OMIC is a name to take note of. These initials stand for Oficina Municipal de Informacion al Consumedor and it doesn't take a great deal of proficiency in Spanish to decipher the meaning - Almuñécar Consumer Information Office or, in other words, The Citizens Advice Bureau. Now it shouldn't matter whether you are Spanish, British or from Outer Mongolia with a heavy lisp and an anaesthetised jaw - they should be able to deal with you. It's probably better to go there personally, rather than phone, for obvious reasons. The office is in the same building as the Tourist Office. If you have any language difficulties there, ask for Carmen, who speaks good English. She's in the ground floor office on the right at the first desk you come to. The OMIC is open from 10.00 to 13.00 every weekday morning. OMIC attended 305 cases during 2002, 30% of which concerned housing. 20% were concerning the telephone. The biggest complaint concerning housing was building defects in new houses. No prizes for guessing what the biggest complaint concerning the telephone was - excessive billing. Anyway, if you're a bored Whinging Pom with nothing better to do, go and take it out on professionals - that's what they get paid for. P.S. incorrigible whiners are not to bother Carmen, however!

The Almuñécar town hall is set to spend 6.6m euro (that's around £4.5m) this year on bettering its infrastructure, etc. That is over 50% more than last year! The better part of that is going on the building of the new high school in the P4, which is good news for our adolescent, acne infested moped acrobats but bad news for you! Why? Because the building plot for the school was the only place you could park last summer. They were going to build a municipal car park under the new school but the idea of hundreds of nice shiny cars full of petrol so close to hundreds of bored teenagers was so daunting that the project was dropped. Thousands of reluctant euros will also be spent on a junior school in La Herradura. Where does this leave the municipal debt? It stands at around 45m euros... Hang on! That works out at around 1,800 euro per head. Funny, I don't remember spending £1,200 recently, do you?

It must have got your hopes up when Easter arrived and the road works on the Velilla road opposite Gondolas vanished. You reckless fools, you! The pit had been lurking underneath, only waiting for Easter to finish so that it could again reign supreme, squatting there in its perpetual magnificence... Yes, well... they haven't finished the building of the pumping station for sewage recycling plant yet. It is, of course, various months behind schedule, so you might as well get used to it because it will no doubt be there until the summer.

And the elections are definitely on! The PP has come out with the first of the many electoral promises that will be offered by all the parties and which is as indicative of imminent elections as swallows are of spring. The PP promises that they will build 2,500 council flats in Almuñécar. This number represents 25% of the projected dwellings that are foreseen under the new Urban Development Plan in the coming years.

Almuñécar town hall has also bought a palm tree pruning machine, which looks like a cockroach with a crane on its back. Up until now, to be able to prune the fronds of tall palm trees it was necessary to hire the services of a specialised company. The mayor says that the machine will pay for itself in little time. This mega-important, we're-a-banana-republic-without-one bargain only cost 30,000 euros, in other words £20,000. Could make sense, after all, all our palm trees are growing, which means more and more, we will need this specialised machine.

The mayor had a good chuckle when he heard that the PA had accused his party of increasing taxes needlessly. Juan Luis González pointed out that Juan Carlos Benavides just happened to put up town taxes back in 1998 when he was mayor by 50%. He also remarked that in the four years that his party has shared office during their coalition with the PSOE, they lowered the tax on occupying public space with construction material by 50%. At the end of the day, it is an inevitable fact of life that taxes go down before election time and then shoot back up, not long after.

Twenty-seven pupils graduated after completing a trade training course for Hostelry last month at Almuñécar's polytechnic college. The course, which lasted 455 hours, will unleash 27 qualified restaurant/bar staff onto a sector sadly lacking in professionally trained staff. The success rate for job placing is 95% - some pupils were unable to attend the diploma ceremony because they were already working.

