4th September – 14:00 – 22:00

CHANGE OF PLAN!

Please note that the Charity Bar Walk outlined below will  finish at Jose’s Restaurante Vale da Telha on the Pines Roundabout.

And there’s also a change of DJ for the party to follow—Brian DJ Rockindad Jutsum will now be in the UK that weekend so he is handing the turntable over to another of VdT’s music aficianados, Ricky Diamond.

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by Matt D’Arcy

We all know a good walk raises a good thirst.

So why not do the obvious—and turn a walk for charity into a Charity Bar Walk!

Sounds like fun, doesn’t it?

But, even better, why not do the whole thing in fancy dress?

That’s what they’ll be doing here in Vale Da Telha and Arrifana on September 4^th in a repeat of last year’s hugely successful event, which raised a fantastic €2,905.63 to donate 26 wheelchairs and other equipment to Portimao Hospital.

This year the organisers will be raising funds for children’s charities in the Aljezur area of the western Algarve, and they are hoping local surf schools will join in the fun along the 3.54km route (or 2.2 miles of smiles in real money).

Cath Baker, who inspired last year’s walk after her late husband Peter was a patient at the hospital—she is once again supported this year by co-organisers Brian Jutsum and Steve Scott—told us:

“The walk last year was always supposed to be a one-off event. But it was such a success and so many people had such a good time in a day full of laughter and camaraderie, that as the anniversary grew closer I felt, emotionally, that it was worth repeating.

“In fact we will now make it an annual event because it combines the serious intent of raising money for a good cause with the fun element of dropping off at selected bars, having a sup or two and enjoying a little craic and banter.

“It will follow exactly the same formula as the inaugural walk because we thought it best to work on the time-honoured principle of ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’.”

The walk begins at 2pm from Restaurante O Paulo on the clifftop promontory at Arrifana and ends at the Jose’s Tapas Bar on the Pines Roundabout. And in between the walkers will visit a number of bars (aka “aid stations”) along the way.

Last year with the majority of the walkers in fancy dress and nine bars selected along the route for their “pit stops” in 29 degrees of sweltering heat, the trek of only three-and-a-half kilometres took the best part of four and a half hours to complete!

And that’s hardly surprising, as each of the walkers also had to sing a karaoke song at Hugo’s Bar, one of the “aid stations”—something they are expected to do again this year!

Participants who feel they cannot walk the entire distance from Restaurante O Paulo at Arrifana can start their own particular—and much shorter—walk from the second starting point at Hugo’s Bar at 4.30pm.

The bar walk (OK, let’s call it what it is; a charity pub crawl!) is scheduled to finish at Jose’s Tapas Bar at 6.30 pm, which will then trigger a Disco Party hosted by Ricky Diamond at which hot dogs and snacks will be available to buy.

There will also be prizes for the best male and female fancy dress outfits, and a brief charity auction.

Cath, who was inspired to stage the walk by recalling the charity pub crawls so popular back in her native Lancashire, went on:

“I was overwhelmed with the generosity not just of friends and the bar owners but also of complete strangers and motorists who stopped to ask what we were doing, taking pictures and giving us money.

“There was loads of enthusiasm from the public, with the car drivers tooting horns and waving, actually stopping their cars to see what it was all about.

“There were a lot of laughs and a few tears because of the sheer generosity of people, particularly from customers in O Paulo’s where we began the walk.

“Paulo Silva, the owner, also generously gave us €100 himself and provided a free buffet to see everyone off on their way.

“Also, all the bars and restaurants where we stopped along the route were very generous and welcoming.

“The bar owners taking part along the route all happily joined in, agreeing to make donations for each drink sold.”

Cath, who is once again backed by Amovate which, in 2011, helped her to raise the funds to buy nine new wheelchairs for Portimão Hospital’s orthopaedic department added with a smile:

“One or two of the walkers last year, having taken on a little too much liquid refreshment along the way, were perhaps staggering a little at the finish.

“But at least they did so knowing that the money they helped to raise has seen some of Portimão Hospital’s infirm patients walk a little steadier thanks to the wheelchairs and walking aids we were able to supply as a result of their efforts.

