It all started when three men forced their way into the pensioner’s house whilst he was sleeping. Two of the men wore masks whilst the third wore nothing to disguise his identity. They woke him and threatened to kill him if he did not hand over all that he had. He told them that he didn’t have any money in the house but promised to hand over 2,500 euros the next morning, just as long as they did him no harm.

And that’s what happened; one of the assailants came round to the house and collected the 2,500 euros, which the elderly gentleman had withdrawn from his account earlier in the morning.

Not content, three individuals – distinct from the first time, burst into his house again, threatening to kill him whilst they turned the house upside down in search of booty. They took the deeds to his house and another property. They also demanded 3,000 euros to be handed over the next morning, which is what happened – again.

They repeated the operation yet another time, this time bagging 2,500 euros using the same threats and arrangements.

Incredibly, the did it yet again, on the 15th of December, but this time bundling him into a car and taking him to his bank branch to withdraw 1,700 euros.

After this last incident, finally convinced that it would just keep happening, he went to the police.

(News: Orgiva, Alpujarra, Granada Andalucia)

He had started drinking in the morning and progressed from one bar to another until being nearly cross-eyed with drink, he ran out of money. He was on the point of staggering out, his insides slopping over with everything from country wine to whiskey and Coke, when the barman, who probably went to school with him, reminded him that he hadn’t paid the bill.

Stood there, swaying, he decided that the best course was to delve into his waterlogged imagination and come up with an excuse, so he announced to all that he had been mugged and kidnapped. Now bear in mind, that the total population of the village could probably fit in an Austin Mini, the chances of suspicious individuals infiltrating the village to pounce on our bendy friend without anybody noticing were slight to nil, but a good story is always a good story.

However, when the barman said that he should report it immediately to the Guardia Civil post and being three sheets to the wind (very drunk) he thought that this was a spiffing idea. So off he staggered and reported his ‘ordeal.’

He explained, as best he could… that two men had pushed him into their car, taken him to the municipal rubbish dump and deprived him of his wallet containing 272 euros – a quantity that exactly matched the total debt that he had accrued in his last ports of call.

The police immediately smelt something fishy – over the stench of alcohol, that is – and helped him stagger back around his hazy route and with each step his story mutated until the truth came out.

Now, besides having a monster hangover, owing 272 euros to his local watering holes, he has also been charged with reporting a false kidnapping. Never a dull moment in the badlands of the Alpujarra.

(News: Alpujarra, Granada, Andalucia)

So, history lesson over, her name and its meaning live on today at the women’s refuge tucked away in the campo just outside the pueblo of Orgiva where, eleven years ago, a courageous band of nine women friends stepped up to take on the challenge of creating this refuge, given to them by the Instituto de Andaluz de la Mujer (IAM).

This agency had been formed by the Junta de Andalucia to set up refuges for victims of domestic violence, following the world-shattering news in December 1997 of the death of 60 year old Ana Orantes, a Granadina who turned in desperation to national television, to speak out about her long years of beatings from her violent husband. Shortly after, she was most cruelly tortured and murdered by him. But at last the covers were off, the silence broken; large numbers of women came forward to plead for protection, and the IAM was set up and charged with leading the way to change.

And so the Casa de Acogida, or Safe House of Rhea was founded in Orgiva as part of a series of refuges and other initiatives right across Andalucia, intended to tackle the identification of domestic violence across the region.

Rhea is one of the independent houses, and is unique in its rural setting and non-denominational governance; receiving women from all over the province, and of many nationalities. Over the past ten years the core of women who have run it so successfully, have had an enormous presence in the town; from the little second-hand shop they run to promote recycling, to the arts and literary events and fiestas they organise as a means of raising awareness of the issues and also raising funds to help sustain the refuge.

They also involve many of the town’s professional services in their daily work of helping the women at Rhea to recover from trauma and return to a productive life in society. Many arrive with their children, who also need help with all aspects of rehabilitation. Thus, Casa Reah and the Asociacion Mujeres have become one of the town’s hubs for social activity; and they have also forged an excellent partnership with the Town Hall, who supports them wholeheartedly.

On November 25th the town held its annual celebration of the International Day against Violence towards Women with a whole week of entertaining and educational events. Then, on the 13th December, the Asociacion will be running an ‘Intercultural Workshop’ for learning about other cultures, a subject that is very close to our hearts here in Orgiva. A blog has also been set up on the Internet at: mujeresdeorgiva.blogspot.com, if you are interested in following their activities further.

