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Nº 14 - April 2015
Nº 14 - April 2015 -Spain is Rich -Book Fair -St. George’s Day -Callosa de Segura -El Prado Exhibition -History Lessons -Purslane -Child Immigration -Olives -Lions Farewell -Dementia in Film -Cervantes Uncovered -San Emigdio in Town -Culture -Murcia in Spring -Murcia Calendar -Valencia Holy Grail -Lanzarote Museum -Turtle released -Autumn cruisers Nº 14 April Torrevieja Outlook 2015
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Spain is Rich by Dave Stewart
There is no doubt that Spain has richness in many aspects of life including culture and fiestas. Folklore is rife in every region and is quite archaic in mountain and rural villages. In this magazine we deal mostly with fiestas in the Alicante Province and these have been influenced by the history of the area from Iberian, Roman, Carthaginians, Moors and Christianity perspectives. The demographic movement of people from other parts of Spain, mostly for work purposes, has enriched the local scene as they have brought their own customs and traditions that have become embedded in the local life such as those from Andalusia. The province has several distinct areas or comarcas dictated largely by the agriculture, which in turn depends on location on the coast, near a river, inland plains or in the mountain. This in turn has affected gastronomy, which is an indispensable attribute of any fiesta. In some of these fiestas the pagan rituals can still be found in many of the wide variety of fiestas celebrated in over 150 municipal towns of the Alicante Province. We also include in our pages festivities from the Murcia Region and the other two provinces of Valencia and Castellon. In this way visitors can enjoy a spectacular fiesta every day of the year in a short radius from our centre of Torrevieja and the Vega Baja. These provinces are aligned with the littoral of the Mediterranean that also has an effect on the renowned gastronomy of the Costa Blanca and Costa Calida bringing together the harvests of the sea, fields, orchards and mountains. Before the advent of radio and television many communities were cut off from each other and developed their own style of dance and music, which further enriches the fiestas we can enjoy today.
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With this April edition of Torrevieja Outlook we are right on top of Holy Week and Easter with every Spanish town celebrating in some form or other. Last month we looked briefly at the Passion Play that takes place annually in Trafalgar Square, London. This month we feature another Passion Play nearer in Callosa de Segura, a small town full of interesting historical anecdotes. This particular play has a long history but has been revived in its present format about forty years ago. The original has its roots in the 16th century with the participation of laypeople of the Third Order of Saint Francis acting out the drama under the supervision of the friars of the convent of Padres Alcantarinos. When the Civil War broke out last century the event was suspended but today is performed each Sunday in Lent using verses written by Valencian author Juan Bautista Pont with fifteen scenes going briefly through the life, passion, death and resurrection of Jesus. Although performed in Callosa de Segura the actors take the play on the road and visit several other towns as well as participating in events throughout Spain. It received the distinction of being recognised by the Ministry of Tourism in Spain as being of Touristic Interest in 1982. These photos show the welcome of Palm Sunday, the Last Supper, Christ condemned and Pontius Pilate washing his hands of the whole affair, Jesus falling deer the eyes of the crowd, his Mother agonizing with him, then she mourns over his dead body and finally a joyful Resurrection scene.
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Callosa del Segura Passion Play
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A Day That is a Week by Dave Stewart
An important day in Spain is 23rd April when a number of events come together. This is the date when two giants of literature, William Shakespeare and Cervantes died. It is also the feast of Saint George, who is not only patron of England, but of many places in Spain. On some years it may coincide with Easter. This day is considered in Spain as the Day of the Book, and normally in Torrevieja and other towns a Book Fair is held for over a week. A custom that has spread from Cataluña is that of a woman giving her man a book, while he presents her with a rose.
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There is a prestigious annual literature prize in Madrid dedicated to Cervantes that is given to someone who has contributed something tangible to the Spanish language. Many associations hold readings of famous texts, even 24-hour marathons of readings, including the Torrevieja Casino and the Ars Aetheria cultural association. Schoolchildren are encouraged to be involved by reading specific books, playing out the parts, even producing plays based on stories read, singing poetry put to music and normally an event like this is held in the patio of Torrevieja’s public library Joaquin Chapaprieta. Another option is a book crossing where people leave books in a public place to be picked up by someone else, read and passed on in a similar way so that several people can read the same book; in some cases people get together to discuss a book – its plot, merits or otherwise, the storyline, grammar etc. Like classical music, many people know the score or story because they associate it with a film or even an advert. In Torrevieja there is also a group that visits the home bound and reads to them, especially those with failing eyesight. ‘Lend Me Your Eyes’ was the initiative of Objectivo Torrevieja's Fernando Guardiola. Unfortunately, St. George’s day is not celebrated very widely by the English and many don’t even know that the red cross on a white background is the English flag, presuming that the British Union Jack is the English flag. It was the flag chosen by the original Swiss Red Cross partly because George was a chivalrous personage who went to the rescue of others in need.
Among Book Fair events will be a talk on 7th April by author Andy Ormiston on some aspects of Torrevieja in Spanish history. His book “Torrevieja Cameos is available at Bargain Books and Ochoa Libreria in Torrevieja centre.
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Some years ago a three-day St. George’s Day event was held in Orihuela Costa and now is held at Cabo Roig. Torrevieja tried celebrating it, but there was not much response, so normally it is limited to a concert in the theatre. St. George is patron of several towns such as Barcelona where the central paseo de la Rambla is packed with people buying books and roses on the day. Alcoy is one of several towns that hold Moors & Christian parades as George is their patron saint. As a side Catholic churches in England are still not permitted by an old law to fly this flag, but I doubt if it has ever been tested in court.
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Callosa de Segura by Dave Stewart Callosa de Segura is an inland town in the shadow of a mountain of the same name and that is fast coming to grips with the idea that it can benefit from rural tourism. In this section we will look at several of the celebrations of Callosa de Segura as they are typical of similar ones elsewhere. In 2000 the Medieval Meeting of Three Cultures was introduced and has been a very successful venture. Based on the historical fact that Moors, Christians and Jews lived prosperously and successfully together during the medieval ages, the customs of these three religious cultures are brought together as a tourist attraction. There is a medieval market, music and dancing of those times, in addition to other attractions. The idea is not just to be a tourist centre but also act as an example of how different races were tolerant of each other and still can be if all work together. Nยบ 14 April Torrevieja Outlook 2015
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The tolerance of several centuries between the three cultures was broken by the fanaticism of both the arabs and the Christians, each intent on converting everyone to their way of thinking: added to this the wiles of political kings seeking more power and using the Church as a means to obtain it. The town’s patron saint is San Roque (Roch), a French saint with a large devotion cult in Valencia and further south. He went on pilgrimage to Rome and devoted himself to caring for the victims of a plague that was ravaging Italy. He became a victim himself at Piacenza but recovered and was reputed to have performed many miracles of healing. On his return to Montpellier, he was imprisoned for five years as a spy in pilgrim's disguise when his uncle, who was governor, ordered him imprisoned (His uncle failed to recognize him, and Roch failed to identify himself.) Roch died in prison and was only then identified as the former governor's son by a birthmark in the form of a cross on his chest. Another biographer says that he was arrested as a spy at Angers, Lombardi, and died in prison there. When miracles were reported at his intercession after his death, a popular cult developed and he is invoked against pestilence and plague. He is also the patron of invalids. He is known as Rocco in Italy and Roque in Spain. His feast day is August 16th.
Moors & Christians since 1761 Callosa de Segura celebrates San Roque’s feast from 5th to 16th August with great parades of Moors & Christians. In September 2003 a contingent of 100 Moors and Christians from Callosa ‘invaded’ the French town of Sommières, invited by the town to participate in their annual celebrations. They marched with the Mayor of Callosa at their head and accompanied by the Callosa musicians “La Filarmónica”. This is typical of many of the groups of feistas, namely, that they take part with their fantastic costumes in the celebrations of other towns and countries. The Moors & Christians fiestas of Callosa go
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back at least to 1761 and are known as the “Bajada de la Puerta del Santo” (lowering of the saint’s gateway). Further fiestas were held in October, 1798, hence the bicentenary celebrations held in 1998. These first fiestas included a parade with a dozen pairs of Turks in suitable garb. This group was followed by a triumphal cart drawn by two obstinant mules, according to the documents. Then there was a group of musicians. Even as early as this guns were fired by ‘soldiers’, who presumably were the Christians, and rockets let off. This procession also had direct relations to the Semana Santa processions. This early tradition is still followed and the cart now holds the queen and dames of honour representing the beauty of the town. Among today’s groups are two recent ones - the Estudiantes, and the Comparsa Huertana. The Estudiantes dress in the typical uniforms worn by university students in the late 16th century. One of the principal groups is Los Sarracenos (the Saracens) with files of Sarrahís, Quaysies, Bembrillos, Taifas, Elegidas and others. Then there is the Corsarios, representing the pirate scourge of the Mediterranean, and the Moros Benimezines On the Christian side you have the Caballeros del Cid, including a group of girls, the Filá Alainas. The Arabs built a castle although only a few walls remain, but if you want to have a wonderful view over the area then do have a climb up to the castle remains. At one time there was a ladder built into the stone face and one report says that there is a tunnel leading to inside the castle but it is now bricked up. The Christian Reconquest was led by Jaime I on 11th November, 1265, the feast of San Martin, hence the town’s dedication to this saint.