“That was well worth all the sore heads the following morning, and hopefully we will raise another big total from this year’s walk”.

Entry fee for each walker this year is again just 2 euros, and sponsorship forms are available from Restaurante O Paulo at Arrifana, Jose’s Tapas Bar and the Restaurante Vale Da Telha, or you can find one to print off on the walk’s Facebook page at:

https://m.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1024224904352166

Alternatively, you can ring Cath on 964 721 842 or email her at:

bakerce7@gmail.com

Celebrations on 27th, 28th & 29th August:

Aljezur Castle invites you to a “Fantastic Nights” heritage evening for ‘bringing people together’.

“Fantastic Nights in Fantastic Castles” is a programme aimed at families, to the general public and also to visitors, which aims to involve the local community in appreciation of their monuments.

The programme comes to Aljezur and its castle on August 27th at 6pm.

It begins with a symbolic opening, “taking the Castle by force”, with people assembling near the market, before they stroll through the ancient streets to “take” the castle, walking past places steeped in history before spending an evening with music inside the castle walls. This event is produced by the Vincentian Association-Association for the development of the Southwest, under the programme of Regional Culture Direction DiVaM of Algarve.

In statements to Sul Informação, Sónia Felicidade from the Association that produces the event, said that the goal is ‘bringing people together’ with their heritage. Sónia Felicidade also explained the reason of the choice of the castle of Aljezur as the ‘essential’ focus of the event, since two of the three planned activities within the framework of the cycle “Fantastic Nights in Castles Fantastic” take place in this space: ‘we had to choose a monument whose management was in charge of the Regional Culture Direction and Aljezur is located in our area of influence of the Vincentian Association’.

The evening is divided into two parts. The first, a symbolic element called “Let’s take the Castle”, begins at 6pm, with the gathering of the participants near the Municipal market of Aljezur, followed by a walk through the historical centre of Aljezur to the Castle.

This activity, says Sónia Felicidade, will have a ‘symbolic’ character: ‘Take the Castle” will cause people to see that this is an historical monument that still stands today and with which so many of the town’s experiences are associated’.

Once inside the castle of Aljezur, there will be a moment of conviviality between Moors and Christians, with the participation of some young students from the music school of the volunteer firefighters of Aljezur and elements of the theatre group “Per-Versus”.

Then follows, at 8:30 pm, the theatrical project “Places with history,” actress Neusa Dias, in which participants in these Fantastic evenings in Fantastic Castles “are challenged ‘to know places that are part of our heritage, but they are often not actually observed, and thought about’, said the Regional culture Direction Algarve.

The actress Neusa Dias presents ‘an approach that explores the biography of place, a work with an ethnographic and anthropological focus, as if searching for the life story of an individual, in search of its truths and omissions’.

‘We are facing a specific project, in which the theatrical part of this art and this ends, and where the place is not a mere decorative space or alternative stage, being before. Therefore, each performance is unique’, adds Regional Culture direction.

Then at 10:00 pm, the musician M-Pex takes the stage in the castle for a concert that will feature the Portuguese guitar, ‘merging his sound with electronic music’.

M-PeX, musician, composer and producer, seeks to position the Portuguese guitar ‘sound diverse aesthetic, culminating in a musical ‘ confluence.

Despite being a local development association, the Vicentina saw its cultural proposal be accepted by the Regional Direction of culture of Algarve, to integrate the DiVaM program. “Not being a cultural association, the Vicentina aims to develop its territory and therefore also to promote cultural activities, particularly those that could be difference around the material and immaterial heritage where intervenes”, concluded Sónia Felicidade.

All events of this initiative “Fantastic Nights in Castles Fantastic” have free entry. Still, the “Let’s take the Castle” activity requires prior registration, which can be made by sending an email to vicentina@vicentina.orgor by calling 282 680 120

(This item was translated by computer software from the newspaper Sul Informação)

From 5:00 pm on Tuesday 16th August, Hugo’s Bar will be selling draught Guinness.

Friendly local church, in Aljezur on the Bombeiros road – a quite new building, in front of Fertizur. The services are lively and led by Pastor Bruno, who worked for some years in London so his English is excellent. Services are at 10am every Sunday except the first in the month.