Oh boy the Fair is in town!
As I mentioned in a couple of earlier posts, this weekend is one of the busiest and best of the whole year.. There were 3 concerts- one rock, one jazz and one traditional Spanish music. A fair complete with rides and ring toss, and all the other carnival type games, a tapa festival, and a benefit concert for the local animal shelter, Monday is the big fire night! I ran around taking pictures tonight …some at the concert I went to, and others at the fair, which will go on until about 4am. Good luck sleeping at all tonight if you live down that end of town.. There was even a harvest moon tonight.. It seems the Gods have collided and brought us just the perfect weekend. Here are a couple of pics.
Pyramid of Fire.
Oh boy, the preparations are well under way for Monday’s San Juan Festival here in Salobreña. The town builds and supervises this huge bonfire which will be lit around midnight.. There will also be live music, fireworks and the entire town will be at the beach for this fantastic party.. I posted earlier that I got in at 5am last year, but I have been corrected, it was 730am.. ouch..
Tonight is the start of the tapa festival, and so most of the town will be going to the paseo de flores for the food and drink and a free jazz concert. If ever you were planning to come to this area, the 21-24 of June is definitely one of the best times to come.. the weather is unbelievably good too. As always, click to see the full size image.
Stray Cats in Spain
I have lived in Salobreña for almost 8 years now, and part of what I like about living here, are the stray cats that roam the streets…I say like because I am a sucker for animals.. Over the years we have managed to accumulate 8 cats that share our lives with us. We have had more, as a matter of fact most of the cats we have now have replaced other cats that have disappeared or been killed in accidents (we hope), we somehow manage to maintain a level of 8 at all times. It seems when one disappears, another arrives to take its place. I’m not sure if there is something going on, as in whether the stray cats are offing my cats in order to get a leg in or not, it’s all a bit too coincidental for my liking. Having said all that, this is Stripes, he dines with us 3 times a day. We are not able to touch him at all despite that fact that he has been surviving on my dime for about a year and a half. He is sick to be sure, but it is impossible to get near him, and to be honest, quite frightening… He hisses and bares teeth and well honestly, he scares the crackers out of me. You can see that he wants to move in, he sees the other cats lounging on sofas and window sills, and there is a definite look of longing in his eyes… If only he would just give in, he could enjoy all the comforts of home. Perhaps he knows though, that to give in means a trip to the vet and castration. I guess he weighs it up something like this.. sofa or sex? hmmm…..
Now that I am grounded…
Since my mishap with the scooter yesterday ((argh))), I am being forced to actually walk places, what is to become of me? Alas, I had to water some plants today and prepare a small house for an arrival tomorrow, because I was on foot I decided to take my camera with me. I took these two shots this morning about 11am, it was already about 10,000 degrees C and I was melting so I only managed to take a couple of quick shots before slumping off to work. One was to show you the swallows that spend March thru October with us and the other was a little house at the top of a cobble stoned stairway that enters onto the Boveda.
You can see the top of our church at the top of the photo above.
Some things I saw around town this morning.
I was hoping to get lots of pictures taken today, but while driving along the highway my bike just died.. sniff.. well what actually happened was the belt that moves the wheels got chewed to bits when it moved out of its slot.. so now the bike is parked until Monday when my mechanic opens.. not good..but, the sun is shining, so how bad can it be.. Before all this happened, I did manage to snap a couple of shots and here they are. 
This is one of the many shrines to our patron saint, the Virgin Rosario. She is located at the top of Calle Rosario, which is just a fancy Spanish way of saying the top of Rosario Street. As you can see, she is well tended to by the locals that keep candles burning, and flowers always on the mantle.
This next shot was taken on one of the balconies of one of the houses that I maintain here in the town.
In my Spanish Garden
This isn’t really my garden, but I think of it as MY garden, because it is a place I love to work on. I live in the town, and we basically have no outside space, so when I get the urge to garden, which is often, I take myself to Villa Renna and tend to my flowers and herbs. Here are a couple of photos of what is going on in the garden at the moment.
Thats Agapanthus above and my flowering sage below..if you click the pics, you will get a larger view of these two little beauties.
The name agapanthus is derived from the Greek ‘agape’, meaning love, and ‘anthos’, flower. The plants are native to South Africa and were brought back to Europe in the seventeenth century by the first European settlers when they stopped in the cape to replenish their supplies. Agapanthus africanus was first introduced to Europe in 1679. Its origins in the cooler temperatures of the Western Cape, made it an ideal candidate for exporting.
Fiesta de San Juan and the Tapa Festival.
Oh boy we have a big weekend coming up starting the 21th of June.. For those of you arriving on or before that weekend, be sure to go to the Paseo de Flores, which is one level below the castle for the Tapa Festival..there will be bars and music and tapaaaaaaaas Galore. The Tapa festival takes place on the 21st and 22nd of June.
The big San Juan Festival on the 23rd is next. This is a great night out. On this night, the city builds a huge bon fire on the beach standing at least 30feet high, the flames almost touch the stars, you can also build your own bon fire. There will be fire works, live music, and the place will be hopping. Last year I think we arrived back home at about 5am after hitting several bars and taking in the music. More good news, it is also the only night of the year you can sleep on the beach legally too.
At midnight, you are meant swim in the ocean, legend has it, that if you do, the years will just fall away..
Be sure to check back for pics from the night.. If you are coming this way, and you have any questions, pls don’t hesitate to ask.
Oh baby, it’s hot! Everyone’s gone to the beach
In case you were wondering what the beach is like once the nice weather hits, wonder no more.. Sunday is a big day at the beach here throughout the year, but especially during the summer months.. Today’s temp in the direct sun is something like 3000 degrees. As soon as this post is done, I am going done there myself.
Above is a photo taken from atop the Peñon on Salobrena beach at 12.15 today
Another from the Peñon
This one is taken looking to the left of Salobreña beach at the Peñon
and another view in front of La Bahia Restaurant.
How great is this, fresh octopus cooked to order at the beach!
The octopus (pulpo) chef at El Peñon.
Waiting for Pulpo, dining al fresco at El Peñon restaurant
Preparing the coal bed for sardines at La Bahia restaurant… What are you waiting for.. you’re invited!
