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024 February 2015 Scratch a Spaniard – Alicante Province Fiestas – St. Valentine – Fat Tuesday & Sardines – Slavs Celebrate Winter - Carnival – Carnival Goodies – Carnival Reading – Our Man in Madrid – ADIEM mental health – Benidorm Costa Blanca Favourite – 50 Years Fair Sailing – Laza Carnival – Flight of the Dragon – Shakespeare Tours – Rolling Down the River – When I say Jump - Melody Makers International – International Cofradia – Real Men do Yoga – Symphony Orchestra Concerts – Torrevieja Carnival programme

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Scratch a Spaniard

by Andy Ormiston

Being married to one of them, my first impressions of Spaniards in England was that they love drama in their lives. Since coming to live in Spain this has been brought home.

Scratch a Spaniard and you scratch an actor.

This love for drama is seen in the countless fiestas, pilgrimages and celebrations held throughout the country: somewhere near you, wherever, you are, there is a colourful celebration going on. This book is not an encyclopedia of fiestas, nor all inclusive, just an insight at some of the celebrations on the Costa Blanca, how they began and when they are on. This may have meant looking at celebrations elsewhere in Spain. Many fiestas are on a fixed date, or a set weekend; for many others it is a moveable date depending on, for example Easter, which is determined by the lunar calendar.

For foreigners to Spain the close relationship with religion and celebrations can be a bit off-putting and strange. aormi@icloud.com

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Why are there so many Virgins, for example? Well, the majority of the fiestas in honour of a Virgen are usually in honour of the same person, that is Mary the mother of Jesus. She is the patron saint of Spain and numerous towns, and in many cases has been officially elected as an Honory Mayoress. She is not worshipped as a goddess in any sense, but is used as a role model to reach Jesus her son. This may seem strange to non-Catholics, but one has to know some of the story of Jesus and the Bible as a whole, to understand many of the fiestas. In some instances celebrations of old Roman goddesses, such as Diana, have been overtaken by changing the role of Diana by that of Mary.

These pagan festivals celebrated the seasons, the sun, the moon, and the solstices. The Christian community was wise enough to take them and paint a large layer of Christian teachings over them, often attaching some saint’s fast day to them, such as St. John the Baptist in June at the same time as the summer solstice or Saint Valentine replacing Lupercus and Februata Juno on 15th February.

Spaniards can associate the life of Jesus and his mother with their own trials and tribulations of daily living. On the other hand, there are countless Spaniards who disassociate themselves from the Catholic Church and her pomp and circumstance of rituals, yet can actively take part in the local fiestas.

Many fiestas have their roots in pagan festivals and have been Christianized to conform to church teachings. As St. Ignatius of Loyola said “Go in by their door, and bring them out by your door.�

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FIESTAS IN ALICANTE PROVICNE IN FEBRUARY

1 - 5th February.

Sax: Moors & Christians take to the streets for the feast in honour of San Blas (Saint Blaise).

3rd February San Blas feastday.

A popular fiesta held in many towns in very many different ways, sometimes celebrated before or after the date.

Alicante (Mig Any in the district of San Blas), Benifallim, Finestrat, Parcent, Pedreguer, Gorga and Onil, all hold this fiesta. Most churches have a blessing of the throats service at the end of Masses. aormi@icloud.com

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5th - 6th Feb.

Catral has a romería of Santa Agueda.

12th Feb. Feast of Santa Eulalia is celebrated in Sax. The Lenten period (Cuaresma) depends on when Easter falls and is, therefore, a moveable date.

On the Thursday before Lent begins La Jira, taking place in Aspe.

In Hondón de las Nieves it is known as “The Final Thursday” and the families spend the day in the countryside singing and eating.

This period is also the time for the carnivals and in Pego there is the celebration on the Saturday before the commencement of the carnival known as “La Baixada del Ríu Bullent” when youngsters go down the river on a variety of homemade vessels using recyclable materials.

GERMANS OF CALPE IN CARNIVAL MOOD

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Carnivals are usually held on the weekend before Ash Wednesday in Alacant, Calpe, Muro de Alcoy, Benidorm, Castalla, Pedreguer, Pego, Guardamar del Segura, Villena, San Juan de Alicante, Sant Vicent del Raspeig, Xixona, Xàbia, Torrevieja and Novelda. In Planes the Flour festival is held.

In the middle weekend of February Moors & Christian parades take place in Xixona.

The weekend before Lent begins the Festival del Santísmo Cristo de la Salud is held, patron of Altea la Vella.

The Monday prior to the start of Lent the Festa de la Cremà del Pi is held in Agres.

A popular saint this month is St. Blaise, or San Blas, who is considered to be the saint to appeal to for help for throat infections. His feastday falls on 3rd February and two candles tied in a cross design, which were blessed during the Candlemass, are used in the religious blessing of throats held in churches on the 3rd February. Many towns hold a variety of events for the saint’s feastday.

MOORS & CHRISTIANS IN SAX AND XIXONA. but other towns such as Orihulea have a Mig Any festival or middle of the year.

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Saint Valentine 14th February

In the late 1990’s Saint Valentin’s Day gained more popularity, probably because of the foreign influence and the commercial market with flowers, chocolates and greeting cards.

Although there is no dedicated feast for this day women especially like to be remembered by their lovers on this day. It is around the same date as another Roman festival commemorating young men’s rite of passage to the god Lupercus that was adjusted to Christian ideology in the fifth century. The Roman celebration included a lottery whereby the young men could draw the names of young girls from a box and this would be a sexual pair for the next year. Of course the Church could not have this promiscuity and the lottery was of saint’s names instead of lovers. Valentine became the patron saint of lovers because of legends associated with him. He was a Roman soldier who refused to pay allegiance to the Roman gods and was beheaded. During his time in prison, Valentine fell in love with the gaoler’s daughter who was blind. Their love and faith helped her to recover her sight and as he was being marched off to the chopping block she read his farewell message which was signed, “from your Valentine.”

As this feast was held in mid February it has come to be associated with the carnival. But as its theme is LOVE, it should be in our daily lives.

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Fat Tuesday and Sardines

The general press seem to give an awful lot of space to the Islamic Ramadan - a month of fasting and almsgiving. The Christians have their own penitential season that lasts for six weeks and is known in English as Lent, prior to Easter. In U.K. we tend to celebrate the beginning of Lent or Cuaresema by making pancakes on the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday. This meant the end of eating meat until Easter and the saying “carnis vale” or goodbye to meat. Which became in time the word carnival. In many places this day is known as Mardi Gras or Fat Tuesday for the same reason, that all fats from animals had to be used and one way of doing so was to make up pancakes. In my mother’s house this day was an excuse for a second trip round the houses by the milkman and his horse, Danny, selling sour milk as that makes the best tasting pancakes. It is a good excuse to have a pancake party and bring people together with a bottle of wine or some fancy dress and for those of a Christian belief a reminder that the Lenten period has arrived and fasting, abstinence, sacrifice and almsgiving are expected. In some places waiters have a race with a pan and pancake, tossing it in the air sometimes.

Both Cartagena and Alicante have very large parades with an integral part being “the Burial of the Sardine”. The sardine fish represents the fasting and abstinence of the Lenten period consumed in the Mediterranean. This is usually a large effigy which often becomes part of a bonfire which consumes it in turn. The sardine features in many coastal celebrations at other seasons of the year.

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Although there is something exuberant and bubbly about Carnival, in its medieval origins it had an altogether more serious and even, perhaps, darker dimension. The idea of social inversion was present from the days of Saturnalias, where slaves sat down with their masters and ate with them, and abused them and the absurdities of domestic life. It is not entirely clear where the term Carnival originates. It might be derived from the Latin carnem levare, to ‘put away flesh meat’, but given that lots of meat is actually consumed during Carnival some scholars have looked for its origins in others places. It is suggested that it derives from carrus navalis, the boat-shaped cart that was drawn through the streets of ancient Rome in connection with the festival of Saturnalia.

Although the festivals of Carnival and Saturnalia have many features in common, historians are loath to make any direct connection between the two feasts. In fact, we find other similar festive occasions in ancient Mesopotamia and even in Judaism, where the festival of Purim has some features of Carnival such as dressing up, concealing identity, and engaging in play and behavior which would in other circumstances be considered outrĂŠ. In the Christian west, Carnival developed between the eleventh and the fourteenth centuries in countries such as Spain, Portugal, Germany, France and Italy. The reversals and mixing of roles, the confusion and crossover of gender involving transvestism, the calling into question of political, social and ecclesiastical authority, social identity and language itself, were all amalgamated into a grand meta-narrative about what truly constitutes reality for the human person, which in the context of Carnival takes places in a world that had been turned upside down.

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Carnival represented an alternative to the fixed hierarchy of values in society and a desire to invert societal and ecclesiastical norms. This was often done under the cover of anonymity and hence the need for the dressing up and masking of participants. This essential element gave individuals freedom to indulge in chaotic displays of anarchic behavior which sought to undermine the sanctimonious seriousness of ‘normal’ life.

Under concealment of the mask, standard conduct was set aside and people engaged in activities that would conventionally be forbidden and normally be regarded as criminal or sinful.

In the Roman Carnival the procession necessitated every participant carrying a candle, and the object was to try to snuff out the candles of others as a reminder of death. It is said that children in particular delighted in extinguishing the candles of their parents, declaring as they did, ‘you’re dead now’. Revelers in medieval times also found expression in some places in the development of songs for the festival, songs aimed against certain types of professions such as goldsmiths, or songs intended to make fun of social realities such as young women married to old and rich husbands. Today we have murgas which follow a similar line but often mocking political figures and their behests.

Nor is it without significance that the subversive motifs of Carnival would cause Mussolini to abolish the Carnival of Venice in Fascist Italy The Renaissance tried to emphasize the more artistic aspects of Carnival, and costumes began to confirm to recognized types such as the harlequin. The masked ball was intended to reduce the more raffish elements, and parades of floats replaced rowdier street processions. This marks a transition to Carnival as a spectator sport for the multitude, whereas in the Middle Ages Carnival was not something people watched, it

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was something that they lived. It has been suggested that Carnival and Lent are the natural extremes of human experience; each has its own proper sphere, place and season.

Life contains both.

The Torrevieja carnival is over a three week period centred on three parades. Each one is a fun parade with multicolourful characters in vibrant groups or as individuals exhibiting a great deal of good humour. This is a key word as humour is possibly the most important aspect of the carnival, combined with a great sense of imagination. Prizes are awarded for various categories of costumes. The festivities are not contained in just a couple of parades, but the various groups get together in sponsoring bars for some rowdy fun. These take place during February, depending on weekends. See poster at the end of this edition for programme in Torrevieja. A marquee has been set up in the Eras de la Sal area (replacing the municipal theater) and on 28th be used for a Children’s carnival dance event.

The Carnival Queen was crowned in the marquee on 16th January here is the official opening speech (pregon) of the carnival. the Drag Queen competition on 23 January and a queen chosen who also has a float in the carnival parade. On 31st January the Carnival Murgas competion in the marquee.

