the olive pressAn - Olive July 24, 2008 Press special 1 ll about AJuly 2008 Eight-page supplement Six houses and a forest of fig trees by the N340... yes, La Cala has changed a little over the years The Costa del Sol’s last village really comes to life in summer, particularly The with its July feria this week. We take a closer look at what is on offer

By Jon Clarke ITH a mug of pip- Taking breakfast at Sully’s Maximum Savings ing hot tea in one Cafe in the of the hand and the left- village – a fridge-sized ✪ Clothing ✪ Lingerie oversW of a steak and kid- packet of Lambert & But- ✪ Gifts ✪ Watches & jewellery ney pie on the table, Stan ler cigarettes at his side Boardman was in a terrific – he was more than happy ✪ Toys ✪ Bags & purses mood. Now spending most to shoot the breeze with a of the year in , it is no journalist about Spain and ✪ Cosmetics ✪ Household goods coincidence that the Liver- the colourful figures who ✪ Stationary ✪ School equipment pool comedian has chosen have long inhabited the La Cala de to live. Costa del Sol. ✪ Glassware ✪ Ironmongery “It’s one of the few places While cafe owner John left on the coast that still Sullivan was less keen to has a local village feel,” talk, he had soon joined Open every day ✪ Best prices in La Cala he tells me. “There is still the conversation, as we a very Spanish feel and Calle Cartama, 15 La Cala De Mijas people are friendly.” Turn to Page 2

