Spaniards who convert to Islam – particularly the order of Sufism – are a rarity clad from headscarf to sandals in shades of pink and purple which means ‘ocean of beauty and compassion’ in Arabic sweets were proffered and we sat down in the shade of more than 100-year-old olive trees in the backyard of her tiny Montessori school to talk about Sufism But we weren’t in a Muslim country – we were in the south of Catholic Spain located approximately 60km southeast of Granada and tucked away in the Alpujarra mountain region The small town’s population is just under 6,000 – but amazingly as well as the Buddhist community O.Sel.Ling and a sprawling tent camp of Rainbow people (a group committed to principles of non-violence and egalitarianism) called Beneficio But I’d come to this mountain wilderness to meet the largest of the cultural communities: 35 Sufi families who have converted from Catholicism and settled here Despite Spain being home to many North African immigrants I wanted to know what motivated them to convert and why they’d chosen this remote part of Andalucía to live later studying law and working in Madrid as a lawyer “My search for the right way of life actually started in the Catholic college I attended in Seville,” she said doubting and experimenting until I finally came upon the philosophy and teachings of Sufism unconditional love of mankind and total rejection of violence made me convert That’s also one of the reasons why I turned from being an attorney to teaching kids.” who was appointed emir of the order in the 1970s happened to live in Órgiva before he converted like Bahia who jumped at the chance to run the school when the opportunity arose But the Sufis of Órgiva aren’t dreaming navel-gazers like Bahia with her Montessori school and her husband who has an electrical appliances shop But all their lives are dominated by their faith The only thing that marks them as different is their distinctive dress: the men wear baggy trousers and loose shirts with an underlying fear of terror attacks in Spain and some people starting to associate Islam with jihadists and radicalisation nobody looks twice because we are a rather big community people might stare at the way I’m dressed and maybe think me alien Rather than being concerned by stares and whispered comments people have a very one-sided view of Islam Bombs and terror attacks make headlines; good deeds don’t This imbalance needs to be addressed and people have to understand that Islam and Sufism in particular mean peace and total devotion to Allah who is the boat which helps us cross the ocean of life,” she said To find out more, I headed to Tearoom and Restaurant Baraka Originally from a Catholic family in Bilbao where he ran the family restaurant he was also searching  for spiritual direction from a young age “I experimented with many things,” he said When I discovered the teachings and found that Jesus is a prophet in Islam Everything was familiar to me and I knew that this is the faith I wanted to follow “How did your family react to that?” I asked There was also the problem with our restaurant A fellow Sufi in Órgiva wanted to set up a small Islamic restaurant but didn’t have the money I became first a silent partner and now the sole owner.” I ordered a delicious Moroccan-style chicken tagine followed by a rich date-and-cinnamon cake with whipped cream Sitting on the terrace at Baraka was a lesson in how different nationalities ideologies and religions can interact peacefully Dreadlocks and headscarves – even the occasional orange robe of a Buddhist monk – were evident “We say our prayers in Arabic but that’s the extent of my knowledge of the language.” where on Thursday nights the community celebrates dhikr On the holy day of Friday there are more prayers and a communal meal hidden away among olive and orange groves some 2km outside of town and three spartan guest rooms reserved for visiting fellow Sufis Kids ran around while women prepared a meal and tended to a group of visitors “These are people from Morocco and other Muslim countries who embark on what’s called Halal Tourism visiting Muslim communities in other countries It’s becoming quite popular,” Qasim explained He agreed with Bahia about the need to spread the message of peace love and understanding to the non-Muslim world we welcome visitors like yourself who can tell the world about us,” he said If you liked this story, sign up for the weekly bbc.com features newsletter, called “If You Only Read 6 Things This Week”. 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Longevity is not uncommon in the Alpujarra area of Granada province in the Andalucía region of southern Spain climate and social life are some of the keys to ageing well 95-year-old Juan Antonio Viana López is clear about the secret of his longevity: he never stops working in the fields and eating homemade food The only one who is still alive is Juan Antonio who lived in Carataunas until he was 13 years old Then he came to live in Bayacas to work on his parents' farm but it would be fair to say that he is a professor in the 'university of rural life' Juan Antonio goes to his farm where avocado trees abound Here he has a farmhouse where he can have a quick rest There is no shortage of laying hens and a very vocal cockerel Unlike many people