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Spanish castle spared from collapse, but not criticism

The Matrera Castle in southern Spain after its restoration. Images of the castle before and after the restoration have recently fueled bemusement and ridicule on social media.

When the residents of Villamartin heard that the landmark castle near their small town in southern Spain was up for restoration, they probably envisaged a thoughtful restoration of the medieval stronghold to something approximating its former glory.

Instead, what they have been left with is something that many feel more closely resembles a multistorey parking garage.

The repair of Matrera Castle, perched on a ridge in the Andalusia region, has infuriated locals and provoked the ire of some conservationists. Images of the castle before and after the restoration have recently fuelled bemusement and

March 2016

ridicule on social media. “It’s a barbarity,” before one town resident was quoted as saying by the Spanish news channel La Sexta. “I don’t like what they’ve done at all,” said another.

“It looks like they’ve used builders instead of restorers,” a third said, using a mild expletive to assess the quality of the work. Hispania Nostra, a preservationist group that advocates the protection of heritage sites, was similarly unimpressed.

The work is “truly lamentable” and “has very badly surprised locals and foreigners,” the group’s vice president, Carlos Morenes, said on its website, calling the project an example of the “massacre” of Spanish heritage. The architect behind the restoration, Carlos Quevedo Rojas, acknowledged that his results were not to everyone’s taste. “I understand the criticism of local people used to seeing the tower look a certain way,” he said in a phone interview, “but the principle objective was to prevent the collapse of the structure.”

Quevedo Rojas said that modern standards for restoring historic buildings discouraged efforts to make them look like they might have when first erected.

“You have to distinguish and maintain the historical value and architectural integrity,” he said. “You can’t make the structure have the same appearance as the original. You can’t falsify the appearance. It has to be clear which parts are new and which are old.”

According to Quevedo Rojas, plans to restore the castle, which is privately owned, were drawn up in 2011, but had to be altered when the north wall collapsed in 2013 because of floods in the area. “In this case, the first objective is to consolidate the structure so it doesn’t suffer further collapses,” he said.

The project, he said, cost hundreds of thousands of euros – he would not be more precise – and did not involve public funds. Town authorities and the culture and environment departments of the Andalusia regional government approved the project, he said.

Attempts to repair objects of historical significance have gone awry before in Spain. In 2012, a case of suspected vandalism in a church in the northeastern village of Borja turned out to be among the worst art restoration projects of all time: An 83-year-old widow and amateur painter admitted having tried to restore a nearly century-old fresco of Jesus crowned with thorns. That story had a somewhat miraculous ending ?- the botched restoration was so appalling that the church has become a tourist attraction.

While the renovated Matrera Castle seems unlikely to enjoy the same fate, the makeover does have its defenders. Jose Maria Gutierrez Lopez, the director of Villamartin’s small history museum, said critics were simply ill-informed. “I think the criticism comes from people without any knowledge of the criteria of modern restoration,” he said. “They wanted it to be restored to the same condition as it was before, but that’s not what happens.” Gutierrez Lopez, who has written a book about the castle and the history of the surrounding area but was not involved in the repairs, expressed surprise at the negative attention it has received. “When there was the collapse in 2013, we couldn’t even get 100 signatures together to restore the building,” he said. “Now there’s been this restoration, there’s been an outcry. It makes me very frustrated.” “It looks fine to me,” he added. “I don’t think it’s out of place at all.” http://www.domain.com.au/

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Twelve years after Islamists bombed commuter trains in Madrid, Spain’s four victim associations united for the first time in the capital on Friday for a joint tribute to the 193 victims of Europe’s bloodiest terrorist attack. “Myriam would ask you today to take a step forward against terrorism,” said Ángeles Pedraza, president of the Terrorism Victim Association (AVT), in reference to her own daughter, who died in the attacks.

Speaking at an act in the Forest of Remembrance, a memorial garden inside Retiro Park, Pedraza also alluded to the recent release from prison of Arnaldo Otegi, a veteran political leader in Basque radical pro-ETA circles.

We have never demanded revenge, but we will never give up on justice MARIMAR BLANCO, PRESIDENT OF THE VICTIMS OF TERRORISM FOUNDATION “We need societies that reject those who receive murderers like heroes,” she said, warning against “those who are trying to launder the past.” Earlier in the day, a string quartet played Mozart’s Requiem in Sol Square in front of numerous tourists and passersby.

At 9am, with all the city’s church bells ringing in memory of the dead, regional premier Cristina Cifuentes and city Mayor Manuela Carmena laid down a wreath at the foot of the building that houses the regional government.