In the current climate, with the economic crisis still biting deep all around, Casa Rhea is now opening her doors to more and more victims of social exclusion. The little band of brave women who started out with very little knowledge and experience, have come a long way in the past ten years; with huge amounts of courage, energy, determination and perseverance, they have become a well-respected enterprise, and changed many hundreds of lives for the better.

As with all charitable organisations, they are always needing to raise funds to continue their work; so, as we approach the time of year when we give to others, and we reflect on a very special birth and a very special mother, if you feel you would like to help Casa Rhea, then you can donate here: Asociacion de Mujeres de Orgiva at the Banco Popular – 0075 3469 86 0600153028
Thank you, and have a safe and very Happy Christmas.

Many of you will remember the drought years of the early 90′s when tap water was so salty that only the staunchest could bear brushing their teeth with it, let alone drink it.

Well, the Junta back in 1993 decided that a municipality on its own couldn’t cope with the task of providing fresh water for its inhabitants so it set up the Mancomunidad, which is basically a grouping of municipalities within a given area to jointly go where no man has gone before.

Thus our Mancomunidad was born with this specific task, which it handled admirably well, sorting out everybody’s fresh water requirements and also sorting out the sewage-disposal deficit – no more pumping untreated sewage straight into the sea.

Critics say that it no longer needs to exist and that it certainly hasn’t evolved anywhere since then, but our politicians in this eternal battle between the country’s two major parties (PSOE & PP) certainly don’t want to see it disappear because

A) It comes with a budget of 48 million euros to be spent over the next four years, and…

B) Its structure means that whoever controls it can provide three juicy, salary-backed cargos de confianza (cushy jobs for the boys) to be dispensed as recompense for support.

And this is where the smaller parties punch above their weight, because neither of the two parties can swing it single-handed – they need the backing of minor parties, which is why Benny is the favourite colour of the month. Let me explain further…

Four years ago, the PP took control of the Mancomunidad, thanks to the supporting votes of Juan Carlos Benavides’ CA votes and now, one local elections later, the PSOE have come to an understanding with the ex-Mayor to grab the Mancomunidad.

Understandably, people can be forgiven for wondering why the PSOE didn’t think that Benny was fit to be the Mayor but consider him a wonderful choice to co-run the Mancomunidad with them.

Four years ago it was the opposite; the PP were trying to get a vote of no confidence to oust the Mayor from power in Almuñécar, but were in alliance with him to control the Mancomunidad.

The fact of the matter is that with a budget of 48 million a lot of vote-inspiring public work can be carried out in the coastal towns, all stamped with “courtesy of…” And, of course, for four years, three buddies get to hold Area Head positions within the entity, getting a modest salary of  between 1,300 and 1,800 euros, depending on the post.

No matter that the ‘recompensed’ candidates haven’t an iota of expertise in the area over which they will govern – all that matter is four years of salary for carrying out a task that is superfluous – especially in this cash-strapped, public purse era.

Drought? What drought? Who cares; business as usual.

(News: Costa Tropical, Granada, Andalucia)

The attacks were carried out over three consecutive nights and had the spattering of inhabitants pretty jumpy, not knowing whose car would be turned into a 4-wheeled BBQ next.

The two suspects, of 43 and 50 years of age, respectively, stand accused of completely gutting three vehicles, leaving them as burnt out wrecks, and severely damaging two more. The men have not expressed their motives, which is hardly surprising, because they deny being behind the crimes.

(News: Tablones, Orgiva, la Alpujarra, Granada, Andalucia)

The Mayor of Lanjaron, Eric Escobedo, said that it is incomprehensible, when you take into account the size of the town, that families have to go to the city of Granada or Orgiva to be able to view their deceased loved ones before burial.

For this reason, many families opt for the traditional method of keeping the body at home during the 24 hours after death, so that family and friends can pay their respects before the burial takes place.

Furthermore, the Mayor asked for financial assistance, too, to build a large fountain in the main square, as water is such an important symbol for the town. He explained that the previous municipal council under the socialists had done away with the original fountain, which had been standing for decades.

The Chairman of the Diputacion promised to help out with the fountain and to “stand shoulder to shoulder with the the town in achieving its rightful place.” He doesn’t appear to have made any commitment to getting that morgue for the town, mind.

