039 may torrevieja outlook by Andy Ormiston

Torrevieja Outlook

Nº 39 - May 2017

039 May 2017 Fiestas calendar – Caravaca de la Cruz – Spanish Knights – Ireland’s Green Cross – Girona in Flower – Game of Thrones – Pilgrims – Feria de Mayo (or not) – Making a Song and Dance – Crazy Boating – Hogueras Gala – Moors & Christians – International Museum Day – Local Museums – Bee Friendly museums – John Rutter Requiem – Norwegian Day – Grandes Rusos Concert – RASCALS on Broadway – Fishing and parasailing – Charity Run – Market Moves – Culinary Calendar – ABC Cookery – WHATS ON.

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Torrevieja Outlook

aormi@icloud.com

Torrevieja Outlook

Nยบ 39 - May 2017

Torrevieja Outlook

Nº 39 - May 2017

Mothers’ Day in Spain is on the first Sunday of May; an indication of the respect the people have for the mother of Jesus, Mary, whose name graces the month. On the 1st is St. Joseph the Worker or Labour Day and is a public holiday; so if both dates are close to each other then often you will have a long holiday weekend. This year the bank holiday falls on a Monday so a long weekend. The Tuesday is a U.K. Bank Holiday. Easter behind us, many towns hold a Day of the Cross, often with beautifully decorated crosses of flowers. Javea is one of the towns that hold this fiesta. Caravaca de la Cruz is an obvious place to be at the beginning of May, not only because of its association with the cross, but because of the wonderful wine race with horses wearing beautifully decorated embroidered blankets. Torrevieja holds the highly popular Feria de Mayo based on the world renowned Seville Fiestas of April and attract thousands of people, although it seems to have been postponed. The Andalusian theme continues with a colorful romeria .

MAY CALENDAR OF FIESTAS IN ALICANTE PROVINCE

First Days of May: Continuation of Javea Fiestas in honor of Jesús Nazareno that started on 22nd April with a bull run that has caused controversy as the bulls often end up in the water, or on another night have fires attached to the horns. Although St. Sebastian is the Patron Saint of Javea / Xàbia, the Festivities in honour of "Jesús Nazareno" have the strongest popular support and devotion among Xàbia's citizens. On the 2nd of May, it is traditional to visit the streets of the Historical City Centre to look at the colourful "Cruces de Mayo", crosses made out of flowers by the neighbours, which win local prizes based on their preparation, originality and beauty. This is very popular in Andalusia. aormi@icloud.com

Torrevieja Outlook

Nº 39 - May 2017

Throughout the month there are choir concerts each day in Alicante in honour of the Virgen del Remedio. First two weeks of May Fiestas in Cabanes in honour of La Virgen del Buen Suceso: emphasis on bull events. 1st May 1st May 1 - 3 May

Bank Holiday in Spain. Nearest Sunday (7th) is Mother’s Day. Xàbia holds the procession of the Virgen del Loreto. Fiestas of the Crosses of May. Crosses are adorned with flowers and displayed in the streets. Santa Cruz district in Alicante, L’Alfàs del Pi (3 days), Benidorm, Muchamiel, Xàbia and Redován - all hold special events. 2nd May or on the nearest Sunday, Aspe has fiesta del Cruz. 2nd May Competition of the Crosses in Xàbia. On the 3rd the town has the fiestas de Jesús Nazareno. 3rd May Beniferri has a romería: Orihuela holds the Cruces de Mayo. Callosa de Segura has festival. 4th - 5th May Jávea holds romería in honour of the Virgen del Rocío. 4th - 5th May Castellfort has the Romería A Sant Pere de Castelfort with origins in 1321: noted for bells. First Weekend Novelda has fiestas in the Cruz district of the town. First Sunday The Fiesta de la Rosa in El Poble Nou de Benitatzell. First week from Wednesday to Sunday the Feria de Mayo in Torrevieja. First Sunday, Monday and Tuesday of the month, fiestas in Senija. 8th May Villajoyosa holds a festival on the first weekend of the month. 9th May Torremanzas holds bread fiestas of ‘Pà Beneït’ (Blessed bread). 9th May European Day in many towns with civil services, flag raising to the European anthem by Beethoven. Torrevieja used to hold it with concerts, but the present mayor does not consider that Europeans deserve their own fiesta, forgetting that Spain is part of the continent. Guardamar del Segura and Orihuela Costa are among the towns that hold special entertainment events. aormi@icloud.com

Torrevieja Outlook

Nº 39 - May 2017

9th May is also the feast of the legendary St. Christopher, the patron saint of travelers and each year the Taxi Drivers associations of the Vega Baja organize a three-day event that now includes the Spanish Armed Forces and British exservicemen. It was on the 8th November 1392, when His Majesty King Juan 1 of Aragón ordered the creation of a Cofradía in honour a San Cristóbal. So last year was the 625th anniversary of the organization, but it may be celebrated in November with military events. In mid-May there is a romeria held that goes around various Vega Baja towns.

Above romeria of Saint Christoper in Vega Baja

In May falls the fiesta day of the patron saint of agricultural workers - San Isidro with many towns holding events..

Benidorm celebrates San Isidro who is also patron saint of Madrid

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Torrevieja Outlook

Nº 39 - May 2017

10 - 13th May 12th May 12th May 13 - 15th May 14th May 15th May

Moors & Christians in Biar. Albatera celebrates San Pancracio. San Isidro romería in Pilar de la Horadada. Patronal fiestas in San Isidro. Moors & Christians in Petrer. San Isidro in Albatera. This day is celebrated in many towns with processions and romerías either on the actual date or the following weekend. Similarly at Benejama, Castalla, Salinas, Hondón de los Frailes, Hondón de las Nieves, la Romana, Cox, Orihuela, Pilar de la Horadada and Rojales (for the 36th year). On the Sunday nearest to San Isidro’s fiesta a romeriá takes place in Daya Nueva. 2nd Weekend Moors and Christian in Banyares de Mariola for the fiesta dof Ntra. Sra. de los Desamparados. Dénia holds the festival of Nuestra Señora de los Desamparados. Second weekend of the month Orba holds fiestas. Second weekend of May the Moors & Christians of El Campello hold the Mig Any. Second weekend of May Ibi holds the L’Avís de Festa. 17th May San Pascual Bailón is celebrated in Elche. 17th May San Pascual Bailón fiestas in Albatera. The famous Romería de Orito is held in Montforte del Cid. 17th May the Friday and Saturday nearest to the date a romería in Castalla. 18th May on nearest Saturday to this date a romería in Ibi. 18 - 27th MayFiestas in Novelda in la Estación area. 24th May to 9th June in the district of María Auxiliadora fiestas are also held in Novelda. 26th May Patronal fiestas in Ondara. Last weekend of month fiestas held in Ibi and in Formentera del Segura. The Ascension falls on the Thursday, 40 days after Easter Sunday and is celebrated in Elche and many other towns, though it is usually transferred to the following Sunday. On the same day of the Ascension the Festa del Xop is held in Planes. Last Weekend of May, lasting for five days, Moors & Christians in Elda, dependent on the date on which Corpus Christi feastday falls. Last weekend of May Moors & Christians in Salinas. Last Sunday of May in Albatera the fiesta of Santiaguico is held. Last Sunday of May a romería in honour of the Virgen de Fatima is held in Pinoso. At the end of May going into June the patronal fiestas of Dénia are held.

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Nº 39 - May 2017

Often in the Vega Baja area you will see a cross made up of flowers hanging on the outside of an old house. This is a local tradition handed on from generation to generation. The Festival of the Cruz (Cross) falls on the 3rd May and is closely tied in with the September feast of the Exaltation of the Cross. Fiestas in Redován, Granja de Rocamora and in the la Cruz district of Callosa de Segura hold this devotion. The floral cross is a symbol of the devotion of the people to the Cross of Jesus although there is a certain element of superstition in the belief that it will act as a guard against evil spirits. In the district of la Santa Cruz, around the Alicante castle, fiestas are held each year during the first days of May from 30th April to 3rd May. There is is a competition for the best floral sculpture: neighbours of each street vie with neighbours in others. Another competition during these particular Alicante fiestas is for a fancy dress. Elche also holds this festival with a “misa rociera” in the church of Sagrada Corazón and on the nearest Saturday fiestas in the la Rosaleda Parque with an Andalucian flavour. Torrevieja holds a small fiesta of the Holy Cross in the Calvario district and usually a bar in the plaza Oriente has flowers in the interior garden.

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Torrevieja Outlook

Nº 39 - May 2017

Caravaca de la Cruz Ancient Traditions of Wine and Horse Race

The fiestas of this town are well known throughout Spain, held between 1 - 5 May, and have the recognition of being of National Touristic Interest and will possibly receive UNESCO recognition as part of the patrimony of humanity category. This year is of special significance as 2017 has been nominated as a Jubilee Year: this is for genuine pilgrims, who fulfill all the requirements, can obtain what Martin Luther detested…a Plenary Indulgence. These years of grace are held every seven years in Caravaca and agreements have been made with some other Murcian towns to collaborate, such as La Union where the famous Canto de las Minas is held featuring Sevilliana music and dance. It is expected that this year the town will receive over one million visitors on pilgrimage. Caravaca now ranks alongside Jerusalem, Rome, Santiago de la Compostela, and the Monastery of Santo Toribio de Liébana in Potes (Cantabria) because of this celebration. It is a “lignum crucis”, that is part of the wood of the aormi@icloud.com

Torrevieja Outlook

Nº 39 - May 2017

cross on which Jesus died. In 1230 during a visit of the emperor Federico II, an archbishop carries the actual reliquary that holds the piece of wood to Caravaca. So it dates to at least 1232. The Camino de la Vera Cruz is being promoted as a route and special classes of instruction and information were held among the young people so that they could be prepared to participate in this year’s events. Weekend courses are being held in Mula, Campos del Río, Albudeite y Caravaca de la Cruz between April and June. There are several adjunct events involving museums, sports, culture and leisure. On 27th May there will be a special national pilgrimage by Protection Civil members to Caravaca de la Cruz in this Jubilee Year. The Greeks founded this town in 333 AD, but little is known about it until 1243. The town is dominated by its fortress surmounted by its Torre Chacona, which dates to the 12th century. In the sanctuary of the Vera Cruz the sacred reliquary is venerated. It is a splinter of the True Cross of Jesus, encased in a cross embellished with gold and silver. It is supposed to have appeared during the celebration of a Mass on 3rd May, 1231 by the priest Ginés Pérez de Chirinos. Among the congregation was the Almohad warrior, Zeit Abuzei, king of Valencia, who was curious about the rituals of the Christians and had ordered the priest to celebrate a Mass in the principle salon of the Alcázar. The priest told the king that he needed a crucifix to say the aormi@icloud.com

