Want a job?

There is one going in Bigastro.
The Council are looking for a young lady between 25 and 35 years old who lives in Bigastro, is well educated, has a good command of English both spoken and written, has their own car, driving licence and is available for work.

I qualify on six out of eight counts, actually make that five because I am not available for work.  

PS Imagine the furore in England if a Council placed an advert restricting access to young ladies who live in the town.

In England the advert would have to say the job was open to any  regardless of age, race, sex, disability and sexual orientation.

Music for your ears

The Department of Culture and the Provincial Council of Alicante are pleased to offer a wide CULTURAL PROGRAM, for the 3rd, 4th and 5th October.

The program consists of various works intended for all ages.

For example, on Saturday October 4 at 20:30 pm,  you can enjoy a performance by the LYRIC NOSTALGIA JAZZ QUARTET in the Municipal Auditorium Francisco Grau.

Photos for you

You can now download my photos of the procession yesterday by going to my Dropbox account at https://www.dropbox.com/sh/eu4i70fxxicqx8f/AACc0U8juVDhtr2wmSIFvbRwa?dl=0

Learning all the time

As I have said before, one of the reasons we wanted to live in a place like Bigastro is because traditions and culture are still alive in small Spanish towns. Live on the coast or in places like Quesada and you could easily miss out on all of this.

Each year Pam and I learn more about the events that take place annually in the town, occasions that increase our insight into bigastrense life and show us what is important to the Spanish people here.

Yesterday I went down to take photos of the procession that took place following mass in the church. It seems that, the last weekend in September, the church holds a fiesta in honour of the Virgin Mary after whom the church is named.

In the procession is the statue of Mary holding the baby Jesus carried by members of the Brotherhood of the Virgin. It is the same statue that is carried during the Encuentro. The fiesta queens also take part in the parade, dressed in the gowns for the coronation but with cream mantillas on their heads. Members of the town council join in along with many of the townsfolk carrying lighted candles. As you would expect, the town band provides the music.

You will find my album of pictures located in the left hand sidebar.

I ought to go

The flamingos have returned to La Mata in large numbers as reported by the newspaper Informacion. I really ought to go and take my camera to see if I can get some pictures of these birds. In the meantime here is a photo I found on the internet.

MPs behaving badly

As the Conservative Party conference kicks off, the party has been dealt a double blow.

1. Mark Reckless, MP for Rochester and Strood has joined Douglas Carswell in defecting to UKIP.

Mr Reckless lived up to his name when he missed a vote on the Budget just months after taking his seat in Parliament. He was so inebriated after a six hour drinking session that he fell to the floor in the Commons. Mr Reckless had to be bundled into a taxi and sent home by follow MPs.

Reckless said afterwards that he would never be caught drinking in the House again. Let us hope so because, if he is successful in becoming a UKIP MP, Nigel Farange will need him to be there for every session of Parliament in a fit state to vote. 

2. Brooks Newmark has resigned his post as Minister for Civil Society following reports that he exposed himself on the internet to an undercover reporter.

The journalist created a fake Twitter account complete with a picture of an attractive young girl. Under the name Sophie Wittams, the reporter sent messages to to the Minister. The relationship between them became steamy when they swapped sexually explicit photographs. Mr Newmark’s picture showed him exposing himself in a pair of paisley pyjamas.

His final blow was to suggest that the two meet up at the conference this week.

Now, we know that politicians are only human and are subject to the same frailties as the rest of us but you would expect the leaders of your country to behave better and at least show some discretion in their private lives. On the one hand you could argue that the Conservative party will be better off without these two (actually Mr Newmark will remain as an MP) but the timing is not good for David Cameron who hopes to launch his campaign to win the next election this week.

Please, no rain for the procession

AEMET warns us that the coastal region is on yellow alert for storms today. Looking out, the sky is very dark and gloomy but apparently that will change by about midday and we should see some sun this afternoon.

All I hope is that the rain stays off for the procession this morning from the church. This weekend is the fiesta of the VIrgen de Belen when the statue of her will be carried around the streets of the town.

Since the fiesta queens will be taking part in the parade, I have been asked to go down there and take photos. Obviously, if it is raining, the procession will not take place and I will miss my opportunity.

Looking further on, the present weather pattern will continue with a high possibility of rain right through next week.

A mere gesture

After a heated debate in the House of Commons yesterday, MPs voted almost unanimously to allow intervention in Iraq by British aircraft. It seems that six Tornado aircraft will be engaged in bombing strategic targets.

David Cameron said that the war against ISIL will last for years not months and that future prime ministers will still be facing difficult decisions about this matter.

The sad fact is that he is right, the problem lies in Syria and is so deep rooted that it will take a massive change of culture in the country to defeat the terrorists. Air strikes might curtail the current problem but they are hardly likely to stop it. The people in those countries are the only ones who can eventually clear up this mess.

The good think is that, this time, the people of Britain are not being lied to as they were when Tony Blair told us that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction they could unleash at any time against the West.

What must they think

We have friends on holiday at Punta Prima. Their first week there was sunny and they complained it was too hot. I don’t suppose they will be complaining about the heat this week though.

Apart from the rain which may well have lashed down on them, there was a minor earthquake yesterday at midday. It was a mere 1.2 on the Richter Scale and was cantered off the coast at Pilar de la Horadada but  I bet they felt it and wondered what was going on. .

