The police arrested 4 men for mugging clients upon leaving the bank. They spray liquid excrement on their victims to distract them. This ruse is known as the, 'Timo de Mostaza' (the mustard ruse). The gang was made up of two Chileans and two Cubans, all four of whom were always well dressed. The men, whose ages range from 31 to 54 pretended to be carrying out some bank transaction whilst they watched for anybody withdrawing large sums of money. They carried out 2 muggings in Almuñécar, the first of which was covered in the August edition of the Seaside Gazette. On the first occasion they got away with 24,000 euros and on the second, more recently, they obtained 5,533 euros from a foreign woman. Basically, once outside the bank, one of the team emptied a small bottle of liquid excrement on the victim's head. The second member of the gang approached saying he had seen somebody dropping something from a flat window and proceeded to help the victim. At this point, the first member snatched the bag or whatever, containing the money from the distracted victim. The gang were unlucky enough to be rumbled in a routine road check. The Guardia Civil discovered an attache case containing the bottles of liquid excrement.

The PSOE (socialist party) propose opening a poly-technical college in Almuñécar. The socialist councillor, Francisco Prados, who was the head teacher at one of Almuñecar's high schools, suggests that this should be done in collaboration with the Open College, 'Fernando de los Ríos.' It's worth noting that there was a polytec in Almuñécar before, and that was IES Al Andalús in Barrio San Sebastian. The suppression of this polytec to make way for the new Logse Education Reforms was greatly lamented by most parents and teachers in Almuñécar. In fact, Francisco Prados is still on the teaching staff at the modern Al Andalús secondary school. According to him it would only suppose a budget of 1,000 euros to house a suitable classroom in the CIE (Centro de Iniciativas de Empresas) building.

The Blue Parking Areas, if you haven't already noticed, have had their charging hours extended to cover weekends as well. Therefore, until the 15th of November, you will have to pay for parking in these areas between 09.00 - 14.00 and 16.00 - 21.00. The rates are: 30 cents for the 1st hour, 45 cents the 2nd and 60 cents the 3rd. After the third hour your car will be turned inside out and converted into a municipal flower bed... Nah, just joking! (Some people will believe anything!).

The town hall is waiting for the results of a study by the consulting company, Urbalex S.A., concerning the viability of linking the P4 with the Paseo Puerta del Mar via through the Las Gondolas Urbanización. Despite protests from the said apartment-hotel, the town council is determined to go ahead with the scheme, pending the results of the feasibility survey, because it is concerned about 'public interest.'

The Grecian-Latin Theatre Festival in Almuñécar might not take place due to a lack of backing from the new town council. SKS Theatre has expressed its concern over the complete lack of response from the new PA town council, mere months away from staging of the Fourth Grecian-Latin Sexi Firmum Iulium. Antonio Cantudo, the manager of the festival, states that several members of the town council said that they would not be able to help finance the festival this year due to a lack of funds in the council coffers. However, he commented that the association managing the festival has put forward other options for financing the event, yet the town hall has not responded, with days and minutes ticking away. The staging of the event is planned for the end of October and the beginning of November and the organisers have already confirmed the booking of the Seville theatre group, Atalaya, which is one of the most important in the Southern Spain. Sr. Cantudo expressed his concern that this event, which is the 2nd most import of its kind in Andalucía could end up disappearing.

The body of an old man was found in his flat in the Edificio Caribe. The cadaver, which was in an advanced state of decomposition, was detected because the neighbours had complained about a suspicious, overpowering stench coming from under the door. The man was thought to have died about 2 weeks before being discovered. The fire service was called to break down the door and the body was found propped up behind it. The coroner confirmed that the man, who was of an advanced age, died from natural causes.

It's official - or soon will be, although God knows how they will manage to impose it. As of next summer you won't be able to reserve a spot with your sun bed and beach umbrella on any one of Almuñécar beaches or on La Herradura's either. The Gazette mentioned last month that the idea was being discussed in the busy corridors of the town hall but now it's not just an idea - it's the law! All of Spain's beaches are public property, so no one can claim a piece of one - unless they have a licence from the local town hall, that is. It has been the practise for family or friends to stake out a plot for others, for when they should deign to show up on the beach. This is unfair and to the detriment of the other's who have made the effort to turn up and look for a spot to enjoy the sand, sea and local sewage. As we said at the beginning of the article, it will be difficult to enforce, as the offending articles of private property have not been left or lost, so they cannot be removed under articles 610 and 615 of the Civil Code.