from rural areas of Spain Juan Antonio has not had to leave his village to find work elsewhere When he was 30 he married Francisca Gallardo Martín They have a son and a daughter and two granddaughters The rhythm of his life has hardly changed and there is nothing wrong with his memory says that when he was young "there were three taverns three flour mills and two oil mills in the village The people worked in agriculture and livestock farming The festivities in honour of our patron saint San Sebastián were great fun I am very well preserved because I have always eaten what the land I work gives me: potatoes Until a few years ago I had goats for good milk and rabbits and pigs for household expenses "My farm full of fruit trees gives me a living The wine I drink is brought to me by my son from Albuñuelas Now I am in the final stretch of my life but as long as I can I will continue to work my land because that is what I have done since I was a child." Comentar es una ventaja exclusiva para registrados Ayúdanos a mejorar Valora tu satisfacción con CanalUGR has now recovered the bodies of 124 victims in Víznar (province of Granada) and has begun preliminary survey work for the excavations that will take place in 2025 in the Barranco del Carrizal ravine in Órgiva (Granada) The team of researchers led by Francisco Carrión Méndez a Senior Lecturer in Prehistory and Archaeology at the University of Granada (UGR) has excavated a mass grave in the Barranco de Víznar ravine where they found the bodies of 10 people with gunshot wounds to the head and their hands tied behind their backs The team is now proceeding with their exhumation for subsequent analysis bringing the total number of bodies recovered so far to 124 Following the entry into force in July 2022 of the Law of Democratic Memory the Barranco de Víznar ravine in the province of Granada has been designated a Democratic Memory Site executions took place shortly after the beginning of the Spanish Civil War The victims found by the UGR team were mostly killed in groups usually with one to four shots to the head the Commissioner for Reconciliation (Regional Ministry of Tourism who is responsible for managing historical and democratic memory policies in the Autonomous Region of Andalusia visited the Víznar excavation site on Tuesday 23 April The excavation process began in mid-January and is scheduled to continue until June coordinated by Dr Carrión and made up of archaeologists is to excavate and exhume at least three new mass graves identified through archaeological prospection in 2023 They also plan to investigate other areas in the same ravine that exhibit potential indications of new burial sites The exhumed skeletal remains will now be identified at the UGR Genetic Identification Laboratory where they will be compared with DNA samples taken from individuals who believe that their relatives are buried in the ravine This will enable the researchers to finally identify the victims and allow family members to bury their ancestors in a dignified manner the UGR research team has begun the preliminary phase of research into the mass graves of the Barranco del Carrizal ravine an official memorial site where the UGR’s Andalusian Institute of Geophysics and Earthquake Disaster Prevention (IAGPDS) is carrying out geophysical surveys and archaeological prospection This preliminary work must be completed before excavations can begin in 2025 10 bodies found with signs of gunshot wounds and their hands tied behind their backs Electrical tomography profile revealing three anomalies Translated version: This text has been translated into English by the Language Services Unit (Vice-Rectorate for Internationalization) of the University of Granada Esta página web utiliza cookies propias y de terceros con fines técnicos para medir y analizar la navegación en la web y para gestionar el consentimiento del usuario para el uso de las cookies Usted puede elegir no 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convertirá su información en anónima truncando la dirección IP antes de almacenarla de forma que Google Analytics no se usa para localizar o recabar información personal identificable de los visitantes del sitio Google solo podrá enviar la información recabada por Google Analytics a terceros cuanto esté legalmente obligado a ello Con arreglo a las condiciones de prestación del servicio de Google Analytics Google no asociará su dirección IP a ningún otro dato conservado por Google se descarga una cookie denominada cookie_agreed Gestiona el consentimiento del usuario para el uso de las cookies en la página web El objetivo es recordar aquellos usuarios que las han aceptado y aquellos que no de modo que a los primeros no se les muestre información en la parte inferior de la página al respecto bloquear o borrar las cookies de la Universidad de Granada o cualquier otra página web En cada navegador la operativa es diferente la función de 'Ayuda" le mostrará cómo hacerlo Las cookies estrictamente necesarias tiene que activarse siempre para que podamos guardar tus preferencias de ajustes de cookies Si desactivas esta cookie no podremos guardar tus preferencias Esto significa que cada vez que visites esta web tendrás que activar o desactivar las cookies de nuevo A group of seven Moorish villages in southern