“Any one of us could have been on those trains, and that day we became aware that we are all potential victims,

and that it may be anybody’s turn to cry,” said Pilar Manjón, head of the 11-M Association. Standing next to her were Marimar Blanco, president of the Victims of Terrorism Foundation, Ángeles Domínguez, of the Association to Help Victims of 11-M, and Ángeles Pedraza, of the Victims of Terrorism Association.

Pedraza said it was a “legend” that the various associations have a bad working relationship, and focused instead on their unity.

“What brings us together is the same thing: the pain over relatives who were taken from us,” said Pedraza.

Acting Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said on Friday that Spain will continue to defend the lives, the rights and the freedoms of all citizens in the face of terrorism, and said it is “very comforting” that practically all parties are together on this issue.

In the Basque city of San Sebastián, regional premier Iñigo Urkullu, of the Basque Nationalist Party (PNV), presided a silent gathering to pay tribute to the victims of terrorism. In Barcelona, a minute of silence was observed at Sant Jaume square.

The European Commission on Friday issued a statement condemning “all forms of terrorism in the world; we remember the victims with respect and honor.” http://elpais.com/

4

Biggest-ever fake cigarette heist in Spain: 88 tonnes seized in Andalucía

POLICE and customs in Andalucía have seized 88 tonnes of contraband tobacco worth €14 million in what is said to have been Spain's largest smuggling heist of its type in history.

Inquiries started in November, when 11 people were arrested and 41 tonnes of roll-your-own tobacco was seized in operations throughout various provinces in Andalucía.

It was manufactured in three warehousess in Almería – one in the city, one in Huércal and one in Benahadux in the province - and distributed to mainly southern-Spanish companies and to individuals in Spain via courier service.

Cigarette tubes with forged brand names were also seized, along with flavourings

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Pontones (Jaén province).

Ongoing raids throughout the region have led to a total of 88 tonnes being used to copy the taste of well-known seized and a further six arrests. types of cigarette, plus equipment for They were said to have been buying making them up, invoices and other documents, and several vehicles.

Police said at the time that they had confiscated enough tobacco to make eight million packets of contraband cigarettes, or 800,000 cartons.

Their inquiries began after the association of tobacconist shops in the province of Jaén reported an unusual drop in sales.

Working with police from Poland, Estonia and Bulgaria, the Guardia Civil in Andalucía continued the investigations and have since found nearly two tonnes of loose tobacco and fake cigarettes in shops in Linares and Santiago de

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CÓRDOBA'S spectacular Medina Azahara monument will apply to become a UNESCO heritage site next year. Secretary of State for culture José María Lassalle presided the latest meeting of the southern city's heritage committee on Friday and reports that the decision to become a candidate in 2017 was 'unanimous', with 'no hesitation' and 'applauded warmly by all those present'.

The committee has to highlight the 'exceptional' nature of the structure to be in with a chance of gaining the UNESCO tag, and is now working on ways of doing so. Lassalle says the Medina Azahara is a 'unique historical and

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Spain fears flood of refugees with closure of Balkan route

Jorge Fernández Díaz, Spain’s acting interior minister said Spain was preparing to see new routes open up across the western Mediterranean bringing waves of refugees to Spainish shores. “If one door is closed, they will seek other. The (people trafficking) mafias are bad but they are not stupid,” Fernández Díaz said in an interview on Spain’s national broadcaster RTVE on Friday.

“Spain should not drop its guard, we need to be prudent,” he said.

His comments came on the back of a European summit commitment to send migrants back to Turkey and

close the heavily travelled Balkans route leaving thousands in crowded refugee camps in Greece. “So far the western Mediterranean route has been talked about because Spain is doing its job,” stated the minister, but this could change if the EU is unable to develop an “immigration policy and comprehensive asylum policy that tackles the cause of the problem .

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The Campo de Cartagena and its Sierra Minera

March 2016

By Maureen Bailey on October 11th in Mar Menor, Regional parks of Murcia

mountains of earth with a remarkable rainbow of colours from the different ores that have been taken out of the ground. Along with this there are the remains of the old mine working. Restoration of these facilities has been going on for some time around the small town of Llano del Beal.

The Las Matildes mine was originally devoted to the extraction of lead and dates back to the 1870’s, later with the construction of a new engine room and new headgear at the beginning of the 20th century, the mine became a pumping station to help pump water from the mines in the area, there is now a visitors centre here.

