We had a major event at work last week, the Plenary meeting of the European Observatory on Infringements of IP Rights, that we hosted. But the main event was on Saturday, when I went to the town of Rojales for an Oktoberfest celebration put on by my artist friend Jenni who is German but married to a Spanish guy and part of the wine family of Carmen and Hilarión in nearby Almoradí.
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But first a bit of cycling, as usual. On Sunday I cycled to Benidorm, stopping at Platja Bon Nou in Villajoyosa, in my view the nicest beach on this stretch of the coast. This is the view looking south-east, towards Alicante:
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And looking north-west towards Benidorm:
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Later in the ride, I passed this sign for a nudist beach–apparently with a strict dress code:
The next few pictures are murals and signs from the neighbourhood around the Mercado Central, where I took a brief pre-lunch walk one day.
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Vintage clothing:
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Doggie hair salon:
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Human hair salon:
The Plenary was held at our office Wednesday and Thursday, with a dinner Wednesday night. It is an event which we host once a year, bringing together representatives of the 28 EU member states, rights owners lobbies, civil society, Members of the European Parliament and others with an interest in IP.
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Mario and Stephanie confer. These two are responsible for a large part of the logistics of the event:
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MEP Jean-Marie Cavada talks to his assistant:
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My colleague Claire interviews Enrico Turrin from the Federation of European Publishers:
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Claire at Thursday night’s dinner, somewhat more relaxed:
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Two nice Latvians. Linda is a senior lawyer with the Latvian Patent Office, and we have become friends since we first met in April 2014. Next to her is Sergejs, a film producer and blogger whom we had invited to speak at the event:
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On Friday, to celebrate the successful Plenary, we went for lunch at Hostal Maruja, to enjoy it one more time before they close for the winter on November 1st:
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Looking north towards Alicante:
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Looking south towards Guardamar:
The rest of this week’s images are from the Oktoberfest at Cuevas del Rodeo in Rojales. The “caves” are in fact manmade, and most are occupied by local artists. Among them is our German friend Jenni who does sculpture. But this day was less about art; it was more about beer, sausages and saurerkraut. However, I could not resist photographing some of the art as well.
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The entrance to the complex:
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Mural and cat:
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The toilet building–important to know where it is if one is going to drink beer:
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Dogs:
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Wifi love:
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Sculpture:
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Door:
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Jenni and her husband Hilarión serving bratwurst and potato salad:
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Paying close attention:
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Preparing the Kartoffelsalat:
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Quality check:
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The quality check was successful:
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Goat cheese from Tibi. Perhaps not standard Oktoberfest fare, but delicious:
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Both the food and the views were enjoyable:
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Eating:
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Looking on:
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Flags in the wind:
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Bavarian banner:
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Smartphone:
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On the way up:
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Looking at photos:
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Engaged in conversation:
