EUROPEAN DAY is celebrated throughout the European Union on 9th May each year.

This year, European Day falls on a Wednesday, and whilst we shall celebrate in the main Plaza de Constitución in Torrevieja, Costa Blanca, throughout the morning ofWednesday 9th May, other events are planned over the preceding weekend.
Starting off on during the early evening of SUNDAY 6th May, in the auditorium of the Palacio de la Música and commencing at 19.00h, the visiting Welsh ladies of “CÔR SERENATA” choir will take to the stage to offer us a taste of their music from the “Land of Song”. Based in Port Talbot, Wales, this ladies choir was formed only as recently as 2009 but already boasts over 50 members and a host of successful concerts, even including prestigious television appearances on nationwide BBC! Well accustomed to raising much needed funds for charity, the amiable Welsh songsters have chosen to donate the 3 Euros admission charge to this concert to local charity “Alimentos Solidarios”.

The following day, on the evening of MONDAY 7th May at 20.30h, the specially formed “European All-Stars International Jazz Band” will take to the stage of the Palacio de la Música to offer ‘home grown’ international jazz music. The band, whose members represent distinct European nationalities resident in Torrevieja, was especially formed a ‘one-off’ concert to celebrate last year’s ‘EU DAY’. Such was the success of this concert and due to pubic demand, the band has been reformed for this year and promise to offer a musical treat which is truly international as well as home-grown ‘torrevejense’! All of the musicians are local residents albeit hailing from various parts of Europe. Admission to this special European Day concert is a reasonable 5€ and can be obtained in advance from the municipal ticket office (11.00h to 13.00h Tuesday to Friday inclusive) or ‘on the door’ from two hours before the concert starts.

Meanwhile, over the weekend and in the ‘Jardin del Mediterraneo’ park, other European residents will be fighting for honours in the “10th Annual International (European Day)” petanca tournament. Because of increased demand, the tournament will take place over two days with the prize giving ceremony scheduled for around 14.00h on Sunday 8th May.
From 10.30h on Wednesday 9th May in the Plaza de la Constitución, Scottish piper, WILLE HUME’ will announce the start of the EUROPEAN DAY celebrations.
At 11.00h , the traditional civic act will take place with the presence of the Mayor of Torrevieja, Don. Eduardo Dolon Sanchez. This, of course, will be the first time that Eduardo has presided over the EU day celebrations as Mayor. Eduardo will be joined by representatives of the local European community who will offer their own interventions before the official raising of the E.U. flag to the ‘Hymn to Europe’.

European entertainment continues throughout the morning of 9th May in the main town square with a performance of Sevillanas dancing by a group of French visitors! Dance group, “DUENDE ANDALUZ” has coincided its annual visit to Torrevieja to coincide, inevitably, with our spectacular “Feria de Mayo” which will be inaugurated later during the same day. Following on in the lineup of Euro entertainment will be an unusual mixture of folk music offered by Eugen Nagy, a well known Rumanian guitarist who is accompanied by his Greek colleague who plays the rarely seen Greek stringed instrument, the Bouzouki.

For the first time in a European Day celebration, and coordinating the morning’s events will be the “RADIO TKOROADSHOW”. Yes, ‘live’ English language radio broadcast from the main town square of Torrevieja! The ‘European Day’ celebrations in the town centre will end at around 13.30h.

This year’s EUROPEAN DAY celebrations, as every year promise to be extremely entertaining provided, as always, the weather is kind to us.

All ‘European Day’ events are open to the public and Europeans of all nations, are warmly invited to join in this special celebration.

The event is held over 3 days. On the first day the parades begin, the Christians in the morning and the Moors in the afternoon. Each parade has over 4,500 participants which is why it takes a whole day! The second day is dedicated mainly to St George, with a religious procession in the morning and a more general one in the afternoon. On the third day all hell breaks loose as the Moors and Christians re-enact the battle for the town. Clouds of smoke fill the streets as the antique-style muskets are discharged over and over again.

