be found guilty. He was basically found guilty because he confessed to it!

The Almuñécar Pensioners' Club paid homage on Father's Day to four of its members, who between them, have knocked up 354 years: Jose Manuel is 90, Antonio Martín is 81, Antonio Gómez is 94 and Francisco Prados is 89. As far as we know, they all survived the excitement.

School children without a teacher. Thanks to a teacher who has been off sick for the last month and a half, the children of class ESO2B have been without their teacher. The other teachers from the school have been taking turns to fill in, which means that the kids have six different teachers everyday to cover the post of their normal one. The Education Authorities are notorious for the tight-fistedness when it comes to sending replacement teachers. There are thousands of qualified teachers on the dole yet the Provincial Educational Authorities will not contract one on a temporary basis until bricks start sailing through their windows - rocky messages of discontent from exasperated parents. A ESO2 class is a year eight course which means that the kids are between 13 and 14 - probably one of the most important formative years for any child hoping to carry on to university.

What? No engines! The high altitude lemmings were out in force on the first day of clear weather last month, circling round like multi-coloured vultures over the bemused motorist below. It's a bit disconcerting when you're overtaken by a grinning lunatic suspended under a gigantic toenail clipping made of red cloth. Standing amongst those impatient aviators at the top of the hill, as they waited for a favourable gust to carry them off, I could not help but notice that most of them were Germans. You cannot but envy the swines as they slip soundlessly through the air with impervious elegance. If it hadn't been for their earthbound accomplices on either side, I would have searched round for a handy stone and avenged Douglas Bader on the spot!

It must be that time of year again because here we are with the VII Fiesta de Europa , which will be held in the Majuelo Park on the 6th of this month. Perhaps it is no coincidence that it comes right before the municipal elections? This event is organised by the town hall with the participation of various associations, such as the Danish, German and French associations, the British Legion and the Hispano-Nordic association. The party kicks off at 12 o'clock midday and will count on various musical shows, such as that of the Cuadro Flamenco de Rosa la Canastera. There will be eight stands representing the various nationalities participating. Olé y buenas noches.

The town hall has awarded the contract for the building of the new bullring. Comercinvest 2003 SL has got the juicy morsel to build Almuñécar' new bullring on the E-16 and E-17 building plots with the P4 new town area. As well as the bullring itself, the building programme will also incorporate 20,000sqm of premises for restaurants, cinema mini halls, Cafés, etc. But the bullring will not be only used for torturing and slaughtering our bovine beasties - The town hall also plans to stage plays, concerts and sports events there. Quickly! I've got to tell you a good Spanish joke! A customer always goes into this restaurant next to the bullring every time there is a fight there and asks for the bull's testicles. One day he is confronted by two much smaller testicles on his plate. He asks why they are considerably smaller than usual and the waiter replies, "Today the bull won, Señor." Meanwhile, back at the serious but boring reporting dept... At the same council meeting they approved (Bloody good joke, wasn't it?) an economic plan for the building project of the new junior school in La Herradura - a necessary requirement imposed by the regional government for such projects. Slowly but surely, Ladies and Gentlemen.

Anybody who has been here for over twenty years still refers to the Plaza de Madrid as the Fisherman's square. Well, now when we do, newcomers will know where the hell we are talking about because they are in the middle of putting the Fisherman's statue back in its original place after twenty years of absence. Actually, the statue was a little bit more over to the right but where-ever they put it, it will be a sight for nostalgic eyes.

The P4 traffic lights, as we suspected, are already causing traffic chaos and Easter hasn't even begun. Even mid-week off season traffic is piling up there producing 20-car tail backs. God knows what the summer will hold.

An indignant citizen of Almuñécar took out a law-suit against the President of Spain for, 'declaring an illegal war against Iraq.' The very next day 205 people from Almuñécar and Motril did the same. Although it is expected that the local law courts will shelve these law-suits, their lawyers will appeal and take their cases to the Supreme Court. Now, that's what we call democracy and people power. All this only goes to show that you only take the public opinion for granted up to a certain point. Take note all you vote farmers!