Juan Carlos, 'Big Bad Benny' Benavides, our present mayor, announced that the new health centre-cum-local hospital could be ready and functioning within a year. The present stumbling block, according to the mayor, is the reactivation of the annulled pact between the Regional Government (La Junta de Andalucía in Sevilla) and the town council or the creation of a new one. Yet, this must be done before the end of 2003 for it to happen, as predicted in 2004. The mayor says that the town hall has, for its part, the funds available to carry out their side of the bargain. The Delegate for Health for the Region Government says that he considers Almuñécar's proposal as correct and fitting as the Junta also considers the lack of activity during the past two years as preoccupying. He also consider that the circumstances under which the existing health centre operates as, 'Third World.' (Many Third World countries wouldn't agree - the Ed.) Sr. Cano Bueso, the said delegate, says that he is hopeful a decision should have been reached by the end of September.

The Mayor has announced that he has signed an agreement with Torres de Almunécar S.L. in which the company will put forward the sum of 1,216,766 euros to the town hall for the development of a residential complex, where the municipal stores and fire service depot now stands (behind the health clinic). 300,000 euros of this will go into the town hall coffers to pay an outstanding amount owed by the town to the National Health Service. This is where the town hall has found the money to pay their part of the budget for the new health clinic/hospital.

Our mayor has also been elected as the First Vice-Mayor of the Association of Townships, Costa Tropical. There are also Second and Third Vice-Mayors, which is a nice way for everybody to get the maximum wages possible from public funds. The socialist, Pedro Álvarez was elected as Mayor of the association. This is fruit of a great deal of political wrangling that has nothing to do with the wishes of the electorate. Broken pacts and new pacts, plus the habitual accusations of stabs in the back and congratulatory pats on the back. One thing is for sure, the present arrangement has nothing to do with the good of the community and has everything to do with inter-party nest feathering. Juan Carlos Benavides shouldn't be singled out as a culprit - after all, he's just playing by the rules and those that are now vociferously condemning him would have done the same, given the opportunity.

The mountain natural park, Peña Escrita will be closed until December owing to structural reforms. This is the first time that it has closed to the public and it is hoped that the work can be completed before the Puente de la Constitution (8th December bank holiday). "After six years the wooden cabins, bars, pathways, swimming pool area, animal compounds and access track desperately need to be repaired and brought up to scratch," says Emilio González Pavesio, Councillor for Tourism. The reason for carrying out the repairs now is that the contract with the management company that maintains the park has expired. The new contract will include the clause that the management company will have to take charge of bookings, instead of the tourist board, which has been carrying out this task to date.

People complain that the authorities never do anything against those that sell illegally recorded CD's in the town's streets. Wrong! Last month 2 Guardia Civil officers nearly nabbed a Senegalese man with a blanket covered with pirate CD's. The hawker did a quick impression of Jessie Brown at the Berlin Olympics, leaving his 139 illegal CD's to the tender care of the police officers. This took place on the Puerta del Mar Paseo.

Here's an interesting piece of information for Mr N. Anderssen. The Guardia Civil managed to prevent a 39-year-old Almuñecan man from committing suicide by persuading him over the phone not to do it. The man was very depressed after breaking up with his wife and was determined to overdose on sleeping pills. Whilst they were trying to calm him down, they tried to localise the mobile phone call. The sympathetic voice on the help line was Agent Juan Miguel Muñoz but the task was far from routine. The caller hung up no fewer than 14 times during the 25-minute conversation. The man admitted taking two bottles of tablets, so the police were desperate to keep him awake and talking. The break came when the man agreed to give them his ex-wife's phone number so that they could persuade her to have him back. They called the woman and found out where he was living. Accompanied by a doctor, they finally found him. He was in a critical medical condition and was immediately transferred to the hospital. In Juan Miguel's 15 years of service he has attended all sorts of situations, but this was the first time that he had prevented a suicide from happening.

