HOW TIMES HAVE CHANGED

I am grateful to Martín Moniche writing the “El Canapé” column in La Opinion de Málaga for bringing me the news that at the weekend the first sex shop in Andalucía closed.

Intim Shop had been a much visited feature on the plaza de Bailén in Málaga since 1983. It was in that year that a young Swiss blonde called Gloria came to the Costa del Sol with numerous artefacts to stock the shop plus a wide selection of pornographic films.

Gloria had no problem entering Spain or setting up business. She duly declared her wares at customs and paid the dues required. Nor was their any law in this country to prevent her from selling her intimate products or showing her blue movies in discreet booths.

She and her trade were welcomed with open arms by Malagueños who lived in one of the largest cities in Spain of then some 400,000 residents - who were and are noted for their free spirit.

Well now the business is no more –not because the economic crisis has bitten – but because after all these years Gloria feels she deserves a break and few people now want to sit in a booth when they can watch a porno film on their DVD or the internet.

However Martín closes his piece as I will mine with a story told to him by Gloria. Apparently as part of the closing down sale a Swiss couple purchased from her a wide selection of Sadomasochism gear. They were duly stopped at Málaga airport by the police, not because these items caused offence but because they broke the airport security regulations. By all accounts they had a hard job persuading the officers that their get up was for sexual enjoyment and not to threaten the aircraft crew with.

As I said – how times have changed!