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Bilingüismo. IES Valle del Sol.
Alora enjoys a privileged location in the Guadalhorce Valley, which it overlooks from the north, standing atop a small hill. As well as its vegetable gardens, orchards and citrus trees, it also boasts interesting areas nearby, such as Los Gaitanes Pass (which it shares with Ardales and Antequera), the Sierra de Huma and the Sierra de Aguas. Its urban layout, of Arabic origin, gives it a special charm, which must be enjoyed without haste, due to the steep nature of its streets, which lead up to the symbol of the village: the castle, made even more curious by the fact that it is now used as a cemetery.
The highlight of Alora's buildings is Our Lady's Church.
It was conquered by the Vandals in the 5th century. Remains from the Visigoth period can be found in the fortress located atop Las Torres mount.
During the Moslem occupation, the Christian kings besieged the town on numerous occasions due to its privileged strategic location (the castle overlooks the whole Malaga basin). Alfonso VIII attacked it in 1184, Alfonso XI in 1319. Later, John II, 1434, and Enrique IV, 1455 also tried to conquer the town. Due to its proximity to Bobastro, where the muladi (Christian converted to Islam) chief Omar Ben Hafsun gathered his forces, the town must also have played a key role in the 11th-century rebellion against the Caliphate of Cordoba. Its reputation as an impregnable fortress gave rise to one of the most beautiful frontier ballads: the Ballad of Alora, which refers to the town as “the well besieged" and which can be seen reproduced on a tablet embedded in the castle walls.
The town finally fell into Christian hands on 10 June 1484. The attacking troops, who bore the banner of the Catholic Monarchs, were led by Captain Don Luis Fernandez Portocarrero.
After the Christian conquest, the town’s inhabitants continued to live inside the fortress, and the original parish church, now the cemetery chapel, was built on the foundations of a former mosque. With the passage of time, the town began to spread to the foot of the hill.
A decree issued by Philip IV in 1628 saw Alora cease to belong to the city of Malaga "for evermore", according to the exact wording of the document.
An earthquake left the original church in ruins in 1680 and destroyed the older districts of the town.
The Castle, witness to so many deaths in attempts to capture and defend it, later became the town cemetery.
As the valley runs alongside the mountains, the Mediterranean forest appears: olive trees, cork oaks, pines and chestnut treAs the valley runs alongside the mountains, the Mediterranean forest appears: olive trees, cork oaks, pines and chestnut trees. The landscape rises along the Los Horcajos ravine and climbs toes. The landscape rises along the Los Horcajos ravine and climbs to shady landscapes and plains where Spanish firs and ancient gall oaks grow.
The 2,016 hectares protected by Desfiladero de los Gaitanes Beauty Spot are located in the interio of the Subbetica mountain range, and create a spectacular landscape. They include an impressive gorge through which the River Guadalhorce flows, between enormous slabs of stratified limestone.
It is considered to be of immense ecological importance. Its walls, which are up to 400 metres high, are home to a variety of plant and animal life, a clear example of adaptation to a vertical milieu.
Fauna.
The higher zones are inhabited by the mountain goat. Smaller animals such as the blackbird and the swift live in the lower areas, near the water. The middle section of the gorge is home to the falcon, kestrel and goshawk, as well as other medium-sized birds of prey. The peaks are nesting areas for large birds of prey such as the golden eagle and tawny vulture.
Other inhabitants of this Beauty Spot are the wild cat, the genet, the dormouse and the mongoose, which can be seen by the more daring from a hanging walkway known as "The King´´s Path" ("Caminito del Rey"), which crosses the gorge at an altitude of 100 metres.
Flora.
The most characteristic botanical species are: the Aleppo pine, umbrella pine, holm oak, eucalyptus, hawthorn, gorse, white rockrose, cistus and black juniper.
El río Guadalorce fluye por el Cañón de los Gaitanes para el riego de un valle fértil, el más importante de Málaga.
Como el valle bordea las montañas, el bosque mediterráneo aparece: olivos, alcornoques, pinos y castaños. El paisaje se levanta a lo largo de la quebrada de Los Horcajos y sube a los paisajes sombríos y llanuras donde los árboles crecen.
El Caminito del Rey, cerrado al público, es un camino que recorre la pared desnuda de este Área. Muy cerca, la villa del Chorro y las ruinas de Bobasto también merecen la visita.
Las 2.016 hectáreas protegidas del Desfiladero de los Gaitanes, paraje que se encuentra en el interior de la cordillera Subbética, crean un espectacular paisaje. Incluye una impresionante garganta por donde fluye el río Guadalhorce entre enormes losas de piedras caliza estratificadas.
Otros habitantes, en este espacio de belleza son el gato montés, la jineta, el lirón careto y la mangosta, que pueden ser vistos por lo más atrevidos de una pasarela colgante conocida como Caminito del Rey, que atraviesa la garganta a una altitud de 100 metros.
FLORA.
Las especies botánicas más características son: la jara, el pino carrasco, encina, eucalipto, espino, retama, jara blanca y el enebro negro.
REALIZADO POR MANUEL JESÚS LOBATO PÉREZ.
Alora has an excellent traditional cuisine based on their own land products. Between the most typical plates we emphasize the 'perotas' soups, very usual food between the cultivations' workers; usually they also eat fruits like grapes, prickly pears and oranges, as well as cucumbers, olives, or crude onion. Other typical dishes are 'migas' and 'gachas' (very common in this side of Malaga). In summer you can taste the red pepper, an exquisite variety of 'gazpacho', 'salmorejo', 'pipirranas' and green asparagus omelette. There is also a big variety of 'chacina' products (cured pork and milk) like the pork loin in lard with homemade bread and other sausages derived from the pork. In pastrymaking, Alora has homemade jams, sweet potato dust pasty, twisted rolls of door furnace and a unique 'horchata': the hazelnut ice cream. To begin the day there is not better meal than 'El Hacho' camomile with a spurt of lemon. The most representative dishes are:
Sopa perota
Alora's main fiesta is the flamenco festival which is held annually in June. Another popular traditional event is the Romería de la Virgen de las Flores which takes place in the middle of September and is one of the best places to enjoy, first-hand, the traditional verdiales.
'Virgen de las Flores' feast takes place the 8th of September. In June is celebrated the festivity in honor of San Paulino and later, in July, the 'Festival de Cante Flamenco'. But the main feast of this municipality is the 'Despedia' (easter Friday). Hundreds of visitors go to see how the thrones of the Virgin and the Christ are transferred in a race to the Castle.
Alora also celebrates a gastronomical feast that has been consolidated like one of the most important in the province, the 'Dia de las Sopas Perotas', dedicated to the most traditional dish of Alora. It takes place in the middle of October.