Empty hotels and holidaymakers without rooms - it's contradictory but true. This year 8,000 pensioners will enjoy an off season holiday on the Costa Granadina but many more will have to go somewhere else because Almuñécar's big hotels don't want them. Imserso is a social service's programme to provide cheap holidays for our pensioners. They pay 250 euros for 15 days or 132 for 8 days in a hotel that will provide them with full board, day trips, medical attention and entertainment. The hotels, on the other hand, get guaranteed bookings during the long off-season months, when they normally have to lay off staff and tighten their belts. Hotel Victoria, La Najarra, Carmen and Chinasol are the only four that take on pensioners on the government scheme, Imserso. The larger hotels refuse to take them on. The main reason, they say, is because the 'split personality management' that they have to perform is just too much of a headache. The pensioners want pasa dobles and the foreigners want hits from the 60's and 70's. The pensions want coffee toast and churros and the foreigners want fried eggs and bacon. The 2 groups are just not compatible. Summing up, the 4-star hotels are banking on attracting better-paying, foreign tourists and the smaller hotels are counting on the low-profit-margin pensioners, who often come back in the summer with their families.

Izquierda Unida (the United Left) are on a crusade against pavement-hogging, balcony-scraping palm trees. According to this political formation there are over 100 trees - the majority of which are palm trees - that are getting on people's mammary glands. Antonio Leyva, spokesman for the group, says that they are either too big for the pavement, block visibility on road junctions or have fronds that intrude onto people's upper floor balconies. The trouble with the ones from the last group is that they provide a 'bridge' for tree rats and other vermin. The IU suggests moving them to somewhere more suitable they can be enjoyed rather than cussed.

The new parking scheme that will be built under the Paseo del Altillo will force pub owners to pay for their own changes to the interior decoration of their premises. In a town council meeting, a proposal by the PP (the previous mayor's party) to improve the conditions between the parking company, Parquigran, and the business tenants in favour of the second. Thanks to the abstention of the PSOE, the proposal was rejected by the governing party. The initiative put forward by Juan Luis González (the ex-mayor) was for the tenants to receive compensation for the financial damage caused by the expropriation of the premises. The proposal included that all the premises should be returned with the masonry, electrical installations and water supply already completed. The Councillor for Inland Revenue pointed out that the owners have already been given, free of charge a 50% increase in the size of their premises, which will be respected for the next 30 years. The mayor, Juan Carlos Benavides, classified the PP proposal as, 'very dangerous' for the tenants. He said that the terms of the agreement between the town council and the company that will carry out the new car park were signed and sealed during the previous administration's turn in office and this latest proposal certainly wasn't mentioned then. He also went on to state that the town hall couldn't very well go back on the signed agreement and change the terms. He finished off by saying that in their haste and during the hubbub of the local elections the previous administration had left the tenants unprotected.

It seems to happen every year, but at different primary schools. This year it was C.P. Santa Cruz's turn to be without sufficient teaching staff to commence the school year. And as in every year, the parents protest and refuse to take their kids to school until the Education Board comes up with the teachers. Last year it was C.P. San Miguel's turn, which wasted the first month's classes of an already short autumn term, blighted with public holidays. In Granada alone there are hundreds - and that is not an exaggeration - of qualified primary school teachers on the dole, unable to find work at any of the state schools because of the shrinking school population. In the case of Santa Cruz, they are five teachers down. It's very difficult not to put the blame firmly at the Provincial Education Board's door for being tight fisted yet the countries educational needs are in turmoil. The 60's baby boom caused a spate of primary school construction to cope with the peak that came in the mid 70's. Then it was the turn of the secondary schools in the mid 80's. All those baby-boom teenagers hit the university and most of them chose Magisterio (teaching) as a university career. The norm was try to for Law, if you failed that, go for Business Studies, if you weren't even fit for that, there was always Magisterio. The result was a boom of qualified teachers just as the school population began to shrink back down to normal proportions. Just to make things worse, Spain became the country with the second lowest birth rate in the world. One more point not to be forgotten is that kids are so badly behaved nowadays that many teachers suffer from nervous breakdowns - hence Santa Cruz missing teachers at the beginning of the school year.

