LAS CHORRERAS

For this Saturday’s guided walk, organised by the Patronato de Tourismo, we met at 0900 in Loja and drove to Venta de Santa Barbara, a little village about 10 minutes away, situated in a pleasant, sheltered valley.
The destination of the walk was to be Las Chorreras, the spectacular waterfall on the Rio Frio.
A clearly marked track from the village led us through olive groves and along the Rio Frio whose banks were lined with poplar trees and oleander bushes. Our guide told us that people used to use oleander as a means of catching fish easily. The plant is poisonous, so when branches were thrown into the water, the fish would die. Also along the riverbank were poplars, hazel trees, wild clematis and tamarisk.
Eventually we crossed the river over stepping stones and followed a path through blackberry bushes to the falls. The force of the cascading water has carved out of the rock below a deep pool. The water is cool, green and inviting, so many of the party, including all the children, couldn’t resist a splash and a swim.

QUEREMOS QUEDAR CONTIGO

Every Saturday in August the Patronato de Tourismo de Loja organises a guided walk around Loja. The walks are conducted at 9am or 9pm to avoid the midday heat and each one has a different theme. Yesterday evening’s walk was the Route of the Personalities and led by the Mayor, Miguel Castellano. The group met at the Mirador Sylvania which affords the best panorama of the city, immortalized in the Marx brothers’ film “Duck Soup.”

The walk took us through the oldest and most interesting part of the town in which statues of some of Loja’s most important historical figures are situated. Our guide talked at length about the famous priest, Jiménez Campaña, member of the Spanish Arts Academy ( 19th century) and Narváez, known as the“Great Sword of Loja”, whose impressive bronze statue dominates the plaza.

We continued the walk through a horseshoe arch, once the passage to the fortressed quarter in Islamic times, and up to the Alcazabar where, across from the floodlight spire of the Great Church of the Encarnation, our guide the Mayor, recounted the history and legends of the castle.

Photos of Mirador Sylvania and the Mayor conducting the group.

Next Saturday there will be a morning walk entitled The Environment of Loja. For more information contact :
Juan Antonio Peregrina Coca
Patronato Municipal de Turismo de Loja*
C/Comedias, nº 2, Edificio Espacio Joven
18300 Loja (Granada)
Telf.: 958 321 520
Fax: 958 325 650
info@ lojaturismo.com

www.lojaturismo.com / www.aytoloja.org

SIERRA MARTILLA

This morning we went to look at the archeological site in the Sierra Martilla in the north of the municipality of Loja. To get there you turn left at the top of the village of Ventorros de San Jose. It is signposted. After a few km down this road there is a track on the right with a notice board describing the site. We drove up the track to a rocky plateau which was protected on three sides by a vertical rock face - the perfect place for our ancestors to feel secure. From the plateau there are the most spectacular views of the Lake of Iznajar, the valleys below and the hills beyond. It was too hot to wander for long and there was nobody else there but we found some tombs from the Copper Age, an Arab watchtower and groups of large stones. This was once an important settlement and we will return to explore it more thoroughly when the weather is cooler.

VA DE CALLE

The 19th festival of street entertainment in Loja, Va de Calle, takes place this weekend. There are six "espectáculos", which include contemporary dance and circus theatre being performed during the evenings of Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Details from www.aytoloja.org or from the Tourist Information Office. There is also a theatre workshop on Saturday morning in the Avda. de los Angeles. We hope to post some photos later.
Talking about photos please have a look at our new blog www.fotosdeloja.wordpress.com

LOS INFIERNOS DE LOJA

Yesterday we went in search of Los Infiernos de Loja, the spectacular waterfalls of the Rio Genil close to the town. In the little village of La Esperanza, just to the north of the town, there is a signpost opposite the bar indicating Los Infiernos 600 metres. This lane ends after about 200 metres and one is faced by open fields with not a waterfall in sight. Fortunately there was a camposino ( agricultural worker ) working in a field and he indicated that we had to walk across a field to a pylon and from there we would see the falls. They are quite spectacular but difficult to photograph as it is somewhat dangerous standing on the opposite edge of the ravine. Further enquiries indicate that you can get to the bottom of the ravine by accessing the Rio Genil from the centre of the town. We will try this another day when it is not too hot.

ENGLISH IN LOJA

On the first Tuesday in every month there is an informal meeting of the English speaking residents in the area of Loja at the Hotel Almazora - www.englishinloja.com. This lovely hotel is located in the olive hills near Venta del Rayo about 10 minutes drive from Loja. Here is a photo taken today of the gathering relaxing on the terrace which overlooks the pool and the view from the terrace.

We went along this morning specifically to discuss arrangements for an art exhibition, Con Otros Ojos, which is being held in Loja at the end of September and arranged by the Asociación de Angloparlantes de Loja - sites.google.com/site/loslojanglos. Three artists and two photographers have been invited to produce work for the exhiibition. As I am one of the artists and Digby one of the photographers we need to put our heads together to create some original pieces that reflect life around Loja.

EXHIBITION OF PAINTINGS

From next Saturday, 19th June, there will be an exhibition of my paintings at the Hotel Cortijo de Tájar which is just off the A92 junction to Huétor Tájar. The subject matter will be quite varied as I would like to see what appeals to the local populace and the media will be pastel and watercolour.
Also at the exhibition will be signed prints of some of my work, signed copies of my books and my cat pebbles from the Rio Milanos. I am particularly pleased with the quality of the prints as we have recently purchased a new Canon imagePROGRAF printer which uses 12 colour ink cartridges and is producing very good images on Arches 310gsm digital watercolour paper.
The two paintings here are a watercolour of Loja and a pastel study from the flamenco show "Aires de Raja Flamenca" which was performed during the recent Feria Chica.
Next Saturday I will be at the Hotel during lunchtime and for dinner in the evening.