After that there are two main parades: the first on Sunday afternoon 7th February from the plaza de Asunción around 16.00 with over 1,500 people taking part. The night carnival is on the 13th February. This wends its way to the town centre with a great deal of music, dancing and throwing confetti. For months groups have been planning and making their costumes and here you will see extravagant feathered beauties dancing to the rhythm of lively music, clowns throwing confetti in your face or people in ordinary everyday clothes wearing a gaudy mask. It is possible to buy simple adult fancy dress costumes for around 20 euros.

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Slavs Celebrate Winter and Spring We now have a very active Russian and Ukranian community in Torrevieja with many talented people amongst them. A lot of them actively participate in Spanish fiestas, but also have their own traditions. After the Three Kings on the 6th the Orthodox church tends to hold their Christmas. Saint Valentine’s Day the Russians and other Slavs in Torrevieja hold their own winter festival in the Park of the Nations in the past. Some people dress in national costumes, children dancing a traditional manner and there are stalls with typical food in this festival that witnesses the end of Winter and welcomes in Springtime with a lot of love.

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of Spanish Cooking by Pat Hynd Carnival Goodies

The Kings arrival in January was a foretaste to the carnival with so many dancing groups dressed in a variety of wonderfully garish costumes.

Torrevieja carnival celebrations tend to go on for a few weeks and most schools will have fun events. Some readers may plan their own carnival party, so here we have reproduced some Spanish ideas The history of this festivity goes back centuries as its a Christian festivity that is celebrated before Lent. Forty days before the Easter of Resurrection, the Christian has to prepare mind and body for remembering and celebrating Christ's crucifixion and resurrection and this was done by daily abstinence, almsgiving and penance. A more positive attitude is not necessarily denying oneself food or anything else, but actually doing something for other people. It is a period of privation, almsgiving, fasting, but carnival is seen as a period before that for using up food that used to be banned from daily fare during Lent and people tended to let their hair down and eat whatever they fancied. There is a similar season Advent four weeks prior to Christmas.

In Spain carnival is celebrated everywhere, enjoying recipes and local dishes and we have some recipes for you to try. For example, in Asturias and Galicia there are typical the orejas or “carnival ears”, which are sweets elaborated based on flour, butter, sugar and egg. Families tended to use stews with cheaper ingredients such as lacón, chorizo, chicken or fish dishes. They were augmented with plenty of vegetables and pulses, such as chick-peas, cabbages or potatoes.

But here we will concentrate on some popular dessert recipes that are ideal at this time of year. Churros is always popular with chocolate, but as we gave the recipe last year I won’t bother this year. aormi@icloud.com

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"Leche frita" dessert is truly a Spanish classic dessert recipe. With a firm, sweet, cold milk-pudding centre encased in a warm and crunchy fried shell of flour and egg. This traditional Spanish dessert is easy, but does require refrigerating for at least 3 hours (and preferably overnight) before frying.

- 3 1/2 tablespoons cornflour (maize) - 7 tablespoons plain flour (3 x1/2 tablespoons to coat the Leche Frita before frying) - 1/2 cup sugar - 1 quart whole milk - 1 cinnamon stick - 2 eggs - 1/4 cup olive oil - 2 tablespoons butter powdered cinnamon Put the cornflour, 3 1/2 tablespoons of the flour, and the sugar together in a large bowl. Add 1 cup of the milk and mix well with a whisk. Leave aormi@icloud.com

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to stand for 10 minutes.

Heat the rest of the milk in a large pan with the cinnamon stick over medium-low heat. When the milk begins to bubble, strain it little by little into the sugar and flour mixture, stirring well. Its rather like a béchamel sauce. Pour the sugar, flour, and milk mixture back into the saucepan and put it over low heat, again stirring well, for 10 minutes.

Lightly oil an 11 x 7-inch ovenproof glass baking dish with olive oil. Pour in the leche frita mixture to a depth of 3/4 inch (use two moulds if you have sufficient mixture). Leave to cool in the fridge (overnight if you have time).

Run a knife around the edge of the leche frita to ensure it's not sticking and very quickly turn it out. Cut it into 2 1/2-inch squares.

Beat the eggs.

Heat oil in a frying pan to a depth of around 1/4 inch over medium heat. Add the butter.

Dredge each of the squares in the remaining flour, dip in the beaten egg, and fry in the hot oil for approximately 1 minute on each side, until very lightly golden.

Sieve over powdered cinnamon and serve hot. It is important that the leche frita be at least 3/4-inch thick, or it will be unmanageable when frying or turning.

Carnival Ears Orejas de Carnaval This delicious, crunchy dessert is typical of Orense, capital city of the province of the same name in Galicia. Orejas or "ears" are typically eaten on the Thursday Jueves Lardero (similar to Fat Tuesday).

Anise-flavoured dough is rolled out very thin, then fried and dusted with powdered sugar.

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grated peel of 1 lemon or orange a pinch of salt 1/2 cup (100 gr) butter 7 oz (200 ml) warm water 2 eggs 1.5 oz (50 ml) anise liqueur

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4 cups (500 gr) plain flour 1 1/4 (120 gr) castor sugar castor sugar for decoration cinnamon for decoration (optional) some oil for frying

Rinse, dry and grate the lemon zest into a small bowl and set aside. (Although the white pith is nutritious, it can be bitter, so be sure to only use the yellow part of the peel.)

Prepare the dough. Melt the butter and place it in a large mixing bowl with the salt, warm water, grated lemon peel, anise, sugar and eggs.

Beat the ingredients with a mixer. While beating, add the flour a bit at a time until the batter is smooth and has no lumps. If dough becomes too thick for the electric mixer, finish by mixing by

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hand. Shape into a ball, cover and allow to rest for at least 1 hour, or 2 hours if dough is in the refrigerator. Dough will be sticky and elastic.

Pour oil to a depth of approximately 1/2-inch (1.25 cm) into a large frying pan.

Heat on medium-high.

Drop a small square of bread into the oil, and if it bubbles and fries, oil is ready.

Carefully monitor oil, so it does not smoke.

Wipe rolling pin and counter with oil, so that the dough does not stick. Do not use flour.

Pinch off small pieces of dough, about the size of a walnut. Roll out dough paper-thin. Traditionally, cooks like to pinch or shape the dough to form the shape of an ear.

Carefully drop each one into hot oil as you roll them out. Fry on both sides until they turn a golden color. Remove and allow to drain on a rack or paper towels.

This recipe will make about 20 "ears" approximately 4x5-inches.

Decorate with sugar. Dust the ears with glace sugar, or optionally, a mixture of the sugar and a bit of cinnamon. Serve warm or room temperature.

Tortillas for the famous Canarias Carnaval In the Canary Islands, they prepare small, round sweets drizzled with honey.

They look like fluffy, deep-fried pancakes and remind me of Scotch pancakes.

They are simple to make, and are delicious served warm and drizzled with honey. Enjoy as a dessert or an afternoon snack.

- 3 large eggs - 1 1/3 cups (500 gr) sugar - 1 1/3 cups (200 gr) flour - 1/2 peel lemon - 8 oz (250 ml) milk - 1 3/4 oz (50 ml) anise liqueur - olive oil for frying - 1 stick cinnamon or ground cinnamon - 4-6 oz multiflower Honey Separate the egg whites from the yolks, placing the whites in a large mixing bowl.

Prepare the batter. For best results eggs should be at room temperature, as the whites will beat up faster and fuller. Beat the egg whites to stiff peaks with an electric mixer.

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As the whites begin to stiffen up, begin adding the ingredients one by one, as you are beating. Begin by adding the sugar, yolks and then the flour and anise liqueur. Slowly pour in the milk and last the lemon peel. Allow to stand for 5 minutes.

Fry the tortillas. Pour oil into a medium frying pan to a depth of at least a 1/2 inch. Heat on medium-to-medium high, careful not to burn the oil.

Once the oil is hot enough, use a ladle to pour a small amount of batter into the oil. When the tortillas are golden on one side, carefully turn them over and cook on the other. Remove from pan and drain on a paper towel.

Serve immediately.

Choose to flavor the tortillas with cinnamon in one of two ways: Cinnamon Stick: Pour honey in a small pan or bowl, with the cinnamon stick in it. Heat on stove or in microwave. Drizzle warm honey over the tortillas when serving. Ground Cinnamon: Heat honey, mix in powder and drizzle over tortillas.

Bunuelos de Viento For claiming to have such a healthy Mediterranean diet the same can’t be said of a lot of Spanish desserts that use frying.

As the name implies, these "bunuelos" are light and fluffy as a breeze, and melt in your mouth.

They are perfect for an afternoon snack or dessert and are a typical Spanish dessert and pumpkin flavoured ones are common next month in Valencia for the Fallas. They are lightly fried, and dusted with powdered sugar and/or filled with pastry cream, egg custard or jam.

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1 1/4 cup water 2 Tbsp butter zest of 1 lemon pinch of salt 2 Tbsp granulated sugar 4.5 oz unbleached white flour 1/4 tsp baking powder

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- 4 beaten eggs - 3-4 cups vegetable oil (canola, corn, etc.) for frying - glace sugar for dusting This recipe makes approximately 24 bunuelos.

Pour water, butter, granulated sugar, lemon zest and pinch of salt into a small sauce pan and bring to boil. As soon as the water boils, add the flour and baking powder all at once and begin stirring with a wooden spoon.

Stir constantly until the dough begins to come away from the sides of the pan.

Take off the heat and allow to cool down for a few minutes.

When the dough is no longer hot, but warm, stir in the eggs, one by one. Use a hand mixer if necessary to ensure that the dough is smooth. Set aside for 1.5 to 2 hours.

Pour approximately 1.5 inches vegetable oil into a large heavy-bottomed frying pan. Heat on medium-high. When the oil is just hot enough to fry, begin dropping spoonfuls of dough into the oil. Turn over when bottom is golden. The bunuelos should turn a golden colour and begin to float when cooked. Remove them from the pan one at a time using a slotted spoon or spatula. Allow to drain on a paper towel.

Sprinkle with glace or castor sugar and serve immediately.

Torrijas This “sweet� is traditionally eaten during Lent, the 40-days before Easter.

It is believed that "torrijas" originated in Andalusian convents during the XVth century as a way to use up stale bread. Today it is a popular breakfast food all over Spain. Similar idea to bread pudding or a sweet French Toast. Although torrijas are popular for breakfast, they may be eaten anytime. There are many variations and we've included some at the end of the recipe. The Spanish generally use pan of the day or a French-style baguette, but white bread can be used, too.

- 4-6 slices of stale baguette - 3/4 cup milk - 1 egg aormi@icloud.com

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- vegetable oil for frying, NOT olive oil - 1/8 tsp vanilla extract (optional) - sugar and cinnamon to sprinkle (optional) honey to drizzle (optional)

This torrijas recipe makes 4 servings. Torrijas are also known as rebandas de Carnaval or tortillas de leche.

If you do not have stale bread on hand, lightly toast the sliced bread so that it dries out enough to soak up the milk and not turn to mush.

Pour the milk into a medium-size mixing bowl. Add the egg and beat together.

Add vanilla extract, if desired. Pour enough oil into a large frying pan to cover the bottom and heat on medium.

Be careful that the oil does not burn.

If you are using stale white bread, place one slice in the milk-egg mixture and quickly flip it over with a fork. Make sure that the bowl is next to the frying pan, so you can quickly transfer it from the bowl to the heated pan.

