Last Sunday, the first ever flea market/zoco artesanal/Flohmarkt launched in Ronda (Málaga).
The brainchild of Markus Bauer, a German, and Paul Whitelock, from England, the pair have known each other for nearly a quarter of a century. Markus has lived in the Ronda area for some 30 years and has two children with his Spanish partner, an English teacher.
Paul has clocked up 16 years as a resident and has been married for 13 years to a German lady whom he met in Ronda. Paul got to know Markus when he bought his first property in Ronda in 2001. Markus worked at El Choque Ideal* in Barrio San Francisco and Paul was a regular customer of the bar/restaurant/TV lounge/snooker hall/second-hand clothes market/swimming pool/recording studio located on Calle Imágenes.
Ronda Flea Market
Paul and Markus chose Venta La Fragua, next to Viveros Gómez, right at the entrance to the City of Dreams, as Ronda is also known, thanks to Austrian poet Rainer Maria Rilke*.
Both Markus and Paul are good friends with La Fragua owner Antonio, who was delighted to be asked to host this market, which is currently scheduled to take place on the last Sunday of every month.
This is a good day to choose, since Ronda’s municipal market is on every Sunday at El Recinto Ferial. Ronda market is truly disappointing, however, for a town with a population of around 33,000, plus many other potential visitors from surrounding villages of the Serranía. Places like Arriate, Benaojan, Montecorto and Montejaque.
If you are after ladies’ underwear, shoes, clothes, and bedding, it’s great, but if you want a drink or something to eat, hard luck!
It is also Antonio’s busiest day, for both breakfast and lunch.
What happened?
There were only three stallholders, yet the range of quality items on offer was remarkable. Books, CDs, DVDs, children’s toys, men’s polo shirts, bric-a-brac and second-hand and new items. All three sellers were delighted with the way it went.
They have three more stallholders lined up for next month, including a local bodega, a group of amateur craft people and an artist (painter). In addition, during Sunday’s sale, the two guiris* were approached by two separate local Spanish ladies who wish to take part next time.
As for punters or buyers, as the Spanish return from their holidays, next month the footfall will be greater. And both Markus and Paul agree, their publicity could have been better. They’ve already discussed more effective ways of getting the word out.
© Pablo de Ronda
Notes:
El Choque Ideal is sadly no more. Opened in around 2000 by Dutch couple Dirk and Hebke, it really was “the ideal place to meet”. Offering a Bohemian-style bar restaurant, pay TV, snooker, darts, second-hand clothes shop, swimming pool and a recording studio, it was very popular with the author and his family whenever they were in town.
When the pressures of commuting from their main jobs in the Netherlands became too much, El Choque Ideal passed into other hands in around 2007, but it was never the same again. It is now a music school.
Links:
How did Ronda get the name "City of Dreams"? - Help me, Ronda (help-me-ronda.com)
Ronda, el choque ideal (the perfect place to meet) - Help me, Ronda (help-me-ronda.com)
What is a guiri? It's what the Spanish call us foreigners - but is it good or bad? (secretserrania.com)
Tags:
Amateur, Arriate, artist, Benaojan, bodega, books, bric-a-brac, children’s toys, City of Dreams, CDs, craft people, DVDs, Dirk, El Choque Ideal, flea market, Flohmarkt, guiri, Hebke, Help Me Ronda, La Fragua, Markus Bauer, men’s polo shirts, Montecorto, Montejaque, new items, Pablo de Ronda, painter, Paul Whitelock, Rainer Maria Rilke, Ronda, Ronda Flea Market, second-hand, Secret Serrania, Venta La Fragua, Viveros Gómez, zoco artesanal