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Marinas and 4 Golf Courses |
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| The Almuñécar Urban Development Plan (PGOU) is far from being just a local issue. Granada has been discovered by the migrating Northern Europeans and its coast, La Costa Tropical, is the battleground between speculation and conservation. In a country, whose economy is fuelled by – perhaps, inflated by – the construction industry, Almuñécar is not only the focal point for economists and ecologists; it is where regional, provincial and municipal authorities vie to have their own way. Does Almuñécar really ‘need’ four golf courses and three marinas? Indeed, does it really need to double its housing capacity? Is the heritage of its unique, sub-tropical vega not more important that a hypothetical future, based on ‘class tourism,’ lured by year-round golf courses? Does Almuñécar have enough water resources to satisfy this expansion? And finally, does it really matter if, as some experts claim, Spain is losing ground against resorts in cheaper countries? Questions are in no short supply; correct answers are.
URBAN DEVELOPMENT PLAN - PGOU What’s next? Who’s against it? What does the controversial
PGOU propose to allow? Do we have the natural
resources? What is proposed and what
is expected. Summing up
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Never has there been so much to write about Almuñécar, with so little space in which to fit it all! What a summer! What with the PGOU, the jellyfish, the fiestas and the squabble in the press between Granadinos and Almuñequeros, it is difficult knowing where to start? Why not with the jellyfish? It has turned out that Almuñécar’s worst enemy is not the spiralling prices, the lack of parking space or even Osam bin Laden; it has been the cursed jellyfish invasion! But it has not been restricted to Almuñécar, of course, but seems to have affected the whole of the southern coast. Were there that many jellyfish available for the task, or did they sort of make their way up and down the coast like the street market vendors? I don’t think so, because the jellyfish, unlike our neighbours from Granada, came to spend the whole of summer here, and not just a fortnight. Sizes ranged between something that could be mistaken for a floating condom – another frequent marine visitor – and the four-kilo monster that was washed up on Torrenueva beach. This beast, lying upside down on the beach, looked a bit like that thing that they pulled off John Hurt’s face in Alien. Was Benavides to blame? Does he run a secret, offshore jellyfish farm, that had a mass breakout? No, not even the most ardent Benny haters could stick this one on him. The ecologists, mind, put the blame on the abundance of urban waste that is generated by the Mediterranean’s 90-million coastal inhabitants. They point out that the natural predators of jellyfish, sea turtles, are being accidentally decimated to the figure of 25,000 a year – snagged in fishing nets, etc. Personally, I think that the turtles have finally got wise to floating plastic bags, which they mistake for jellyfish, so now they swim through clouds of frolicking jellyfish thinking, “Ha, you can’t fool me – I know you’re really condoms!” Whilst these unwanted visitors (jellyfish – not Granadinos) dominated the beaches, businesses felt the squeeze. I mean, who’s going to hang about the beach all day when the surf is a minefield of gelatinous gits? It seems the only person that was raking in the shekels was the little kiosk that sells small fishing nets, who sold more in one day than he did the whole of last year. First-aid posts on the beaches had already dealt with 2,500 stings by the 5th August – God knows what the finally figure will be! The jellyfish weren’t the only disagreeable discoveries on the beaches – a 65-year-old gent was washed up, drowned, on Playa Veintiuna. Apparently, he had gone out fishing, as was his custom, in a small rowing boat to fish for octopus in the morning. His body was discovered at five in the afternoon of the same day. The Town Hall’s decision to place the Friday Market in the Rio Verde riverbed had the ecologists pointing out that this had been a reckless decision – there could have been a flash flood! Perhaps they’re right… the whole market could have been wiped out by a meteor strike, as well! We are in the middle of the worst drought for 60 years and even in normal years, the summer storms at the end of August don’t normally provide more than a trickle in the parched riverbed. The ecologists’ main beef was that the river with its high-wall banks has no evacuation points and that the local authorities had not sought permission to hold the market in such an unusual place, knowing – claim the ecologists – that it would have been denied. Have you ever heard of the Cortijo, La Bóveda (The Vault)? Well the Town Hall is thinking of acquiring it. The very old building is at the