The not so traditional blue village of Júzcar
When Sony Pictures held the official World Premiere of the Smurf’s 3D movie earlier this year, they didn’t do it with the traditional red carpet. Instead they premiered the film in a Smurf-blue village.
The originally white village of Júzcar in Málaga was painted completely blue for the event and has been a major tourist attraction since then, with over 80,000 visitors taking a day trip to Smurf town.
This weekend the village votes on whether to keep the new blue or revert to the traditional andalusian white. Either way the Town Hall is going to cover the cost of the painting. The village is one of the many white villages found in the mountains behind the glitzy Costa del Sol. Tourism is a major source of income, but the rural property market has also been a significant feature, with many foreigners choosing to buy property in the villages to enjoy a more “spanish” lifestyle – without the golf courses and the luxury beachfront apartments and where the 4×4′s are used to negotiate country lanes and mountain tracks rather than the crowds in Puerto Banús!
Whatever the outcome of this weekend’s vote, the village of Júzcar is well worth a visit with it’s rustic charm and friendly villagers – but don’t be disappointed if you don’t see any real life Smurfs on your visit….
