As far as I can remember, Almuñécar has never been as beautifully adorned for Christmas as this year. The spectacular Christmas tree at the Town Hall square, with hundreds of poinsettias in a 7 metre high structure, and the fabulous decorations of the many roundabouts, especially the one at Avenida Carlos I, with a huge cello in the middle.
Shopkeepers and offices have obviously been inspired by the trend, the commercial centre being adorned with Christmas lights and ‘pasqueros’ in every corner. At the Plaza Madrid there is a huge white cone decorated with stars, reminding me of the hats the star boys wear in the Saint Lucia processions in Scandinavia.
The old magnolia trees at plaza de Los Magnolios, which had to be cut due to old age and disease, have now been replaced by new ones and the whole square has been given a ‘face lift.’ Similar renovations are going on in many places in the town centre.
The taxi driver who drove me, and my husband, home from a ‘mulled wine’ party some days ago said that all this is due to ‘the feminine touch.’ Of course we have to thank many men and women for their efforts to beautify our town, but especially our new mayor Trinidad Herrera, who has also set out to restore places in need of repair.
Our thanks also go to the councillor for Fiestas and Relaciones Institutionales, Maria del Mar Medina, who got the idea to borrow some left over decorations from Malaga in order to create a fantastic Christmas atmosphere in spite of shortage of money in the communal till.
When swallowing our grapes on New Year’s Eve we have many wishes to make, on a personal as well as a general level. On the general level, the wishes I will make is that the European Union will come to some concrete and final solution regarding the future of the EU, and that the governments in Europe will finally stop overspending and that they will find a way out of the catastrophic unemployment situation.
The New Year will be a challenging one in many ways. The European Union is going through its worst crisis, and the measures taken so far seem to be more or less ‘band aid’ solutions.
The overall unemployment figures are higher than ever, nearing 30% in some regions. While general unemployment figures in Europe vary, the north European countries present the best statistics; youth unemployment seems to be a global problem. Almost wherever you look, the figures for youth unemployment are appallingly high. Here in Andalucia about 40 % amongst15-24 year olds are unemployed. Many people, old as well as young depend on charity to make ends meet.
In Almuñécar, Caritas are doing a fantastic job to help people getting through everyday life. A good promise for 2012 is to help Caritas by giving food, clothes or money for the benefit of those in need. The churches of Encarnación and El Salvador are open for contributions daily. Details regarding times etc. are posted at the church entrances.
With best wishes for a Happy and Prosperous New Year.
P.S. One personal wish for 2012 is that the Andalusians would learn how to drive in the roundabouts they are so good at decorating.