Hello and welcome to the July edition of Soltalk! Summer
season is most definitely here and the beaches are looking their
best - how colourful they look with all the parasols.
When the Virgen is finally brought back to the church, there
are fireworks launched on Calahonda beach, and the best place
to watch them is the Balcón de Europa. The following day
there are further celebrations and sardines are cooked on large
fires at Plaza de los Cangrejos (yes crab square - at the bottom
of Calle Málaga) at 10pm. The sardines are free and drinks are
on sale for €1.50.
This month we have a packed issue for you with all our regular
features and news, plus a great article from a new contributor
Hein Hendriks, recounting the history of one of Málaga’s
statues, see page 24.
Finally, this month there is a global
campaign called Plastic Free July, which
is encouraging everyone to make a
change in their use of plastic. For more
information see their website at
www.plasticfreejuly.org. To that end, this
month we feature a story on Eco Passion,
a company that has launched on the
Costa del Sol to help people reduce their
plastic use and encourage them to be
more eco-friendly. See page 44 for
details.
Last month we published our quarterly
map but this time it included our new
Tapas Trail which is proving extremely
popular. Copies of the map are widely
available around Nerja, there are too
many outlets to mention them all but
you could pop into Smiffs book shop
near the post office, C&G, Team or
Villasol estate agents, (addresses in the
guide at the back) and many different
bars and restaurants.
This month’s fiesta is the Virgen del Carmen (pictured) which
takes place on July 16 in Nerja. In the early evening the statue
of the Virgen del Carmen is taken from the church on the
Balcón de Europa, processed around the streets (Puerta del
mar, Pintada, La Cruz, Animas, Granada, Plaza Cavana, El
Barrio, Castilla Pérez) and finally to Playa la Torrecilla. Here it
is placed on a boat which is then sailed around to Playa
Burriana and then back to Playa Calahonda and returned to the
church once more.
Speaking of plastic free, supermarket chain Lidl has announced
it will stop selling plastic bags in its stores by the end of this
year, offering instead multi-use raffia bags for 50 centímos.
And the northern region of Navarra is to follow the example of
the Balearic Islands and, from 2020, will ban plastic coffee
capsules and carrier bags, as well as disposable plastic goods
including cups, plates, cutlery and drinking straws. Well done,
the sooner we stop filling our oceans with plastic the better.
We hope you enjoy this issue and enjoy July.
The procession is accompanied by the municipal Band of Nerja
and the band of Bugles and Drums of San Miguel Arcangel.
SARAH BROOKES
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