Almuñécar Television has been officially closed down - although it continues to broadcast, because it lacks the necessary documentation to operate. Onda Tropical was set up by Juan Carlos Benavides when he was mayor and left in the hands of his party followers when he lost power. Mr Benavides claims that the present mayor's decision to shut down the television station is a blow to free speech and the right of expression in general. The fact is that the television station lacks the proper permits to operate and therefore, regardless of to whom it may belong, it should not be able to function. What example is Mr Benavides setting as the opposition leader, in the case that he is re-elected? How can he expect other town citizens to toe the line as far as administrative paper work goes, if he so blatantly flaunts the authority of the present municipal council? Of course, on a national level it is well known and tacitly accepted that state television is openly biased towards the party in power, so nobody is surprised that Almuñécar television is the political tool of one political party.

Bar Naranja has new owners. Pere is back in Denmark and in his place are the new owners, Nina & Henrik from Copenhagen. They are in the process of settling in and are well girded with enthusiasm. They both have bar experience in the land of the 9th century gold and wench importers. There is a third person involved, Silent Partner John, who like most fathers, helped out with the finances. They have had a lot of experience with Mexican food in the past, which explains the new name of the bar, Mexi-Bar. This new name will soon be displayed above the entrance. With a name like that it's quite obvious that they will also be doing Mexican grub. The bar will open from 10.00 until they drop dead from fatigue and will be closed - that is until Semana Santa Starts - on Tuesdays for 'corporeal recycling'

Maria Teresa Velasco, our friendly lawyer, has taken the plunge and moved down from Granada to the Costa Granadina, where most of her new clients are... and for the sun, of course! She has opened office near the Mercadona, on the P4 estate, Almuñécar. Her new telephone number is 958 630 114.

Two of Almuñécar's residents were involved in separate road accidents in different countries and both were extremely lucky to be able tell the tale. Linda, whom everybody knows from Bar Maxine's, knew that perhaps the gods were giving heavy hints not to go back to the UK when she got the days mixed up for her flight and missed it. 24 hours later she was on board another flight but not without the inevitable delay to take-off time. Things got worse. She arrived but her luggage didn't. They were on their way home from the airport when the accident occurred. It was a straight road but they were in a dip and the oncoming car hadn't seen them, when he decided to overtake on the brow of the hill. The collision speed was about 160mph. Thanks to the solid constitution of their friend's Volkswagen Passat and the airbags, they miraculously came out alive. Linda had cuts and bruises and seat-belt burns. Nat, her son, had facial injuries and broken teeth. Kate, her daughter, was kept in hospital under observation for fear of internal injuries because most of her abdomen was black and blue. Linda, besides thanking her guardian angel and minor deities, would also like to thank all those that helped out at Bar Maxine's during her enforced absence. The second lucky-unlucky soul is Dicky Small who suffered a terrific road accident coming down through France. Again, thanks to the robust nature of his car - a Land Rover - he walked away from what would have been otherwise, a fatal accident. Fully loaded up to the gills with his musical and fishing equipment he was progressing down the motorway at about 80kph. However, the Italian who came screaming up behind him at about 140kph had misjudged Dicky's speed until it was to late. The over-taking lane was full so the other driver couldn't avoid ploughing into the back of him. Dicky's Landy was shoved into the crash barrier almost side on, which resulted in the vehicle rolling over, God knows how many times, shedding the heaped roof rack in the process. The change in the centre of balance caused the Landy then to tip over head over heels various times, finally skidding to a halt on its roof. Dick had to be cut out of the wreckage, but even so, managed to stagger out on his own two feet. His first reaction was to light a trembling cigarette, but the fire service who had liberated him took it straight off him. Dicky has nothing but praise for the French head office of the Mapfre insurance company that took every care of him - they even had him driven back to Almuñécar in an ambulance. So there you have it - you're safer staying here and taking it easy!

