Five years ago we moved from London to a small valley called the Vall de Pop, 30 minutes inland from the Costa Blanca in Spain. A cluster of traditional Spanish villages are strung out like beads on a necklace, from Calpe on the touristy coast to Castell de Castells in the rugged Serella Mountain range. Initially we rented an apartment in Jalon, while we renovated a 'casa del pueblo' in Parcent, one of the smaller villages - some 900 inhabitants... This is my email record of our journey.
Hola! Bon Festes! We've arrived as it's October fiesta time here in Jalon, but this is THE BIG ONE. Festival of the Poor Virgin's 50th Anniversary - Aniversario de la Coronacion de la Virgen Pobre. Which is also the name of the town's biggest bodega, a lucrative coincidence as they are dishing out free wine and beer.
In the plaza today, there are huge tortilla pans cooking over bonfires and the streets are being decorated. Well, that's hardly the word for it - the roads have been painted with huge murals, symbols and religious messages in celebration of the Virgin Mary, some streets have gold zigzags along the kerbs, others are painted completely green and swirled with flowers, others in the pale blue and white of the Virgin. Every street was cleared of cars yesterday, the whole town was cordoned off and carparking space made in a nearby field. Each household has been out painting - the roads, kerbs, steps and pavements. At 11pm last night there were old ladies wielding brooms to clear the way for the spraypainters carrying road wide stencils. It's like walking around Disneyland. Some streets have become tunnelled arches of paper flowers, strung from the balconies, some have draped banners and party streamers. Gotta get my photos developed but no doubt they won't do it justice. To walk around here is like being on a film set of a Spanish village, you suspect you could turn a corner and see that the apparently sturdy houses are just fakes. Meanwhile the girls are loving the unreality of it, music at all hours and excuses to stay up late.
Our moving-in date is drawing nearer - weekend of 30th Nov / 1st December 2001. The house in Parcent is just barely renovated, two upper floors have new terracotta tiles and whitewashed walls. Downstairs we have the basic rudiments of a kitchen, and the living room is full of cement bags, cement mixer, paint pots, empty beer cans and other essentials. If I kick out the builders, we can move in time to erect the Christmas tree on Dec 1st - a regular family ritual.
The acid test of our move abroad will come soon - getting jobs. My Spanish is still variable - some days it's coherent, other days I forget how to say 15 or Thursday. Languages are tricky blighters - if you say 'Es bueno?' as opposed to 'Estas bien?' you're asking if someone feels sexy! Bit inappropriate when buying your green beans at the market. Oh well, we're making friends quickly... Hasta luego, P & Co
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