Busted brats to clean beaches! Almuñécar leads the way, for the next time that a hormone-hijacked, spot-squeezing, sofa-surfer makes a nuisance of himself in a criminal fashion, he will be liable to be sentenced to beach cleaning, litter collecting or public gardens maintenance. The following actions should be (in the writer's opinion) considered criminal: A) Caught with the intention of breathing. B) Being in possession of an offensive age. C) Sitting on a moped with the vile intention of starting it. D) Loitering with the heinous intention of using the household phone. E) Lingering near the t.v. remote control. And finally, F) failing to pass, at any given moment, how ever briefly, from 12 to 20 without being noticed or noxious.

Did you know that Almuñécar's Roman aqueduct is the only remaining one in Spain that runs from the water source to its final destination? The town hall has set to work demolishing some old houses that have been built against the aqueduct in the Torrecuevas area to restore as much as possible of this 1st century historic monument. But it is not just a relic; it is still used by local farmers as part of the irrigation system. This restoration work is the result of the Almuñécar Roman Bi-millennium Celebrations 2000.

Just a quick message for Rosalind Eyre who follows these pages on Internet. A golf course is far from being decided upon, at the moment. In fact, nobody is pushing it too much in the electoral campaigns. Crime, thankfully, is still not an issue here - it's still a safe place to walk around in the early hours of the morning. Building here is continuous and not surprisingly, it is the town's prime industry. It is no exaggeration to say that twenty years ago, 60% of present day Almuñécar didn't exist. Traffic isn't a problem... unless you drive. No, seriously, parking is an aching problem here, as it is in most European towns. Glad you find the mag interesting and informative, Ed.

A recent report by the World Health Organisation claims that cancer will increase by 50% between now and 2020, if there isn't a significant change of life style. According to this document 5.3m men and 4.7m women in the world developed tumours during the course of the year 2,000, which represents 12% of the total amount of deaths during that period. Tobacco continues to be the prime cause of cancer. Rafael Bengoa, director of the department of non-contagious diseases, said that nobody began smoking of their own free will - all smokers are victims of very effective promotional campaigns and for that reason, W.H.O. has decided to declare war against the tobacco industry. Here is a breakdown of cases of cancer in the world during last year: lung cancer = 1,200,000; cancer of the colon = 940,000; stomach cancer = 870,000; cancer of the liver = 560,000; cancer of the cervix = 470,000; throat cancer = 410,000; cancer of the bladder = 330,000: lymphatic cancer = 290,000; leukaemia = 250,000 and cancer of the prostate or testicle = 250.000. Finally, according to the report, a glass of red wine might lower your chances of suffering a heart attack but it increases the chances of cancer of the colon, as does the intake of any alcohol. Whether or not the figures affect you or might have any influence upon your own life style or smoking habits, there is nothing to stop you helping those who selflessly help others who suffer from cancer. Take the opportunity to visit the Cancer Appeal Shop in Almuñécar, which is just across the road, more or less, from the Rio Verde Junior School on Avenida Juan Carlos I. Netty Ashby and Cecilia Chacón, along with the rest of the team, would much appreciate any help that you could give.

Sixty litres of rainfall per square metre caused a flash flood that wrought destruction along the beaches where the storm drains emptied. The best example being that of la rambla Caballero in Taramay, where various vehicles were dragged down to the beach by the force of the current and were only prevented from reaching Morocco by the concrete flower beds that acted as a collector for debris. Where the concrete path ends a huge trench was dug by the force of the water, leaving sewer pipes and mains supply pipes exposed. Further along the coast toward Málaga, a British woman drowned when she was swept down a 'dry' riverbed. The British couple had in the early hours of the morning come to el Rio de las Pasadas, Mijas and abandoned their car to try wading across the river, despite the fact that the water reached their waists. It was a bad day to chose to visit their friends who live up in a distant cortijo. The body of the 54-year-old woman was found 2 kilometres down stream at 1 o'clock the next afternoon. On the same night, two tramps woke up under a bridge to find their dry campsite changed into a raging torrent. They remained clinging to the pillars of the bridge until they were eventually rescued. A point to remember that a dry river bed is still, 'a river bed' especially in spring and autumn and although it might not be raining where you are, in the mountains a nasty surprise could be making its way down greet you.