Torrevieja Outlook

NÂş 39 - May 2017

Mass. The Arab king was converted to Christianity when he was amazed to see a cross supported by four angels, surrounded by a wonderful light. The cross has been a symbol of this town for centuries as it was a frontier town with the Moorish kingdom of Granada and was the scene of many skirmishes and battles This is a fiesta that has been going on for over seven centuries. In the 16th century the Buen Suceso Hospital was founded to assist the many pilgrims who visited the town. The Templete was constructed around 12266/1312. King Alfonso XI ceded the town and its reliquary to the Order of Santiago, one of the medieval military orders whose aim, during the medieval Crusades was for protection of Christians against violent persecution of the Islamic conquests (623â&#x20AC;&#x201C;) in the Holy Land and the Iberian Peninsula, as well as by Baltic paganism in Eastern Europe. The majority of knights of military orders were laymen, but some members took religious vows - poverty, chastity, and obedience. Some of them, like the Knights Hospitaller and the Knights of Saint Thomas, also had charitable purposes and cared for the sick and poor. We still have the Hospitallers working in Briatina and many other countries and St. Thomas Hospital in London. It was in the military orders that gave rise to the Medieval concept of chivalry that reached its apogee in an exceptional fusion under the Just war theory of military discipline and Christian virtues. Many military orders were suppressed by the Holy See in Rome around the end of the Middle Ages and they evolved into purely honorific and/or ceremonial chivalric orders with charitable aims. In modern times, we still have the Sovereign Military Order of Malta and the Order of the Holy Sepulchre, both Papal orders of knighthood, although the former is under papal investigation. Others still exist under the patronage of various monarchies with the Order of Saint Mary of Spain (1270 and largely involved in naval battles) being merged today with the Order of Santiago. Spanish Knights

Echoing the medieval institutions, however, it is possible for modern orders to be founded explicitly as a military order, for instance the Military Order of Loyalty (Spanish: Orden Militar de la Constancia), founded in 1946 by the Spanish protectorate in Morocco. Awarded to both Spanish and Moroccan military officers and soldiers, the single-class order was abolished in 1956. Although the appearance of the Hispanic military orders can be interpreted as pure imitation of the international orders of the Crusades, both its birth and its subsequent evolution have distinctive features, as they played a leading role in the struggle of Christian kingdoms against the Muslims, in the repopulation of large territories, especially between the Tagus and the Guadalquivir and became a political and economic force of the first aormi@icloud.com

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Nº 39 - May 2017

magnitude, besides having great role in the noble struggles held between the 13th and 15th centuries, when finally the Catholic Monarchs managed to gain its control. Traditionally it is accepted that the first to appear was that of Order of Calatrava, born in that village of the Castilian kingdom in 1158, followed by that of Order of Santiago, founded in Cáceres, in the Leonese kingdom, in 1170. Six years later was created the Order of Alcántara, initially called ¨of San Julián del Pereiro¨. The last to appear was the Order of Montesa it did later on, during the 14th century, in the Crown of Aragon due to the dissolution of the Order of the Templar. Because of their dual nature as military and religious institutions, territorially the orders develop a separate double organization for each of these areas, although sometimes not completely detached. In the political-military these were divided into "major encomiendas" there greater encomienda by each peninsular kingdom in which was present the order in question. Leading them was the main commander. It was followed by the encomiendas, which were a set of goods, not always territorial nor grouped, but generally constituted territorial demarcations. The encomiendas were administered by a commander. The fortresses, that by any type of cause were not under the command of the commander, were headed by an alcaide appointed by him. An important aspect of the Spanish military orders was the repopulation of areas, as well as an economic and social role. It was not enough to wrest territories from the enemy, it had to be populated enough to occupy and use it, thus facilitating their defense. The orders received large tracts of land, whose repopulation provided great political and economic power. At first the monarchs supported the Orders because they came to regard them as the "most precious jewel" of their crowns. Conscious of its enormous potential in the reconquest task, and later repopulation, the various Spanish kings fostered it and introduced them in their respective realms. Alfonso of Aragon and Navarre, in 1122 founded the confraternity of Belchite, or Alfonso VIII of Castile and Alfonso IX of León, who offered possessions to the orders of Santiago and Calatrava, respectively, lure them to their kingdoms. A few also attracted women warriors, mostly were honorific orders in payment of efforts by warrior girls attacking Muslims or English, and their high contribution to the conquest of cities, some came to become in reconquista's female military orders. So really there should be no arguments about women’s involvement in modern Moors & Christians festivals. The Military Orders were dissolved the April 29 of 1931 by mandate of the Second Republican government.

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Nº 39 - May 2017

During the Spanish Civil War many knights were murdered, killing nineteen of the Military Order of Santiago, fifteen of the Military Order of Calatrava, five of the Military Order of Alcántara and four of the Military Order of Montesa. The balance of Knights of 1931 to 1935 is as follows: • Military Order of Santiago, 68 of 116. • Military Order of Calatrava, 89 of 139. • Military Order of Alcántara, 19 of 42. • Military Order of Montesa, 51 of 70. In 1985 only 19 knights remained who were professed before 1931. On May 26, 1980, of that year they were registered as a federation. The Order of Santiago, along with those of Calatrava, Alcántara and Montesa, were reinstated as civil associations in the reign of Juan Carlos I with the character of honorable and religious noble organization and as such remain today.

In Caravaca the 2nd of May is when the annual “Race of the Horse” is held, 60 groups competing and commemorating the relief of the town during a siege by the Moors when a dash was made by horsemen to bring water into the besieged town. The wells of the town were contaminated and people were dying. The group of horsemen rode quickly to where el Templete is today, which was a small reservoir, but the Arabs had left the carcasses of dead horses in the water, so this too was aormi@icloud.com

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NÂş 39 - May 2017

contaminated. The horsemen then rode in the direction of Lorca to El Campillo, chased by the Moors, fighting all the way, slaying many of the enemy without any loss among themselves. The water here too was contaminated and the men, supposed to be Templars, filled their casks with wine from nearby bodegas and returned to the Caravaca amid great rejoicing. The foot of the Cross was dipped in the wine and the sick who drank of the wine recovered. The horsemen were enriched with many priceless objects and the horses too were covered with richly ornamented blankets. The wonderful accoutrements that are put on the horses today are examples of the skillful art of the sewing needle. Delicate pictures seem to be actual photos and the mantle covering the horses depicts the story of the race. These can be seen in the local museum, but, on the 2nd May, they are ritually put on the horses piece by piece in preparation for the race on the morning of the 3rd May. In this region there are many schools of embroidery, handing on skills from generation to generation and which in recent years has seen a revival of interest. Once the race of horses is finished there are activities held throughout the rest of the day, so it is pretty tiring just being an observer. After a procession from the plaza del Arco to the Templete where Mass acts as a reminder of the Apparition. Later the procession goes on towards the castle, stopping on the way at the Carmelite convent to receive a gift of flowers from the Mother Superioress who has been custodian of the reliquary. She offers a cake to the chief of the cofradia which is presented at the sanctuary along with a flower offering. A barrage of rockets announces the start of the day and musicians escort the various groups of Christians and Moors on to the streets for the spectacular festivities. There is a spectacular parade of the various bands of Christians and Moors on 3rd May.

The local church, El Salvador, is worth a visit as it was built between 1534 and 1600 on the site of an old Templar hospital. Another jewel in the crown of Caravacas is the church of San JosĂŠ founded in 1568 by Saint John of the Cross. The Castle has many interesting rooms to visit, including the chapel of the Apparition, The Mirador de la Reina, the Torre Chacona, the clock tower, the room of Cabildos, the Vera Cruz chapel and a museum where costumes of the Moors and Christians can be viewed. It is a town oozing history and legend in every part. Later, on 14th September, the patronal fiestas are held.

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Nº 39 - May 2017

A long haul flight for two angels flying from Jerusalem to Caravaca with a cross

- Oficina de la Real e Ilustre Cofradía de la Stma. y Vera Cruz: 968 70 75 28. - Oficina Municipal de Turismo: 968 70 24 24. - Basílica-Santuario de la Stma. y Vera Cruz: 968 70 77 43. Crosses come in all shapes and forms and most with a story attached. We have mentioned the double cross Caravaca cross which is now very popular today as a piece of jewelry. It is also a popular tattoo. Nowadays it usually has a couple of angels on the base, tying in with the angels flying from Jerusalem to Murcia with it. Really a cross should have no figure on it, a crucifix does have a figure attached. aormi@icloud.com

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Eucharistic Miracle of

Nº 39 - May 2017

CARAVACA DE LA CRUZ SPAIN, 1231

The Eucharistic miracle of Caravaca de la Cruz regards the celebration of a miraculous Mass during which Jesus appeared inside a Host together with a Crucifix. Thanks to this apparition, the Muslim king of Murcia and his family were converted to Catholicism. The most authoritative document describing the miracle is the contemporary testimony of the Franciscan Father Gilles of Zamora, the historian of King St. Ferdinand.

mongst the many documents that report this miracle, the most authoritative is that supplied by King Saint Ferdinand’s historian of the time, Father Gilles de Zamora. We know with certainty that a Christian priest, Don Gínes Pérez Chirinos de Cuenca, traveled amongst the Moors of the Kingdom of Murcia with the purpose of preaching the Gospel. He was captured, however, and brought to the presence of the Moorish King Zeyt-Abu-Zeyt who asked him some questions about certain aspects of the Christian faith. The king particularly wanted to deepen his understanding of the Mass. The priest went into detail explaining the importance of the Mass and the king, fascinated by the preaching of the priest, ordered him immediately to celebrate a Mass. Since the priest did not have the necessary equipment for the celebration, the king ordered some of his

Interior of the Church of Santa Cruz

Fresco of the church

Church of Santa Cruz built where the miracle took place

Ancient painting in the interior of the Church depicting the miracle

Banner depicting the Cross of Caravaca

men to get them from the nearby country of Cuenca, in Christian territory. But still, the Cross, which needed to be present on the altar during a Mass, had been forgotten. The priest began to celebrate the Mass but, at a certain point, realized the absence of the Cross. He became troubled and stopped.

