Mojácar is famous for its chiringuitos - its beach bars. The playa has been scattered with them since the first ones opened in the early seventies, with places like the 'Kon Tiki' (operated for a while by our most famous resident - Gordon Goody, the Glasgow Train robber), the 'Aku Aku', the 'Patio' (Fuck-a-duck Ric who came here to work on the desalination plant being built by the apologetic American government after the Palomares incident in 1966), 'Tito's', and Lloyd and Tish's 'El Cid'.The Cid is thirty years old this month so celebrations are underway, including a golf tournament pictured above with Lloyd giving Tish what might be a bottle of something. How on earth they could spend thirty years behind the same bar is a mystery...
The beachbars in Mojácar are anarchic. Many are on private land and the others all seem to manage somehow to get around the rules of the government 'costas' agency. Good for them.
In other parts of the Spanish Med, beach-bars have to be taken down in the winter (to make room?) and are usually made to one design and put out to tender to anyone who wants them (as long as they are related to the mayor). These soviet joints of stainless steel, clapboard, bad flamenco and waiters in white shirts and black bow ties have yet to make their appearance in Mojácar, but, my friends, plans are afoot.
So, raise a glass to Lloyd and Tish, who are known to many thousands of happy visitors and contented residents, on this their thirtieth anniversary. They are part of the charm and magic of Mojácar.
4 comments:
I love the chiringuitos on Mojacar Playa and have been to El Cid's on my last two visits. Great place but assumed it was Spanish owned! Congratulations to Tish - great place you have there!
Simon and Sarah were there very early on, Ettienne and Rosemonde a bit later. Does anyone know if Ric is still with us?
The rumour is that Ric is under heavy guard in his home-town of Roswell, Arizona - a town famous for its interstellar visitors in 1948, its complete lack of bars and its eight hundred churches.
I am given to understand that Ric is in the clutches of one of those churches, and they are keeping him, er, dry. Praise the Lord!
The first owner of Ric's el Patio, was a German woman called Claudia, who would get annoyed if der beach beds vere not in line...
I received this email:
Do you happen to know whether Gordon Goody is still alive? The reason I am asking is that during the war Gordon was an evacuee and lived here in Northern Ireland with his mother's uncle, Johnnie Moffatt. He was good friends with members of my family, in particular my uncle Maurice Acheson who is in his 80s now. They all appear to have been a little bit wild, but not in a bad way. Certainly my uncle and my father have some good stories to tell. My uncle Maurice and Gordon's uncle used to talk about going to Spain to visit him, but it never happened and Johnnie died - maybe 10 years ago, or perhaps more. I would like to be able to put my uncle in touch with him, so that they could perhaps chat about old times and have a laugh. Any help in this matter would be sincerely appreciated.
Aileen Acheson
Co Tyrone, Northern Ireland
Can anyone help out with information please?
Post a Comment