The full timetable is detailed below:

Sunday 22nd April

• 05:45 Diana, which is an early morning joyful parade, finishing at 09:40. The first fila (group of people) start at 05:45 and the last fila starts at 07:40. Each fila takes 2 hours to complete the route, keeping a distance of 60 meters away from the fila in front. The Christians parade first, followed by the Moors.
  • Parade Route: start Plaza de España in front of the Ayuntamiento, then along Calle Mayor, San Miguel, Virgen María, San Miguel, San Jaime, Plaza Emilio Sala, San Jorge y Santa Lucía, after a break it starts again at Avda. del País Valencià, then along Calle San Lorenzo, San Francisco and San Mateo, after another break it goes along Calle San Nicolás finishing back at the initial start in the Plaza de España.
• 10:30 Entrance of the Christians. This parade symbolises the power of the Christians during the the time of James I. When the Christian Capitan arrives at the castle in the Plaza de España, the Governor will give him the keys. The filas parade in the following order; the Sergeant, the drummers and trumpeters, the Captain and his escorts on floats, groups of slaves, music bands, other groups and finally the Ambassador and his Standard Bearer.
  • Parade Route: starts at the Partidor and goes along Calle de San Nicolás into the Plaza de España where the Captain receive the keys to the castle at 11:20, then along Calle San Lorenzo, Avda. del País Valencià finishing at Santa Lucia.
• 17:00 Entrance of the Moors. This parade symbolises the power of the Turkish Empire and showcases the oriental finery of the Moors. The filas parade in the following order; the Sergeant, the drummers and trumpeters, the Captain and his escorts, groups of slaves, music bands, other groups and finally the Ambassador, his Standard Bearer and more slaves.
  • Parade Route: starts at the Partidor and goes along Calle de San Nicolás into the Plaza de España at 17:50, then along Calle San Lorenzo, Avda. del País Valencià finishing at Santa Lucia.

Monday 23rd April St. Georges Day

• 09:00 Diana this procession includes children. The Moors and Christians parade at the same time, but along different routes, both of which meet in the Plaza de España at 11:00.
• 11:00 Procession of the Relic finishing at 12:00. The moving of the Relic of Saint George from his temple to the parish church of Saint Mary. The fila parade in the following order; Moorish Captain, Sergeant, pennant bearers, other participants, then the Christian Captain, Sergeant, pennant bearers, other participants, then the Association of Saint George with the flag and relic and finally the clergy and other people of authority.
  • Parade Route: Iglesia de San Jorge, along Calle de Santo Tomas, L’Escola, Mossén Torregrossa, San Lorenzo, Plaza de España and Calle Mayor to the Templo de Santa María.
• 14:00 Mascleta, day time rockets in the Plaza de España.
• 18:00 Cardboard Horses Parade, small procession of the Realistas and Berberiscos fila including cardboard horses from the Font Redona to the Plaza de España.
• 19:30 General Procession finishing at 21:30. The Relic of Saint George is returned to his temple, at the end of the procession there is a light display known in Spanish as a ‘bengalas’ and fireworks., then everybody can kiss the Relic of Saint George. The filas will be carrying candles and will be in the following order the Christian Captain, Sergeant, pennant bearers, other participants, then the Moorish Captain, Sergeant, pennant bearers, other participants and then the Association of Saint George with the flag and relic and finally the clergy and other people of authority.
  • Parade Route: starts in the Placeta del Carbó, then along Calle Mayor, Plaza de España, San Nicolás, Plaza Ramón y Cajal, San Francisco, Mossén Torregrossa, L’Escola, Santo Tomás, finishing at the Templo de San Jorge.
• 23:30 Retreta Parade this festival procession includes Chinese lanterns and lighted floats.
  • Parade Route: starts in Calle San Nicolás where El Camí (Font Redona) crosses it, then to Plaza España, Calle Santo Tomás and finishes at the Iglesia de San Jorge.