La Cala’s friendliest Open lunchtimes and evenings Restaurante restaurant offers good daily, except Sunday. service, a wide menu choice Menu of the Day 1 - 3.30pm. and value for money. Private parties catered for. Olé Up the hill from Mercadona, Telephone: 952 49 21 62 Urb. Los Claveles Edf. Ecuador 202, La Cala on the road to the Hipodromo 22 All about La Cala the olive press - July 24, 2008 theAll olive press -about July 24, 2008 La Cala 3 Looking back The transport was to the old days mainly by donkey From Page 1 the beach and its neigh- From previous page up the department – the bouring restaurants buzz- first in Spain – in 1985. discussed the Golden days ing for most of the day. time growing up here. It was around this time of La Cala when the faces Still remaining defiantly “If you had a little bit of that tourism really started included former gangster low rise, its back streets land you could live very to hit La Cala, but fortu- ‘Mad’ Frankie Fraser, Kray and two storey terraced well, but if you lived in the nately due to a combina- minder George Dixon and, houses have maintained town of with tion of luck and good town od course, Ronnie Knight, a distinct Spanish feel. no land say, you would be planning the village was who got married at charm- It is also testament to pretty poor,” he explains. never built up in the same ing El Oceano hotel. La Cala’s popularity that way as, say, nearby Fuen- More recently English bar- the vast majority of these girola. man Tony King – aka The homes have been in the t was in the 1960s “It has managed to main- Costa Killer – worked at same Spanish hands for I with the advent of mass tain the ambience of a now-closed restaurant the decades. tourism that things finally small village by not allow- Chicken Shack. “Apart from one street we started to change, albeit ing lots of hotels to be built As Boardman, who has call Coronation Street - at a very slow pace for La along the beach,” explains a house in the village, which was built 20 years Cala, which was largely Anette. “In fact it is one quips: “I was at Bandi- VISITOR: TV star ago, and is full of English untouched by the first of the only nearly virgin tos in with Mad Chris Tarrant - most of the old part is wave of tourism that ini- beaches left on the coast.” Frankie and Freddie only Spanish,” explains Anto- tially revolutionised the SLEEPY: Alberto Ramon recalls the But not everyone agrees last night... We had a great nia Martinez, who was coastline towns of Torre- that the rest of La Cala dinner of broken leg of “We’ve had brought up in the town molinos and later Fuengi- village was very quiet in 1970 has been conserved for the lamb, bruised spare ribs from Status Quo and Ger- and owns fashion shop rola and Marbella. best. and black-eyed peas.” ry Marsden in for supper,” Coco. While no hotels opened in Many local residents and But La Cala is a lot more says George Thompson, “Unlike many other the area until the 1970s, 9mm film, which has re- expatriates alike abhor the RELAXING: A local resident outside his than just about crims. And, 60, who has been running towns along the coast, the first English started cently been rediscovered. huge amount of develop- Boardman is anything but the Friory fish restaurant most homes here have buying property in the Donated to the Foreigners ment that has gone on in- terraced home in a typically Spanish style the only celebrity to spend in La Cala for the last de- stayed in the family 1950s, according to Anette Department, the film, pro- land from the old N-340. street in La Cala. LEFT: The centuries old time in the Costa’s last vil- cade. and pass from genera- Skou, head of the Foreign- duced between 1955 and As gardener Pepe Martin watchtower dominates the shoreline in lage, with Ryan Giggs and Celebrities aside, there tion to generation. ers Department at Mijas 1960, clearly shows the in- reckons: “They have laid central La Cala and also houses a tourism Chris Tarrant alone having is no doubt La Cala truly There is no way my town hall. credible changes that have too many bricks and used office. It also provides wonderful village visited in recent months. comes alive in summer, family would sell to the One of the trailblazers happened over the last five too much concrete. The views from its roof was a retired army officer decades. area inland has already Major Wilfred Blake, who “It is a wonderful trip down been ruined. All the golf bought a large plot of land memory lane, seeing ev- English or Germans. That jas village there was noth- courses and urbanisations on the Mijas road. eryone travelling by don- have broken the aesthetics is why it keeps its ambi- ing else but rolling moun- He became a travel writer, key and transporting fish ence.” tains and open fields given SMILES ALL of the place. It was all to wrote a number of books up and down the coast,” earn money, but has sadly over to agriculture. ROUND: Stan and even made a short explains Anette, who set “It was incredibly sleepy been at the expense of the Boardman and his countryside and the old ut despite still keep- here when I arrived from wife enjoying a ing some of its in 1970,” said Al- ways of life. B cuppa in La Cala original village atmo- berto Ramon, 67, who “Like many places on the sphere how things have owns the Smugglers bar, coast too much corruption changed. a typical pub near the has been allowed to go Aside from the so-called on... and there is no way beachfront. the area was split between Valley of Golf and its “I came here looking for it is going to stop until we sprawling urbanisations two big families, the first a have stronger laws to keep work, but there wasn’t German family called Ber- north of the busy A-7, the much about. There were mayors and developers in village now has two super- ne and the other a wealthy check.” no hotels and most people Malaga family called Co- markets, a car park - rarely were incredibly poor and less than 99 per cent full trina, who between them lived off the sea. owned most of the land up - and a string of bars, in- “Many of us worked in the or the sake of the cluding Biddy Mulligans to Fuengirola and inland once sleepy village, fields above the main road, towards Mijas. F and Streets of London. which still has some which were mostly given “They had most of the land Indeed, it is only four de- over to fig trees and vines. of its old vestiges, let’s cades ago that La Cala was carved up between them hope it stays that way. little more than half a doz- and employed many local One English couple who labourers.” en cottages and a handful e used to dry the have recently settled in of fishing boats. His family had a little bit the area sum it up well. figs and grapes to of land of its own, where In one old photo (see over) Wmake raisins and take them Alison and Peter Bar- clearly show how sleepy they grew vines to produce ber, a web designer from by donkey to Malaga.” raisins. the village was. Indeed, Almost all transport those Southend, have long had apart from the famous “My grandfather used to a home in the area, but days was by donkey, re- own a lot of vines, but they old watchtower, there was calls Pepe Martin, 54, who finally made the plunge very little else. all died when the phyllox- last year. “The facts are has lived in La Cala all of era virus hit. But we grew Sand lapped at the foot of his life. that La Cala is still pretty the ancient tower, which other things as well and smart compared to a lot of “I was actually born in shared farming equipment was part of a chain of look- Malaga and my mother got other towns” said Peter. outs along the coast to with other families in the “It has changed a lot over there just in time with an area. warn of impending pirate hour donkey ride to Fuen- recent years, but you can attacks, while on the other “It was beautiful back then. still walk around it easily girola, where she took the The land was so unspoilt side open fields stretched train,” he explains. and you don’t feel intimi- up to the single track N- and the fields were full of dated. A gardener at Las Bugan- life. We had an incredible 340, a thoroughfare that villas urbanisation he ex- “But best of all there are has existed since Roman plains how back in the late NO ROOM FOR ROONEY: Alison and Peter not loads of football shirts times. From here up to Mi- 1950s most of the land in Continued next page Barber who recently settled in the area with Rooney on the back.” 4 The Olive Press 2121 4 All about La Cala the olive press - July 24, 2008 the olive press - July 24, 2008 5