beginning of Rio Jate, under Los Castillejos, more or less. The building’s design suggests that it dates back to the Tardo-Roman period, in the epoch of Abderramán III (early 10th century). This venerable buttressed structure is nowadays attached to a small farmhouse. Juventudes Musicales will be starting off its new season under Marion Müller, following the departure of Bruno Cabrera. Marion is no newcomer to the post, as it was she who founded the association 18 years ago. Juventudes Musicales has a total of 90 members, who all participate in their organised concerts between October and May each year. No doubt our Anne (Eastwood), who provides most of La Herradura news, will be able to provide the full programme for 2005/06, once it’s available, as she, herself, is a member. Lentejí/gí is now the proud owner of a new dumper. It cost them 15,500 euros, mind, but thanks to this slab of space-race technology, the village will be able to brighten up its streets, namely; Calle Real, Calle Gracía, Calle Estacíon, Calle Olivillo and the Plaza de Morales, amongst others! I bet you thought that there weren’t that many streets in the village, didn’t you? The new senior school in the P-4 was being hurriedly fitted out with desks, chairs and all the rest of the necessary furniture for a school. As of going to print, the school was in the process of acquiring telephone installations and carrying out the paper work to be connected to the electricity and water mains. The 41 teachers will be under the direction of José Arcos Aneas, who is to be the school’s first headmaster. It would appear that the school will be for the four ESO courses (12 to 16-year olds) taking the strain of the junior schools (Colegios Públicos) that have had to cater for these levels up till now. As far as I know, the existing high schools (La Antigua & Al Ándalus) will be keeping theirs. In other words, unless you have requested otherwise, if your child has been in one of these centres up till now, he will be staying there for the 2005/06 school year, at least.
Otívar now has its own web page: www.otivar.es It has a map of how to find the village, as well as a pretty complete street plan. The news page is understandably a bit slow moving, considering the size of the village (1,200 inhabitants +/-), but it is a major step forward for the village. Another bonus is the new park-cum-parking area, just opposite the Guardia Civil post, on the bend. Parking has always been a problem there – where isn’t parking a problem, mind? Sundays used to be a good day for finding parking because just about everybody was out in the campo either working or spending the day at the cortijo with friends. But even in Otívar the drought is making itself felt, where the mayor, José Gambil, has asked the villagers not to use hosepipes to clean terraces and the streets in front of their doorsteps. He has asked for a saving in water consumption in general – not because there’s a water shortage, but to avoid one. The municipal water pumping installations cannot pump sufficient water up to the higher houses in the village because of a drop in the water level of Rio Verde. Finally, the old junior school in the centre of the village will be moved and the old site will be used as a market place, taking advantage of the old playground. You might not be aware of it, but a lot of your contributions to the municipal taxes are being spent in the shape of fines, thanks to the numerous cock-ups that our dear leaders have been making. Here are a few examples. Do you remember the fire that broke out near the municipal rubbish dump above Cotobro last year. The Town Hall strongly denied at the time that the fire had begun in the dump. Wrong! The provincial authorities slapped a 60,101,22-euro fine on us, plus we have to cough up for the damage caused. Peña Escrita is being investigated for the escape of 27 muflones (wild short-fleeced mountain sheep of Corsica and Sardinia), where they are being bred. If you think it’s odd that they should keep Sardinian sheep up there, what about the ostriches and hippopotamus? We are still waiting to hear how much the ‘Great Escape’ will cost us. The new scrambling circuit that is being build up in the oxygen-starved heights of the town’s outer limits, together with the 400mts of tarmac track leading up to it, has earned another 12,020 euros in fines, as well. The cutting of another track without authorisation: 60,102.22 euros. However, the biggest one – for the moment – was levied on the Town Hall over the dumping of untreated sewage into the sea in front of the Marina del Este, costing us a mere 150,253 euros! As for fines in the pipe lines, we’ve got one for the destruction of the Paseo del Altillo and one for an unauthorised wall bordering the small football pitch near Rio Verde. So there you have it, that when you get a fine; you have to pay it, but when the Town Hall does something wrong… you still have to pay it! All those in favour of the