More about the rain

Ask three people from different locations in the Vega Baja what the weather was like yesterday and you will get three different answers.The unstable air continues to drop rainstorms on towns almost at random.

For example, we were in Torrevieja yesterday lunchtime on business and it was sunny, there were even people on the beach. We called at Carrefour and Mercadona on our return and it was still sunny. However, it was obvious there had been some rain in Bigastro which had cleared by the time we got home.

This morning I read that towns in the north of the province had up to 60 litres of water per square metre in the morning and that there were floods on the roads of Torrevieja in the afternoon. It seems that the police in the town are so well prepared, they close the roads they know will flood even before it happens. Torrevieja has had twice the amount of rain in a few days than it had all year and there is still more to come.

Fancy a castle?

Butrón castle in the Basque Country is up for sale for anyone willing to pay at least 3.5 million euros.

The five storey 700 year old building has four towers and stands in 35,000 square meters of land. It has a courtyard, a chapel, a grand room for banquets, a water well and even dungeons. Sadly though, it only has two bathrooms.

The castle was purchased by a Spanish real estate company in 2005 when the previous owners, who tried to run it as a wedding venue, went bankrupt.

For those of you who might be interested, this is the link to the auction.

Blessed rain

For many heavy rain is a curse, especially those who are here on vacation but for the farmers it is a blessing from heaven.

The rain is set to continue into next week but hopefully will come with less force and without the heavy thunder. That will please those who have almond and olive trees which are very resistant to drought but are suffering after a very dry and hot summer.

The drought this summer has been described as the most severe for 150 years threatening even the pine trees that normally will survive anything.

What the farmers do not want though is a “gota fria” or cold drop because that is often accompanied by hail which damages fruit and other crops.

Storms continue

The presence of unstable air combined with high sea temperatures led to a tornado forming of the coast between Alicante and Benidorm. That must have been a spectacular sight whilst it lasted.

The sun came back out and all was peace again. Not for long though because another supercell formed and dumped 14 litres per square metre of rain on Elche and 3 litres per square metre on Alicante. We could hear the thunder even though it was some distance away.

The unused water tank

Remember back in 2007 they built the water tank above the campsite at La Pedrera? Its purpose was to supply water to the houses that were being built in Sector D-6 and at the same time cure the lack of water pressure in apartment blocks higher than 3 storeys. The cost of building was 512,357 euros.

Seven years on and the tower remains unused because the council at the time and since have failed to invest the 70,000 euros necessary to install connecting pumps.

Whilst we are talking of water, the reservoir next to our estate was relined a few years ago. I recall that it took weeks of work with trucks and diggers to complete the scheme and yet the reservoir has only rain water at the bottom of it.

A mother of storms raged last night

Well the rain certainly came yesterday as per promise causing flooding in Torrevieja, Callosa de Segura and particularly Almoradi. Forty litres per square metre fell in Torrevieja and 30 in Orihuela.

It was strange though because, after a wet start to the day, the sun came out and shone for much of the afternoon. That sunshine though was responsible for the formation of a supercell between Murcia and Orihuela. Thankfully for us, it was more intense in Murcia where flooding was widespread and they even saw hail.

The immense rotating thunderstorm continued for a good hour or more and knocked out the signal to our satellite box. Thankfully, by the time we went to bed it had all calmed down, the storm had moved out to sea and hopefully today will be more normal.

There is still a risk of showers in the afternoons over the next week but not like yesterday.

Nasty weather

On trial again

Another case has been opened in court against the former mayor of Bigastro, José Joaquín Moya. He, the Secretary Antonio Sasesta and Françoise Bailen  have been accused of paying thousands of euros to the Vistabella Palace Hotel and the communications company, Vega Baja Media without just reason. Regular payments of over 3,000 euros were made to the accounts of the hotel and the communication company from the town’s accounts.

The prosecutor is asking for an 8 year jail sentence.

The accused and secretary are also required to contribute assets of 280,000 for their civil liability and the other official, 76,000 euros.

Work has started

After six years of complaints, leaks into nearby buildings and allegations against the council, work has started on the Acequia Alquibla in Bigastro thanks to a grant of 34,000 euros and a contribution of a further 8,000 euros from the town.

Catalonia presses forward for a vote

Catalan watched intently as the Scottish referendum progressed. Catalonia has expressed its wish to hold a similar vote about secession from Spain but the central government has denied them that right. The 1978 constitution stipulates that any vote on independence must be put to all Spaniards and so a referendum held only in Catalonia would be illegal.

Although a “yes” vote in Scotland would have helped because it would have shown that issues like EU and NATO membership could be resolved, that is not stopping Artur Mas, the Catalan President from pushing forward with the idea. He plans to hold a vote anyway even though the result would not be accepted by Madrid. It is said that 80% of the population of this prosperous region want the chance to put their view forward and a law, passed on Friday in the region, has paved the way for a “consultation” to take place possibly in November.

We have to remember that things are different here in Spain than they are in Scotland.   Although Catalonia accounts for just 16% of the total population of the country it provides almost one-fifth of the GDP.

Not my photo

Sometimes you find photos online that you really wish you’d taken yourself.

This was taken last night in the Bajo Llobregat, the Catalan region of Barcelona, by Paco Pino.

Whilst I would love to have the opportunity to take similar pictures here, I don’t relish the idea of having thunderstorms this autumn.