In association with
NOVEMBER 16th - NOVEMBER 22nd
SIERRA NEVADA SEASON OPENS
Snow cannons prepare the station for November 30
More than 60 snow cannons have been working all this week as the Sierra Nevada ski station gets ready for the new season, scheduled from November 30.
The cannons produce 45,000 cubic metres of snow a day, enough to vie a current depth in Borreguiles of 60 centimetres. The piste is also under preparation in El Rio and Pradollano. The efforts of the cannons were helped by the storm on Monday night, which left between 15 and 20 centimetres of snow on the highest peaks.
Authorities in the Sierra Nevada have emphasised the snow produced by the cannons is entirely natural, with no chemical additives that could damage the environment.
Reforestation
There are several projects for the replanting of the upper mountain. Research has shown which plants survive according to type of soil and altitude. Many of the species necessary for the replanting scheme are indigenous to the area and not commercially available. This has led to the construction of a greenhouse, at an altitude of 2,100 metres, where plants are grown from locally collected seeds. Planting is also carried out in the recreational areas of the ski station.
The provincial delegate for Granada, Jesús Quero, said a total of 1,972 million pesetas are being invested on improvements at the site after this winter's season.
Special promotions to attract more visitors this winter are currently underway in Córdoba, Barcelona, Lisbon, Oporto, Sevilla and Madrid and these will continue until the end of this month. The price of an all season pass is 70,000 pesetas for adults and 35,000 pesetas for over 65's and children.
Tickets on Internet
The passes can be purchased on the Internet at www.cetursa.es where information on the state of the snow will be purchased daily. The web page includes a live web cam showing the view at Pradollano. Information on the condition of the snow can also be obtained on the interactive telephone number 958 249 119.
MARBELLA FITH FILM FESTIVAL
On November 17, Marbella commences its film week. It will last until November 22 and most of the events will take place in Puerto Banús multi-cine complex. Key participants will be producer Andrés Vicente Gómez, who won an Oscar for "Belle Epoque" and veteran comedy actor Alfredo Landa who has appeared in over 120 films.
Also to
be featured in the festival will be the latest films starring Sharon Stone,
Gwyneth Paltrow and Robert de Niro. There will also be a publication produced
on the legendary cinema director Luis Buñuel who was born 100 years
ago in Aragón.
MÁLAGA LEISURE PORT CHALLENGED
Mayor of Málaga, Francisco de la Torre, has announced his decision to renew the drawing up of the special port plan for the city, with a view to include the ideas of the project tender winner, British company Cheverton. The Mayor's decision means another delay to the project and has created alarm in some sectors, which say they doubt the building area limit in the port, set at 23,000 square metres for a shopping zone, will stay unaltered. Any changes to the port plan will also have environmental effects and doubts have already been raised by local residents groups and the Málaga College of Architects.
President of the Port Authority, Enrique Linde, commented that errors had occurred in the processing of the plans, calling for his personal intervention. The plan for the port is the most ambitious project undertaken by Malaga city council, and has a planned investment of more than 60,000 million pesetas.
EUROPEAN FUNDING FOR GRANADA
Granada is one of 10 cities selected by central government to benefit from a new European Community Urban Plan to improve historic city centres. Minister for Hacienda Cristóbal Montoro said this would mean 5,100 million pesetas of new investment for Granada, with 75 per cent from Europe. The money will be directed to restoration work in the areas of the Albaicin, Sacromonte and City centre and will be spent over the next 6 years.
It is the third time that Granada will receive European money for restoration and the minister said the funding will consolidate its position as a leading tourist destination. News from the World Travel Market in London this week has led local tourism businesses to forecast a 15 per cent increase in the number of British tourists visiting the city next year.
BENALDADENA'S CAVE MUSEUM
The Town Hall of Benalmádena has undertaken works to install air-conditioning in the ancient Cueva del Muro in Benalmádena Pueblo. The cave is to be found in Avenida del Chorrillo below the Muro gardens. Once the works have been completed the cave will be open as museum of Neolithic finds.
Mayor of Benalmádena, Enrique Bolin, said, "the Town Hall's intention is to install the archaeological pieces in a more suitable framework and create a new tourist attraction for the town".
RESTORATION PLANS FOR NERJA AQUEDUCT
Approved project will need 48 million pesetas
Nerja council has given the go ahead to a project to restore the Aguila Aqueduct, which lies between the Town and the village of Maro.
