Zahara de la Sierra and wild flowers in the valley.

The 8th Century tower at Zahara de la Sierra.



A view from the tower.



.... And another.



Wild flowers in the valley below the Puente Nuevo.

The Last Post and The First Cuckoo... 09 - 22 April

This will be the last post although I may add a few notes at some point. For instance I have been trying to find out about a ruined house mentioned (w/c 12 March)  - some information is included later – and if I find out more I will add it subsequently

Since Easter I have had three sets of visitors, which has been great. The first, already noted in a previous post came during Semana Santa. One of my (4) brothers-in-law came over for three days Friday 13^th to Monday 16^th. We managed plenty of walking between the heavy showers and dodging the rain in various tavernas meant we drank more cerveza than intended. Over here, you pay as you leave, not as you go along. Neither of us could remember paying at the Bodega Bar and we had tapas as well as drinks but we went back next day (.. and I have been since) and we were not marched out so we must have paid.

This last weekend my sister-in-law and her husband came over. The weather was marvellous. As well as a fair bit of walking we also did a tour of villages (… including The Smurf village of Júzcar – refer 13 – 19 February).  During one of the walks on Sunday we heard a cuckoo. Ever since I started as a paper boy (illegally – aged 11) when my first round was in a spread out country area of Warwickshire, the first cuckoo is something I have always looked forward to and April 22^nd is probably the earliest I have experienced .. (… the cuckoo comes in April, sings its song in May, changes its tune in merry June and in July it flies away….). Unfortunately, although birdsong  was strong in the Thorpe Meadows area and woodpeckers were relatively common, there were three Springs out of fourteen that I spent in that part of Peterborough when I did not hear a cuckoo at all.

During the tour of villages, we visited Zahara de la Sierra and photos of that are included here.

On Sunday morning I managed to lock us out. I had a key in the inside of the front door in case my visitors wanted to go outside while I was preparing breakfast. On leaving I forgot to remove it and after closing the door realised what I had done. The other key therefore of course would not work – I tried it! All windows were closed and the downstairs windows anyway have decorative (and secure) metal bars. The upstairs windows were also closed. I have a small rear courtyard with a c12 foot high wall separating the neighbour’s courtyard from mine. As tends to be the case here, there are three generations living next door – the owners, their children and one set of parents (usually those of the lady). The old mother answered when I rang the bell but did not understand – or did not want to understand – my pleas for help. Her daughter though was there and understood my predicament.  On their side the wall is (only) c9 feet and they had a small set of stepladders. We put a chair on a table and I was able to reach the stepladders over but had to be very careful as the necessary drop caused the ladders to bounce, which could have toppled them. Incredibly they stood up!  I then climbed over and carefully lowered myself onto the ladders which again incredibly stayed upright. There were many ‘oohs’ and ‘aahs’ from the old lady and much hysterical laughter from the younger. My in-laws in the meantime were discussing where they might stay if I was unsuccessful and wondering what the emergency services number was if I had fallen (.. 112 in Andalucia, not 911 or 999).

I am now preparing to leave and hope to have most packing sorted so that I can relax over the weekend. On Saturday I shall have a few drinks and a meal with some of the friends I have made. I leave on Monday, stay in Palencia that night (300 miles), then drive to Santander ( 310 miles) and from there take the ferry to Plymouth on Wednesday, arriving on Thursday evening when I will stay with my mother-in-law in Bridgwater and will get back to Peterborough some time on Friday afternoon.

I will be back in Ronda in October and will again stay over the Winter – until March.

Having researched the ruined house mentioned at the start it seems the story is that the owners had an 8 year old daughter who was murdered and her body was placed in the nearby tower. Her ghost is said to haunt the ruins. Another version states that the owner was a successful local dignitary who led a secret life as a warlock and his daughter was murdered. Both stories talk about paranormal activity at the site and there are even rumours of extra terrestrial visitations…………….. to be concluded.

Semana Santa Views

In Malaga waiting for the doors to open.

Christ on the cross. There are approximately 260 people carrying
that platform. One of them might just be Antonio Banderas.

The Virgn Mary.

Back in Ronda. Jesus with Mary.