councillors having to pay the fines from their own pockets, raise your hands! You will all be pleased to know that the Guardia Civil nabbed a man from Motril that has knocked-off at least eight chalets in Almuñécar and La Herradura! Twenty-nine-year old A.P.P. had been busy on this particular ‘project’ since May. The police were overjoyed to find that when they nabbed A.P.P, he was in the company of his brother, G.A.P (mind-the-Gap!), who had reported his moped stolen to cover for his brother, who had been fleeing on the said machine from a burglary. Both detainees are said to be hanging upside-down in a shady location, helping the Guardia with their investigations. You will remember last month that we reported that the local police had 80% of their staff off on sick leave, which didn’t leave many to police the town. From the 18th – 24th July, 49 policemen were off sick, whilst the following week the figure had risen to 58, which meant that Almuñécar’s available municipal police force during that week was only one policeman whose job it was to man the police station. Are you impressed? I certainly am. The policemen, according to the doctor’s report, are suffering from stress. Benavides points out that this must be because the Town Hall has been forcing them to work a staggering 35 hours a week! It doesn’t matter that a municipal police rookie gets almost double the pay of a Guardia Civil corporal with God knows how many years service – this is too stressful! Big Bad Benny has insisted that the doctor should revise the sick notes.
The Altillo underground car park opened for business, on schedule, on the 9th August. The installations are pretty impressive and the prices are reasonable. However, during at least the first week following its aperture, nobody seemed to notice, due to inadequate signposting. The single level (the lower one) that is functioning for the moment can cater for 300 cars. Virgen de la Antigua. The 15th August marked the most celebrated night of the year in Almuñécar, the culmination of an entire week of partying, féria, noise and chaos. Hordes of people seemed to appear in every nook and cranny of the town, and as for parking spaces - ha! We took the safest option, walked for about 3km and by the end of it, we shared a brilliant fiesta with a number of close friends and several thousand Almuñequeros on the beach. Brilliant fireworks set to music on a memorable evening, but we’re still not convinced about how it compares to other years. Jazz on the Costa (15th-23rd July). The 18th anniversary of this deservedly well-supported festival saw a remarkable array of quality international artists. We personally thought that the variety was brilliant and that events of this calibre, in such an evocative setting, should be repeated and increased in number during the year. It’s such a bonus to enjoy these kinds of performances, right on our very own doorstep. Keep them coming! Week of Flamenco (25th-29th July). A complete contrast to the Jazz, but just as dramatic with the castle of San Miguel as a backdrop, the week of Flamenco brought together some amazing talent. Not just classical guitar, but dancing and Flamenco music were on offer - completely gratis! Now just where else on earth could we enjoy this ability to dip in and out (shake it all about - no, sorry, wrong tempo!).
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| The N-340, as we see it today, reached Almuñécar from the west in the late 70’s, but the final stretch to Motril wasn’t finished until 1984, if I remember correctly. The old N-340 that it replaced was a torturously winding affair – but very picturesque. If you got stuck behind a lorry or a bus, of course, it was hell, because there were very few overtaking places. It could easily take you four hours to reach Málaga Airport under such circumstances; bear in mind that nowadays you can reach Madrid in five hours! Even with the new N-340, but before the motorway, a bus trip to Málaga was two and a half hours. If you want to drive along the old N-340, to have an idea, then there is no better place than the remaining stretch that circumnavigates the tunnel of Cerro Gordo. It had been slowly disappearing through neglect and the potholes had become a minefield, but last month somebody had finally ordered that it should be repaired. Its only inconvenience is that which ever side you enter from, you have no alternative but to return the way you were going, once you hit the main road again. So, there is not point in thinking, “As were going to Málaga, let’s take a detour along the old N-340”, because once emerging onto the main road, you end up heading towards Almería. If you do decide to take it, once you come round the headland and can view the cliffs and coastline in general, you will find that you have been suitable rewarded for your effort. Normally, when you clean your pool, you can expect to find dead spiders, woodlice, human hair and the occasional button, but