Royal Household declines Beffa's invitation

(Photo: TioJimeno)

JIMENA / San Pablo The President of the Junta Municipal de Distrito, Andrés Beffa, issued an invitation to the Royal Household a few weeks ago, in the hope that a member of the Royal Family might attend the 10th edition of the Talleres por la Paz (Workshops for Peace, we call them) next year. The invitation was politely declined "for reasons of planning" over the signature of María Sáenz de Heredia, head of the Household's Planning Cabinet. Nevertheless, His Majesty sends "cordial greetings to the residents of San Pablo and the participants in the Workshops." It will be remembered that Federico Mayor Zaragoza, who headed UNESCO for ten years, did accept the invitation to attend the event.

PSOE calls for Ruiz to obey the law and establish the Junta in San Pablo

Beffa and Gallego
(Photo: europasur.es)

JIMENA / San Pablo As we reported here, there is an ongoing feud between the leading parties regarding the Junta de Distrito in San Pablo. The latest news is that the PSOE is demanding that new Mayor Guillermo Ruiz obey the law and set up the Junta as it was duly elected. However, Ruiz (PP) says that new regulations are being created and the Junta will be established when these are ready, to which Andrés Beffa and the associations that were part of the previous Junta strongly object and call 'undemocratic'. Others have joined the fray, including former Councillor J.A.Vázquez (PA) with a stinging article titled Mentiras Arriesgadas (Risky Lies) on his blog. Curiously, former PP Councillor and San Pablo resident Sandra Gallego joined forces with Beffa at a press conference at the Reina Cristina Hotel yesterday. Calling San Pablo 'an oasis of peace', Beffa>>>

Atomica 4 is playing in San Pablo on Friday

Who? Okay, many readers will know Matthew Parkin, who used to live in Jimena and moved not that long ago to San Pablo. Matthew is the bassist for a band called Atomica 4, founded in the summer of 2010 with drummer Peter Chichon. They and two more members, one of whom is Rubén Peña (who's the other guy, Matt?), have a gig this Friday at Venta Las Acacias (a.k.a. Venta Chinela) in San Pablo, starting at 10pm. (They will also be playing during the Workshops for Peace in San Pablo later this month) On Facebook they say they are 'fed by shoegaze and 90s Rock, with an intense sound. They even released a CD in June that you can hear here.

San Pablo's 9th Workshops for Peace: read all about it

Click to enlarge

JIMENA / San Pablo Let's start at the beginning. This year's edition of the San Pablo de Buceite Workshops for Peace -its 9th edition already- is taking place between July 21st and 30th, that is, it starts next Thursday. Anybody who has taken part or even an interest in the past will tell you that not only has the initial concept grown but it has got a lot better and more varied. The word 'workshop' sounds like a lot of work, and some of it is. But the basic idea is for people of different nations, cultures and backgrounds to come together for a series of artistic and/or cultural endeavours over a period of time that allows them to get to know each other at least a little. For the most part, the workshops are aimed at the young ... well, we'll be putting things up on this site and on CampoPulse, referring to all that is going on (Look for the poster illustrating this item, on the sidebar). In the meantime, the full public programme is below in a somewhat peculiar translation by Google, on which we will be improving. The poster, by the way, is based on a graffiti mural workshop that was part of the previous edition, directed by Antonio Fernandez.

'Taking a look at local art'

'Local' depends on where you're located, of course. We happen to be headquartered in Jimena, so this art exhibition is local to us. However, the place it is being held is well worth a visit, no matter where you're located. La Estación is a restaurant in a little country railway station (San Pablo de Buceite) that is still in use and where we have actually seen people get off the train and carry their suitcase through the bar (they did look a bit surprised, admittedly) - but we're off on a tangent again. Find out more about the artists and their work.