Do you know what Roger Moore does now that he isn't James Bonding around beds and the world in general? Well, he works with the Kiwanas Club as the Special Representative of UNICEF. The Kiwanis were formed back in 1915 and are at present working through their 8,600 clubs world wide and in co-operation with UNICEF to eradicate iodine deficiency disorders (IDD) in the world. Roger Moore, who is Honorary Chairman of the Kiwanis World-wide Service Project, points out that UNICEF estimates that the Kiwanis campaign has already saved more than 8m children from mental retardation. There are over 1,200 Kiwanis clubs in Europe and, as of last month, we even have one in Almuñécar. On the 13th of March the Almuñécar Kiwanis Club was officially inaugurated in the Galeria Restaurant and counted on the attendance of the very busy mayor. The president of the club is Jean Paul Gonay (pictured above with the mayor). The club has two more meetings planned for the beginning of this month - on the 2nd at 13.30 and on the 4th at La Galeria, Paseo del Altillo. Should you wish for more information you can phone 610 728 668, 626 304 283 or 952 523 187.

What a surprise - the beastly gales have swallowed most of our beaches... again! Business owners, who are eager to process the tourist swarms of Semana Santa (Easter), are panicking. Don't worry good citizens of fair Almuñécar - it was only mud anyway! The town folk watched suspiciously as lorry after lorry brought very strange looking sand from the Rules Dam project. On close inspection just about everybody realised that it was just plain earth. The local ecologists threatened to plant potatoes on the beach to prove it but never carried out their threat. The cynics amongst us claimed that the evidence would be washed away before Justice would ponderously get to its feet, scratch its arse, belch and sit back down again. Sand, Ladies and Gentlemen, does not accumulate water in the form of puddles. Anyway the mayor has told everybody not to panic because he would unleash a band of merry workmen on the depleted - and in some places, vertical - beaches. But that won't happen until just before Semana Santa just in case we have some more gales in the meantime. We could sell these beaches to Iraq as US Marine proof beaches - impossible to scale! The sea has also been busy indignantly vomiting back all sorts of rubbish that have been festering on the bottom - generous gifts from our scrap yard river beds.

It's easy to fill pages with news about drug busts - there seems to be at least one a week, which is why we normally don't bother to mention them. Yet, there is one fact that deserves mentioning. The Guardia Civil have confiscated more drugs in the first five days of last month then they had in the whole of 2002. In the last sweep along Granada's coast they confiscated 2,110kgs of hashish, bringing the total for that week up to 6,8 tons, two of which were intercepted on La Herradura Beach.

Adestur (Asociación para el desarroyllo turistico de Almuñécar y La Herradura) has made a formal request to the Almuñécar town hall for the following to be included in the P6 (Urban development area, number 6). A building plot within the p6 should be set aside for the exclusive use a new hotel. Land around the old Guardia Civil post in the castle should be set aside for a park. A new road should be cut behind the existing beach one to cope with a return of traffic flow and, finally, something should be done about the parking. Sounds good, but then again, so does Father Christmas.

Cantarriján Beach - the very popular nudist one - is going to have a little bit of order and organisation administered. First of all, no parking will be allowed on the beach - the only parking will be behind the chiringuito (beach bar). The track that serves as access will become a one-way system and accordingly another access point on the main road will be made (Molina de Papel). All things being equal, you will drive in one way - toast your unmentionables - then drive out another. This has all come about because a bigwig from Sevilla has taken an interest in the beach. The mayor, the chiringuito owner and Juan Mora, who is the beach & natural park boss, all got together and had a chin wag (let's hope that this was all that was wagged) about hygiene and safety measures (fire prevention). One thing is for sure, they mayor does not expect to be caught with his pants down concerning the town's nudist beach. All the local land-owners have agreed to cede land where necessary so that the track can be improved and have a minimum width of five metres. A total of 20 kilometres of track will be tarmacked.