The cooler September breezes across the shores have triggered a flurry of comings and goings. Our funky Swedish friends, Ann and Magnus, have left the delights of holiday fiesta and returned home. Mr Encyclopaedia himself, Chris in the mountains, has trundled back to Blighty for the wonders of the dreary winter days, well until Christmas time. Maxine's Linda has also bounded over to English pastures for a spot of fun with friends. Closer to tropical climates, Su and Antonio packed up for a move to new teaching adventure in Torremolinos. Further afield the oil crew are determined to keep you on your toes about their whereabouts; Adam eagerly jetting to Indonesia and Andrew having an escapade to the Far East.

Returning from the refreshing delights of their holidays is Danish Nina (Naranja) from a treasured family visit to Denmark and hairdresser Lisa from the UK. I hear the tropical tan proved a winner under the grey English skies! New faces on the scene are Laura and John King and family currently in Orgiva but looking closer to the coast to start a B&B adventure.'Californian Lee finally returned from the beloved Merseyside to enjoy the splendours of the beach life. Last but not least Wilma is back from a Scottish retreat fully inspired to finish her children's' book.

It seems the devouring heat of the summertime has created great inspiration for some folks to get to grips with their dreams and ambitions. Proud moments were shared by the Adam's family parents as son Spookie achieved his diving certification... a bright young spark who passed with 94%. Well Done Spooks! In the meantime Isabel has enrolled in a hairdressing course in Salobrena. Spanish Maria is currently engrossed in thoughts about how to start an international language academy.

The creative boom is about to explode as Miguel contemplates and writes poetic lyrics in Chupitos and El Tesoro Escondido John is embarking on a thrilling Titanic painting project in his bar. In these stakes I am dabbling a little myself with art crafts... pop in to have a gander at the samples.

There have been birthdays galore this month. Naranja's John reached a great Wise One age, Hotelito's Louis ascended to another philosophical dimension after a momentous birthday and Montalvo celebrated in true passionate musical style. Happy Birthday Guys!!! Another new literal birth day we are all anticipating in great suspense is the birth of Sharon's, (ex-Chupitos,) baby due the 22nd but no news as of yet.

Musical vitality has been captured during the recent weeks at Chupitos. Russell Nash spread electric vibes in his soulful rhythms and The Wash returned in full Irish shaking style to woo the crowds. Next month there is a lot more in store but in addition a ghostly wild Halloween Party with spooky surprises.

We could soon be losing yet another piece of heritage, if the worst comes about. This time it is not an old building in Almuñécar but a sweet private chapel up on the Punta. What makes this private chapel of public interest is that it was built and used by, undoubtably, La Herradura's most famous resident: Andrés Segovia - the world-famous classical guitarist. It's not that somebody is going to deliberately demolish it, but because a nearby construction programme might cause a land slip, dragging the chapel down the hillside into the sea. Dr. & Mrs Morton bought the Segovia house in 2000 and have loving restored it after 12 years of lying empty. The garden and 'huerto' are magnificent and the view... is probably one of the best on the Punta. This panoramic vision encompasses the Marina, El Peñon del Lobo and Cotobro, with Almuñécar beyond. El Peñon del Lobo is the last bit of virgin land between Cotobro and the Marina - that was, until now. A huge Danish company has bought this hillside and plans to develop it. Indeed, a hotel is included in the projected development. The trouble is that El Peñon del Lobo is decidedly unstable. There was a land slide there about 10 years ago, when the port was being developed, which discouraged the development of the Marina in that direction. Nobody denies that the Danish company, Keopps, has done its 'geological' home work, but what if they are wrong? Besides, Almuñécar lost its last virgin beach beneath the Loma de Baúl (Taramay, where the large hotel is being built on the headland), so are we also to lose this peaceful hillside path that makes its way, high up above the sea and rocks?