(News: Lanjaron, Alpujarra, Granada, Andalucia)

Courtesy of official Soportujar website

OK, so there isn’t much black magic going on up in the Alpujarra, but there are a lot of witches and wizards in Soportujar – even if it is just fancy dress – thanks to the III Feria de Embrujo de Soportujar.

As the name of the fair suggests, this is the third yearly witch-theme fiesta in the village, with this year enjoying over a thousand visitors from around the province.

But we’re not just talking about a 1-day event – it lasted five days and was packed with activities… as well as witches. There were theatre plays, classical guitar competitions, flamenco, sample menus for BBQ’d local pork products (mingling with the aroma of burnt witch), a 1,000-candle procession, magic shows, comedians and sports competitions.

So, what’s with witches and Soportujar? Well, it is famous locally for its history of famous and infamous witches & warlocks. The village wishes to capitalise on this spooky history and plans are afoot for a ‘mysterious’ fountain and the restoration of the Cueva del Ojo as a witch haunt.

Hmmm… Can’t help thinking that the projected fountain will owe its mystery to being invisible – great way to disguise a lack of funds, eh?

(News: Soportujar, Alpujarra,granada, Andalucia)

The couple, aged 21 and 27, reportedly forced open the letterboxes (post boxes) and obtained banking details from amongst the correspondence. Using this information, they supposedly managed to make copies of bankcards, with which they are accused of obtaining 8,000 euros.

You know what? I’m getting pretty tired of using ‘allegedly’ etc in each sentence so please take the whole article as reflecting alleged, as opposed to factual events, OK?

They also managed to take out several bank loans using the information, obtaining over 12,000 euros.

So how did it work? The said individuals, impersonating the true bank-account holders, turned up at the bank branch and asked for a new bankcard to be sent, together with the pin numbers. The bank found this a little suspicious; perhaps because of their nervousness or whatever, and were on their guard. They informed the Guardia Civil that there had been certain irregular behaviour with new bankcard requests for several locals from Cádiar and that they had consequently refused to send any more out.

The thieves staked out the post box, waiting for the new card to arrive, and whipped it together with the pin information.

(News, Cadiar, Alpujarra, Granada, Andalucia)

Now, if they had left it at that, things would have worked out pretty differently. However, Michael R.H. thought that it would be a good idea to light a small fire as a beacon, so that they could be located.

Well, before you could say, “Gosh, didn’t that catch well,” 3,354 hectares had disappeared, gone up in smoke and, sure enough, they were located, as the fire was probably visible from the International Space Station.

Yes, within hours they were not alone on the mountainside because they were joined by 277 fire fighters, a dozen fire engines and half a dozen fire-fighting aeroplanes and helicopters, bless them.

Well, the fateful match that Belgian Michelle handed to Michael should go into the Guinness Book of records as the most expensive match in history: 10.6 million euros. Michelle was acquitted.

There is no way, Micheal R.H. can possibly pay that quantity of money, the poor sod, so it has no doubt completely ruined his life, so let this be a reminder to everybody: don’t even sneeze in a the general direction of a matchbox until the rains come in mid October.

They share their new home in the Chaparra area of the municipality with four former stray dogs: Remus, Max, Laica and Caesar. Far removed from the amenities of Colchester, they happily live with solar power electricity and spring water.

Apart from running the Cueva de Aladín curiosity shop, where they deal in 2nd-hand goods, primarily from house clearances, they took up Latin dancing about four years ago. The original idea was to open a self-service launderette with a corner for 2nd-hand books, but the paperwork was daunting and elusive – not to mention the cost of installing such a set up. So, they opted for converting the 2nd-hand corner part of the idea into the main business: “We found our current premises, did a complete refit, advertised, emptied our house and our friends’ ones for stock and opened on 2nd October,” explained Rennie.

Sadly, the death of a very close friend, Orla Ostervig, on the eve of the shop opening, overshadowed the event: “It has put many things in our lives into a very meaningful perspective,” says Rennie.

However, the response to the business from the locals and those from further afield has been incredible. Business has been very brisk to date.

Rennie summed up with, “I absolutely love every minute of what I am doing. I am meeting new people every day and improving my Spanish in leaps and bounds.”

It’s easy to find, if you come in from the autovía end; you just continue through town until you come to the first roundabout junction, where a municipal bypass road begins. Follow it down about 100m and you will see it on the left – you can park in front.