053 july torrevieja outlook

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053 July 2018

July Fiestas Calendar – Novelda – Cox more than fruit – El Campello Moors & Christians – Orihuela Legend – Almoradi on the run – Aquapoliis Torrevieja – Seamen’s Fiesta – Habaneras Festival – Guardamar Santiago – Albatera in focus – Benijofar & San Jaime – In a Cave Home – Cathedral of the Sea review – Sugar sweet – Summer scams – Lifeguard – APANEE – Gold for Cruz Roja – 21 Century Crisis – Ignatian Camino – Symphony Orchestra – the Coke of Valencia – Feathered Ambassadors – HELP connection team - Solidarity News. aormi@icloud.com

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JULY FUN FIESTAS

WITH THE FIRES OF THE JUNE HOGUERAS BEHIND US WE ENTER THE REAL HIGH BUT STILL HOT TOURIST SEASON. Beaches are packed and people look to enjoy themselves with evening fun, fiestas, music and discos.

There’s plenty of music around with Cartagena and the Mar de Musica Festival 20 28 July with Denmark the invited country.

San Javier International Jazz Festival L’Alfas in 25th Jazz festival and its Film Festival Benicassim International music festival (FIB) 19-22 July.

Torrevieja Habaneras Festival

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One of the principal fiestas of July is that of the Virgen del Carmen, 16th July, who is the patroness of those at sea. Most seaside towns hold a maritime parade, ships adorned with bunting, the lead one carrying the image of the Virgen del Carmen on the prow.

1st July Pego celebrates el Día de la Sangre.

First weekend of the month there are the fiestas of “Bouet de la Sang” in Castalla: in the Dulzura district in Ibi: in the San Pedro area of Benifato.

Unusual fun fiestas of “de las Fadrins” in Tárbena: Patronal fiestas in honour of San José in Millena.

10th July Biar celebrates the fiesta de San Cristóbal.

12 - 27th Main fiestas of the VIRGEN DEL CARMEN in Algorfa.

Second weekend of the month: Hogueras 4-day fiesta in San Vicente del Raspeig.

Moors & Christians in Benitachell.

Patronal fiestas in Orba.

14th July Santa María Magdalena are the main fiestas in Tibi, ending around the 25th July.

Patronal fiestas in Cañada week preceding 17th July in honour of Virgen del Carmen.

14 - 18th July Patronal fiestas in honour of Virgen del Carmen in Cox. Moors & Christian parades on the week preceding the 25th, for Santiago, Saint James the Apostle, held in Albatera.

15 - 22 July Moors & Christians in Orihuela.

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15 - 25th July Santa María Magdalena celebrated in Novelda. These fiestas include a romería and Moors & Christian parades and are held the weekend prior to 20th July. .

15 - 16th July Moraira holds sea procession.

16th July

Virgen del Carmen: Benidorm, Calpe, Tabarca Island, La Villajoyosa, Santa Pola, Torrevieja and Xàbia are among those who celebrate this fiesta.

Altea combines this feast with that of St. Peter.

El Campello holds a maritime procession, the start of the summer fiestas.

17 - 21 July Moors & Christians in Jávea.

17th July Fallas (bonfires) in Orihuela.

19 - 26 July Fiestas in honour of Santa Ana in Ondara.

Third weekend of the month: patronal fiestas in Pedreguer and at Ibi. 20 - 21 July Guardamar del Segura honour San Jaime with Moors & Christians parades.

21 - 26 July Fiestas in Lorcha.

22nd July Fiestas of Santa María Magdalena in Banyares de Mariola.

22 July - 11th August Alicante fiestas in honour of the Virgen del Remedio.

22 - 25th Patronal fiestas in Benitachell.

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24th July

Nº 53 July 2018

Moors & Christians in La Villajoyosa.

25th July 25 - 26th

Benijófar patronal fiestas of San Jaime the Apostle.

Torremanzanas fiestas of Santa Ana. Patronal fiestas in Castel de Castells.

25 - 27July Fadrins festival in Callosa d’En Sarrià.

25th July Middle of the year fiesta of Moors & Christians in Castalla.

Weekend nearest to this date Altea fiestas.

26th July Romería in Benefallím y Onil.

Fiestas in Campell (Vall de Laguart).

27 July- 4th August Moors and Christian fiestas in Almoradi 28th July Desembarco in La Villajoyosa.

28 - 30 JulyPatronal fiestas in Algueña.

30th July Weekend nearest to this date fiestas in Pilar de la Horadada and Los Montesinos.

30 - 31 July “Bous al carrer” in Els Poblets.

Last weekend of the month patronal fiestas in Benimarfull. summer festival in Benirrama. Popular fiestas in Tollos.

Between last weekend of July and the first weekend of August there are fiestas in Orba.

End of July Teulada holds the fiestas dels Sants de Pedra.

Last weekend and the first weekend of August main fiestas in Gata de Gorgos.

As can be seen there are plenty of opportunities to join in the fun of the Moors & Christian parades. However, the principal fiestas in nearly all seaside towns is on the 16th July, the Virgen del Carmen.

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Novelda .

The calendar photo this month is of Novelda, a town in the Alicante Province and near Elche.

Novelda has important quarries and mines of marble, limestone, silica, clay and gypsum. It is a major centre of the marble industry.

It was probably settled

by Greeks, although it was controlled by Carthaginians and Romans. Some centuries later it was conquered from the Moors by a son of Ferdinand III of Castile.

One of the main attraction in Novelda is the Modernist Architecture, a branch of Art Nouveau developed in Spain, that makes big use of organic forms, floral painting, stuccoes and painted ceramic tiles called Azulejos. Also the mosaic technique of "trencadis" introduced by Antoni Gaudi, is quite popular.

Davide Vadala has written about his time in Novelda.

Modernist House-Museum The Modernist route in Novelda includes stopping at the Modernist House-Museum designed by Pedro Cerdan Martinez and built between 1900 and 1904. It's an impressive and very well preserved residence, that is possible to visit for free during opening time.

It's built over three floors, that house to the original furniture, stuccoes, paintings and an exhibition of Modernist memorabilia.

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Places of tourist interest in Novelda include the monastery of Santa MarĂ­a Magdalena (dated from the 19th century), which has a church designed by a disciple of Antoni GaudĂ­, the Moorish castle of the Mola, with its unique triangular tower, and the Museum of Modernism. This is a well preserved art nouveau house with original artifacts from the 1920s. The house itself is a work of art. The House-Museum is located in a modernist building designed by Pedro Cerdan Martinez (1863-1947) and is now a centre for modernist research and promotion. There are also several natural and salty lakes to visit in the surroundings.

Just a few steps on the back of the Sanctuary, is staying the castle with the triangular tower of Novelda, "El Castillo de la Mola" built during the 12th century over a previous Roman fortress. Locally known in Novelda because of the unusual shape of its tower, it's worth a visit for the view over the valley that it's possible to have from the top.

On the valley facing the castle there are several natural lakes, known only by locals, where it's possible to go to chill out and take a refreshment from the torrid sun of the summer. They are all quite small, pond-sized, but very interesting: in fact the water aormi@icloud.com

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is salty, and it's forming all around nice shapes of salt crystals, and one of the lakes is having a reddish color.

Going back into town, at the beginning of the urban area, there is an ancient necropolis, that despite its historical and archeological importance looks completely abandoned.

Remaining at the edge of the town, there is a nice park, called Parque del Oeste (West Park) or Parc Dels Dolors. Even here the influence of Antoni Gaudi with his Park G?ell is easily recognizable, from the wide usage of the mosaic tequnique called "trencadis". In the park it's possible to take a nice walk among palms, stone sculptures and fountains. There is even an open air theatre that seats up to 2000 people immersed in the vegetation.