The Chairman of the 'Anti-Rubbish Tip Association, Joaquín Cabrera has stated that his association is totally against the town council ratifying an agreement made between the previous municipal administration and a private company for the processing and closure of the rubbish dump behind La Herradura. In his opinion this contract that was awarded to Técnicas de Reciclado Ecológicos would mean keeping the dump open from anything from 3 to 15 years more. He pointed out that the neighbourhood association signed an agreement with the Juan Carlos Benavides, in which he promised that the dump would be permanently closed within two years, if he won the elections - he did. Sr. Cabreras went on to add that the area has great touristic relevance once the dump has been erased and expressed his concern, due to the instability of the dump for the safety of the area should the forecast heavy rains appear.

At last there will be a free Saturday-night bus service between the village and Almuñécar, starting from Saturday the 4th October, according to the Councillor for Traffic, Daniel Barbero. This service, it is hoped, will reduce the moped traffic between La Herradura and Almuñécar via La Punta de la Mona - Cotobro. The bus will leave La Herradura at 22.00 and 23.00 and will return at 01.30 and 02.30. However, the bus will make all the trips necessary to cover demand, so nobody will get stranded, as long as they're there on time. The two picking up and dumping off points are: the entrance to La Herradura, and in Almuñécar, at the bus shelter next to the Paseo newsagent, above the 4 main beach bars. Some might think that the return service is at a too early an hour but the town council says that it's trying to find a harmony between providing a realistic night-bus service without encouraging youngsters to be out until 6 in the morning.

A dizzy new record for the village, no less! Jaime Garciolo has found a cactus leaf with 42 prickly pears attached - fall on that, if you dare! The village elders agree that they've never seen such a thing in their long lives. Jaime found the prickly prize in the area just above the village known as El Sapo, (The Toad). It looks to be like a neckless mandolin with dozens of volume controls. We know, we know - mandolins are acoustic and not electric. Some people have just no imagination!

The town council has just signed an agreement with the landowners of 2,300sqm for the construction of an indoor sports centre for the village. The plot is at the northern end of the Rambla de Espinar. "The sports centre has to be close to the population centre of the village, therefore, after various options, we settled for this plot as the most suitable one because it's near to the Barrio de Las Maravillas, as well as the Rambla de Espinar. The mayor is confident that this sports centre will be operative before the end of his term of office.

The building reforms that have been carried out on La Herradura's secondary shool weren't ready at the beginning of the school year. Work didn't begin on it until the end of July. This enlargement of the existing building doesn't cater for all the outstanding reforms needed, however. The school will still lack a gym, for example.

Spain has the worst accident-at-work figures in Europe - it's a fact. Never a month goes by without a bricky falling to his death or having a lump of death fall on top of him. It's considered decidedly uncool and wimpy to wear a hard hat or harness. In other words you're more likely to impress the señoritas falling from the scaffolding than being tied to it, but it's guaranteed not to impress your wife... or is it? Well, all this waffling is fruit of the death of a builder on a work site in the village at the end of August, when The Seaside Gazette was already at the printers. 42-year-old Diego R.I. fell to his death from a block under construction in the Carmenes del Mar residential estate. Apparently, he was trying to pass from one section of scaffolding to the next when he lost his balance. His work mates immediately called for an ambulance, which turned up in a matter of minutes. However, the severity of his injury resulted in a case of D.o.A. (Dead on Arrival). On the same evening of the accidents various work teams began putting up belated safety barriers on the scaffolding. 14 workers died in 2002, which was almost 17% up on 2001. Spain's 2 biggest unions, UGT and CCOO, have begun enquiries into the accident. Francisco Quirós Ramos, the provincial secretary of the CCOO visited the site the next day and noted that the scaffolding did not comply to safety regulations. He questions the version of the construction company that states that the victim had failed to wear a safety harness even though he was provided with one. "If that was the case, why wasn't he fired?" asks Sr. Quiros.

The infamous Ecotax that levied a euro per/head per/day on Spain's visitors to the Balearic Islands bit the dust but it's left an itchy legacy behind - that nice source of revenue that began to dribble in before the outcry from the tourist sector forced its suspension. Well, the Regional Government in Sevilla has come up with another one! This proposed new fiscal law has three kinds of tax included: a tax levied on air pollution, one on seaboard pollution (attention Marina del Este) and one on radioactive residuals. There will be no attempt to levy yet more tax than those that already exist on plastic green houses, the tourist sector or on the use of water. In fact, those businesses or individuals that reduce their pollution will see tax benefits. Similar tax laws already exist in the Castilla-La Mancha Region, where the regional tax office is set to collect 3,000m euros from pollution producing businesses. This tax law will not be passed through the Andalusian Parliament before next summer, or in other words, until after the general elections. If and when this law does come into being, Marina del Este had better get its act together over the disgraceful condition of its sewage system. Marina residents put the blame on the Almuñécar authorities that have permitted a concrete jungle above the port, but you can bet your bottom euro that they will find a way to shift the blame back onto the luckless homeowners in and above the Marina.

