Puntos de vista - a personal Spain blog

La alcaldesa de Ronda, Maria de la Paz Fernandez Lobato (PP), has been indicted on five criminal charges and faces a prison sentence and a huge fine.

    La Alcaldesa de Ronda faces the Press last Friday [SUR]

The news broke this weekend that the mayoress has been charged with prevaricacion, malversacion, fraude and falsedad documental (prevarication, embezzlement, fraud and falsification of documents) in connection with the town's cleaning and rubbish collection company, SOLIARSA.

Fiscalia (Public prosecutor's office) has demanded a prison sentence of five years, an eight-year ban on holding public office and a fine of 42,000 euros for both Fernandez and her pre-decessor as council leader, the PSOE (socialist) Maria Teresa Valdenebro. 

A Soliarsa refuse lorry [Diario Ronda]    

Reaction in Ronda

Fernandez has vigorously denied the charges and has vowed to defend herself. 

The mother of three children has significant health problems. The births of her three children have all been complicated.

Maripaz and me

I have known Maripaz Fernandez for 20 years. I like her as a person, but our politics do not coincide.

If she is found guilty, she must pay the price.

Whether Maripaz is found guilty or not, I would still question many of her recent decisions. She prefers vanity projects over more fundamental issues.

The mayoress poses on the Puente Nuevo in Ronda [Diario Ronda]    

There is a long list of questionable decisions taken by Ronda Council under her leadership:

• The construction of a new open-air swimming pool that only opens for three months a year!

     "White elephant" swimming pool [Photo: Ronda Today]

• The creation of a concrete park on Avenida de Malaga with no shade and no grass!

     Concrete park [Diario Ronda] 

• The construction of a a massive car park on a burial site to the south of the city.

• The building of a new road through virgin countryside to the west of Ronda.

• New "coloured pavements" in the Poligono Industrial.

I could go on …..

My opinion

Fernandez' time is up and so is that of the Partido Popular (PP). The People's Party is right of centre and like the Tories in the UK, is only interested in looking after the better-off in society.

Ronda is a wealthy town, yet it has areas of deprivation and the policies of the PP do nothing to improve the lot of the people living in these parts of town.

Building on fire in Ronda [101TV]    

© Pablo de Ronda

Acknowledgements (Photos):

101TV, Diario Ronda, Diario Sur, Ronda Today

Tags:

101TV, alcadesa de Ronda, ban on holding public office, car park on a burial site, cleaning and rubbish collection company, coloured pavements, concrete recreational park on Avenida de Malaga, council leader, criminal charges, Diario Ronda, Diario Sur, embezzlement, falsedad documental, falsification of documents, Fiscalia, fraud, fraude, malversacion, Maria de la Paz Fernandez Lobato, Maria Teresa Valdenebro, new road through virgin countryside, open-air swimming pool, PP, Partido Popular, PSOE, People's Party, Ronda, Pablo de Ronda, Paul Whitelock, prevaricacion, prevarication, prison sentence, Public prosecutor's office, Ronda Today, socialist mayor, SOLIARSA

"Space", the final frontier? The "Space Race"? "2001 A Space Odyssey"?

Nope! I'm talking about "outside space".

[Netflix]    

My "Space" History

Since I became an adult, the outside space available to me has fluctuated.

As a student

I lived in a Hall of Residence in Salford, in a grotty flat in Upper Kersal, Manchester, two flats with no outside space in San Sebastian (Guipuzkoa), a "Wohnheim" (a workers' hostel in Stuttgart, Germany), a bedsit in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, and a tower block with no balcony in Salford.

    Davy Hall, Salford [Flickr]                                              Briarhill Court, Salford [Reddit]

As a married working man

After I got married and started work, Jeryl and I got a mortgage to buy a semi-detached house in Walkden, Greater Manchester, which had tiny gardens front and rear.

Then in 1980 we bought a detached house on a corner plot in Thelwall, Cheshire. That had gardens all round the house. I could at last start gardening.

We stayed in that house for a quarter of a century until my wife and I split up and divorced.

For a while I lived in Bryn-Y-Maen, North Wales with my new girlfriend, Maude, in her cottage with a massive garden and a field.

After that relationship ended I had nowhere to live, so my mum took me in at the ripe old age of 57! She had a semi-detached bungalow on the south bank of the Manchester Ship Canal in Thelwall (qv).

The bungalow had gardens front and year, plus I "annexed" a chunk of MSC land, in common with most neighbours. I had an allotment there.

