OUT AND ABOUT
out and about in BENAJARAFE The small coastal town of Benajarafe had always been the name of a place along the N340 coastal road on the way to Rincón de la Victoria or Malaga. I couldn’t begin to count the number of times I have gone through Benajarafe on the bus to and from Vélez or Torre del Mar, knowing that in either direction there was still some way to go…until I took the time to go to there, speak to some of the locals and chat to a couple of bar owners. The place I have overlooked on so many bus journeys is full of delicious little secrets… Years before, passengers would have travelled to and through Benajarafe on the train, known affectionately as ‘la Cochinita,’ which went from Malaga to Zafaraya and the old station building is still standing. It is now used as the lifeguard point and houses public toilets and a nurse’s station. It’s also a good place to go for general information about what’s going on, especially in summer. To see old photos of the train, visit La Estación hostal and cafeteria on the other side of the road from the station building, where owner Antonio will tell you that the large photo hanging to the left of the bar shows the train’s last journey in April 1968. He proudly informed us that it was given to him by the wife of the last station master. My favourite photo is one to the right of the bar with a young boy who is clearly not happy to be in the photo. I didn’t ask if that was Antonio too! The Benajarafe-born bar owner also remembers travelling on the train to Malaga as a young boy to have his photograph taken to celebrate his first communion. Benajarafe belongs to Vélez-Málaga and has done so since Muslim times when it was a farmstead pertaining to the larger authority. In fact the name Benajarafe comes from Arabic and although there is some uncertainty as to the correct original name, theories include ‘Ben’ coming from ‘Ibni,’ meaning son in Arabic, or ‘Bina’ meaning construction. 36
The DIRECTORY June 2017