The weather wasn't going to dampen the average La Herraduran's appetite for his annual fiesta of San Jose. Ramon Gil Montes, a resident newspaper man, was chosen to declare the fiesta open on Saturday the 16th. He was followed by a couple of warm up bands, Alalba and Nosotras y Ellos. Finally the main act came on, a young singer called Merche with 'endless legs', who sang to the delight of the 'legless end' of the fiesta marquis. Next came the election of the infant and teenage 'Queens of the Fiesta' which went to Raquel Centurion and Sabrina Fernandez, respectively. Despite the high winds that raged outside, the lunch went ahead without incident to raise funds for the Cancer Association, which year after year offers good healthy grub. Other events were the multitudinous bicycle ride around town, which effectively gave the village the air of an oriental rush hour in the 1930's and the Kendo Club's display, which further reinforced that impression.

On the big day Joaquin came up with one of his monster paellas, but not monster enough, as you can judge by the photo. The Herradureños are a hungry bunch!

There was heavy rain on the 19th, San Jose's day, so the religious procession was but off till Sunday. Accordingly, when Sunday came around with much better weather, San Jose was taken for a spin round most of the village's most important streets, accompanied by a chorus of 'Vivas!' and hiccups. Meanwhile, back on the 18th, the firework display came and went only hours before Baghdad had its own.

Around the middle of last month everything was set to farm out the contracts for the building of the long awaited junior school in La Herradura but the PA presented an allegation at the last council meeting effectively setting the project back at least another two months. The PA says that it's all the present PP administration's fault. "If they had had any interest concerning this subject, it would have been very easy for them to avoid this delay. If they had approved the town 2003 budget back in December, then the whole thing would have got off the ground in October instead of now," says Miguel Ávila, the spokesman for the PA. One thing is for sure - La Herradura still hasn't got the much needed and long-awaited junior school. Nor will they have it, thanks to this last hold up, before the next school year begins. You can't help thinking that this hold up was designed to benefit the possible winner of the coming May elections so that the eventual opening of the school will fall nicely into their first term of office. In the meantime, of course, La Herradura's school population suffers.

Mayhem at the Marina. The strong levante that pounded the coast on March 16th and 17th caused untold damage and a near tragedy. Several of the larger craft moored in the Marina were damaged by impact from neighbouring boats and a dozen or so of the smaller boats that moor at the entrance to the marina broke loose and were deposited onto the smaller beach. One unsuspecting owner drove down to survey the damage when his car was engulfed by a huge wave which caused the engine to cut out. The car was duly pushed to the side whilst the owner went to seek help. In his absence another wave hit the car crushing the roof and smashing the windscreen.

The wall around the car park became the next victim. The wave smashed through the wall and sent the resulting rubble and rocks hurtling to the Marina in a torrent of water. An eyewitness saw two young lads being swept off their feet and bowled towards the waters edge where he lost sight of them. Several minutes of frantic searching followed until someone entering the Marina said he saw two young lads leaving the area looking like drowned rats. It transpired that when the eye witness went to get help the lads jumped up frightened to death and ran for the hills.

It was good to see Acera del Pilar receive a new pavement and a new road surface. We will forgive them for taking 5 weeks to do the job which caused the usual chaos as traffic entering and leaving the village had to use the same road.

The weather wasn't too kind for San Jose celebrations so the casetas were packed with villagers and visitors enjoying the good ladies' churros to quieten their soured stomachs. Nevertheless, the plaza was busy most evenings as well, with people enjoying the entertainment provided. The fair caused part of the beach road to be closed for a week meaning traffic was re-directed through calle Gonzalo Barbero. The no parking signs went up one day and the police arrived the next day to issue everyone with tickets, bonus time again boys!

The new clothes shop, Dreams, opened on Saturday 8th March and enjoyed a steady flow of customers, the majority agreeing on the excellent range and quality of products.

The Chinese restaurant opened in March and we hear and Indian restaurant is to open in April in the Los Girasoles complex. Bets are now being taken on when the fish and chip shop opens.

The Hideaway bar was the venue for St Patrick's day celebrations. The Irish flag was raised and traditional Irish music thumped out during the evening. Don O'foggin was in fine fettle sporting Guinness regalia and his ever welcoming smile.