The king asked him why he was so disturbed and the priest told him that he needed a Cross. The king however immediately responded, “Wouldn’t that be it?” In fact, at that moment two angels were placing a Cross upon the altar. The priest was deeply moved and gave thanks to the Lord. He then continued with the glorious celebration. The miracle continued. At the moment of the consecration, the Muslim king saw a beautiful Baby in the

Cross of Caravaca

place of the Host Who gazed on him endearingly. After having witnessed the miraculous event, the king and his family converted to Christianity and were baptized. Zeyt-Abu-Zeyt took the name of Vincent and his wife took the name Elena. From that day, the 3rd of March 1231, the country is called Caravaca de la Cruz. Recently, in the jubilee year, the Holy See allowed Caravaca de la Cruz to be the fifth city in the world, after Santiago de Compostela, Santo Toribio de Liebana, Rome and Jerusalem, to celebrate the Perpetual Jubilee (one holy year every seven in perpetuum) in the Sanctuary where the Holy Cross is kept.

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Nº 39 - May 2017

In May there are a number of events that have a connection with a cross of some sort whether, metal, wood, flowers or precious metals and stones.

Ireland’s Green Celtic Cross The Celtic cross has been recognized as an emblem of Irish Christianity for centuries. The symbol is visible from thousands of feet in the air, greeting passengers who fly into the Derry airport in County Londonderry, Ireland. More than 300 feet long and 200 feet wide, the cross is set on a hill, made of thousands of lighter coloured trees amidst a backdrop of darker trees in Ulster forest. Today, the symbol is visible from thousands of feet in the air, greeting passengers who fly into the City of Derry airport in County Londonderry, Ireland. More than 300 feet long and 200 feet wide, the cross is set on a hill, made of thousands of lighter trees amidst a backdrop of darker trees in Ulster forest. A horticultural expert reckoned that the cross was a feat of horticultural engineering. The dry autumn has made the cross particularly visible this year. The origins of the Celtic cross have been debated by historians for years. Some say the ring around the cross-section of the cross represents the halo of Christ, while others say it is a symbol adopted from pagan beliefs about the sun, to show Christ’s supremacy over the life-giving pagan solar deities. Many believe that either St. Patrick or St. Declan introduced the cross to Ireland. aormi@icloud.com

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Nยบ 39 - May 2017

Girona in Flower by Dave Stewart

One of the most interesting towns in Catalonia, is the historic city of Girona that invites visitors to trace its more than 2000 years of history through two fortified enclosures, the Forรงa Vella and the Medieval Quarter. The Forรงa Vella dates back to the Roman foundation while the medieval extension of the city walls was carried out during the 14th and 15th centuries. The city's artistic heritage has been preserved in the numerous monuments that have survived until today. The highlights of Girona are rounded off by the impressive old Jewish Quarter or Call, with its beautiful streets and porticoed squares, and by the exuberant baroque spaces and Noucentisme-style buildings by architect Rafael Masรณ. In 2016, the city was rewarded the European Prize, a distinction granted annually by the Council of Europe, since 1955, to those municipalities that have made notable efforts to promote the ideal of the European unity. It wis the second Spanish city in obtaining the award, after Santiago de Compostela (1985). Very typical of Girona are the aormi@icloud.com

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houses hanging over the river Oñar. These picturesque houses, constructed over the centuries next to the river, offer a splendid image of a small Mediterranean city. All the fluvial fronts are painted following the chromatic palette awarded by Enric

Ansesa, Jaume Faixó and the architects J. Fuses and J. Viader. A tour round the Old District can include an Archaeological route, with the towers Julia and Cornelia; and the Arab Baths, at the end of the walk, characterized by a lantern cupola top. These baths are an entirely Christian construction, of Romanesque style. aormi@icloud.com

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GIRONA and the Game of Thrones Girona is one of the places that is a location for the latest season six Game of Thrones. Viewers are transported to Girona’s labyrinthine old town, which has changed little over the centuries. It’s a great destination for a long weekend, whether or not you’re a George RR Martin devotee, or an easy day trip from Barcelona, which lies 70 miles down the coast. Cross one of the 11 bridges spanning the Riu Oñar and you find yourself in a medieval walled city of churches, winding alleys and towering arches or if your a fan in the powerful free city of Braavos, where Arya Stark begins season six struggling with blindness. Girona’s best-known landmark is a magnificent cathedral: the imposing Baroque façade is reached via 90 steps and the Gothic nave inside is the widest in the world. Girona Cathedral steals the show in episode six when Jaime Lannister has a showdown with the High Sparrow. This time Girona stands in for King’s Landing, having earlier been the setting for the outdoor theatre in Braavos. A crowd of commoners waits eagerly for Queen Margaery to do the walk of atonement, when Jaime, backed by Tyrell soldiers, thunders up the cathedral steps on horseback.It’ll become even more famous when one key Game of Thrones character ascends that stone staircase on horseback during a battle scene. Apparently, it took Jaime’s stunt-double several days to train the horse to climb the 91 cathedral steps.

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Girona’s 900-year-old cathedral literally explodes onto the screen in the breathtaking finale of season six. Doubling as the Great Sept, the cathedral is blown to pieces in a vengeful plot concocted by Cersei, killing everyone inside, including the High Sparrow and Margaery Tyrell.

Girona’s Arab Baths are brought back to life in steamy splendour this episode during an explosive fight sequence between Arya and the Waif. In her toughest battle yet, Arya bursts through the Romanesque columns fleeing the Waif, whilst around her, disrobed men look on in astonishment. Just outside is Plaça dels Jurats, which hosts festivals in summer and was the setting for a gladiatorial Game of Thrones battle watched by hundreds of fans, who gathered on the walls to watch filming. Amidst a huge crowd, Arya looks on in amusement as actors portray the rise and fall of the Lannister family, but this quickly turns to heartache as she sees a parody of her own father, Ned Stark, being beheaded.With regular budget flights from the UK, Girona is also an easy weekend getaway if you'd like to follow in Arya Stark's footsteps.

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Culture comes alive in Girona. The city is restless, curious and very open to any different cultural events that artists and organisers want to present in this unique setting. For this reason, every year Girona holds many festivals of music, cinema, visual and performing arts which bring together a large number of disciplines: jazz, street art, classical guitar, international theatre, amateur theatre, videos and audiovisuals, etc. If you are a culture fan you cannot afford to miss the city's regular programme of activities and its most outstanding events. One of the most important is held in April and throughout the May Flower Festival from 13 - 21 May, 2017. http://www.gironatempsdeflors.cat/cat/inici.php

Concert choir sunrise. Girona Flower Time SATURDAY 13 MAY - 17 P Mardanes   SATURDAY 13 MAY - 18 PM Concert choir Choir Choir and Orchestra. Girona Flower Time SATURDAY 13 MAY - 12 PM Choral Concert with choir Montilivi. Girona Flower Time   SATURDAY 13 MAY - 19 PM Mass and concert. Girona Flower Time   SATURDAY 13 MAY - 19 PM 6th Race Gavarres Astrid-21   SUNDAY 14 MAY - 9 PM The Concert Choir Gínjol. Girona Flower Time   SUNDAY 14 MAY - 11 PM Flower Time. Day Castellera   SUNDAY 14 MAY - 11:45 Concert: Orchestra of Girona. Girona Flower Time   SUNDAY 14 MAY - 12 PM Nuno J Concert Choir. Girona Flower Time   SUNDAY 14 MAY - 12 PM Mentha Concert Choir. Girona Flower Time   SUNDAY 14 MAY - 13 PM Concert choir Plan Girona. Girona Flower Time   SUNDAY 14 MAY - 17 PM Concert choir tribana. Girona Flower Time   SUNDAY 14 MAY - 18 PM Concert choir Hill of the Wind. Girona Flower Time   SUNDAY 14 MAY - 19 PM

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Nº 39 - May 2017

A Month of Pilgrims by Dave Stewart

NACHO VEGAS will

Pilgrimages are big business in the religious world. Jews go to Jerusalem, Muslims visit Mecca and Catholics visit everywhere, with favorite places being Compostela, Lourdes, Rome, and this year Fatima as it is the centenary of the apparitions there. In Dolores devotion to San Pascual, patron saint of the town, has been increasing and each year the town’s romeria has grown with more activities each year. Among non-religious events will be tortilla and salad competitions. The statue of the saint is transferred from the church of Nuestra Señora de los Dolores to the football stadium. Many musical events are organised which include flamenco, pop-rock, latin; as well as a local talent competition. Sports events include tennis, squash and frontenis. From youth this saint displayed great devotion to the Eucharist. He worked as a shepherd from ages 7 to 24, and was a good influence on an often rowdy group. He became a Franciscan lay brother with the friars of the Alcantarine Reform, often serving as cook or doorkeeper. His charity to the poor and afflicted, his unfailing

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courtesy and humility were remarkable even by Franciscan standards. While travelling in France, he defended the Real Presence against the blasphemies of a Calvinist preacher, and narrowly escaped death at the hands of a Huguenot mob. Poorly educated, he was still a counselor sought by rich and poor alike. His cultus is especially strong in Spain and southern Italy, in Central and South America and in many parts of Valencian region including Alicante. Dolores main fiestas are the August Agricultural Fair and the patronal fiestas held in September. The tourist office hold regular interesting tours in conjunction with the bustling Saturday morning market. At Montforte del Cid on 17th May the feast of San Pascual BailĂłn takes place. Actually there are events from the 1st of may connected to this romeria at Orito. Montforte del Cid, famous for its grapes and production of wine; the bunches of grapes can be seen enclosed in plastic bags to protect them for insects and disease, but also gives them their own distinguishing flavour when producing the regional wine. San Pascual's festivity has been celebrated on May 17 since 1637. Thousands of pilgrims of the Alicante province and also from nearby Murcia, Albacete, Valencia come this day and the previous weekends to visit the Cave and to deposit the votive offerings for favors received. At the same time San Pascual's Fair is celebrated in the surroundings of the plaza of the same name, in Orito's pedanĂa.

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The grapes produced at Montfort del Cid are popular when the chimes ring the end of the year and bring in a new year. A very Spanish tradition to eat 12 grapes in time with the chimes.

Montforte del Cid also has an interesting Iberian Museum and The Iberian Culture is on the ground floor. It showcases pieces excavated between 2008 and 2010 in the necropolis of the Camino del Rio. The second floor is devoted monographically to the presence of Rome in lands of the Vinalopรณ, the road links, the distribution and occupation of the economics of the valley, and the life in the villas that bloomed there. There may still be the itinerant exposition of the Via Augustus belonging to the MARQ Museum.