There was an award giving at the casa de cultura in Almuñécar for journalism and photography 2002. The occassion also paid homage to the Spanish journalists killed in the Iraq War. The Chairman for the Granada Press Association, Antonio Mora thanked the Almuñecan mayor, Juan Luis González for organizing the event. This is the sixth year of the prize, whose aim is to reward journalists who have contributed to the promotion of Almuñécar. The competition has three categories: Written articles, Audovisuals and Photography. Rafael Marfil won the journalism award 'Ciudad de Almuñécar', which came with a cash award of 1,502 euros, for his article entitled 'Almuñécar; a city on the Costa Tropical.' This article was published in the 'Andalucía for living' and was chosen for its high standard of journalism and photography. The jury also gave a special mention to Manuel Pedraza for his report entitled, 'La Herradura; Paradise of the nudibranquios (God knows how you translate that!), which was published in La Revista Imersion and to Javier Almellones for his report entitled, 'A paradise with an Andalucian accent,' published in the daily newspaper, 'Sur de Málaga.' The Audiovisual prize went to Joseba Ortega Sáez, for his reports, 'What to see in Almuñécar,' and 'What to do in Almuñécar,' shown on the national TV channel, Telecinco in the 'Historias de Hoy' programme. Finally, the first, second and third photography prizes went to Chris Belcher, José Manuel Maiquez and Eduardo Cruz Casanova, respectively.

Otívar had its Día de la Níspora II on Sunday the 6th. That Sunday was an event filled Sunday because this fiesta Otiveña coincided with La Fiesta de Europa in Almuñécar's Majuelo Park and in Ítrabo (over the hill towards Motril) they celebrated the Festival de Vino. On top of all this activity, it turned out to be a lovely sunny day - what more could you have asked for? The fiesta in Otívar is a promotional event for the valley's fruit products. Not long ago, nobody was interested in Otívar and Otívar wasn't interested in the outside world. It was a quite place, whose tranquillity was only interrupted in the summer months by the visits of Otiveñan families who had migrated to France during the hard years. That was it! - no crowds, no noise, just sun and rural relish. Then a year or so ago, it happened - Otívar was discovered! Village houses went up from £8,000 to 40,000 in six months. New blood found its way into the somnolent town hall and ideas began to take shape. Juanma was given the task of organising the village fête but he didn't stop there. Last year saw the first tourist fair in the village and this year we had La II Fiesta de la Níspora. Juan Manuel de Haro, the Almuñecan newspaper reporter, who has been responsible for the coverage of all the events in the valley, was suitably rewarded with a prize by the Mayor of Otívar, José Cambil, for his 10 years dedicated to the promotion of the local villages. We in the Gazette would like to congratulate Juan Manuel on this award and on his constant co-operation with us with news items and photographs.

Some mind-bogglingly boring figures for you, oh mistreated reader! Over Semana Santa Almuñécar received over 3,000 visitors! 1,200 of the blighters were imports, mainly from the UK, France and Belgium. If there is something indicative about these figures, it is that Semana Santa was always a Spanish event, with next to no foreign tourists present. Now over a third of the town's visitors are foreigners. The Brits are buying up everything in sight, to such an extent that there are no 3-bedrooms flats left for sale in the whole of the town. One British client offered a Spanish estate agent 'whatever it costs' to buy a flat here - and he went away empty handed. Otívar has lost track of sanity, too, with locals asking 600 euros for rent in the month of July or August, for God's sake! Before, the summer was the slack period as far as renting went because the local primary school teachers gave up their rented accommodation for the summer hols. Of course, it's not how much you ask (there is no limit); it's a question of how much you get, and thanks to recently arrived Brits, the locals are getting what they ask for, effectively injecting madness into this once sleepy village's economy. In 1996, when the Ed. used to live there, you could rent a 3-bedroom house with garage for an all in price of 150 euros - and that was expensive because the average house or flat went for 90 euros per month. Admittedly, market forces are the only indicators of reality, even though Reality is the whore of speculation.