Things could be stirring, as far as Marina del Este is concerned. The town council has just signed a contract with the Fundacion Empresa Universidad, which will carry out a full 'check up' on Almuñécar and La Herradura's urbanizaciones (residential estates). The company uses last-term, university engineering students, who will be working under the municipal engineer. This is due to begin this month and will consist of fieldwork, meetings with the presidents of the urbanizaciones and representatives from the electric and water companies. "The result will give us a clear view of the defects of each of Almuñécar's urbanizaciones," says the Juan Carlos Benavides, (the mayor),"and will allow us to draw up complete plans to rectify them." According to the mayor there is a great disparity in some urbanizaciones between the value of the houses and the infrastructure that they depend upon. "Some properties are valued at 150m pesetas (900,000 euros +/-) and are not even connected to the town sewage system or enjoy municipal mains water supply and their green areas are totally neglected. I'm referring to Marina del Este, for example," he added.

Another famous face has graced our shores during the summer period. Paul Weller and his family enjoyed a week in La Herradura staying at the Fenicios Tryp hotel. Paul is a renowned musician who found fame with the 80's group, The Jam, before going solo. He still performs and writes for various artists. He has friends in Granada who introduced him to La Herradura several years ago and has been a regular visitor ever since.

Inmobiliaria Karcher is on the move. Maria Theresa will be moving from her current premises in Avda. Prieto Moreno down to the beach front next door to Café Toscana. Gaby and Encarna will remain in the old premises, continuing with rentals once the new location has been refurbished.

A new member has been added to the team at La Herradura Property Management. Maria López Martín has joined forces with Graham and David and brings with her a wealth of experience in Customer Services and Sales. Her positive attitude and will to succeed will no doubt be a valuable asset.

As reported in last month's edition, the work on the secondary school is dragging on long after the beginning of term causing major upset to the children's education. This seemed an obvious assumption considering that work didn't begin until August and the school term ended in mid June.

Our intrepid crew descended upon Restaurante La Almazara, (Pablo Iglesias 1, Almunécar) for a bite to eat and were very pleasantly surprised. A warm, friendly atmosphere greets you with the staff giving a similar service. The menu is extensive and varied with a traditional Andalusian theme. Two of our party chose steaks, which were cooked exactly as requested. The Lamb casserole is also recommended, tender and very tasty. There is an extensive dessert menu available also. The wine list is well stocked and reasonably priced, which all helped to make a very pleasant evening in friendly and tasteful surroundings.

When travelling back from Nerja one afternoon last month, we found ourselves behind one of the lorries transporting the rubble from the motorway. Smaller stones were constantly filtering through the tailgate and bouncing onto the road before one of the larger rocks that was perched on the top of the pile came loose. This crashed onto the road and bounced 2 metres into the air. Still travelling at speed it disappeared over the edge and beyond. Is there a law in Spain about the containment of such loads or are we just left to take our chances?

A new doggie loo has appeared in front of the new town hall. The temporary car park, created to take the summer overspill, is now a dusty, sandy patch of land, which is frequented every day by some dog owners. The dogs are left to get on with their business while the owner casually strolls away, usually whistling, giving the dog time for the dirty deed then call and disappear around the corner until the next day. How nice!

The neighbours from the Axarquía complex in Nerja are not happy bunnies. Owners of flats in the Torre del Mar and Algarrobo buildings say that groups of young kids are terrorising the area with their vandalism and moped races. "They carrying out all classes of barbarities like motorbike races, drunken revelry, taking drugs and vandalising public places!" laments one of the said disgruntled neighbours. Does anybody here remember being 18? Were the teenagers of the 70's & 80's - today's adults - little angels? Was 'popping pills' the heinous invention of this decade? Does anybody remember those teenage rebel films of the 50's and 60's (Brando & Dean)?