Spain are the perfect place to recharge – offering mountain air sparkling springs and any excuse for a party I walk into the kitchen to make coffee and wonder if I’m feeling the effects of the previous night’s festivities Then I remember it’s not me; it’s the kitchen floor I have to be careful carrying the coffee back to bed as the steps are at different heights and the doorways are small enough to bump your head on beneath a ceiling constructed of woven chestnut branches and stone slabs and come to the pleasing conclusion that there’s not a single right angle in sight We are staying in a Moorish house in this Andalucían village and I may as well have travelled back the 700 years to when it was first built as my husband leads wilderness tours here and we’ve travelled from one end to the other seeking out hidden corners and mountain trails ducking under ancient covered walkways while spring water rushes past our feet The village gives the impression of having grown out of the land and the only sound is the occasional bleating of goats across the slopes As I look out over the valley on this crisp winter’s morning the sun is blazing in a solid blue sky and early almond blossom adds splashes of pastel pink to the rocky hills A typical Moorish village house in La Tahá Photograph: Lois PryceAtalbéitar is part of La Tahá a group of seven villages in the Alpajurras region of Andalucía on a southern slope of the Sierra Nevada overlooking the deep gorge of the Trevelez River Fondales and Ferreirola have retained their Moorish feel thanks to their unique architecture and remote location Access into the valley is by a winding mountain road that passes through Pitres but all the other villages are reached by spurs off this road although there is an improvised social club/bar who opens up his home on the main square when the mood takes him That’s not to say there isn’t a lively social scene La Tahá boasts a busy calendar of festivals many of them relating to Easter and various Saint’s days such as an autumn chestnut festival called Mauraca which includes a traditional “burial of the fox” with a fancy dress parade culminating in a bonfire cremation of a mock fox stuffed with fireworks rather than been imposed upon itOur arrival coincides with the first festival of the year when each of the La Tahá villages celebrates with a bonfire in the central plaza and a feast of barbecued pork and local sweet wine The definitive reason for the festivities seems to have been lost in the mists of time – it’s all about the party The most striking aspect for us – arriving fresh from cash-strapped England with its bankrupt councils – is that all the meat and bread and booze is provided by the local authority a jam-band of local musicians has set up by the fire and the scent of roasting meat fills the air The area is a quiet success story that contradicts rural Spain’s usual lament of empty villages and dying populations the seven villages have attracted an international crowd of artists is famous for its longstanding hippy commune and bohemian reputation with its rambling old houses and fertile land is a perfect location to seek out la buena vida The festival of San Antón is celebrated with a bonfire in the central plaza and a feast of barbecued pork and local sweet wine Photograph: Lois PryceWe’re invited into the jam session drums and penny whistle are soon bashing out a 12-bar blues with improvised Romanian lyrics We use a jar of lentils from our rental property as a percussion instrument The meat and wine seem limitless but in true British form we peak early and leave the locals to their late-night carousing with a refreshing lack of wellbeing waffle or burned-out execs turned wellness gurusIn the morning steadying my sea legs on the kitchen floor I remind myself of our holiday intentions: two weeks of healthy living after the excesses of the festive season starting with a heart-pumping walk each day The villages of La Tahá are connected by a network of trails and over the course of our stay we vow to visit each village on foot Our first trek takes us along the river gorge to Pitres: it’s a dramatic rugged hike punctuated by gasps of both amazement and a shameful lack of fitness The slopes of the Trevelez valley are insanely steep, winding through enchanted forests of pine and oak, with orchards of orange and lemon trees in the villages, and wild figs and pomegranates at every turn. The valley’s geology is striated with mica and the landscape shimmers silver in the sunlight. Walking this lush we find it hard to believe that much of Spain is in the midst of a crippling drought Streams pour down the mountainside and natural springs bubble from the rock In the depth of the forest we come to the most famous spring where a high concentrate of iron carbonates in the rock has created a natural supply of agua con gas View from La Mezquita River Trevelez valley to Ferreirola and Busquistar at sunset Photograph: Jan Traylen/AlamyWe start our walks with the most challenging uphill climbs but eventually make it down to the bottom of the valley drawn to the roar of the Trevelez long before we can see it Our efforts are rewarded with a final scramble through the undergrowth to an icy dip in a natural pool beneath a Roman bridge abundant water and fresh mountain air