March 27, 2014 WALKS IN HISTORY: La playa de la Costilla Text & photos by J.A. Pilares
8
La Costilla and the Promenado, in the foreground Virgen del Mar
L
a Costilla isn't just a one of the beaches in Rota, it is THE beach in Rota. Rota has grown over the last fifty years facing the coast towards the west, never veering far from the long sandy beach that is the delight of tourists and locals alike in the summer, and the promenade for lovers and the track of runners in the winter.To talk about la Costilla is, to a certain extent, to talk about Rota's living room. Strictly speaking, la Costilla extends from the breakwater near the Hotel Duque de Nájera to the point at Virgen del Mar, the end of the sea promenade and the beginning of the pinewood. As we begin our walk down the promenade, or “paseo marítimo”, we first come across a modern gothic arch which leads to a narrow street climbing to the gate of the Iglesia de la O church. If one walks down to the beach it is possible to align the arch with the gate of the church, the bell tower rising above it, for a curious visual effect. After this, some of the surviving ramparts of Rota come into view.These ramparts were part of the artillery battery called “el Caracol” that defended Rota from landings on the beach around the XVIII century.The military use for them is long forgotten and summer houses, known in Rota as “chalets” now rise were cannons once stood guard. Soon after the old city walls end, and the first building that catches our attention is a large house that seems completely out of place in Rota. It is built in a Alpine style, and is referred to as “la casita de chocolate” in reference to the gingerbread and cake house in the Hansel and Gretel fairy tale by the Grimm Brothers. Of course no evil children-eating witch lives there! It is just a chalet owned by a large family from Seville where they spend the summer holidays all together, with members of all ages living close by and near to the sea. Down the walk we come across the works on a modern building; the Hotel Rosario. Previously here was an older hotel known simply as “el Balneario” -the bath houseto roteños. Bath houses became fashionable in the early XX century for the upper classes in most of the Spanish coastline. Before that no-one ever thought of doing something as useless as bathing in salty water; however, doctors began prescribing “sea-baths” as a remedy for many illnesses and soon the coast was dotted with spas with everything upper class tourists
required. Rota's Balneario was no exception, having even covered walkways leading from the hotel to the water so that the bathers could cross the sand away from the inquiring eyes of the locals and the sun's rays! Consider that at the time a pale skin was favoured by the upper classes, as a tanned face was obviously the sign of a person that worked under the sun... no fashionable aristocrat would even want the slightest hint of a brown skin. With time the fashion changed, and sea baths became a popular practise; el Balneario eventually could no longer compete with working class tourism and closed down in the 1990's.Today it is being rebuilt from scratch along different lines. But let's continue. Soon we come across the square of Jesús Nazareno, but that roteños simple call Plaza la Costilla. It is the centre of the beach and where every year several flags such as the “Blue Flag” or the “Q for Quality” certifying a beach's quality are proudly flown alongside those of Rota, Andalucía, Spain and Europe. This square was for a long time the mouth of a small stream that used to run through what today is Rota's old town; and still does run albeit under ground. Sometimes in rainy winters the stream overflows and can be seen emptying near la Plaza la Costilla. It might not be nice to look at when it does overflow, but we must keep in mind that we Humans cannot control Nature, and that water always finds its natural course to the sea no matter how much we try to intervene. Starting here, the paseo marítimo keeps going along a kilometre of beach without much really to comment as most building here where built in the 60's and 70's to house
Rota's booming tourist industry, but without as much care to aesthetics as to economics. The promenade was built in the 1990's, and before that the beach, and winter storms, reached the foundations of the buildings... Surely the promenade must be an aide against erosion! One can find pictures of this part of the beach before the promenade was built and what is most surprising are the small huts -or “casetas”- of several colours lining what today is the promenade. These huts were used by vacationing families to change into their bathing clothes and to keep their wares during the holidays. Parasols, footballs, beach chairs and toys... all were kept here for months at a time. These huts also disappeared in the 70's as the new larger apartments by the sea could easily accommodate all these necessities that tourists brought with them Finally we reach the end of the line as the promenade makes it to Virgen del Mar. For some time this was the end of town, as beyond only pinewoods, sand and farmland was to be found. The high rise apartment blocks in Virgen del Mar became summer housing for tourists, and a ghost town in the winter. Hardly anyone lives there year around which gives these buildings a truly ghastly appearance when the vacationers go back to their towns; nevertheless, they have become a symbol of freedom for Rota's teens from their parents. Many owners of these flats rent them out to young people during the winter months, maybe a dozen teens will pitch in money for a cheap rent which allows them a measure of freedom from mom and dad where to host parties and have sleep-overs. But of course... most of the time it is “daddy” that pays. Next to Virgen del Mar we find one of the nicest parks in town, el Parque Atlántico. Covered with pines, crossed by a lake with large goldfish and having great places for children to play it is a preferred stop for young parents where to take their kids to play safely in the afternoons. Beyond the Parque Atlántico are the pinewoods, “la Curvita” beach, the Almadraba fishing grounds, the Hotel Playa de la Luz... but the sun is beginning to set in the Ocean and we are a bit tired from the walk. We will visit them another day.
Fisherman on the breakwater of la Costilla
The appearance of advertising in this newspaper does not constitute endorsement of products or services by the Department of Defense, U.S. Navy, U.S. Naval Station Rota, Spain or its publisher. Everything advertised in this publication shall be made available for purchase, use or patronage without regard to race, color, religion, gender, national origin, age, marital status, physical handicap, political affiliation
or any other non-merit factor of the purchases, user, or patron." If a violation or rejection of this equal opportunity policy by an advertiser is confirmed, the publisher shall refuse to print advertising from that source until the violation is corrected. All ads in this insert are paidfor advertisements in compliance with contract N68171-13-C-6001 between Karen Lucas Johnson and the U.S. Navy.
To contact Cview: cview2013@gmail.com Karen Lucas Publisher 607 564 132 Ramón Morant Advertising 653 780 296 Cristina Pamplona Graphics & Design 678 415 673