START OF THE VOLVO MASTERS
The Volvo Masters, the golf tournament which brings the best players on the European circuit to Jerez de la Frontera, returns to the Montecastillo golf course for this years round of the event between November 8 - 11. This tournament, which traditionally ends the season on the European Golf Circuit, and which has been played in Andalucía since its founding in 1988, will continue to be held in our area until at least the year 2004. In addition from now on it will be called the Volvo Masters Andalucía. Some 12,000 people attended the event last year, and this time round it’s hoped the figure will reach 20,000. The Montecastillo golf course is located close to the racing track and a few kilometres from the town of Jerez de la Frontera.

GRANADA INTERNATIONAL JAZZ FESTIVAL
The performances of the pianist Chano Domínguez, the trumpeter Freddy Hubbaret and of Branford Marsalis, are some of the main attractions in the 22nd edition of the Granada International Jazz Festival, one of the oldest in Spain. From Nov 8, until the end of the month, we have the chance to enjoy 50 performances. The festival will have, together with the central programme in the Isabel la Católica theatre, numerous other performances as part of the cycles ‘En Paralelo’ and ‘Trasnoches’ The Granada Big Band and the John Griffin Quartet are some of the bands who will perform in the main programme. In the ‘En Paralelo’ section we find ‘Flamenco viene del Sur’ in the Alhambra theatre, while film and jazz section will be dedicated to the work of Woody Allen, for the close relation of the director to this type of music. The festival will show three of his films in the original language, among them two of his latest works -‘Small time crooks’ and ‘The curse of the Jade Scorpion’. Tickets for the main programme cost 1,500 pesetas each with a 12,000 pesetas festival pass.

THE LORING MUSEUM MÁLAGA
The Loring family and the following owners of the finca de la Concepción, created an archaeological museum in what is today the Málaga botanical garden. Most of the pieces were in other parts of the finca or were translated to the archaeological museum from the Alcazaba. The building housing the Loring Museum has remained closed and practically forgotten for years until a project for its restoration was started. The refurbishment of the Loring Museum will continue on from those of other buildings in La Concepción such as the Casa Cortijera or El Mirador, and coincides with the municipal undertaking to completely restore the main palatial house.

RESTORATION OF THE GIRALDILLO
The Giraldillo is a bronze statue weighing 1,500 kilos which has for 400 years crowned one of the most famous monuments in Seville, - the Giralda. Over this time the wind and the heat have deteriorated the surface of the statue, meaning a restoration was needed. The Andalucian institute of Historical Heritage are carrying out the work, which includes computer simulations of the damage caused by wind and heat on the statue in an effort to find a suitable treatment. The restoration of the Giraldillo, the correct name of which is Fe Victoriosa, has been ordered by the regional culture department. It’s hoped that by the end of next year, this emblematic figure of Seville will once again be on show on the highest point of La Giralda.

TOURISM AND THE EURO
Tourists who visit Andalucía will have to pay no extra with the arrival of the Euro on January 1. Businessmen in the tourism sector will not increase their prices, following an agreement signed with the main consumers office which will avoid the rounding up of prices. The businessmen’s associations which represent hotels, restaurants, bars, night clubs and travel agents will control their own members. Hotels in Andalucia have been handling the Euro since the middle of the month of October and with most of the contracts for next year already signed say no increase will be seen. In addition restaurants and bars have been displaying menus over the past year with prices in both pesetas and euros, so that we can all get accustomed to the immanent arrival of the European currency.