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Lighting the Lamp On 5th August the traditional ’Subida del Farol Venancio’ dating back to the 18th century when a shepherd named Venancio fell down a precipice and called on San Roque to help him out of his dilemma and his life was saved. In return the pastor promised to light a warning lantern in the rocky area which could be seen throughout the Vega Baja on the novena of the Saint. Today the Grupo Excursionista Local undertake to light the lantern each year carrying the lamp supported on a rod and carried by two men dressed in traditional peasant clothing. A young girl is chosen to represent the pastor.
Passion of Holy Week Holy Week is an important time for the towns people and significant among the Semana Santa processions there is a dramatic theatrical presentation of the Passion of Jesus, now declared as being of Touristic Interest which we have described earlier in this edition.
Old dolls of Holy Week Another Lenten tradition we wrote about last month is the ‘Partir la Vieja’ which is a medieval custom of placing small, ugly and old-looking dolls, accompanied with satirical messages, along the streets of the town. Occasionally someone will dress up as one of these dolls, sit still for some time then give quick fright to some unsuspecting tourist by moving. They can be seen on market day in the middle Wednesday of the Lenten period.
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The town has an excellent indoor market and a weekly Wednesday market. Similar fiestas are held in Elche (Les Velles de Serra); Alcoy and Castalla (perots) and elsewhere. It is a day when sweets and wine are handed out: it is also the time to enjoy and taste the ‘arroz de los tres puñaos’ or a handful of everything, such as arroz con lentejas, habichuelas, frisuelos (a puñao or handful of each), two acelgas, a turnip, carrot, alcochofas: of if you prefer, a potaje of albondigas de bacalao with alcachofas and habicas tiernas.
Auroras singing tradition In Autumn, during October, the ‘Auroras’ are held, a precious legacy of religious music. Those involved go through the streets with a lantern singing old songs. Later at Christmas time they return. Also at Christmas time the ‘bacalao meneao’ is eaten - oil, garlic and pieces of white cod. This is a common event in the Vega Baja area where several aurora choirs exist including Benijofar,Algorfa, Almoradi, Albatera, Benferri, Bigastro, Catral, Cox, Crevillente, Daya Nueva, Dolores, Dormenteera del Segura, Granja de Rocamora, Guardamar del Segura, Jacarilla, Rafal, Redovan, San Fulgencio, San Isidro, Santa Pola and now Torrevieja and La Mata.
October pilgrimage
12th October is a national holiday in honour of the Virgen of El Pîlar and in Callosa de Segura this is marked by a romeria or pilgrimage to the hermitage on the hilltop Nº 14 April Torrevieja Outlook 2015
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of the sierra and women dress in traditional costumes, playing castanets as they dance their way up and down the hillside. Local wine and food is consumed during the romeria, which although of a penitential nature is still a festive occasion. This spot is a beautiful pine tree clad area, where barbecues and picnics are popular. Look for the SD or short-distance paths which lead through the sierra. Another picnic area is at the entrance of the town coming from Redovan. This is nicknamed the smoky cave in a valley, or Cueva Ahumada and is also an area where local mountaineers practice their sport. There are some very old wells here. The townspeople are aware of the value of inland tourism and there are many rambling routes in the area.
A visit to Callosa de Segura would not be complete without visiting the church of San Martin and the sanctuary of San Roque. The church has another old custom of bell ringing carried on from generation to generation. A must visit is to the h e m p museum as the town is famous for is crafts.
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Latin Ammerica in El Prado Museum by Pat Hynd
Undoubtedly El Prado Museum in Madrid is one of the most prestigious in the World with regular exhibitions devoted to singular artists or themes. ARCOmadrid is Europe’s artistic gateway to South America, with special emphasis on Colombia. The art exhibition opened on 25th February with the focus on Colombia for the first six days as guest country with ten national galleries and their artists represented. Included in the invite category are Galería El Museo, Doce Cero Cero, Casas Reigner, La Galeria, Nueveochenta and Valenzuela Klenner. Twenty young artists who have not had the opportunity to present their work outside of Colombia will attend this 34th edition of ARCOmadrid, and an event organized by the Madrid Trade Fair IFEMA.
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San Ignacio Church in Bogota
Picasso, Andrés de Santa Maria, Doris Salcedo, Guillermo Wiedemann, and the younger Jan Brueghel. Of special interest to the media has been the monstrance of the San Ignacio church of Bogotá, nicknamed as “La Lechuga” (the “lettuce”) due to the amount of green emeralds encased in it. As a masterpiece of baroque religious art, this sacred object is on be display in Madrid from March 3rd to May 31st to honour
Details of the monstrance
Colombia as the special guest nation of ARCOmadrid 2015. The word monstrance (monstrancia, from monstrare) was originally applied to all kinds of vessels of goldsmith's or silversmith's work in which glass, crystal,
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etc. were so employed as to allow the contents to be readily distinguished. Modern usage, at any rate in the English language, has limited it to vessels intended for the exposition of the Blessed Sacrament. There is one that is used in Torrevieja at different fiestas - on Easter Sunday morning procession and then the following Monday in the procession of the sick in honour of San Vicente Ferrer, and also in the Corpus Christi procession in June, accompanied by the children who have just made their First Communion. The monstrance in Madrid exposition is the work of master goldsmith José Galaz during the time of Spain’s dominion over Torrevieja processions the New World and their industrious colony of new Granada. The monstrance took seven years to complete (1700 to 1707) and has 1485 emeralds encrusted in its gold encasing, as well as one sapphire, a topaz, 13 rubies, 28 diamonds, and baroque pearls set in five kilogrammes of gold. Although worth a fortune today, when it was designed and made emeralds and gold were very common in Bogota. It is considered one of the most valuable and most beautiful works of religious jewelry in Latin America and a legacy to a territory in which gold and emeralds were plentiful. A problem for many church authorities is that they may have many religious artifacts in their care, but because of stipulations when donated they cannot be sold. An example may be a widow who donates all her jewelry to make a chalice of gold and silver with her jewels, with the result that it can only be used in a particular church or by a particular priest. The emerald monstrance, which represents the sun, the vine and the angels, was protected by members of the Society of Jesus and kept intact for three centuries despite the three Jesuit expulsions ordered by Spanish king Carlos III in 1767 and by the Colombian presidents José Hilario López in 1850 and Tomás Cipriano de Mosquera in 1861. At one stage it was kept under a Jesuit’s bed. This monstrance is also valuable because it has a history. It wasn’t until the late 19th century – when the confiscated goods were returned to the religious order that the monstrance went back to its display case inside the church of Saint Ignatius in Bogotá. This church was designed on the large basilica in Rome known as the Gesu and in 1763 the beautiful cupola damaged in an earthquake.
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History Lessons for Today by Andy Ormiston Torrevieja aerial view before the harbour was completed.
We talk about taking history lessons, but history is a lesson of life where we should learn from the mistakes of our forefathers. An example is the Spanish civil war, or the Holocaust, where evil is committed not by evil men or sociopaths, but by ordinary citizens, men and women, who accepted their circumstances in life taking the abnormalities as normal, thus losing the fine line between right and wrong, between good or evil. Looking back in time we can be like Doctor Who, learning from the past to help solve problems of the NOW. History seems to go in cycles of time as generation after generation makes similar mistakes; the only ones seeming to learn the lesson are tyrants and despots who realize that the majority of citizens like to take the easiest way out without protest as good citizens do not want to rock the boat. History has many daily lessons, it teaches us about genocide, slavery; discrimination because of race, gender or beliefs; the sanctity of life, the meaning
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Liverpool Street Station monument to those Jewish children who escaped and to those who never made it. of human dignity; about human rights, about liberty and freedom; we can learn respect for ourselves and others. History enables us to look at the world around us and see the continuously repeated mistakes and atrocities, posing the questions - how does this affect me and my loved ones, and what am I going to do about it? When I look at the Holocaust in retrospect, I not only see horror, terror and hatred, also I can see incredible love and bravery in the suffering of so many people's attitudes to their fate and how they treated those around them, as well as those who risked their lives to help strangers.
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History lessons are not looking at old stuff, but learning to see the world of today with perspective, rather like a painting in a frame that the artist still has to complete, before we can see the whole of the picture.
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An hundred years ago there was no television; radio and films were being developed, people died much younger, there was no penicillin only mostly homeopathic remedies, although there were steam engines and motor cars, balloons were seen as the future transport and man could dream of flying to the moon. In a very short time mankind's technology has advanced rapidly, what I type just now can be read in Australia in a few seconds..in fact ahead of my timeline. But a hundred years ago in Torrevieja and a large part of Europe people were starving although the voice of the ordinary worker was beginning to be heard as new social ideas came to the forefront with many isms - socialism, humanism, communism, nationalism etc. Torrevieja entered the 20th century with a great deal of social unrest which had been felt in the last two decades of the previous century. There were so many poor in the town in the early 20th century that local public funds were set aside to help them, especially with medical care and vaccinations. The situation was so bad that the Mayor asked for assistance from the central government with a plan to hand out food rations. One hundred years later in 2009 a similar financial problem led to vast unemployment and charity food kitchens such as Alimentos Solidarios and Reach Out.