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Cox - More than fruit and veg

If you look at boxes of fruit and vegetables in the markets you are likely to see the name COX as the place of origin. But there’s a lot more to this inland town than that.

The inland agricultural town of Cox celebrates the feast of The Virgen del Carmen on 16th July. The town of around 7,000 inhabitants is located near Callosa del Segura and Orihuela. There are several notable buildings such as the Santa Barbara Castle built in 1466 on a dominating hilltop, destroyed during the Civil War and was restored at the end of the 20th century.

There are two interesting churches – St, John the Baptist built in a neoclassic baroque style between 1744 and 1788 on the site of a previous church which had in turn been built upon the site of a mezquita. The Santuario de Nuestra Señora del Carmen was aormi@icloud.com

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raised in 1621 by the Carmelita Order in place of a medieval hermitage dedicated to Our Lady of Virtues.

This contains all the images used in the Holt Week processions.

There is also a windmill, El Molino, in el Barrio district where the original Christian population was located.

There is an interesting Glorieta Garden where a Carmelites convent used to be and which has two hundred year old pine trees and many palm trees. The two weeks prior to this date are full of processions and parades by the Moors and Christian groups. Cox has seven groups – Moros Coines, Comparsa Lues, Zingaros de Arad, Peña, El Borrego, Pirates del Caribe, Tropical and Estudiantes. Each year this fiesta becomes more and more extravagant and is a good opportunity for the visitor to catch another aspect of Spain’s rich heritage and culture.

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Maritime procession and Moors & Christians of El Campello

The people of El Campello also take to the streets, mostly around the seaside area, for the feast of the Virgen del Carmen. For a week there are several fiesta points along the promenade where people congregate for various types of entertainment in the evenings after ten o’clock. Music and theatre in the streets are daily events, with a full programme to keep the kids entertained.

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The maritime procession of the statue of the Virgen del Carmen has been going on each year since 1975: this is normally the Saturday night nearest to the actual feast day of the 16th and takes place in the evening. Local women, dressed in traditional fisherwomen clothing, normally carry the statue of the Virgen del Carmen.

The Moors & Christians are also present to play their part. There are the traditional meals served in the stalls such as ‘puchero’ and the ‘olleta’, backed up by the drinking of mistela. Nearby restaurants also prepare samples of local cuisine and the famous chocolate famous in this part of the coast. The main patronal fiestas of Moors and Christians take place in October.

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Legendary Woman

Orihuela is also famous for its Moors & Christians festival commemorating the Reconquest of the city and the legend of la Armengola of 17th July, 1242. According to the tale Benazaddón was Mayor of the city residing in la alcazaba while living not far away was his children’s wet nurse, Armengola, the wife of Pedro Armengol; as such she had free access to the fortress. It was secretly decided by the Moorish elements that on the 16th July the local Christians would be put to the sword; however, the Mayor decided to make an exception of the wet nurse’s family so she would be saved. But she herself decided on a ploy to save the Christians: she dressed two young men, Ruidoms and Juan de Arún, in the clothes of her children and together with her husband gained access to the fortress where they silently, secretly and swiftly slaughtered the guards. Armengola herself took up arms and fought like a man with great bravery. A cross was put on top of the tower to show victory.

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With the death of the mayor and his men the plot to massacre the Christians failed and the army of Don Jaime came to the rescue of Orihuela. Every year this tradition is re-enacted on 17th July as part of the annual celebrations. This event took place on the feast of Saints Justa and Rufina who became the patrons of the city. Each year a procession to the church dedicated to these saints includes selecting a local woman who deems it an honour to represent the heroic figure of la Armengola.

Orihuela’s Moors & Christians fiestas have their roots in the 16th century, but lapsed for various reasons for a period and were not restarted until the 1980’s. Now there are over 3,000 men, women and children who take part in the parades and the battles of the Moors & Christians. Impressive as they are in their costumes there are several bands from other towns that participate: notable is the insistent resonance of the big kettle drums wheeled along marking the march of the Moorish files going into battle. Historically one should remember that for almost eight centuries Moors & Christians lived fairly peacefully side by side.

In February Orihuela has a medieval market followed by a mid year (media año) parade with a scaled down version of these July fiestas, aormi@icloud.com

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but still fun to watch. Most of the groups have developed from other groups that are now extinct.

Mercedes Andréu Soñer Armengola 2018 b

The town’s 18 comparsas are: Moros Almoravides – 1974 white, red, yellow and green.

Moros Viejos de Abén-Mohor (1978) colours – black, white, gold and sea blue.

Nazaries de Aben Humeya – 1975 black, red and white.

Musulmanes Escorpiones – 1978 black & gold Almohabenos Negros Egipcios – 1976 white, gold, red and black.

J’Alhamed 1973 gold and black Moros Abdelazies – 1976 white and black.

Realistas Moros Beduinos – 1974 black and white.

Contrabandistas – 1975 white, black and red and do a specific dance of Caballito.

Caballeros del rey Fernando: 1974 dark green and burgundy colours.

Templarios – 2000 – white and red.

Tadmir – 1975 red and black combined with red/gold and green Oriol – 1974 white, red, yellow blue and green.

Piratas Santiago Seguidores de Arums y Ruidoms.- 1975 yellow, white and purple.

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PROGRAMME OF ORIHUELA FIESTAS 2018

07/07/2018 EXALTACION FESTERA TEATRO CIRCO 20:30 CENA-RECEPCION HOMENAJE A LA A R M E N G O L A , EMBAJADORES Y CARGOS F E S T E R O S I.E.S. E S P E ร E TA S 23:00

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15/07/2018 PARADE ABANDERADAS & FLOWER OFFERING STARTS FROM LA GLORIETA GABRIEL MIRO AT 18:30

16/07/2018 CONCENTRACION ANTE EL AYUNTAMIENTO PARA LA PUBLICA EXPOSICION DE LA GLORIOSA ENSEÑA DEL ORIOL PLAZA DEL AYUNTAMIENTO 0:00 17/07/2018 TRASLADO DE LA GLORIOSA ENSEÑA DEL ORIOL A LA CATEDRAL PLAZA DEL AYUNTAMIENTO 9:30 PROCESION TRASLADO SANTAS JUSTA Y RUFINA A SU IGLESIA PARROQUIAL S.I. CATEDRAL 10:00 SOLEMNE MISA DE LA RECONQUISTA I,P, SANTAS JUSTA Y RUFINA 10:30 DESFILE DE LA GLORIOSA ENSEÑA DEL ORIOL I.P. SANTAS JUSTA Y RUFINA DESFILE INFANTIL RECORRIDO OFICIAL 21:00 CONCENTRACION ANTE EL AYUNTAMIENTO PARA ASISTIR A LA RETIRADA DE LA GLORIOSA ENSEÑA DEL ORIOL PLAZA DEL AYUNTAMIENTO 23:45

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20:00 TOMA DEL CASTILLO GLORIETA GABRIEL MIRO 22:30

19/07/2018 RETRETA RECORRIDO OFICIAL 21:00 20/07/2018 ENTRADA CRISTIANA RECORRIDO OFICIAL 21:00 21/07/2018 ENTRADA MORA RECORRIDO OFICIAL - 21:00

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Almoradi Fiestas in a Run The market town Almoradi has finished celebrating its annual Fiestas Perpetuo Socorro 23-24 June.

Now Almoradí celebrates the fair and fiestas “Feria y Fiestas de Julio” starting with the crowning of the Queen and her Maids of Honour. These start on 27 July and end on 1st August. This then runs into the Moros y Cristianos from 2nd to 5th August.

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In front of the Casino of Almoradí there is a Medieval Market in honour of this agricultural town’s patron saints - Abdón and Senén. These saints are also nicknamed the “Santicos de las Piedras” in reference to the need to keep hailstones away from the crops. These were noble Persians who aided Christian martyrs and also buried their remains with dignity, thus evoking the wrath of Prefect Valerian, who ordered that they be fed to the wild beasts of the amphitheatre.