Bread on the head On the 8th May an extraordinary procession is held in Torremanzanas w h e re l a rg e rounds of bread are blessed and worn, suitably decorated, on the heads of the young women who wear the local traditional dress. This feast is in honour of San aormi@icloud.com

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Gregorio Ostiense. The festeros are chosen by the the head of each family. This tradition goes back to 1658, a year in which the people were freed from a plague of locusts by intercession of the saint. For such a motive each family offers the "Pa BeneĂŻt" (blest bread) of a 6-8 kg of weight, realized by artisan methods and adorned with flowers and thin embroidered fabrics. The girls in the procession wear typical clothes of the agricultural background of the town, but elaborately embroidered. This bread tradition is found anther inland towns of Alicante Province. On the same day many towns celebrate the Virgin de los Desamparados. Gregory was a Benedictine monk, appointed as Bishop of Ostia. Later became a Cardinal and was Papal legate to the kingdoms of Spanish Navarre and Old Castile. He died c. 1044 at Logrono and is venerated throughout Navarre and Rioja.

Saint Isidro for Madrid by Dave Stewart

15th May is one of the biggest fiestas in Madrid being the day of the cityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s patron saint, San Isidro Labrador; usually includes five days of bull-fights. A rather unusual person as patron saint for a capital city such as Madrid, but there is an annual event when 2,000 sheep are shepherded though the town centre keeping of a traditional Right of Way, known as Fiesta de la trashumancia held in October. Isidro was a pious farmer, married to a woman who became known as Saint Mary de la Cabeza. Their son died young; convincing them it was the will of God that they not have children, and they lived together celibately the rest of their lives, doing good works. He was accused by fellow workers of shirking his duties by attending Mass each day, taking time out for prayers, etc., Isidore claimed he had no choice, but to follow the highest Master. One tale says that when his boss came in the morning to chastise him for skipping work for church, he found angels plowing the fields in place of Isidro. Miracles and cures reported at his grave, in which his body remains incorruptible Nearer Torrevieja is the village of San Isidro which celebrates on a less grand scale but with processions and other events. This small town received its independence from Albacete in 1992. The feast of San Isidro is the main fiesta held in the small town near Orihuela. This is a farming community and each year there is a Romeria (pilgrimage) in honour of San Isidro with a special act in honour of the other saintly town patron, the Virgen of Fatima, when the oxen, which have been pulling the gaily coloured caravans, go down on their knees in front of the image of the virgin aormi@icloud.com

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This takes place in April but from the 13th - 15th May the town is a hive of activity as the old and young celebrate with a variety of sporting and cultural events including motoring rallies. With the 100th anniversary of Fatima apparitions there will be special attractions. This is also a popular month for romerias or pilgrimages on this day (or the following Sunday) many are held in Alicante towns such as, Cox, Orihuela, Rojales, San Fulgencio and La Romana. This saint is the protector of agriculture and harvests, so is important in the lives of farming districts.

The furniture manufacturing town of Yecla, in Murcia region, also has a spectacular fiesta with floats made up of twisted colored spills that are built up into huge sculptures. See last yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s May Torrevieja Outlook for an article and photos. In Orihuela San Isidro is celebrated in the district of that name, but there is another celebration that of La Virgen del Rocio and this small image is carried on a bier of flowers accompanied by people wearing typical Andalusian clothes. A highlight is the horses and carriages, the guitar playing and songs in Andalusian style. The procession begins at the sanctuary situated in the palace of the Maruesa of Rubalcaba and wends its way to the recinto of Los Huertos. This is a foretaste of the main Rocio a bit later in the year. St. Isidro has a special place in the springtime festivals at Villar de Olmos, near Requena. This small village reached its lowest population level a few years ago when just one elderly couple lived there as most of the younger families had moved to larger towns to make a living. Nowadays, it has become a bit more popular with casas rural and as people build holiday and weekend retreats there. However, the tradition of making aormi@icloud.com

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a special bread in honour of St. Isidro has never ceased. His statue is kept in a small hermitage in the village and the bread is made from flour, eggs and olive oil with a generous sprinkling of anise seeds in rainbow colours on top. These are large loaves - about 90 centimetres in diameter - adorned with 10cm long canes, folded paper ribbons, and little heart and animal shapes, and they are carried by two pilgrims walking abreast. The loaves are individually blessed outdoors by the local priest and the meadows at this time of the year are usually blooming with the red of poppies and the white of daisies. The pilgrimage, carrying the statue and loaves, goes through untilled fields and, after a midday banquet, dancing takes place, the start to a full day of fun and games.

Rojales pilgrimage to C.Quesada There is a romeria from Rojales up to the small hermitage at El Recorral park, behind the Cuidad Quesada urbanisation, with picnicking all day long. Carriages carry a statue of the saint up the hill to this area for a weekend of fun. Buses free from town centre. This is a weekend affair on 13 - 15th May with a great deal of music on the Saturday and on the Sunday many different activities including a paella competition, choir singing, folklore music, traditional local games and a traditional homage to the labourers who work in the fields all year round. There will be a Sevillanas singing competition.

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One of the biggest and most popular events in Torrevieja is the Feria del Mayo that has been in existence for over twenty years. It is held in the fairground area on the port zone, although there has been talk of it moving to the new outdoor market area near the aquapolis and Habaneras zone. This year it has been postponed but in the Habaneras shopping centre some events will be held.

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The annual May Fair usually starts in the evening with the official lighting of the thousands of coloured electric lights followed by ‘La noche del Pescaíto’ when small fish are cooked and consumed by the vast crowd that turns up for these occasions. There is a large stage with nightly dancing and music, typical of Seville and bringing the Andalusian flavor to the town. Around 60 casetas are set up, brightly bedecked with an Andalucian ambience; wide streets separating them, so that the crowds can mingle freely and, at certain times, the horses and carages parade. People stroll around the casetas, stopping to visit and chat, have a drink and watch impromptu dancing en route. Sherry is the traditional tipple, aormi@icloud.com

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but anything goes. All the prices are fixed throughout the casetas for food and drink. It is a celebration based on the famous April Seville Feria which dates back to the 19th century. These Torrevieja ones last for six days and started as a street party in 1987 in calle Seville, which was so successful it was repeated the following year. It attracted crowds of people from the Vega Baja towns and on the third year it was decided to make it a more official feria and moved to its present site. The streets of today’s feria are more widely spaced so that it is easier to move along them, visiting each caseta on the way. The casetas vie with each other as there is a prize for the best dressed caseta. It is an opportunity for the ladies to dress up in colourful Sevillana dresses and the menfolk to don traditional riding costume with broad Cordoban sombreros, white frilly shirts, dark Eton jackets, and spurred half boots. Inside the casetas people, eat, drink, sing, play the guitar and dance the wild sevilliana dance and in recent the years many foreigners have actively taken part in the celebrations (many taking dance lessons Then during the day there are other events held. An important feature of these days is the parades of horses and horse drawn carriages, with events such as a romeria and various equestrian events and competitions in dressage. It is a very colourful event and the area is dominated by a large stage which is used for professional and amateur sevillana dancing competitions and typical Andalusian entertainment. If you are a visitor then this is an added treat for your holiday - don’t forget your camera.

Colourful Pilgrimage The Pilgrimage of Rocio is a holiday of Andalusian religious character without precedents in the history of the modern Marionology. It is the principal feast dedicated to the Virgin of the Rocio and held in Andalusia at El Rocío, Almonte (Huelva). It is held at the Ermita de El Rocio (hermitage).The Pilgrimage begins on Saturday on the vigil of Pentecost falling on 4th June this year, at twelve o'clock in the morning, with the presentation of the Affiliated Fraternity in rigorous order of antiquity before the doors of the Sanctuary, where a nourished representation of the brotherhood. The Romerios go on foot,

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astride horses or in wagons adorned and drawn by mules or oxen. In this fashion they process, reaching towards the end of the road, through dust and river, which is often difficult for the old men and women. As the caravans are brightly decorated it is a very colorful event, emotional and solemn at the same time. Torrevieja Rocio Usually near the end of May a similar romeria of La Virgen del Rocio takes place in Torrevieja. This pilgrimage has been going since the early 1990â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s and grows larger each year as women, wearing gaily coloured flouncy Andalucian style dresses, carry the small statue of the Virgen through the streets. They are accompanied by horseriders dressed in Cordoban suits. A small sanctuary dedicated to the Virgen del Rocio is being constructed in the Parque de Europa in the Cala Blancas area. The pilgrimage group camp for the weekend at la Mata picnic area, although they have been at their sanctuary in Calas Blancas or at lo Ferris.

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Making a Song and Dance by Pat Hynd

Visitors to Spain might have the impression that there is only one style of dancing in the country - flamenco. This music has its origins in cante jondo, the sad but florid song of Cádiz, in which some deep emotion is conveyed by tone rather than words. The name means "deep song" in Spanish, with hondo ("deep") but the j gets altered by the the southern twang. In 1922 the famous Spanish composer Manuel de Falla helped organize the first Concurso de Cante Jondo for Granada. Many classical musicians, cultural and literary figures, including the young poet Federico García Lorca, participated in the programme. The result was the memorable series of flamenco performances held at the Alhambra during June. It is the basis of the songs and dances added to by the large gypsy population of Andalusia, in particular the rhythms, alternatively soft and subtle followed by a thunderous echoes. The dance is accompanied by stamping of feet and graceful hand movements. In the flamenco there are two types of rondeña: one is the sung version and the other that of concert guitar. The rondeña is a fandango The May Fair is a wonderful aormi@icloud.com

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opportunity to see first class dancers perform to typical music as well as more modern compositions. The Fair is also a time when people can dance in the many casetas where there is food and drink and a small dance floor. Flamenco is not one, but numerous dances and songs - the melancholy soleas, tiranas, soleares, bulerias, alegrias, jaleos, farrucas, tarantas, fandangos. This latter style has generated the malgueña, the granadina, rondeña or the murciana of the Levante area. The sevilla, bolero and Argentinian tango have also relationships with the fandango. Then you have the zambra, which you are likely to see in floor shows with a lot of castanets, hand clapping, tap dancing and pirouetting. The Spanish Royal Dictionary describes the zambra as a fiesta of the moriscos, with bustle, joy and dance: ora fiesta of the gypsies of the Sacromonte, in Granada, Spain, similar to the gypsy festivity of the Moriscos.The zapateado is when the dancer taps out variations on a theme suggested by the guitarist. However Andalusia is not the only place where there is traditional dancing as almost every Spanish region has its own style of traditional dance and all equally proud of their roots. In Aragon there is an energetic jota with couples leaping about to guitar and castanet music. Valencia has something similar in the “xaquera vella”, but as said earlier in Murcia there is the malagueña and murciana. In Valencia, the jota was once danced during interment ceremonies. For their interpretation, guitars, bandurrias, lutes, dulzaina, and drums are used in the Castilian style, while the Galicians use bagpipes, drums, and bombos. In Cataluña the sardana is popular and can be seen (or taken part in) outside the Barcelona cathedral each Sunday at midday. This is a simple ring dance where everyone holds hands forming a ring and dances to the music of flute, drum and guitar. The spata-dantza is a type of sword dance in the Basque country although the aurresku is better known. This is rather solemn dancing accompanied by piercing cries. There are approximately 400 distinct Basque folk dances, each with its own story and significance. Some, the more ancient ritual dances, are performed only for aormi@icloud.com

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Barcelona sardana is held in front of the cathedral every Sunday morning.