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In Torrevieja on 1st March 1900 there was a large demonstration by salt workers who were disgusted with their working conditions. The mayor offered to put their claims before higher authority and sent a telegram to the Governor Civil in Alicante, who in turn sought information from Madrid. On the 10th March a delegation of workers with the mayor went to Madrid to put their case. The salt administrator, Luis Moreno, seems to have been a difficult man to work with and assured of his place in the pecking order. Although the workers were pacified, their demands had still not been met and at the end of January 1901 around 300 men went on strike seeking a Sunday off, but as this still left a similar number working, the strike fizzled out. The Governor Civil ordered more Guardia Civil to the town to keep order. In September 1906 there were very heavy rains and the salinas were flooded and inoperable. There were large layoffs and 1,200 workers and their families received no payments at all as it was obvious that there could be no work for at least six months or more. Workers representatives asked that projects under discussion should be brought into effect, such as building the road to Guardamar or starting the construction of the harbour wall.
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As far as the central government went the plea seems to have been ignored; Cesar Carreras, a year later in a newspaper article of 7th February 1907, wrote of the penury of the town's population. He describes the pinched faces of women in thin coats braving the freezing cold to try to get a handout from the town hall. He expresses his admiration for the stoic sufferance of the workers who are left with neither bread nor work, but also praises some of the better off who provide some help. He finishes his article by condemning the absence of government assistance as a form of cowardice while the population continued to suffer. Government is meant to serve the people and often fails to do so. Again October 1910 was a wet month and times were harsh for families. Things came to ahead in March 1911 when two thousand men and women demonstrated and the next day work began on the road leading to Guardamar, paid for by the town hall. The cycles of work, unemployment and hunger continued, exacerbated by the civil war and a Second World War, which was followed by decades of real poverty abetted by discrimination against the losing Republican side until in Spain there were some improvements with the return to a democratic society. In those early years many families of Alicante province moved to French Algeria seeking work, which had repercussions in the 1950's when hundreds decided to return and had to be found homes and work. Today we are in a fast moving 21st century where new technology appears daily in every field of our communal and private lives. It is an exciting time, but an era once again threatened by several wars that threaten to ignite into another global holocaust and government leaders need to learn from the past and find ways to avoid conflicts and bring genuine peace. There are signs of us having a dystopia society as we are bombarded by violence - real or through films, plays, television or video games that blunts our consciences and, like soldiers in war, take brutality as the norm. Our social conscience has to embrace the ills of our times and thrust us forward to deal with problems of poverty, homelessness, civil wars and internal conflicts of individual nations, repression, totalitarian governments, slavery and human trafficking, as well as pollution and our environment. It's a picture that is opposite to the utopian society we all desire for ourselves and our children’s children, the generations still to come.
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Purslane - a Plant that packs a punch by Pat Hynd
I was given this small plant last year by a neighbour and put it in a window box where it flourished with flowers from May until October and continued the next year, so I am waiting for it to resurrect itself this year again. In fact an abundance of bright pastel coloured flowers that kept dying and renewing itself. It is classified in some places as a weed and in Spain is known as verdolaga but also goes under Portulaca oleracea (common purslane, also known as pigweed, little hogweed, or pursley, and moss rose) is an annual succulent in the family Portulacaceae, which may reach 40 cm in height. According to many short culinary videos on YouTube it is possible to eat every part of the plant and there are many suggestions how to use it, including eating it in salads, and it has a high nutritional value. 100 grms. of raw plant has energy 84kJ (20 kcal), 3.39 g carbohydrates, 0.39 gr. fat, 2.03 gr. protein. It appears to be bursting with vitamins - A, B1, B2, B3, B6, B0, C, and E. There are even trace metals - calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorous, potassium, zinc, plus a good bit of water. Purslane contains more omega-3 fatty acids (alpha-linolenic acid in particular than any other leafy vegetable plant. Studies have found that Purslane has 0.01 mg/g of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA). This is an extraordinary amount of EPA for a land-based vegetable source. EPA is an Omega-3 fatty acid found mostly in fish, some algae, and flax seeds
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ITS NICE WHEN YOUR VOLUNTEERS ARE APPRECIATED
AGE CONCERN CHARITY INSPIRE VELVETONES VERSES Every picture tells a story and this one should be told Of this little book of 'Silly Rhyme' that's ready to be sold! Poems to make you laugh and smile - won't bring us any fame, But for 'Age Concern' the charity - we hope it brings acclaim! They really do amazing work - it's such a worthy cause, For the elderly, frail and vulnerable - they open many doors. Your support to buy a copy would be so very nice So can you help us swell their funds - 5 Euros will suffice! The Velvetones Harmony chorus resident 'Pam Ayres' aka June Brady who works for Age Concern (as do several other members) came up with this hilarious collection of prose to help raise cash for a much needed mini-bus for the charity. Copies can be bought at Age Concern Torrevieja (near bus station), Los Montesinos, La Siesta or telephone:June on 965 327 446, Lorraine on 966 785 522 or Susan on 966 782 266 Or why not visit our rehearsals each Wednesday 10am to 12.30pm at El Paraiso, behind Carrefour and McDonalds Torrevieja or visit our new website with directions and lots more info on our forthcoming show - www.velvetonesharmonytorrevieja.com You are welcome to join us for a coffee and a chat, and fall in love with our great hobby! ALL PROFITS FROM SALE OF RHYMES WILL GO TO AGE CONCERN
Photo by Kristoff - (from left to right holding booklet Lorraine, (Velvetones Chairman), Maureen (Age Concern), June (Velvetones 'Pam Ayres')
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On their own: Britain’s child immigrants exhibition by Andy Ormiston
Refugees or immigrants, what’s the difference? Refugees are normally fleeing from circumstances that are likely to be the death of them, civil war, dictatorship, even a natural disaster. Immigrants tend to leave their home country for another hoping to better their lives and, as such, the lives of their families. Britain had a policy of immigration involving children for decades. An interesting exhibition in the Liverpool “Merseyside Maritime Museum” is on just now until 4th October about this very subject -On their own: Britain's child migrants. I have several family members and friends who emigrated to Australia, New Zealand, Canada and even to what was Southern Rhodesia, now Zimbabwe, all part of the “White Immigration Policy” favored by those countries of the British Empire. Some of them paid ten pounds towards their fare which was subsidized by the host countries and Britain. When I was a kid it was my two older brothers’ intentions to move to Australia and once settled send for me. But the younger of the two had to do his national service in the army and during this time met his future wife, then the older brother met his future wife at their wedding. So it was all change and I never did get to see Australia; but I remember poring over the huge thick books about butchery and raising animals in various countries, books owned by my brother who was a butcher.
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Most of them did well in a completely alien countryside with new cultures and customs, but usually with English as the common language. In the face of poverty many parents were persuaded, induced or downright lied to, separating them from their children, from toddlers to teenagers, as part of the White Commonwealth policy that started in the 17th century with child migrants sent to New England. Two prominent figures of these immigration services were women, Maria Rye in 1869 and Annie McPherson in 1869. Another prominent figure was Thomas Bowman Stephenson principal of the National Children’s Home and Orphanage, as well as the famous Dr. Thomas Bernardo, who contributed to the idea of mass migration schemes. Religious figures also participated in these ideas that orphans or children of poor families would be better off in a new country giving them a fresh start and wider opportunities. The Kingsley Fairbridge foundation of the Child Emigration Society was founded in 1909 and even as late as 1967 Australia was still accepting children form Bernardo’s Home. At the outbreak of the Second World War Canada stopped this idea. But what of the children? This exhibition has a lot to say about how they were treated on arrival and more to the point how they felt themselves as their feelings were never thought important as it was considered that they would soon grow into a new way of life and forget what hey had left behind, including parents and other family members. One quotation of the exhibitions is: “Too young to cross the road, we were deported to the other side of the world to cold institutions. We were robbed of our idealism, our dignity and our families. Our parents lost their children.” It was a time of uncertainty and separation, but for some an opportunity of hope and anticipation. The ships of those days were not luxury cruise liners, and took up to six weeks to reach their destinations. Many of these children were abused on arrival as we can see today with the awful abuse trials in Australia at the hands of the Christian Brothers, for example. One of these abused children lived to tell the tale and late in life receive an official apology - Laurie Humphreys. “We were told it was the land of milk and honey, that we would ride a horse every day to school,” Mr. Humphreys, 76, from his home in Perth. “We all put our hands up because we didn’t have a clue where Australia was and we thought it was a bit of an adventure.” Mr. Humphreys arrived in Fremantle on Sept. 22, 1947, one of 100 boys
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and 40 girls who were part of the first wave of child migrants to leave Britain for Australia after World War II. The Premier of NSW, Nathan Rees made an apology to the ‘Forgotten Australians’ on 19 September 2009. On 16 November 2009, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd made a formal apology in the Federal Parliament to the ‘Forgotten Australians’. 500,000 people, including over 7000 former British child migrants were part of the apology, which acknowledged the many instances of neglect and abuse that was the result of their time in government institutions, church organisations, orphanages, homes or foster care. In some cases children’s letters were intercepted by their ‘carers’ and destroyed so that parents had no idea where their children were, in some instances blithely thinking their children were well off having been adopted by rich folks in Britain. Some children were adopted, but in far away places. In Canada there was a tendency to send the boys to farms to work ‘in the open fresh air’ and girls trained in domestic work.From the 1860s until the late 1960s more than 100,000 children were sent from Britain to Canada, Australia and other Commonwealth countries through child migration schemes. Some were orphans and many came from families who were unable to care for them. At the time charitable and religious organisations sent them overseas, with the belief that their lives would improve as a result. They were supported by governments for which these schemes supplied much needed population and labour. For many children the voyage was a time of fear, but also of excitement and adventure; new friends were made, new sights seen, and new places found to explore. From
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the 1860s until the late 1960s more than 100,000 children were sent from Britain to Canada, Australia and other Commonwealth countries through child migration schemes. Some were orphans and many came from families who were unable to care for them. At the time charitable and religious organisations sent them overseas, with the belief that their lives would improve as a result. They were supported by governments for which these schemes supplied much needed population and labour. and Glasgow were the main departure ports for children sailing to Canada. Liverpool's Allan Line carried almost half of Canada's child migrants on its ships. Siblings and friends were split up on arrival and left isolated, facing long hard days of labour in extremes of climate. This isolation often led to a lonely, brutal childhood. But the majority did make a good life for themselves and today their are thousands of Commonwealth families who owe their origins to these child immigrants rather than to convicts. Many of them also enlisted in the armies that fought in both world wars, some losing their lives and limbs. This Liverpool exhibition tells their emotional stories, and through detailed case studies, visitors will meet a number of child migrants and find out more about their different experiences. Online it is possible to see short videos of experiences of some. In Australia there is also an exhibition in the Migration Heritage Centre of New South Wales and a book by David Hill “The Forgotten Children”.