Velilla is up in arms. The bus service, the parking, the state of the beach, the road surface, the lack of 'sleeping policemen' and the lack of recreation in the form of volleyball courts are just some of the complaints made by Velilla residents. But, what do you expect from a satellite town that sprang up overnight? Nobody complained when they bought those flats, that they were cut off from the outside world or didn't have private parking. The fact is that in the 70's the Velilla beach road didn't exist - the road finished up against cliff near Gondolas (Fuente Piedra). Land was reclaimed from the sea and cliffs were torn down and hey presto - Taramay could be reached via Velilla. The blocks shot up (and one of them fell back down again). What today is a dual lane system was a single road back in the early 80's complete with 'sleeping policemen' but residents complained about how the cars suffered so they were taken away. Like it or not, Velilla is a senseless ribbon development, much like other coast road developments on the way to Málaga. So, what can be done about? Residents want street lamps like those on the Paseo Reina Sofía or Playa Pozuelo. In fact, they basically want the same treatment as central Almuñécar. They want underground parking on three levels - the 1st down to have a shopping centre. They want a municipal bus service that runs on Sundays and public holidays and a night service bus so that the kids can go into town for a drink. All this is the consequence of an urban planning short-sightedness, which has thrown up a ghost town for 9 months of the year. The time is not very far away when Taramay will claim its independence (as La Herradura is doing now) and take Velilla with it. Velilla, at the end of the day, is just another case of blocks of flats first and infrastructure later that must not be allowed to happen in the Vega. Amen.

The Costa Granadina, especially La Herradura and Almuñécar, is renowned for its seabed 'museums'. This is probably because these towns have so many private diving clubs. The seabed off Motril, on the other hand, is crying out for official exploration. The archaeologist, Juan Pinedo, says that just off Motril at 20m depth there are Roman amphorae and other archaeological remains dating back to between the 1st and 7th century BC. Juan won't be more precise because Kleptomaniac divers have already lifted many archaeological jewels that now grace private collections in somebody's sitting room. "The fact that no seabed survey has been carried out by the authorities since 1985 and that Motril Port will be enlarged without taking into account the possible presence of Archaeological remains is completely incomprehensible" says Sr. Pinedo. The constant pillaging by petty treasure hunters and the damage caused by dragnet fishing are destroying our heritage, thanks to the lack of interest shown by the regional government. According to Sr. Pinedo four urgent steps must be taken to preserve these 2,000-year-old treasures. Firstly, the Junta de Andalucía must give official permission for the discovery and investigation of possible finds. Secondly, the seabed should be charted into 2sqm grids. Thirdly, notes and drawings of all finds should be made of all the archaeological material found and lastly, all pieces should be labelled and put together on dry land. There was a tremendous amount of shipping by ancient standards along the Costa Granadina that left behind so many remains entombed in the sand, therefore it would be a great pity not to find and catalogue these sub-aquatic time capsules.

La Fiesta de Europa came and went, and above all, went well. All of Almuñécar's national clubs were present with a stand. The Nordic stands had offerings of tasty northern tapas. The Swedes, in particular, had a table of Swedish food and even jars of food with the familiar label, 'Abba' on them! There was also a display of handicraft and art - everything from artificial flowers to paintings. Juanito, a living legend among Almuñecan musicians for his sheer musical longevity, gave a musical rendition with the accordion. The Francophone Club stand also offered something tasty to nibble on as well as lots of posters and pamphlets. A few very well known German residents could be seen in and around their stand, such as Marion Müller, who together with her writer husband Eric, runs a small publishing company here. Their books are on sale in Libreria Contreras in Calle Real, Almuñécar. The local Spanish band, had most elder residents clutching their ears in desperation during their sound checks (this particular group, after God knows how many years operating still haven't worked out where the volume controls are). Rita from the G.I.N.S, together with other British Residents that manned the British stand could be seen stoically putting up with the noisy blighters. Unfortunately, they were in the first line of attack as far as the decibel war went. The UK stand faced the music with the North American stand (very symbolic considering recent world events), which housed both Canada and the USA. Mari Carmen, the lovely face in the tourist office, was present practising her excellent English and French. Another well known face, at least in the local newspaper circle, was Juan Manuel de Haro, more accustomed to taking photos than having to pose for one. Juan Manuel was between assignments because that very afternoon he had a date up in Otívar where he was to receive an award for journalism from the hands of the Mayor of that village. Summing up, plenty of people turned up for the occasion and not only foreign residents because many curious Spaniards had a wander through Mini-Europe, as well. Definitely not a date to miss, come next year.