Large truck gets stuck on Marchenilla road

JIMENA/Marchenilla (Source: www.buceite.com) A trailer truck carrying 40 tons of oranges from the Cooperative in San Pablo, got stuck on the road to Marchenilla in the early hours of Saturday. Driven by a Bulgarian, it had left San Pablo towards Tesorillo via the CA-8200 road -in theory closed to traffic because of rain damage- but on arrrival at Tesorillo found that it had to go through the village. It happens that Carnival was on, and the Local Police advised the driver to turn back and take the A-405 through Marchenilla. With a complicated manouevre, he turned around and took the advice. Of course, he did'nt know the state of that road (did the police?), which has been in a dreadful state of disrepair for years and is rarely used other than by knowledgeable local drivers with appropriate vehicles. The truck eventually got stuck and stayed there the rest of the night until a crane was brought in to remove it (photo). The trouble is that, aside from the state of the CA-8200, which is worsened daily, lorries are not allowed on it and are often fined. However, this is the only reasonable way for the oranges collected at the San Pablo Cooperativa to reach market.

Great-great-grandmother of San Pablo

Five generations

SAN PABLO DE BUCEITE (Source: www.buceite.com) It isn't that easy to become a great-great grandmother while one's still around. But Juana Zarzuela Quirós, aged 93, has made it! Juana, born on January 20, 1918, is the mother of Isabel, 62, grandmother to Juanina, great-grandmother to Saray and now, great-great-grandmother to Tristán, who was born twelve days ago. We offer our very best wishes to the whole family, which is delighted by the new arrival. (Jimena readers will recognize great-grandmother Isabel as the charming, helpful butcher at the supermarket in the village, who retired at the beginning of the month.)

Music and the food of love

JIMENA Special St. Valentine's Weekend music at La Estación in San Pablo. As the poster says, Felix Slim and Hot Nasho are offering a concert at that singular spot (in a restored railway station) tonight, from 11.30 : Blues, Jazz, Funk, Bossa, Pop... Bit of all sorts, really. Then again, St. Valentine's wouldn't be the same without a bit of all sorts, would it? And speaking of Cupid, La Estación is also offering a VERY special menu tonight (See it below) for before the concert, so we suggest you book early (like right now! on 956 642 244) and make a lovely evening of it. Enjoy! (Find La Estación on GoogleMaps here)

The black spider of Los Alcornocales

JIMENA/SAN PABLO In Andalucia there lives a largeish black burrowing spider that belongs to the venomous funnel-web tarantula family. Its scientific name is Macrothele calpeiana and it belongs to the Hexathelidae group which is normally associated with Australia, New Zealand, Asia, Central Africa and South America. But this one lives in the Mediterranean region.  The genus name is derived from Ancient Greek 'makro' meaning large and 'thele', which refers to the spinnerets. The origin of the name calpeiana is from 'Calpe', a name the Phoenicians gave to Gibraltar. It is known in Spanish as La araña negra de los alcornocales because  the largest populations can be found within Los Alcornocales Nature Park. Why do we mention it?>

River Guadiaro as leisure and study centre

The 6th edition of the Jornadas de Interpretación del Río Guadiaro, or River Guadiaro Interpretation Workshops, takes place next weekend, from December 3 to 5. A great variety of activities are scheduled, including a photography exhibition, conferences, lectures, films, field trips and a host of other activities for all ages. The annual event is organized by San Pablo's Junta Municipal de Distrito with the support and cooperation of Jimena Town Hall, the Los Alcornocales Nature Park GDR (authority) and Diputación Provincial de Cádiz. See detailed programme below>

Wild mushroom cookery book to be distributed tomorrow

JIMENA To coincide with the opening of the XIII Mycology Workshops (see full programme here), the Council is to distribute a cookery book with some of the municipality's restaurants' favourite mushroom recipes. Titled Setas y Fogones (loosely translated to Mushrooms and Cooking) and only in Spanish, its aim is that it should be used as a tool for tourists. The booklet contains recipes from Restaurante Cuenca, Hostal-Restaurante El Anón, Restaurante La Tasca, Restaurante El Ventorrillero, Restaurante Las Rejas, Hostal-Restaurante Los Arcos, Restaurante La Vía, Restaurante Mesilla de Los Ángeles, Restaurante Cacholla and Restaurante La Estación, both these in San Pablo. Look out for it at any of these establishments and, please mention you saw it here first!