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of Spanish Cooking by Pat Hynd
Aceituna gordal: is the name of the large olives that still have the flavor of the normal manzanilla.
Rellena de anchoa: most common olives that are destoned and filled with anchovy flavor.
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Who stuffs olives with pimiento or anchovies? I suppose it's a topic that regularly comes up at table. Olives have to be carefully collected to prevent bruising, so normally the poor tree is violently shaken using sticks or a machine, so that the olives drop into a net around the base of the tree. Here they are gathered up, along with leaves and twigs that have fallen. These are carted off to another machine that shekels them about so that olives fall through holes and separated. The rest is turned into mulch for fertilizing. Next the olives are put in huge vats of brine, stirred regularly over a few months before they are processed. They are washed on a conveyor belt and sized, smaller ones falling through holes and larger ones continue their journey. So now we have large and small olives which are put through a machine that cleverly sorts them out so they are facing the same way, then pass on to a machine that effortlessly and almost simultaneously pits and stuffs them with the chosen ingredient - pepper, anchovy, cheese, pineapple even. Actually the filling has already been ground to a paste and combined with an algae like a gelatine so that it has a "spring" capacity enabling it to enter the whole and spring out so that it doesn't fall out. The paste is in a long broad ribbon to make it easier to stuff the hole just made by the pitter in the same machine. Now it has been suitably stuffed the olives then are machine counted into cans and filled with a preserving solution, cans sealed and labelled. 30
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Gordal are the big fat ones
Aceitunas del cuquillo are flavored by tomillo, oregano and salt.
Perla: black olives that are marinated with oregano, coming, marjoram..
The rubbish generated by the leaves etc. is turned into a mulch used as fertilizer. It is possible to de-stone olives depending on what you want them for. Simply use a broad bladed knife on top of the olives and push down hard so that the pressure pushes the stones out. The olives can then be chopped up and used in whatever recipe you like. You can also use a hand cherry Picker which is useful if you want a hole to stuff with your own filling.
Banderilla picante troceada: a nice mixed savory tapa
Kimbitos are stued with a small gherkin and anchovy
Mezcla as it says a mixture of four types of olives make a nice tapa.
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Morada cornicabra: uses tomillo in its juices.
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The 1st National Rice competition of Torrevieja will be held at the Cdt kitchens on 14th May. The Semana de “Arroces de Torrevieja” will take place from 18th to 24th May and is open to professional cooks in different categories with cash prizes. Concurso Nacional de Arroces “Ciudad de Torrevieja” categoría “Arroz de Torrevieja” - 1st Prize - 1.500€ & Diploma – 2nd Prize - 600€ & Diploma – 3rd Prize - 400€ & Diploma Concurso Nacional de Arroces “Ciudad de Torrevieja” categoría “Arroz Libre” – a category where cooks have the opportunity to demonstrate their own unique rice dish. - 1st Prize - 1.500€ & Diploma – 2nd Prize - 600€ & Diploma – 3rd Prize - 400€ & Diploma Concurso Nacional de Arroces “Ciudad de Torrevieja “Promesa” - This will be awarded to a local restaurant that meets the necessary requirements.
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Lions Go Out Smiling After ten productive years serving the Torrevieja community and assisting fund raising events for many local charities and associations the Costa Blanca Lions Club, based in Torrevieja, has closed up shop. As is the case with so many enterprises it has proved impossible to drum up new members willing to take on the onus of directorship, and a grateful nod must be made to Iain and Janette Bennett who have held the post of President between them for the past five years, leading many initiatives. The Lions Club began in February 2006 and received sponsorship from various local businesses. On winding up the club a cheque for 2,500 euros was presented to the local Reach Out association, with other donations of 1,750 eros given to ALPE, AFA, ADIS of Vega Baja and the Vecinos of San Miguel. Iain Bennett thanked the people who have supported the Lions over the past years. Please note that there is still a Lions Club based in Torrevieja run by the Finnish based in the Finnish community club in calle Concordia and one of their recent events was organizing an outing to Valencia in March.
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She is..Still Alice by Pat Hynd
Still Alice is an Oscar winning film starring Julianne Moore, Kristen Stewart, Alec Baldwin, Kate Bosworth, Hunter Parrish that is based on a novel by Lisa Genova. The title insists that though Alice seems to have lost herself she is..Still Alice, the person she has always been. The film looks at the onset of Alzheimer’s disease as it affects the main star Alice played by Moore, although it looks at the whole family of husband and wife and three gown up children. Alice is a successful linguistic professor who begins to experience failings in her memory recall of words as she gives lectures as she reaches her 50’s. Then there are moments of confusion and anxiety before she seeks professional medical help and diagnosis after trying to tackle the problems alone, because she is a strong independent character and a natural fighter. Being a happily married woman she turns more and more to her husband (Alec Baldwin) who does a great job in supporting her, with some wonderful pieces of advice for the whole family. The screenplay has been adapted by Richard Glatzer and Wash Westmorel and recently Glatzer passed away, having lost his own battle with motor neuron disease; one can’t help but feel that some of his own circumstances have impacted this film. Its a film about personal dignity which is one of the things that affects Alzheimer’s sufferers in the later stages of this disease. It is a family story and anyone with experience of dementia care knows that it is an illness that affects the whole family as the personality disintegrates in front of us. This film is also a tribute to carers, not just the professional ones, but the partner who often, all alone, struggles to come to terms with the disappearance of the identity of the one who has been loved, and has returned that love, and now unable to do so, or even remember. As one daughter says “you cant use your situation to manage me” with the reply “but you are my daughter". For a large part of their lives youngsters are the center of the care and attention of their parents and when they are older and in need
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it is to their family they turn for assistance. Is that too much to ask? The final line of the film says it all “It was about love.” There are several films that explore dementia There is a Bridge is a moving documentary about Alzheimer's disease that reminds us that meaningful communication is always possible, and that the essence of a person remains, even in the face of serious illness. The DVD jacket for “There is a Bridge” reads, "Alzheimer's disease is not the end. Sometimes it can be a beginning." This idea may seem foreign to many, but Memory Bridge, the foundation that produced this documentary, is trying to tell us something comforting and profound: Namely, that contrary to popular belief, Alzheimer's disease does not rob identity. Does it make it harder for the person to function day-to-day? Yes. Can it create difficult behavioural issues?
Yes. Does it make it harder to communicate?
Absolutely. But does it make the person disappear?
No. Does it make the person less human? No. And does it make communication impossible? Absolutely not.
Robert Pinsky, former U.S. Poet Laureate, host of There Is a Bridge, a documentary film with a radically different perspective on Alzheimer's disease – one of hope, the hope that in the midst of all that is lost with Dementia, much awaits to be found.
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Why? Because no matter how severely someone is experiencing Alzheimer's, there is still a bridge. It could be verbal, or it might be through touch. Perhaps it's music that creates that bridge. Sometimes, it's simply being present with someone in gentle silence.
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The following are eight suggestions as to moving films about Alzheimer sufferers and their carers.
1. Away From Her (2007) In Away From Her, Julie Christie was Oscar-nominated for Best Actress for her portrayal of Fiona, a woman with Alzheimer's who voluntarily enters a long-term care facility to avoid being a burden on Grant, her husband of 50 years. After a 30-day separation (recommended by the facility), Grant visits Fiona and finds that her memory of him has deteriorated and that she's developed a close friendship with another man in the facility. Grant must draw upon the pure love and respect he has for Fiona to choose what will ensure his wife's happiness in the face of the disease. Christie won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture (Drama) for her performance in this movie.