Tuesday 24th April

• 07:15 Contrabando, this is an ancient act performed between the `Labradores and Andaluces´ in the Plaza España .
• 08:00 Guerrillas, these are isolated displays in the streets around the town of skirmishes, all of which will finish at 09:00.
• 09:45 Occupation & Negotiation. At 09:45 the Christian Captain, his fila and the ‘Alférez’ take possession of the castle. At 10:00 the Moorish Rider asks for the castle to be surrendered. The request is refused and the Moorish Rider races back along Calle San Nicolás.
• 11:00 Morning Battle of Arcabucería begins, there are three different parts to it.
  • Part One. At 11:00 the Christian Captain followed by his fila leave the castle along the left hand side of the Plaza España, then he goes along Calle San Nicolás to San Vicente. At the crossroads with Carretera del Molinar, he encounters the Moorish Captain and his fila. The Moorish Captain then follows the Christian Captain along Calle el Camí, San Mateo, Partidor and along Calle San Nicolás towards the Plaza de España.
  • Part Two: At 11:00 the `Alférez´ and the rest of the Christian filas also leave the castle along the right hand side of the Plaza España, then they go along Calle San Lorenzo, Avenida del País Valencià, Roger de Llúria and Bartolomé J. Gallardo towards Plaza de Mossén Josep where they meet the Moorish `Alférez´ and the rest of the Moorish filas. The Moorish `Alférez´ then follows the Christian `Alférez´ along Avda. País Valencià, San Lorenzo to the Plaza de España.
  • Part Three: The Christian Captain and `Alférez´ will retreat from the Plaza when the fight begins. The Moors win the battle and gain control of the castle at 13:15.
• 16:30 Occupation & Negotiation. At 16:30 the Moor Captain, his fila and the ‘Alférez’ take possession of the castle. At 16:45 the Christian Rider asks for the castle to be surrendered. The request is refused and the Christian Rider races back along Calle San Nicolás.
• 17:30 Afternoon Battle of Arcabucería begins. This has exactly the same itinerary as the morning battle, except it is the Christians who are chasing the Moors and end up occupying the castle. The battle finishes at 20:00 with the firing of the guns.
• 20:15 Honouring of Saint George. When the battle is finished both the Captains and `Alféreces´ from both sides, will parade around the Plaza de España to the Parroquia de Santa María where they will meet the General Assembly, the Association of Saint George and the statue of Saint George. They will all parade together along Calle Mayor, Plaza de España, Santo Tomas to Santo the Iglesia where they will give thanks to Saint George, the patron saint.
• 21:30 Apparition of Saint George. The Aparición of `San Jorge´ will be performed at the castle in the Plaza de España. This short, emotive act includes special hymns and marks the end of the festivities with a firework display at 00:00 from the Torre de Na Valora

Information  supplied by www.downloadmytravelguide.com

The Model Boat Association of Torrevieja have two great events planned for March and April. The association was created in December 2006, in order to promote naval culture and everything related to the sea and naval modelling. There are currently more than 70 members from many different nationalities including Spanish, English, German, Dutch, Polish, Norwegian and Russian.

From the 10th March until the 15th April there will be many model boats on display in the Sala de Exposiciones ‘Los Aljibes’. The exhibition room is located in the Parque de las Naciones, where the association will make use of the small boating lakes!

You’ll be able to see the models from Tuesday to Sunday 11:00-13:30 and 17:00-20:00.

During the first two days of the exhibition, there will be the 1st National Meeting of Naval Model Enthusiasts, and so many more boats will be on display and in the water!

For more information about the association take a look at their official website.

Information supplied by www.downloadmytravelguide.com

The main exhibition will take place on the Esplanade in lo Pagan. It will be open Wednesday 4th April 11:00-20:00 and Thursday 5th to Sunday 8th April: 10:00-20:00. The exhibitions will be free to visit and there will be:

• Fish Auctions during the mornings when the fishing boats return
• Exhibition of traditional fishing gear, the salt industry, marine photography and a lateen sail boat
• Cooking demonstrations of traditional local dishes
• Display and information about the Red Cross and the 112 rescue services

There will be a tourist train which will run around the three towns, connecting all of the venues. Hop On, Hop Off day tickets are 4€, whilst a single ride is 1.50€. The bus will leave the bus stop next to the Esplanade at 10:30, 11:30, 12:30, 13:30, 16:30, 17:30 and 18:30 and will stop at: Esplanada of Lo Pagan, Mud Baths, Visitor Center “Salinas”, beaches and harbors of the Mediterranean Regional Park Salinas y Arenales de San Pedro (Coterillo information point), urban center of San Javier (opposite Post Office) and Lo Pagan (bus stop closest to the station).