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particular events or circumstances and initially were performed by male dancers only. Many include the use of sticks and swords that the dancers strike together as they progress through the movements of the dance. You can tell a good dancer by how high they jump, their double clicks, how high they kick, and their gracefulness. The upper body, arms and wrists are the important aspects of dancing in Castille and La Mancha in the seguidilla. There is little footwork, but the dance is graceful and elegant movements of the upper body and limbs. The Basques also have the trikitixa, and the zortziko.

The pasodoble (right) is possibly the best known and popular dance and music amongst the Spaniards, having its roots in the bullring where the graceful movements of the torero are married to music. The traditional version as couple's dance originated in France, and was then adopted in Spain and Portugal. Its original form as a Spanish military march is still interpreted nowadays in the context of the Moor and Christian festivals. Famous bullfighters have been honoured with pasodoble tunes named after them. Madrid also has the seguidilla madrileĂąa which is similar to the seguidilla. Finally in recent years the bagpipe music of Galicia has made a come-back and with it some traditional dances. Here you can find lively dances such as the muĂąeira, or the saudade and aubade and many of them are similar to the famous Irish River Dancing style. There has been an upsurge of interest in traditional music and dances and there are more and more folk festivals where these dances can be seen. Also in the last number of years salsa and merengue have made what appears to be a lasting impact on the dance scene in Spain. The merengue music was born kind in the Dominican Republic joined the Cuban rumba as recognized as heritage of humanity by the organization of the UNO. aormi@icloud.com

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Crazy boating In July we have the annual Virgen del Carmen fiestas with activities related to the sea. This year a new venture will the “La naves locas” or crazy boats ,which is a competition to have floating artifacts under the theme of “float how you can”. It is being held in Torrevieja harbour in July in collaboration with the Torrevieja town hall and the Real Club Nautico. It is a competition in several categories including the most sympathetic crew, the best prepared vessel, the most miserable looking vehicle.

Entries are still open until 25th June in the Fiestas office in the Torrevieja town hall or phone 670 501 100 for information.

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In June we have the San Juan fiestas that including the burning of a hoguera. While Alicante is the place to be with magnificent examples of figures, Torrevieja only now has one main hoguera in the district of Calvario. This is a special year as it marks the 125th anniversary of the first hogueras in Torrevieja as well as the 25th year that this particular association has been building one in their district. We wrote in an earlier edition about the Torrevieja hogueras that were featured in the International FITUR tourist

exhibition in Madrid held in January. On 20th May there will be a special gala held in the paseo Vista Alegre to elect the Hoguera Queens. This will feature Queens from other towns, so will be a very colourful spectacle with their beautiful dresses. Eduardo Dolรณn Sรกnchez has been chosen to be honoured at the same time, because of his close links and support to these fiestas.

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Moors & Christian festivities by Dave Stewart

For those who have never seen Moors & Christian parades and battles then there are several during this month. Granja del Rocamora celebrates from 1st - 3rd May; Muro de Alcoy (8th - 11th); Biar (10th - 13th). Petrer (14th - 18th); Villena has a special attraction on the 12th with the arrival of Mahoma.

Petrer’s Moors & Christians Petrer has a small but imposing castle that was declared a National Historic Monument in 1983. Over the last forty years or so this town has seen a tremendous change from being a mainly agricultural centre to an important place for the manufacture of shoes. The actual origin of Petrer was in the time of the Almohad arabs at the end of the 12th century with a fortified town complete with mezquitas, baths and rambling streets. After the Reconquest Petrer passed into the Loayasa family and in 1609 the moriscos were expelled and replaced by Christian families from neighbouring towns. The castle was an important element in the line of fortresses dividing Aragón and Castilla. It is situated on a rocky hill and controlled the Valle del Vinapopó and from its vantage point could visually see other similiar fortresses. From the 16th century it formed part of the Count of Elda’s lands until aormi@icloud.com

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the abolition of the señoríos in the19th century. The old Arab mezquita gave way to the church dedicated to St. Bartholomew the Apostle, work begun in April, 1779. During the 14th and 15th centuries there were several reforms and today one can see the restoration work on the castle begun in 1974 until the 1980’s by the Town Hall. Petrer has an interesting archeological museum and there is a well defined route of monuments in the immediate area. The town’s Moors and Christian fiestas are held on 11 - 15 May. Petrer holds one of the most impresive Moors & Christian fiestas this month in honour of the

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patron saint, San Bonifacio MĂĄrtir. This particular canonised saint spent a wild youth, and remained a confirmed bachelor all his life. He was converted to Christianity, brought to the Faith by a wealthy Roman lady named Algae during a journey to the East to search for relics of previous saints. Finally he was martyred for defending Christians put to torture for their beliefs. He was beheaded in 306; relics brought back by Algae and entombed at the Church of Saint Alexius and Saint Boniface at Rome. He is patron saint of bachelors and converts. The Petrer fiestas take place from 16th to 20th May and have been declared as of Touristic Interest. They have their origins in the 17th and 18th centuries when citizens let off their arquebusses in the air in honour of their saint. Petrer has several comparsas which are over 100 years old - Moros Viejos, Tercio de Flandes and Marinos. In Petrer no-one need feel that they are strangers, everyone is welcome in what is a celebration of gunpowder and smoke, noise and music, spectacle and joy. These are five days of intense fun as the townspeople set about the work of enjoying themselves and offering a spectacular fiesta to the world that everyone can enjoy. As in similar fiestas the meeting of the Ambassadors of the Moors and Christians is an important aspect of the week. Women have a prime part to play; the first woman to appear was in 1905. Each group has its own cuartelillo where they live together; eating and changing costumes there. Music is another important aspect to the fiestas in Petrer and several musical bands back up the ten comparsas. The Christian comparsas are - Tercio de Flandes, Marinos, VizcaĂnos, Estudiantes, Labradores. The Moors put five comparsas into the filed with Moros Viejos, Moros Nuevos, Moros Beduinos, Moros Fronterizos and Berberiscos.

ELDA at war

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Perhaps not on the tourist map as it is a fairly industrialized city, Elda still has something to offer tourists. This year the Moors & Christian festivities take place from 1st to 5th June. At the end of May and into the first week of June, Elda celebrates with Moors & Christian festivities in honour of San Anton. Nine comparsas, bands of Moors and Christians, wearing brightly coloured costumes and brandishing arms, once more take to the streets of the town centre in a tradition that is recorded as far back as 1863 and 1864.

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In the 19th century, about 1838-1840, when it was a small agricultural people, there appears to have been a so called Holiday of Moors and Christians that evolved from the former “soldadesca” or local militia that was shooting arquebuses in volleys of honor at the patron saint. They died out during the Civil War but were reinstated in 1945 after a manifestation " sui generis " with a heroic turn out of festeros dressed in costumes loaned from neighboring populations. Over 7,000 people take part in these fiestas, half of them women, and in 1981 the fiestas were categorized as of National Touristic Interest. The feasting ends on the day of San Anton on the 4th June. Here you can see Christians, Pirates, Musselmen, Morrocans and many other groups represented in the magnificent parades. San Antonio Abad is the patron of this Holiday, whose devotion is lost in the time, being one of the most ancient religious holidays of the city. The hermitage where it takes root with an image occupies a location formally a minor mosque of the medieval Elda, which then changed to be a church dedicated to St. Catalina and San Antón. His liturgical festivity is actually on January 17, and there is a media festival at that time. The following is the timetable although it may be liable to some changes nearer the date.

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1 de June 2017, Thursday: 20:00h: Entrada de Bandas de Música 00:00h: Retreta 2 June 2017, Friday: 10:30h: collection of the Saint. 11:30h: Translation San Antón a to the Iglesia Arciprestal de Santa Ana 19:00h.: Children’s parade 3 June de 2017, Saturday: 10:00h: gunpowder spent by guns known as the Alardo de arcabucería 11:30h: Estafeta and Embajada Mora 18:00h: Christian entrance and comparsas 4 June 2017, Sunday: 8:00: Diana reveille 11:30h: Offering parade with all the groups 12:30h: Solemn Mass Festera in the Templo Santa Ana. Once that ends there is more gunpowder and bangs from a muscatel then a parade. 18:00h: Majestic entrance of the Moors.

Fotos: Jesus Creces

5 June 2017, Monday: 10:00h: firing of harquebuses 11:30h: Estafeta and Christian Ambassador 18:30h: Solemn Procession of San Antonio Abad ending with firework display.

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Every year since 1977 International Museum Day is organised worldwide around May 18. This day is an occasion to raise awareness on how important museums are in the development of society. ICOM Advisory Committee organises the theme of this event that, given the high number of countries involved, lasts a day, a weekend, a week or even a month. The theme chosen for 2017 is "Museums and contested histories: Saying the unspeakable in museums”. Over 35,000 museums in 145 countries participate in this event, although not always on the same day. History is a vital tool for defining a given people's identity, and each of us defines ourselves through important and fundamental historic events. Contested histories are unfortunately not isolated traumatic events. These histories, which are often little known or misunderstood, resonate universally, as they concern and affect us all. Spain has its association DIM (Día Internacional de los Museos) that organizes events on an international scale and recently moved their main office to the Museo Arqueológico Nacional.

Cartagena is one of the participating cities, a town with a wide variety of museums from early Roman and Carthaginian artifacts to the first submarine. The date has been confirmed for the 9th edition of the Night of the Museum in Cartagena as Saturday the 20th May 2017 when the museums will be free and open until 02:00 on Sunday morning. There is the Teatro Romano featuring the reconditioned amphitheater where sometimes there are live theatre events in the open air.

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Another is known as the Punic Wall Museum which is a route round the city walls with a guide and costs 25euros normally an has to be booked in advance. The Castle of la Concepcion is a popular place to visit and is highly rated by TripAdviser clients as is the other Fort of Navidad. Wonderful views over the port area where there is the Museo Nacional de Arqueología Subacuática, which includes items recovered from the sea and archeological finds. Allied with this is the Naval Museum with a history of the Spanish Navy that for centuries has used Cartagena as one of its main naval bases. During the Spanish 1936-39 civil war Cartagena was a Republican bastion and the Republicans hewed out a huge rock and housed an enormous hospital that can still be seen in a museum context - Museo-Refugio de la Guerra Civil.