2. The Savages (2007)
! Laura Linney and Philip Seymour Hoffman play siblings in this tragic comedy about adult children caring for a parent with dementia. Nยบ 14 April Torrevieja Outlook 2015
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Laura Linney was Oscar-nominated for Best Actress, and Tamara Jenkins was Oscar-nominated for best original screenplay. A rare combination of humility, dignity, and humor, Philip Seymour Hoffman was Golden Globe-nominated for Best Actor in a Motion Picture (Musical or Comedy) for his performance as the neurotic professor who begrudgingly unites with his sister for the sake of their father.
3. Aurora Borealis (2006)
Donald Sutherland and Louise Fletcher steal the show in this movie about relationships and difficult choices. Sutherland plays a grandfather with dementia who requires more care than his wife (Fletcher) can handle. They enlist the help of a home health aide (Juliette Lewis) and their grandson (Joshua Jackson), who forge a friendship as Sutherland's character -- who insists he can see the Northern Lights from his window -- becomes increasingly impaired. It was considered a wellcrafted independent film that was released under the radar.
4. The Notebook (2004) This is a lovely story that also involves the couple’s children trying to persuade the father to let the mother go and come live with them. Based on Nicholas Sparks' best-selling novel of the same name, The Notebook features James Garner as Noah, the loving husband of Allie (Gena Rowlands), who is in a nursing home due to Alzheimer's disease. He attempts to rekindle her memories of their long history by reading to her from his notebook. Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams play the couple in their younger years. Described as a true romance, the movie was directed by Nick Cassavetes, son of Gena Rowlands.
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5. A Song For Martin (2001)
Sven Wollter and Viveka Seldahl -married in real life -- play married couple Martin and Barbara in this Swedish movie with English subtitles. Martin is a conductor and composer; Barbara, a violinist. They meet and marry in middleage, but soon after, they find out that Martin has Alzheimer's disease. This moving story is considered one of the most realistic depictions of caregiving on film and underlines how important music can be in treating dementia, awakening hidden memories.
6. Iris: A Memoir of Iris Murdoch (2001)
Based on the book “Elegy for Iris” by John Bayley, this movie tells the true story of English novelist Iris Murdoch's descent into Alzheimer's disease and the unconditional love of Bayley, her partner of 40 years. Jim Broadbent won an Academy Award and a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of Bayley in his later years; Judi Dench and Kate Winslet received both Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations for Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress, respectively, for their portrayal of Murdoch in her older and younger years. The film contrasts the start of their relationship, when Murdoch (Kate Winslet) was an outgoing, dominant individual as compared to her timid and scholarly partner Bayley (Hugh Bonneville), and their later life, when Murdoch (Judi Dench) was suffering from Alzheimer's disease and tended to by a frustrated Bayley (Jim Broadbent) in their North Oxford home in Charlbury Road.
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7. Firefly Dreams (2001)
This Japanese film. directed by John Williams with English subtitles ,won several international film festival awards. It tells the story of Naomi (Maho), a 17year-old Naomi teenager, one of a million such aimless teenagers, a Shibuya-girl wannabe. She is sent to the country for the summer to work for her aunt and uncle. She's asked to care for an aging neighbor with Alzheimer's disease; Naomi is initially unhappy about the arrangement, but soon connects with the woman in a transformative way. The two women find that beyond the age gap they have considerably more in common than they first thought.
8 Age Old Friends Hume Cronyn achieves another great performance as John Cooper, who chose to live in a retirement home instead of live with his daughter (played by real-life daughter Tandy Cronyn) as a symbol of maintaining his independence. So John Cooper is in a retirement home. There are strict rules for the residents, but he refuses to fall into passivity. He flirts constantly with Nurse Wilson and spends time with his best buddy Michael Aylott, who's slowly drifting into senility. Although listed as a comedy the film portrays the fight for independence and dignity in old age. When John's daughter extends her offer to live with her again, he must decide between leaving the rigid structure of the retirement home and staying to help his friend cope with his disease.
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Miguel de Cervantes Uncovered by Dave Stewart
On 23rd April we celebrate in Spain the Day of the Book because on this date both Shakespeare and Cervantes are supposed to have died or been buried. Both are linked because of their prodigious literary output, Shakespeare for his plays and sonnets and Cervantes is considered to be the father of the modern novel with his story of Don Quixote (full title, "The Adventures of the Ingenious Nobleman Don Quixote of La Mancha"), although he wrote other books. Next year 2016 is the 400th anniversary of the death of Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra (1547 – 1616) so there is plenty of events being organized, not only in Spain but throughout the Spanish speaking world. There has been a bit of a race in the past few years as historians have been really unaware of where exactly the famous writer was buried and this has proved to be a bit of an embarrassment. Now claims are being made that his mortal remains of a few bones have been recovered in the grounds of a convent in Madrid. Its been a bit of a detective trail using historical clues, such as the number of known persons buried with him, and modern forensic tools such as 3D scanners sweeping the convent floor, plus ground-penetrating radar to help pinpoint the excavation site - a crypt that no-one had entered for 40 years. So how did his remains end up in a convent crypt?
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In his younger days Miguel was a soldier and evidently fought bravely in the famous Battle of Lepanto against the Turkish battle fleet, being wounded in the chest and left hand in the process, both wounds clues in the modern forensic search, as should be his diabetic condition and the fact he had only six teeth left. This was in 1571, but for five years in 1575 he was a prisoner, or rather a slave, in Algeria and it was during this time that he put together the story of Don Quixote, the first part of which he published in 1605 and the second installment in 1615 (so this year we should have something special for him as well). For those who may not know the story of the ‘Man from La Mancha’ Don Quixote is a gentle man obsessed with chivalry, who sets out in search of adventure on his aging horse Rocinante, with his faithful squire Sancho Panza, fighting against imaginary giants (windmills) and saving fair ladies. Its a great story with lots of inventive ideas and turns of phrase that has been reprinted continuously in many languages, turned into several films and a musical play that became a film with Richard O’Toole and Sophia Loren. But back to the imprisoned Miguel, who was ransomed by the nuns and monks of the Discalced Trinitarians religious order; its founder, John of Math, was a native of Provence and a doctor of the University of Paris. The primitive religious rule, which has been in turns mitigated or restored, enacted that each house should comprise of seven brothers, one of whom should be superior; the revenues of the house should be divided into three parts - one for the monks, one for the support of the poor, and one for the ransom of captives, which is why they Nº 14 April Torrevieja Outlook 2015
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helped out Miguel. He obviously became attached to them as he lived with them in his reclining years and he insisted that he be buried within their convent. There is a stone plaque on a wall at the convent commemorating the rescue and the writer's wish to be buried there. But the location of his tomb was forgotten because the remains had been moved between 1673 and 1698, due to the construction of a new church within the convent itself. The supposed remains of Cervantes were discovered mixed with those of another 16 people, including his wife, in a crypt under the Convent of the Barefoot Trinitarians, located in the Las Letras neighborhood of Madrid. Almost 300 infants were found buried inside the crypt in the first layer and underneath that was a further section with the remains of 16 people, that ties in with what historical evidence there is of his actual burial as his wife, Catalina de Salazar, is buried with him. As a teenager he ran away from home with a barmaid, Josefina de Perez, before enlisting with the Spanish Navy . A team of 36 experts has been working to identify bones, but it is unlikely that the mixture of bones available can be sorted out as there is no known DNI of Cervantes available. His bones will be reburied on the same quiet street and the crypt reopened to the public to coincide with the 400th anniversary of his death next year. One idea is that a burial mound would be installed in the crypt and a circuit for visitors would be installed.
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San Emigdio Comes to Town by Dave Stewart
Let’s hope that Miguel de Cervantes bones are treated with respect when they are reburied. More bones have arrived in Torrevieja in March from Italy, relics of the town’s co-patron Saint San Emigdio who is a protector against earthquakes. Torrevieja and the other Vega Baja towns still remember the earthquake that devastated the whole area and seriously affected almost every town and village with many deaths, injuries and destruction of property and livestock. That was 196 years ago on 21st March 1829, so I expect that we will have some special celebrations on the anniversary in four years time. These relics in their reliquary have been brought to the Vega Baja by an Italian association “Sant’Emidio nel Mondo” along with the bishop of Ascoli where the saint’s body is buried. The Italian delegation has visited several other towns in the area, a visit organized by the Catral association “Castrum Altum” where devotion to this particular saint has been in vogue since 1829. Before that the people of La Mata had a cult of devotion to this saint which they carried with them when they moved to he new town of Torrevieja. In the Park of the Nations the small chapel there is dedicated to this saint and in August there are fiestas held in his honour. Torrevieja also has a street named after him and another street named Earthquake Street - calle Terremoto. Another street reference is that of Arquitecto Larramendi, the military engineer ordered to rebuild the towns in the area that had been demolished and most of the Vega Baja towns do have a street named after him. So who is San Emigdio? Saint Emygdius (Latin: Emidius, Æmedius, Emigdius, Hemigidius; Italian: Sant'Emidio; c. 279 – c. 309 AD) was a Christian bishop who is venerated as a martyr. Tradition states that he was killed during the persecution of Diocletian. His legend states that he was a pagan of Trier who Nº 14 April Torrevieja Outlook 2015
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became a Christian. He travelled to Rome and cured the paralytic daughter of his host Gratianus, who had let him stay with him at his house on Tiber Island. Gratianus' family then converted to Christianity. Emygdius also cured a blind man. The people of Rome were amazed by these acts and believed him to be the son of Apollo so carried him off by force to the Temple of Aesculapius on the island in the Tiber, where he cured many of the sick. Emygdius declared that he was a Christian and tore down the pagan altars and smashed into pieces a statue of Aesculapius. He also converted many to Christianity; but this enraged the prefect of the city. He was made a bishop by Pope Marcellus I (or Pope Marcellinus), and sent to Ascoli Piceno. On his way to Ascoli, Emydgius made more conversions, and performed a miracle where he made water gush out of a mountain after striking a cliff - a bit like Moses in the desert. Polymius, the local governor, attempted to convince Emygdius to worship Jupiter and the goddess Angaria, the patroness of Ascoli. Polymius also offered him the hand of his lovely daughter Polisia. Instead Emygdius baptized her as a Christian in the waters of the Tronto, along with many others. Enraged, Polymius decapitated him on the spot now occupied by the Sant'Emidio Red Temple, as well as his followers Eupolus (Euplus), Germanus, and Valentius (Valentinus). According to the legend Emygdius stood up, carried his own head to a spot on a mountain where he had constructed an oratory (the site of the present-day Sant'Emidio alla Grotte). After Emygdius' martyrdom, his followers attacked Polymius' palace and pulled it down. And so we have had a visit from his relics to the area. I can’t find out why he is the patron against earthquakes as there are other surprising choices such as Saint Francis Borgia of Gandia, or St. Gregory Thaumaturgus or even an early pope St. Pope Deusdedit who when an earthquake hit Rome in August 618 worked tirelessly during the disaster.