Finally, it is with deep regret that last week we were shocked to hear of the passing of our friend Paddy Dunford. Our sincere sympathy and thoughts go to Julie and their family.

Perhaps a change of tune or perhaps at last the truth. Isabel Jaime, the ex-PP councillor for Nerja announced on the 26th of February that she would be leaving the party and joining the Grupo Mixto party (a group of non-aligned politicians). She stated then that it was because she felt lonely with the party, thanks to the behaviour of her colleagues. Now, three weeks later she states that it was because she did not support the war and wanted to be able to speak out against it. Unfortunately, this statement has all the appearance of being a retrospective statement because various PP politicians have left the party because of the central government's bellicose stance. "I left because I'm for peace like the majority of the citizens" is sure to attract more votes than, "I left because I felt lonely within the party and nobody understood me." Nerja is governed by the PP with an absolute majority, since they hold 10 of the 17 seats.

Antonio Ferrandis or "Chanquete" street (the one that has the fishing boat up on stilts) is going to be sorted out so that it will have a roundabout access point up on the old N340. The duration of the road works will be four months and will cost about 260,000 euros. It will pretty much the same as the other rounabout that have been installed already - two lanes wide, giving it an overall diametre of 17.5m. Again, as is the case of the other roundabouts the juction will have 8 street lights, palm trees, bushes and flowers in general.

Talking of Chanquete, there must be quite a few newcomers or visitors that don't know who he was, nor what the hell the fishing boat's doing in the middle of town. There was a long-running t.v. series back in the eighties, which was made in Nerja that put the town on the map, so to speak. The series ran on and on and there isn't anybody over thirty who doesn't cringe if somebody whistles the theme tune because every summer, right into the nineties, it appeared on television. The inevitability of its aestival appearance was equal to the certainty of Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer' or Bing Crosby's 'White Christmas' on a British Christmas day. It was a story about a group of city kids down on the coast for their summer holidays and their adventures. One of the main characters was their grandfatherly fisherman friend Chanquete, the actor Antonio Ferrandis, who lived in a converted fishing boat on the beach - hence the house/fishing boat in the middle of town, although it is not the original one, I believe. At the end of the day, Although it was repeated ad nauseam, it was a corner stone in every Spaniard's childhood memories from the eighties.

So, the town hall is going to spend a lot of money on shaking itself up - 43,971 euros, to be exact. The object is to 'sharpen and better' municipal services, cut down on the response time for petitions (solicitudes) and better staff training. Two things to remember: the money comes from the regional government grant and the municipal elections are next month.

Nerja's going to get a new Cultural Centre, which will be built where the Giner de los Ríos is. How much? 2,704,138.62 euros. Do you ever wonder where they get the '62 cents' (40p) part from? For a start, it always cost 50% more than the budget by the time these things are built. Anyway, on with the news, fresh out of Antonio Villasclaras, your Delegate Councillor for Culture. Tony Baby has asked the regional government to pick up the tab. The cash will be handed over in yearly instalments. The town hall, on the other hand, will find 20% of the total (which means it will be 'found' in the pockets of those of you who actually pay your taxes). All this is the result of an 'Ideas Competition' organised by the town hall, which was won by the architect, Joaquín López with his 'Tizas' (Chalk) project. This new building will hold a library, reading rooms, and an adult education centre, among other things. There you have it, Ladies and Gentlemen - a great big 'sod-off' community centre which, the gods and regional government willing, will be commenced before the end of this year and finished sometime in 2005.

More cries for funds to the provincial council from Nerja town hall. This time it's not Antonio Villasclaras but José Miguel García, the Beach Councillor... The Beach Councillor? - you don't get many of those in Tibet or the Chech Republic, do you! This is because of this Q calidad turistica' thing. Basically, Madrid has decided to organise and promote heavily the country's best beaches. Two beaches will be chosen from each maritime province of Spain and they will be 'Q' beaches. Don't ask us what the 'Q' stands for, we don't know. Anyway, if you have a 'Q' beach, you're in like Flynn. There will only be 40 of such beaches in the whole of Spain. Nerja's put forward Burriana beach but wants some cash for the provincial council to get the thing up to scratch.