Orihuela Semana Santa Museum Tel 96 674 40 89 Orihuela is a city absolutely full of old churches, museums and fine buildings. Among them is this one dedicated to the city’s famous Holy Week processions. There is work underway to extend the museum to 1.150 metres and once completed will be the largest such museum in Europe, if not the world. Here one can see the massive statues and 22 thrones carried in the annual processions by cofradias. These are works of art many of them by the famous Salzillo. Some of the ‘thrones’ on which they are carried are exhibited here and these are works of art in themselves. The city has a long history of Semana Santa processions that bring alive the Passion

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of Christ through these images and the annual involvement by thousands of citizens. Miguel Hernรกndez Museum Tel. 96 530 63 27. This museum is quite small as it is the house where this famous poet lived in Orihuela. He was one of the many victims of the Spanish Civil War and he has a large following of admirers who meet annually in March to hold a two-day walk around the towns related to the poet. 2010 is dedicated to this internationally admired poet and there are events throughout the year. Most towns in the area have a street or a square dedicated to this writer. Archaeological Museum Tel. 96 674 31 54 Orihuela is a very old city with a long history and much of it can be seen in this museum through the many pieces of Iberian, Roman, Arab and later civilizations offered to the visitor. Reconquest Museum Tel. 96 530 27 47 Each summer thousands of the people of Orihuela take to the streets dressed as Moors and Christians in the annual colourful and noisy parades. The city was under the control of Moors for a long time before being part of the reconquest of the Christian Kings, notably Jaime I. This museum outlines some of that part of the history of Orihuela.

Diocesan Museum of Holy Art Tel. 96 530 06 38

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As a city Orihuela has a fine cathedral worthy of a visit. It also has this museum dedicated to works of art related to Christianity and the visitor can see many fine paintings and sculptures by famous artists.

San Fulgencio Archaeological Museum Tel. 96 679 4020 This town is an old farming community and the roots of the town can be seen in this museum. Like Rojales the actual town is in danger of being swamped by the urbanisation of la Marina that is in its municipal boundaries.

Pilar de la Horadada Archaeological and Ethnological Museum Tel. 96 535 11 24 Of itself Pilar de la Horadada is a fairly new town in that it came under the civil and religious jurisdiction of Orihuela until recently. But it is a very progressive town that has not forgotten its roots and these can be seen in this museum as every effort is made to keep alive old traditions of a farming community with a link to the sea.

Rojales Municipal Museum Tel. 96 671 50 01 Rojales is another farming community that depended largely on the waters of the Rio Segura. With the nearby urbanisation of Ciudad Quesada threatening to overshadow the old town, strong efforts are being made to recover some of the historical aspects of the citizens of Rojales. In this museum one can see some of the tools used by the agricultural community, remains of some of the inheritance left by the Moors and see something of the colourful glamour associated with the Moors & Christian fiestas held at the end of June. aormi@icloud.com

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Alicante Fundación MARQ´ Plaza Dr. Gómez Ulla. Provincial Archaeological Museum with modern audiovisual effects in theme rooms from pre-historic to modern with Iberian, Roman and Middle Ages cultures. An ideal museum to discover the past of Alicante Province. Museo de la Asegurada, Plaza de Santa Maria, 3.

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Collection of 20th century art with works by Picasso, Dali, Miró, Chagall, Gargallo, Juan Gris, Julio González, Bacon, Giacometti, Adami among others. The Santa Barbara Castle This powerful castle dates back to the Middle Ages with alterations in the fortifications up to the 18th century. It towers over Alicante city and its bay and there are continuous exhibitions of various types of art and culture including midnight galas during summer. Access by road or there is a lift from the beach area at a minimum cost- accredited pensioners go free.

Pozos de Garrigós, Plaza del Puente. Here there are ancient wells and an exhibition about water and ceramics. Museo de Belén. Calle San Agustin 3. Alicante Province has a strong tradition of making Christmas cribs (belens) and here one can see examples from all over the world. This is associated with the cocathedral of San Nicholas, which has a magnificent crib scene every year and is the centre of the artisans and aficionados of those who make the crib figures and scenery. Sala Municipal de Exposiciones ‘Lonja del Pescado’ Avda. Almirante Julio Guillén Tato. This is a converted fish auction hall that always has various art exhibitions. Alicante Airport

TORREVIEJA Museo del Mar Y de la Sal C/ Patricio Perez 10 - Tel. 96 670 68 38 This museum is in a temporary site and will eventually be moved to the Eras de la Sal in a purpose-designed building. It has artifacts from Roman times and portrays some of the history of Torrevieja’s long and unique relationship with the sea and the salt lakes. A sailing ship built tin Torrevieja is the “Pascual Flores” that been repaired and wis an important floating exhibit of the museum. This boat was built in Torrevieja when the town was renowned for its ship building abilities. In its early days, the Pascual Flores was used for shipping salt from the lakes and moored to the wooden quayside is an example of the small boats that were loaded and used to ferry salt to the larger ships. These are part of the “floating museum” that also includes a real live submarine, the “Delfin” (Dolphin”, donated by the Spanish navy and another recent acquisition is a coastguard cutter “Albatross III”, both of which can be boarded and inspected. There are many other smaller boats, including one aormi@icloud.com

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that was used as a salt barge on the salt lake and a sculling rowing boat donated by the local rowing team. A small fleet of Vela Latina boats is gradually being built and is in use for teaching people basic sailing skills and are in demand for making films. Museo de la Semana Santa, C/ Formentera, Urb. Primavera (Behind Los Arcos Restuarante) Tel. 96 670 68 38 Each Holy Week annual processions take place with over two thousand people dressed in colourful robes with hoods, including over 300 children. They are formed into groups known as cofradias, each cofradia with its own distinctive colours and each devoted to some aspect of Christ’s last hours of life. In these nightly processions statues representing some aspect of Christ’s final sufferings are carried. Many of these are displayed all year round in the Semana Santa Museum including one that is carried by a group of foreigners – the Garden of Olives. Others are kept in the la Inmaculada Church in the town square. Work is underway to build a new museum designed specifically for these huge floats closer to the town centre and the Municipal Archives. The Music Museum Ricardo Lafuente is now located at the former railway station. This museum is dedicated to the musical tradition of Torrevieja and also to a composer who has developed this musical heritage in the town. Torrevieja has a strong traditional of music based on music and songs taken from Cuba where Torrevieja sailors sailed carrying salt and other merchandise to the Caribbean and Latin America. The sailors brought back the aormi@icloud.com

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songs and taught them to their families. In doing so they also made up their own songs expressing their longing to return to their families and their love for their native land and town. From these beginnings the annual Habaneras Certamen has grown up: this is an international choir competition that uses polyphonic, music particularly that known as habaneras. These concerts are held at the end of July including one on the beach and others in the central streets. One of the instigators of these annual events is local composer and musician Ricardo Lafuente, who has written many pieces of music including the recognized anthem of Torrevieja. Many of his books and music has been donated to this museum.

Natural History Museum. This is also located in the former railway buildings and possesses and interesting collection of exhibits connected with the Mediterranean and its shore such as birds, their nests and eggs. Life sized figures include a dolphin and there are hundreds of seashells including some from of African shores. Salt Interpretation centre This is another small museum related to the salt industry that is also located in a former railway building. This has an interesting explanation of the development of salt crystals and their harvesting. Many photographs show the development of the aormi@icloud.com

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workings and the introducing over the years of new technological innovations such as the train. Christmas Crib Museum: Each year Torreviejaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s main plaza has a wonderful nativity scene made by the artists of the Belen Museum located in calle Orihuela. This outdoor Christmas crib includes many symbolic buildings of Torrevieja. The Belen Museum is open all year round with a small admission fee and the opportunity to buy some excellent Nativity figures.

Elche

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The city of Elche has a long history dating back to the Bronze Age and is an important place for visitors to discover. There are several historical buildings and museums as well as gardens full of various palm trees. Municipal Archaeology Museum Tel. 96 545 36 03. The collection here goes back to pre-Iberian history and there is a copy of the famous Iberian bust of the Dama de Elche, which is now in the national museum of Madrid. Elche was a Roman city and there are many artefacts of the Roman period. La Alcudia Museum Tel 96 661 15 06. Associated with the Dama de Elche statue is the museum that now graces the place where the statue was first uncovered and is now a recognised archaeological site as well as a very modern museum. This is on the outskirts of the city and well worth more than a casual visit. Agricultural School Museum of Pozol. Tel 96 663 04 78. Around Elche there is a thriving agricultural community and there are a few schools dedicated to training farmers and other agricultural specialists. At this school there is also an agricultural museum displaying some of the tools past and present used in farming the area. Palm trees are an important heritage of Elche and there are a couple of gardens to visit. One is the Huerta del Cura that is a living museum of various types of palm trees and there is an entrance fee. The other main garden is the Municipal Park overlooking the river. Recently the inheritance of Elcheâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s palm forests has been recognised by the United Nations as of interest and importance to the world. Festival Museum Tel. 96 545 34 64 Elche has a long history and as such a long history of fiestas. Among them are Moors & Christians, the medieval mystery play of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary into heaven, the Early Settlers Festival. These fiestas are at set times during the year but it is possible to breathe a part of their atmosphere at this museum. Museum of Contemporary Art Tel. 96 545 49 82 Another museum to visit while in Elche is this one which has a good selection of works by modern artists who make use of the wonderful Mediterranean light to put their ideas and vision onto canvas.