Another activity which you will be able to enjoy is the Tourist Boat. This will leave every day at 12:30 and 17:00 (Sunday April 8 no service at 17:00) from the Embarcadero Club Nautico in Lo Pagan. A journey on the boat will be 5€ per adult, 3€ per child (aged 3-6 years) and free for under 3 years.

Add to this the various sailing, diving, canoeing, kayaking and windsurfing events, and you’ll be able to enjoy a really great day out at the 1st Sea World Exhibition.

Information supplied by www.downloadmytravelguide.com

Corvera airport, Murcia

Firstly you need an air traffic control licence so that you can establish new flight routes and airspace, secondly a licence needs to be issued for the International Customs point.

Once these have been issued and the worthiness of Corvera airport Murcia has been passed, then a flight test can be undertaken and a licence to allow flights to arrive and depart can be given. Once all these processes have been met to the acceptable standard, Corvera International airport can officially open.

There have been a number of delays due to the month long handover of the Government in November 2011. Also the new government have appointed new heads of departments including Fomento, the development dept that handle the paperwork side. Another department that has a new head is AENA who run the airports.

All the airlines have planned and scheduled or chartered their routes for summer 2012 already, so it is not a burning issue to get the airport open for the summer. Corvera airport Murcia will need to be  open for the winter season so that it will be established for the summer season of 2013 and beyond and then be desirable enough for all the airlines to either add routes or change existing ones.

Jet 2 have recently visited the new Murcia International Airport Corvera and met with the regional government to take a tour of the new facility. They have since announced on their website that they will begin to fly into Corvera airport in November 2012.  Although the airport will open before this date, Jet2  requested November as to allow for a smooth transition for it’s passengers by waiting till after the busy summer season.

Jet 2′s Ian Doubtfire, Managing Director said  ”We are very impressed with the user friendly airport facilities that have been built in Corvera and think it will be a very efficient airport when operational.  The regional government has promised to keep us updated on the continuing discussions with AENA and have ensured that there are no disruptions to any of Jet2.com’s scheduled flights to this important region.  In the meantime we anticipate our full operation to continue at San Javier and will ensure that there is a seamless transfer at the end of 2012.”

As the opening of Corvera draws closer we will doubtless hear many other announcements like this as other airlines follow suit.

San Javier (Murcia) airport

The little airport so many Murcia travellers enjoy will soon be a thing of the past unless you come in on a fighter plane.

San Javier will see the last of it’s holiday makers in 2012 when the new and improved Murcia airport Corvera opens to the public. 700,000 travellers passed through the doors of San Javier last year, which was down on the year before but, there was a split of traffic visiting the Murcia area that chose to fly into Alicante and take the one hour drive down to Murcia for cheaper flight offers.

Aena will move it’s 80 employees to Corvera International when it opens soon.

This is the first step in exciting times for Murcia  - The airport is nearly ready to open, the AVE train is on it’s way and Paramount is just around the corner.

There’s never been a better time to check out properties both in the Alicante and Murcia regions. There are some fantastic bargains to be had, and buying now will definitely be a sound investment in years to come.
For example: Superb opportunities in Mazarron only 15 minutes from the airport and the new Paramount Theme Park with 107% finance!

Contact us now to discuss the many superb opportunities we have and let us help you find your dream property at the perfect price!

21th January to 18th February 2012

The events scheduled for Carnival 2012, starting on January 21, with the Carnival Open Speech and the presentation of the Carnival Queens, until 18 February with the Carnival night parade.

see below for full event details:

Saturday, 21 January 2012
Carnival Open Speech and presentation of 2012 Carnival’s Queen
Venue: Local Theatre
Time: 9 p.m.
Entry: 5€
Tickets: Local theatre’s box office. Tuesday-Friday, 11am-1pm. 2 hours before the show.