If you use a stale baguette, slices should be at least 1/2 inch thick. If the bread is more than a day old, you may need to soak the bread for 2-3 minutes or more, so that it softens up. Be careful that the bread does not soften so much that it crumbles when you lift it out of the bowl.

Carefully lift the bread out of the mixture and let the excess milk drain before placing the bread in the frying pan. Repeat for each of the other slices.

After 2-3 minutes, check the bottom of the bread. As the slices turn golden, turn each one. You may wish to use a nylon spatula or tongs to turn the slices over.

Make sure that you have enough room in the pan to turn the slices.

Remove each piece from the pan and place on a plate. Sprinkle the top with sugar and cinnamon.

If you prefer, drizzle honey over the top.

Garnish with fresh fruit and serve immediately.

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Asturian Crepes Frixuelos are an Astur-Leonese dish, in other words, originally from the Spanish provinces of Asturias and Leon in northern Spain.

Frixuelos are a simple crepe-like dessert made of flour, milk and eggs, which can be filled with a variety of fillings sweet or salty.

This basic recipe for frixuelos can be prepared on the sweet side, by filling them with whipped cream or egg custard. If you want to prepare the traditional Asturian frixuelos, fill with apple compote, jam or other favourite and serve as dessert.

Scrambled eggs, melted cheese or small chunks of meat can make salty frixuelos.

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1 1/2 cups sifted flour 3 Tbsp granulated sugar 1/2 tsp salt 3 large eggs 16 oz milk 2 Tbsp butter

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Place butter in a small bowl and heat in microwave until melted. To melt on stovetop, put butter in a small saucepan and heat over low heat, being careful not to burn the butter.

Sift together flour, sugar and salt into a large mixing bowl and set aside.

In a medium mixing bowl, beat the eggs until thick. Use a stick blender or hand mixer to make the job easier. Beat in milk and melted butter until well blended.

Add milk-egg mixture to dry ingredients and beat until batter is smooth.

Heat a non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Melt a very small amount of butter in the pan. Using a ladle, pour batter into pan and cook over medium heat until lightly browned on bottom. Turn over and lightly brown other side.

When cooked, transfer to a warm plate. Spoon filling, such as applesauce in center, and roll up. Garnish with orange slices.

Casadielles This is a variation of an Asturian sweet, but using banana and strawberries Ingredients (2 peoples): · 1 sheet of puff-pastry bought in any supermarket · 1 banana · 1/2 apple · 4-5 strawberries · 70 g of walnuts peeled · 3 spoonfuls of sugar · 1 well-beaten egg oil cinnamon For the filling put in a bowl the nuts with the peeled apple and cut in slices. Peel and cut the banana in bits and add to the bowl. Mix all together.

In another bowl put the clean and cut pieces of strawberries, add two spoonfuls of sugar and reserve.

For the casadielles, cut the puff-pastry in 4 squares and smear each with the wellbeaten egg. Place on every square the mixture of fruits and nuts. Enfold the mixture with the puff pastry, smear the edges with egg in order that they remain sealed. Fry the casadielles on both sides in a frying pan with little oil.

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Place the casadielles on a plate; dust with sugar and a bit of c i n n a m o n .

Accompany with the strawberries and decorate with mint leaf.

Dietetic comment The combination of fresh fruits and nuts offers an assortment of vitamins C and A plus minerals like potassium, zinc and iron, as well as polyunsaturated acids. The utilization of puff pastry increases the content in calories, so a moderate consumption is recommended.

Toffee Apples - Manzana de caramelo Place the apples in a large bowl, then cover with boiling water (you may have to do this in 2 batches). This will remove the waxy coating and help the caramel to stick. Dry thoroughly and twist off any stalks. Push a wooden skewer or lolly stick into the stalk end of each apple.

Lay out a sheet of baking parchment and place the apples on this, close to your stovetop. Tip the sugar into a pan along with 100ml water and set over a medium heat. Cook for 5 mins until the sugar dissolves, then stir in the vinegar and syrup. Set a sugar thermometer in the pan and boil to 150C or 'hard crack' stage. If you don’t have a thermometer you can test the toffee by pouring a little into a bowl of cold water. It should harden instantly and, when removed, be brittle and easy to break. If you can still squish the toffee, continue to boil it.

Working quickly and carefully, dip and twist each apple in the hot toffee until covered, let any excess drip away, then place on the baking parchment to harden.

You may have to heat the toffee a little if the temperature drops and it starts to feel thick and viscous. Leave the toffee to cool before eating. Can be made up to 2 days in advance, stored in a dry place.

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Bookshelf

by Pat Hynd Have a Laff A comic novel is usually a work of fiction in which the writer seeks to amuse the reader, sometimes with subtlety and as part of a carefully woven narrative, sometimes above all other considerations. It could indeed be said that comedy fiction is literary work that aims primarily to provoke laughter, but this isn't always as obvious as it first may seem. So as we tend to be in a carnival mood here is brief look at some of last year’s humorous books that looked at life with a clown’s eye.

YOU’RE NEVER WIERD ON THE INTERNET (almost) by Felicia Day is available in hardback version but with Kindle for example is available as a mix of an audiobook spoken by the authoress has a look at everyday events based on her life.

WHY NOT ME? by Mindy Kaling who shares her ongoing journey to find contentment and excitement in her adult life, whether it’s falling in love at work, seeking new friendships in lonely places, attempting to be the first person in history to lose weight without any behavior modification whatsoever, or most important, believing that you have a place in Hollywood when you’re constantly reminded that no one looks like you.

In Furiously Happy, #1 New York Times bestselling author Jenny Lawson explores her lifelong battle with mental illness. A hysterical, ridiculous book about crippling depression and anxiety? That sounds like a terrible idea but you can listen .

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Pop culture phenomenon, social rights advocate, and the most prominent LGBTQ + voice on YouTube, Tyler Oakley brings you his first collection of witty, personal, and hilarious essays written in the voice that’s earned him more than 21 million followers across social media.

Yes, My Accent Is Real shares stories of Nayyar’s life, from his early years growing up in New Delhi to landing the role of his dreams as misfit astrophysicist Raj on the hit series, The Big Bang Theory. He introducess fans to his James Bond-loving father who gave him some expert advice (“And, when in doubt, use a spreadsheet”), describe his very awkward first kiss and talk all about his extravagant wedding to a former Miss India in a chapter called “My Big Fat Indian Wedding.” Born in London but brought up in New Delhi, he says he has cleaned toilets in Portland, mugged in Philadelphia for 76 cents and his first acting role was as a terrorist on TV., My name is “J” and I’m awkward—and black. Someone once told me those were the two worst things anyone could be. That someone was right. Where do I start?

Being an introvert in a world that glorifies cool isn’t easy. But when Issa Rae, the creator of the Shorty Award–winning hit series “The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl,” is that introvert—whether she’s navigating love, work, friendships, or “rapping”—it sure is entertaining. Now, in this debut collection of essays written in her witty and self-deprecating voice, Rae covers everything from cybersexing in the early days of the Internet to deflecting unsolicited comments on weight gain, from navigating the perils of eating out alone and public displays of affection to learning to accept yourself—natural hair and all.

A reflection on her own unique experiences as a cyber pioneer yet universally appealing, The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl is a book no one—awkward or cool, black, white, or other—will want to miss.

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Brittany Gibbons has been a plus size her whole life. But instead of hiding herself in the shadows of thinner women, Brittany became a wildly popular blogger and national spokesmodel—known for stripping on stage at TedX and standing in Times Square in a bikini on national television, and making skinny people everywhere uncomfortable. She shares hilarious and painfully true stories about her life as a weird overweight girl growing up in rural Ohio, struggling with dating and relationships, giving the middle finger to dieting, finding love with a man smaller than her, accidentally having three kids, and figuring out the secret to loving her curves and becoming a nationally recognized body image advocate. And there’s sex, lots of it! Fat Girl Walking isn’t a diet book. It isn’t one of those former fat people memoirs about how someone battled, and won, in the fight against fat. Brittany doesn’t lose all the weight and reveal the happy, skinny girl that’s been hiding inside her. Instead, she reminds us that being chubby doesn’t mean you’ll end up alone, unhappy, or the subject of a cable medical show. What’s important is learning to love your shape. With her infectious humor and soul-baring honesty, Fat Girl Walking reveals a life full of the same heartbreak, joy, oddity, awkwardness, and wonder as anyone else’s. Just with better snacks.

In I Hate Myselfie, Shane steps away from his larger-than-life Internet persona and takes us deep into the experiences of an eccentric and introverted kid, who by observing the strange world around him developed a talent that would inspire millions of fans.

Intelligent, hilarious, heartbreaking, and raw, I Hate Myselfie is a collection of eighteen personal essays about how messy life can get when you’re growing up and how rewarding it can feel when the clean-up is (pretty much) done.

As host of the bawdy cult-hit, “You Deserve a Drink,” Hart has been entertaining viewers with her signature concoction of tasty libations and raunchy puns since 2011. Finally, Hart has compiled her best drinking stories—and worst hangovers—into one hilarious volume. From the spring break where she and her girlfriends avoided tan lines by staying at an all-male gay nudist resort, to the bachelorette party where she accidentally hired a sixty year old meth head to teach the group pole dancing, to the time she lit herself on fire during a Flaming Lips concert, Hart accompanies each story with an original cocktail recipe, ensuring that You Deserve a Drink is as useful as it is entertaining. aormi@icloud.com

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Our Man in Madrid - Joaquín Albaladejo The carnival spirit seemed to be to the fore when the new Spanish Congress opened in January as new delegates took their seats and made their promises in various idioms of regions, one arriving determined to make a point as she breastfed her baby even though there is a nursery attached.

History repeated itself after almost a hundred years when Torrevieja and the Vega Baja had another local take his place as a delegate. In the past Joaquin Chaprietta (1871 - 1951) helped the town and the area when he was in the parliament and now another Joaquin - Joaquín Albaladejo - will represent the area for the next four years. A number of local people travelled to Madrid to support the new delegate.

Joaquin has been a councilman of Torrevieja for almost nine years mainly responsible for the finances but as he speaks English was always available to deal with any problems relating to foreigners in the town. As he can’t have two political offices he has resigned from the local council and will be replaced by another member of the Partido Popular,J osé Eduardo Gil Rebollo, one of the veterans of Torrevieja council.

Joaquín Albaladejo offered the mayor , Jose Manuel Dolón, his support in bringing any matters relating to Torrevieja to the fore in the Congress. His training as a lawyer will help him in his new post and we would like to offer him our congratulations in his future work.

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Mental Health -ADIEM

by Dave Stewart

WATCHING the annual floral procession during the patronal fiestas in December one cannot be but impressed by the amount of associations registered in the Torrevieja. They show the spirit of solidarity that sees to be a mark of the town. Many of them are associations that never appear in the British media because they are Spanish based. Part of the ethos of Torrevieja Outlook is to increase integration and share information about solidarity. Not everyone is treated by doctors and often associations like ADIEM present a lifeline so here we have a brief look at a group that deals with mental health problems.

