La Vida Alcalaína

In August 2004 Matthew Coman, an Englishman who had made his home in Alcalá, staged the town's first music festival.  He invited colleagues from a group of classical musicians, known as The Soloists of London, to spend a week in the pueblo and give concerts in the beautiful patio of the Sagrada Familia school (SAFA), a former convent on the Plaza Alta. The Soloists of London in the SAFA patio Poster from the fifth festival in 2008 In 2009 the festival including a performance by a group of young musicians from around the province, after a week of rehearsals under Coman's supervision. This  inspired a painting by the late Jesús Cuesta Arana, which was used for that year's poster. Poster artwork from the 2009 festival, by the late Jesús Cuesta Arana Young musicians rehearsing for their concert For the following few years the festival remained focused on classical music, even staging a production of La Traviata in the church. Tickets weren't available in advance in those da...

Last weekend, over two glorious sunny days and one wet one, Alcalá hosted the fourth  Feria del Mundo Rural y la Caza  with a range of activities, exhibitions and retail opportunities celebrating rural crafts and traditions.  Here are some of them - sadly I didn't get a decent photo of the catapulting competition and the mule-loading demonstration scheduled for Sunday morning was rained off, but there will be another opportunity no doubt. Payoyo goats, perfect for turning weeds into cheese Merino sheep from Grazalema, famous for their fine wool Demonstration of chair-making by Asociación Jacaranda How to cook the pig you've just slaughtered Products made from esparto grass Alcalá's famous rustic bread, baked in wood-fired ovens Hunting knives with handles made from antlers Souvenirs made from cork (but sadly not made here) Costume for a country lady Accessories for the country gentleman                         ...

Alcalá has just been voted the most magical town in Andalucía (of course some of us have always known that, but now it's official).  There is no doubt that the number of visitors has increased dramatically over the last few years, especially since the Covid pandemic as more people opt for self-catering holidays in the countryside rather than crowded beach hotels. (They are easy to spot, wearing shorts in November and frowning at their phones trying to work out in which of the narrow backstreets their accommodation is.) The number of self-catering holiday lets in Alcalá has gone from two or three pre-Covid to over thirty today, as enterprising young people convert their late grandparents' abandoned dwellings into sparkling new air-conditioned apartments with fitted kitchens, hot-tubs and Ikea's finest wall art (see a list of them  here ). Of course, it's great to see semi-derelict properties restored and it provides work for local builders, but one can't help wonderi...

The town has recently seen an explosion of colour as hundreds of potted geraniums now adorn its white walls.  Quite how long they will last I'm not sure, but in the meantime they are here for the enjoyment of all.  They complement a number of ceramic plaques celebrating local trades, which were installed earlier this year.

Local artist Alfonso Jiménez Barrera will be exhibiting some of his paintings at the Santo Domingo cultural centre this coming week.  Visitors to the flamenco bar on the Plaza Alta will already by familiar with his signature work, a stunning townscape of Alcalá, painted in photographic detail, which hangs in the dining area. The exhibition is organised by the alumni association of the Sagrada Familia school (SAFA), and is open from 8 pm starting Saturday 11 August. Born in Alcalá de los Gazules in 1959, Alfonso has always been interested in the arts, especially painting and drawing.  Over the past few years he has dedicated himself full-time to his artistic works, and is well on the way to making a name for himself across Spain, winning various awards and participating in exhibitions in Barcelona and Madrid. Alfonso is self-taught, and is now passing on his techniques to local adults and children in classes held his own workshop.  His skill and patience as a teac...

Alcalá has made news this week by submitting a formal request to the Louvre museum in Paris for the return of the Lascut Bronze , an ancient Roman relic discovered here in 1866. The tiny bronze tablet was sold to the Louvre in 1868 by a Polish engineer, who had acquired it for next to nothing from some local labourers who found it on some land just outside the town, an ancient settlement known as la Mesa de Esparragal (or so the story goes). Dating from 189 BC, it is one of the first Latin inscriptions to be discovered on the Iberian peninsula, freeing the inhabitants of Lascuta from servitude as a gesture of gratitude for their assistance in crushing a rebellion in Astia Regia, near what is now Jerez. The first attempt by the Alcalá administration to retrieve its treasure took place in the 1980s, when local councillor Gabriel Almagro wrote to the Louvre.  They didn't refuse outright, but said there was no way they could comply at that time.  They offered instead ano...