what you do not expect to find is waterproof bundles of hashish… unless you are the Guardia Civil and have been tipped off. In the swimming pool of an urbanisation in the village the police fished out four bundles of the stuff, with a total weight of 3.5 kilos, thanks to being tipped off by a neighbour. To date, nobody knows who they ‘belonged’ to nor how they got there. The cursed jellyfish invasion that descended on the coast, attacking in waves like the old Space Invader aliens, did more than just sting hundreds of bathers; they sabotaged the annual ‘Crossing of the Bay’ swimming competition… is nothing sacred? I mean, who was going to cheerfully dive in at one end of the bay, only to emerge looking like the Blob from Beyond, and then spend the next three nights glowing in the dark? You can just imagine all the little gelatinous bastards lining up just under the surface; about as welcoming as William Wallace’s front rank mates in a battle out of Braveheart! Come to think of it, you’d end up with a face like Mel Gibson’s, suitably painted for battle: red on one side and blue on the other. The Town hall is going to have an underground parking facility built under the village’s football pitch: Las Tejas. They seem to be getting braver now that the Altillo car park is nearing completion – during the long months that the Paseo del Altillo stubbornly imitated the Somme 1916, nobody in the Palace of Gloom (also known as the Town Hall) would dare mention ‘underground car parks’ in public – they might have been caught, once or twice, muttering about them under their office desks, but not a peep otherwise! This decision is a wise one, in as much as we desperately need somewhere to park in the village, and with the construction of the new paseo, this will alleviate the congestion along the sea front. The Town Hall will take advantage of the building upheaval to the pitch, to change the natural turf for an artificial one, as can be seen in the small football pitch in Almuñécar, across the main road from the football stadium.
There’s nothing worse than being at the height of a summer in Andalucía without any water coming out of your tanks – the good folk of Marina del Este can tell you that, after having to spend three days without a drop, at the beginning of August. So mightily miffed were they that one amongst their number when down to the Guardia Civil post to make an official complaint. “If I can’t have a shower, then I’m going back to Granada,” huffed one summer resident, who had had enough. This summer was not good: you could either jump in the sea and be devoured by a herd of violent jellyfish, or wile away the hours under the shirking shower, listening to the despondent rumblings along the pipe work and the occasional hydraulic burp – but little else! But of course, whilst it was a huge inconvenience for the residents, it was a total disaster for restaurants in the port, who couldn’t operate. Everybody thought that water supply probems had finally become a thing of the past, when the port was at last connected up to the municipal water supply last year – not so, obviously. The Mayor – far from being apologetic – reminded the residents of Marina del Este that some amongst their number have never paid a penny for the water that they have consumed. He was referring to the original arrangement whereby the inhabitants of the port received their water from La Comunidad de Regantes de Jovenes Agricultores de la Herradura, which was officially irrigation water, by the way, and not meant for drinking. The homeowners don’t agree. They say that the town hall should never have allowed houses to be occupied without the water situation being solved. In the newly completed and controversial Urbanisación Jardines de Adnania, for example, the Town Hall has allowed several flats to be occupied, even though they have not received a ‘certificate of habitability.’ Furthermore, they say that the building developers have shirked their responsibility to provide proper drinking water. As if the water cuts and the jellyfish hadn’t been enough, the decision to charge for parking within the port, even for business holders there, has really put the topping on the poisonous cake. Reactions were mixed, though, to this three-euro tariff: whereas as restaurant owners and such were foaming at the mouth, all the Wave-Bobbing Boys that have their yachts moored there are over the moon, because there is now somewhere to park, thanks to the depleted competition. Six mooring buoys have been installed in the natural marine park of Maro-Cerro Gordo. These devices were placed so that small boats wouldn’t need to drop anchor, and by so doing, damage the seabed. It might sound an exaggeration but the constant coming and going of such small craft throughout the year does have an impact. This erosion process, combined with the far more aggressive erosion caused by illegal dragnet fishing in park, is devastating the Poseidon meadows on the seabed. This