First of all they were beaten and whipped to draw blood, but once in the pit the fierce animals came and knelt before them, licking the saints’ wounds. After this the men were decapitated. During the fiestas, those who labour in the fields make a floral offering to the two diminutive statues of their patron saints.

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These fiestas feature the strong association of the town with the fields and in recent years have recaptured some of the atmosphere of days bygone. Groups form other nearby towns participate and wear typical clothing of the 18th/19th centuries.

Moors & Christian comparsas also feature largely in these fiestas in Almoradi from 27th July and on to the 4th August as an agreement has been reached so that they do not clash with those of nearby Guardamar. The patron saint of the town is Saint Andrew the Apostle and according to legend the saint appeared above the Christian camp during the reconquest on the 30th November.

Almoradi was designated as a “Tourist Municipal” in 2007 and has opened a museum dedicated to agriculture. Every Saturday there are guided tours around the town centre and it is intended to employ guides for tours around the countryside.

There will be a new hostel (albergue) to improve and extend these services.

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Located in the heart of Torrevieja is the Aquapolis water park and is now open to the public for the summer. It has been prepared for several months now and has much more vegetation offering a green panorama broken by the blue of the water pools and the bright colours of the various slides and attractions.

There is a new director, JosĂŠ Javier Guarinos, who represents thee major theme parks of the company Parques Reunidos. Although there is a good parking zone, many people can walk to this centre as it is fairly central.

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Seamen’s Fiesta Origins.

As in most coastal towns Torrevieja fishermen and sailors celebrate the feast of their patroness Our Lady of Mount Carmel which falls on 16th July each year. This is a thanksgiving festival for the bounty of the sea and praying for those who lost their lives at sea.

The origins of this title of the Virgin Mary, according to a Carmelite tradition, go back to the Old Testament when the prophet Elijah had a vision of a lady, carrying a child; he knew that this was to be the mother of the long awaited Redeemer of the Jewish people whom she held in her arms. When the vision ended there was a steady downpour of rain ending a long drought that he interpreted as a promise of salvation.

He retired to a cave in Mount Carmel near Jerusalem as an hermit and was soon joined by other like minded souls seeking God in solitude. With the arrival of Christianity gradually these hermits took on the shape of a monastic order that led to the founding of the brown clad Carmelites. Over the centuries the Virgin Mary has made thousands of appearances to mankind, some ratified by the hierarchical Church, others simply acclaimed by the laity. One of these is that of Englishman, Simon Stock, who travelled to Rome and became a Carmelite.

On 16th July, 1251, at Aylesford in England, he had a vision of the virgin, once again carrying the child Jesus, dressed in a brown habit holding a brown scapular in her hand. She made various promises that whoever devoutly wore this scapular would have many special graces. Since then millions of devotees have worn the scapular.

At the last apparition at Fatima in Portugal on October 1917, the visionaries there saw the Virgin under her title of Virgen del Carmen. From 1961 - 1965 children in the town of Garabandal near San Sebastian had many visions of the Virgin Mary and once again she offered the scapular as a means of graces to those who devoutly wore it and complied with the instructions of prayer and penance. aormi@icloud.com

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In the late 19th century the Virgen del Carmen was adopted in Spain as the patroness of fishermen and each year on the 16th July her fiesta is celebrated by them. Fishermen had formed themselves into guilds in the medieval times, usually under the patronage of a saint. The first known cofradia or guild was in 1035 in Laredo during the reign of Fernando I of Castile. The first cofradia of fishermen in the Valencian region was that of la Albufera in 1939. However, Carlos I put a stop to them, partly because he felt that they had become too powerful. The guilds were officially dissolved in 1805 by Carlos IV in the reign of Isabel II sixty years later in a royal decree that reflected the thought of the times in that there should be no religious character of these guilds. They then became recognised as working men’s associations. After the Civil War of 1936/39 the religious aspect of the fishermen’s cofradias became effective resulting in a poplar fiesta.

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procession of boats around the harbour carrying the statue and flowers are thrown into the water in memory of those lost at sea.

In the la Inmaculada church there is a side chapel to the right of the main altar dedicated to the Virgen del Carmen with a beautiful statue of her flanked by two famous Carmelite saints - St. Teresa of Avila and St. John of the Cross. At the base of this altar are two copies of lifebelts with the words of the “Fishermen of Torrevieja” linking her with their work and the safety of their very lives in their arduous harvesting of the seas. The small chapel at the playa de los Locos is dedicated to the Virgen del Carmen on land that previously belonged to the family of Don Mariano Ruiz Cánovas who founded a sanatorium there until it was destroyed as a result of the Civil War. He donated a statue of the Virgen del Carmen to the hermitage that was there before the present utility building was constructed in the 1990’s and each year on the 16th July the sanatorium opened its doors to everyone for a special celebration of the Virgen del Carmen.

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Habaneras in Torrevieja

Once again the annual Torrevieja competition, the 64th Internacional Certamen de Habaneras, will take place in the open-air theatre of the Eras de la Sal from 22 - 28 July. Sine their inauguration in 1955, Torrevieja always holds these competitions and concerts at the end of July. Politician and writer Juan Aparicio LĂłpez was one of the instigators of this festival.

There was a free open-air habaneras concert held on the Playa del Cura. This is a big hit as thousands invade the beach with their tables and chairs, drinks and food, including the refreshing watermelon – sandia. Local choirs and musicians put on free concerts along the Avenida de Juan Aparicio on the waterfront.

The Habaneras musical competitions started in a small way in 1955 and now are of international fame, broadcast by Spanish Television. One recent offshoot of the

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Habaneras is that a few choirs sing at some of the Masses in the la Inmaculada Church, adding a new dimension to these Eucharistic celebrations; often bringing a flavour of their own country. In addition local musical groups hold free concerts in the streets and on the seaside dikes where alternative artificial swimming pools have been made.

Open all year is a museum dedicated to Ricardo Lafuente who was largely responsible for the organisation and inspiration of the early habaneras competitions.

There is a museum dedicated to him in the RENFE station in the Acequiรณn area. He died in March 2008 and at the concerts of each year a seat is left empty decorated with a red rose in his memory and to underline that he is always with us.

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Guardamar del Segura in Fiesta

Santiago is the patron saint of Spain, but also of Guardamar del Segura where the people prepare all year long for the magnificent parades of Moors & Christians.

There are five groups of Moors and five groups of Christians. The Moors comprises are named as La Pluma, Abd-Al-Azies, Nomadas, Musulmnes and Tuaregs. The Christian groups are El Cid, Labradores, Mosquetera, Pirates, Cruzados.

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Albatera - Spanish country at its best

Albatera is another growing town and is the scene for further summer fiestas as the citizens also celebrate Santiago’s feast day for a week. In fact there is

something going on the whole month of July. It is a town and municipality located in the comarca of Vega Baja del Segura. Four bands of Moors and Christians take to the streets colourfully dressed for the parades through the streets and prepared to enjoy themselves in the kabilas put up for the fiestas.

This town has a lovely 30,000 square metre park - Parque de la Huerta - with its own openair auditorium that now has a cupola roof and will be the centre of various concerts and shows that will include all ages and tastes. The park has cascades of water, local flora and a children’s playground area. The local church is dedicated to Santiago the Apostle and patron saint of the whole of Spain and in 2008 celebrates its 4th centenary of the parish foundation and the 275th anniversary of its construction.

The La Rambla Salada de Albatera is a rambla of 12 kilometers. made up of distinct sections aormi@icloud.com

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and frequented by sportsmen and women. There are guides that can be downloaded from the town’s tourist site.

Apart from the Moors & Christians parades the town has excellent Semana Santa processions and the main fiestas on 7th October for the patron saint the Virgen of the Holy Rosary.