do wonders for everything that ails you in our ultra-connected western European lives The villages themselves are beautiful in their simplicity and cafes serving good coffee and not much else and vans selling bread and fish do the rounds of the villages or burned-out execs turned wellness gurus exhorting you to live your best life an old man in his pyjamas grunting “Buenas” from his balcony every morning and all the bounty of mother earth – everything you need for the good life Details of the walking trails between the villages, 7 Towns, 7 Routes, can be found here. The writer stayed at albaholidaylets.com Archibald Weston Somerville passed away on April 28 He is survived by his daughter Kathy (Dan) Somerville of Lumby BC; sons Wes (Amanda) Somerville of Orgiva He was predeceased by his wife Delores and parents Wes and Sally Somerville please scroll down the page to the area called “Share Your Condolences.” Archibald Weston is scheduled for Thursday Below you will find the map for the service location and the contact information should you have any questions » Condolences sent through this page can be seen by the public. If you wish for your condolence to go to the family privately, please send it to: " + EmailId +" » Condolences sent through this page can be seen by the public. If you wish for your condolence to go to the family privately, please send it to: contact@springfieldfuneralhome.com I loved how he always greeted every one with his special wave He seemed to have friends everywhere he went He was the first person to introduce my 8 year old son to “the wave” Archie was a wonderful person who always had a smile and a story to tell We would like to extend our condolences to all of you in this time of sorrow We share your loss and offer our deepest condolences to you all There is no way of remembering without smiling because thats who he was..all smiles big hugs funny stories and pure of heart! It has been such a blessing sharing moments of our lives with him..he has enriched us all! Rest in peace big guy..we love u and thank you so very sad to hear of the passing of Mr Somerville as i always called him .I have many good memories of him and i going through his shed of bikes getting me parts and helping me with bikes for less fotunate people we always made a good deal i visited often and always enjoyed my time hangin out in the yard lookin at all the stuff he had to show.a better man i will never know rest now sir you will be missed my friend remember your dad as a more than decent man » To share your condolence on this page please fill out the requested fields click the 'Choose File' button and select a photo from your computer » Your email is never published or shared NOTE: all messages will go through an administrative process before being posted Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value" Everything was so organized and pertinent to what we needed courteous and very helpful during our emotional and challenging time They were so prompt on answering any questions and changing things They were prepared and respected any religious decisions The process was so seamless and made easy in such a high stress situation In the past 2 years Springfield has helped us through the death of my Mother and my Father Their response and help allowed us to focus on the remaining family rather than worrying about details of the funeral and all the notifications that are required upon a death The atmosphere has been nothing but professional during times of grief the staff coached me on the next steps and looked after filling in all the government forms that I needed to sign which took a huge burden off my mind at the time From the time I called to the completion of all the services There was a sense of caring from each staff member I was turning over my Mom to their care and I felt very comfortable with everyone I felt heard and never felt pushed into any decision I have always found the team at Springfield Funeral Home to be VERY caring I have and will continue to recommend them to anyone who asks which funeral home would I suggest they use No other funeral home I have dealt with even comes close to Springfield Funeral Home I was made to feel as if I was the only one they had to serve Everything that was arranged for us was perfect Thank you for making this difficult time a little more acceptable via your staff’s obvious caring and respect I liked the personal treatment given to my mother who is 97 years old I found Springfield employees pleasant and sincere was that the funeral home would help me get through the paperwork need at this time Since this was my first experience (with a funeral home) everything was above and beyond what I expected Thank you to your team for your kindness to me at a very challenging time You have now taken care of both of my parents with professionalism and care Springfield Funeral Home is always professional We appreciate that you have dedicated staff for all needs from planning the service to completing government paperwork I am not sure there was anything you could have done to make a very intense emotional time less stressful Although we hadn’t expected Ken to want a service when he said we needed to have one for us not him Your sincerity and compassion meant everything to us your compassion and