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Torrevieja Cultural Events
Sweet California is a Spanish girl band created in 2013 and featuring Alba Reig, Rocío Cabrera y Sonia Gómez. Their style of music is basically pop with touches of country, dance and R&B. Alba Reig is 22 year old from Alicante. Rocío Cabrera is also local Alicante of 22 years and composes as well as sings. She has been singing since ten years old when she won a talent show. At 17 she directed and participated in a musical show and finally moved to Madrid in 2012 to have a more national image. Her first composition was “Emotions” in English. Sonia Gómez was born in Seville and is 23 years old. At 13 she took part in a college theatrical show and discovered her love for the show lights. Since then she has learned to play guitar and has performed with singer David Bisbal in an ad for the chocolate Nocilla. In Elche at the Gran Teatro a night of ladies with great talent. “Señoritas on Fire” promotes talented female singer /songwriters from Spain on 8th April. The evening theme is women, talent and development. “Señoritas On Fire” is the only collective of female composers in the world that reflect their beliefs and actions in a different way. “Señoritas On Fire” has a lot to sing, to say and to bring to the world. Original songs, acoustic pop style mixed with flamenco, copla, blues and folk. The Elche evening is a special presentation with supporting acts from local artists/composers Shani Ormiston, Ines Saavedra, and Maria Moes.
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An annual event that has a great following (last year 22,000 visitors attended), is the12th Naval Model exhibition being held in the Los Aljibes centre in the Park of the Nations. At weekends until it finishes on 17th April, some aficionados play with their boats in the lake. Some extremely interesting models such as aircraft carrier, submarine, fishing boats, historical galleys and galleons, are among the ships represented. There was talk of combining it with the other military models exhibition now in its third edition that is being held in the town centre in the Paseo Vista Alegre centre. The two exhibitions overlap slightly as the military one begins on 12 April until the 1st May; it has a section on submarines and submarine officers, including and admiral, will be at the opening of the exhibition. Among models is one related to Spanish Civil War for the first time. The annual International Choir assembly is now in its 29th year, a tribute to the hard work of the various Torrevieja musicians that have made this such a great success at International level. On 10/11 April in the Municipal Theatre.
Russia is well known for its ballet tradition and on 16th April some excellent dancers will perform in the Municipal Theatre of Torrevieja at 20:00
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For youngsters there will be the annual Nautical school from 6th to 10th April, providing youngsters with an introduction to sea skills such as sailing. Looking ahead to May we have the fabulous May Fair with its Andalusian flavour of music and dance, colour and bright lights, food and drink and the wonderful display of horses and carriages. On 2nd May two orchestras – Symphony Orchestra Region of Murcia and the Orfeon Municipal Orchestra of Ricardo Lafuente - pool their talents to present Beethoven’s 9th Symphony with choir and individual singers. This is a well known piece of music and a segment ‘Ode to Joy’ is the anthem of the European Union.
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Murcia in Spring by Dave Stewart
The River Segura wanders through Murcia region, through the city, meandering through Vega Baja towns until it merges with the Mediterranean at Guardamar del Segura. Today the river is only a shadow of its former self, but for centuries it has ensured that the surrounding countryside became a fertile area known as “The Garden of Europe” as so much of the produce from fields and orchards is exported outside the region to other countries including the UK. Murcia city is surrounded by the hills of Carrascoy, Cresta del Gallo and la Pila. The city reflects its dependence on the river as it is rich in plazas replete with dazzling flowers that are refreshing amid so many buildings. Shrubs and trees bring joy and consolation amid so Nº 14 April Torrevieja Outlook 2015
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many edifices, beautiful though they may be. The surrounding countryside is full of woods with over 100 forestry wardens taking care of the environment. As is so common in the other Mediterranean countries, Spain has seen various civilizations come and go, some adding a fresh cultural dimension to the country. Murcia is part of that ever-changing scene and has an important history to tell us. Originally Murcia was an “alcazaba” a fortified enclosure where the inhabitants took refuge from the river flooding, enemies and epidemics. The original city (Mursiyah) was founded in 825 by Abderramón II and centuries later it still has 14.5 metre high walls with a perimeter of 2,700 metres, walls that were five metres thick, surmounted by 95 towers with 12 gateways. The Arabs laid out irrigation systems, building magnificent norias (waterwheels) to enrich the countryside and feed the city’s inhabitants. It was such a beautiful city that King Alfonso X said, “it is the best city in the whole of Spain, apart from Seville.” Today Murcia still has many peaceful and green comers where one can sit in tranquility enjoying the closeness of nature in the heat of a city. Christian armies conquered it in 1240 and the Pope transferred the bishop’s seat from Cartagena, which was constantly harassed by pirates to Murcia. Under the Arabs the city had 20 mezquitas that were replaced
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by Christian churches and so a part of the city’s heritage has been lost. The bishop was responsible for saving the city during the War of Succession in 1707 when the forces of Carlos attacked: the bishop had the surrounding countryside flooded and beat off the attackers with a handful of peasants. In 1810 the city was sacked, twice again in the 19th century Murcia suffered from earthquakes, and during the Spanish Civil War of 1936/39 most of the churches were despoiled. Today work continues in restoring many archeological treasures and the city’s prosperity can be seen in the new suburbs and the wide boulevards that encircle the narrow streets of the old quarter.
New Life and Resurrection can be seen in Fiestas
Spring is celebrated as a time when the earth reawakens and spews new life into nature. The principal fiestas of Murcia swing around Easter and Spring, but continue in the city and throughout the year, as well as in all parts of Murcia Region. When Lent approaches Murcia prepares for this sombre period with a carnival on seven different days accompanied by music, dancing, drinking feasting, and of course masks and fancy dress. If you need one fiesta are the excuses to forget the humdrum of everyday life and do something outrageously different. The Carnival in Beniaján district is famous for its colourful festivities which are held on various days over a month. This includes a kids' parade and another one featuring a battle between Don Carnal and Doña Cuaresema, intermingling Nº 14 April Torrevieja Outlook 2015
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myths and traditions with a joyous imagination. Lent enters its final phase on Palm Sunday when the gorgeous cathedral opens its door to the public and the first procession begins using the image of the Virgen de la Fuensanta. Semana Santa or Holy Week is the most important fiesta of Murcia and the processions are of singular interest. Here we can view a mobile museum of religious art with life-sized figures such as Jesus in the Garden of Olives by Salzillo, showing Jesus being comforted by angels whilst his apostles sleep on. The guilds or cofradias mostly refer to some form of assistance to others – Misericordis, Rescate, Caridad, Perdon, Salud, Refugio and Amparo, Retorno, Yacente (Pity, mercy, rescue and ransom, charity, pardon, health, sanctuary, return, burial and aid). Two days after Easter the Bando de la Huerta b e g i n s , a n acknowledgement of the importance throughout the centuries of the part played by the city and region of Murcia in agriculture. This fiesta is now in its 158th year. In the middle of the 18th century official edicts were pinned to public buildings with strict regulations about agriculture. A century later similar edicts were stuck to the
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same buildings, but this time ridiculing some of the ruling class and their manner of speaking. By the end of the 19th century combined manifestations of town citizens and those working the countryside led to joint celebrations, cooking traditional meals, using local produce. During this fiesta “country cottages” are erected in parks and gardens to show off handicrafts. Two days after the Bando de la Huerta there s a Spring Parade full of colourful flowers from local garden nurseries. This parade has fl o w e r b e d e c k e d carriages accompanied by bands of music. During these dates the a n n u a l International Competitions of Tunas music is held in the San Basilio Nº 14 April Torrevieja Outlook 2015
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district with colourful and animated groups playing this medieval style of music as they wander around the city. Each Faculty of Murcia University has its own tuna group and these originally arose because poorer students could not afford fees, so they wandered around taverns busking as troubadours entertaining drinkers and diners alike. Entierro de la Sardina is the burial of the sardine and this event is held in many Spanish towns. In Murcia the participants assemble at San Antolin and form a funeral cortege presided by a “sardine”, the symbol of the Lenten fasting that has now finished. This is a humorous carnival parade that ends up at the Puente Viejo bridge with fireworks and the burning of the “sardine”. Fire is seen as the origin of the Mediterranean spirit, a theme central to this particular fiesta when dusk and dawn are illuminated, united and purified by flame. Another interesting event takes place in September in honour of the Virgen de la Fuentsanta on 16th September. Near the city is a lovely sanctuary dedicated to this patron saint of Murcia and a Romeria is held with the image carried amid a shower of petals. A livestock fair permitted by Alonso X is a central part of these fiestas and during it the annual Moors and Christen parades take place.