Then I bought a detached house on a large plot on the other side of the Ship Canal in Latchford, Warrington. I was retired by now, so had time to continue with my gardening activities. It was 2008.   

100 Wash Lane, Latchford [PW]

Spain

Pre-dating this my first wife, Jeryl, and I owned two properties in Ronda, Andalusia, Spain.

The first was a flat with a small terrace on the first floor, which we bought in 2001. The second was an end terrace house 50 metres away. We bought this in 2003 as a project, a "do-er up-per". That had a large private terrace with great views to the rear.

    Piso Blanco, Ronda [Photo: PW]

After our divorce I was left with the two Ronda properties.

Maude, the girlfriend from North Wales, also bought a little house in Ronda centre with a long garden to the rear. Since I was retired I was able to spend lengthy periods in the City of Dreams, finishing off my house in the barrio and doing up Maude's house and garden.

Then, in 2008 my life changed for ever - and for the better. I met Rita in Ronda. In fact last weekend was the 17th anniversary of that fateful meeting.

I emigrated at the end of 2008, to "live in sin" with my new German girlfriend in her house in Montejaque, near Ronda. From the outside space point of view we had a huge roof terrace and an internal patio and a small sitting area in front of the house.

After marriage in 2010, we also decided to move to a larger property with easy access and lots of land. That's what we got - a 3000 m2 plot laid to lawns and a 10,000 m2 field.

I let a neighbour, Juan Antonio use most of the field to grow hay for his horse to graze in the summer. My gardener Rafael has a sizeable huerta where he grows vegetables, and another neighbour, Mercedes, uses a small plot, also as a huerta.

Both "pay me" in fruit and veg, Merche also gives us eggs laid by her free-range chickens.

Managing the "space"

I undertook a major project this year to create more allotment space for fruit trees and vegetables. Also to furbish a "man cave" and to re-organise terraces and seating areas.

The expansion of my huerta is complete, and the terraces are ready. The "man cave", in a wooden shed at the bottom of the garden, still needs tidying up.

    Above photos by Paul Whitelock, except top left, by Karl Smallman

Links:

© Pablo de Ronda

Images:

Flickr, Karl Smallman, Netflix, Paul Whitelock, Reddit

Tags:

barrio, Casa Blanca, Flickr, Jeryl, Karl Smallman, Maude, Montejaque, Netflix, Pablo de Ronda, Paul Whitelock, Piso Blanco, Reddit, Rita, Ronda, Villa Indiana, www.help-me-ronda.com

This Saturday journalists, writers and media professionals from the Costa Press Club (Club de Prensa de la Costa del Sol) took part in a very enjoyable Press Trip to the Axarquia area of inland Malaga province. The day was organised by club member and journalist Jennie Rhodes together with APTA, the Association for the Promotion of Tourism in Axarquía.

[Map courtesy of absolute axarquia]

The Press outing centred on the towns/villages of Almáchar and El Borge and focused on the history of the Axarquía region through its traditions and the cultivation of muscat grapes, recognized by the FAO as an Important Agricultural Heritage System (SIPAM).

Visit 1

First stop was a visit to a lagar, Tunante de Arriba, to learn how the moscatel grapes are processed before being turned into the distinctive Moscatel dessert wine.

This was fascinating, as we learned from the owner Jose Luis that the harvested grapes still in bunches are laid on the ground to "bake" in the sun. Periodically they have to be turned by hand. When they are sufficiently "done", they are taken inside where they are snipped from the stalks and peeled.

   L to R: Mangoes ripening; Moscatel grapes drying; Cutting the "pasas" (sultanas) from the stalks; De-skinning the sultanas

   [Photographs by Paul Whitelock]

Nowadays, further processing takes place at a cooperativa, where the harvest is turned into the sweet Moscatel wine.

Visit 2

Back on the coach for the short drive to Almáchar. Our visit coincided with the village feria, so the place was packed. And the atmosphere was great.

We walked around, passing by stalls selling everything imaginable, and visiting places on the way. 

I like getting souvenirs of the places I visit, so I ended up with a fridge magnet (iman), a key ring (llavero), a book by Isabel Allende, as well as a fig loaf.

We also got some free ajoblanco, a cold soup made from almonds and garlic. Delish!

