An idea to remove the five metre high cross in Órgiva’s Plaza de la Alpujarra has gathered pace. Erected in the late 1950s and known as `The Cross of the Fallen’ it commemorates victims of the Spanish Civil War – but those who were on Franco’s side. At a recent town hall meeting a majority of councillors … Continue reading
Like the other tourism films on this blog, we didn’t lift a finger in producing it because, this time, we’ve been busy cleaning Saharan sand off every surface in sight. It came courtesy of last week’s rain which painted the Sierra Nevada orange like some awful 1970s dessert. The tango plume has gone and the … Continue reading
A walk into town passing pink almond petals floating in puddles, battered from branches by the rain. It’s dull and grey and there’s a trail of people heading slowly towards Órgiva’s church. The bell tolls; another funeral. The local rivers carry muddy rain water towards the Rio Guadelfeo. The shops and bars are all but … Continue reading
This post may be of interest to those who know this area well, in particular, locals who knew ‘Upper Camping’ – officially Camping Puerta de la Alpujarra. As of today it has, literally, bitten the dust and looks like a modern day Pompeii. It’s a sad sight and (was) a landmark – its red pyramid-like towers … Continue reading
Recognise this? It’s Órgiva’s church – La Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la Expectation – before someone decided to rid its facade of charming trompe l’oeil detail and cover it up with the bland colour it is today. Maybe it’s had other designs since the cover-up – polka dots perhaps – but it’s sad it doesn’t look like this … Continue reading
If you visit La Alpujarra, you’d be foolish to ignore the fantastic Museo Casa Alpujarreña, next to Bubión’s church. It’s a typical house of this area, barely altered since its previous – and final – occupier lived here. A time-capsule of a former home, it’s as if someone entered one day and asked for the … Continue reading
It’s been a strange few weeks; warm weather, fires across the mountains near Lanjarón, howling winds to wake the dead and, now, a return to mild temperatures. For the last two days much of southern Spain has become a theatre stage of yellow dry ice – only that it’s Saharan dust, obliterating the Sierra de … Continue reading
A popular place to park in Órgiva is behind the ‘small’ BP petrol station (there are two). This, along with the fact the road that loops behind it takes you down to roads such as Estrella and Pago, means it’s often a bustling area. Vehicles vie for parking spaces and people gather to pay their … Continue reading
High above Órgiva a pine-clad hill is punctuated by a white, three-metre-high walled area: Órgiva’s cemetery. Today in the drizzle we headed up there for no reason other than to enjoy the amazing view of the Rio Guadalfeo valley and the Sierra de Lújar. A duvet of battleship-grey clouds slid eastwards across the mountains while the … Continue reading
If you live in Órgiva you’ll know all about the feria, despite it being barely advertised for the benefit of visitors. It starts this Thursday 1 October and unofficially marks the end of summer and, as the sun is playing hide and seek between the odd raindrop, that seems apt. Note that shops and supermarkets are closed … Continue reading
Today, a few streets away from the busy weekly market, we sat on a bench like children bunking off school*. No cigarettes, sticking chewing gum to the bench or illicit snogging; just a pile of churros wrapped up in paper on a beautiful, blue-sky day. There’s a spot in most towns where the traffic and general hubbub … Continue reading
This cute window, full of jars of miel tomillo (thyme honey), was spotted today in Lanjarón. Órgiva’s nearest town even has its own honey museum, which, like this person’s home, is filled with honey collected from the hundreds of hives that perch on mountain sides in the area. To us it sums up what La Alpujarra … Continue reading
[Updated with a rubbish film – see below] Anyone bonkers enough to cycle non-stop for hours in Spain, in August, deserves a medal – or a cold beer at least. But talk to us about cycling? Forget it. But maybe we’re about to get a tiny bit interested in it – the circus is coming to … Continue reading
A snaking road just past Torvizcón takes you on a stunning journey up the Sierra de la Contraviesa. In 16km only two cars squeezed by us as we headed for Europe’s highest vineyard. At 1400m above sea level this was the first time in Spain we experienced absolute silence; no breeze, no dogs, no flies, … Continue reading
A while ago, small rock boulders suddenly appeared outside the building on Plaza Alpujarra that never opened and what people thought was the tourist office but it wasn´t (see this post). But it´s open and from mausoleum to one-room museum, Órgiva now celebrates the area´s history of mining on what is its own Uluru, the Sierra de Lújar. … Continue reading