Restoration will be controlled by the cultural department of regional government at a cost of 48 million pesetas. The architect responsible for the restoration, José Ramón Cruz del Campo, has said the structure remains basically sound, despite a fair amount of deterioration on some of the arches. There is also evidence of shell damage suffered in the time of the civil war, when attempts were made to destroy the structure.
Popular Local Landmark
The Aguila aqueduct was originally constructed in the last part of the nineteenth century on the orders of the Counts Chaves and Cuevas del Rey, to take water to the nearby Larios sugar factory. Today it still carries water to irrigate local farmland and has become one of the local landmarks most photographed by tourists.
NEW NURSERY SCHOOL
San Pedro is to have a new municipal nursery school at Fuente Nueva. Work will start this December on the 1,200 square metre site and when completed next year will have places for 68 children. The deputy Mayor, José Luis Troyano, said the school would meet the demands for low-income families.
TWO SISTERS GET BIGGER
Occidental Inmobiliaria have announced they are to invest 5,000 and 6,000 million pesetas on a new urbanisation at Dos Hermanas 11 on the N340 in Estepona. The entire development will cover 245,000 square metres with 86,000 square metres of construction and a total of 168 new homes.
MY SON, MY SANZ
Patricio González, the Mayor of Algeciras, has proposed that one of Spain's top pop singers, Alejandro Sanz, should become an adopted son of the city. Although born in Madrid, Alejandro's father is an Algecireño and was a well-known member of a musical trio in the town.
As a boy, Alejandro studied in Algeciras and since finding international fame has often performed there. On one occasion he left the concert venue, the town's bullring, in an ambulance. Alejandro was not ill, but the pressure of the fans trying to reach him made it impossible for him to exit in the normal way.
Sanz is a close friend of another Algericas' illustrious sons, international flamenco guitarist, Paco de Lucia. The pair have frequently performed together. When Algeciras unveiled a statue to Paco de Lucia, Sanz was in attendance and later sang at the party in his honours.
SOMETHING OLD, SOMETHING NEW
Benalmádena's Mayor, Enrique Bolin, recently cut the tape at the opening of the new Hostal Plazoleta. The hostal in the Avenida de Juan Lois Peralta in Benalmádena Pueblo, is on the site of one of the town's oldest establishments. The previous Hostal Luque was opened in 1954. The owners have invested 50 million pesetas in providing the 22 beds that make up the new Hostal Plazoleta.
At the other end of the scale, Benalmádena's five-star Torrequebrada Hotel could soon become part of the prestigious Sheraton International chain, Phoenix, which is trying to purchase the hotel from it's current proprietors, has signed an accord with Starwood, owners of the Sheraton trademark. If Phoenix is successful in the purchase then the Torequebrada will become part of the Sheraton chain.
GREEN LIGHT FOR SALOBREÑA HOTELS.
Regional government has given the go ahead to the new urban plan for Salobreña, which will change the small Granada village into a major tourist destination. It allows for the construction of 10 new hotels, offering a total of 10,000 beds. The debate on the growth of the town has raged for the last three years, and the final model chosen means those hotels are given priority over housing. All the new building will be a maximum three storeys in height and green spaces will be safeguarded.
COSTAL PROMENADES LINK TOGETHER
Work to join the promenades of La Cala del Moral and Rincón de la Victoria will be put out to tender next month, with a starting date of January, 2001. The news was given by Mayor José Maria Gómez, after receiving confirmation from the coastal authority.
In Torrox, Mayor Francisco Muñoz has also suggested to the coastal authority that the promenades of El Morche and Ferrara beach could be linked. Agreement for the project will be sought from the residents of the coastal developments which would be affected by the plan, Torcasol, Lozano and Laguna Beach.
CAMPO BUDGET
The regional government has allocated Cádiz province a budget of 56,866 million pesetas for the year 2001. Of that total, 18,738 million pesetas will go to the Campo de Gibraltar area. The Jerez to Los Barrios motorway will take 8,725 million pesetas of the Campo's budget. The remainder will be distributed in employment creation, education, housing and economic development of La Linea area.
FAME FOR LORCA
Jazz musician Georgie Fame, in Granada for the city's jazz festival, took time out this week to visit the last home of Ferderico Garcia Lorca - the Huerta de San Vicente. While there he tried out Lorca's piano which last month was withdrawn from an internet auction because of lack of bids.
CALL TO DIVERSIFY GRANADA WINE
Councillor for Agriculture of the regional government, Paulino Plata, this week called on Granada winegrowers to present their applications for grants to modernise and diversify the sector. Young farmers would be given priority under the scheme. Currently 5,200 hectares of Granada province is dedicated to wine production.