A beam of light emerges from the summits until kissing him sea . A magical field of lilies sprouts, the bougainvillea shivers, and someone swims up from the beach to flip the lighthouse. And the beach bar, next to the screen of a summer cinema. There are still fishermen in the last white houses and, in the background, the mountains reveal the secrets of its history: watchtowers, the trail of the Virgin of the Immaculate and alum stone colors.
The Mazarron Bay surprising for its secrets but, especially, for its ability to contain so many stories in a single beach line. With so many experiences, we need the best reference to locate ourselves in this land inhabited by as many cultures as locals lost among mines and wandering boats. we leave the car in the Gredas of Bolnuevo to discover all that Mazarrón has to offer.
Welcome to the 'Enchanted City'.
MARIAN BEACHES
You drive between the chalets and summer houses in the Bolnuevo area looking for a signal. And at some point, the earth rises forming a set of natural sculptures never seen.
The Bolnuevo Gredas sigh together still Mediterranean Sea that more than five million years ago dragged from the recently formed Strait of Gibraltar the sandstones and gravels that form this "enchanted city" . Today, the group of erosions of Bolnuevo is the perfect reflection of the memories of the sea and the wind, but also of the folklore that awaits behind every corner of Mazarrón.
Bill Pilar Jorquera, art historian and Mazarron artist of pure strain, that the neighbors were already talking about the Healing powers of the clay Centuries ago, the locals climbed up the erosions, took a handful of earth and ran it into the sea to mix it with salt water. The best elixir for all wounds.
Healing and magic. The Virgin of the Immaculate Conception She couldn't be wrong when one night she turned her head towards the sea and a beam of light frightened off the attack of some Barbary pirates. The one known as Miracle of Bolnuevo took place on this beach in the 16th century to protect the coast from attacks pirates . After the Marian event, a hermitage was added to the nearby Torre de los Caballos, another must-see and the best kilometer zero to immerse ourselves in that micro-universe of pilgrimages, history and beaches.
Almost 20 virgin beaches await us in Bolnuevo Bay.
The Bolnuevo set supposes the entry to almost 20 virgin and naturist beaches whose access is only viable on foot, by bicycle or on horseback. 30 kilometers of coastline where it is possible to spend the night in campsites or snoop around in its caves in search of ancient sirens . If you decide to stay in Bolnuevo, you will discover the most historic and enjoyable Mazarrón.
The areas of Bolnuevo and Puerto de Mazarrón form the perfect summer agenda: in the month of August, ‘ the Night of the Candles' lights up the clay, like our particular Petra, while the beach bars celebrate monologues and concerts. With luck, we can even go up to a lookout to see the glittering tears of San Lorenzo.
A campsite with access to the sea and a boat in the middle of the sand for those looking to catch a mackerel and eat the Latvians , one of the typical delicacies of this coast. Starlings and sardines camouflaged among the remains of an ancient Phoenician ship, emblem of Mazarron that rests on the Island of the Beach. "They found two boats," adds Pilar. "It is believed that these coasters were loaded with so much silver that the structure could not support the load."
The amphorae of the Archaeological Museum and Roman Salting Factory.
The Phoenicians passed through Mazarrón, but the Roman Empire did decide to stay. The proof is found in the Archaeological Museum and Roman Salting Factory , where the remains of an ancient Necropolis and a fish farm rest.
During the visit we found amphorae, centenary anchors given by a neighbor, or utensils for making garum , the 'ketchup' of the Romans, a sauce based on fish guts to accompany their salted meats. "Attempts have been made to emulate the garum in some event, but the combination was made with the leftover water from the washed fish and spices, and it is not the same," adds Pilar.
A few meters from the museum you can see the old water supply entrance to the salt flats: “they called this place pim-pam, because of the sound of the water entering” , she adds, amused, while in the background the echoes of an old mining train heading for the town of Mazarrón can be heard.
Infinite beaches in Puerto de Mazarrón.
MAZARRON: FOLLOWING THE TRAIN
As we ascend the road that connects Puerto de Mazarrón with the town of Mazarrón (7 km), the layout of the old route of a locomotive loaded with alum stones . We cross the last fishermen's houses in the town, with their plastic chairs ready for the fresco and mosaics of the Virgen del Carmen. The coexistence between sailors and miners as the eternal dichotomy of this territory.
We go up Calle Lardines, a direct artery to the promontory where the erosion of the sediments has bequeathed a unique color palette. "The Alum Houses It was the first germ of the current town of Mazarrón”, continues Pilar. "The mining of silver, iron, lead and stones of alum became the main economic activity of the town until the beginning of the 20th century.”
On the slopes of the old mines lie the ruins of the offices, installations and chimneys, tired palm trees and a Puddle of Needle that changes color depending on the whims of the sun. The mining heritage of Mazarrón invites you to get lost in a town disputed for years by the counts of Villena and Vélez, as confirmed by the strategic construction of the Velez Castle , in the fourteenth century.
Mazarrón's mining heritage invites you to discover ruins like these.
We enter a market, "a bargain for those looking for kilometer zero products brought from the same garden", and link up with the set of churches and hermitages of Mazarrón: the Church of San Antonio de Padua , orphan of the tower that was promised to her; the Purisima Convent Church , in honor of the miracle of Bolnuevo and the massive pilgrimage that attracts hundreds of parishioners every November; wave Church of San Andres , an ode to trompe l'oeil and the reddish colors of the mines that invade the facades of the town.
In the streets it still seems the substantiator , post-war figure who sold legs of lamb cooked in a pot, come knock on the door. In the distance, the Pinwheel Tower remains as a guide to the town when it comes to warning of possible attacks. Following the dotted line we find urban art in honor of the woman from Mazarrón and a banner calling for the return of the Phoenician ship that is now on display in nearby Cartagena.
We don't know if it's the colors of the mines or the shiny watermelons at the market that are to blame, but one's appetite is whetted. At Miguel's Bar , in the Plaza del Ayuntamiento, there is no shortage of tapas michirones (fava beans stewed with meat), the zarangollo (scrambled zucchini with onion and egg) and the frizzes (typical wheat flour cakes with paprika). I am full, but on the way to the sea, I remember a certain dessert that I have heard about.
Murcian gastronomy has delicious secrets, like michirones!
on the terrace of The Girl Bitch , in Puerto de Mazarrón, offer you some mythical paparajotes (lemon tree leaves covered with a dough of flour and egg) with stewed coffee ice cream (aniseed). oh! Y an asian coffee , good lemon and that liquor 43 so Murcian as an ally of after-meals.
A neighbor sings Happy Heart while she drinks a Coca Cola at the table opposite, perhaps remembering old summers. Someone at the top of a viewpoint, and the Virgin, between the Gredas de Bolnuevo, watching for the arrival of possible corsairs. Mazarrón never ceased to be a thousand-year-old conversation between the land and the sea.