Museo de Belenes

If you have an hour or so to spare in Alicante, a very pleasant way of passing the time is to visit the Museo de Belenes (Nativity Scenes museum).

You don't have to be Christian to enjoy the displays of modelling that are exhibited in this small, but well looked after museum. I'm an atheist, but have been fascinated by the Spanish tradition of Belenes since I first discovered it some ten years ago and can only admire the work and dedication that goes into setting up these delightful models.

You can find Belenes all over Spain during the weeks leading up to the celebrations of the winter solstice (used by Christians to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ) and on to Epiphany. They range in size from small scenes that people set up in their homes to very large scenes, sometimes displayed by a village or town, either outside, or, as in Guardamar, in a special room. Sometimes the scenes are extremely large, covering many square metres, often set up by local enthusiasts. San Javier, where the Murcia airport is located, claims to have the largest open-air Belen of Spain, covering 520 square metres and incorporating more than 1200 model figures with many moving elements. Another large one not too far from Guardamar is to be found in Casillas, a suburb of Murcia. This Belén is under cover and is particularly well known for its many moving parts.

Almost all Belenes have a secret: somewhere, hidden in the scene or scenes depicted, is a man crouching down, with his trousers around his ankles, doing his business. He is known as El Caganer (the crapper) and is said to be fertilizing the soil of the Belén, so that it will flourish again the following year. Probably originating in Catalonia, the caganer has become a popular element in Belenes and a small industry has grown around this single figure, selling not only the traditional form, but others, too, often depicting well-known personalities, including royalty and politicians, such as Barak Obama and Angela Merkel, to name but two.

I have to admit that I did not notice a Caganer in the museum, which was something of a disappointment, but otherwise the museum is a jewel, with many typically Spanish displays, as well as numerous nativity scenes from other parts of the world. The models are made of all sorts of material, ranging from clay, to wood, to ceramics, as well as less likely materials.

Entry to the museum is free. It is open from Tuesday to Friday, from 10:00 until 14:00 and from 17:00 until 20:00. You can find more information and a map of the location of the museum here.

I have made a small Picasa album, showing the inside of the museum.

David Neale

Stray Cats

I dislike cats at the best of times. Stray cats are even worse. They are a plague on society and, in my opinion, should be eliminated.

They should certainly not be fed by silly people who look upon them as poor, helpless creatures (and usually "God's creatures" at that). They are wild animals that carry diseases, worms, and other unpleasantness. The argument that they keep down vermin, such as mice and rats, is simply laughable: a cat has very little chance against a rat and if a stray cat knows it can get its food from that woman down the road, it is not going to bother to go out hunting. Rats and Mice? What about the lizards and birds that these obnoxious pests eat? The cats destroy these beneficial creatures in huge numbers (or they would, if they were not fed so much by people who should know better).

The photo shows the result of the latest stray cat damage in our garden. Apart from leaving their smelly faeces and urine around the place, the cats seem to enjoy digging in newly planted soil. They are pests and need to be destroyed. I, at least, am able to replace the soil and, when necessary, even replant disturbed or completely uprooted plants. People who do not live here permanently are unable to take such actions to correct the damage caused by these four-legged pests. There, is, of course, little that can be done but hope as far as urine burns on plants are concerned.

I call on you all to please stop feeding the stray cats.

(Please note that this is a personal opinion)

David Neale

Segway Tour, Guardamar

How to enjoy yourself on a Segway.

We had our friends Terry and Sue from the UK over to visit us in October.  It was their third time here, so we were keen to find something to do that we hadn't done before with them.

We went into the Tourist Information Centre in Guardamar and picked up several leaflets to peruse.  One of them showed details of a Segway Tour in Guardamar.  If you don't know anything about this mode of transport, it is a two wheeled vehicle powered by an electric motor.  You can read more about the Segway here. The photographs show how much we enjoyed our adventure.

We try and do something now and again that scares us, so this was the perfect thing.  Our friends, are always game for a laugh, so we decided to book the Tour.

We had to be at the Segway Offices for 11am.  We arrived to be greeted by three pretty girls, which George and Terry appreciated very much.   The paperwork had to be completed and signed, then the training course started.  After a familiarisation exercise, we rode around an obstacle course, to make sure we understood how to operate the segway.  Once we felt competent(ish!), we were allowed into the car park, and the speed of the vehicle was increased.  In no time at all, we were careering around the car park like experts!

Two of the girls acted as  'Monitors', one at the front and one at the back and we nervously set off from their offices on the Santa Ana Industrial Estate, up the steep hill, past the bus station towards the South Park.  Crash!  Sue hit one of the kerbs and promptly fell off.  She was shaken but not hurt and we were impressed that she got straight back on and continued the tour.

We had over two and a half fabulous hours of fun.  We had people waving, laughing, and staring at us, we felt almost like film stars with all the attention we were given.

The highlight of the tour was careering around the square in front of the Town Hall.  Luckily it was empty no people to manoeuvre around, we had great fun circling round and around.

It is a tour to be recommended.  

If you want something different to do, call into the Tourist Information Centre and book yourself on this very different, challenging, but enjoyable tour.  Further information can be found at this webpage.

George and Linda Corrigan

Community News

The summer is almost at its end and the clocks went back this weekend.

But here at Rasomar VI, we are still busy.

The community wall outside where we live in Calle El Bovalar 63 had a crack down it, which needed attention. As a builder was already working in our community, George Corrigan and I asked him if he would fix the problem. This he did, and his work can be seen in the photograph included here.

We have bought paint from the community fund, and will be painting the repair, plus the top of the community walls just as soon as the weather settles down again. (Yes, it has been raining here for a few days, on and off!)

We would also like to say a big thank you to Sue Stewart, who has tidied up the commercial area,next to the community swimming-pool. As you can see from the photographs below, there are now plants and bushes, which will look good once they have become fully established. Sue has also provided tables and chairs, which she has been able to obtain from various sources. She has worked very hard on this project, and has done most of this by herself. Different people have donated plants, so thank you to them, too!

If anyone would like to donate a plant for the commercial area, please have a word with Sue Stewart.

Ray and Linda Muttock