little ecological gesture has costs over 26,000 euros. Heat hits the Costa. Just when you thought I can’t bare this any longer - the heat, the crowds, the endless partying and the general noise and furore - it suddenly ends and we can breathe again. How on earth did we manage it this year? Well, if like a lot of expats here, you have the luxury of returning to your pace of origin for a change of air, then I guess there’s nothing like it to produce all those warm fuzzy feelings when you return. So, for those of us who braved the majority of the Summer here, I have to admit we had a lot of fun amongst all the mayhem … but just what was on offer? Fofito. Yes. Only in the Costa Tropical is it possible to savour and enjoy the talents of classic slapstick with a crowd who is equally shameless in their appreciation. I still chuckle over the memory. But we can’t deny that it isn’t exactly highbrow, even though the kids love the chaos and predictability of it all. Cinema. From Herbie, to War of the Worlds, Madagascar, to Lord of the Rings, all the cinemas across La Herradura and Almuñécar have shuffled around the latest offerings on celluloid. And the only thing you could count on was that at some time it would come around again and, of course, that the chairs were persistently uncomfortable. But why on earth can’t you get hold of a programme, no matter who you ask? Títeres. It’s been some time since I had been privy to a puppet show, but I must admit that it’s the kind of entertainment that evokes all kinds of reactions. It really was an amazing experience from the 3rd to the 7th July, bringing together a number of different generations and performers from all over Spain. One thing I’d also forgotten, whilst sitting there in the Plaza de Independencia, was just how macabre the storylines can be, with plots of child abduction and cannibalism on our first viewing. I’m happy to add, that the plots either side of this one were much more positive! But, there was certainly a pretty impressive range of talent all round and naturally, entertainment that made a huge impact on the children. Virgen del Carmen. The weekend of the 16th July brought even more noise and activity to the village, as everyone was out to celebrate the feast of the Patrona of La Herradura. Kicking off the party atmosphere on the Friday, was the classic performance of Andalucía Baila, with so many of the local girls dressed in their brilliant white Gitana costumes. The remainder of the fiesta included a number of musical events, fireworks on the Saturday night, culminating in the traditional Fiesta de la Espuma on Sunday night, with everybody slipping and sliding around what looked like a winter wonderland.
Proposals underway for La Herradura’s new paseo. Yes, we all know that the Paseo issue has been going on forever, but finally it seems as though some meaningful discussions are taking place. What started as a step in the right direction some two years ago, when the converted railway sleepers were finally partially removed to leave just the precarious boards and rusty nails, is now arriving at the construction something of useful and attractive. But has the Ayuntamiento learnt something from its experience in Almuñécar and the long-delayed car park project? Hopefully, it could be so, since now there is discussion about insisting subcontractors follow exact speed and quality guidelines, before they are entitled to the final profits earned. Now wouldn’t it make sense if they applied that kind of logic to all the public projects that are considered? Back to school. Well it’s official: parents and guardians are set to resume some semblance of normal life again, as we draw to the conclusion of the Summer holidays. But before you roar with the excitement of it all, just some tips from a mum who found it a bit of a last-minute panic last year. I have managed to confirm that school does in fact resume on the 15th September, but at the time of writing still can’t promise you how the hours in this extra short week will pan out. One thing that I have manage to uncover, however, is that a list of textbooks is up on the board in the corridor of the primary school of Las Gaviotas, naming the titles required for each year. For those of you who are benefiting from the government sponsorship of these books, the talone (coupon or cheque) should be available soon after the children return. What you can do now, however, is reserve the books by going to the Libreria Didactica in Avenida Juan Carlos I in Almuñécar (the road which leads down to the Hiper, on the left hand side, in the next block after the pet shop). You simply go to the shop, leave your name (no money at this point), give the name of the school and the year that the child is in and they will place your order. Once you receive the cheque, you can take this into the shop and swap it for the books. Hopefully, this should relieve at least some of the back to school blues from our perspective!
