NEW TO THE LIBRARY – “Ramón x3” – a bilingual autobiography by noted local author Ramón Michán Doña.
The book that I want to draw your attention to this month is a charming autobiography by a man of many parts who is extremely popular with our library members. Those who have attended his talks or joined him on his strolls through the town sharing his wide knowledge of the history of Puerto de la Cruz are always delighted to see him.
Ramon Michan Doña was born in Algeciras, Andalucía in the Peninsula, as the Canarians call the mainland of Spain. The title of his book refers to his grandfather, his father and himself. He tells how his family respected his wishes and encouraged him to study languages. Ramon’s destiny was to work his way up through the hotel industry until he reached his goal of becoming a respected hotel manager spending the majority of his working life in Tenerife, having noticed in the late 1960s that Tenerife would play a major role in the Spanish tourist boom.
His study of different languages and his experience of working in London, in 1968, brought him to Puerto de la Cruz and the new tower block Hotel Belair, an Aparthotel which had , become very popular in the tourist resorts by having some apartments privately owned and the majority of apartments run as a hotel.
To those of us who love our island, he brings back memories of the early years of the growth of the south into one of Europe’s major playgrounds.
Today, after his retirement from the hotel industry Ramon has taken groups to all parts of the island on carefully prepared walks sharing his knowledge of the places visited.
The last talk at the Library, just before the Covid pandemic, was about “The Cavendish Banana and a Murder” What do the two things have in common? Well, they don’t – and that’s what makes Ramon’s talks so interesting. Two for the price of one.
His book has a similar surprise. It is written in two languages English and Spanish; the left hand pages in English and the right hand pages in Spanish; a great companion to the text book for someone learning either of the two languages.
Ramon’s contribution to the Tourist Industry of the Island was recognised by the Centre for Initiatives and Tourism (CIT) of Puerto de la Cruz who awarded him a prize in 2017. For those of you who live on the island the book is for sale at Stratford Book Shop in Calle Iriarte, Puerto de la Cruz. It can also be bought as an e-book from atlantidadistribuciones.com
