Date Published: 23/05/2014

ARCHIVED - Murcia Today news and What’s On round-up, 23rd May 2014

Diverse events this weekend, drought and drugs in the news, and expats make Spanish bowls team

What’s On in Murcia, 23rd to 30th May

ARCHIVED - Murcia Today news and What’s On round-up, 23rd May 2014 This weekend the European elections have resulted in the cancellation of quite a few local whats on events, but there is still a reasonable selection of activities to enjoy this week in Murcia. Three which stand out share the theme of motor vehicles, enabling petrol-heads to take their pick among nostalgia, rally driving and bargain-hunting. Starting on Friday the Auto-Retro fair in the Cuartel de la Artillería in the regional capital is a great chance to admire classics from the past, with a wide range of cars and motorbikes on display until Sunday evening, and at the same time the second-hand car fair is being held all weekend at the Ifepa centre ARCHIVED - Murcia Today news and What’s On round-up, 23rd May 2014 in Torre Pacheco: if you’re looking to change car, nip along and see what’s on offer! As for the rally driving, the “Subida Bahía de Mazarrón” is great news for fans of spectacular motor action, but something of a headache for residents on the RM-332, which will be closed for much of the afternoon while the racing takes place.

Also on Friday there’s a dance gala in Jumilla in the evening, folk dancing festival in Mula and the first of two successive Fridays when the San Javier air academy opens its doors to the public offering guided tours.

Back in the regional capital, Friday and Saturday mark the end of this year’s Tres Culturas festival, with a host of free world music concerts dotted around the city. Earlier in the day there’s the “Asiático Guided Tour” of Cartagena, all in English, which includes a sample of the city’s famous special coffee, and football fans will be enjoying the build-up to the Champions League final in the evening, which this year is of particular interest in Spain as it’s an all-Madrid affair. To watch Atlético and Real slug it out a special big screen is being set up in El Berro, in the Sierra Espuña, within the Alhama de Murcia municipality, with live rock music also contributing ARCHIVED - Murcia Today news and What’s On round-up, 23rd May 2014 to the Berrock event where foodstuffs for donation to the Red Cross will be collected instead of an entry fee.

On Sunday it’s time to wind down, perhaps enjoying the arts and crafts fair at the Santa Eulalia monastery which is set amongst pine forests and in setting of this historic monastery.

Other events to make a note of include the opening for the summer season of the Terra Natura water park on the outskirts of Murcia, while gastronomic enthusiasts can choose between the gastronomy season in Águilas, which runs until 2^nd June, and the Alumbres tapas route, which is on for this weekend only.

A fuller listing which includes charity and local bar eventscan be found in the Murcia Today “What’s on” section.

Region of Murcia news round-up, 23^rd May 2014

Drought, drugs, the Cartagena seagull cull and expats bowling for Spain

ARCHIVED - Murcia Today news and What’s On round-up, 23rd May 2014 Normally it’s a fairly safe bet that the news round-up in the Region of Murcia will include a summary of the latest developments regarding the future of the new airport in Corvera, but this week the main news on this front is that nothing’s happened except the theft of 16,000 metres of copper electrical cables from the airport: the regional government continues to await the green or red light from Brussels regarding the loan which would allow the airport to open, and in the meantime San Javier shows no sign of closing: in fact, two new retailers are opening shops in the airport instead.

The airport saga is closely related to the Region’s tourist sector, which has recently been the subject of attempts to attract more visitors from the Czech Republic and Denmark. A success story in this regard has come to light in Bullas, where it has been agreed that thousands of retired Austrians will be visiting the wine museum as part of a new push into the North-west, with Caravaca de la Cruz and Calasparra also included in the new initiative. Down on the coast, Mazarrón has presented its six Blue Flag beaches to go with those ARCHIVED - Murcia Today news and What’s On round-up, 23rd May 2014 already announced last week, in Los Alcázares the tourist season has been officially inaugurated by local dignitaries taking their first dip of the summer, and as the weather appears set fair (apart from a brief rainy interlude predicted in some quarters for Saturday night) the sector is looking forward to a bumper summer.

In anticipation of the summer to come, the go-ahead has been given to lay down the nets in the Mar Menor ready for jellyfish season and the new regional president has been visiting the area to meet with local mayors, part of which involved a promise that the San Javier Jazz Festival, always popular with tourist visitors, will once again be given institutional support.

Of course, the continued dry spell has its downside as well. The drought is now being monitored by regional ARCHIVED - Murcia Today news and What’s On round-up, 23rd May 2014 and central government departments, while in Cehegín farmers have been praying to San Isidro for rain. The dry conditions also lead to increased risk of wildfires, a fact which was borne out on Wednesday when flames consumed 130 hectares of tinder-dry vegetation in Cartagena.

Aside from tourism, other sectors of the economy have enjoyed good news this week. The Region of Murcia’s balance of payments improved significantly in the first quarter, and while the construction sector remains flat there is optimism that the stock of unsold properties is being reduced at last.

