THE COMMUNITY spirit is alive and well in Casco Viejo, from subsidizing and painting garbage cans, to cleaning beaches and aiding less fortunate neighbors when disaster strikes.

On Saturday, May 2, they turned their attention to Plazad de Francia which in recent weeks has seen an invasion of migrant sea birds, bringing not only fine plumage and photo ops for tourists but another, of "natures gifts" – bird droppings.
With the wrong wind to carry it, the smell, could be detected streets away say residents. So, rather than wait for the authorities to move, the residents’ association AVACA decided to tackle the problem themselves and set an example for the powers that be, by organizing a "deep shampoo" of the area.
Volunteers armed with sponges, brooms and a pressure washer cleaned the cobbles and the drain-predictably packed with garbage and leaves.
They even removed the grass growing on the sidewalk alongside the French Embassy.
The result: an odor free Plaza for residents and tourists But birds drop their bombs every day and Avaca is nudging the Oficina del Casco Antiguo and Patrimonio Histórico to coordinate urgently with the Municipality to keep up the good work, which will be made easier with the arrival of the rainy season,