Friday, 27 January 2012
4rd Drag Queen National Contest.
Time: 9.30 p.m.
Venue: Local Theatre
Entry: 5€
Tickets: Local theatre’s box office. Tuesday-Friday, 11am-1pm. 2 hours before the show.
Prizes: 1,000 Euros for the first winner, 500 Euros for the second and 250 for the third.

Saturday 4 February  to sunday 17 february 2012
Carnival Exhibition
Venue: Centro Cultural Virgen del Carmen Exhibition Room
Price: Free entrance

Sunday 5 February 2012
Carnival Murgas Contest
Venue: Local Theatre
Time: 7 p.m.
Entry: 5€
Tickets: Local theatre’s box office. Tuesday-Friday, 11am-1pm. 2 hours before the show.

Tuesday, 7 February 2012
Junior Carnival Ball
Time: 6 p.m.
Venue: Centro Municipal de Ocio (CMO)
Entry: free entry

Thursday, 9 February 2012
Senior Carnival Ball
Time: 6 p.m.
Venue: Centro Municipal de Ocio (CMO)
Entry:  free entry

Sunday, 12 February 2012
Carnival Contest Parade (red line)
Time: 4 p.m.
Route: exit point at María Asunción Square, through Ramón Gallud street and up to Patricio Pérez street. At the end of the parade, prizes will be handed over at the Virgen del Carmen Cultural Centre.

17 February – 15 March 2012
Carnival Exhibition “Tocados y Mascaras de Carnaval”
Venue: Vista Alegre Exhibition Room
Price: Free entrance

Saturday, 18 February 2012
Carnival’s Evening Parade (blue line)
Time: 10 p.m.

The race begins in Alicante on 28th October and the boats leave the port on Saturday 5th November 2011. During the following nine months the teams will sail over 39,000 nautical miles of the world’s most treacherous seas via Cape Town, Abu Dhabi, Sanya, Auckland, around Cape Horn to Itajaí, Miami, Lisbon, and Lorient. They will finish in Galway, Ireland, sometime at the beginning of July 2012! For the complete racing schedule click here.

The ‘In Port Racing’ will be held at Alicante on Saturday 29th October and promises to be spectacular. This is a short race of about 45 – 60 minutes, ensuring close-quarters, intense action. The route will be close to the shore line, so even if you can’t get onto a spectators boat you’ll be able to have a good view – especially if you watch from Alicante Castle with a pair of binoculars! All of the In Port Races will always be broadcast live on www.volvooceanrace.com. Each boat will have an onboard camera crew as well as the fixed cameras running to record all the action onboard.

The official website is fantastic and you can even follow the Volvo Ocean Race on Facebook and Twitter. The site is packed with lots of information about the race and all of the latest news. There is The Race section where you’ll find out about the history of the race and why it is called the ‘Everest of Sailing’. The Port section and The Team section contain every detail imaginable about the ports, boats and team members. There is even the opportunity to become involved in a virtual race!

Alicante is the largest city on the southern Costa Blanca nearest the holiday towns and villages of Ciudad Quesada, Rojales, Los Montesinos and resorts at Orihuela Costa – Playa Flamenca, Cabo Roig, Campoamor to mention but a few. Many superb golf courses are in the area such as La Marquesa, Villamartin, Las Ramblas, Real Club de Campoamor and La Finca.

23 – 30 July 2011

One more year, Torrevieja, Costa Blanca is becoming for several days in the worldwide capital of choral songs, particularly of Habaneras’s songs. We will celebrate the 57th edition of the Torrevieja’s International Habaneras and Polyphony Contest.

The historic Eras de la Sal premises will be transformed, from the 23rd to the 30th of July, into the “Habanera’s Cathedral”. A total number of 18 choirs from four continents and representing 13 different countries will compete there at this Contest.
Besides, 6 choirs from Torrevieja will display their choir arts, a deeply rooted tradition in this city, through a performance which will take place during the closing ceremony. There will be a total of 25 choirs with nearly a thousand singers.

