Spanish mothers strip for calendar to save school bus (video)

A new measure introduced in July cut funding for the school bus running in the Monserrat district of Valencia in eastern Spain. A group of mums got together and posed for an erotic calendar to raise money for their children's transport.

The problem is that, according to Spanish law, the government only has to provide transport if students live more than 3km away from the school. However, this new austerity measure states that the distance has to be calculated in a straight line, and this meant that "Evaristo Calayatud" school in the Monserrat District of Valencia was no longer eligible for a school bus.

However, as Silvia Lucas, one of the mothers, points out, “We have to scale a mountain and climb down a cliff to get to the school. On foot, using the most direct route it’s 4.5km, if you walk on the road it’s six."

Some of the parents are unemployed and have problems paying for petrol to drive the children to school themselves. For this reason, and to try and raise 43,000 euros, the group of mothers got together, disrobed and posed for the erotic calendar.

To make their point, the mothers struck various poses, including scaling cliffs and pushing prams along dirt tracks, which clearly illustrate the 6km walk their children were being forced to endure every morning. They figured that not only could their calendar raise the necessary money, it could at the same time “give the politicians a slap in the face.”

It took just over a month after the launch of the calendar to raise enough money for the bus to run for three months for the 83 affected children.

There were difficulties along the way, when police ejected them from the town center for illegally selling the calendar. However, Silvia Lucas pointed out, “We were not selling them, we were collecting donations.”

She further said that while the calendar is not to everyone's taste in the neighborhood, there was little other choice.

“A lot of people tell us that we could have organized a community meal and not the calendar, but that would not have made nearly enough money. Our husbands are happy with the result and proud of our achievement” added Lucas, saying that she had done it for her children.

Read more and watch video: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/340157

Photo essay: A little bit of life in the countryside of Spain

Even in winter, the countryside in southern Spain has something to offer. Warm sunshine, wildflowers blooming and farmers working the fields.

I had to babysit my son's dogs, yet again, as he and his girlfriend took a short trip to the Gibraltar area.

As always, things were very quiet, and of course, the Internet was deadly slow.

As is always the best option, I had the camera with me and got a few views, starting in the dewy, early morning, and concluding at sunset....

Read more and see more photos: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/340135

A little bit of Christmas in Fuengirola, Spain - Photo essay.

While we bask in unseasonably warm sunshine, Fuengirola is getting ready for Christmas, with lights and decorations galore, and everyone is going shopping, shopping, shopping.

Just past the winter solstice, today is unbelievably warm. 21 degrees Celsius, with warm sunshine, clear blue skies and no wind at all. The tourists are in heaven, and we don't mind either!

In the run up to the Christmas festivities, the shops are busy and while people are probably buying less, and cheaper, business does seem to be booming. Supermarkets have many special offers going, which helps with preparations for the festivities.

© Anne Sewell

One thing that is always noticeable at this time of year is that people smile a bit more readily, and greet you as you walk along. Even the normally grouchy ones, who will no doubt be back to normal once 2013 is here!

© Anne Sewell

The Christmas lights here in Fuengirola, are, I think a bit boring this year. What happens is that the street lights, and the main Christmas tree in the plaza are shared with other surrounding pueblos, to keep them varied. This year, I think, Fuengirola pulled the short stick.

While some streets look colorful, for the most part it's a very monochromatic Christmas. Especially the main decor in front of the town hall, in the Plaza de España.

© Anne Sewell

And sometimes reflections of the lights can be better than the real thing:

© Anne Sewell

From different angles, with the lights on the olive trees in the plaza, it can make for an interesting view:

© Anne Sewell

Just for fun and comparison, I am including views of previous Christmases, which I think were better. Especially when taken in the rain.

© Anne Sewell

And in the early evening, with the children playing:

© Anne Sewell

The side streets have some more colorful decor, with the Camino de Coin displaying poinsettias:

© Anne Sewell

There were Christmas carols in the Plaza de España yesterday evening, and while the weekend will be relatively quiet, on Monday, Christmas Eve, the Spanish will be celebrating with their families and lots of good food and English and South African residents will be overeating on Christmas Day, as per usual.