In 1997 ADIEM was inaugurated in Orihuela (Alicante), by a group of people concerned about mental health. They felt it necessary for sharing needs and worries of relatives with problems of mental health. They were meetings in cafeterias and private houses, without aormi@icloud.com

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economic means or materials. These initial steps proved beneficial and opened the way for a more stable organisation.

Nowadays, those who form ADIEM are those with problems of mental illness, their relatives, professionals and professionals within the sector, who work in a joint way for the fulfilment of the Social Laws providing support to improve the patient’s quality of life and his/her personal autonomy. ADIEM was officially instituted on June 2, 2011. I ADIEM belongs to the Federation Valencian Feafes Comunidad and to the Confereración Española of Groups of Relatives and Sick Mental (FEAFES) in which it has an active participation.

In April 2016, the World Bank Group and the World Health Organization will co-host a high-level meeting on global mental health, with a focus on depression and anxiety, to coincide with the 2016 Spring Meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank Group.

The World Health Organization (WHO), defines Mental disorders as comprising a broad range of problems, with different symptoms. However, they are generally characterized by some combination of abnormal thoughts, emotions, behaviour and relationships with others. Examples are schizophrenia, depression, intellectual disabilities and disorders due to drug abuse. Most of these disorders can be successfully treated. The concept of mental health is also related to the promotion of the well-being, the prevention of mental disorders and the treatment, rehabilitation and recovery of the persons to mental illness.

It is possible to say, therefore, that mental health is one more aspect of the well-being of every person. Something of that we have to take care, pay attention and confront if we think that we are before a problem of mental health covering a range of everyday problems as listed above. Unfortunately, some of these if not treated with compassion can lead to suicide.

A couple of month ago we wrote about the history of the Spanish Cajas saving banks, which supported community ideals and organisations. On Friday November 27, the Caixa " welfare and social section delivered a car to ADIEM, bought thanks to the help of 8.000 €, that "laCaixa" has granted. The vice-president of ADIEM, Eduardo Riesco, spoke of the gratitude to "laCaixa" for the donated vehicle since " it will facilitate and increase the displacements in the activities of leisure and free time and in the domiciliary supports that the professionals do in ADIEM's different services, something that we saw increasingly necessary for the users' increase and for the type of activities of community participation that we carry out. " TORREVIEJA C/ La Paz, 194, bajo 03182 – Torrevieja (Alicante) Tfno: 966 70 52 94 Fax: 964 78 34 92 adiem@adiem.org aormi@icloud.com

ORIHUELA Pza de Torrevieja, Blq. I, bajo 03300 – Orihuela (Alicante) Tfno: 966 34 23 40 Fax: 964 78 34 92 adiem@adiem.org

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BENIDORM - COSTA BLANCA FAVOURITE

BY DAVE STEWART

Benidorm is considered as the leading holiday resort on the Spanish Mediterranean coastline. “Open all hours” could be the motto for this bustling town that is the most popular place for Spaniards and foreigners because of its lovely sandy beaches, a full ongoing almost 24-hour leisure programme in the public and private spheres. The town authorities deliberately set out to build new high-rise apartments and hotel based resort and so the town changed from a little fishing village of men who took their ships to sea looking for tuna. The town is now in two parts, the old “village” and the modern upmarket Benidorm that has restaurants offering a gastronomy that covers every international taste. Located between Alicante and Valencia airports with links by rail and motorway it was every Spaniards dream holiday destination.

Principally looking for the sea, sand and sun visitors soon found that there is a wide range of other activities and places to visit. Nearby are theme parks of Terra Mitica and Terra Natura, with Mundomar close by. Several golf courses are within minutes drive and the town has a wide sporting calendar with many nautical events. Tour operators have many bus excursions to visit many of the smaller and attractive towns in the area such as Altea, noted for its pleasant appearance and attractions to painters. Or inland the most visited place in Spain, apart from the Prado Museum in Madrid, is the mountain top town of Guadalest with a lake that now offers in season solar powered boats. Or visit the chocolate town of Villajoyosa or the capital of Alicante in one direction and the regional city of Valencia in the north. Although the town has international restaurants the local gastronomy still matches the harvest of the sea with the harvest of the fields and mountains with a rich variety of recipes, many using Valencian grown rice such as the nationally famed paella. With so many hotels and other attractions of music and nightclubs, the famous Benidorm Palace, it is an ideal resort that is used for business and other conference. Because of the benign climate the town is open for business all year round and open all hours. aormi@icloud.com

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As befitting a remarkable holiday resort, Benidorm has a full programme of Spanish flavoured celebrations throughout the year; over 50 festivities of some kind or other. It has to be stated that fiestas were not a result of the tourist industry, but many of them have been traditional breaks from work for centuries, customs often being handed down from generation to generation. In some instance fiestas have been ‘imported’ from other parts of Spain by people who have immigrated and brought with them their own customs, such as Andulacians with flamenco style celebrations who came north looking for work.

These are some of the principal events that would interest tourists as such.

JANUARY: On the 5th January, the Cabalgata of Los Reyes takes place: this is the cavalcade of the Three Kings as they arrive with gifts for all the family and to bear homage to the Child Jesus.

Saint Antony Abad is the patron saint of animals and this feast is held with a blessing of pets on 17th.

FEBRUARY: The Carnival is a floating date as it depends on Easter, but is usually held in February and into March. This is a time to forget the blues of winter and put on a fancy costume to take to the streets for a crazy communal carnival.

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MARCH: 16th Is a religious procession when the statue of the Virgen del Sufragio is carried through the streets of the old part of Benidorm. In 2010 the 270th anniversary of this particular devotion was celebrated, dating back from the 16th March 1740. These festivities include a romeria led by a pair of oxen pulling a cart and children singing typical couplets in praise of the Virgen..

FALLAS are bonfires and this peculiar Valencian fiesta is held in Benidorm between the 16th and 19th March in honour of Saint Joseph (Spanish Father’s Day). The wood and papier-mâche figures or ninots are set on fire on the 19th. Usually there are three sites each with a large hoguera and one for children. The children’s are the first to be set alight followed at midnight by the main ones. These are usually located in the Rincon de Loix, Benidorm Central, and at Els Tolls.

MARCH/APRIL: Depending on the full moon the dates for Holy Week (Semana Santa) are most often held in April. Each night of this week there are long processions of fraternities escorting floats depicting the last days of Jesus.

In recent years the ‘Mig any’ or middle of the year celebrations of the Moors and Christians have taken place at the Ermita de Sanz in the first week of April.

MAY: 1st May is a public holiday and in Benidorm the ‘Festa de la Creu’ (Feast of the Cross), which is a very popular devotion in the Alicante province, takes place with processions held through the streets.

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JUNE: Many people from Andalucia came to this part of Spain and brought with them some of their customs. In Benidorm they continue to hold the fiesta of Corpus Christi with all the flamboyant flair of the flamenco with its colour and joy.

San Juan Hogueras are similar to the March Fallas. For three days the monuments of the hogueras are set up as street centres for nightly dancing, music and feasting, before they are set on fire on the night of the Crema on 24th, the feast of St. John the Baptist.

JULY: This is one of the busiest months of the year with so many visitors but there is still time to enjoy the bull running on the 6th & 7th in honour of San Fermin, so no need to go to Pamplona.

16th July is a day when the fishermen and sailors dedicate their lives and safety to the Virgen del Carmen with a colourful maritime procession of garlanded boats.

25th of this month is a highlight of the year as Benidorm’s patron saint, San Jaime, is celebrated with various events and a firework display in the evening.

AUGUST: There may be no official fiestas this month, but there is a continuous variety of cultural acts during the Verano Cultural programme celebrated in the Parque de L’Aigüera and the auditoriums of Julio Iglesias and Oscar Esplá. The town council has decided to attract international artistes to give concerts and in this way advertise Benidorm.

SEPTEMBER: The 7th and 8th of this month are days when most towns celebrate some feast dedicated to the Virgen Mary. In Benidorm these dates are celebrated by the Feria de Asturias organised by hundreds of residents from that region who now live in Benidorm. aormi@icloud.com

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Not to be outdone the Benidorm residents who come from Castilla-la Mancha celebrate the Fiesta de la Vendimia.

OCTOBER: Moors & Christians are one of the most spectacular sights along the Valencian coastline and this month these noisy, colourful, smoke filled fiestas are the centre of attraction in Benidorm. There are several staple acts such as the entrance of the different groups, the gaudy costumes in the processions of proud warriors and beautiful women, the discourse of the ambassadors of the opposing forces and the disembarkation of the Moors opposed by the Christians in battle.

The 9th of the month is the regional date of the Valencian Community and a public holiday in the whole area with a market of typical products of the Valencian region.

From 9 - 12 of this month the Festa del Roser is held centred around the Ermita de Sanz.

NOVEMBER: Most of the summer tourists have departed so it is time for the people of Benidorm to relax and enjoy the fruits of the summer as they celebrate the Patronal Fiestas in honour of San Jaime and the Virgen del Sufragio. These take place from the second weekend of the month until the following Wednesday, each day full of splendorous fun. There are certain acts that are repeated each year including the finding of the statue of the Virgen, the Floral Offering, the carnival style parade, the procession of gaily decorated carts and carriages and a tremendous fireworks display on the last night.

The fun doesn’t stop as on the third weekend of November the ‘Festa de la Carxofa’ takes place in the old part of town in a traditional and popular spirit.

DECEMBER: The run up to Christmas starts with a holiday on 8th December, the Immaculate Conception, but the main celebrations are between the 20th to the end of the year. There is a full Christmas season of concerts, staged events and a ‘Best Crib Competition’. A traditional end to the year is held as the clock chimes in the new year at the Plaza Triangular with customary free champagne and grapes.

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Like New York, Benidorm is famous for its skyline of high buildings. In 1956 the town made a General Urban Plan that decided as there was not a lot of land in the municipal area for development the idea became a reality to reach for the skies and build upwards.

This meant that more people, residents and holiday makers, could be accommodated in a small area.

The tourism was largely geared towards the town's lovely beaches, but soon developed its own holiday style with lots of hotels with swimming pools, bars, restaurants and

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leisure activities - all an attraction to tourists. The plan included a number of areas allocated for hotels and self-catering apartment blocks of various categories to attract tourists of all types. Unfortunately in recent years this has resulted in a bad reputation as cheapie holidays attracting a type of person who was out to enjoy himself (or herself) and to hell with everyone else. This is something that must be addressed as hotels are aware that the incidents and brawls caused by these type of holiday makers damages the reputation of the town and may keep other people who away who may or may not spend more per capita.

Five of the tallest buildings that make up this skyline are these.

GRAN HOTEL BALI The Gran Bali is split into adjoining two buildings. The tallest has an elevation of 186m - the tallest hotel in Spain and in Europe with an impressive 776 guest-rooms, located in La Cala, near Poniente Beach. Every year there is a race up the stairs of this giant that has a huge exotic lagoon-style’ swimming pool plus other pools set aside for adults and children separately.

The Gran Bali Hotel’s height has proved irresistible to extreme sport addicts and for several years the BASE Jump Extreme World Championships have been held there.

TORRE LÚGANO BUILDING The second highest building in Benidorm is a residential complex in an exclusive area of the popular Playa Levante completed in June 2008. The 204 apartments in the Siskin Tower are distributed over 48 floors reaching a height of 148 metres.