Pepe recalls days of Franco and clandestine radio LOOKING BACK: GARDENER Pepe Martin, 54, re- and of course, the news carefully Pirinaica, which you really had to midnight and we would often lis- Pepe still has clear members well the day his father controlled by General Franco and work hard to locate on the airways. ten to it until 2am. But you had to bought the first radio to La Cala. his regime telling us all how won- “It came from the former Commu- be very careful that nobody caught memories of his “It was 1962 and we used to have derful everything was. nist Party of Spain and was emit- you listening or you could be de- childhood days in a group of around 12 to 15 people “But at night we used to listen to a ted from various places around the nounced to the Guardia Civil who La Cala queuing up to listen to it at any one different independent radio station country. It told you what was really were very feared around here in the time. There was music, flamenco – a clandestine station – called La going on. The programme began at 1960s.”

Talking Point Replace Your views on village life the golf courses Village is full of nice people with Mick White and his wife Dilys are typical of the owns the Buffalo Grill restaurant: “They have done English who have lived in the area for some time. brilliantly and most of their friends are Spanish. We industry Having moved here in the mid 1990s from Tenerife moved here for a village way of life and have a nor- they now feel well integrated, particularly with their mal villa overlooking the golf course at Chaparral Property writer Alex twin sons, 11, speaking fluent Spanish and playing and over the sea. But best of all La Cala is full of nice Nicol has lived and for the local La Cala football team. Says Mick, who people and away from Fuengirola.” worked around La Cala for ten years. But he has grown increasingly sick at the huge number of golf courses that have A lot of sprung up in recent years. The owner of Numero Uno, the first changes cafe/estate agent in Spain, says: “There George Thompson, from are an incredible six The Friory restaurant, has golf courses in La Cala seen a lot of changes since alone with another he arrived in La Cala 25 two or three in Mijas. years ago. “It was a really It is completely In and tiny place and when we unsustainable and unnecessary not just used to come through here for the amount of PICTURE BOOK BEAUTY: The recently renovated on the bus there was only water they need. It is town hall (top left), the local Catholic church one road and a couple of ridiculous to build so (above) a residential area nicknamed Coronation shops. People would get off many when most of around the bus to do their shopping Street (below): the main La Cala beach (bottom the apartments and and then get on the next bus urbanisations around centre) and one of the many typically Spanish style them are around 60 side streets (bottom left) 20 to 30 minutes later.” per cent empty at any one time. La Cala What we need is some diversity, not just tourism and particularly LONG TIME RESIDENTS: George with his wife golf tourism. My suggestion would be to turn a couple of them into proper housing Everything is here Very welcoming for people. The Spanish want houses Jeff Jones, who owns Captains restaurant, says: “We Maria Muralla moved to La Cala last year from Du- with gardens and the have been coming to La Cala for 25 years and fell in bai with her husband and absolutely adores living in area could really use Pictures: NENA JACQUES love with it. The best thing about La Cala is you re- the village. “The climate is near perfect and we eat an industrial zone. ally don’t need to go outside the town. Everything is ‘alfresco’ for about five months of the year. And the Not some typical poligono, but an here on our doorstep.” local Spaniards are so welcoming”. area to encourage proper manufacturing industries, to create jobs and to diversify. With 500,000 empty The original and best. We are Now in its tenth year, apartments between Malaga and family run and proud of our: Amir’s Indian Restaurant anyone giving out ● ● more licences to build Good food Service Indian opens daily from 6.30pm should be locked up ● ● immediately” added Ambience Cleanliness Restaurant for dinner and takeaways the property agent. Calle 3, La Cala de Mijas, Mijas Costa - Tel: 952 49 36 92 19 66 All about La Cala the olive press - July 24, 2008 Allthe olive press about - July 24, 2008 La Cala 7 7 Property report After living in the Middle an overview of life in La Cala, In days gone by; the hamlet in 1962 Housing and Far East for almost 30 where he and his wife moved values years, John Steadman gives to live three years ago ‘holding’ One of the few areas to hold its value over the last few years, La Cala, ac- cording to estate agents, might now even be seeing small rises. For the time being though a two-bedroom apart- ment in the town costs around 280,000 euros. Desirable A three bedroom villa in the village, which are in short supply, costs around 800,000 euros plus, while a villa on one of the nearby golf courses costs around 850,000 euros. A townhouse in Corona- tion Street, as it is known, ...the town today for its heavy English presence, costs around 400,000 to 450,000 eu- ros. “La Cala has held its value very well,” says Alex Nicol, from Numero Uno. “It is still desirable unlike a lot of places and there are some bargains to be had.” MAIN JUGULAR: The paseo runs along the centre of the tree and bench-lined Boulevard in La Cala UENGIROLA and Calahonda are Every picture tells a story, and none more the best news possible for us La so than this photograph of La Cala 46 years Cala residents! ago. Don’t get me wrong. I am not the In those days it did not even really qualify as Fbiggest fan of either… nor am I your typi- And the a fishing village, let alone a thriving resort. cal expat spending my days seeking out In fact it comprised of a handful of houses all that originates from my former home- and just a single track road. land. But while La Cala has not escaped en- Changes tirely unscathed from the British inva- good sion of the Costa del Sol it has avoided its Not even a global investor with a crystal ball worst excesses. And this is mainly thanks could have visualised the changes destined to Nordic-influenced Fuengirola and the to take place following the loosening of British-enclave of Calahonda nearby, news is Franco’s iron-grip rule, and the later Space who soak them all up! Age changes throughout the Costa del Sol. Yes, La Cala has bars, cafes and businesses In some ways sadly, things will never be that offer English fare ranging from fish family focused. the same, but it is always nice to be able to and chips to Guinness and Sunday roasts. There are no in-your-face pulsating disco look back, and to perhaps imagine just how But the former fishing village that until bars and few noisy mopeds, though one simple - but also how difficult - living in La recently boasted a mere 2,200 popula- area with homes owned by dozens of Cala must have been in 1962. tion still provides a relaxed daily lifestyle English families is nicknamed Corona- and retains much of its original Spanish tion Street! pedigree. Parking is a challenge in summer, when Nestled 25 minutes west of Malaga air- post office queues build up with a cos- THE port, 15 minutes from Mijas pueblo, and mopolitan mix of Spanish, Italians, Ger- 25 minutes to Marbella, expanding La mans, French, Dutch and British. CARTRIDGE Cala is nowadays part split by the A7. The Guardia Civil man a summer office, but Though it clearly possesses its fair share a presence never seems actively needed in CONNECTION SOS Catering, of property development warts - most, surrounds more noted for peace and quiet. Open 7 days - 10.00am till late Sunday Roast though not all, on the northern side of the With most residents willing to exchange Wide selection of freshly prepared food Translation carretera - the original village itself still a smile and a friendly ‘Hola’, there is Live coverage of all major sporting events has bags of character through clever town warmth to local life, and while a couple of R nights Children’s play area planning dating back decades. traders appear in need of happy pills, that L EC IL & Interpreting Services The main Boulevard running through is probably linked to the current business F Y 8 C E