Cañada Real/El Corchado problem in San Pablo is finally resolved

SAN PABLO (Press release) The problem regarding construction and building licences at El Corchado appears to have been solved. The Dirección General de Espacios Naturales y Participación Ciudadana, an arm of the Junta de Andalucía's Department of the Environment, has told Jimena Council that it has approved a partial segregation of the Gaucín Cañada Real, of which the El Corchado road in San Pablo is part. The decision has been a long time coming. El Corchado and the area in question is now>

Water cut in San Pablo tomorrow morning

ARCGISA, the water company, announces that water supply to San Pablo will be cut off tomorrow morning, from 9am to 1pm due to maintenance and improvements to the system.

No power cut for Jimena - only San Pablo

Further to our Reader's Question of yesterday, the Town Hall says that they have had no official notification from Endesa about there being a power cut in Jimena any time soon. The last notification was one issued for San Pablo, which has apparently created a rush on candles from the Chinese shop in the village. If the lights go out this evening, then it's for some other reason (in our case, because we haven't paid the bill). Presumably the repair work being carred out in San Pablo has something to do with the high voltage cable falling onto the railway tracks recently.

'Sport and Health' programme to get under way mid-October

(Press release) MayorPascual Collado and Councillor for Sport Fernando Gómez met recently to announce some changes in the 'Sport and Health' programme that has undergone some considerable changes due to budget cuts. The Council has taken over its financing from provincial authorities. The programme, aimed at pensioners and 'people of medium age' (Prospero included) and open to residents of the municipality, will begin its new phase sometime in the middle of the month, at a cost of €5 per month for pensioners and the handicapped, and €8 to the rest. This year the programme will include maintenance exercise with other activities such as walks to different areas of the municipality, according to Gómez.

Guadiaro River Photo Competition open now

(Press release) The San Pablo authorities announce the 5th edition of their annual Guadiaro River Basin Photo Competition, which is open to all ages and nationalities, professional or otherwise. The aim is get the best photos of the river and its basin, the subjects being landscapes, flora, fauna, natural, economic or cultural values, etc. Participants can send in as many photos as they like, as long as the printed format is on  20 x 30cm photo  paper or high resolution on a CD. The deadline closes on Tuesday, November 9 at 14.30, though mailed material will be accepted if it is stamped before that date. Prizes are €300 First Place, and €150 for Second. See the complete rules and more info on the competition (in Spanish) on the official Jimena website (www.jimenadelafrontera.es) or clicking here.

 

 

Medals for little swimmers and fun for everyone else

This year's swimming programme came to a close this morning when the smallest got their medals. Before that it was the turn of the adults - mostly of the 'third age', to use a lovely Spanish euphemism for 'elderly' - who had taken aprt in the Sports & Health programme set up by the Junta. Over 300 people have taken part in some aspect of this programme, at Jimena, San Pablo and Estación. As for children, 240 of them were distributed among three different categories, plus that created for members of La Estrella handicapped association. The pools at Jimena and San Pablo offered a total of 13 daily schedules under the aegis of 3 monitor/teachers.

Live music everywhere!

Summer is live music time in the area. There are several local concerts at bars and hotels coming up. To start with, there's one by San Roque band La Contraseña with a tribute to mythical Spanish/Andalusian rock Triana, on Friday next, at Restaurante La Estación in San Pablo starting at 11.30pm (Reservations: 956 642 244). Coming next is some good flamenco at Henrietta's in Jimena, which we'll let you know about soon, as well as some blues there ... and did you know there's a film crew coming to stay at Henrietta's (watch this space!)? And keep an eye on our UpComing Events calendar on the sidebar.

'Working for Peace' in San Pablo

click here for complete programme in English
ON TONIGHT:  
THURSDAY, JULY 22 Calle Real (Main Street)

8.30pm - Music bands in the street. Selection of Spanish music.

11.00pm - Concert by "Trovamundos" band

00.30am - Concert by "Makale" band

'Working for Peace' in San Pablo

Preparations for the eighth annual Talleres por la Paz in San Pablo de Buceite are very nearly finished. Yesterday, Sunday, was the day to receive the children participating this year. Volunteers from the organization headed for Jerez airport and the port at Tarifa (photo) yesterday to receive guests from Cuba and Morocc. Most of the activities, including workshops in percussion and instrumental, graphitti, foam molding, digital still & movie photography. get under way today. The theatre workshops, attended mainly by local children, have been going for a week now, with a view to presenting their work at the ceremony to end the Talleres.>