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Benijofar and Santiago

Benijófar (in the Vega Baja) now has quite a few British residents and they will be able to enjoy the town’s fiestas in honour of San Jaime on 25th July. These begin on the Sunday prior to the 25th with a floral offering and the crowning of the Fiestas Queen and her court and throughout the week there are parades and many other activities. This town also celebrates the 8th December, the Immaculate Conception, in a big way but mostly through religious events.

The town bears an Arabic name from Bani Ya'far which signifies "hijos de Ya’far" or sons of Ya’far, beni being the translated as son, much as mac in MacDonald. It is bordered by adjoining towns of Formentera del Segura, Rojales, Algorfa y Los Montesinos. Like these towns it benefits from the water of the River Segura for its agricultural produce.

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When a House is not a House but a Home

by Andy Ormiston

Before houses were built our ancestors lived in caves. It may be surprising to some, but, today, cave houses are quite popular. They benefit from what is called static solar energy by being underground with the earth and rock acting as insulation. Caves maintain a constant temperature of around 18C. Popular areas are in Andalucia in places like Huescar or Galera and there is little humidity, which is bonus for those suffering from authorities or similar illness..

From a neighbour’s point of outlook there is little, if any, noise. But neighbours are usually friendly and open to conversation and partying at times. Rocks and stones composing the caves are natural materials and also provide a good, natural layer of sound insulation. In many caves, fresh water is easily accessible as many underground springs flow within caves. A well-kept cave simply needs breathable lime wash and good ventilation.

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As they tend to be in mountainous areas then there are often stunning viewsPopular areas are in Andalucia in places like Huescar or Galera. Having said that, most cave houses are built by professionals who hew your cave space out of the rock and install all the modern requirements of electricity and plumbing. Underground caves / caves above the ground level - a home is a home, regardless whether it is buried deep inside a mountain or it is carved out in the rocks high up above the ground.

There are different methods of building / adapting cave homes, depending on the individual requirements and taste. They are built in an area, which is dry and has rock types that lend themselves to their construction. Some people install log burners for winter warmth, but if you want, you can have central heating preferably in the form of underfloor heating.

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Most cave houses also have an exterior building that leads into the actually cave area where people will sleep. It’s rather a Hobbit-like warren of underground rooms, with rock-cut windows peeking out of cliffs and in some places chimneys or ventilator shafts, poking out of grassy roofs. In many ways, they are the perfect eco houses and often come with a bit of land in front for building more, growing flowers and vegetables, or even have acres that grow olives, oranges etc. There are remote ones with almond groves and views of the Sierra Nevada; primitive caves with original animal troughs and gaping windows; village caves arranged in rock-cut terraces; caves with tunnels and upper storeys; partial caves where underground rooms lie behind block-built facades.

All are registered in the Land Registry and are bought and sold like any other real estate. Renovated cave houses can come with double block cavity insulated external wall, double glazed windows and extra roof insulation making them beautifully cool in the summer and cosily warm on those winter nights, providing further comfort and economy. But they will have electricity, sewerage, and some owners buy satellite TV, Internet etc.

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Bookshelf Cathedral of the Sea

by Ildefonso Falcones Pat Hynd

This book is now a very popular television series on the Spanish channel. The book has proved to be a hit in various languages.

The author is a lawyer in Barcelona and this book was first published in Spanish winning several prizes. I must admit I bought this book a couple of years ago, but just couldn’t get into it as it’s a real tome. But once the television brought the words alive, i was back into reading it.

It's a powerful historical saga which has wonderful detail of life in Cataluña of the 14th century. The storyline is about life in Barcelona with detail of architecture, barons and serfdom, the thrall of living in almost perpetual slavery: Barcelona held the promise that if you lived in the city for a year and a day you could become a freeman.

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Interesting details include the attachment of Sicily and Sardinia to Barcelona with the king of Spain retaining the rights of silver mines and salt workings Salt was such an important commodity that the monarchy had the rights in Torrevieja, San Pedro and all over Spain, including Balearic Islands.

It was a time when Barcelona was thriving, with major building works that are still around today. A drawback for the city was the lack of a dockyard and this was one of the king’s public works that took some time to develop.

The book explores the lack of women's rights and how easy it is to fall into poverty and prostitution. Slavery is another topic. The main character becomes a moneylender and relates the variety of ways to make money, including commissions.

Among the characters are Jews and their being discriminated against and blamed if any national disaster struck. The holocaust started long before the Nazis came on the scene. There is also plenty of historical bookmarks that would be ammunition for nationalists and independents.

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The storyline may be set in medieval Spain but these topics still warrant a close look as we see daily political corruption and the poor staying poorer. So really it's a book of our times with us making the same mistakes.

The book is a thrilling historical novel of friendship and revenge, plague and hope, love and war, set in the golden age of 14thcentury Barcelona. Hunted from his farmstead Arnau Estanyol and his father Bernat arrive in Barcelona seeking the aid of Bernat’s sister. Brent falls foul of the rich and is hanged but his young son decides to burn his corpse rather than see the body desecrated further by being drawn and quartered. No one suspects a 12 year old boy to do such a thing and Arnau joins the powerful guild of stone-workers building the magnificent cathedral of Santa Maria del Mar, while his adoptive brother Joan studies to become a Dominican priest. As Arnau prospers, he secretly falls in love with a forbidden woman, while married to a ward of the king himself. With the help of a Jewish friend and a clear Moor, he becomes rich and powerful. When he is betrayed and hauled before the Inquisitor, he finds himself face-to-face with his own brother. aormi@icloud.com

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Like all good stories it has a happy ending and he lives happily ever after with Mar, which happens to be in the Spanish title “Catedral del Mar”. Over six million copies have been sold in different languages. In 2015, author and lawyer, Ildefonso Falcones was accused of defrauding the Spanish Treasury of 14 million euros between 2009 and 2011 by transferring the copyrights of his works to companies based outside of Spain.

In 2016, the case was dismissed when the judge considered that the sale of the copyright for his first novel was in 2004, two years before its editorial success, showing that there was no intent to commit a "fraudulent and malicious maneuver by said action".

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While reading it I was urged by friends to read a second novel by Ildefonso Falcones “The Hand of Fatima” located in 1564, the Kingdom of Granada. After years of Christian oppression, the Moors take arms and daub the white houses of Sierra Nevada with the blood of their victims.

Amidst the conflict is young Hernando, the son of an Arab woman and the Christian priest who raped her. He is despised and regularly beaten by his own step-father for his 'tainted' heritage. Fueled with the love of the beautiful Fatima, Hernando hatches a plan to unite the two warring faiths - and the two halves of his identity...

From the tumultuous bustle of 18th-century Seville to the theatres of Madrid, THE BAREFOOT QUEEN takes us into the murky world of tobacco smuggling and their persecution of the gypsies. Set in 1748, Seville: Caridad, a recently freed Cuban slave, wanders the streets of the city. Her master is dead and she has nowhere to go.

When she meets Milagro Carmona - a young, rebellious gypsy - the two women are instantly inseparable. Milagros introduces Caridad to the gypsy community, an exotic fringe society that will soon bring them love and change their life forever.

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Sugar, Sugar No Poison so sweet

by Andy Ormiston

Empty buildings attract my attention, whether it be someone’s house or a sugar factory that I saw on a recent trip to Baza in the Granada Province and pictured above. I can always imagine what laughter and tragedies bounced off the walls of the buildings.

Andalusia was a great producer of sugar canes for centuries. Even today sugar is still produced in smaller quantities than before as most of it is imported, which is ironic as it was introduced to the Americas and West Indies by Spanish expeditions.

