In an interview in Diario Sur, Rafael Lamelas, Chairman of the Costa Tropical Hotel Association, said that Nordic visitors make a great contribution towards keeping the tourist market in the area alive during the winter months. According to Sr. Lamelas, the “Nordic tourism” decreased only by between 8 and 10 percent last year, which helps to provide some stability to the branch in these times of economic crisis. He also expressed his appreciation for tourists from the Nordic countries, calling them “decent people who do not cause any problems or make too much fuss of themselves.” That was nice of him!
It also seems that the number of Nordic people who stay here over the winter months has increased after a period of decline. In our association (Asociación Hispano-Nórdica de la Costa Tropial) with about 300 members, the number of new members in 2009 was 31, which is a record compared to the previous couple of years. Some background info about our club might be needed, as many readers might not be familiar with the organization and its activities:
Asociación Hispano-Nórdica, or AHN for short, was originally founded in 1968 in Fuengirola, at that time, a small, humble fishing village. Many people from Sweden had settled down there in the beginning of the 1960s, and soon there emerged a need for them to come together and get support from compatriots and other Nordic people in a more organized manner. After many tiresome rounds with Spanish legalisation, which we know can be very tricky, Asociación Hispano-Nórdica was founded on the 4th of October 1968. The main purpose of the association was to promote mutual understanding of, and knowledge about, the Spanish and Nordic cultures among the population in the local area. The founding members were Prince Carl Bernadotte, Doctor Einar Ekholm, Doctor Erik Feltström and Mr. Erik Falkman.
In autumn 2008, big 40th anniversary celebrations were held by AHN clubs in Fuengirola, as well as in all the branch associations around the Costa del Sol. AHN Costa Tropical arranged a big anniversary party at Club Náutico in Almuñécar.
AHN is the oldest Nordic association on the Costa del Sol, the majority of members coming from Sweden and the rest from Norway and Finland. AHN clubs can now be found in Fuengirola/Mijas, Marbella, Benalmádena, Nueva Andalucía, Torremolinos, Almuñécar and Nerja.
AHN Costa del Sol in Almuñécar presides in Edifício Mariote, Paseo San Cristóbal. Our weekly club meetings are on Wednesdays and our activities range from talks and lectures on cultural, health-related, historical, etc. topics, film evenings, walking tours in the beautiful mountains surrounding our town, art exhibitions, golf etc.
After the Christmas break we have met in the club twice so far, the first one being just mingling in the bar and exchanging Almuñécar gossip and news from our home countries after the Xmas-holidays up North. Three trekking tours in the mountains have been arranged so far, the New Year Round in the mountains surrounding Almuñécar resulted in people getting wet as drowned cats. A hot bath and a New Year’s drink on the stiff side were more than called for.
The next trip went to the beautiful mountains near the idyllic village of Lobres, followed by a trip to the mountains surrounding Salobreña. We always reach the starting point in our own cars and a special feature of this queue is that we Nordic people keep a ‘safety distance’ which more often than not is disturbed by impatient locals. No wonder many people, especially women, are afraid of driving here. I think I’ll put up a sign in the rear window reading ‘Abuela.’ Knowing the respect people in this area show women and especially the elderly, this might be a good idea.