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Santa Pola Sea Museum Tel. 96 669 15 32 Nearby Santa Pola has been the main port for the city of Elche since before the days of the Romans. This has always been a port and during the Roman era, this was an important place for salting fish and making garum. It is famous for its fishing fleet and this long association with the sea is well displayed in this museum. In Santa Pola there is also an Aquarium that further shows this dependence on the sea through the selection of fish one can see in the tanks. Centro de Interpretaciรณn del Parque Natural Salinas de Santa Pola Tel: 966 69 35 46

Guardamar del Segura Municipal Ethnological and Archaeological Museum Tel. 96 572 86 10 Guardamar is the site of many Mediterranean civilisations and some of the remains of these can be seen in this museum. Among there are interesting pieces from Roman and Arab times. The original town was built around the castle but after a disastrous earthquake in 1829 moved nearer the sea. The people were then faced with another impending disaster as the sea was encroaching on the land threatening the town with sand dunes. To overcome this a forest of pine trees was planted and this has become an important part of the heritage of the town. In this pine forest there is the museum and nearby an archaeological site of an early Arab settlement

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robots Still with museums, but switching to London and the theme of ROBOTS. In this exhibition from the dawn of mechanised human forms to cutting-edge technology fresh from the lab, Robots reveals the astonishing 500-year quest to make machines human. Focusing on why they exist rather than on how they work, our blockbuster exhibition explores the ways robots mirror humanity and the insights they offer into our ambitions, desires and position in a rapidly changing world. Robots takes you on an incredible journey spanning five centuries, illustrated with robotic artefacts from around the globe from a 16th century mechanised monk to some of film’s most iconic robotic creations and the very latest humanoids. But in fact this phenomenon has existed for more than 500 years, and very possibly longer. the first known robot was created around 400-350 BC by the mathematician Archytas and was an artificial bird, one of the first recorded instances of a scientist doing research on how birds fly. The Persian engineer al-Jazari's illustrations of automaton servants and musicians, which were published as far back as 1206 CE, are an early example. Artisans in China developed an elaborate functional mechanical orchestra around 200 BC. Leonardo Divinci designed and built the first known humanoid robot around 1495. aormi@icloud.com

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This robot was an armored knight that could sit up, wave its arms, and move its head while opening and closing its jaw. In searching for the earliest robots, we discover a whole world of miniature mechanical people and the curator has literally dug out some marvelous examples of early, that is 500 years old, robots. At the medieval dinner table, automatons might have dispensed wine, played music or crewed finely-wrought sailing ships, perhaps accompanied by simulated gunfire. Elsewhere, manuscripts were illustrated with all sorts of robots. They were depicted guarding tombs, discreetly reminding revellers of their manners, and much else. Even clocks had robotic features, with automaton fi g u r e s in their mechanisms that enacted complex performances every hour or made bells chime. Machines of the 18th century could reproduce human activities like playing musical instruments or writing, with subtle movements deftly created by intricate mechanisms. For example, they were cunningly programmed to finish writing a sentence with a flourish of the hand, or to acknowledge their audiences with a nod. aormi@icloud.com

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T h e s e mechanical masterpieces provoked questions about the differences a n d similarities b e t w e e n people and machines. On one level, o u r motivation for building robots is the desire to make things quickly and e f fi c i e n t l y. But the sheer variety of robots that h a s developed over time reveals to us that our impulse to build them is driven by reasons other than just functionality. Robots satisfy our desire for a show or spectacle. They speak to our innate curiosity about our aormi@icloud.com

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own bodies and appeal to our sense of fun. Early robots projected a magical quality to the people who saw them. Even today we get an uncanny sense of living organisms working together when we see a robotic production line in full swing. This sensation is bolstered by our tendency to anthropomorphise; to attribute human forms or behaviours to objects.

Josef Čapek introduced the word in a play called R.U.R. The full title translating into English as Rossum’s Universal Robots, which debuted in January of 1921. It comes from the Czeck word ‘roboti’, which gave rise to the English ‘robot’. ‘Roboti’ derives from the Old Church Slavanic ‘rabota’, meaning ‘servitude’, which in turn comes from ‘rabu’, meaning ‘slave’. Isaac Asimov was the first to come up with the laws that robots could not harm humans, but these have been superseded today with the prospects of Artificial Intelligence. First, a quick overview of the Three Laws. As stated by Asimov in his 1942 short story "Runaround":

1. A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm. 2. A robot must obey the orders given to it by human beings, except where such orders aormi@icloud.com

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would conflict with the First Law. 3. A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law. Later, Asimov added a fourth, or zeroth law, that preceded the others in terms of priority: 0. A robot may not harm humanity, or, by inaction, allow humanity to come to harm. Now, some three decades later, we are inching closer to the day when we'll have robots — or more accurately, the AI that runs them — that are versatile and flexible enough to choose different courses of behavior. Indeed, it'll only be a matter of time before machine intelligence explodes beyond human capacities in all the ways imaginable, including power, speed, and even physical reach. Unfortunately, a lot of AI robotics is funded by the military so, for example, we now have an American sniper and a Russian gun toten robot who cannot miss their target. Running alongside the Robots exhibition, 'The Last Supper' by kinetic artist and sculptor Giles Walker is a 13 minute robotic performance. Twelve figures sit around a large table drinking and smoking. On the table birdheaded creatures join in the revelries and at the centre a child stands in front of a cross. The twelve figures discuss their views on sin, forgiveness, guilt and judgement as music plays and the ‘last supper’ requests of death-row inmates are read. Taking over a year to create and built from an old CPR dummy, mannequins, bird skulls and electric motors, Giles Walker’s atmospheric installation follows a long tradition of artworks that use lifelike machines to explore human identity and morality.

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Honey Museum Pat Hynd

Oh, the buzzin' of the bees in the cigarette trees The soda water fountain Where the lemonade springs and the bluebird sings In that Big Rock Candy Mountain On a summer day in the month of May A burly bum came a hiking Down a shady lane through the sugar cane He was looking for his liking As he strolled along he sang a song of the land of milk and honey Where a bum can stay for many a day And he won't need any money

The buzzing of bees is very common sound in summer, but is liable to disappear. Colony collapse disorder has caused a 30 per cent average annual loss of honeybees in North America alone over the last decade. A key feature of the disorder is the complete disappearance of worker bees, leaving the hive largely empty of adult bees.   There is a world wide warning of the disappearance of bees generally. The sharp decline in honeybees has been linked with a change in the foraging behaviour of young bees brought on by some kind of environmental stress such as parasitic attacks or pesticides, a study has found. Bees are some of the hardest working creatures on the planet, and because of their laborious work ethic, we owe many thanks to this amazing, yet often under appreciated insect. Bees are responsible for pollinating about one-sixth of the flowering plant species worldwide and approximately 400 different agricultural types of plant. We see them as industrious (“busy as a bee”) and we appreciate their main product, honey, as setting the standard for all that is ecstatically wonderful and sweet. The Apidae family is perhaps the most well known family, with familiar members such as the honeybee, carpenter bee, and bumblebee. aormi@icloud.com

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All of these species dutifully serve as pollinators of our agricultural world. And they are all excellent at what they do. For example, all bees have stiff hairs and pockets on their legs, allowing them to collect more pollen and be more efficient transporters of it between plants. Most bees are fuzzy and carry an electrostatic charge, which helps the pollen to stick to them. What is pollination? Simply put, it is the transfer of pollen from the male part of the flower, the anther, to the stigma, which is the female part of the flower. Upon the two’s meeting, a plant’s seed, nut, or fruit is then formed. Bees also tend to focus their energies on one species of plant at a time. By visiting the same flowers of a particular species in one outing, much higher quality pollination occurs – rather than spreading many different pollens to different plants which are not being pollinated, all plants of one species are getting an even distribution of vital pollen from others of its same species. They can send a message back to the hive from there kilometers away if they find a good source. Always a third of the worker bees will remain in the hive as a form of survival of the hive.

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Pollination is essentially plant reproduction. Without help from animal pollinators, our everyday food supply would look much different – at least one third of our staples we’ve come to rely on would no longer be available. One out of every three bites of food we eat is a result of pollinators like honey bees, and crops like blueberries and cherries are 90 per cent dependent on pollination. Honey bees are so important that farmers often have bee hives transported and then placed on their farm to provide pollination for their crops. It’s a coexistence that needs to be protected: honey bees need healthy crops and healthy crops need honey bees. If bees ceased pollinating our agricultural goods are: broccoli, asparagus, cantaloupes, cucumbers, pumpkins, blueberries, watermelons, almonds, apples, cranberries, and cherries. It’s thought that about a quarter of our food would be affected if we didn’t have bees. By keeping flowers pollinated, bees perpetuate floral growth and provide attractive habitats for other animals such as insects and birds. Bees are easily amongst the most important insects to humans on Earth. These humble, buzzing bugs deserve a huge thanks – for helping provide us with our favorite fruits and vegetables, their delicious honey, and beautiful, flowery gardens!

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In the past few years honey bees have experienced substantial declines. There were 27 species of bees in the UK and sadly 3 are now extinct with many others under threat. The four most significant are: - Environmental changes such as the extensive use of pesticides, specifically insecticides, in farming. - The loss of the flower-rich habitat on which bees depend for food. Natural habitats such as hedgerows, hay meadows and chalk grassland have all depleted over the past 70 years as a result of the intensification of agricultural systems. - Disease is another serious concern. Varroa is an external parasitic mite that attacks bees and spreads viruses to the bee. A serious mite infestation will lead to the death of an entire bee colony. - Changing climate. Recent wet summers have prevented bees from doing what they do best, searching out pollen.

B FAQs *Honey bees groom themselves to pack the pollen into special pollen baskets on their legs. *There are nearly 20,000 known species of bees throughout the world. *A honey bee queen may lay 2,000 eggs per day and half a million eggs or more in her lifetime. *The ancient Egyptians kept domestic bees and sealed pots of honey were found in the graves of Pharaohs such as Tutankhamun. The honey was still edible. So 'Use By Dates' on honey could say 5000 AD, since the honey in Tutankhamun's tomb was 3000 years old! *A beeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s wings flap approximately 230 times per second. *During medieval times abbeys and monasteries were centers of beekeeping, since beeswax was highly prized for candles. *The fermented honey-drink, mead is older than wine. aormi@icloud.com

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The AHB or killer bee has been depicted in science fiction movies like “The Swarm,” “The Savage Bees” and in the Fox TV movie “Deadly Invasion: the Killer Bee Nightmare,” threatening our lives, our property, and our whole way of life. There is no question this bee is more defensive (aggressive) in defending its home and beekeepers and others have gotten stung multiple times in accidents. Regardless of myths to the contrary, Africanized honey bees do not fly out in angry swarms to randomly attack unlucky victims.

There are several Spanish museums associated with honey production. Centres Apícola Valencià on Turís. M U V A M E L museum is at c/ Plaça Europa (Montroi) open from Monday to Friday and S a t u r d a y mornings, but m a k e a reservation. There are guided tours suitable for families, pensioners and children. Here you will see how honey is produced right up to he packaging of the jars of honey. In this centre there is a room of audio-visual, an exhibition with ninety square meters of informative panels with utensils and objects related to the apiculture and an apiary with "LIVE BROADCAST" bees, where the aormi@icloud.com

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children can approach sonly centimeters from the bees without any danger, thanks to the protection of a safety crystal. There is a honey route Administración Muvamel Marina Blas c/ Plaça Europa s/n 46193 Montroi + Tel: 671 644 445 Información general STAR ON 45 S.L Carles Galletero c/Patilots, 104 46410 Sueca + Tel: 646 975 540

The Museo de Miel is located in Peñalver of Guadalajara. To visit you have to make an appointment via the town hall on Monday or Thursday between 10:00 and 14:00 949 284 395.

