Pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela via Villanueva de la Concepción

The Camino of Santiago has been historically identified as the French Road, which runs from Roncesvalles to Santiago de Compostela. It is in fact a network of roads from different routes that millions of pilgrims have travelled on from all the European capitals.

In recent years the roads have been extended by the Spanish Jacobean Association by restoring others paths; this is due to the amount of pilgrims who have enthusiastically completed the Pilgrimage. The Andalucían associations in particular are restoring the Mozarabic routes to Santiago to make it possible for Andalucians so that they can start the Pilgrimage from their own home as did many Mozarabics in the middle ages.

The Jacobean Association of Málaga has marked out the road from Málaga to Cordoba with the traditional yellow arrows. In the province of Málaga, the Mozarabic road passes through Almogía, Villanueva de la Concepción, Antequera, Cartaojal and Cuevas Bajas. It continues on to Encinas Reales, Lucena, Cabra, Doña Mencía, Baena, Castro del Río, Espejo and Santa Cruz to Córdoba. The result of these efforts is a publication by the Provincial County Council of Málaga under the tourism promotion plan of the reservoirs of the Guadalhorce-Guadalteba under the title “Notes and field notes. Mozarabic road of Málaga”. If you would like to view or download this publication, which is divided into two parts because of its size and the size of the files, click the following links.

Part 1:  http://es.calameo.com/read/0002561124ff829111de6
Part 2: http://es.calameo.com/read/0002561123f72ccbd9b35


The Association of Córdoba has restored the road up to Mérida where it connects to the Via de la Plata which was constructed for trade and war but was also used for the Pilgrims in the medieval days to reach Santiago de Compostela.
If you wish to make the journey on the Mozarabic road of Málaga, you can find out the information by looking at the following documents:

1. Map of Spain

2. Map of Andalucia

3. Topographical map 1:25000

4. Diagram of the route

5. The publication mentioned before “Notes and field notes, Mozarabic road of Málaga”.

6. You can also go to the Jacobean Association of Málaga who meet every Tuesday after 8.00p.m. in the Civic Centre of Limonar in the Street “Calle República Argentina”. The principal objective of these meetings is to inform and help future pilgrims so all are welcome.

Correspondence should be sent to:

Asociación Xacobea de Málaga,  Librería Mapas y Compañía,

Calle Fajardo, no. 4. 29005, Málaga.

General information:

-The Town Halls of Almogía, Antequera, Cuevas Bajas, Málaga and Villanueva de la Concepción.

-  ajacobeamalaga@hotmail.com

Characteristics:

-Level of Difficulty: Medium

Type of Route:

-Hiking

To see photo album and the various maps and diagrams as listed above 1-4, visit the web site of www.malaga.es/provincia/rutas/ficha.asp?tip=4&pag=4 under “Galería de Imágenes and “Datos Adjuntos” near the bottom of the page.

Planning Permission in Villanueva de la Concepción

In 2003, the urban planning law of Andalucía (LOUA) came into force, a land law which was passed as a response to Town planning corruption which was beginning to be revealed on the Costa del Sol. It was passed by the Andalucían Parliament and was made applicable to ALL of Andalucía. Apart from restricting Town Hall planning policies, at the same time it empowered the Guardia Civil and Prosecution authorities to take legal action against the mayors. This new law stipulated what was and what was not allowed and the measures Town Halls had to take in case of failure to comply with the law.

This law has affected small communities such as Villanueva as it relies on the income which comes from Town Planning. It is felt that the law, albeit approved of by Parliament, is unfair to small villages, such as Villanueva as they have no choice but to implement these measures.

Therefore the situation mayors find themselves in is very difficult and unfair, yet very simple - they either comply with the law or they are held criminally responsible and could be put in jail. This can also be said of the local police or the Town Hall architect if they don´t adhere to this law.Villanueva has been currently reviewing building work in the "Campo" because they have no choice but to do so.It is clear and simple - who ever is governing Villanueva, they have no choice but to stick to this law.

It is a complex and somewhat lengthy law so if anyone has any queries or worries, it is best to make an appointment with the Town Hall architect who will be able to explain how it relates to your situation. He is available to the public on Wednesdays but a prior appointment must be made, either at the Town Hall reception desk or see the English speaking person in the Town Hall on Wednesdays from 11-1.00 who will make the necessary arrangements for you.

Fraudulent Gas Inspections

The Royal Decree 919/2006 of the 28^th July 2006 stated:
“Users of containers of gas are responsible for the conservation of them so that they are always in service and used with the appropriate level of security as recommended by the suppliers.
The owner of the gas supply/bottles should ask an authorized company to carry out the periodic revisions. This review is not compulsory where one single container of gas of less than 15kg is connected by a flexible tube or attached directly to a single mobile gas appliance”.

Even though this decree says it is the owner or user of the gas that should ask for a periodic service of their gas installation, certain “companies” send their so called “technicians” to homes saying that they have to carry out a service or make changes to the installation of the gas, as they are not to safety standards, and most of them are NOT necessary. These “technicians” pretend to be the official service agents of the gas distributors or they say they have come from the “Junta de Andalucía” or that they are from the gas industry. Although sometimes they do belong to registered companies, they persuade or threaten the client that they will be cut off from their service if they don´t have the work carried out that they say is necessary, when in fact it is not.

REMEMBER THAT NO GAS INSTALLATION COMPANY CAN CUT OFF YOUR GAS SUPPLY.

These companies usually target the elderly, people living alone and foreigners and the alterations they carry out are usually incomplete, putting them at high risk apart from a huge financial cost.
To prevent these irregularities, it is recommended to keep your gas installation in good working order and above all, never sign a document without speaking to your normal supplier or the company that installed your gas to confirm when your next service is due.

Recommendations

·         Butane gas should be serviced every 5 years and every four years for natural gas. When the service has been carried out the installation company should give you a stamped certificate which you should keep.

·         If you have not made an appointment for someone to come, do not let in nor allow any company to inspect your gas, even if they are very insistent or threaten to stop your supply.

·         Contact your usual supplier as soon as possible e.g. who supplies your gas bottles, they will be able to tell you what to do.

Don´t sign anything, you do not have to use people you do not trust. You are not obliged to allow anyone to enter into your house.