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MURCIA REGION FIESTAS Here is a brief calendar of fiestas in some of the towns in Murcia Region with approximate dates.+
Aguilas:
Aguilas Carnivals are of National Touristic Interest category at the end of February. 25 March - Virgen de Dolores patronal feast 1st May - Romeria 16 July - Feast of the Fishermen (Virgen del Carmen) 15 August - a week of celebrations the main day being 15th.
Alcantarilla Holy Week - Virgin Dolores 18 - 26 October - la Virgen de la Salud First weekend of October fiestas of the Virgen de Fatima.
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ALEDO 6th January la Estrella y los Reyes Magos.
ALHAMA Holy Week - these processions are of Regional Touristic Interest End of April - Las Cañadas in honour of the Virgen de la Cabeza. 1st weekend of May - Los Mayos of Regional Touristic Interest. 1 - 15Oct. Virgen del Rosario.
ARCHENA 1st week of February - Las Arboledas Holy Week of Regional Touristic Interest June - Corpus Christi 25 July - Fiestas del Hurtado August in middle of the month “La Anchosa” and at the end of the month “Otro Lao” 1st September “Polvorin” End of September - la Algaida.
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CARAVACA Holy Week 1 - 5 May - Fiestas of the True Cross (Vera Cruz) including Moors & Christians. 14 September - Exaltation of the Holy Cross. 10 - 12 October - Horse fair
CARTAGENA February - Carnivals of National Touristic Interest Holy Week of National Touristic Interest 20 - 29 September , ( v a r i a b l e ) Carthaginian and Roman festival OF National Touristic Interest.
CEHEGIN 20 January - San Sebastian Holy Week 24 - 29 June - San Juan (Valentin) 15 August - Virgen del Agosto (Canara) 8 - 14 September - Patronal fistas of the Virgen de las Maravillas.
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CIEZA 3 February - San Blas Holy Week processions of Touristic Interest 3 May - la Cruz fiesta 24 - 31 August - Fair of National Touristic Interest and fiestas of San Bartholomew. A variable date is the Feast of the Melecoton (peach) depending on the harvest.
JUMILLA 17 January - San Anton 24 June - St. John the Baptist from 15th August for a week the patronal fiestas of the Virgen de la Asunciรณn.
LORCA Holy Week processions 3 May - Las Cruces 8 - 15 September patronal celebrations of the Virgen de las Huertas. 3rd week of September - Artisan Fayre.
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LOS ALCAZARES April (after Easter) - Moors & Christians and medieval market. August - Semana Internacional de la Huerta y Mar. 13 October - Dia del Caldero - outside eating festival.
MAZZARON
19 March - patronal fiestas of San José. 16 July - Virgen del Carmen fishermen’s celebration 15 August - Asunción de la Virgen 24 August - San Bartholomew 8 September - Santa Maria fiesta
MOLINA DEL SEGURA 17 - 22 January - San Anton and San Vicente 14 - 22 September - Patronal fiestas of the Virgen de la Consolación
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MULA Holy Week - the parade of the tambourines is of National Touristic Interest. 15 May - San Isidro 8 September - Romeria del Niño 19 - 25 September Patronal fiestas of el Niño.
MURCIA Holy Week - the Tuesday procession is marked as of National Touristic Interest The week following Holy Week the Entierro de la Sardina (Burial of the sardine.) 5 - 8 September - International Folklore gathering. 12 - 22 September Virgen de la Fuensanta.
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SAN JAVIER 22 - 26 April - Festival Imagina de San Javier. 16 July - Virgen del Carmen celebrated in Santiago de la Ribiera. (fiestas approximately from 7 - 20 July) June-July still to be announced: International Jazz Festival San Javier The International Jazz Festival San Javier, declared of Regional Tourist Interest, brings each year to stage the most important figures in jazz and related musical styles to it, like blues, soul, bossa nova and funk. 25 July - Santiago Apostol (22 - 28 approximately) 3 December - main patronal fiestas of 10 days for San Francisco Javier.
SAN PEDRO DEL PINATAR Beginning of June for most of the month the fiestas in honour of San pedro, the 23rd being the Quema de Fallas (burning of bonfires) in various districts. Approximately 7th - 20th July the feast of the Virgen del Carmen (actual date 16th Jul
TORREPACHECO 3 May - Romeria to the hermitage of the Pasico In August (depending on the harvest time) the fiestas del Melon. First fortnight of October 6th - 14th approx. the patronal fiestas (actual date is 12th)
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TORRES DE COTILLAS 17 January - San Anton Carnival in February Holy Week includes el Baile de los Pasos (dance) 20 - 29 August The Fair and Fiesta of the Virgen de la Salceda.
TOTANA 7th January - Romeria 25th April - San Marcos - or Day of the Garabazo 22 - 26 July patronal fiestas of Santiago Apostol 8 - 10 December - Santa Eulalia.
YECLA January - San Anton 3 February - San Blas Semana Santa is of Regional Touristic Interest September - Fair including Gran Cabalgata de Carrozas.
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Lanzarote Undersea Museum by Dave Stewart
Dave was a guy I once worked with who kept two fairly large aquariums for his two pet piranha fish. He could sit for hours watching them in their separate environments as they teased goldfish that swam around them. The piranha tended to be oblivious of the goldfish, but every now and then snapped at the tail of the goldfish. What was happening was that the goldfish got bolder and less frightened of the larger fish and unaware that he was losing a tiny bit of his tail each time. Dave always knew when the kill would occur and sit and watch as a goldfish that had lived side by side with the piranha for the last week was suddenly and frenziedly attacked and swallowed up, too slow to move out of the way because of the loss of parts of his tail. The law of the jungle applies even underwater. Which brings me to a point that nature can reverse a lot of man's works if not kept at bay and harmonized. Pirates of the Caribbean
film is an example, as the dead pirates in Davy Jones' locker are gradually encrusted by faunae and assimilated and encrusted by seashells and decorated by waving seaweed.
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This is part of the thinking of sculptor Jason deCaires Taylor who has successfully created two underwater museums that also act as reefs with the deliberate intention that each figure evolves under the sea as it becomes, rather like a tree, a host to molluscs and algae. Jason's background is very varied and today his studio is in Lanzarote where he intends to create a third underwater museum with his sculptures. He was born in 1974 to an English father and Guyanese mother, and grew up in Europe and Asia, where he spent much of his early childhood exploring the coral reefs of Malaysia. Educated in the South East of England, Taylor graduated from the London Institute of Arts in Nยบ 14 April Torrevieja Outlook 2015
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1998 with a BA Honours in Sculpture and went on to become a fully qualified diving instructor and underwater naturalist. With over 18 years diving experience under his belt, Taylor is also an award winning underwater photographer, famous for his dramatic images, which capture the metamorphosing effects of the ocean on his evolving sculptures. His pioneering public art projects are not only examples of successful marine conservation, but inspirational works of art that seek to encourage environmental awareness, instigate social change and lead us to appreciate the breathtaking natural beauty of the underwater world.