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| Investing in education and children is a long-term, positive investment in the future of a society. At the instigation of the Education and Women’s Offices in the Nerja Hall Town Hall, unemployed mothers will receive a subvention to have their young children three to four hours daily in one of the four Nerja Guarderias. While this was done to ostensibly give the mothers a chance to look for work, the real benefit is to the children. Research has shown that young children in organised nursery-reception environments get a head start on learning skills that they use throughout their lives. Gardening can be a challenge in Southern Spain, with container gardening even more so. Human nature being what it is, putting a few people together sometimes turns challenges into competitions. Even so, when someone has a more successful garden than you, does that mean you should alert the Guardia Civil? Evidently, some residents on Nerja’s Calle San Juan think so. While admiring the lush, green plants growing on one neighbour’s terrazas, it became apparent that they were of a variety that some individuals like to smoke - Cannabis sativa. Hmmm. One of the plants had grown to over two metres high. What a tribute to horticultural perseverance! The Guardia Civil has taken all the suspicious plants into custody. Perhaps the duendes of Calle San Juan will try their green-fingered skills on African violets Saintpaulia Ionantha next time. Not as much fun but a lot less trouble! Moving swiftly into the 21st century, Nerja has its very own fire crew and truck! August 5th saw the beginnings of this important community function. Thanks to the help of volunteers with the Civil Protection of Nerja, two daily shifts of two fire-fighters with an equipped fire truck provide 24 hour coverage. Wow! Will an announcement of a fully functioning sewage treatment plant be forthcoming in order to firmly plant Nerja in modern times? Don’t hold your breath. Of course, considering the subject maybe you actually should hold your breath! Summertime always brings vast quantities of tourists looking for fun in the sun and enjoying the incredible natural scenery Nerja and its beaches have to offer. While you are at the beach and gallivanting in the waves, try to keep an eye or two on your belongings. Bags, packages, rucksacks, all have an amazing way of simply vanishing, if you are not careful. You look around, see nothing suspicious and cannot understand how it happened. Did you look around in the rocks? It seems that hiding in the rocks is one of the preferred techniques for thieves in Nerja when stalking sunbathers. The Nerja Local Police recently took in a larcenous-minded Nerja resident, found lurking in the rocks at the Paseo de los Carabineros. Each thief seems to have his/her specialities; pickpockets, unsuspecting sun bathers, divert and rob scams, gourmet food thefts. What? Gourmet food? A Moldavian would-be thief decided that only the best would do. He tried to divert the cashier at a supermarket on Calle Chanquette while he made a quick exit out the emergency-door, accompanied by two jamon serranos and two cheeses. Considering the ham was pata negra and the cheese manchego, he was aiming for the best! Rumour has it that the young, talented, artist daughter of a famous Nerja author is now keeping her father in the style, to which he has become accustomed. In a recent exhibition of her work at the Zigamar Bar, she sold every single one of her 18 paintings on show, while screenwriter Father learned that the film of his book The Harlequin’s Son has been delayed again because Hugh Laurie, the star, got a better offer in Hollywood. Melissa Launay has a new exhibition opening at the Sala de Arte below the Town Hall in Nerja for one month starting 9th September. Buy now before her fame and prices shoot up. Attention all green fingered souls! Gardening writers, Clodah and Dick Handscombe, will be signing copies of their new book, Your Garden in Spain, at Smiffs Book and Card Store at Calle Almirante Ferrándiz 10, Nerja, near the Post Office between 11.00h and 13.00h on Friday 30th September. Smiffs owner, Elspeth Cowie, says that there is no truth in the rumour that she is about to diversify the business into selling Venus fly traps Dionaea musipula, strategically placed to deter toddlers that delight in touching everything in sight. The recently completed Sala Mercado in Nerja’s Plaza de la Ermita is getting more use. Several art exhibits have highlighted the work of regional artists. The exhibits themselves are well organised but the advance publicity seems to be elusive. It is as if the Town Hall wants to keep the exhibits private events. Why?