Mariam González Aragón's painting exhibition was inaugurated on the 11th of last month and will run through the 8th of this month. The inauguration, which was held in the Property Management office in Avenida Prieto Moreno, La Herradura, was full for the occasion. Mariam studied Fine Arts in Seville and specialised in graphic designs & engraving techniques. She has had many exhibitions all over the south of Spain as well as in Portugal. Creating images has been a part of her life since childhood. "The written word is poor in colour, hues and intensities, however, in my case, painting is my best vehicle, in which my feelings, frustrations and desires travel and because of it everything is clearer and direct". If you haven't had a chance to see the paintings, you only have until the 8th of this month. Lots of well-known faces were present. David Jenssen was there with the hint that he had an article in mind.

Come on - own up! Who is this 57-year-old Dane who lives in La Herradura - this King of the Number Plates? Intrepid D.V.D. (those are his initials and not of a computer disc) was nabbed by the Guardia Civil for using false plates with the heinous intention of dodging parking fines - this man's our hero! It must have worked quite well, with all those nasty fines winging their way off into oblivion, until the registration of the car was checked against his insurance certificate and owner's log.

The new junior school for La Herradura is a little bit closer. At the beginning of last month an agreement was reached between the Almuñécar town hall and the Andalusian Education Board for the building of an infants school and the enlargement of its secondary school. It was about time, of course, because parents have been waiting for six years for the elusive new school for La Herradura. According to this agreement, the village will have the new infants school within three years. Alleluia!

La Herradura's floating port has been torpedoed by the Dirección Provincial de Costas (Provincial Coastal Authorities), thanks to local residents and the Ecologist in Action. The idea was to build two floating platforms in the bay to act as a floating pleasure port. For the ecologists this would have been dangerous for bathers and prejudicial for the seabed, owing to residual contamination. Ecologists in Action praised the coastal authorities for this decision because, for once, existing legislation has been strictly enforced. They also praised the local residents for taking positive action to protect their own environment instead of standing idly by. The ecologist group also hopes that the coastal authorities will keep up the pressure and examine closely other activities that have operated to date with impunity.

What a porker! Juan Mora Barbero, if he fails as a politician, could get a job as a stand up comic after that straight-faced one liner he delivered on TV and in the Ideal newspaper. "I would never make a political alliance with a corrupt political party." PILH has always made alliances with other political parties and as to whether they were corrupt or not, is a matter of opinion. On the man himself hang serious accusations of corruption. The PA wouldn't urinate in his general direction if his body temperature exceeded 451F, so it comes as no surprise to hear that he would never make a deal with them, for example.

A young man from Málaga drowned just off Cantarriján beach just after Semana Santa last month. The 26-year-old man was dragged from the water at around 16.30 by members of his family and despite the presence of a doctor on the beach, who had been sunbathing, it proved impossible to resuscitate the man. The female judge on duty in Almuñécar gave orders for the body to be removed at 18.00.

As our La Herradura Insiders have mentioned, Hotel Almijara opened on the 1st of May. It's a three-star hotel with forty rooms, two of which are suites. It also has a room specially fitted out for a handicapped guest. The hotel is about 100 metres from the beach, just off Acera de Pilar. The hotel belongs to the local supermarket owner (Coviran), Jorge Parra and Sons and counted on an investment of some 2m euros. If you would like to know more about this hotel, we will be only too happy to suggest that you go and look for yourself. I mean, if you've got the time to sit round and read this sort of article, you've obviously got time on your hands, right?