Part of the General Plan tower blocks must have an area of garden around them. This building boasts a magnificent 8,500m2 of green landscaping complete with children’s play areas, paddle courts and several swimming pools.

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THE EDIFICIO NEGURI GANE The 148-metre Neguri Gane building on Avenida de Municipal near Levante Beach features a swimming pool on the 26th of its 43 floors and at night its roof changes colour! How cool is that!

Designed by architect Pérez-Guerras the Neguri Gane building was completed in 2002 and unusually the base of the building measures just 27 x 22 metres. The name Neguri Gane is Euskadi for ‘Highest of the winter city’, which refers to the district of Neguri in Guecho. Thee is a swimming pool on the 26th floor and the Basque connection is through the architects Pérez-Guerras Arquitectos & Ingenieros y Julio Pérez Gegundez.

THE EDIFICIO KRONOS The Kronos Building is a residential building, built

by Grupo Garcia Ojeda and located at Playa de Levante on Calle del Municipi. There are 41 stores

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and reaches a height of 145 metres. There are fantastic views over the town and its beaches.

EDIFICIO INTEMPO No list of Benidorm’s tallest buildings would be complete without a mention of the biggest of them all, still not finished. Europe’s tallest residential skyscraper, the In Tempo building in Benidorm (Alicante), is going on sale. A courthouse has approved a liquidation plan drafted by the builder, Olga Urbana SL, which filed for bankruptcy before completing the landmark structure. Said to be modelled on a signature ‘M’ in remembrance of the ‘11M’ Madrid terrorist attack victims, the building’s twin towers feature copper windows and a bridging distinctive cone forming the ‘M’.

The project was started at the height of the property boom in a city that has come to represent all the excesses of real estate development on the Mediterranean coast. Until the first 23 floors were built, it did not occur to managers to set up a freight elevator. The twin towers with the connecting cone started going up in 2006, but were plagued by troubles from the beginning. The 41 workers had to trek up and down the stairs carrying equipment in their arms. In another widely reported incident, 13 workers were injured when the freight elevator that was finally constructed collapsed. The ambulances were unable to access the site because no vehicle entrance had been built in order to save money.

In December 2012, with 94 percent of the building completed and 35 percent of units sold, Spain’s so-called “bad bank,” the Sareb, announced that it was taking on the loan that a savings bank had extended to the developer. Other creditors include Banco Sabadell and Abanca.

But even that has not been enough to save In Tempo. While there is no official asking price, the building has been assessed as worth €90 million.

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Benidorm has the reputation of partying all day with all night resellers eating an English breakfast then toddling down to the lovely beaches to sleep it off. There are plenty of places for nightlife, far too long to produce here. Many of the main super nightclubs are situated along the same road, the Avenida Communitat Valenciana and easy to reach from most hotels, a taxi will set you back less than ten euros. A lot of night places continue to operate during the day as restaurants or bingo halls. The town caters for all ages and all tastes. The most popular thing to do is go shopping, either rummaging around the old part of the town or going to one of the hypermarkets in the area.

Then there is always the beach and many marine related sports.

Poniente Beach length - 3,100 metres At more than 3km long Poniente Beach is the longest beach in Benidorm, making it an ideal place to stroll along during the day or evening. Poniente Beach is usually much quieter than the nearby Levante beach, and features a new modern promenade designed by the architect Carlos Ferrater, and a wide selection of restaurants, bars and clubs for visitors to enjoy.

Levante Beach Running for almost 2km from Punta Pinet to Punta Canfali, Levante Beach in Benidorm is perhaps one of the best known beaches in Europe. Levante Beach is south facing, so enjoys the sun all day, and it's fine golden sand bathed by the calm waters of the Mediterranean, makes it a very popular destination.

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Cala Mal Pas Cala Mal Pas is the name given to the small cove that separates the two main beaches in Benidorm. It is situated between Punta Canfali and the port, and at only 120 metres long, it's fine golden sand offers a visitors a quieter and more relaxed atmosphere.

Cala Tio Ximo - 60 metres long Cala Tio Ximo is situated at the base of steep cliffs of the Sierra Helada, to the north of Benidorm. This is a small cove where visitors can escape from the hustle and bustle of Benidorm's busier beaches.

Combining fine sand and rock, this cove is ideal for snorkeling, as it has crystal clear waters, where you can view the beautiful rocky seabed.

Cala Almadrava - 100 metres length.

Cala Almadrava lies at the foot of the Sierra Helada mountains, where its calm, clear waters, along with its rocky seabed and abundant marine life, have made it a popular place for snorkeling and swimming.

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Its modern nightclubs and 160 disco-pubs are a reflection of the vibrant nightlife to be enjoyed in the town, with venues to suit all tastes be it on the Levante beach promenade, old town, the rincon de loix area, or the national N322 road on the outskirts direction towards Altea, where the main discos are located for a night of nonstop enjoyment.

The popularly known ‘English Zone', which includes the streets Gerona, Ibiza, Mallorca andLondon, submerge visitors into another world. Dozens of places where cider and beer flow and where you can listen to the sounds of the latest hits, live music, and people of all nationalities enjoy themselves well into the early hours.

Last year the Benidorm council, backed by the local commercial association, agreed to put a ban all-in package holiday for hotels in the town. An estimated 20% of hotels offer these types of packages, but insist they finish at 23:00. Trouble is that hard drinkers tend to go our on the streets then. Really it is up to tourists to behave themselves and if they get drunk and robbed who is to blame? Staff of the British Consulate in Alicante has held talks with various mayors of holiday resorts on how to deal with several issues regarding British tourists to the Costa Blanca.

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The range of sports will suit all tastes and segments including families, young people, groups or couples. With non-stop activities for a memorable holiday and whether you want to engage in light sports or enjoy an action-packed adventure, Benidorm is the place to be.

Paintball, 4x4 route, paragliding, high rope courses, climbing Riding lessons, dressage and long rides through breath-talking landscapes (Benidorm Horse riding club) Three golf courses with stunning views of Mediterranean Sport facilities, available for: tennis, paddle, squash, athletics, basketball, Valencian “pilote”, volleyball, handball, “frontón” and petanque, football or beach volleyball.

Then there is hiking, the natural park of Sierra Helada, The various organised routes will unlock the secrets of its coves, its fauna and flora, to visit the Albir lighthouse or head out to Punta del Cavallo. For the more adventurous, the crossing of the Serra Gelada is perfect for hiking, with a distance of 8 km and a duration of about 4 hours.

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JeepTour Benidorm - Marco Polo Expediciones A full day of adventure and fun driving through the Costa Blanca’s beautiful and rough and green countryside. If you choose to participate as a passenger, you will be picked up at your hotel by one of our professional drivers with a comfortable 8 passenger seated Santana Anibal all terrain vehicle.

But if you want to experience this adventure driving yourself, bring your drivers license and try one of our 4x4 Suzuki jeeps. Get ready for some spectacular tracks through mountains and valleys, forgotten villages, deep canyons, an idyllic turquoise reservoir and a jungle like riverbed.

The Cable-Ski Benidorm is located so that it leads directly into the sea. You can find them on the Benidorm Levante beach, Rincon de Loix area, just 100 metres away from the sand, beside the Hotel Nadal.

Here you can practise your favourite discipline: wakeboard, slalom, ski, kneeboard, etc…

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Equitación Hípica Rancho Sierra Helada Horse riding and excursions Teléfono: 692506618

As a coastal town, Benidorm offers an endless variety and possibilities of water sports: sailing, parapenting, kayaking, kite surf, cable ski or scuba diving. If you dare, you can practice skiing, mono skiing, figures or the latest: wakeboarding, from a platform located out to sea on Levante where they await you from Easter to October.

If you want to learn about the hidden secrets of the sea bed, initiate this new adventure in the small coves with transparent waters. If you already know about the pleasures of diving, then you must visit small island of Benidorm. A dive you will not forget in a marine reserve with a large number of protected species.

Excursions by boat to the Island of Benidorm are on offer. The leaving point is the port of the town and, if the weather helps, they are usually offered all year round. The trip duration is of 20 minutes approximately and, when you arrive to the Island, a special ship with underwater sea life observation takes you around the island for its seabeds to be appreciated.

Golf aormi@icloud.com

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Between the mountains and the sea you can find everything you need to play amateur or professional Golf, in contact with nature. There are many easily reached golf courses on the Costa Blanca.

They are courses of great quality and beauty, designed and prepared to host sport competitions and events from Europe and the rest of the world.

The Club de Golf Las Rejas is a Pitch & Putt. 9 par-3 holes, located in the Poniente beach in Benidorm and integrated into the village, in PP6 / 01 Xixo behind the Vicente Pérez Devesa Avenue, height Mediterranean Institute, just over 1,000 meters from the beach .

It is the perfect field where to start practicing this sport and ideal for experienced players hone your short game. Golf - Meliá Villaitana was designed by the USA professional champion Jack Nicklaus.

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The city is very well connected with all the major cities of the Valencian Community, so if you’re going to visit Benidorm, get ready for a few actionpacked days and tons of adventure.

Are you a thrill seeker? Do you enjoy experiencing new sensations?

Make sure you take a trip to Terra MĂ­tica, Terra Natura, Mundomar or Aqualandia theme parks. Amongst the top things to do in Benidorm, theme parks are most certainly an excellent choice suitable for all audiences.

Nevertheless, if you’re aiming for a more relaxing kind of holidays to disconnect from the stressing routine, lying on a beach feeling the warm sun rays on your skin sounds like a marvellous idea as well.

Even at the end of the year you will love bringing in a New Year on the beach and watch stupendous fireworks and eating grapes on the beach.

Benidorm has something for everyone, no matter your age, no matter your interests.

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50 Years Fair Sailing The nautical leisure industry at the end of the 20th century has meant a tremendous increase in the number of marinas, including three in Torrevieja, where there is the Real Club NĂĄutico, the Marina International, both regularly flying the coveted Blue Flag awarded to marinas with the best facilities and the Q flag for Quality; the Marina Salinas was built in 2007 and is being developed as a leisure zone with several first rate restaurants and bars. .

The Club Nautico was built almost in the centre of the small beach in front of the paseo Vista Alegre. This area was used by local fishermen for their small huts and nearer the Eras de la Sal was the lifesavers hut with its boat. With the finalization of the harbour walls it was obvious that more use of the harbour had to be developed. The Miramar restaurant was at that time only a fishermen’s bar and is now the tourist centre.

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The Club was the idea of several local men in 1967 and four of them travelled to Albacete to see an architect, Manolo Carmona, who offered to do the work for free, backed by his father in law D. Alvaro Botella. His design was a typical Mediterranean one and once a loan had been raised with the Caja de Montserrate, the precursor of the CAM Bank, the work was carried out under the direction of D. Domingo de la Villa and the company Estructuras Reticulares Domo.

