La Chiquita Piconera
After all the excitement of Semana Santa (Easter) Álora has settled down to its normal pace. 'A rather sleepy market town with a severe traffic problem' is how it is described in the 'Rough Guide to Andalucía'. The traffic problem was solved years ago when the 'Northern Access Road' was opened. It can't be long now until they join it up to the A 357 and we can use it. As for 'sleepy', you do see a lot of women out and about in their pyjamas who could be mistaken for sleepwalkers but Álora is no Budleigh Salterton which really IS sleepy, I can tell you.
You will be pleased to hear that Mrs. Sánchez is now walking normally. Just to be on the safe side I thought we'd better get her leg x-rayed. This meant a trip to Málaga's Hospital Universitario de la Virgen de Victoria which is known round here as el Clínico.
This is one of the hospital's busiest seasons. All over the province people are falling over and breaking limbs, hips and pelvises after slipping on shiny pavements polished up by wax dropped everywhere during Semana Santa (Easter) by processional candles. (It also explains the continual screeching of car tyres all round town.)
This puts a big burden on A&E departments but is good news for manufacturers of muletas (crutches) and bastones (walking sticks). The Emergency Department at el Clinico is also a popular meeting place for Álora folk (Perotes). I don't think I've ever been down there without meeting someone from our pueblo. They have a nice bar/restaurant there, too, which does a a good and very cheap 'menu del día'. Next time you break a leg, check it out. I can recommend their 'huesos rotos con chorizo'. (there's a in joke there for Spanish speakers).
Álora seems to have been specially designed for limb fractures. Virtually all the streets are hills and, if the slippery streets can't catch you out, the Ayuntamiento (Town Hall) has even installed obstacle courses for the unwary or myopic pedestrian. Indeed, if you fancy a few weeks on crutches and can't afford an expensive ski-ing holiday I can promise you a cheap alternative on the stretch of 'pavement' on Calle Carmona just outside the Post Office.
A couple of entertaining obstacles on Calle Cervantes
We drove down to el Clinico on Saturday morning to avoid the crowds of cojos. As it turned out, Mrs.S. didn't need radiografía (x-ray) after all . The staff on reception are much friendlier on Saturday morning and we were directed to Traumatología very quickly by a helpful lady in the Sala de Urgencias (A&E). After a short stop at 'triage' and a bit of a wait we were seen by very young Dr. Pérez who ruled out a fracture by just looking at my good lady's leg. They really ARE getting younger.
Dr. Pérez
Anyway, as we were waiting in a corridor to been seen by Dr. Pérez, who should be wheeled by on a trolley but our old friend Paco Mañoño (I'm not sure of the spelling of his name because as far as I know it has no written form. It's an 'apodo' ,or nickname, which everyone in his family has).
Paco Mañoño (wearing his Dolores Hermandad robes)
Paco looked in a bad way but recognised me when I caught up with his trolley on its way to Radiografía. He was having his head x-rayed. Paco falls over a lot without the aid of candle wax- the downside of a lifestyle involving 2 litre bottles of Cruzcampo from the Chinese bazaar (fridge on the right, just inside the door.) I am pleased to say that he is now back in Álora. I'm sure his brother Juan Mañoño was pleased to see him but he didn't seem to know anything about Paco's progress during last week. Juan Mañoño falls over a lot too, as did their brother Julián who died last year of Cruzcampo related causes.
Welcome back Paco.
We have known Paco for about 16 years. He spends most mornings walking from one end of town to the other and back. He's been out of work for the last ten years and has no money and no chance of finding work. He is always pleased to see us and have a chat although I have to admit I can't understand a word he says. According to my old pal Antonio Martos nobody else can either. He is a member of the Dolores Hermandad and is always ready to help out. This Semana Santa he did a stint carrying the Virgen. A couple of years ago the Hermandad made the mistake of putting him on the bar at the Romería. He had to be evacuated by ambulance. The ambulance service once offered the Mañoños a season ticket.
The warmer and lighter evenings are bringing our vecinos (neighbours) out into the 'bottom square', (La Plaza Baja) which although rectangular is more square -shaped than the Plaza de la Fuentearriba which is a triangle.
If it gets much warmer I may be able to convince Mrs. S. that I don't need to light the wood burner every day at sundown.
It's not often you see one of these nowadays.
It's a brasero - a brass or iron bowl full of hot coals (charcoal here). It's been put outside on Calle Atrás to warm up. Then it will go under a big table covered in a thick blanket and all the family will sit round the table to keep warm.
These days people use electric ones. They have them at Casa Pepa in Carratraca. You have to remember not to rest your feet on them. I made that mistake and filled the restaurant with the smell of burning rubber. How we all laughed!
That brings me to La Chiquita Piconera, the moody-looking girl at the top of the page. The painting is by Córdoban Julio Romero de Torres who was a 'symbolist' which involved painting lots of semi-naked women. His most well known is Naranjas y Limones (Oranges and Lemons). King Alfonso X111 was a big fan. Regular readers of this organ may remember he was the King of Spain and a bit of a randy old goat.
Naranjas y Limones
La Chiquita Piconera was painted in 1930 just before the artist died and was considered to be very erotic at the time. The model was 14 years old and is portrayed stirring the coals in a brasero. Romero de Torres was famous throughout Spain and is a Córdoban hero. There is a whole museo of his stuff in Córdoba in La Plaza del Potro (closed on Mondays).
My only reason for mentioning the picture is that I have a brasero just like the one in the picture and I bought it in a junk shop in Córdoba 15 years ago. I think it might be the same one.
Any offers?
Latest news from Álora..........
Watch out for lemon rustlers!!
The price of lemons is going through the roof. You can get 1€ for a kilo at the moment, which is about 4 lemons. There has been a poor harvest in the USA, apparently, and people with lemon orchards are finding their trees stripped of fruit. A few years ago John (Boy) Walton and I tried to sell his beautiful lemon crop`and we couldn't even give them away. He chucked them in the arroyo. How times change.
Three new bars open.
It always warms my heart when a new bar opens. Today I can report three. They are;
La Lonja de Mamely
El Cirineo and
El Lagar
La Lonja de Mamely is on Calle Cervantes and is a marisquería. It is very popular at the moment. The Mamely family have the jewellers in the Fuentearriba. A 'lonja' is the table where fish and shellfish are auctioned at the fishing port.
El Lagar is a bar which has re-opened near the roundabout in La Barriada del Puente. It's now being run by Cristóbal who used to have Los Caballos Dos in the Fuentearriba. He's open every day except Wednesday and serves great tapas.
El Cirineo on Calle Santa Ana is, as far as I know, the only 'Crucifixion-themed' bar in these parts. El Cirineo (Paul the Cyrenean) was the man given the job of carrying Jesus's cross up to Golgotha. The rather gloomy interior of what used to be Bar Correos has lots of pictures of the crucifixion to get you in the mood. It could be a winner. I saw Juan Mañoño in there yesterday which is recommendation enough.
And one to watch out for........
The Ayuntamiento is asking for applications to run the new bar up at the cemetery.
Epi has asked me to use this organ to obtain suggestions for a name. Please send your ideas to me in a sealed envelope with the usual 10€ entry fee.
¡Salud!
Juanito Sánchez
17th. April 2016
