EL TENDRE OLIVE OIL MILL: AN EXTRA VIRGIN EXPERIENCE SINCE 1839

In spite of it´s very easy to buy anything in many ways, to do it in the place where it´s produced is always engaging. And more if we speak about healthy food. If besides you find a really charming place, a curious exhibition to visit, the chance of a guided tour with different language options, tasting an extra virgin olive oil, to purchase (or not) ... you have within reach an authentic experience. And that is the question, by far in these places is worth to go for the visit, rather than just only for shopping.

Old machinery 

The entrance of the shop is in a cosy gorgeous porch.

"El Tendre" olive oil mill is not only a factory but also a delightful place, located in the countryside and surrounded by palm trees and olive trees. It´s situated in the outskirts of Elche, and it´s running by the same family since 1839, nowadays with the fifth and sixth generations. It´s remarkable because it´s really hard to find small family companies working steadily for so much time. This circumstance is highly valued for the bulk of consumers, because we use to think that this continuity guarantees the transmission of the gathered knowledge over the years.

Receiving olives.

Storing in cellar, under controlled conditions of light and temperature.

As other olive oil mills here, they have two different activities. On the one hand working for others:  you can bring your olives, pay a fee per kilogram, and get the amounts of liters of olive oil according with the yield of an analyzed sample. On the other hand, they also produce for themselves to sell with their own brand and even export.

In the shop there are olive oils of different types in a wide variety of container sizes. There are for instance extra virgin olive oil cans, very handy for air travel. There are also available beauty products manufactured with El Tendre olive oil, and some local foodstuffs. The staff is friendly and helpful.

Above the shop there is an interesting permanent exhibition of mill instruments that were used in the past, and belongings of the family kept up over time.

If you would like to visit this enchanting corner, either a guided tour or overview+shop+museum by yourself, it´s possible throughout the year (except few bank holidays). Bear in mind if you prefer tranquility or bustle, because roughly to mid October to March is the olive harvest time here, and therefore the ambience change from the idyllic calm to the mill activity (people unloading olives, equipments working, and people picking up their olive oil from the store)

They carry out different types of guided tours, depending on if are included tasting, or an advanced sampling practice. Prices are really affordable, to book or get current information about cost and conditions, contact directly to the mobile phone or email showed in their website
https://www.tendre.es/?lang=EN

Lastly, I have showed this olive oil mill to foreign friends of different countries, and it has always been exciting for them. Having my say, give it a go could be a good idea if you aren't far away.

Behind the scenes: Paquita, El Tendre fourth generation, working in 1990.

“ALMOJÁBANAS”: A CRULLER WITH CENTURIES OF HISTORY.

The “almojábana” is a cake or pastry, a kind of cruller, traditional in the gastronomy of Elche and the South of Alicante province, and also in a few cities and villages in Murcia and Valencia. In the past it was typical to prepare them in certain celebrations, but now it´s possible to buy all the year long.

It´s made with a mass prepared with wheat flour, egss, and depending on the pastry chef olive oil, sunflower oil, lard or butter and milk. After baking the cake is wet with syrup (prepared with sugar or honey). In spite of this variability in the recipe, its flavour is always delicious, with a smooth and tender texture. It´s curious that with so few ingredients and so common, the result is so fine and so popular. 

Baking almojábanas

It is said that almojábenas have Arab origin, more than 500 years ago, because it seems that the word comes from “almuyabbana” (made with cheesse, in old hispanic arab). In the thirteenth and fifth centuries, there are old written references about  “almojabanas”, as a cake made of cheese and flour. This recipe traveled to South America long time ago, because nowadays there are almojábanas with these ingredients in Colombia and Puerto Rico. 

The secret of the hole

Over time somehow the recipe changed in Spain, even there isn´t a unique recipe, and it´s posssible to find different pastries with this name. Maybe the exact recipe was changing throughout the centuries. Or maybe was lost totally, and people called new recipes with this name, that in someway remained in the collective memory. Anyway, is suggestive to taste “almojábanas”, trying to imagine how this name was passing down from generation to generation.

Pictures courtesy of Confitería Castell

https://www.facebook.com/confitercastell/

THE “PALMERAL” OF ELCHE, UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE SITE.

A beautiful palm trees sea

Cultivation of date palms in Elche is known at least since the Iberian times (fifth century B.C.). Towards the tenth century A.C., when much of the Iberian Peninsula was Arab, the “Palmeral” of Elche, a landscape of groves of date palms, was formally laid out, with an elaborate irrigation system which is still functioning. It´s an UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2000.

The Palmeral of Elche, represent a remarkable example of the transference of a characteristic landscape from one culture and continent to another, from the North Africa to Europe, and has survived to the present day at Elche.

This is the only palm grove of its type anywhere on the European continent. The date palm trees of Elche (about 200.000), can grow to a height of more than 30 m and live for over 300 years.

 

Image of the Palmeral of Elche, one century ago.

 

Collecting dates, one century ago

 

 

Pruning a palm tree.

During the last years there is a dangerous threat for the palm trees from Asia and Africa: the red palm weevil, a species of beetle. Their larvae excavate holes in the trunk of palm trees, weakening and even killing them.

 
 

The red palm weevil.