Before sugar became known, our ancestors ate honey, dates and other sweet foods, which they also used as sweeteners. Honey is our oldest known sweetener. In the Arãna caves

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in Spain, 12,000 year-old cave paintings show women collecting honey. The women used the honey for baking, for making mead and for cleaning wounds. The first type of honey our ancestors used was wild honey taken from wild bees' nests. Later, people began keeping bees in hives, like we do today.

Although sugar arrived in Europe around 1100, it was not widely used until the 16th century. Until then it was reserved for rich people, who used it both to sweeten food and as a medicine.

The first plant from which sugar was extracted was the sugar cane ( s a c c h a r u m officinarum).

The grass species from which sugar cane evolved originated from a few small islands in the Pacific Ocean, for instance in Polynesia and Melanesia. Experts can trace these grass species back 10,000 -15,000 years. The original species were transported from these small islands to Indonesia, India and China approximately 8,000 years ago, and have since become extinct. Because sugar cane requires plenty of water and heat, it can only grow in the southern regions of Europe, for instance in Spain, Madeira and Portugal.

The world's largest producers of cane sugar are Brazil, Cuba, India, the Philippines and Mexico.

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According to legend, it was Alexander the Great who first brought sugar canes – or at least stories of them – back to Greece after a military expedition to India. Around 300 BC, his admiral Nearchos sailed from the Persian Gulf along the Indus River, where the sugar canes grew side by side, swaying in the wind. Nearchos reached for a cane and tasted it, and exclaimed, “Indian canes that make sugar without bees.” It was the Greeks who first `put sweet things at the end of a meal.

The Arabs brought sugar to the western Mediterranean region. They cultivated sugar canes in southern Spain and Sicily after occupying these areas. In the Middle Ages, Venice was Europe's main importer and exporter of sugar. Raw cane sugar was imported from India and refined in Venice before being exported to the rest of Europe.

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Sugar production increased in the late 15th century when explorers brought sugar cane further south. For instance, Henry the Navigator brought it from Sicily to Crete. Initially, the juice was extracted using hand-operated presses. People later began using mills drawn by animals, and eventually, the juice was pressed using water power.

During his travels, Columbus discovered that the Caribbean had the perfect climate for growing sugar cane. He had learned about the cultivation of cane in Madeira, and brought sugar cane to America and the West Indies, where it was planted and grown on big plantations. The raw sugar was shipped back to Europe to be refined and sold.

Following the rise in sugar production, sugar became more widely traded and was no longer reserved for the upper classes. So Spain was responsible for introducing sugar cane into the Americas, which led to the African slave trade as cheap labor. Â During the Napoleonic Wars (1803-1815), Napoleon blocked the ocean trade routes to prevent sugar from being imported by ship. As a result, Europeans sought a substitute for sugar cane. They discovered that sugar could be extracted from sugar beets. However, the beets had a very low sugar content at the time, which caused sugar prices to rise.

Things changed again when slavery was abolished in the mid-19th century and the cheap labour disappeared – causing the price of cane sugar to rocket again. By this time, the sugar beet had been developed and now had the same sugar content as sugar cane. A completely new chapter of European sugar history was about to begin.

Sugars occur naturally in varying amounts in fruit, berries and vegetables.The body cannot distinguish between added sugars and naturally occurring sugars from fruits and berries. And the body needs

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When we talk about sugar, we generally mean the white sugar (sucrose) that we use every day or that is added to food products. But sugars are also found naturally in many fruits, berries and vegetables. The human body does not differentiate between sugars that are naturally present in food and added sugars, as they have the same chemical and physical characteristics and are therefore digested in the same way. a high intake of fruit, berries and vegetables is recommended, since these foods provide vitamins and minerals. In accordance with EU regulations on foods labelling, the product’s total content of sugars per 100 grams must be stated in the nutrition declaration, i.e. both the added and naturally occurring sugars.

Health Issues Frequent intake of food products containing fermentable carbohydrates like sugar and starch may increase the risk of developing dental caries, especially in people with poor dental hygiene. Cavities are caused by acid attacking the tooth enamel.

Type 2 diabetes is a so-called “lifestyle disease”. It used to be known as sugar diabetes and physicians in ancient Egypt used to diagnose diabetes by tasting the urine of the patient

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to see if it was sweet or not.

Sugar has not been established as a direct cause of diabetes.

Obesity and lack of physical activity are reported to be major risk factors for type 2 diabetes. Many people believe that sugar causes diabetes. This comes from the fact that the disease manifests itself through an elevated content of sugar in the blood. Like fat, protein and other carbohydrates, sugar provides energy. Starchy foods like bread, rice or potatoes are broken down by digestion into surprisingly large amounts of sugar - a small slice of wholemeal bread s equivalent to three spoonful’s of sugar.

Then processed foods also aormi@icloud.com

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have a lot of added sugar.

Type 1 diabetes develops when the body loses the ability to produce insulin and is thus unrelated to lifestyle. Type 1 diabetes is predominantly genetics, and not preventable.

Brown cane sugar contains small quantities of minerals. However, its contribution to the recommended daily intake is negligible. Therefore brown cane sugar is not healthier than white sugar.

But there are still places where people earn a living from sugar cane, even if it is a demonstration for tourists.

For a few years 10,000 square meters of land has been dedicated to growing sugar cane in Nerja. The juices are extracted from May to October, an arduous task that means cutting the six feet stalks near the ground and shedding all the leaves. The canes are then pressed up to three times to extract the juice. The remaining pulp is used for animal feed or fertilizing the fields.

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Motril is known for its sugar and salt and there is an interesting museum there as well as a tour of the Rum Route visiting Montero Rum cellars.This has led to combining the local production with as fun filled festival .

Friqiliana's existence for over 5,000 years was due to an abundance of water from the springs in the surrounding mountains. The springs gave rise to the production of olive oil, almonds and for 2,000 years the Muscatel grape from which they made the famous desert wine.

Some time around 1,500 BC the village have been producing cane sugar molasses for rum from the fields which had been established by the Moors. As a result of the Moors being either killed or taken into slavery, the town fell into disuse for many years and it's rebirth did not occur until the sugar cane mill was established.

The cane was crushed by water wheels driven by the springs, today electricity is used and the water wheels no longer exist. Axarquía - Costa del Sol celebrating the cultures of the three main religions of Spain’s past - Arab, Jewish and Christian, held this year from 23 - 26 August. A local refreshment is obtained at the la Cueva de Nerja during the 3 Cultures festival. The juice is squeezed in font of the client and served with lemon juice and ice and sometimes with rum more in line with the original mojito - or try this.

6 ounces light rum 12 mint sprigs, or spearmint, 8 roughly broken apart 6 tablespoons fresh lime juice 4 tablespoons sugar Club soda 4 slices lime Place ice in beverage shaker then add in the rum, 8 broken up mint sprigs, lime juice and sugar. Shake well and serve over ice in a high ball glass. Top off each glass with a splash of club soda.

Garnish each with a slice of lime and a sprig of mint.

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Summer Scams

Each summer, more and more people lose money to scammers who promise everything from bargain vacation breaks to cheap flights. in Spanish a scam is estafa. Here’s what to look out for.

Every year around this time, more and more bargain-hungry people get ripped off in vacation and travel scams. Fake websites pop up almost daily on search engines when unwary travellers type in popular destinations in their hunt for a summer getaway.

Carelessness can lead to the misery of being duped into paying hundreds or thousands of euros to bogus travel companies, agents, and property owners.

People looking for the perfect villa in the sun assume their searches produce authentic listings, so, without thinking too much, many of us follow instructions to book directly with the supposed owners of the properties. Bad move!

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Do not assume. On closer inspection, many sites turn out to be convincing fakes. Usually, the sites are copies of genuine ones, created by scammers using images and marketing copy pulled or altered from genuine sites.

Popular scams include vacation accommodation, airline tickets, sports and religious trips, timeshares, and vacation clubs.

1. Vacation accommodation Not only are scammers skilled at creating fake websites that look astonishingly good, they are adept at hacking into legitimate ones and posting fake adverts on them and on social media.

2. Airline tickets These scams involve people booking a flight and receiving a fake ticket, or paying for a ticket that never shows up.

3. Sports and religious trips Tickets with limited availability are a huge favorite for fraudsters because of the exorbitant prices they can grab.

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4. Timeshares and vacation clubs Victims can lose thousands of euros to timeshare and vacation fraud.

How to avoid becoming a victim of travel fraud Where possible, only book accommodation etc. through companies with which you have had positive relationships.

Do some thorough research on companies you don’t recognize before you confirm any arrangements. Start by checking the company’s credentials – if it’s defrauding people, victims will likely have posted their story online or contacted the press. See if the company has a legitimate phone number and address.

Even though it is quick and easy, paying directly into an owner’s bank account is never a good idea. If the owner is a scammer, your funds will disappear in seconds. It is always best to pay by credit card.

Study receipts, invoices and read the small print, and realize that your suspicions are probably warranted with any companies that don’t provide any or all.

For a more comprehensive list, containing valuable advice, see what the Federal Trade Commission has to say on the matter.

In Spain we also have the gasman con. Do not let anyone into your house. If you have gas bottles then the gas company will phone you to check out your contract and safety before they come. If you need to see a gasman then phone your regular company.

Do not let anyone into your house you don't know.

Finally, as the old saying goes, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Thanks to Neighborhood Watch for this information.

Simple rules easily remembered should become an instinctive habit for your home and your personal security and safety no matter where you are.

Simple rules easily remembered should become an instinctive habit for your home and your personal security and safety no matter where you are. One of the first rules should be to aormi@icloud.com

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carry only with you what you think you will require for the current outing and if possible in a money belt or similar item.

1. Do not take excess money.

2. Do not take credit cards unless you need to.

3. Do not take any other cards ( supermarket etc.) if not needed.

4. Do not take jewellery to the beach where it can be easily lost.

5. Do not take your mobile phone unless you need to.

Checking these simple rules before leaving and putting what you do not need out of sight when you leave will greatly increase your safety and security.

If you don't need it !! Don't take it !!

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Lifeguard Services on Torrevieja Beach Many people think that any coastal holiday resort should pay more attention to lifeguard and coastguard services.

Some think that beach rescue cover should be from Easter until end of September as Torrevieja has many visitors over that period as well as the residents. The town’s building policy has been to seek long term residents rather than holiday hotels as in Benidorm. Statistics show that a high percentage of drowning accidents are elderly people who take an early morning dip and suffer a heart attack.

Torrevieja first aid personnel on the beaches will be on duty until September 15th having begun in mid-June.

Councillor Javier Manzanares has obviously learned from past years and there are 50 professional lifeguards on shifts during the high season.

During the mid-season – until June 30th – the lifeguard service will be available at the beaches of Los Náufragos, El Cura, Los Locos, La Mata Sur and La Mata Centro and continue at these beaches until September 15th.

In the high season, from July 1st to August 31st lifeguards service will be extended to Cala Piteras, Cabo Cervera, la Mata beach and the Natural swimming areas among the rocks along the Paseo de Juan Aparicio. During this period lifeguards will be at their posts from 11am to 7pm with two boats available.

The assisted bathing service for people with reduced mobility will be provided at Los Locos beach, the swimming area on the Paseo

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Juan Aparicio and Los Nรกufragos from July 1st to August 31st and can be booked by calling 647599624.

For the first time this year the company providing nautical services and hammocks on the beaches, Recreativos Acuรกticos Horadada (25 years in business) has installed a hoist

on Playa de los Nรกufragos that will allow people in wheelchairs to be transferred to an adapted chair for swimming, and back again.

Last year the lifeguards had 2,8881 interventions from small cuts, sunburn, jellyfish bites, to 242 people who were saved in the water and plus a few heart attacks. One person died last year. aormi@icloud.com

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In 1995 parents of children with special needs formed the association of APANEE with the idea of developing the skills of their children through one to one lessons.

The association has developed a wide range of activities for children with autism and other related infirmities involving their families. In response to the lack of assistance in medical and school services to minors, a group of parents chose to form a group. They created an association which detects special needs, plans and undertakes the necessary action to mitigate the possible lack of integration and social and personal development, with the improvement of the resources to obtain the best quality of life for their children.

It is a non-profitable parents’ association whose children have special educational needs (physical or psychological).

It began with the desire to obtain the best conditions relative to the quality of life and the maximum development of these children, until the age of 18 and residing in Torrevieja.

Therefore it calls for specific treatments such as early intervention and stimulation, physical therapy, speech therapy, support for social and school integration, etc.

Recently HELP VEGA BAJA made a donation of 1,500 euros to help them upgrade the electricity in the center. aormi@icloud.com

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WHAT DO THEY DO? - Information and give support to families with disabled children (physical, psychological and/or sensory) - Promote the appropriate diagnoses, treatment and attention in assistance and learning aspects in family, social and school rehabilitation and integration - Foment solidarity, family and social support.

- To appeal to social solidarity in order to count on popular collaboration and understanding and also attract volunteers.

- Promote activities which involve collective participation (raffles, theatre, "A WALK THROUGH THE JUNGLE", ...) They organize a number of events and publish an annual solidarity calendar with photos of some of the children who want to participate.

- Organize meetings, talks, conferences and any other cultural event.

The annual “Walk in the Jungle” underlines how difficult it is for disabled to move in some streets.

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Christmas is a special time for young children

- To make the public aware of the change to positive attitudes in order to achieve the integration and normalization of the

handicapped.

WHAT DO THEY DO? - Physical therapy - Early intervention and stimulation. Methods (Wojta, Bobath,...)

- Hydrotherapy - Speech therapy - Clinical psychology: evaluation, reports and treatments - School support - Personal assistance at school - Game and recreation room - Summer leisure activities: beach, handcrafts, etc.

So, as can be seen, the association does a lot to help not only the children but their families.

Centre address:- Calle Rafal, 19, 03182 Torrevieja, Alicante Tel:- 965 70 62 77 aormi@icloud.com

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I guess everyone has seen the photos of the illegal immigrants saved at sea and escorted to Valencia and sent on to Cheste. You could see the huge presence of Cruz Roja highly trained personnel.

I must admit the Spanish Cruz Roja is one of my favorite solidarity associations. Not just for the wide range of activities and work they do, but the many important initiatives they undertake. It is a mix of professionals and volunteers. One of their main ways of raising funds is through the annual Sorteo de Oro, or Golden Lottery, that used to be a real gold ingots prize, but nowadays is translated into cash prizes. The ticket costs 5 euros and the draw date is 19 July and held in Castellon with a first prize of 3.000.000 Euros: 2nd prize of 1.500.000 Euros; 3rd prize of 750.000 Euros.

There are lots of other prizes as well.

The monies raised are used for a variety of purposes, but primarily to support the 22.3% of Spanish resident population, i.e. 10 million people, who are considered to be really poor or suffering from social exclusion.

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21 Century Crisis

The British government’s ‘hostile environment agenda’ was brought to the front of the collective consciousness earlier this year with the Windrush scandal, which illustrated the devastating effects of policies that seek to instrumentalize people and their suffering.They have sought sanctuary in Britain, placing themselves in the hands of the asylum system, only to be let down by it and then rendered destitute by government policy. Those seeking asylum are routinely barred from work and consigned to poverty while their cases are considered. When an asylum case is refused, all support is cut off.

This much has been true for years. More recently, the difficulty of destitution is compounded by the ‘hostile environment agenda’, which is a matrix of legislation and

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policy measures designed to make life unbearable for undocumented migrants. This criminalizes for them many everyday activities, such as renting and driving, and makes it difficult to access basic services such as healthcare.

There is no doubt that there is a tremendous anti-immigration movement as it is argued that no country can reasonably permit uncontrolled illegal immigration as it can swamp the resources available and undermine the lifestyle of the population. After the two Wold Wars there was a huge refugee crisis that took decades to sort out. The great difference today is that in those days people were quite willing to integrate into the local population and adapt to their culture. Today millions of refugees want their cake and want to eat it as they want asylum, but want to keep their culture which threatens to overthrow the indigenous cultural position. It appears that the voting behind the Brexit referendum was a fear of being overwhelmed by immigrants, particularly Muslim ones who refused to integrate completely.

Much of the UK immigration policy, and particularly the treatment of more vulnerable migrants, implicitly rests on an instrumental conception of the human person: not only does it treat people as objects, expendable to some external cause, but it also seeks to transform them into instruments for the Home Office to wield at will. Shortly after the Windrush scandal, the new Home Secretary, Rt Hon Sajid Javid MP, distanced himself from the terminology of the ‘hostile environment’ by explaining, ‘it’s a compliant environment’. In fact, the hostile environment was always intended to enforce compliance. Sajid Javid sought to reassure aormi@icloud.com

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the public that the Home Office does not pursue hostility in and of itself: human suffering is not the hoped-for end, but only the means to ensure control over certain categories of migrants. The fundamental error of the UK asylum and immigration system is to neglect migrants’ humanity, and so not to treat them as persons.

It is a growing problem that has no real solution in sight. According to the United Nations, forced flight is growing, with 16.2 million people newly displaced during 2017, or an average of one person every two seconds. Overwhelmingly, the U.N.H.C.R. reports, developing countries are the most affected. Two-thirds of the world’s refugees come from just five countries: Syria, Afghanistan, South Sudan, Myanmar and Somalia. It may be that with so many television images we have become to accustomed and insensitive to the struggles of other countries and their peoples.

The current crisis at the U.S. border, where a “zero tolerance” policy for migrants crossing without documentation has led to the separation of some 2,000 children from their parents or adult caregivers, was also noted by U.N. refugee officials. The U.N.H.C.R. urged officials in the United States to prioritize family unity and the best interests of children as they implemented new border management policies.

A growing hostility to refugees, or at least an exhaustion with the problem of undocumented migration to escape conflict or poverty, has become evident around the world, in political developments from the Mexican border to the capitals of Europe. Even as the United States pursues its “zero tolerance” policy, separates families of aormi@icloud.com

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undocumented migrants and introduces new restrictions on asylum claims, officials in Hungary are similarly tightening border restrictions, while Italian and Maltese officials recently turned back the rescue boat packed with 630 migrants picked up on the Mediterranean. and eventually landed in Valencia.

U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres said, “As long as there are wars and persecution, there will be refugees,” he said. “On World Refugee Day, I ask you to remember them….Their story is one of resilience, perseverance and courage. Ours must be of solidarity, compassion and action.”

A new report released by the Center for Migration Studies in New York took a detailed look at the impact of refugee resettlement in the United States.According to the report, refugees “bring linguistic diversity to the United States and, in this and other ways, increase the nation’s economic competitiveness and security.”

C.M.S. reports that “refugees become U.S. citizens, homeowners, English speakers, workers, business owners, college educated, insured and computer literate at high rates.”

Reviewing the status of the 1.1 million refugees who arrived in the United States between 1987 and 2016, C.M.S. researchers found that refugees’ labor force participation rate of 68 percent exceeds the 63 percent of the overall U.S. population. They add that large numbers of refugees (10 percent) are self-employed and act as job creators and that refugees’ median personal income ($20,000) equals that of non-refugees and exceeds the income of the foreign-born overall ($18,700).

According to the report, refugees use food stamps and Medicaid at higher rates than non-refugees, the foreign-born and the total U.S. population, especially during the initial, federally funded resettlement process. But the C.M.S. researchers found that the use of public benefits by refugees significantly declines over time as their integration, well-being and U.S. family ties increase. So there appears to be an argument that organized and integrated, but well controlled immigration benefits a country.

The Washington Post debunked many antiimmigration statements quoting various studies. It seems that unauthorized border crossings have been falling over time. In fact, apprehensions of unauthorized immigrants along the USA Southwest border last fiscal year declined to about 300,000, the lowest level since 1971, according to data from U.S. Customs and Border aormi@icloud.com

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Protection. They’ve risen in recent months, though year-to-date they’re still below historical levels.

Immigrants in general, and undocumented immigrants in particular, commit crimes at far lower rates than native-born Americans. That includes violent crime, according to research from the Cato Institute. Another recent study, published in the journal Criminology, found that states with larger shares of undocumented immigrants tended to have lower crime rates. These findings jibes with lots of earlier research, too, which makes sense. Most immigrants want to stay off law enforcement’s radar. One wrong move, after all, could get them deported — in some cases, to their death.

“Immigrants are now more assimilated, on average, than at any point since the 1980s,” according to a 2013 study by Jacob L. Vigdor for the Manhattan Institute, using metrics such as English-language ability and intermarriage rates. There’s reason to believe that new immigrants may depress wages for earlier waves of immigrants who have similar skill sets. However, recent studies suggest that immigration (both authorized and unauthorized) actually boosts labor force participation rates, productivity and wages and reduces unemployment rates for native-born American workers, whose skills these immigrants tend to complement. Immigrants, including undocumented immigrants, pay

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taxes — taxes that fund government benefits that in many cases they are not legally eligible to collect.

An internal government report commissioned by Trump found that refugees brought in $63 billion more in tax revenue over the past decade than they cost the government.

Finding those results inconvenient, the administration suppressed them, though they were ultimately leaked to the New York Times last year.

No doubt that the whole question of immigration causes violent dialogue as identifying with race and color of skin is an issue, whether we accept it or not. History has a tendency to take us around in circles and it may be that we have reached a 100-year cycle once again.

Are we too accustomed to violent scenes? aormi@icloud.com

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Pilgrimages - Ignatian Camino Continuing our series on pilgrimage routes, this month is the feast of Saint Ignatius, a minor Spanish noblemen who thanks to a month long pilgrimage completely changed his life and outlook, becoming a saint on the way. July 31 is his feast day.

In recent years many pilgrims have followed in his footsteps trying to discover what led to his spiritual change and perhaps themselves rediscovering themselves. It’s called the Camino Ignaciano (the Ignatian “way” or “road”).

It’s the route St. Ignatius walked in 1522 after his conversion. It begins at his family’s home in Loyola and ends in the town of Manresa, where he began to put together the book that would become the Spiritual Exercises.

The route is about 340 miles long, divided it into 27 daily walking segments, and cataloged hostels and services along the way. All this information can be found in five languages at the website caminoignaciano.org. The countryside in this part of Spain is gorgeous and diverse–mountains, fertile land, rivers, even a desert. aormi@icloud.com

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2022 will be the 500th anniversary of Ignatius’s trek.

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There is an official guide book available in various languages, including English. There is an official guided pilgrimage in September (30 days, 495km). To find out more information see the Campion CIS website and the Camino Ignaciano website.

The “Camino Ignaciano,” or the “Ignatian way” begins at the birthplace of Ignatius Loyola in Spain’s Basque country, in a village near the small town of Azpeitia. From there, the route proceeds through picturesque mountains, deserts, and plains, before ending in the town of Manresa near Barcelona. Ignatius rested in this town for some months after his journey from Loyola.

Manresa was a place of profound spiritual enlightenment for him. Here he composed his spiritual masterpiece, the Spiritual Exercises.