J.M.R. is not a popular man at the local health clinic nor is he with the municipal police force. Workers at the health centre were forced to call for the police after putting up with J.M.R proffering verbal obscenities at the visitors for most of the morning. They had tried to calm him down but to no avail. Two 'municipales' turned up and asked him to calm down, so he obligingly included their mothers' profession and fathers' sexual inclination in his little repertoire. They listened intently as he expounded upon his theory concerning their wives' sexual appetite & generosity in that field. Having politely waited for him to conclude with his doubt concerning their ability to procreate and his conviction that they possess a proclivity towards DIY sex, they levitated him towards the police wagon and awarded him first prize, which was a set of matching bracelets joined by a short but stout chain.

Michaelmas (San Miguel) came and went in Nerja. The main celebrations were held on Balcón de Europa and in the centre of town. On the Balcón there was a spot of live music: a dance band and demonstration of Fandangos Cortijeros. Further down the coast in Almuñécar it was the celebration of the patron saint of the castle and old town. Distress rockets going off all - not because they announced a distress situation, but because they were very distressing as well as being downright annoying.

The annual Fiestas de Nerja have come round again and will be celebrated between the 8th and the 12th. The 12th October, besides being the Glorious Twelfth, is a day to celebrate for 2 other reasons. Firstly, it is El Día de la Hispanidad, which you can only translate for the Day of Spanishness and is a National Bank Holiday. Secondly, it is the Patron Saint of the Guardia Civil, who is a Virgin of something or other. Obviously, in the next issue, we will report on how the Nerja Fiestas went, but until then, we wish you happy Fiestas!

Nerja is on its way to getting a new health clinic - and we only hope that it takes less time to become operative than the 'new' Almuñécar one, which has all the appearance of being a Palestinian club house for Hamas members. In fact the Almuñécar one has been a building site without builders for a couple of years, now. Meanwhile, back in Nerja, the Lone Rancher, cleverly disguised as a door, had his knob shot off. Alright, we'll be serious... Meanwhile, back in Nerja, the town council has signed an agreement with the Regional Health Authorities that will permit the construction of the new health centre near the N-340 junction with Burriana Beach, which is close to where the present one stands. The building has a building plot of 7,500sqm and will cost 2,750,000 euros, half of which corresponds to the Nerja Council and half to the La Junta de Andalucia.

The Nerja Lions Club Friday night dance for 3rd October will welcome Eric and Jennifer in a display of ballroom dancing., 21.00-24.00, Restaurant Avenida. Entrance is 7euros at the door, open bar at reasonable prices and live music by Carlos at his keyboard. Ample parking. Directions: Proceeding east along San Miguel, pass gasolinera, continue past police station to the left, garage and then Restaurant Avenida. For parking turn left past police station, right, right into parking lot.

Nerja has become quite popular as a location for European television companies. For example, on the 1st of this month 'filming will begin on 'To Malaga and back,' which is an German production (ARD). The TV film crew will be present during all the month. The filming will initially be centred on a house near Pago Imaroga but will also use C/Puerta del Mar, C/Pintada and C/Cristo, El Balcón de Europa, P/de Maro and various stretches of the old N-340. About 100 extras were chosen around the beginning of last month for the film to appear in such scenes as the Christmas Eve one. But as soon as the German Crew pack up and go, a Swedish one will arrive to film scenes from a TV competition called, 'The Bachelor,' which will be broadcast in Sweden, Denmark and Norway. It appears that they will be using the Nerja Caves for some scenes. Finally the Norwegian TV channel 'Vest' will begin to broadcast. 'Parodis,' which was filmed in town last summer. You can follow this series, if you like, on Internet: www.tvvest.no.

The town council got its collective heads together over the Fire Service deal. First of all, it had to be agreed upon exactly how they should define the fire service. So, after a good deal of scribbling and rubbing out, it was defined thus: Agreement for the establishment of a service for the prevention and extinguishing of fires and for rescue & civil protection for the eastern area of the Province of Málaga. The town council has to provide 75,643,14 euros per year with a 3% yearly increase. The Nerja town hall also has to provide funds for equipment and material.