This year, the 2nd International Soloist Contest will be consolidated at the opening ceremony. Its second edition will count with 7 Spanish and one Cuban singer.

This is a traditional, yearly event which is eagerly anticipated and which certainly draws the crowds and is also shown on Spanish National TV.

Date: 23-30 July 2011
Venue: Eras de la Sal
Time: 11.00 pm
Price:
23-28 July (both days included)
REGULAR TICKET: 7 Euros
PENSIONERS: 3.5 Euros
29-30 July
REGULAR TICKET: 14 Euros
PENSIONERS: 7 Euros

Highlight of the festival is the procession of the various bands (groups) of Moors and Christians, held on two successive evenings. These processions can last three hours or more. Each main group is preceded by a flag-carrier and then each sub-group is preceded by an animator, who attempts to gain the applause and support of the public for their particular parade section.

First there’ll be fireworks on Tuesday night this week for San Pedro.

Then the main battle re-enactment is on Thursday.

Parading in from the health centre from 9pm firing their guns, the moors will cross the old bridge and enter the arena – crossroads in front of the museum – at around 9.30 where they will battle shooting their guns & canons & eventually overthrow the resistance to take the castle (museum which has been dressed up already.) It is advisable/recommended to take ear plugs as canon fire in such a confined area can be literally deafening!

On Friday there is a Charanga – informal fun carnival parade following the same route at 10pm .

Saturday sees the first parade of Moors & Christians – again following the same route & also 9pm onwards. (Takes about 2 hours.) Sunday the parade is repeated, but they have a parade of bands first – 8pm On Thursday, Friday, Saturday & Sunday the events go on all night (12am-7.30am) with open air discos in the Kabilas erected on the car park/market ground. (So no-one can sleep those nights with half a dozen open air discos side by side trying to out-compete each other!)

The fiesta is just a few minutes away from the towns of Ciudad Quesada, Guardamar and Los Montesinos and is well worth a visit!

This week the longest day of the year is being celebrated throughout the world. In the province of Alicante many villages, towns and cities will be hosting their own summer solstice festivals know as “Hogueras”. Torrevieja in the Costa Blanca is no exception. Both the ‘barrios’ neighbourhoods of Del Acequio and De La Punta have a full progamme of festivities.

On Friday June 24 there are various activities throughout the three neighbourhoods and at midnight the first shall be set alight.

Starting on Thursday night, Torrevieja is ablaze (pun intended) with activity as school finishes for the summer and it’s time for the traditional Bonfires throughout the region, ‘Fiestas de Hogueras de San Juan 2011’ plus a weekend of Classic Car activities bringing us ever closer to July’s holiday season.

The seafront will be packed on Thursday night because on the stroke of midnight, the street lights will go out, the music will be pumped up and if past performances are anything to go by, a terrific, choreographed firework display will take place. It all happens on the main paseo, just along from the Old Man of the Sea Monument, and be there early, to reserve a good place. As happened last year, the council of Torrevieja has organized the fireworks on the night of San Juan, when a piro-musical castle will take place around the Paseo Juan Aparicio artificial pools.

Throughout the region, the creation and then burning of the traditional ‘Hogueras will take place, in the ‘hogueras del barrio de la Punta, Acequión, Mónica Ruiz and Félix Martín’, respectively. In addition to the barrios of La Punta and Acequión, participants from the Molinos del Calvario neighbourhood already have everything ready and have had an extensive programs of activities including music, dance performances, bingo and to come the presentation and proclamation of their beauty queens.

On Friday June 24 there are various activities throughout the three neighbourhoods in Torrevieja and at midnight the first shall be set alight. If you go along for the action, expect it to be both hot from the heat of summer and to get wet from the fire hoses, who are there to add a little fun to the activities and also to ensure that nothing catches fire that is not meant to! Beforehand, miniature bonfires can be made by children in a micro-hogueras contest followed at 21.30 by the presentation of the Hogueras Queens.