Museo de la miel de Granada - http:// www.mieldegranada.com/ Miel_de_Granada/Museo_de_la_Miel.html

Casa-Museo de Apicultura Ezkurdi is open all year - Price: Adults 6€. children 3€ Teléfono: 948306619 - 677598636 Visita guiada http://www.turismo.navarra.es/esp/ organice-viaje/recurso/Ocioycultura/ 2917/CasaMuseo-de-ApiculturaEzkurdi.htm Museo de la Miel (Murgia) Teléfono: 945 43 01 67 / 945 43 04 40

El Museo de la Miel de Málaga.C/ Pósito 1. 29170 COLMENAR - Málaga, España Información General: (34) 952 71 80 30

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JOHN RUTTER REQUIEM and Full Supporting Programme Many of you will remember last May's performance of Vivaldi's Gloria with 'IN HARMONY' Chamber Choir and the Mediterranean Symphony Orchestra. Our next concert in this series is on Friday 5th MAY at 8pm at the same venue, the Centro Ecumenico - Cristo Resucitado in Calle Diamante, La Zenia. The programme will include the famous Rutter Requiem - probably one of the finest choral requiems ever written - and will be accompanied by soloists from the Mediterranean Symphony Orchestra, and conducted as ever by Nigel Hopkins. The supporting programme will feature several liturgical 'pot-boilers' including:- Faure's 'Cantique de Jean Racine', Bach's 'Jesu, Joy Of Man's Desiring', Psalm 23 (The Lord Is My Shepherd) by Howard Goodall - as heard on the Vicar of Dibley, and the very exciting 'O Thou The Central Orb' by Charles Wood - smashing stuff! ..... plus several more solos and duets. Tickets for this very exciting concert are NOW available at La Ponderosa Gift Shop, on La Zenia island, priced at 12â&#x201A;Ź each. Patrons are reminded that these concerts are very well-attended and normally sell out very quickly. You are therefore invited to secure your tickets early, so as to avoid disappointment. You are guaranteed an evening of superb, moving and entertaining music, representing some of the finest liturgical music ever written. DATE FOR YOUR DIARY The ORIHUELA Costa Male Voice Choir will perform an evening of popular music from famous musicals on Sunday 28th May in the Centro Ecumenico. Further details will follow ... but pencil in the date in your diary. Hope to see you all on 5th May. Happy listening ...... Nigel Hopkins

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Norwegian Constitution Day is the National Day of Norway and is an official national holiday observed on May 17 each year. The Constitution of Norway was signed at Eidsvoll on May 17 in the year 1814. The constitution declared Norway to be an independent kingdom in an attempt to avoid being ceded to Sweden after Denmarkâ&#x20AC;&#x201C; Norway's devastating defeat in the Napoleonic Wars. After 1864 the day became more established when the first children's parade was launched in Christiania, at first consisting only of boys. It is a popular event in Torrevieja and normally people gather near the Hombre del Mar statue before parading to the Park of the Nations for music and typical food. There is a strong presence of schoolchildren and these will carry a banner of their respective schools. Typically, a school's children parade will consist of some senior school children carrying the school's official banner, followed by a handful of other older children carrying full size Norwegian flags, and the school's marching band.In addition to flags, people typically wear red, white and blue ribbons. Some people will wear traditional clothing.

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In the port area of Torrevieja there are three leisure marinas, plus a floating museum and the fishermenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s wharf. There are several types of organized nautical activities including regattas, fishing, parasailing, rowing club, or the vela latina sailing club,. The marinas all have excellent restaurants and both the Marina International and the Marina Salinas have live music throughout the summertime.

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Torrevieja Friday Outdoor Market will move to the new position near the Aquapolis water park and the Habaneras commercial centre on Friday

12th May 2017

TORREVIEJA CULINARY CALENDAR 2017 MAY: - 15 to 19 - Cocina Internacional

JUNE: - Jornadas Gastronรณmicas "Torrevieja y el Mar" SEPTEMBER: - 30 - International Tapas Day NOVEMBER: - 6 to 12 - Semana de la Cuchara /weeklong tasting of traditional food eaten with a spoon.

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of Spanish Cooking by Pat Hynd

This month I would like us to have a look at Andalucía in relation to the May Fair. Torrevieja Fair is an imitation or extension of the world famous Feria de Seville held at the end of April. The tradition of this fair dates back to 1847 when it was a corn and cattle market with an agricultural show. Today it is a mixture of a fair, dance festival and wild entertainment. An Andalucían tradition that has its roots in the times of the Romans a famous dancer of Cadiz was summoned to Rome to perform her art – an early style of flamenco. There seems to be the possibility that an Indian tribe immigrated to the area centuries before that bringing with them their own style of dancing complete with hand movements that are characteristic of flamenco. The word gypsy has its origins in the word for Egypt, which may or may not have a bearing on this story. Over the years the various versions of these dances have developed into the modern art form we can appreciate today aormi@icloud.com

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But it is also an opportunity for friends to come together and enjoy local food and drink wine â&#x20AC;&#x201C; especially local sherries from Jerez. One of the most common and classic dishes of the region is the humble gazpacho soup that has the same in common as many other famous dishes such as Lancashire hot pot, chow mien, or paella, i.e using up the leftovers. The base of a classic gazpacho remains the same as it was when it was served in the fields by the labourers. That basis is bread, garlic, salt, good virgen oil and vinegar. Diced tomatoes, chopped bell peppers and cucumber are added. Originally the ingredients were mashed in a mortar and pestle, but nowadays there is the option to use an electric blender. Often diced toasted bread, tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers and hard-boiled egg are served as an accompaniment known as tropezones. There are variations such as ajo blanco â&#x20AC;&#x201C; another cold soup made from garlic, white bread, vinegar, oil and fresh young almonds of Malaga. In some places this is served with Moscatel grapes, raisins or apple slices. 200 grms almonds 2 garlic cloves 150 grms hard bread 1 litre cold water 100 ml. almond milk (optional) 100 ml. virgen olive oil 30 ml. sherry vinegar salt to taste.

Soak the bread in water until malleable. In a pot of boiling water put the raw almonds, use a colander or sieve is easier, and after a few minutes take them out and you will peel them easily. aormi@icloud.com

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Really you should beat the garlic in a pestle dripping in the oil, but you could use a blender. Add in the bread, then the oil and vinegar and finally the cold water. Some people add in a little milk or almond milk. Leave in the fridge for about four hours to let the various savours blend, then always taste and correct the seasoning, adding more salt or war as necessary.

Another version is salmorejo cordobĂŠs, which contains just tomatoes rather than the other vegetables and is supplemented with ham, tuna or boiled eggs.

Andalusia is close to the sea, agricultural land and mountains and the cuisine makes most use of the products from all three areas. Indeed there are two seas â&#x20AC;&#x201C; the warmth of the Mediterranean and the colder Atlantic. There are also inland trout farms and readily available on the Costa Blanca. Of course there is always a wide selection of cured hams that you will find in many tapas.

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In this recipe you will find both trout and ham combining some of the best gastronomy of the area. The paleta of ham is the shoulder and the other cut is off the haunch. It is easily used in the home or on a BBQ.

Trout stuffed with ham. Truchas rellenas con jamon 4 cleaned out trout salt and pepper 1 tablespoon roughly chopped almonds 1 tablespoon of roughly chopped green olives 1 finely chopped shallot 1 tablespoon chopped parsley 4 thin slices of Serrano ham 2 tablespoons good olive oil Wash and dry the trout before rubbing the inside and outside with salt and pepper. Mix together the parsley, almonds, olives and shallot. Spread aormi@icloud.com

Torrevieja Outlook

Nº 39 - May 2017

about a quarter of this mixture on the inside of each trout. Roll up the ham and place inside the trout and close up the cavity with toothpicks. Brush four pieces of aluminium foil with oil, place a trout on each sheet and roll up carefully into a parcel. Grill, barbecue or place in an oven for about ten minutes, turning over for another ten minutes. Open carefully to let steam out and serve on the foil with a salad or nice young potatoes.

With the long Arabic connection the area is full of mouth watering desserts and also lots of fresh fruits in season especially oranges or mandarins, but including carambola (star fruit), cherimoya the fruit with the big stones but tastes like custard, papaya, figs, pineapple, nispero (medlar), kiwis, melons and watermelons (sandia), and of course apples, pears.

Spanish Leche Frita Fried Milk Fritters

Leche frita is one of the most delicious and popular Spanish desserts, found in both restaurants and pastry shops throughout Spain. The translation can be a bit puzzling, as it directly translates to "fried milk." The "milk" is actually a deliciously sweet, firm, cold milk-pudding that is encased in a warm and crunchy fried shell of flour and egg. This traditional Spanish dessert is easy to prepare, but it does require refrigerating for at least 3 hours (and preferably overnight) before frying. Leche frita can be enjoyed hot out of the fryer with a scoop of ice cream, or eaten at room temperature and even cold. aormi@icloud.com

Torrevieja Outlook

Nº 39 - May 2017

3 1/2 tablespoons cornflour • 7 tablespoons all-purpose flour(3 1/2 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 or a stick of cinnamon •

1. Put the cornstarch, 3 1/2 tablespoons of the flour, and the sugar together in a large bowl. Add one cup of the milk and mix well with a whisk. Leave to stand and thicken for 10 minutes. 2. Heat the rest of the milk with the cinnamon stick in a large saucepan over medium-low heat. 3. When the milk begins to bubble, strain it little by little into the sugar and flour mixture, stirring well. 4. Pour the sugar, flour, and milk mixture back into the saucepan and put it over low heat, again stirring well, for 10 minutes. 1. 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). 2. Leave to cool in the fridge (overnight if you have time). 3. Run a knife around the edge of the leche frita to ensure it's not sticking and very quickly turn it out. 4. Cut it into 2 1/2-inch squares. 5. Beat the eggs. 6. Heat olive oil in a frying pan to a depth approaching 1/4 inch over medium heat. 7. Add the butter. 8. Dredge each of the squares in the remaining flour, dip in the beaten egg, and fry in hot oil for approximately 1 minute on each side, until very lightly golden. 9. Sieve over powdered cinnamon and serve immediately, or allow to cool. Preparation Note: Although the author suggests using an 11 x 7-inch glass baking dish, we recommend using a smaller size dish to obtain a depth of 3/4 inch. It is important that the leche frita be at least 3/4-inch thick, or it will be very difficult when frying/turning.

aormi@icloud.com

Torrevieja Outlook

aormi@icloud.com

Torrevieja Outlook

Nยบ 39 - May 2017

Torrevieja Outlook