The Palmeral isn´t a unique place, you can see it inside the city and in the country around the town. The best places to see the Palmeral of Elche are:

 

Municipality Park (free admission)

Museo del Palmeral (small visitors centr¡er in a traditional house):

http://www.visitelche.com/en/cultural-tourism/visits/elche/museos/museo-del-palmeral/

Palm Grove Walk

http://www.visitelche.com/en/routes/ruta-del-palmeral/

Huerto del cura (with entrance fee)

http://www.visitelche.com/en/ecotourism/parques-periurbanos/jardin-huerto-del-cura/

 

Municipality Park - Partial view

 

The Mystery Play of Elche, Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

The Mystery Play of Elche is a sacred musical drama of the death, the passage into heaven and the crowning of the Virgin Mary. Since the mid-fifteenth century it has been performed in the Basilica of Santa Maria in Elche. It is a living testimony of European religious theatre of the Middle Ages.
This old theatrical performance, which is entirely sung, comprises two acts, on 14 and 15 August. The texts are in Valencian language and Latin. Ancient aerial machinery is used to enhance the spectacle.


Photo of The Wide World Magazine (1900)



Photo of The Wide World Magazine (1900)

Access to the Basilica, both on the 14th and 15th, is free, with its doors remaining wide open. However, due to the popularity of the play, it is essential to arrive at the church several hours in advance.

On the 11th, 12th and 13th August, open rehearsals take place, when the whole performance is concentrated into a single day, and which may be enjoyed by purchasing a ticket. In addition, in even-numbered years, there are extra ticketed performances on the 29th, 30th October and free access on the 1st November.

More than 300 volunteers take part in the performance each year as actors, singers, stage directors, stagehands, tailors and stewards. This tradition was inscribed on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity (UNESCO).

Ternari song video

UNESCO video

Practical tips:

The Mystery Play of Elche isn´t short, so the whole representation might not be the best option with small children (and for the people that don´t like this kind of  music). But the Mistery Play of Elche is really something extraordinary, and at least, you could take advantage of the open doors on the 14th and 15th August to take a look.

When the representation begins the temperature is still hot, so it´s a good idea to carry a hand fan and a bottlel of water.
And finally it´s highly recommended to get the guide of the representation, to better understand the scenes and songs.

Link to get the guide of the representation.

Photo of The Wide World Magazine (1900)

The Pusol Museum: the best traditional culture center in Alicante.

Old drugstore and perfumery

The Pusol Museum provide an insight into the recent past of Elche. The Committee for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage of UNESCO included it in the Register of Exemplary Practices in 2009.



Old grocery

 

 

It all began in 1969 in the unitary schools of the rural area of Pusol, a few kilometers from Elche (6 km), as an activity linked to educational plan "The school and its environment", whose subject was the study of the trades and traditions of  Elche´s countryside.



Old toy shop

The aim of this project was to make easier the understanding of the rural environment where it stood, and conservation of a culture, both tangible and intangible, which was rapidly disappearing by the mechanization of agriculture and the replacement of traditional crafts and culture other extensive and more productive.



Traditional stable

It has thousands objects from the nineteenth and early 20^th century, the vast majority of which have been donated. Currently are deposited in it all ethnological aspects: agriculture, commerce, industry, folklore, traditions. At the Pusol Museum you'll be able to visit typical shops, see the traditional carts that were used to transport everything, take a look around a rural home, as well as admire the clothing and other artefacts. The Museum is not limited to retrieve objects, because also involves in this task to many local people. It´s really a charming museum.

 




The place to separate the wheat from the chaff

 

To read more:  http://es.scribd.com/doc/64671618/Cooperative-Safeguarding-of-Cultural-Heritage-the-School-Museum-of-Pusol-in-Elche-Spain

 Timetable: Monday to Friday, from 9 to 13.30 and from 16 to 19 (in summer only mornings). Saturday and Sunday: from 11 to 14. Closed 13, 14 and 15^th August. Free admission on Sundays.

 To arrive from Elche: take CV-851 road (Carretera del Leon), and about 5 kms, after Cachito Restaurant, turn the first to the right, by CV 857  https://maps.google.es/maps/ms?hl=es&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=100472554001904324739.000484d67d27f73abd905&ll=38.252201,-0.699692&spn=0.188726,0.486145&z=11&source=embed

If you are hungry when you finish in the Pusol Museum and you want to eat a good paella or grilled lamb chops, Restaurante Cachito, open since 1935, is very near.

http://www.restaurantecachito.com/

 

 



Esparto grass handcraft

 

Traditional winery



Making a esparto espadrille

Traditional cart

 



Old agricultural tools

 

Traditional rural home kitchen

 

ELCHE OLD CEMETERY

 ELCHE OLD CEMETERY

                                                                                            Shot Memorial.

The Old Cemetery of Elche began its activity in 1811. This year a lot of people died due to a serious epidemic disease. In its early stages, burials were performed in soil, but nowadays you can see mainly niches and mausoleums.  

Today is included in the city, though quite independently and maintaining a certain distance from the nearest houses. If you prefer arrive by bus, take the line  I,L, or K.

This cemetery is not just a place to remember those who left us. Old Cemetery of Elche is integrated into the Route of the European Significant Cemeteries, a Cultural Route of the Council of Europe. It isn´t so big or so monumental as other European cemeteries of this Cultural Route, but it´s also culture, an outdoor museum, and a quiet place to walk.

                                              Mausoleum.

Vault

                                                  Garden of remembrance.

                            Remember the sleeping soul,

                            enliven the mind and wake up,

                            watching,

                            how life passes

                           (… how death comes, so quiet)

                                       I was what you are, you will be what I am

 

In memory of the defenders of freedom and democracy, shot in this cemetery between 1939 and 1940. Buried in a common grave, now lie in the ossuary that opens under this inscription.

                                              Mausoleum and niches.

                                                Mausoleum.

Photos in a niche.



                                                     Coordinates: 38°15'45" - 0°42'55."