www.soltimes.com
SOLTIMES JUNE 2013
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property guide.... THE SPAINIAC | El Torcal Nature Reserve | Candice Parsons We Urgently Need Quality Properties Both For Sale & Rent We Have Clients Waiting... 309 Paseo del Mediterraneo, Mojacar Playa (50m from Ferreteria Lopez)
Tel: 950 478 834
info@mojacarhomes.net
O Olive
bedar
www.mojacarhomes.net
Contact: 607 705 085 or 687 938 466
C/Llanos, Bedar (Next to the Miramar Restaurant)
Open: Monday-Friday 10.00am-3.30pm
www.olivehouse-es.com
69,950€
(El Pinar)
Well located 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom townhouse situated in the popular village of El Pinar, just 5 minutes from the beautiful village of Bedar and under 15 minutes from the beaches of Mojacar. A fabulous buy and the first one to be sold will be open to a promotional offer.
OLV712
VERA APARTMENT FOR RENT
SHORT-TERM/HOLIDAY RENTAL
2 BEDROOM, 2 BATHROOM, pENTHOUSE APARTMENT IN VERA PLAYA ALL MOD CONS, BALCONY & ROOF TERRACE OFFERING FANTASTIC VIEWS
cALL 663 977 230 EMAIL: gedfab@yahoo.com
Vera Playa Apartment
Returning to UK?
MODERN PARKHOME (NW Leicestershire)
Private sale of this lovely home on a secure, well established, residential park and at an extremely attractive price.
00 £6o9.n,0.o. > 2 Fitted Bedrooms > Large lounge/diner
ronlen@btinternet.com
> Inclusive fitted kitchen > Luxury shower room/WC
UK: 01455 293603
town house •3 bedrooms •Kitchen •Fireplace •4300m2 All main services
38,000€
TEL: 678 527 602 macael75@hotmail.com
...CALL 902 750 190
EMAIL: SALES@SOLTIMES.COM
shapes and layers from the rain and wind that has steadily chiselled away at its stature. The reserve can be reached by car from its nearest village, Villanueva de la Concepcion, by following the El Torcal signage for about one
Candice Parsons is a writer and avid Spain and Spanish culture lover from Melbourne, Australia. ‘Like’ my Facebook page: www.facebook. com/pandemicrhapsody and follow me on Twitter @MiLlamoCandi
kilometre out. El Torcal Nature Reserve attracts many visitors with the large variety of exquisite natural sights it has to offer. Andalusian mountain goats; ladder and Montpellier snakes; spine-foot lizards; Griffin vultures and other birdlife; a wealth of different flora and fauna – all only briefly sum up some of the inhabitants that are here. Three set hiking trails and a range of rock climbing routes are also another activity
enjoyed by visitors, who are motivated by the spectacular views found over Málaga valley, and even views to Morocco on clear days. A good pair of walking shoes or trainers should be worn in the reserve, and due to the extreme temperatures, El Torcal is recommended as best visited during the spring or autumn. If visiting during the summer months, bringing plenty of water and sunscreen is highly advisable.
Man tackles escaped pause for thought bull to the ground A bull on the loose was wrestled to the ground by a man after the animal charged at him in a Spanish street. The dramatic video shows the young bull ramming into a car before turning its attention to the man, who happened to be wearing red. Luckily, he avoided being gored by the bull, which had escaped from a livestock pen in Malaga, and tackled it to the ground before being helped by witnesses. Nobody was injured and the bull is believed to have been unharmed, reports The Telegraph.
Sat nav leads OAPs onto wrong ferry
Two West Yorkshire pensioners nearly missed their oceangoing ferry to Spain - when their sat nav led them onto a tiny river crossing instead. Bob and Pat Banks, both in their 70s, hoped to join 2,415 fellow passengers for a 20-hour sea trip from Plymouth to Santander. But instead of boarding the plush, ten-deck, 41,000-ton ship, they ended up on the Torpoint Ferry for a six-minute, 650-metre hop across the Tamar from Devon to Cornwall. By the time they twigged, their car was jammed in by others on the £1.50 open-deck service, reports The Sun. Mr Banks, from Leeds, said: “We were held up and got to Plymouth only 40 minutes before departure, so were relieved when our sat nav announced we’d reached our destination. “When the truth dawned we had to accept the worst. I felt very embarrassed.” Staff put them on the first trip back and a mystery driver on the service kindly guided Bob and Pat to their Brittany Ferries ship which they caught with seconds to spare. Torpoint Ferry boss Rod Sugden said: “This has happened before. Sat navs tend to lead you to us rather than the Channel ferry port.”
Last September, two friends holidaying with us got engaged at Aljambra in Granada, so we weren’t too surprised to receive an invite to their wedding, held in Lancashire on 15th June. Flights were booked early to avoid problems and we duly set off. Alicante, when checked in, however, seemed even more chaotic than usual, with destination boards glowing red with a mix of delays and cancellations, giving strength to the rumour that the French Air Traffic Controllers had decided to strike from Tuesday until Thursday; causing almost total closure of French airspace, affecting all aircraft flying over France. We, in fact were lucky, and managed to leave a mere 6 hours late, but friends heading for the same wedding, booked on a later flight, had to wait several days and only just got there in time. But in many ways we were the fortunate ones. We had homes in Spain and would merely miss a wedding if no flights were to become available. But it was heartbreaking to see young families on holiday struggling to find alternative flights home and having to pay for accommodation they really couldn’t afford, whilst airlines, understandably in many respects, explained they were not obliged to offer aid as the disruption was not of their making. How cruel that, however reasonable or otherwise their complaint may be, so small a group of people in France should be able to hold so many to ransom, and cause so much unnecessary suffering, merely to reinforce their argument! There certainly seemed little evidence that they loved their neighbours as themselves. And as they apparently so despised this second command, one can only wonder if they had any more regard for the first – to love the Lord their God with all their heart, soul, mind and strength. But before be criticise them too much, perhaps we should challenge ourselves as to whether our love is, in all reality, any more evident than theirs, whilst thanking God that He never goes on strike. Can you imagine the chaos that would cause? Further information about the Anglican Church and details of forthcoming events may be seen on the web site www. mojacarchurch.org . Duncan Burr is Licensed Lay Reader for the Anglican Chaplaincy of Costa Almeria and Costa Cálida and may be contacted at djburr@avired.com
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Property Sales • Property Management • Long & short term rentals • Insurance
Said to have been formed some 150 million years ago back in the Jurassic period, El Torcal Nature Reserve lies around 30 kilometres from the city of Málaga, just outside Antequera. The limestone mountain ranges cover an area of about 17 square kilometres, made up of columns, stone slabs, and also a number of caves, including the ‘Cueva del Toro’ (Cave of the Bull), which contains a unique discovery of Neolithic artefacts. The reserve, unusually beautiful in its own right, was entirely under sea those 150 million years ago. Following vigorous movements of the earth’s crust, it created a huge crevice in the landscape along with horizontal layers, hills and mountains, reaching up to 1300 metres high. Over time, these mountainous rocks have formed artistically abstract