And while those other than the Spanish will enjoy their gifts on the 25th, the Spanish children get to wait for January 6, when the Three Kings come to visit, with the festival of "Los Tres Reyes Magos."

The Plaza de la Constitución is always pretty - here is a view from a couple of years ago, with the church in the background, and an attractive deer in the foreground (which is lit at night).

© Anne Sewell

Let's take this opportunity of wishing everyone, everywhere in the world a wonderful Festive Season, whether it's Christmas, Hanukkah, or other local festivities, from everyone here in Fuengirola, Spain.

© Anne Sewell

© Anne Sewell

And of course, a very happy and hopefully prosperous New Year in 2013:

© Anne Sewell

Other photo essays on Fuengirola, Spain:

Photo Essay: 'PictoParque' — Art in the park in Fuengirola, Spain

Photo Essay: Dog and cat friends in Fuengirola, Spain
Photo Essay: Changing moods of the Mediterranean

Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/339626

Art in the Park in Fuengirola Spain - PictoParque

The Councillor for Culture in Fuengirola, Rodrigo Romero, has come up with a great idea. Artists will be able to display their work and discuss art in the Parque de España every Sunday, at no charge.

Not only will artists display their work, the park will become a meeting place for artists and fans of the world of art. Discussions and exchanges of ideas will also take place. And also, not only is this great for local artists, they figure it also helps to make Fuengirola more interesting for tourists. 

For a rather nice change, there is absolutely no charge for the use of a section of the park to display your wares. The premiere of this cultural project was December 16.

Read more and see many more photos at: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/339172

Ecce Homo 'restorer' auctioning her artwork for charity on eBay

Cecilia Giménez, the Spanish artist who was responsible for the unfortunate 'restoration' of the Ecce Homo fresco in a small town church in Spain, is now auctioning one of her own paintings on eBay for charity.

Digital Journal reported in August on the attempts by Giménez to restore the fresco of Christ in the small church in Borja, Spain. The fresco, 'Ecce Homo', depicting Christ, was originally painted by Elías García Martínez.

Possibly in an effort to make up for this, Giménez is selling her own oil painting "Las Bodegas de Borja" (Borja's Wine Cellar), pictured below, and so far, the bidding is doing well, and has reached 710 euros ($929), more than twice the starting price. The bidding apparently ends on Monday. The canvas is 33 x 22 centimeters and is dated 2000, signed by Giménez in the lower right corner.

Giménez added to the description on eBay that proceeds from the sale of the painting will be for the benefit of the Catholic charity organization Caritas.

Cecilia Giménez

Work by Cecilia Giménez, "restorer" of Ecce Homo, on eBay

81-year-old Giménez became a media sensation in August after taking it upon herself to restore a fresco of Christ in a church in the northern Spanish agricultural town of Borja. She unfortunately ruined the original, as can be seen below.

Centro de Estudios Borjanos

'Ecce Homo' - botched restoration by Cecilia Giménez.

However, her attempts soon became notorious worldwide, with entrepreneurs launching sales of souvenirs and t-shirts with the images of Giménez’s work. While the original name of the fresco is "Ecco Homo" (behold the man), Twitter users redubbed it "Ecce Mono" ("Behold the Monkey").

The fresco itself became a popular tourist attraction prompting the use of the picture on t-shirts, wine labels and souvenirs.

In September, Giménez's lawyers stated that she has no interest in a share of the tourism windfall her work has brought to her northeastern Spanish town.

Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/339031

Photo essay: Changing moods of the Mediterranean

Most people imagine the Mediterranean sea as a calm blue ocean and dream of warm, sunny beach holidays. But the Med is much more than a calm blue pond.

While in spring, summer and autumn, you can mostly count on relatively calm seas, warm temperatures and an endless stretch of sandy beach, winter brings some quite different moods to the Costa del Sol. In this article we are visiting Fuengirola, on the south coast of Spain, and exploring some changes which were made in the last couple of years to the fishing and leisure port in the seaside town...  Read more and see more photos

Photo essay: Gibraltar — Little England on the tip of Spain

 

Long an object of dispute between Spain and Great Britain, the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar is a little enigma, tucked away at the very tip of Spain. It's a place where Spanish and English are intertwined...   Read more and view photos