The Minister of the Exterior, Gregorio Lopez, and minister of the Marina Bravo Nieto Antúnez, inaugurated the Real Club Naútico on 30 May 1969 and it was blessed by the parish priest D. Patrocino Villagordo Zapata. It was a meaningful event as the title of royalty came from the present king’s grandfather, the Duke of Bourbon, Don Juan de Bourbon y Battenberg, who was a frequent visitor to the town and granted this title to the nautical club. His yacht, the “Giralda”, was converted to a Navy training ship after his death. He visited the Marina International and one of its quays bears this name, as does the salon of the Casino. The “Giralda” visited Torrevieja harbour in 1992 during the fiestas of the Virgen del Carmen, the image passed the yacht to the sound of the typical gunpowder salute.

Years later his grandson, King Felipe VI, during his military service, served at San Javier base and was often seen visiting restaurants in Torrevieja. A regular visitor to Torrevieja as a child was Letizia Ortega, the prince’s future wife, whose grandparents had a holiday home in town. Another celebrated visitor was General Franco who arrived on board his yacht “Azor” in March 1962. In 2008 there was a project mooted to demolish the club and move it further along the harbour wall, an idea that met with a great deal of opposition.

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Over the years the club has become a centre not only for nautical events, but also for art exhibitions and other cultural events, many with a strong support for local charitable organizations. There are several regattas held throughout the yearly programme and members compete in other ones not only in Spain but abroad. There is a strong rowing team that competes at national level and can be

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seen in June in a race against local fishermen in the harbour. A prime intention has to been to keep alive the sea traditions as well as introducing the joys of sailing to young people and the club supports several schools related to these.

The number of berths has more than doubled over the years and two other marinas built ensuring Torrevieja as one of the major leisure centres for yachting on the Mediterranean. There is also a quay for moto-bikes.

Children are encouraged to participate in many events such as the sailing competition in January for the t r o p h y Roscon de R e y e s .

Fishing is an important element for c l u b aormi@icloud.com

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members with a variety of competitions of different types of fishing.

The Real Club Nautico is also a social one with many yearly celebrations that this year have a vey distinctive anniversary flavour such as a gala dinner on 25 June. There is a restaurant open to visitors, which has an excellent cuisine and may be hired out on occasions. Each year a Queen Mermaid La Sirena is elected, although the present one has worn her tail for three years now. The club also produces a full colour magazine that is now more than 70 editions.

Among facilities are gymnasium, swimming pool and a shop as well as an excellent webpage.

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The Real Club Nautico has great respect for environmental issues that have meant that they have been awarded the prestigious Blue Flag award each year since 1992. Another enterprise is that of releasing turtles that have been rescued and rehabilitated.

“SENSACIONES NÁUTICAS” is a section that promotes various offers such as an

introduction to sailing for youngsters, windsurfing, kayaking, talks and courses including English.

2016 marks the club’s 50th anniversary with a full programme of events including an exhibition and a book and audiovisual presentation to be made in February 2017. At the end of January 2016 is an international regatta attracting

What began as an amateur club has become a prestigious professional sailing and social club that looks forward to another fifty years of service to Torrevieja and is marine traditions. aormi@icloud.com

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Laza Carnival Tradition

One of the weirdest but traditional carnival events is held in Galicia.

It is an area that has held tight to its rural and spiritual past. In part, this stems from much of the region’s economic dependence on traditional agriculture based on small landholdings called minifundios. One of these places is Laza where men dressed up in grinning masks and outlandish costumes, with cowbells tied to their belts and brandishing sticks, Os Peliqueiros take to the streets on Carnival Sunday. They are licensed to lash out at onlookers, who are forbidden to retaliate. On Carnival Monday a battle takes place, with flour, water and live ants used as ammunition. Laza's carnival comes to an end on the Tuesday with a reading of the satirical 'Donkey's Will' and the burning of an effigy. aormi@icloud.com

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History in Black and White

by Andy Ormiston

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Flight of the Dragon

During the Second Republic in Spain many factions grew up and sides began to be taken.

With the Republican government taking a stand against discontents such as the miners, some influential disillusioned CEDA party members started hatching a coup d'ĂŠtat with military officers, aristocrats and business entrepreneurs, which encompassed a plan to extricate Franco from his "exile" in the Canary Islands.

On 6th July 1936 the director of the Madrid 'ABC' newspaper, Juan Ignacio Luca de Tena, phoned his London correspondent, Luis BolĂ­n Bidwell, from Biarritz with instructions to arrange a British aircraft to pick up General Franco clandestinely from Tenerife to Ceuta, if possible, to once again lead the North African troops intended to spearhead the rebellion against the Republican government.

Madrid Museum of the Air and Dragon Rapide

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BolĂ­n met pro-Hitlerite, Douglas Jerrold, editor of English Review magazine, in Simpsons-inthe-Strand restaurant where the basic plan evolved. Luis Bolin spoke perfect English, having been educated at Stonyhurst College in Lancashire.

Another right wing accomplice was Captain Hugh Pollard, who decided to involve his daughter Diana and her friend Dorothy Watson as camouflage for the flight. Pilot Captain Cecil Bebb, a Welshman who flew a De Havilland Dragon Rapide for Olley Airlines, was contracted and was only told that the flight would be to pick up a Rif chieftain from Tenerife and take him to Morocco. So the English, appearing to be a holiday group, flew with Bebb and Bolin who had received expenses of two thousand pounds from Kleinworts Bank supplied by Juan March, who also assured Franco that he would take care of his family financially if the plan failed. The Duke of Alba

undertook to replace the plane if it was destroyed. On the 11th July flight GACYR of Olley Airline flew from Croyden airport with a crew of pilot Bebb, an unknown radio operator, plus engineer George Bryers, Bolin plus the three English passengers on a pleasure Captain Hugh trip.

Pollard was an It was a tortuous eventful flight authority on picking up the Marques de Merito in guns and hunting France who took the seat of the engineer who then flew alone on a commercial French flight to rejoin the party at Casablanca. There obviously was a problem with the radio operator who was considered a drunk, but also was suspected of being a Republican sympathizer as he had tried to communicate with Spanish airfields. In the event

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Inshot - Croydon airport Casablanca was a hotbed of spies

he was dumped at Casablanca where drunkenly he was put on a slow moving merchant ship and the British Consul took charge of the radio.

Bolin was aware that Pollard had connections with the British Intelligence services and possibly Pollard put pressure on the consul for assistance. In fact Hugh Pollard was an agent of MI6 according to recent declassified files and could speak excellent Spanish and had already worked in Mexico, Ireland and Morocco under the cover of a journalist and has several books to his credit. So undoubtedly British Intelligence knew all about the flight, especially as they oversaw the comings and goings of people at Croydon airport, at that time the main airfield for London.

On 12th July the de Havilland had a stopover near Lisbon and Bolin and the Marquis held talks with exiled General Sanjurjo, who was expected to lead the rebellion. On the same day the party arrived in Casablanca and Bolin told Bebb to prepare for the flight to Tenerife, but Bebb insisted that the engines required overhauling and the flight was put off until 15th. Bolin could not travel to Spain without being noticed so stayed at Casablanca while the English group travelled to Las Palmas. From there Pollard and his friends went by boat to meet up with a Spanish doctor who was to pass on the coded message "Galicia sends greetings to Franco". Meanwhile back at the hotel Bebb and Bryers were being interviewed by men of General Orgaz about why they were on the island, to which they steadfastly said they were waiting for a group of tourists. On the same day, 16th July, General Balmes died on the island, supposedly the result of a firearm accident. This was the excuse General Franco used to go to las Palmas to investigate the officer's death and preside at the funeral, which took place at midday with local military and civilian VIPs present. In the afternoon Franco visited several military camps before returning to the Hotel Madrid. Rumors of aormi@icloud.com

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Franco in the centre with his officers at Tenerife

an uprising became ever stronger and the local commandant was told to keep eye on Franco. Once again Bebb and Pollard were interviewed by General Orgaz's men.

On 18th July General Solans announced that the insurrection had been successful in Melilla. Franco had already sent his wife and daughter by the German steamship "Waldi" to Lisbon and the English trio left at the same time by boat to return home. Franco then arranged to go by ship to where the de Havilland was based, but at the last moment was spotted and some Assault Guards fired over his head trying to prevent him from boarding the aircraft. A false passport was given to Franco, who had shaved off his moustache and donned civilian clothing. At 14.33 the Dragon Rapide took off taking Franco to Morocco arriving at 21.00. He was met by Bolin, who persuaded him to stay there overnight, sharing his room. The Marques de Merito warned Bolin that an armed group of soldiers was waiting to arrest Franco on his arrival, so an alternative aerodrome was used, that of Sania Ramel at Tetuan under the command of an officer dedicated to Franco who had replaced the former commandant who was loyal to the Republic (and happened to be Franco's brother). Finally on 19th July at seven in the morning Franco set off for Tetuan, once more dressed in uniform replete with red sash and gold decorations. He ordered Bebb to fly over the airfield before he was assured it was safe to land. At last General Franco once again took command of the Spanish army of North Africa and the civil war really got underway.

Bebb successfully returned to England and was a pilot throughout the Second World War and the Dragon Rapide also served and survived the same aormi@icloud.com

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An excellent film about this episode of Spanish history was made in 1986 directed by Jaime Camino.

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war. It was retired from the RAF in 1953 and acquired by a businessman named Griffiths, who offered it to Franco and it is now part of the Spanish Air Museum on the outskirts of Madrid. Franco's Plan B if the uprising failed was for his family to go to Portugal, the costs paid for by the Duke of Alba. In 1940 Hugh Pollard was taken off the Reserves and raised from Lieutenant to Captain in charge of the MI6 section in Madrid, which meant he was well placed having served Franco earlier.

He terminated his service as a Major.

In 1938 Cecil Bebb was decorated

by Franco with the Grand Cross of the Imperial Order of the Red Arrows and later in 1970 Franco himself conferred on Bebb the Order of Merit and also the White Cross in Madrid.

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Shakespeare anniversary Royal Shakespeare Company Tours

The RSC is celebrating Shakespeare as the world’s most famous playwright 400 years after his death with a live broadcast on BBC Two, first a major tour to China and a return to BAM in New York.

They will mark the anniversary with a programme of activities in Stratford, London and around the world.

Stratford-upon-Avon - David Tennant hosts a live broadcast on BBC Two to celebrate Shakespeare’s legacy, broadcast live from the Royal Shakespeare Theatre on 23 April - A family-friendly, interactive exhibition explores the history of theatre in Stratford, revealing the people and stories behind the productions - The Other Place studio theatre reopens for performances and rehearsals - Costume Store tours – public tours of our worldrenowned costume store begin London - ‘King and Country: Shakespeare’s Great Cycle of Kings’ plays at the Barbican Theatre – Gregory Doran’s productions of Richard II, Henry IV Parts I & II, and Henry V play in repertoire for the first time, with most of the original cast - ‘RSC Shakespeare on Film’, celebrating classic productions from the archives with Barbican Cinemas

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Across the UK - A Midsummer Night’s Dream: A Play for the Nation tours every UK nation and region, working with 13 partner t h e a t re s .

Amateur companies from each area join the core cast to play Bottom and the Mechanicals, alongside local school c h i l d re n playing Titania’s fairy train.

