No smoking laws

The affects of the new smoking laws here are very noticable, bars and restaurants have all created outside areas of tables and chairs for people who wish to partake in the "habit".its most noticable to us in establishments we previously had thought were closed but is now more obvious they are open, i am pretty sure that some businesses will loose trade, because sitting outside in winter does not have the bar type social atmosphere. An enterprising person in Guardamar has opened a "Smoking Club" which because it has membership is allowed, although they are not meant to serve food or coffee.

Manjaballos giant and big heads

Yesterday was the parade of the Guardamar giant- Manjaballos and the big heads, the parade started around midday and roamed through the streets accompanied by a large crowd and a folk music band, ending up at the town hall square, the children danced in a circle with the giant in the middle and afterwards everyone had free Mona cakes and chocolate.

Nice bikes

Kept hearing powerfull engines throbbing in the distance, it turns out The Harley davison owners club spent the night at the Guardamar hotel last night, some beautifull machines were parked outside.

Back again

Hi everyone, O.K.weve been away for a while, got back safely from Australia, and had two family bereavements in the last few months. We have now rented out our Formentera apartment and moved to Guardamar by the sea.
Mary and myself went for a walk around La Mata Reserve this morning it was a beautifull morning and peacefull, it was nice to see an osprey sitting on a pole in the middle of the lagoons. The La Mata resource centre has been upgraded since we were last there, it is bigger and they seem to have more information.
The work on the N332 between Guardamar and Torrevieja has completely ground to a halt, when we went through this morning ,there was not one worker or piece of machinery in sight. the contractors seem to have completely abandoned the work, seems that we are going to have the half finished project forever.

Night of the Three Kings

On the 5th January the main road through Guardamar was closed for several hours for the arrival of the Three Kings, thousands of people met in the street for the parade and for the children to collect the tons of sweets that are thrown in the parade, with bands and groups of dancers, decorated floats it was an amazing carnival atmosphere and the children were plainly over excited in anticipation of three Kings day when Spanish children open their presents.

Guardamar day of activity

Sunday was the day of the bicycle at Guardamar, at least a couple of hundred people met up at the bottom of the Reina Sofia park for a long bike ride in and around Guardamar, most of them were children of all ages with their parents, and were escorted by the police (with sirens blaring) local cycle clubs and the Cruz Roja. A draw was held at the end of the ride where one lucky child won a brand new bike.Later in the day it was the turn of the runners in the 7th Guardamar marathon, the main street was blocked off for the start and finishing line which was at the town hall square, with a large crowd attending there was the marathon, and then shorter races for different age groups and sexes.
The event was extremely well sponsored with organizational support from several groups and free refreshments provided.

Water Water Everywhere

Its very hot again here, which may help to dry up some of the water that's still around. The new "ponds" that have appeared always look like the perfect breeding ground for the dreaded mossy, to which I am very susceptible. The river segura has had more water than we have ever seen in the almost 5 years we've been here. We have never seen the reserves at Guardamar flood so that was a surprise. John reckons he saw a crocodile in the water but I did not believe him, it looked more like a hippo to me!

Dead turtle on Guardamar beach

It was extremely sad to find a dead turtle around 3 foot in length on Guardamar beach,it had been dead for quite a while as it was quite decomposed and must have been washed up with the tide, there were no obvious signs of the cause of its demise, so it may have died of old age although these creatures live for many years.

Market in the streets,and Guardamar.

Rojales market was always in the Rojales streets untill the new market area/car park by the river was created, but at this time of year for the period of the Moors and Christians it has moved back into the streets again for the next few weeks, many people prefer it and think there is a better atmosphere. It makes it interesting as you have to find your favourite stalls all over again.
Meanwhile at Guardamar Del Segura renovation of the town hall and the streets around it are causing havoc as roads are closed that are normally major routes to the tourist areas and beaches, and it is quite easy to end up on a one way system going the opposite direction to where you want to be. How long this will go on, who knows but what are the town hall officials thinking of, arranging this work at time of year, that there is a major influx of visitors.

The Red Squirrels of Guardamar

Is there any more lovely small wild animal than the Red Squirrel or to give it its Spanish name the La Ardilla roja. Red squirrels are the only type you will see in spain.You may have seen them and not realised they are the red variety as in the winter they can lose the bright colouration that gives them their name. During the cooler weather they become browner and darker and develop prominent ear tufts. There is also a lot of variation in their general colour right across their range in Europe, from quite pale to reddish to almost black. The ones we see in Guardarmar are looking very very red at present though and have lovely almost white faces and fronts. We have read that you do not get them in southern Spain but I have seen postings on the WWW about the squirrels in Granada. Maybe they where on a cultural visit! If you want to see theses lovely creatures take yourself off for a coffee at the cafe in the Parque Reina Sofia. On a week day when its little quieter you have a good chance of spotting a few playing in the trees, If you are as fortunate as we were the other day you may get to see one taking a drink by the pools in the middle of the park

Guardamar San Juan Bonfires

This San Juan bonfires celebrate the start of the summer, from the 14th June to 24th of June there is a programme of fire jumping, dancing, singing, parades and fireworks with events building up throughout the week, with the finale of the lighting of the giant bonfire. Some events are held on the beach where there is also a midnight swim. A detailed programme is available from the tourist information centre.

Off The Beach

A hundred yards back from the beach at Guardamar del Segura is the nature reserve which is a perfect place to get out of the sun and take a picnic. There are lots of trees to give cover and a sandy floor for sitting and relaxing, you quite often get a cool breeze. The fragrance smells from the trees and shrubs are very pleasant and the only sounds are that of the birds and cicadas. There are a few other insects around so it is best to put some insect repellent on.

Chocolat & Churros

Recently my daughter and I decided to try a typical Spanish treat- chocolat and churros. We visited a little churrería on the main street of Guardamar which was clearly very popular with all the locals.

If you have a sweet tooth then this is a perfect breakfast or snack. The chocolat is a cup of hot melted dark chocolate, served with churros- a sweet fried pastry. It is traditional to dip the churros into the chocolat, and very delicious!

Some people say that churros are named after the churro breed of sheep, as the ridged strands are remeniscent of the sheeps horns.

My daughter is a total chocoholic and says everyone should try it!

The Menjabollos Giant

The Menjabollos Giant is a famous man at Christmas time in Guardamar del Segura, this mythical character is very tall and strong and is known well around the area. He lives deep in the forest in a very nice timber house and he looks after the forest and keeps it clean and tidy. He comes to Guardamar every year to announce Christmas and stays untill the night before the Three Kings day, while he is in Guardamar he gives gifts to the children at midday on 23rd December and takes part in a dancing procession -the dwarves and giants dance- through the streets with the children. Afterwards in the Placa d Constitution afternoon snacks are served.