A council commission has announced that they are tendering a contract for the redevelopment of the Plaza de La Terrazas in Nerja. The building work must be carried out within two months of signing the contract. The maximum budget for the project is 51,086.03 euros with VAT included. Anybody out there with a blank week and a wheelbarrow?

José Alberto Tomé, who is the Councillor for Infrastructure, has announced where the town council will be carrying out street improvements, etc during 2004. The following streets will be done up: c/Manuel Altolaguirre, c/ J. Muñoz and c/ J. Moreno, in the Barriada de los Poetas area, involving 300,506.05 euros. The Avenida de Andalucía will also be revamped along with c/ Asensio Cabanillas. The Nerja town hall will be financing just over 26% of the work - the rest will come from the provincial authorities. He also mentioned the council's plans for 2005, 2006 and 2007. Next year they will be going to town on calle Real de Maro. The following year it will be the turn of plaza Tutti Fruti and finally in 2007 they will redevelop plaza Cavana and the surrounding area.

Councillor Carmen Cereto has announced the establishment of a municipal employment office on the ground floor of the town hall, where the Municipal Sports Board had its office. In her words the function of the employment office will be, "to promote initiatives, articulate mechanisms that contribute to the creation of employment and to train & foster economic activity." Have you ever asked yourself why civil servants can't speak without confusing everybody with inflated or round about terms? Why couldn't she have just said that the office is there to find you a job or to help train you for one? Anyway, Sra. Cereto goes on to say, "by means of individualised 'guardianships' (that's the only translation of the word available), we will inform, assess and orientate the townsfolk in a personalised manner, attending their individual characteristics and necessities, to try to facilitate their access to an adequate job. Up-to-date and efficient information will be offered concerning trade training and how to obtain it." What she of course meant was that they would take you in, listen to what you want and then tell you what you will do. She also meant to say that there would be many incomprehensible leaflets available about free courses and chances to be cannon fodder for companies that don't want to pay decent wages but would prefer to receive government grants for giving you 'on the job training.'

Carmen finished off by saying that she would like to lay bridges (Jeff?) between companies and prospective workers.

The Costa Animal Society will be holding their Annual Christmas Dinner Dance on Friday 12th December at the Villa Flamenca Hotel, Nerja 19.30 for 20.00. Entertainment will be provided by Sasha. Tickets 35 Euros to include a welcome drink and canopies, 3 course meal with wine are available from the CAS office or by telephoning Richard on 659 458 020. Please book early. Bookings for tables for 6, 8 or 10 people are welcomed.

Tierra y Mar - Derek Worthington's exhibition of watercolours & acrylics in the Casa de la Cultura in Frigiliana, was a great success. The setting - a 16th & 17th century house belonging to the Counts of Frigiliana, which was formally used to store and repair agricultural implements, is beautiful and perfectly suited to art exhibitions. Several painters, among them Ortega, Roland Fade and Stewart Briggs, were present at the opening and were impressed by its beauty and charm. The small archaeological museum at the rear is also worthy of a visit. The exhibition, which was originally planned for a week, was extended until 21st September. Gallery owners from Nerja and Almuñécar have already expressed an interest and invited Derek to exhibit his work. To his delight, Pepe, a friend and restaurant owner of La Caleta & Casa Jeannot, fell in love with the picture used on the exhibition poster and bought the original titled, 'Wish You Were Here' for his restaurant.

Nerja Decorative & Fine Arts Society.
Please note new date, time and location. The first lecture of the new season will take place on: Tuesday 14th: at 18.00 in the main theatre at The Cultural Centre, Nerja and is entitled: Donatello and the Sculpture of the Renaissance by Jo Walton BA. Donatello was the greatest sculptor before Michaelangelo and had a huge influence over sculptors and painters of the 15th century and beyond. His vast output over a long life ranged from delicate idealism and startling realism to the astonishing force of his late works which after six centuries still speak powerfully to us today. The lecturer has taught art history and worked in art bookselling, and currently acts as a guide at both Tate Modern and Tate Britain, as well as lecturing freelance. Visitors welcome : 10 euros at the door.