Improvements to our town continue

The mayor of Bigastro, María Teresa Belmonte, and the town councilor, Antonio José Meseguer, have now signed off the works that have been carried out in the last three months.The project was part of the program of Financially Sustainable Investments for which the Provincial Council  provided an investment of 120,000 euros.

In Barrio Nuevo, the sewage has been extended to facilitate the collection of rainwater.

The stage in the Park Huerto del Cura has been rehabilitated with a new roof and a gate to prevent accidents.

Other works include the roundabout at the health centre which now has lighting to increase road safety in this section of the municipality. The councilman of Urbanism, Antonio Meseguer, has says  that the project was realised "after doing a complete check-up of all the town centre". Following  this analysis, the streets Aljíbe, Antonio Maura, Francisco Payá, Antonio Machado, Francisco de Asís and Poet Carlos Hidalgo have been redeveloped.

One for the diary

In case you were wondering, the guest artist is a guitarist - pretty much an essential for music of the era!

Stargazing

Fingers crossed that the sky is clear on Friday!!

We were there

Photo by Fontabigastro.

As this photo by our dear friend Fontabigastro proves.

In all, I took 449 photos which I whittled down to just 125.

Fonta has posted 55 photos on Facebook - our photos complement each other showing different aspects and different viewpoints - perfect teamwork!

Now, a two day event.

A comedy act

Last night, Bigastro celebrated the lives of women in the town at the 12th Gala de la Mujer.

All but one of the women, who were presented with a glass plaque and a bunch of flowers, were of a mature age. Nether the less, they all looked smart and were interesting to listen to. In fact some of them were natural comedians and had the audience in pleats of laughter.

You can see my pictures in the album located in the sidebar.

Don't forget

Always easy to remember, in Spring, the clocks spring forward; in Autumn they fall back. We'll lose an hours sleep but make up for that with an extra hour of daylight at the end of the day.

For Saturday

Celebrating women in Bigastro.

Should I join?

I've been invited to join the Islam Misericordia group on Facebook. I think it is probably best if I decline the invitation.

Salam u3alikum 🌼🌼🌼🌼🌼Cita del sagrado Corán: An-Nisaa (4:113)
وَلَوْلَا فَضْلُ اللَّهِ عَلَيْكَ وَرَحْمَتُهُ لَهَمَّتْ طَائِفَةٌ مِنْهُمْ أَنْ يُضِلُّوكَ وَمَا يُضِلُّونَ إِلَّا أَنْفُسَهُمْ ۖ وَمَا يَضُرُّونَكَ مِنْ شَيْءٍ ۚ وَأَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْكَ الْكِتَابَ وَالْحِكْمَةَ وَعَلَّمَكَ مَا لَمْ تَكُنْ تَعْلَمُ ۚ وَكَانَ فَضْلُ اللَّهِ عَلَيْكَ عَظِيمًا
Walawla fadlu Allahi AAalayka warahmatuhu lahammat taifatun minhum an yudillooka wama yudilloona illa anfusahum wama yadurroonaka min shayin waanzala Allahu AAalayka alkitaba waalhikmata waAAallamaka ma lam takun taAAlamu wakana fadlu Allahi AAalayka AAatheeman
Si no fuera por el favor [de la infalibilidad] y la misericordia de Dios contigo [oh, Mujámmad], un grupo [de los hipócritas] te habría extraviado; pero solo se extravían a sí mismos y en nada pueden perjudicarte. Dios te ha revelado el Libro [el Corán] y la sabiduría [la Sunnah] y te ha enseñado lo que no sabías. ¡El favor de Dios sobre ti es inmenso!
السلام عليكم ورحمة الله وبركاته ✨

Go and see for yourselves

Bigastro Town Hall has managed to recover the state and image of the recreational area of ​​La Pedrera, one of the most visited natural sites in the Vega Baja region. Thanks to a grant from the Environment Department of the Provincial Council, new services have been installed, after carrying out necessary maintenance work. This is the first step to create an environmental route that unites the mountain of the municipality and the traditional orchard.

The rehabilitation has been carried out in recent months and has consisted of three different stages: the improvement of the pergola and shade, the children's play area as well as the barbecues and public toilets. In total, the project budget has meant an investment of more than 60,000 euros.

The pergola has received various treatments of varnishes and they have replaced the damaged wood. It should be remembered that this recreational area has hardly received any work on it since it opened in the nineties. For that reason, the pillars and beams that support the wooden structures have been reinforced, as well as the new walkways that have been created. The rails have also been reinforced and the most damaged ones have been replaced.

With regard to the children's play area, the old children's games have been removed because they do not comply with safety regulations. The City Council will be installing  new games in order to expand the leisure area for the youngest.

Another necessary action was the replacement of the toilets that had remained in disuse because of the damage. They have also been adapted for people with disabilities. The company awarded the work has carried out an extensive cleaning of the graffiti in the recreation area and has completely reformed the barbecues, which now have fireproof materials and security systems to prevent sparks from burning. These improvements have been made to adapt the barbecues to the current regulations on fire protection.

With all this, La Pedera is now ready to receive the large group of visitors that visit throughout the year including school groups organised by educational centres throughout the Alicante province  and the neighbouring Region of Murcia. This recreational area has an enviable location and it is one of the few spaces in the region with picnic tables for outdoor activities.

It makes sense

Extreme weather

You probably don't need to be told that this winter was the wettest on record. In fact, the amount of rain in Valencia and Alicante was the highest on since records began in 1864.

There was two and a half times as much rain as normal and that only a year after the driest winter on record.

Experts say that we can expect more of this intense weather as a result of climate change. In other words, the unusual sight of snow on the beach at Torrevieja could become the norm.

Keep the winter clothes out a little while longer

Thanks Geoff for the heads up

Just in case you interested, Jane Cronin's little theatre group in Jacarilla will be putting on a comedy play in Bigastro  this Saturday 18th March at 7.30 p.m.  All in rapid Spanish, but very visual!!

Entrance for 3 Euros, monies raised are for AECC.

That was some stash of weed

The Civil Guard of Dolores arrested a couple who had a plantation of marijuana in the garage of their house with a sophisticated system of irrigation, ventilation and lighting.

When the police arrived at the house in Catral, they could smell the marijuana from the street. Insside the garage they found 104 large plants. They also found two sawn off shotguns, one of which was already loaded along with a crossbow with two lead tipped arrows.

The couple, a 35-year-old Irishman and a 28-year-old Briton, were charged with a crime against the public health. In addition,they were charged with the illicit possession of weapons.

Congratulations to our neighbour!

100 Euros for Andrea!!

Will justice prevail?

Gota fria

That was a lot of  rain yesterday. In Alicante they had 150 litres per square metre; flooding garages, streets and avenues. I don't think we had anywhere near that amount but still my pool is full to the brim.

We were also lucky not to suffer from the gale force winds that caused a lot of damage on the coast.

The following are pictures from Meteo Orihuela:

Snow in March

These photos were taken yesterday in Murcia.

They did not disappoint

Taking on two new works must have presented a great challenge to the band.

First, Ravel's Bolero which features a number of solo pieces -an opportunity for those musicians involved to demonstrate how good they are.

This was followed by The Gods of Olympus by Óscar Navarro Rojo - a monumental piece in ten parts. At times this was demanding both of the band and the listener with complex sections that involved a variety of novel instruments.

You can find my album of photos in the sidebar and if you care to listen to the concert, it is downloadable at

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/69238271/Concierto%20del%20Socio%202017.wma