professionalism is truly amazing super professional and caring as each guest arrived Keep up the good work that you do as it is such an important service you provide It is still the most difficult time in a person’s life We appreciated the peace of mind that everything was being looked after You provide a wonderful service for people going through a traumatic time The kindness and professionalism shown by the staff at Springfield Funeral Home was exemplary For the first ten we lived in pleasant and agreeable penury; then Driving Over Lemons was published a parrot (the dastardly protagonist of my second book) showed up and I somehow turned into more of a writer than a farmer Dog days: Chris and canine companions near his farmhouse in Andalucia's Alpujarra mountains I still find it hard to get used to this idea of making a living without getting dirty But farming is a hard way to earn an honest crust at the best of times and I feel lucky to have discovered a new crop - books - to keep the wolves from the door have also been published in Spain and have been selling rather well over the past couple of years I had imagined the appeal of my stories was pretty much limited to the British but it turned out that Spaniards liked to read about our isolated rural corner of Andalucia with its oddball mix of peasant farmers Not that any of them would want to swap places with us I've done book talks in Britain and Spain and the one question that never fails to pop up are you still living on that dump of a farm?' it's true that the farm has its less pleasing aspects freezing in winter; the house has an immovable colony of fleas and thick stone walls teeming with ants It remains on the wrong side of the river - which we can ford when it's not too deep and cross on a rickety bridge when the water is too high We liked what we saw 20 years ago and we like it even more today I can look out of my stable windows and see the breeze curling through a field of corn; the sheep high on the hill half hidden by waist-high genista and rosemary; that whispering mosaic of petals twigs and turdlets that sails by on the water in the irrigation channels - the acequias Simply being on the farm keeps me in a state of bliss - which is just as well because we've come to accept it is impossible to make any kind of living out of it That's why people abandoned these small mountain farms: the work is just too hard and there's no real money in it I made most of my modest income from shearing where electric shearing was previously unknown and for six bleak weeks each winter in Sweden tractor fuel and - since I've gone part-time on the farm work - hired labour for a couple of days a week But what it gives us is quality of life: freshly picked and pressed oranges for breakfast All this side of life at El Valero is much as it ever was The big difference is that Ana and I are on our own now We've just passed through that rite of passage that nobody tells you about - your children leaving home Our daughter Chloe left last September to go to university I was heartbroken; I hadn't felt so lonely and desolate since the end of a teenage love affair For so many years I would get up before dawn and busy myself making delicately crafted and exotic sandwiches for her to take to school It would be easy to let a thing like that become your whole reason for being although I may too often succumb to the temptation of lingering in the morning in the matrimonial bed I have other reasons for getting up and being There is the farm - which I suspect is slowly turning into a garden --and the writing and all that goes with it This has recently led to a whole new experience of Spain as our publishers whisked us out of the valley to go on promotional tours from lush Pontevedra in the north to bright via Barcelona and Madrid and a nondescript town or two in La Mancha in the middle Quite a coo: A pair of doves are among the other residents of the farm I had always thought Spain looked good from the confines of the valley but now I'm realising what a fabulous country it is to live in We have also done a bit of travelling 'abroad' For our first decade at El Valero we stayed at home because we didn't have a choice - no money to travel nor anyone to look after the farm while we were away and of course Chloë was at school we thought it might be time to see what the rest of the world and this blessed country were about with the dubious assistance of a cheap airline flying from the little airport at Granada taking a friend from our village of Orgiva a woman who had previously never strayed more than a dozen miles from her home Ana and I were dazzled by the beauty of Venice and wandered all day to and fro on the vaporettos was unable to help comparing everything with the charms of Orgiva The Spanish are like that: unswervingly loyal to their place of birth This is a quality I have yet to take on board; I was born in Horsham and my passion for my home town remains absent This fell into my hands one evening in a bar in Trevelez doing my best to get the barman's attention when a man I had never seen before suddenly leaned over and said: 'Would you like a boat?' As you might imagine not being one to look a gift horse in the mouth I replied quick as a flash: 'I certainly would.' It wasn't a very grand boat - a dinghy