    My souvenirs [PW]                                                 Ajoblanco [Andaluciamia]

Apartamentos Turísticos La Lipa

A new concept. The owners - Juan from Almachar and his wife Carmen from Santander, northern Spain - bought an old village building and "reformed" it into a luxury aparthotel with modern furnishings and decor.

    Outside the Lipa suites [PW]                           Yours truly on the roof terrace [K. Ogilvy]                                                                                                                                                     

The views from each of the seven rooms and the roof terrace are to die for.

Museo de la Pasa

Then a couple of us got detached from the group, so we headed back to the coach. We were the first to arrive. The others were at another visit, to a bodega, which we missed.

Visit 3 - Bodega Fabio Coullet

We missed it!

But our fellow group members assured us we had missed an enjoyable experience.

Visit 4 - Centro de Interpretación Galería del Bandolero

This was a very enjoyable visit. We learned that the El Borge centre had purchased most of the artefacts and exhibits from the Ronda Museo del Bandolero, when it closed in 2020. 

    The former Bandit Museum in Ronda [Wikipedia]       The Bandit Museum in El Borje [PW]

It was a scandal that the Ronda Bandit Museum was closed five years ago. Ronda Council should have stepped in to support it, instead of wasting money on "vanity projects".

But at least the contents have survived.

After the visit and an amusing interlude when we were "attacked" by bandits, we adjourned to the projection room.

    Bandits! [Photos by Paul Whitelock]

Antonio Yuste, the mayor of Moclinejo, another local village, welcomed us and outlined the collaborative work between the three councils in Almáchar, El Borge, and Moclinejo, to promote the area as a tourist destination.

We each received a "goodie bag", with promotional gifts, leaflets and maps, as well as a bottle of Moscatel.

There was also a fridge magnet to add to my collection! Yippee!

"Goodie Bag" [PW]    

Visit 5 - "almuerzo tradicional" en el Restaurante Hotel Posada Del Bandolero

We were hungry by now. We were quite a large group, around 27 including our hosts, and the restaurant was busy anyway, being feria and a Saturday, so the service was rather slow.

Nevertheless, when the meal came it was worth the wait. It was a traditional lunch with a leitmotiv of pasas.

I had chosen ajoblanco con pasas, followed by solomillo de cerdo en medallones con pasas y papas fritas. The accompanying complimentary wines were from the bodega we missed out on, Fabio Couillet!

    My choices: ajoblanco and solomillo de cerdo [PW]

Then, all of a sudden, it was home time. The coach took us back to the centre of Malaga where I picked up my car and headed for home, very satisfied ..... and looking forward to the next CPC meeting on September 30th.

©  Pablo de Ronda

With thanks to:

andaluciamia, Antonio Muñoz, Elisa Páez, Ezequiel, Fabio Couillet, Jennie Rhodes, Neil Hesketh, Raquel (coach driver)

Tags:

absolute axarquia, Agricultural Heritage System, ajoblanco con pasas, Almáchar, "almuerzo tradicional", andaluciamia, Antonio Muñoz, APTA, Association for the Promotion of Tourism in Axarquía, Axarquia, bodega, Club de Prensa de la Costa del Sol, Costa Press Club, El Borge, Elisa Páez, Ezequiel, Fabio Couillet, FAO, Jennie Rhodes, Malaga province, Moclinejo, muscat grapes, Neil Hesketh, Pablo de Ronda, papas fritas, Paul Whitelock Press Trip, Raquel, Restaurante Hotel Posada Del Bandolero, Ronda Museo del Bandolero, SIPAM, solomillo de cerdo en medallones con pasas

Today is the 17th anniversary of the day I met Rita, who became my wife two years later.

Yes, it was the Friday evening of the Feria y Fiestas de Pedro Romero. The year was 2008.

I had flown in from Frankfurt Hahn airport and had arrived that morning at Malaga airport.

[Poster courtesy of Portal Tematico de la Serrania]

I had just broken up with my girlfriend in Luxembourg, where I had spent the summer helping out with DIY and house renovation. She said it was just a summer romance. I thought it was more than that and I was devastated. So, I decided to fly to Spain and spend a long weekend in Ronda (I had property there).

I met up with my pal Michael who had moved to Ronda from North Wales a few years before.

His brother was visiting from North Wales with his girlfriend, so after an early dinner we all headed off to the Recinto Ferial. I was not keen - I was tired - but they talked me in to it.