Juan Mora Barbero represents the Partido por la Independencia de La Herradura - on paper, at least. All the major political parties made the effort to find time to be interviewed by the Gazette. They made this effort, not because the Gazette is mega-important for them but it does reach just about all the foreign residents, many of whom have the right to vote in the local elections. All the political parties understand that the foreign vote is taking on more weight each election time and that 2,000 odd votes here or there can make all the difference. All the major political parties have wooed - and admittedly forgotten - the foreign community, organising such events as La Fiesta de Europa and the promised Foreign Dept. in the town hall. Well, after two phone-calls, offering an ample time period to carry out an interview - not a sausage was heard from the man. The Mayor of Almuñécar only needed one phone call, as did PSOE, and Benavides (PA). We point out these facts, not to give importance to this rag, because rag it remains - but to point out the evident lack of importance given by Juan Mora Barbero to the foreign community. Draw your own conclusions.

They're after your cars, and if they have to break into your house just for the keys, they will. David and Helen Byers had a nasty shock on the last day of last month when they awoke to find that they had been robbed. A quick check around the house uncovered that the thieves had made off with two laptop computers and a handbag with passports, credit cards and all the other personal documents that you might carry around in one. But that wasn't the worse - the thieves had stolen their two cars: A Toyota Celica and a Land Cruiser. Apparently the house was a secondary target and the real objective was the cars. Modern cars have so many security devices incorporated that to steal them by forcing an entry and hot-wiring them knocks so much off the black market price that it is worth breaking into the owners house in search for the keys. The method used, in this case, was to drill a hole in the wooden window frame just under the locking device and by inserting articulated rod they could lift the latch. This is not the first robbery of this sort on the Punta de la Mona, La Herradura. There have been four cars stolen since the beginning of Easter. One Porsche owner was followed to his house there, thanks to a tracking device that the gang had attached under his car. That same night they entered into the house and made off with the keys. On another occasion the thieves - reportedly thought to be members of the Rumanian Mafia - broke into a Dutchman's house and gassed him with chloroform and then quite relaxedly set about emptying the house. The municipal police would not confirm that this actually took place. An Almuñécar municipal police officer informed the Gazette that they were carrying out an investigation on these break-ins on the Punta but to date had nothing further to add to that already known. The Guardia Civil, on the other hand, didn't appear to be the least interested in furthering any information. In fact, the guardsman on duty said that he didn't know anything about the subject - despite the fact that the Ed, who is a personal friend of the victims, had phoned that very morning. His only interest appeared to be about whom he was speaking to and why he was being asked such questions - despite having a Gazette business guard lying in front of him. Summing up, if you don't want to lose your car, either park it in a locked garage or just make sure that the keys aren't left hanging about in full view in the house at night. By the time that the readers reads this report David and Helen's car's will be painted another colour, complete with new plates & papers and in being driven by a new owner in Poland. Finally, if your dogs start barking at around 3 in the morning, get up and make and check the house thoroughly - the Byers certainly wish they had.

Politically correct. Yes, La Herradura is becoming a venue for famous visitors. David Blunkett and his party of seven enjoyed a meal in the restaurant of El Tinao a couple of weeks ago. Mr Blunkett commented on how peaceful La Herradura is and he liked the fact that most people didn't know who he was and generally left him alone. So we took the hint and beat a hasty retreat. They left with a copy of the Seaside Gazette, which hopefully will have been deposited in the bar of the Houses of Parliament.

The swimming pool on Las Palomas opened its gates last week presumably to accommodate the rush from the campsite on Montepino 2.

Maharaja, the new Indian restaurant, also opened after problems waiting for new kitchen equipment to arrive. We will keep everyone informed once the new owners have had time to settle in.

El Ancla on the beachfront next to La Parilla is to re-open under new management. It is believed an English couple will take the reins before the summer rush. Of course we will visit and report back to our readers.

The premises next door to El Ancla are being refurbished and will open as a Pizzeria with Jose Maria from Bar Califa at the helm.