- Dream Team 2016 – Every UK school is invited to stage their own production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. The RSC will provide a free one-hour edit of the play, a specially-composed score and other supporting resources - The RSC will collaborate with publishers VINTAGE Hogarth Shakespeare, exploring how Shakespeare continues to be reimagined through RSC productions and Hogarth Shakespeare’s new commissions – launching with Jeanette Winterson and Howard Jacobson, with books inspired by The Winter’s Tale and The Merchant of Venice aormi@icloud.com

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Worldwide - The RSC will tour to the National Centre for the Performing Arts, Beijing, Shanghai Grand Theatre and Hong Kong Arts Festival with Henry IV Parts I & II and Henry V. - A ten-year cultural exchange begins  with translations of Chinese classics into English and performance-based translations of Shakespeare’s plays into Chinese The RSC will also work with the British Council on a new education publication for Chinese and UK schools.

- The British Council have a special bus touring Spain with information about the bard.

Brooklyn Academy of Music hosts all four History plays, in collaboration with The Ohio State University.

aormi@icloud.com

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Rolling down the River

by Dave Bull

Dave Bull and his son, Mitch, completed a kayak challenge going down the River Segura to Guardamar and lives to tell the tale.

OUR DELIVERANCE It was a morning full of surprises. None more so than Mitch being at our planned meeting place for the team, the car park outside of the town hall, before I was. He’d messaged me, excited and already pumping with adrenaline. "Come on! I'm ready let's go dad!"

I was already on my way and soon met up with a bouncy Mitch and his ever-hungry and sleepy girlfriend Christel. Raquel, my girlfriend arrived next and soon Rob our driver and Shaun the photographer rolled up looking as wide awake and ready for the adventure as we were. aormi@icloud.com

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We were off and on time, 6.15am which was important if we were to stay on schedule all day and complete the challenge before we lost the daylight in evening. Then things started to get interesting as we found the main road, our only exit out of town, blocked following a severe road traffic accident and we were diverted on a twenty minute round trip to get back on the road where we needed to be heading.

Then came the tractor in front of us before the police road stop and then finally we hit the fast road...and got stuck behind a crane possibly being driven by my mum judging by the snail's pace it was moving ahead of us.

We eventually arrived at the planned starting point for the challenge in Murcia City an hour and a half late and began getting the kayaks ready and into our wetsuits.

A hot coffee at that point was needed by the whole team as the temperature next to the river was down to seven degrees at that time. We really needed to get a move on but the coffee was good and the caffeine would help us.

The Howells girls, Ann and Holly were getting the kayaks from their truck while we got dressed, and giggling constantly; I blamed the caffeine. We loaded the kayaks with (hopefully) everything we needed and climbed into them and headed off quickly, waving to the team and our supporters as we disappeared around the first bend; the cold river water getting us wet straight away and finishing the job the caffeine had admirably started, that of waking us up.

With the shouts from our team and those who'd come to see us off ringing in our ears we soon got into a rhythm and were making the banjo noise from 'Deliverance' in no time. It was a beautiful morning to be on the river and with the wildlife around us aormi@icloud.com

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waking up, Mitch was sure to sure to see his first duck very soon, and he did, up close and friendly. To Mitch it was an amazing moment and he was almost bouncing up and down in his kayak shouting ‘Duck! Duck! Correction…he was bouncing up and down shouting ‘Duck!’ Also alongside us were geese, terrapins and the odd Kingfisher with its beautiful turquoise plumage. However, we didn’t have much time to admire the wildlife as we had to crack on. And we did, covering the 12km to our first rest stop at Beniel in just less than two hours – good going.

We were starving and freezing cold thanks to the water so a quick bowl of rice and potatoes (carbohydrates) was wolfed down by each of us and we jumped back in the kayaks to head down stream to Orihuela City; our next stop off and the location of a huge weir that would act as a big water slide for us to go down in the kayaks.

We negotiated a few small weirs and a couple of sets of interesting rapids (we had to carry the kayaks down one under the full flow of the river) and with the sun shining down on us and the rowing rate at a good pace we were warming up in no time. The ‘Deliverance’ tune once again played a big part as did ‘Old man river’ which was peppered (and spoilt in my opinion)throughout by shouts of ‘Duck!’ coming from behind me as they swam under the kayaks as we approached them.

Alongside the river banks became low cut grass with people walking dogs and cycling who either waved at us and asked where we were going or took photos on their phones. When they heard we had come from Murcia and were heading for Guardamar most wished us good luck while the rest laughingly shouted, ‘Locos!’ aormi@icloud.com

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From low-cut grass the sides of the river became tall concrete walls as we entered the city of Orihuela and up ahead next to the second bridge we glimpsed the familiar and welcome sight of purple tee shirts; our team was there waiting for us.

Back-up team

Another swift break and we were off again, although this time as the team walked alongside us they headed into a patch of mud. All of a sudden Steve, who’d come along with his wife Kirsty and young lad Lewis, and Rob from our team, shouted back to the following group to stop. The mud they were walking on was sucking them down making them sink into it, and fast. Lewis by this time was screaming ‘I’m gonna die!’ as dad Steve tried to haul him out of the mud where he had sunk up to his knees.

With Lewis extracted Steve, now carrying the extra weight of his son, began to sink even further. Lewis, now without any shoes as they had been claimed by the mud, was passed to the gallant Rob – who began to sink- while Steve got himself out of the mud; minus a shoe of his own. Eventually everyone managed to get out and you’ll be pleased to know Lewis’s prediction of dying fell short of the mark. Steve had to walk around the rest of the city and back to his car with no shoes or trousers –as they were caked u to the thighs in mud – while Kirsty couldn’t stop laughing and Lewis wondered what the hell had just happened, and how on earth he had managed to survive.

We left them to it and headed happily out of the city and ready to get going again as we needed to keep up a good pace of we were to finish on time. aormi@icloud.com

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One thing we learnt on the day was that rowing requires a rhythm but Orihuela city and its surroundings put paid to that. On exiting Orihuela City, after the fun and games on the big weir with our friends and the team who had met us in the city centre, we hit the most disheartening part of the challenge.

No water. Well, very little. At times it was down to just a few inches deep and for the next hour we had to keep getting out and carrying the kayaks as it was impossible to row. After that the river was still shallow (around half a metre) and dotted with boulders that stopped us finding any rhythm. We lost time. A lot of time and the next stretch down to Benejuzar seemed to take forever. By the time we got there the temperature was dropping but with some more food and a quick chat with the team we got going again looking forward to the rapids and weir that welcomed us before we got to Algorfa, where the team would once again meet us. Time was really against us by now as on the last stretch we had also had to either pick, brush or batter our way through the reeds that hung low over the river. And we were exhausted. Pains were coming thick and fast now with Mitch getting cramp frequently and my shoulders burning with every paddle stroke.

The thought of the weir we would be riding down helped us to plough on as the light started to go and the temperature dropped even more. We were starting to get very cold. The tiredness didn’t help but with less than 16km to go once we reached Algorfa we knew we could do it. When we arrived at the weir and rapids (which were close together and meant we had to make a sharp turn after going down the weir and then straight into fast rapids with another left turn to try and do as we headed down and aormi@icloud.com

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through the rocks. Above us on the wall that ran alongside the river were the team and people with cameras all anticipating the sight of us two riding the kayaks through the fast water and obstacles. I went first and it was tough as the weir tried to push me to the far bank but I managed to hold it on line and head for the rapids where I missed the left turn and stopped momentarily on a rock before the rushing water pushed me off again and into the waiting, and relatively still, water below. Mitch did the same although his on-board camera became the day’s first casualty as it was smashed off of the front of his kayak when he hit a rock. We were buzzing after that and rowed on down the river towards Algorfa, forgetting momentarily the fatigue and aches and leaving the team to return to their cars and head down the road to meet us. Before we got there we saw the familiar purple tee shirts of our team standing on the river bank signalling us to pull over. They’d had a talk a felt very strongly that it would be dangerous for us to go on much further as it was almost dark and we could hardly see. We told them we were determined to finish and carried on rowing to the rest stop about 2km further down the river. But what they had said began to make sense as we tried to feel our way at times through reeds and by dodging the odd rock sticking up and out of the water; which was impossible to see by that time. The truth dawned on us that we wouldn’t be finishing that day and after agreeing that we’d have to stop and get out at Algorfa and come back and finish another day, we rowed on silently to the meeting point.

A good number of people were still waiting to greet us at Algorfa and it was a welcome sight as we rounded the corner and saw them all on the river bank. We aormi@icloud.com

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pulled over; exhausted and told the team that we agreed with their decision…it was no longer safe to go on. We were gutted. With the aches that now came with the rapid cooling of our bodies we were, it must be said, very despondent; thinking we’d let everyone down but we couldn’t expect the team to have to be responsible for our safety if we (foolishly) carried on. No, they were right. But it didn’t make us feel any better.

Part two We were back. Two weeks later we stood at the place that had held so much disappointment for us, the river bank in Algorfa. But this time we had the adrenalin flowing again and after the public response we’d had to our first effort we knew we had a huge amount of support. We were determined to finish, and do it in style.

The water level had risen somewhat since the first time we were on the river which meant that the weirs and rapids would be that much bigger and faster. We couldn’t wait. The first was only about four kilometres away and we reached it within thirty five minutes which was a very fast pace, just what we wanted. Again, I got the job of going down it first, there was a theme developing here, and one of the ‘joys’ of this type of kayaking is that once you are in the flow towards a weir or rapid there is no turning back as the strong flow will take you towards it. It did, and as I approached the drop I began to realise it was a lot bigger and faster than we had previously witnessed when we had scouted the river a month before. There was no going back and I headed over the metre and a half drop and plunged into the cold water up to my waist although still in the kayak. The buoyancy brought the front back up and I aormi@icloud.com

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sat in a freezing puddle of water, totally exhilarated! Mitch did the same and it was great to see him as it dawned on him just how big the drop was but he came down safely and we paddled on laughing and whooping at what we’d just experienced. The ‘Deliverance’ theme also made another appearance at this point too.

Rojales would be next and its big weir had water flowing over it which meant we could ride it. But first we’d be stopping and getting out of the kayaks to get a good look at it from all side and decide the best route to go down. The team were already there and armed with phones to get a video of us; possibly, getting a soaking if we got it wrong. Mitch and I clambered up and over the bridge to have a look at the big weir which spans the whole river and must be around fifty metes wide.

The three metre slope would act as a slide with the water than ran down it carrying us to the edge and then we would drop almost two metres over the edge, vertically. Again I went first and fortunately managed to keep the kayak straight, which is essential, as the water carried me down the slope and then over the edge and vertically into the cold water (again) up to my waist, but I’d made it and shouted a few appropriate swear words as the adrenaline kicked in. Mitch didn’t come down straight and as he hit a loose branch, which got stuck under the kayak, he began to turn sideways. Not good. As he headed over the edge and into the water the kayak tuned even more dumping him, and the mascot he was carrying, into the river. He was soaked but at least the team and those watching were enjoying themselves as we, well Mitch, ‘entertained’ them.