The Councillor for Social Affairs, María Jesús Muñoz, has asked for the go-ahead from the town council to transfer the Taller de la Amistad (Friendship Workshop) on a provisional basis to the Nueva Nerja Junior School, until such time as that the workshop's new premises are finished. The Taller de la Amistad is a club for the mentally handicapped. Previously they had been housed in an industrial workshop of some 200sqm next to Río Chillar but the building lack certain permits. Finally, the Taller de la Amistad will have it's new home at an occupational centre, which is being built next to the Condal building estate. Until such times as it is ready to be occupied, then, the Nueva Nerja Junior School will be their home. Very few alterations will have to be made to the school to adapt it to the Taller de la Amistad's needs - one of which will be a separate entrance. The move has the full backing of the teaching staff of the junior school.

The First Festival of Tapas, which was held on the 9th of last month in the Verano Azul Park, was organised by Turismo Rural del Taller de Empleo Balcón de Europa and counted on the collaboration of the Nerja Town hall, as well as the 15 participant businesses. In fact it was such a success that there is every chance that it will be repeated next year. Another simultaneous event held at the same location was the II Muestra de Talleres Municipales y Asociaciones de Mujeres Locales, (craft workshops and local women associations), so as the thousands of visitors could replenish their digestive systems they could also feast their eyes on this very interesting exhibition of handycraft.

In October of last year ten students from the Ayuda a Domicilio course (Home Help) at the Employment Workshop Balcón de Europa started up a free service for attending sick or disabled people for anybody that requested their services. This activity was part of the on-the-job training that students must do to obtain their certificate. However, even after five months and only four months away from the end of the course, they are only working at 50% because of a lack of requests for their help. At the moment they are only attending 17 people when their full work capacity is 30 says the director of the employment workshop, Antonio Arroyo. Therefore he would like it known that this free service does not only cover the town centre, but all areas within the municipality, even the far-flung rural areas such as Cantarrij·n or Rio de la Miel. Most of the people with whom the students are working at the moment are old people with mobility problems and even young people, victims of road accidents. Anybody who is interested in obtaining more information should phone 952 528 547. If you're afraid of the Spanish telephone, give us a ring at the Gazette and we will put you in contact.

Nerja has a number problem, which is causing havoc with the books. The fact is that all the Nerja basic services are deficit producing. Last year, the ten most important public services ran up a bill of 6,954,350 euros whilst the direct incoming was only 1.2m, which means an 80pct deficit. What is causing this is the difference between the official population and the real one. Even in winter the population is between 25,000 and 30,000 yet there are only 18,000 registered residents. In the summer, of course the tourist influx brings the population up to around 65,000. For the mayor, there is only one solution - Nerja should be declared a tourist municipality (resort), which will enable it to receive financial aid from the regional government.

It has now been confirmed that the old health clinic will pass from the regional government jurisdiction'into municipal hands just as soon as the new clinic is built near the access to Burriana. The new clinic, which will be built on municipal land, costing around 1,375,000 euros will be handed over to the regional government for its running.

NADFAS: The next lecture will take place on Saturday 12th at The Cultural Centre, Nerja at 17.30 and is entitled: The New Berlin - Art and Architecture by Eveline Eaton BA Hons Courtauld. Since 1989 the formerly battered and divided city has miraculously risen to become, once more, a major European capital and cultural centre. The newly opened Old Masters Gallery and the restored Schinkel Museum in the Werder Church are notable. Spectacular buildings designed by leading international architects are springing up all over Berlin such as the Gallery of Modern Art by Mies der Rohe and Norman Foster's new Reichstag. Eveline Eaton is a freelance art historian whose popular lectures and guided tours have taken her to Europe, the United States, South Africa and Australia. She is herself a Berliner and makes her third visit to Nerja where she lectured on modern art in 1994 and Velasquez in 2000. Visitors are welcome - 9 euros at the door. This lecture is sponsored by Autocares Nerja.