A 21-year-old Australian girl hitched a lift from Nerja and lived to regret it. At the beginning of last month I.J.C.S was waiting at Alsina Graels bus stop for a bus to Almuñécar when a car stopped along side and the driver offered to take her. Only a few kilometres down the road, the driver pulled off the road and down a track near Torre de Maro. Under threat he forced her to take her clothes off but in the struggle, she managed to run off. The Guardia Civil tracked down and arrested A.J.R. in Nerja, thanks to the girl's description of the man and the car's number-plate. This 31-year-old man is from Barcelona but lives in Torrox Costa.

Frigiliana held, for the sixth consecutive year, an Off Road Meet organized by Nerja Hobby Club. 45 vehicles took part in the trials which lasted two days. One of the trials was a 64 kilometre drive at night, further complicated by rain and fog. The following day the competitors - divided into long and short-wheel base categories - spent the day fighting their way round a muddy and rugged circuit better suited to mountain goats with wellingtons.

A young woman of 20 fell off the roof of a 5-storey building in El Chaparil. Up to the date that this article was written the Guardia Civil are investigating the incident to find out the girl's identity and the circumstances. Neighbours state that the girl was not a resident there.

A shepherd got into a head butting competition with a large lump of AndalucÌa and lost. This 58-year-old goat herder fell off a rock and landed on his head, resulting in his immediate death. The Guard Civil tried unsuccessfully to reach his body on foot at the bottom of a steep ravine in Rio de la Miel and eventually had to employ a helicopter to retrieve him. Perhaps it is a point to remember because if your indestructible Spanish goatherd can come unstuck up in the hills, even the most experienced trekker is not above coming to grief.

At the beginning of last month, the local police force of Nerja arrested an Argentinean man who had been selling photographs from door-to-door and having taken photos of peoples houses without their consent or knowledge. The man, who was arrested in Calle Maravillas, Maro, had 132 panoramic shots of unidentified houses, 55 of houses in Maro, 21 of houses in Nerja, 17 of ones in Torrox and 31 of ones in Caleta de Vélez.

The tarmacking of the Rio de la Miel track and that which serves Las Cuadrillas will be carried out along their full extent. 60% of the 760,000 euros budget will be paid by the town hall of Nerja. Work is due to begin at the start of this month. All of the property owners along these rural tracks have given their consent to the project, even where land will have to be ceded for the straightening and widening of the existing track. In all some 20kms of track will be tarmaced.

The Mayor of Nerja has requested that Sociedad Azucarera Larios should make over the aqueduct Del Aguila so that it can be restored. This is a very well known land mark on on the main road between Nerja and Almuñécar. The aqueduct dates back to the 19th century, when it was built to provide a water supply for the sugar factory, Larios. It is still in use to day as part of the irrigation system for the surrounding countryside.

The Nerja Lions Club has decided to take a big step forward and is offering a regular weekly dance at the Hotel Perla Marina on Friday nights from 20.00 - 24.00, beginning on the 25th of April. They feel very fortunate to be able to offer such an event in such a centrally located hotel on a Friday night. Carlos, a popular and very well-known local artist, will be at the keyboard. It is hoped that many dance teachers will be able to give a short demonstration of their dance style for your entertainment and enlightenment as to just what is available to one and all in the world of dance in and around Nerja. The price for the evening, including a free drink, is 12 euros.

They are looking forward to seeing many people there and, of course, the success of such an undertaking will depend entirely on the public - those who live here and visitors alike. Those attending will be dancing in the large, private ballroom.XX Why not give this venture your full support! All profit goes to the funding of special needs in our community.

