It was Paul Beckett the artist who once said 'Mojácar is a beautiful village - despite the best efforts of the mojaqueros to ruin it'. Well, that was a long time ago and they have continue to have full rein to trash the pueblo, which was - and probably still is - the imán - the main draw or the magnet that brought all of us here in the first place.

You have seen some amazing pictures of the pueblo of Mojácar which rises in a tumble of white blocks on the final mountain of the Filabres chain as it swoops towards the sea.

Quite magic.

The narrow streets - just a donkey's width - and the flat roofs. The whitewash and the old girls dressed in black. Well, some of that has gone now, especially the old girls who are now decked out in more modern outfits. Those narrow streets are quiet squares are now full of tourist tat, junk-filled shops and late-night bars. The town hall is currently knocking down a swathe of cheap Franco housing by the church to build more car spaces (in a town that should be pedestrian only) and re-inventing its history. At the medieval fuente, the new roundabout (traffic is heavy in the summer season) will have a giant stainless steel Indalo to decorate it. The mayoress' idea, apparently.

Approaching Mojácar, the first detail you see is an enormous orange crane that has reared over the village now for around three years. No one wants to offend the builder by suggesting he might want to take it down. Maybe nobody cares.

Here's a billboard that decorates the side of the road as you approach the main square, the Plaza Nueva.

Ugly, isn't it?