In 2006, Taylor founded and created the world’s first underwater sculpture park. Situated off the coast of Grenada in the West Indies it is now listed as one of the Top 25 Wonders of the World by National Geographic. His latest creation is MUSA (Museo Subacuatico de Arte), a monumental museum with a collection of over 500 of his sculptural works, submerged off the coast of Cancun, Mexico; described by Forbes as one of the world’s most unique travel destinations. Both these ambitious, permanent public works have a practical, functional aspect, facilitating positive interactions between people and fragile underwater habitats while at the same relieving pressure on natural resources. Taylor’s art is like no other, a paradox of creation, constructed to be assimilated by the ocean and transformed from inert objects into living breathing coral reefs, portraying
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human intervention as both positive and lifeencouraging. A visit to his sites is both unique and subject to the dynamic, fluctuating environment of the ocean. Jason has signed a contract with the government of the island of Lanzarote to arrange his sculptures on the seabed off Las Coloradas Beach, near the popular resort of Playa Blanca. Some of the figures are of local people. His work material is designed not to harm the sensitive underwater environment and will be host to colonies of sea creatures. He sees this as a
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The Museo Atlantico Lanzarote will take two years to complete, wholly funded by the local government to the tune of at least 700,000 euros, with 2% of revenues earmarked for ecological research. As always with culture there are critics who think money could be better spent elsewhere. But as the Canaries largely depends on tourism, this is rather an unique way of attracting even more tourists and an alternative to the usual beaches. Nยบ 14 April Torrevieja Outlook 2015
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Bookshelf by Pat Hynd
Holy Grail
As its Easter let’s look at a book about the chalice of the Last Supper about the cup used by Jesus or as it popularly known - the Holy Grail. Janice Bennett's first book,”Sacred Blood, Sacred Image: The Sudarium of Oviedo”, was a thorough historical, cultural, and Biblical study of the Sudarium of Oviedo, the ancient cloth believed to have covered Christ's head after his crucifixion. Her most recent book is “St. Laurence and The Holy Grail: The Story of The Holy Chalice of Valencia”, which is an exhaustive, provocative examination of the history and identity of the Holy Chalice of Valencia, believed by many to be the cup used by Christ at the Last Supper. In an interview she had this to say. “The Cervantes Room houses old manuscripts, and I was already quite intimidated by the whole experience of being in the library. I ordered the document, and waited at a small desk until it was delivered. It was a tiny book, a copy of an original that Nº 14 April Torrevieja Outlook 2015
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is in Valencia. I was dismayed at first to find that it was in old Spanish manuscript type with a rather obscure vocabulary, but as I began to read, I found that it wasn't too terribly difficult. When examining records in Valencia ..“Two things made me literally shiver: the detailed description of Laurence's childhood, which I had never heard of before, and the reference to the Holy Grail. I knew that there supposedly were no written references to verify the tradition that Pope Sixtus II entrusted the Holy Grail to St. Laurence, but here it was stated explicitly. In obedience to the request of Pope Sixtus II, he had already turned the Holy Cup over to a Spaniard in Rome at the time, with instructions to take it to Spain, where Laurence knew that his family would care for it. I didn't fail to notice that the translator never took credit for any of the biographical information, which he claimed came from St. Donato, who lived near Valencia during the time of King Leovigild, where he claimed that St. Laurence had been born. His information on St. Laurence's early life is not found in any of the traditional sources, and it made sense that Donato would have known these details, because he regularly went to Valencia, where the details of Laurence's life were still being kept alive, thanks to oral tradition.” Janice Bennett acquaints the reader with the enthralling story of the Holy Chalice, the renowned relic that embarked from the Last Supper on an amazing pilgrimage that providentially ended in the Cathedral of Valencia, a miraculous odyssey that has been characterized by danger, greed, martyrdom
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and fire. It is a fascinating and captivating account that will dispel forever the erroneous
Relics are part of most religious traditions, whether its the hair of Buddha or the beard of Mohammed or the chalice of Jesus at the last Supper. The word relic comes from the Latin reliquiae, meaning "remains" or "something left behind�. For some people they hold a miracaulous or magical association and even have miracles of cures attached to them. Hitler and his close Nazi associates were really interested in the occult and Himmler actually visited Spain and he paid a visit on a side trip to Montserrat Monastery near Barcelona, because he had information that the Holy Grail associated with the Last Supper cup was hidden there. They thought that this type of relic had mystical and magical powers that could be used for the implementation of Nazi power, but Himmler left disappointed.
In the film 'Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade', the adventurers who eventually found the cave that housed the Grail are confronted by a multiple choice. The villain selects the richest and most resplendent cup, only to find that it is a poisoned chalice. Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford), the hero, selects a simple wooden vessel, the true Grail and saves the life of his father, Sean Connery..
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The multiple possible Grails are a good reflection of the fate of the Grail in the last hundred years in literature. For centuries there have been several claims to the cup that Jesus supped and in the 20th Century there were lots of theories about symbolism such as that the cup which could hold the blood of Jesus was a female fertility symbol (hence Mary Magdalen) matched with the lance that pierced his side - being the male equivalent. Fiction writers have added their own fantasies with medieval quests and power struggles. Late medieval writers came up with a false etymology for sangréal, an alternative name for "Holy Grail." In Old French, san graal or san gréal means "Holy Grail" and sang réal means "royal blood" so it is a play on words. Jesus used the cup at the Last Supper to institute the sacrament of the Eucharist. Some stories claim that Joseph of Arimathea used the cup to collect and store the blood of Christ at the Crucifixion and later brought it to Britain. New Testament texts make no mention of the cup except within the context of the Last Supper and give no significance whatever to the object itself. The eminent Herbert Thurston in the Catholic Encyclopedia 1908 concluded that "No reliable tradition has been preserved to us regarding the vessel used by Christ at the Last Supper. In the sixth and seventh centuries pilgrims to Jerusalem were led to believe that the actual chalice was still venerated in the church of the Holy Sepulchre, having within it the sponge which was presented to Our Saviour on Calvary."
Most certainly the original cup was just that - with no adornments of jewelry, although in visions one visionary saw it as not one cup but a main one with 12 small cups which represented God and his twelve chosen tribes of Israel, on the one hand, and on the other Jesus and his twelve apostles.
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View from cathedral tower of Miguelito
Valencia cathedral is a beautiful building that claims to house the true Holy Grail and on the last Thursday of October of this year 2015 there will be the commemoration of a Jubilee Year of the Holy Grail in Valencia. This will have several side events such as an exhibition, a route, and representations of the grail in art. The Holy Chalice of Valencia arouses feelings of admiration and scepticism at the same time. The actual relic is the upper part, which is a cup of dark brown agate finely polished. It is an “Alexandrian vessel” that archaeologists believe it to have an oriental origin (100 - 50 BC). The handles came later, as well as the chalice's stem made of exquisitely engraved gold. Its alabaster base of Islamic art is different from the vessel. The tradition tells us that it is the same cup that was used by the Lord in the last Supper for the Eucharist, then was taken to Rome by Saint Peter and was kept by Nº 14 April Torrevieja Outlook 2015
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the following Popes up to Saint Sixtus II. Through his Spanish deacon, Saint Lawrence, Saint Sixtus II was sent to Huesca (Saint Lawrence's homeland) in the 3rd century so as to save him from the persecution of Emperor Valerian. During the Muslim invasion, since 713 AD, the chalice was hidden in the Pyrenees region, after having been in Yebra, Siresa, Santa María de Sasabe (today San Adrián), Bailio and finally in the monastery of San Juan de la Peña (Huesca), where a document (1071) refers to a precious chalice made of stone. The relic was handed over in 1399 to the King of Aragon, Martin “The Human” who kept it in the Aljaferia Royal Palace of Saragossa and then in the Royal Palace of Barcelona in 1410 when he died. The Holy Chalice is mentioned in the inventory of his properties (Manuscript 136 of Martin “The Human”. King Alfonso the Magnanimous handed over the royal reliquary to the Valencia Palace. Because of his stay in Naples, it was given with the rest of the relics to the Valencia Cathedral in 1437. During the Independence War, between 1809 and 1813, the chalice was taken to Alicante, Ibiza and Palma de Mallorca, escaping from Napoleonic invaders. In 1916, it was finally housed in the old Chapter House, later called the Holy Chalice Chapel. This continual public exhibition of the sacred relic resulted in a world-wide knowledge of its existence, since there was little information about it while it was kept in the reliquary of the Cathedral. During the Civil War (1936-1939), it was hidden in Carlet. Pope John XXIII granted plenary indulgence on the day of its annual feast; Pope John Paul II celebrated the Eucharist with the Holy Chalice during his visit to Valencia on 8 November 1982 just as Pope Benedict XVI did when he visited Valencia on 8 July.
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Phoenix Reisen cruise liners to visit Torrevieja in Autumn
So its goodbye to the notion that the famous relic was ever lost Something that has been on the cards for many years is the use of the Torrevieja harbour facilities for passenger cruisers on leisure trips round the Mediterranean. Now after many months of talks and negotiations this is to become a reality as the Phoenix Reisen company has signed a deal that means that on Tuesday 22nd September 2015, the “AMADEA” cruise liner, with capacity for 620 passengers and 200 crew, will stop in Torrevieja from Tangiers (Morocco). The Mayor, Eduardo Dolon, also announced another arrival cruiser for 2016 in Torrevieja, the "ALBATROS", for the same company, which will be larger with 800 passengers. By the end of the year the work on the new harbour walkway will be finsihed masking it a more attractive enrance to the town. Further meetings are being held with with representatives of the three yacht clubs of the town, members of APYMECO, the small business association, and entrepreneurs and institutions of tourist services in Torrevieja, aimed at developing an attractive tourist product of the city, to offer it, to the cruise passengers who come to Torrevieja. Obviously the salt workings, regattas, local restaurants will all have a part to play in this venture. Nº 14 April Torrevieja Outlook 2015
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Turtles returned to sea
Once again three turtles were released back into their natural habitat of the Mediterranean, this time in an unusually rainy day which probably suited them better than the onlookers who gathered on 25th March. The three turtles were tagged with a SAT device so that they can be tracked. This is a venture of various associations - the “ARCA del Mar” centre, the aquarium site of the Oceanográfico in Valencia, the Ministry of the Environment, and the tags from the Aquarium of Sevilla. Throughout the year several marine creatures, including dolphins, are caught up in fishermen’s nets, or washed ashore and are sent to the centre where vets look after them and tend to any wounds. The network includes the fishing guide along the coast, the Cruz Roja and the Guardia Civil and since 1991 around 300 turtles have been saved, most returned to the sea. One of the three turtles was nicknamed Lola after Torrevieja’s symbolic lady. If you should encounter a marine creature in distress then call emergency number
112.
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