Modern television programme planning is questionably bad for your mental health. Too much time spent sat in front of the Box isn't good for your physical health, either, especially if it explodes and burns your flat down, which is what happened in Nerja around the middle of last month. An elderly couple, their adult son and his daughter were all sat watching t.v. at midday when suddenly the apparatus exploded, sending burning fragments all over the room that set light to the curtains and sofa. David, the son, managed to carry his handicapped father out into the street and his mother and daughter made their on way out. Neighbours in the upper flats of the Los Ángeles building, situated on the corner of calle Castilla Pérez and calle Jaén, had to make their way to safety via the roof top because thick toxic smoke was streaming up the stair wells. The fire was put out just over an hour later by the volunteer fire service much to the delight of the bored townsfolk who had turned out to watch - it was obviously more interesting than watching television. Both Nerja and Vélez Málaga, amongst other villages in Axarquia, lack a professional 24-hour fire service. This was tragically emphasised by an incident last Christmas, in which two children and a mentally handicapped adolescent perished partly because, according to some reports, the volunteer firemen were unable to arrive in time due to a deficiency in training and equipment.

Antonio Cereto Campos is the oldest biker in town, because he's been fixing them since 1946. He was only 9 at the time and started off this long career fixing bicycles at his father's workshop in Calle de La Cruz, Nerja. He remembers that his father's customers would pay him 'en especies', in other words, in eggs, grain or rabbits, etc. Sometimes, however, his father would take a little money, like 5 reales (about 1.25 pesetas or 0.5 pence). In 1954 the repair shop finally moved into the motorbike repair trade, repairing the old Guzzi-65, which was little more than a bicycle with a motor on the front wheel. Antonio set up his own motorbike repair shop in the mid-sixties in Calle Miguel. Years later he bought a plot of land and built a new workshop, which was demolished in the year 2000 to make way for what is the present shop. Both of his sons are Andalucian motorbike champions and work in the shop. He remembers once, back in 1970, when a customer arrived after having wheeled his recently purchased moped from the Peñon de la Virgen (Torrox). He told Antonio that the machine that he had sold him was a heap of rubbish. The problem turned out to be that the man hadn't opened the fuel tap. They both had a good laugh.

Nerja Decorative & Fine Arts Society
The final lecture of this season will take place on Saturday 10th May 2003 at 17.30 at the Cultural Centre, Nerja and is entitled 'Dressing for Dinner' by Lindsay Evans Robertson NDD Des RCA Dip RCA. Dressing for Dinner is an irreverent overview of formal dress in the 20th century, which traces the changes from severe formality and luxurious flamboyance at the beginning of the century to the casual attitudes expressed at the end. It looks at men's dress and women's dress in the many extraordinary permutations of style over the decades and explains how formal dress reflects contemporary fashion. Lindsay Evans Robertson has been a designer for couture and ready-to-wear, and head of department and course leader in fashion design in higher education. He is a freelance lecturer in design, costume and textiles societies and is Honorary Secretary of The Costume Society of Great Britain. He makes his second visit to Nerja where he lectured on Balenciaga in 1999.

Following the lecture an End-of-Season Dinner will be held at the Hotel Al-Andalús, Maro to celebrate the completion of the Nerja Society's first year as an independent NADFAS Society. Members, guests and visitors are welcome. For information on menu, price and bookings please contact Jill Lee on 952 52 51 47 before 6th May.

C.A.S.
Tuesday 6th: Day trip to Cordoba. Coach departs Monica Hotel 07.30. Tickets 22 euros (Members 17 euros).
Sunday 18th: Quiz Night at the Ancladero Restaurant. 19.00 for 19.30.Tickets 8.50 euros, includes supper with wine. Please book early.
Thursday 22nd: Day trip to Gibraltar. Passports Essential. Sightseeing and Shopping Trip. Coach departs Monica Hotel 07.30. Tickets 18 euros (members 12 euros).
Saturday 24th: An Evening at the Rib House, Torrox Costa with Sandy Lawrence. 07.30 for 20.00. Tickets 18 euros, includes dinner.
To book please Tel: 952 523 607 or Coach Trips/Events Richard: 659 458 020. Tickets: also at Capistrano Oasis Comm/ off. All coach trips pick up at the Monica Hotel, Iranzos, Nerja Club Hotel, Marinas Hotel Bus Stop and The Torrox Roundabout.