Pilgrims will walk virtually the same route that Ignatius did, pass through many towns that he did, pray at churches where he did, and marvel at the same natural wonders that he saw and which contributed to the first part of his Spiritual Exercises. aormi@icloud.com

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Coke of Valencia In the village of of Aielo de Malferit, in Spain’s Valencia province, lies the recipe for Kolacoca the precursor to Coca-Cola.

According to a report in El Pais newspaper the Destilerías Ayelo has had the secret concoction locked up for about 140 years.

According to local reports three local entrepreneurs opened a distillery in the small town producing liqueurs.

Aparici – one of the original trio – was the sales representative, and he travelled widely, marketing the distillery’s products with a suitcase of samples, among which was the Kola-coca Superior Syrup.

Word has it that in 1885, these travels took him to Philadelphia, and the pharmacist John Pemberton had Coca-Cola on the market a year later in Atlanta, Georgia.

The basic ingredients for CocaCola were coca leaves, kola nuts and soda water. The only difference between Pemberton’s Coca-Cola and Aparici’s Kola-coca was that in the latter, the leaves and nuts were mixed with fresh water. “It was a syrup such as we still make from lemon, grenadine and pineapple.” aormi@icloud.com

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While Coca-Cola became the world’s favorite fizzy drink, Kola-coca went out of production. The popular belief in Aielo is that during the first half of the 20th century Coca-Cola representatives came to Aielo to buy up Kola-coca in order to avoid problems marketing their own product in Spain, though there is no evidence to prove this transaction took place.

The distillery still produces an alcoholic version of Kola-coca called Kola Nut Liqueur, despite having changed hands several times since it was first established, even becoming a collective during the Spanish Civil War. Toward the end of Franco’s rule, the distillery was facing closure but was saved by employee Juan Juan Micó, who bought it in 1971. Now Juan runs it along with his son and niece, and sells locally. Sitting in his office, he can’t help but wonder what would have happened if his predecessors hadn’t sold the brand for the reported 30,000 to 50,000 pesetas (€180 to €300), but instead for a percentage of its sales.

On the other hand Coca Wine was first developed in 1863 by a FrenchCorsican entrepreneur in Paris, Angelo Mariani. His brand “Vin Mariani”, made from Peruvian Coca leaves and Bordeaux wine became an overnight success.Advertising in Europe and the United States claimed the tonic would “cure melancholia … restore health, strength, energy, and vitality” .

I suppose when alcohol and cocaine combine, they form a chemical which produces a feeling of euphoria more powerful and longer lasting than anything cocaine is capable of producing on its own.

Vin Mariani was a favourite amongst celebrities of the day including Thomas Edison, Jules Verne, Sarah Bernhardt, Ulysses S Grant and was even Queen Victoria’s drink of choice. Pope Leo XIII personally endorsed the wine, lending aormi@icloud.com

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his face to the brand’s advertising campaign and even awarded it the Vatican gold medal.

In 1880s in Georgia, a pharmacist named John Pemberton developed a popular American beverage based on Mariani’s version, called Pemberton’s French Wine Coca.

When his home state passed the Prohibition legislations in 1886, Pemberton scrambled to come up with a non-alcoholic version replacing the wine with a syrup and naming it Coca Cola.

As the growing fear of drug abuse made coca-based drinks less popular, Pemberton’s successors preemptively took the cocaine out of his drink (at least most of it) in 1903, 11 years before the drug was officially banned in 1914, forcing Vin Mariani and other Coca Wine brands out of business and off the menu forever.

Meanwhile, Coca Cola went on to become America’s favourite beverage.

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Torrevieja’s Feathered Ambassadors

Over thirty of the ladies who make up the Carnaval comparsa “La Sal de Torrevieja. The director, Conchita Valdés , has announced that this summer and the coming year they will be doing a bit of travelling. From 12 – 16 July they are appearing in Bucharest in Rumania. From 3 – 8 August in Budapest in Hungary. Then its off to Harare in Zimbabwe from 7 to 14 September. They will see the end of the year in North of France.

They will parade with all their feathers in Cannes, Niza, Mentón, Montecarlo and San Remo, Still to be confirmed is a visit to South Korea. On 1st December they are planning a show in Torrevieja paying homage to previous girls of the group; so that should be a glamorous show.

The group began in 1988 and began to win a huge following and numerous awards for their wonderfully imaginative costumes. 1989 the comparsa won an award in La Unión (Murcia) and has appeared almost every year in the famous Burial of the Sardine in Murcia city. Another memorable occasion was aormi@icloud.com

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1992 in Hungary available on YouTube Desfile La Sal de Torrevieja en Hungría 20 8 2017

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in 1992 at the Universal Exposition in Seville when they appeared with the “Indias Aztecas” in spectacular white costumes each with 200 ostrich feathers and sparkling outfits.

In the following year they were in demand in many popular fiestas in Elche, Alicante, Albacete (filmed on TV9) and Valencia.

On another occasion they participated at a solar eclipse festival in Metz (France) with a fantastic performance entitle “La llegada del sol ” - The arrival of the sun. They have appeared in work famous carnivals such as San Remo (Italia), Niza and Cannes in France and represented Spain in the international festival of Kunming (CHINA) on more than one occasion.

Over the years they have continued to travel and perform all over Spain and elsewhere in places like Oviedo, Vitoria, Mentón, Córcega, Niza, Cannes, Roma, Avignon, San Remo, Sardegna, Dax, Paris, Lyon, Limoges and Hong Kong.

Their fabulous costumes have won several awards as they become more and more fabulous each year. The ladies of La Sal help to design and make these costumes that can weigh 25 kilos.

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SOLIDARY SNIPPETS The group that support the Elche Children’s Care Home held a sponsored walk at the end of June and the total amount raised was €1,431.70 with more money to come in. Later this was increased by a separate donation from Charity4Charities who donated 1,000 euros for the home. For more information phone Lyn Adams on 676 650 210.

Charity4Charities once again held a great ball for the presentation of the work they do raising funds and this year about 14 charities benefited from their generosity and fund-raising, receiving 1,000 euros each. This is apart from other things they do throughout the year such as donating 20 vouchers of 20 euros to the children at Elche Children’s Home on their open day.

Associations do a great job of raising funds for hands-on charities. The Spanish also have businesses that support many of these, notably the savings banks that have special social funds used for community purposes.

Purificacion Garcia Alvarez, president of Alzheimers Association (AFA), recently signed an agreement with the “La Caixa” CaixaBank for a project of the bank’s social department. This is “Encuentros de Vida”, a programme of social and financial help to individuals and associations aimed at increasing the quality of life of disabled, the aged and special infirmities in 2018. AFA will receive 10,260 euros in support of the invaluable work they do.

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AFA also held a press conference to introduce their new mini-bus which can take both passengers and two wheelchair parents. This project was paid for by many businesses and associations and those who wanted could have an advert on the side of the bus that will be driving around showing logos of their supporters.

Another awareness and fund raising event was Zumba dancing in the paseu Vista Alegre of Torrevieja. This was organized by the “Asociación de Comerciantes Hippies de Torrevieja”, or the night market stallholders. This event was in aid of the local CARITAS with milk, oil, nappies for babies and elderly. Nappies are always needed by associations dealing with infirmities.

AFECANCER have a deal with Tomas Viuda shop in town just behind the la inmaculada church. It is called “Sueños Solidarios” (Solidarity Dreams) and if the client agrees 5% of any sales of MULTISENSE or SPRIGSAC 28, mattresses sold will be donated to the charity at the end of the year. The association will also receive one of thee mattresses as well.

Another solidarity Gala/Dinner/Dance attended by 180 guests was held at Hotel Laguna. The prime sponsors were Torrevieja Hospital and lawyers of & Navarro y Asociados. Several local businesses donated quality gifts for a tombola. Almost 10,000 euros were raised for the new park where the children can enjoy the open air. HELP VEGA BAJA also donated 1,000 euros towards the park. aormi@icloud.com

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