Onwards we rowed. Guardamar was not far now (about 8km) and as we headed out of Rojales we could see the huge mast on the coast, next to our destination, a welcome sight but still about two hours away for us. aormi@icloud.com

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More reeds bashed away at our heads and bodies and the river as ever had no flow at all on it so the going was tough but we’d made good time so far so we were feeling confident even when we had to lay down in the kayaks on our backs to be able to pass under a very low bridge; the rod of iron hanging down inches above our noses as we passed underneath made us sweat a little too. We soon found a new obstacle created by the local town hall. The reeds had been cut ahead of us, which was good. However, many had been cut and left to flow down the river and had completely blocked it at points, which was not so good. We developed a fun strategy to deal with the problem; we built up as much speed as we could as we approached the reed dam on the river and then attempted to crash through it. Although it was very tiring it was also good fun, and it worked…well, most of the time anyway.

As the river narrowed after Formentera we could see the team waiting for us up ahead. They had headed downriver to check out whether we could get through where the river splits about 5km from Guardamar. The news wasn’t good. We couldn’t get through as the authorities had closed off the river for about a one kilometre stretch meaning one thing. We’d have to carry the kayaks over that distance. We got out of the water watched by some curious sheep, several goats and a shepherd wondering what on earth we were doing as we walked past the flock and up to the path than ran alongside where the river should have been. It was hell. The hardest part of the whole adventure. Two kayaks weighing in at about 65kg each and we had a long way to carry them. With me walking in front carrying the front ends of the kayaks in each hand and Mitch bringing up the rear with the back ends we struggled on. Really struggled. By the five hundred metre mark we were exhausted and the muscles in our backs and shoulders were really starting to hurt.

It took us forty-five minutes to cover that stretch and it now meant we would be behind schedule if we came across any more problems. We didn’t have far to go so it didn’t seem likely but as we’d found out during this trip, you just never know.

As it turned out the last three kilometres, from the bridge that carries the road N332 on its merry way up and down the coast, were wonderful. Spurred on by our team and friends and supporters on the river bank cheering us on and running alongside us we upped the pace and began to see the wonderful lighthouse at the end of our particular tunnel. What a sight! We were really pumped up by the people who’d turned out to see us and we powered towards the port with such ferocity they had to run along the river bank to keep up with us.

And finally we were there. As we rounded the aormi@icloud.com

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corner to turn in to the port we ignited the flares we had been carrying all this time for just this moment. They burned brightly, filling the port with smoke and announcing our arrival in style as we headed towards the bar where most, quite sensibly, had decided to wait for us. Apparently we lit more than one fuse though as the harbour master came running out to the water’s edge and, glowing almost as red as the flares, he told us off. We knew we would probably get in to trouble by lighting the flares but a telling off was a small price to pay for what was, for us, a very memorable moment.

Exhausted we hauled ourselves out of the kayaks and just lay on the portside starting to feel the effects of four and a half hours of rowing, which meant we’d done approximately fourteen thousand oar strokes, each. No wonder it hurt. A round of photographs for friends and the press held us back from a large, cool beer although it was only temporary and the occasion meant we weren’t feeling the cold just yet.

Two kayaks, seventeen weirs and rapids and fifty two kilometres later we’d made it and the drive home, thankfully carried out by Rob, was pure therapy in itself. If only to be moving so fast for once! It’s the hardest thing we’ve ever attempted (I used to race motorbikes in six hour endurance races and I thought that was hard) but we both felt proud to have done it even if we did have to do it over two days. That’s what it was all about, a challenge. And to do it alongside my son was the best thing I’ve ever done. The Kayak Challenge raised around €3000 for AECC, but more importantly, it raised awareness of the work of the charity in Spain, and the work of the Samaritans in Spain, of which Dave is a patron. aormi@icloud.com

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The Motorbike Challenge will see the Bull Boys bike around the perimeter of Spain, avoiding motorways and stopping off at schools and other institutions on the way. They’re hoping that all of Spain will join in to raise money by collecting plastic bottle tops which will be cashed in to add to the total.

Supporters can also pledge funds and organise fund raising events as the boys make their way around Spain in October. Why October? Because that’s the first opportunity for Mitch – who is head chef at La Piedra Bar and Grill at Gran Alacant – to take time off work for the 25 day ride, covering over 6,000

When I say Jump - JUMP

Steve Monk-Dalton set off on his long walk across borders on 23rd August last year.

He averaged about 42 kilometres per day on average as he walked across borders into France and across to England. He accomplished what he set out to do. Steve was walking for several reasons: 1) To raise awareness of the issues surrounding parental child abduction and the impact on families and children.

2) To raise awareness of parental alienation abuse and the impact on families and children. aormi@icloud.com

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3) To raise awareness of the failures in family court and with authorities (social services, police, Cafcass) that facilitate abduction, alienation and false allegations which are used as a heinous alienation tactic to remove target families completely from a child's life.

4) To help the Reunite International UK charity who NEED the additional resources to effectively support families who are trying to cope with parental child abduction issues. Over 17,000 calls went through their advice line in 2014.

And at a personal level5) “To show that I would do whatever it takes to reunite my little girl with her paternal family. We miss her so much and have been doing everything we can to see her since she was taken from her home for the second time (the first time returned home via Hague Convention B2R... This time deceiving the system to achieve that objective, which have had no deterrent or accountability for these continued actions)�.

Despite his personal problems Steve is involved in many things, loves watching and engaging in football and sports in general, is enamored with music and not a bad singing voice as well.

So his next Challenge for the same causes will be a sky diving event, hopefully with other people. He is planning to jump out of an aircraft as this something his late mother, who sadly passed away last year, always wanted to do but her GP would not allow her to do so. He is doing this in her memory.

If you would like to sponsor Steve, either go to the Villamartin Spain Estate / One Day Closer office or sponsor through the JustGiving page https://www.justgiving.com/reunite-skydive/ Also, he has asked if anybody is interested in joining him for the jump, then contact on the One Day Closer email onedaycloser.reunite@gmail.com https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10153641868764924&set=t.

100004399337992&type=3&size=1080%2C1080

aormi@icloud.com

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The ever-popular 70-strong chorus, Melody Makers International, are in final rehearsals for their latest show, "That's Entertainment". This is to be performed in the exotic setting of the Orihuela Costa Resort at La Zenia on Saturday 30th January. There will be two performances, at 2pm and 8pm, and the entire production is directed and conducted

by Nigel Hopkins.

The show will feature many popular favourites which include:- Bridge Over Troubled Water (no.1 hit over CHRISTMAS)', Fix You, Rock Around The Clock, One Moment In Time, Phantom of the Opera medley, and many, many more. Some of the finest soloists on the Costa are featured in the show which will include comedy routines, also a special performance of a small close harmony group which should prove most entertaining.

The show will be accompanied by a professional band from the UK, led by Matthew Hopkins, Director of Music at Nottingham Trent University, who will be visiting La Zenia with his famous award-winning Chamber Choir on their Spanish tour in April.

Melody Makers International are supporting the most worthwhile charity, Debra, the Butterfly Children's Charity, for those with the serious condition Epidermolysis Bullosa (EB). This is a rare disease where blisters and wounds occur spontaneously and with even the slightest touch. As well as the MMI support there will be a bucket collection for the charity. Nigel Hopkins has even written a song about the condition (EB) called Butterfly, which will be performed by the three youngest soloists of the evening.

Tickets (Matinee: 10â‚Ź and Evening: 12â‚Ź) are available from several outlets, including La Ponderosa gift shop at La Zenia, The CardPlace at both Punta Prima and Benimar, also the Debra Charity Shops at Quesada and San Fulgencio.

Excellent entertainment for all the family.

aormi@icloud.com

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“YOUR COFRADIA NEEDS YOU” It is time again to consider if you would like to join us in the Torrevieja Semana Santa Processions 2016 Once again the 100+ members of the INTERNATIONAL COFRADIA of JESUS IN THE GARDEN OF OLIVES are again looking to recruit more new members for the Annual Easter Processions on 21st & 25th March 2016 This prestigious group has been followed by the Media across the Spanish speaking world and has been much admired and respected by most of its Spanish counterparts since its inception in 2005.

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With thousands of Spanish and many other Nationalities filling the streets of Torrevieja for these splendid processions the atmosphere is something to behold for those who are lucky enough to be a part of this moving Spanish Tradition.

From Torrevieja & Surrounding Areas of the South Costa Blanca We are looking for Male Members of all nationalities reasonably fit & healthy, available on the above dates and for registration and practice up to 3-4 weeks prior. Age nor Religion are not as important as respect for others beliefs and Spanish Traditions.

INTERESTED??????????????????? For more details

E-mail: geoffwild@wildinspain.com Tel: 654634575

aormi@icloud.com

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Re al Me Yo n d by ga o Ch ris D arw

en

I have to admit, my first experience of yoga was not the best. I was in rehab, spending 28 days learning how to stop drinking, and information was flying at me left right and centre. The treatment centre, in their wisdom, hired in a yoga teacher once a week so on a Tuesday we went outside into the gardens and started floating our arms around, twisting and various other things that completely fitted the stereotypical image of yoga that was imprinted in my mind. By the end of this class, I threw up. Yes, at this point I had no way of knowing that if you fast forward the clock seven years that I would be a total advocate of yoga.

Funnily enough, after that initial “class” I did not go back to a yoga for about 4 years! Then, like most things in my life, football played a big part.

I was nearing my mid-30’s and each game was becoming harder. My pre-match diet of four nurofen, a can of red bull and ibroprufen gel on my shins just to numb the pain to play was becoming a little worrying. I needed an alternative method, so I did some research. Yoga kept coming up, sportsmen such as aormi@icloud.com

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Ryan Giggs, Andy Murray, many England rugby internationals and Gareth Bale were all swearing by it. My home town had just opened a new yoga studio, so I decided to give it a go.

The first class was tough, really tough. My body was stretching muscles I did not know I even still had, and the language was a completely different language. But after about twenty minutes the gritting of my teeth turned into a smile. I knew it was starting to make a difference, even in that short space of time. By the end I felt like a different person, mentally as well as physically.

I started going two or three times a week and the results were staggering. Back on the

football pitch, I was moving around as if I was ten years younger. I was recovering after matches much faster – I mean being able to walk on a Monday morning was something I had not been able to do for a while. My mind was in a far better place, the pressures of life and work were feeling a lot softer and I was generally far happier.

The players started to notice as well, and were curious as to how the oldest guy in the team was now putting a few of them to shame. The mention of yoga got the usual welcome in a football club changing room, but after a few weeks a few of the younger lads became curious and started to try it themselves.

aormi@icloud.com

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Two years later and yoga is becoming more and more prevalent in professional sport.

Many of the Premier League football teams have yoga classes for the players.

Harlequins Rugby have been doing it for years, including many England players.

Yorkshire Cricket Club brought in yoga, and went on to win back to back county championships for the first time in decades.

So guys, I am telling you. Yoga is not something for a load of hippy women in a cold church hall. It is physically the hardest work out I have ever done, but if gives you way more than just a work out. If you suffer from a dodgy knee, a bad back, stress or tightness from working out too much then I guarantee you can get something amazing out of practicing yoga a couple of times a week.

Fortunately, it is available to you in the Torrevieja area. El Rancho Los Montesinos – Torrevieja has a dedicated yoga studio with classes running every day.

If you are interested, have a look at www.elrancho.se and click on Yoga with Jessica to see what happens there.

aormi@icloud.com

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Torrevieja Symphony Orchestra’s New Year concert was so successful there were two performances held in the auditorium . Look out for more concerts.

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