The very start of a procession. It is perhaps not too unkind to say
that the local TV reporter on the right has a face perfect for radio.

Semana Santa Views Part 2

That is a steep slope down which to carry the platform.

The ladies carried The Virgin Mary magnificently.

The point in Ronda that all processions have to pass.

A view from the city wall. Mary is half way up the hill.
'My house' is just to the right of the large building top left.
The red car is parked in front of my favourite Bodega bar.

The ladies successfully reversing into The Virgin Mary's resting place.

Semana Santa - Week of The Saints... 02 - 08 April

I got some facts about the Semana Santa (Week of Saints) processions wrong in my last notes. The processions usually have two tronos (thrones) which are platforms on which statues and scenes are placed. One usually has Jesus on the cross, the platform painted in gold and leads the procession and is followed – after various bands or groups of ladies in black – by one with The Virgin Mary, the platform painted in silver. One procession I saw only had one trono which featured Mary holding Jesus after being taken down from the cross. The processions start from various churches around the city with the first usually starting about 8am and the last returning to its church between 3am and 5am. There are various routes but they all pass a particular important point.

Ronda has a population of about 35,000 and the tronos are carried by up to 120 penitents. The platforms are lifted or put down (every 20 or 30 yards) based on signals given by a bell – and shouts from the leader. The speed of the march of the penitents is controlled by drum beat. After their procession the tronos are returned to their church where they stay on display for the rest of the year. For the procession they are adorned with many flowers.

Most churches, in Ronda have steps covered at this time by fairly steep ramps. Getting the platforms safely in and out is a miracle in itself. There are also the steep hills to contend with.

On Thursday I met with three friends who were staying on the coast at Elviria. They also came up to Ronda on Monday and we wandered round the old and very old areas including taking a look at the Arab baths. We went into Malaga on Thursday night and watched two of the processions there. There were 150,000 plus people on the streets. In Malaga, at least the streets are comparatively flat. The tronos are on a larger scale and are carried by up to 260 penitents! Apparantly Antonio Banderas who is from Malaga, always returns for Semana Santa and takes part in carrying one of the platforms. As well as brass and drum bands there was also a large involvement by crack military regiments.

The largest processions and tronos are in Seville which is the capital of Andalucia. All of these processions are carried out with such serious but joyous devotion on the part of those watching as well as participating that it is difficult for even a miserable cynical old goat such as myself not to be moved.

On the coast on Friday morning, the sky was blue. Back in Ronda it was about 7c and showery. I watched two more processions. The second was from a church close to where I am living. There are no steep steps but the lane is narrow and getting the platforms out while turning was a feat in itself. They proceeded down the steep lane and half an hour later it began to pour. They did not attempt to cover them (as with the Sunday procession) instead the penitents, not the platforms, turned and marched quickly – almost running back. A years’ preparation gone. I went back half an hour later and a huge roll of tissue paper was being used to dry off the platforms.

On Sunday having been told the streets close by were closed from 8am I turned up at the church of the Espiritu Santu on the dot. The procession left at 10:30! The Virgin Mary platform was carried by an all female group - 66 in all. I followed the entire procession. It finished at a church - not the one from which it started - half way up the hill to my place just before 5pm.

Bright blue skies but not too warm  - ideal!

On Saturday afternoon I went to see Deportivo Ronda play CD Nerja. ‘Our’ centre forward (and captain) looked somewhat like Kenny Burns –  as he is now, not as in his mid seventies hey day and was about as mobile – probably as he is now, not as he was then. Nevertheless ‘Kenny’ scored the equaliser before being substituted and the game finished 1-1. Kenny Burns played centre forward and centre half for Birmingham City before moving on and winning two European Cup medals under Brian Clough at Nottingham Forest. Kenny was one of the game’s real characters and is rightly considered a Birmingham City icon.

I found some humour just before the game when a family of six took seats in front of me. The six included three very attractive young ladies. The madre (mother) had a roll of tissue and wiped the seats. They sat down and then all moved one to the right, with the madre sitting in a seat that had not been  cleaned – some sort of pre-match ritual maybe. One of the girls who was wearing white jeans and a white coat took out a newspaper from her bag, placed it on the seat and sat on that. I have bought that paper and tried to read it. The print quality is about what the Daily Mail used to be. I suspect the headlines were imprinted across her posterior…….. I didn’t check though.