the middle of La Cala is the cosmetic and downturn. L

R

E

business jugular, with trees and flower- Despite plans for a Malaga to Marbella Call Yvonne beds lining the central walkway and won- train with a La Cala stop, plus a local ma- 8

derfully lit up during fiestas. rina, the lion’s share of any future coastal S AV Y on 670 024 036 Not surprisingly, less than a handful of changes - especially those with a foreign E M ONE local Spanish families own the major influence - will hopefully continue to be share of its best real estate. in Fuengirola and Calahonda. [email protected] Apart from side street cafes and bars with This will guarantee La Cala remains re- Las adelfes.11 - N340KM 202 29649 Mijas Costa mammoth televisions and karaoke ses- served, retiring and a little bit special to www.thecartridgeconnection.net Telephone: 952 493 763 sions, La Cala tourism is mainly golf and boot. 88 All about La Cala the olive press - July 24, 2008 11

13

9 10 8 12 3 7 5 6 4 1 The Cartridge Connection 2 White Design Company 3 The Friory Fish & Chips 4 Homefinders Real Estate 2 5 The Discount Warehouse 6 Numero Uno Estates 7 Natasha’s 1 8 Coco’s World 9 Hydro Cleanse 10 Amir’s Indian Restaurant 11 Ole Restaurant 12 Tex Mex Buffalo Grill 13 The Captain’s Bar