rather than a yacht - and it was moored I went down one notveryspring day with a couple of friends both of whom lied about their nautical qualifications The sea was violent and frightening and we failed to get the boat out of the harbour We tried again a month later and swiftly capsized - an occasion that had an air of farce as just at that moment Pepe and Pepa as if making conversation over the garden gate while we splashed around trying to get the dinghy back on its belly Sometimes we have more disagreeable mishaps we get there and find there is no water in the lake The province of Granada is about the driest place in Europe satisfies that part of my soul that still longs for the sea And it also had the fortunate effect of jogging my memory Way back in my 20s I had a love affair with the sea and talked my way into a job skippering a yacht in the Greek islands I also spent five months crewing a yacht across the North Atlantic I started typing out these stories and discovered I had a new book Three Ways To Capsize A Boat; a sort of prequel to my life in Spain So that was a fruitful evening at the Trevelez bar I mentioned the farm turning into a garden and I heard on the radio the other week that gardening is one of the two things that happens to you in mid-life the other being a peculiar tendency towards home improvements I was taken aback by this as I realised that I spend an inordinate amount of my own time busying myself with this questionable 'improvement' activity As soon as our young had flown we'd abandon our shabby old nest We seem to be driven by some irrepressible instinct --and for me it's a drive to make our home greener We have a bank of solar panels sufficient to power a deep-freeze; a waterwheel to sustain the eco-folly we call a natural swimming-pool; and We decided to fix our everleaking roofs last year so we built up ledges bought special insulating pebbles and finally planted succulents - portalakia They are in bloom at the moment and the flat roofs of the house have become things of peculiar beauty insulating us surprisingly efficiently from the excesses of heat and cold Breakfast in paradise: Chris enjoys breakfast amid more splendid Andalucian scenery about whether we have managed to climb the property scale a notch and move into a mansion in Marbella We still love El Valero and the only way we're leaving here is in a box - perhaps not even then for both Ana and I plan to lay our bones beneath an orange tree on what is known as the Mandarin Terrace and there for all eternity enjoy the view of the Cadiar river mingling with the waters of the Trevelez below the great blue snow-capped Sierra de Lujar El Valero is not a buying and selling property It's where we live and it has become as much a part of us as we are a part of it It's the property equivalent of an abandoned mutt found shivering beside the road - like Big thanks to my own questionable efforts as a builder it's probably the only property in Spain that is worth less today than it was 20 years ago This is a matter of complete indifference to me because the place is our home The Turks have a saying: 'When the roof of the house is on the angel of death comes a-knocking on the door' (it sounds better in Turkish) EasyJet (www.easyjet.com) flies to Malaga from a range of UK airports www.expedia.co.uk) offers return flights from Heathrow to Granada via Madrid starting £160 Tour operators to Andalucia include Andalucian Adventures (01453 834137 www.pageandmoy.com) and Real Holidays (020 7359 3938 For further information visit www.andalucia.com The Mail on Sunday & Metro Media Group Photographer Ben Murphy looks back on his 10-year study of a community of British punks A photograph and caption was removed in response to a legal complaint In his letters, he described it as “paradise”. Eventually, after months of exchanging hand-written notes via a PO Box, the unnamed man granted Ben Murphy an invitation to the place known as “the Riverbed”. It was the summer of 2006, and they met in a small bar in a hilly town in Andalucía, south-eastern Spain “It was already evening and it was dark,” Murphy says “He was very suspicious of me – a stranger coming to his territory with a large camera They were all trying to escape something… For everyone it was a very personal choice to be there.Murphy a 56-year-old photographer from Derbyshire had been exchanging letters with the man for months after a written introduction from a mutual friend and documenting the Riverbed – a highly secretive commune of countercultural British settlers living in a dried-up riverbed hidden deep within the mountains the man invited Murphy to join him in his beaten-up truck and they drove further into the wilderness they took a sharp turn off the road and bumped along an unmarked dirt track coaches and makeshift homes along the edges of the road,” Murphy says people gathered around drinking and smoking Pan’s home He bedded down on mud and straw and discovered the next morning that he’d been sharing the space with a donkey Over the coming months he met and became familiar with the mostly British citizens who have made this strange community their home No one had ever photographed this place before and Murphy’s resultant series of pictures is about to be exhibited in London “Some of the people were pretty intimidating,” Murphy admits choosing his words carefully when we meet in London “But there were also lots of hippies and punks and hedonists and nomads The people Murphy photographed were the products of various generations as well as an autistic boy and his mother from Israel Some came from wealthy and privileged backgrounds and arrived there craving a simpler lifestyle They were all in search of a similar idyll – a desire to reject everything we consider to be normal and to live a life ungoverned by authority it was a very personal choice to be there,” says Murphy and people didn’t like me asking about them.” The Volcano he came across a young girl as he walked along a mountain path but you can call me Happy.’ Then she asked me for a hug.” Murphy began to photograph the people of the Riverbed he began to focus on “a type of portraiture that excluded the inhabitants” The exhibition at London’s Architectural Association shows the homes that the 50 or so people have built Some have constructed Hobbit-like dwellings with composting toilets Others live in a state of ramshackle chaos – in decrepit the riverbed floods and the homes must be rebuilt from scratch Crusty Mark 2006There are people who work and make regular trips to the local town to buy food and amenities such as gas Others forgo any sort of monetary transaction and rarely leave the commune “Some people were deeply conscious of their surroundings and very concerned about where goods came from Others just seemed to be motivated by a hedonistic lifestyle,” recalls Murphy His photography series examines how such homes mix the residue from our wider world with the minute demands of a self-sufficient lifestyle unencumbered by any sense of cultural norms they have to contend with an often harsh environment And they have to contend with our globalised society So there’s always a tension between this thirst for freedom and the practicalities of such a remote and unforgiving life the need for things like electricity and gas and clean water and everything else so readily available to us.” Alpha and Imani 2006But Murphy believes we can learn from the people of the Riverbed and they care about the planet more than most of us but we have to be willing to accept such alternative views They can help us think about our relationship to our home The Riverbed is on show until 31 March and from 19 April to 27 May at the Architectural Association Gallery in London. A limited edition photobook is available from phenomenology.org.uk This is the archive of The Observer up until 21/04/2025 The Observer is now owned and operated by Tortoise Media During the 20th century a number of projects were drawn up to link Granada city with the coastal town of Motril by railway The projects also contemplated a line that would go through La Alpujarra via Lanjarón and on to Granada the plans to bring the steam train to the province never materialised According to historian Francisco García Valdearenas was interested in the mining exploitations of La Alpujarra and the Sierra de Lújar as well as in the construction of a railway on the coast." However the historian goes on to say that although the company bought the contract rights from its owner the parties did not understand each other." Valdearenas explains that in 1904 a new railway law raised "new expectations" and a report drawn up by El Defensor de Granada envisaged three lines: Granada to Motril; Órgiva (on the line from Granada to Motril) to Ugíjar (on the line from Ugíjar to Berja) and Almeria and a line from Baza to Calasparra station on the Chinchilla to Cartagena line in the end none of the proposed lines were built According to the historian from Cádiar (Granada province) "Another project envisaged a main line that started in Torre del Mar in Malaga province and ended in Zurgena in Almeria province where it would have linked up with the line from Lorca to Baza The line had two branches: one from Órgiva to Granada and the other from Tabernas to Almeria." The main line would have gone via Motril and Vélez de Benaudalla from where a branch line to Granada would have been built to run through Lanjarón It would have gone through the Almeria province Alpujarra villages of Paterna where one line would have gone down to Almeria city with another main line to Tabernas connecting with the line from Baza to Murcia "In the end this project was not carried out despite the influence of the famous politician Natalio Rivas," according to Valdearenas The possibility of the Alpujarra railway was brought up on several occasions but despite efforts by a number of regional and provincial bodies and a report written in May 1925 by the Granada Chamber of Commerce on the minimum railway needs in the province which included the construction of a railway from Torre del Mar to Zurgena "If the railway had been built in La Alpujarra it would have undoubtedly had a great economic and social impact including a solution to the problems of communication and isolation that the region had been suffering." The historian concludes "With this project and other interesting initiatives depopulation would not have been such a big problem." From the mountains of northern Spain to the beaches of Andalucía and across to the Balearics our readers have discovered fantastic places to eat