Palm Sunday Procession

The throne with the statue of The Virgin Mary.
What a pity it had to be covered with a plastic sheet.
The penitents underneath have to work hard.

The church of Santa Maria Mayor.
The Virgin Mary throne was very important at this stage of the procession.
The church was originally a mosque but was consecrated after the Christian conquest of Ronda in 1485.
The same was the case with many churches in the town.

Not exactly the 'Brighouse and Rastrick' but they played a decent tune.
The crowd was much reduced by the rain and the many ladies in high heels on the wet cobbles had gone for cover.

The outside cabling strung outside this house and across the road is fairly typical on some of the streets.

No bull... 19 March - 1 April

I watched a bullfight on the TV last week. As far as I could see, the bull has no chance. Brutal does not describe it. Occasionally things do go wrong and the main matador (torero) was a chap who last year had his face gored and lost an eye….. hardly what could be called entertainment. Ronda is very much connected with bullfighting. Born in Ronda, in 1754, Pedro Romero is considered to be one of the most important figures in the history of bullfighting – it is said that he elevated bullfighting to an art. Even in relatively recent years, Antonio Ordóñez of Ronda was active from 1951 to 1980 and was considered one of the greatest bullfighters of all time. Since 1954 the Corrida Goyesca has been held here – a bullfighting festival during which the bullfighters and public dress as in the times of Goya. Goya was a Romantic artist of the 18^th and early 19^th centuries. Orson Welles and Earnest Hemingway spent a good deal of time in Ronda – specifically to ‘enjoy’ the bullfighting. 

With the hour change last week, it is now light until around 8:45pm. It has coincided though with a change in the weather. This week it has been windy and cool. For three days the winds were constantly around 70km/h. The UK appears to have enjoyed better weather than here for the first time since I arrived in November.

I have booked the 2^nd May ferry. One thing I am looking forward to is to be able to absorb conversation as opposed to constantly having to work hard to understand and be understood. I am still disappointed at what I feel has been a lack of real progress with the language but very occasionally I surprise myself. Having made friends and contacts though I will have a better base to begin from when I come back in October.

There are a few things that are irritating. I have previously referred to the vast quantities of dog mess on pavements. There is a potential 700 euro fine but clearly it is not enforced. Most women smoke. Many men do as well, but it appears that most women do, from mid teens upwards. That is up to them of course but otherwise attractive ladies appear much less so with a cigarette hanging from their lips or with deeply nicotine stained teeth and/or fingers.  Men regularly spit in the gutter and occasionally on the pavement. Avoiding dog mess and spit is something to be constantly wary of.

There are more humorous things though. The attitude to health and safety is somewhat relaxed. Electricity cables are strung along outside walls and even across roads. I often see a lady riding a scooter with her little dog sitting (unstrapped) on the footpad.

This coming week is the Semana Santa – the week of The Saints, or Holy Week. There are therefore no Spanish lessons. There are processions most days. Yesterday most of the locals who were out, were carrying olive branches as it was Palm Sunday.  Various sculptures or models of various scenes in Jesus’ last week are carried through the streets on tronos (thrones) by penitents underneath the platform. Some people wear long robes and long pointed hats. They look rather like the Klu Klux Klan except the hats are black and the robes are more often claret than white. I turned up near the church of The Santa Maria Mayor just after 7pm. It started raining at about 7:45 and yet many of the ladies were without coats and wore high heels (not a good idea on wet cobble stones). At 8:30 the procession bagan to come through. Unfortunately due to the rain they were covered in plastic sheets. I left just after 10:30 but it seems they were carrying on until 3:30 am and were due to start again at 8am. The thrones are preceeded by brass or drum bands in uniform. The uniform effect was a little spoiled by some who wore yellow pac-a-macs over but understandable in the circumstances.

I am meeting up with some friends and ex-neighbours down on the coast on Thursday and we shall be going to Malaga to see a procession there.