One forthcoming event in the Sala Mercado and the surrounding Plaza de la Ermita area will be the three-day long, self-proclaimed, Healing Arts Festival. The activities kick off on the evening of September 8th as a New Orleans style parade sets off from the Balcón de Europa at 19.30. Then for three days, (9th to 11th of September, from 10.00h to late in the evening) local artists, therapists, musicians, sports groups (including those manic Nerja Fencers) will be available for fun, fascinating and interactive information. Despite all the outside negative voices and pessimistic attitudes, the Nerja Lion’s Club has shown that organisation and planning pay off! The move to the new Almijara venue for the Sunday Car Boot sale has been extraordinarily smooth. It is well marked, easy to find, and with ample parking! The reaction from the regular stall holders is mixed: many love the organised location - which includes well maintained loos, especially installed by the Town Hall for the convenience of the car boot patrons - whilst others complain that it is too far away from the centre of Nerja to motivate visitors to find it. One thing that all can agree with is the feeling of being taken advantage of – allegedly the only food/drink venue in the area is at least 25% higher priced than similar establishments. Both patrons and vendors alike miss the mini-café society at the old car boot venue, where people would gather outside a Spanish café, Pie in the Sky, and a German bakery to chat and show off their market bargains. Once a teacher; always a teacher – even during summer holidays. Listeners to RSA 99.1fm, Nerja’s community radio, were treated this summer to information sessions from Almuñécar International-School teachers, Peter Carpenter and Paul Allman. The subjects ranged from the statistical probability of dying in a terrorist attack - amongst other death options- to acoustics in concert halls and of the human voice. Now that the new school term has started, I do not suppose we will hear these academic voices as much on the air. Summer School was never so much fun! One of our favourite school teachers, Jose Manuel Cabello Cabezas – Head of the English Department at IES Sierra de Almijara – kept himself amused this summer by leading a group of 46 Spanish youths on an English language immersion trip to Ireland. Okay, stop sniggering out there: Ireland is an English language speaking country, As is Scotland, the United States and Australia…okay, maybe you have a point with Australia. The trip was sponsored by the Junta de Andalucía as part of their commitment to invest in the future of their young people. So, they sent around 3,000 youths to learn English this summer. Let us take that as an example and learn a little bit of Spanish. ¿Qué piensas tú? More Construction Fun with Bob the Builder. Could it really get worse? Before leaving for a holiday break, back to the wet UK, some Tropicana residents thought that with all the works going on, things would only improve. Surprise, surprise: it gets worse before it gets...worse. They seem to be constructing all around as though some malevolent developer had decided to enclose the place between construction sites in all directions. The access road is totally destroyed, making it a very hazardous journey for your car tyres and suspension. You would think that builders could at least fill these big potholes with stones and grit and soil until they repaired it properly. Not at all: in previous occasions, builders decided that the roads they damaged were public roads, so it was up to the Town Hall to do the repairs. The Town Hall, however, sees them as private roads, so the burden is on the community. The latest is that they are public/private roads...What? Your guess is as good as anybody’s to understand exactly what that means. At the end of the day, it is strange that whatever the status of the roads, builders who damage them are not made to take any responsibility for the repairs: it seems that they can just do as they please and buzz off like that, no questions asked. OK, take them to court? Who will pay the expenses and how long will it take? They know this and get away with it, allegedly. If this was not enough, the urbanisation has its summer tourists, some are quiet, others not so. One largish house is regularly rented out to packs of British holidaymakers. The villa housed up to 4 people in the past, and could probably accommodate 6 at a stretch. But we see up to 12 people sharing the place for their break. With kids squealing, shouting, splashing, and kicking balls all of the time; the patience of the residents is wearing thin. Since when do the Brits move in tribes abroad when the family unit barely exists at home any more? Or so they say. To add insult to injury, the yobbish British culture of having fun and enjoying themselves at the expense of making other people’s lives a misery is making the more sedate residents start to resent their very presence. With a great big sigh, many feel that it is not like it used to be when there was some respect for the environment others. We cannot wait for the quieter after-summer months. And to think that the UK will have longer opening hours in pubs for binge drinkers, allegedly to promote a more continental cafe culture? Don’t make us laugh! So we all brace ourselves for next year when things will not get better. The sun is still shining on Nerja and life is still sweet around here: please do not spoil it for us. Lastly, local psychic, Cesar Eneldo, has reported his latest vision: His cousin, Cesar Romero, will host a revival of his films. Be ready to enjoy such classics as Gone with the Balcón, Dr. Nerjvago, and Breakfast at Nerjanny. Get the popcorn ready!
El Balcón de Europa |