Meanwhile, other regional stories to hit the headlines have included a man in Puente Tocinos who attacked his wife with a meat cleaver before setting fire to his own house (allegations that he suffered psychiatric problems are not hard to believe), the former municipal architect of Los Alcázares being fined 800 euros for pushing the Mayor to the ground, and the breaking up of two drug-smuggling operations, one involving British citizens in Ricote and the other Lithuanians in Los Alcázares. The Guardia Civil were also involved in ARCHIVED - Murcia Today news and What’s On round-up, 23rd May 2014 recovering stolen Roman masonry and antique cannons, while in Cartagena the annual seagull cull is well under way.

Two major new exhibitions have also opened this week, one in the Archaeological museum in Murcia, and another in the Muram, Cartagena.

Finally, local British expats continue to work hard for local charities, a sponsored walk on the Camino de Santiago raised 5,000 euros for Help Murcia Mar Menor recently, and a couple of ambitious cyclists from Murcia are planning to ride from Murcia to Stroud to raise funds for cancer support. Among those enjoying less strenuous sporting activity are expat Mazarrón bowlers who have been drafted into the Spanish national team.

Spanish news summary, www.spanishnewstoday.com

Apart from the European election campaign, some interesting stories have hit the headlines in the Spanish ARCHIVED - Murcia Today news and What’s On round-up, 23rd May 2014 news this week, two of them related to the problem of illegal immigrants attempting to enter EU territory by crossing from Africa into Spain. Last weekend another wave of around 500 sub-Saharans was successfully held at bay by Moroccan and Spanish authorities in Melilla, while on Tuesday an example of how desperate some of these immigrants are to get into Spain was the heavily pregnant woman who attempted to cross the Mediterranean in a small boat containing over fifty people. No sooner had they been intercepted by the coast guards than she gave birth: the baby’s birthplace will presumably have to be registered as “somewhere near the isle of Alborán”.

Back on dry land, the government’s new citizen security law continues to provoke strong opposition from many quarters, including Greenpeace, who are worried that the right to protest may be being diminished by the new measures, and the regional president of Andalucía has added her voice to those demanding an end to the conflict between Spain and Gibraltar which is resulting in long delays for those crossing the border every day to go to work.

Spanish politicians across Spain are still recovering from the shock of the head of the provincial government delegation in León being murdered, and in the aftermath of the killing many reactions have revealed that Isabel Carrasco had made a large number of enemies during her career. Although the news this week has been nothing but one campaign meeting after another for the European elections this Sunday, a strong undercurrent of disrespect for the political class as a whole has risen to the surface, and more than one ARCHIVED - Murcia Today news and What’s On round-up, 23rd May 2014 person has been arrested for publishing threatening or violent comments on the internet.

Another cause for widespread concern is the new law which makes it impossible for customs authorities to investigate or prosecute non-Spanish drug smugglers intercepted in international waters, and this week saw the release without charges of a further seven Syrian smugglers following just such an incident.

Elsewhere, four cranes reported to be the largest in the world were somehow transported all the way from China to Algeciras in the province of Cádiz, the proposed reopening of the nuclear power plant in the province of Burgos in northern Spain has provoked differing reactions from the two regional governments most affected, and the drought in the south-east of the country is beginning to cause serious concern among livestock farmers, fruit and vegetable growers and, at long last, regional and national government officials. In Almería there are warnings that even the hardy almond trees are yielding less fruit this year and could die if it doesn’t rain soon, while in Murcia the farmers of Cehegín have resorted to praying to San Isidro for rain as their crops wither and die in the fields and orchards.

Finally, a few people who were in the news this week for reasons they would probably rather forget about. The disobedient smoker who died after setting fire to his own hospital bed in Cádiz is an extreme example, but others include operatic soprano Montserrat Caballé, who has forked out half a million euros to keep the tax authorities off her back, and the thief in Almeria who made it rather too easy to track him down by leaving his ARCHIVED - Murcia Today news and What’s On round-up, 23rd May 2014 mobile phone and his bicycle at the gate of the house he burgled.

Pride of place, though, has to go to the Galicia woman whose visit to the toilet last Sunday ended in her being bitten by an exotic snake which emerged from the plumbing. The effects of the bite wore off quickly, but the embarrassment may last a while longer, and while she may not be aware of her appearance in Spanish News Today her prominence in the national press could be the source of numerous comments in the town of Narón for quite some time!

For more Spanish news stories visit www.spanishnewstoday.com

Valencia Today www.valenciatoday.es

The sister product to Murcia Today focuses on the Valencia region and produces its own dedicated Valencia Today weekly round-up. Click Valencia Today for the weekly bulletin for the Valencia Region.

Currency round-up

ARCHIVED - Murcia Today news and What’s On round-up, 23rd May 2014 The Euro-Sterling exchange rate has closed the week at the highest level for some time, making it more cost-effective to transfer money. Good news for those looking to buy a house who will get even more for their money and for pensioners who regularly change their pension into euros.Click for this weeks currency round up showing the exchange rate between Sterling and the Euro. If you would like a free quote to see how much can be saved on regular currency transfers such as a pension, or one-off lump sums such as the purchase of a property, call for a no obligation quote.

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