There are four venues open tonight, including what amounts to a fascinating experiment in the use of the castle grounds. Plus there’s a musical parade through the streets and, naturally, great music to wrap yourself in. Click on the picture to enlarge and find out all about it on the Festival Website. Have you visited it yet?

The International Music Festival got off to a very good start. The inauguration ceremony at the Reina Sofía Cultural Centre was followed by a concert by Trio Satz. As that was ending, Dorantes and his group were warming up at Llano de la Victoria. An error in the printed programme caused a little panic among the organizers: the flamenco/jazz fusion was about to start but the seats were almost empty. Very soon, though, the audience filtered in to fill that lovely venue and all was well again. To see more picts and notes

In the meantime, down at the main square, El Paseo, the students from the Municipal Flamenco School, ranging in age from three to indeterminate, began to rehearse for the last time before going onstage. Nerves were at maximum pitch, but they just disappeared as, group by group, they filed onstage to give their best. It is wonderful to see how much they have all improved over the years, in good measure thanks to the school’s director, David Morales.

The atmosphere was relaxed and expectant at the same time. The bars around the square filled up with people coming down from the jazz concert, and the sounds of Flamenco filled the air. The street market was seething with customers and the cool breeze lifted everyones’ spirits. There is more tonight and a much larger crowd is expected on Saturday.

And the night drew to a close, though this one didn’t seem to know it….

As always happens with these events, preparations went on up to the last minute and sometimes beyond. Just so you know, TioJimeno and JimenaPulse have decided to pool our photographs of the Festival to avoid repetition and unnecessary double coverage of a performance. Below is a selection of some of them, only TioJimeno hasn’t got up yet so we can only show you ours… (We’ll soon get around to putting them up in slides)

What can’t you find here?

Here you will find a lot more than a wide selection of reading- or sunglasses…

This is, of course, the local chemist right next to the Health Centre.

Hector Regueira heads this Jimena institution (that’s him on the right) and relies on good people like Paco (left) and Mariángeles. There are more of the Regueira team but it’s almost ipossible to get them all together for a photo session. In any case, you can be sure of the best possible professional service, advice and kindness.

And not least, amongst the the many things you would expect to find here, they will also take your old glasses and unused medicines to send to the Third World.

ÓPTICA REGUEIRA

(Lic. Héctor Regueira Máuriz)
Avda. de los Deportes,2
Jimena de la Frontera
956 640 004

Tanya’s Saturday Pony Club is lots of fun!

Children of all ages, and even adults, get to learn about horses.

There’s something for everyone to do

Anything from grooming to stable management

They get a good dose of fresh air in the countryside, too.

While you get a break!

Tanya’s Saturday Pony Club is from 10am to 5pm. Lunch and drinks are included.
Individual riding lessons are available, too, and keep an eye on JimenaPulse for upcoming events like ghymkhanas, competitions, summer camps, etc.

All of this just 20 minutes from Sotogrande, at Km 27 on the A405, before getting to Jimena. But it’s easier to click here to find the Saturday Pony Club on Google Maps!

Call TANYA WARD on 627 649 320 for more information

Here’s the meat!

CARNICERÍA DOMINGO, YOUR BUTCHER IN THE SUPERMARKET

where Domingo himself will prepare whatever you like,

including delicious pork with crackling and a host of pre-prepared dishes (hamburgers, osso buco, croquettes and ‘pinchitos’, for example) to cook yourself. And you can order your British-style roast beef here, too! Domingo is also a farmer with his own cattle, a guarantee of freshness and care.

COMING SOON AT CARNICERÍA DOMINGO: ORGANIC BEEF

CARNICERÍA DOMINGO

at MERCARONDA
Estación de Jimena
Mobile: 670 673 410

Find CARNICERÍA DOMINGO on GoogleMaps here.

We’re a couple of hours away from the Festival inaugural hoo-hah. It would be a waste of time for us to put up today’s programme here when you can check it easily on the Festival Website in English. But we did anyway - click on the picture. A note to our readers: Given that Prospero has somehow nosed his way onto the Festival committee, that he has a new-and-gratefully-received camera and that he has a commitment to you, he is likely to be pretty absorbed by the event over the next few days. If you have any news you think we all need to know about, please feel free to write in via our e-mail, which you will find at ‘Contact Us’, at the top of the right sidebar.

Bar-Restaurante La Tasca has, we believe, the only complete collection of framed festival posters, displayed on the dining room wall (click picture to enlarge). It is worth seeing how the festival has developed over the years. And try a tapa of Victoria’s great tortilla de patatas while you’re there…

Where eating is a real pleasure

La Cuadra opened in December 2006 and has become one of the most popular watering holes in town. No wonder, the food is good, the service professional and attentive. Their pizzas rival for attention with some surprising dishes on the menu (also in English). They are at the top of the village and in top form. Give them a try, you won’t regret it! And tell them you saw them on JimenaPulse.

Find them here on Google Maps