On arrival we entered a caseta, a sort of beer tent, which was full of guiris (what the Spanish call us northern European immigrants). I already knew a handful of those present, as I'd been coming to Ronda frequently for some eight years. As I went round the group, at least 20, I was introduced to each one in turn.

The rather lovely lady who appeared to be on her own, ie not with a bloke, and who had a funny accent, was a German divorcee who was living in Montejaque, 20 minutes from Ronda. I'm a fluent German speaker, so she was delighted to chat with me. When I found out that her name was Rita, I immediately christened her the "Meter Maid" (The Beatles, 1964 - geddit?).

[Rolling Stone]    

We saw each other again that weekend and agreed to keep in touch. We were both smitten with each other. Over the next four months we courted in England, Germany and Spain and then, just before Christmas of 2008, I emigrated to be with her.

Two years later we got married in Maulbronn Abbey in Germany, the school there having educated Hermann Hesse, who would later be the author of "Steppenwolf".

Now, 15 years later, we're still together living in Ronda.

Maulbronn Abbey [Minube]    

Endword

We have never been to the Feria since. Rita doesn't enjoy such things, and I'm hardly going to go on my own (I might meet someone else -¡Ojala!)

Links:

A1 HOLIDAYS

MY SPECIAL PLACES IN SPAIN - Help me, Ronda

Ronda Romántica: Falling in Love in the ‘City of Dreams’ - Help me, Ronda

©  Pablo de Ronda

Pictures:

Minube, Portal Tematico de la Serrania, Rolling Stone 

Tags:

caseta, Frankfurt Hahn, guiri, Maulbronn Abbey, Minube, Hermann Hesse, "Meter Maid", Montejaque, Pedro Romero, Portal Tematico de la Serrania, recinto ferial, Rita, Rolling Stone, Ronda, "Steppenwolf", The Beatles,

I don't think there is a general rule.

Most "guiris" speak little Spanish, but they have purchasing power.

So are we liked or just tolerated for our dinero?

A stereotypical "guiri" [source unknown]    

I am a guiri - a Northern European immigrant to Spain - but I do not fit the stereotype of a sunburnt person who wears sandals with socks, a "kiss-me-quick" hat, and totally inappropriate clothing, who speaks only English (or German) ever more loudly, in order to be understood.

"Guiris" have a well-deserved bad reputation, in my opinion.

And .....- ?

I am different, I hope.

I speak fluent Spanish and I didn't immigrate to Spain for the sun, sand and sangria.

I moved to this country because I loved the people, the lifestyle, the relative lack of stress and the low cost of living.

[Photo courtesy of Secret Serrania]    

My story

I first came to Spain aged 20 to spend my year abroad, a compulsory part of a university languages degree. I was sent to San Sebastian (Guipuzkoa) in 1970. Franco was still alive (BTW a worse war criminal than Adolf Hitler) so it wasn't looking promising.

    Bay of La Concha, San Sebastian [Civitatis]

But I was fascinated with this slightly backward country with no video shops, with chaperones, little western influence and no contraception.

When my girlfriend from university visited me she spotted straightaway that I felt at home in the Spanish environment.

We later married, by the way, had two children, travelled extensively in Spain and bought two properties in Ronda (Malaga).

After 30 years together, however, it all unravelled. I had a nervous breakdown, was made redundant from my job as a schools adviser/inspector and got divorced. It was 2005 and I was not in a good place. 

    Puente Nuevo, Ronda [Fenix]

But, Spain, in particular Ronda, rescued me.

Now 20 years later, I am a Spanish resident, I am re-married, have a great house and a vibrant social life.

Franco has been dead for 50 years and is a disgraced figure.

Spain is one of the most advanced and sophisticated democracies in Europe and the economy is booming under the socialist government of Pedro Sanchez, a formidable, likeable, and English-speaking politician prominent on the European and world stage.

Villa Indiana, Ronda [A1]

Links:

"Guiris" galore - Eye on Spain

What is a guiri? It's what the Spanish call us foreigners - but is it good or bad? - Secret Serrania

© Pablo de Ronda (Paul Whitelock)

Pictures:

A1, Civitatis, Fenix, Secret Serrania

Acknowledgements:

Pablo de Ronda, Paul Whitelock

Tags:

A1, Civitatis, Eye on Spain, Fenix, Franco, Guipuzkoa, guiri, Pablo de Ronda, Paul Whitelock, Pedro Sanchez, Plaza de toros, Puente Nuevo, Ronda, San Sebastian, Secret Serrania, Spain, Villa Indiana