Campo Del Cartagena has a lot of hidden corners in which it is still possible to find untouched areas many of which are now protected areas. There are seven hiking routes including mining routes, traditional fisherman’s routes herding routes and the Atamaria Roman road of less than 50km, all of which are sign posted. http://www.discovercostacalida.info/

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The Campo de Cartagena and its Sierra Minera The campo de Cartagena or the countryside of Cartagena is a natural area that runs from the mountain ranges of Mazarron and Carrascoy up to the coast of the Mar Menor and the Mediterranean. It covers some 169000 hectares or 419575 acres of land and is blessed with an exceptionally mild climate. It is this climate that as made the region an ideal location for fruit and vegetable farming amongst which are wheat and barley and almonds, carobs, olives and figs. With the transfer of water from the Tajo-Segura river the area as been transformed into the most productive site for planting products such as citrus and other fruit tree and many types of vegetables, making this the market garden of Europe.

Because of the necessity to be able to mill the products of the campo and the need to extract water from the subsoil, along with the steady and fairly strong winds which blow across the campo the appearance of windmills became the normal thing in the fields. These windmills came to characterise the coastal area as they could be seen all over. They differed from the normal windmill as they had triangular sails instead of the traditional classically shaped versions we see in England. Also the sail were canvas and could be rolled back onto the arms where as the English versions were wood and

were fixed to the arms.

Windmills of the Mar Menor At the moment these mill are being restored all across the campo with more than a hundred in the state of restoration. The windmill at Santa Ana outside of Cartagena is now restored and is working. The Zabala mill on the road to La Azohia has been restored on the outside, so as the mill at the entrance to the town of La Puebla. There is now wind turbinesanother type of windmill to be seen on the hills above Cartagena and that’s the new power generating wind farms.

Many of the jobs and customs that had been lost over the years are now being bought back. In the town of La Palma there is the Regional Museum of bobbin craft where there is a wide selection of the craftsmanship that used to be found all over the area. Close by is the Casa del Folklore it is situated in a mansion dating from the beginning of the 20thcentury, on show are exhibitions of dresses and other clothing, photographs of old windmills. Also to be found here is the headquarters of the folklore school that aims to bring together the folklore groups of the city of Cartagena whose aim is the recovery and spreading of the valuable ethnological patrimony of the area.

The environment of the nearby mountains around Cartagena has been called a lunar landscape because of the extensive open-cast mining which as been carried out in the area since Roman times, and because of the corresponding

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It exercises the heart and lungs and in turn it reduces stress. It also keeps the brain active in so many ways and is an outlet for your emotions.

Members of the Harlequin Rock Choir are well aware of these advantages.

In 2015, we not only enjoyed the health benefits of singing and being part of a choir but we helped raise nearly €1700 for the ‘HELP THE POOR’ and MABS charities. We were delighted to be asked to sing at the Camposol Fiesta in August. Singing outside on a warm, sultry evening was a special experience. In November and early December we gave live performances at Mariano’s restaurant Camposol, at the Clover bar in Condado de Alhama and one at Oscar’s bar in Camposol. They were all extremely well received and enjoyed by all including the choir members. Singing, knowing that we are helping others is the added element to the ‘feel good’ factor. Can you get any better than that?

Word has got around that singing is good for you and the Harlequin Rock Choir’s popularity has grown.

Since last summer we have had

a lot more members joining us, including a few more much needed men.

S u b s e q u e n t l y, our Musical Directors know that they have a greater range of voices to work with and can therefore be more inventive with song choice and arrangements.

We are always looking for more members; more people who want to experience the buzz of singing as part of a choir.

So if you want to find an enjoyable way of keeping healthy whether you decide to eat that bar of chocolate or not, come and try out our choir. You don’t have to have fantastic voices. The love of singing and being part of a group of friendly, welcoming people is the main requirement.

Come and see what we do on a Saturday at 1.15 in the Cultural Centre, Calle Virgen de la Cabeza, Sector B, Camposol and you will want to join us.

If you want to know more about joining the choir go to our internet site www.harlequinrockchoir.com or to our Harlequin Rock Choir Facebook site.

• Are you planning an event to raise money for charity? Will you have a captive audience in a largish venue, suitable for a choir of around 30 people or more? We would love to help you raise money. Contact us as above and we’ll be in touch.

As with all our charitable performances we all give our services for FREE!

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March 2016

home & garden

Contact 950 121 936 or email sales@soltimes.com to Advertise in this section There are few rites of spring more satisfying than the annual clean. For many people, however, the pleasure comes only after the work is finished. Your spring cleaning may never become effortless, but you can make the project more manageable -- and even enjoyable. This printable checklist offers an overview of everything you need to know -- including information on cleansers, stain removal, fabric care, and storage -- to zip through the process and arrive at a happy end.

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Spring-CleaningChecklist After you read through the tips and techniques, tailor the list to your home and yard. Create a realistic schedule, keeping in mind that a single weekend won't suffice, as you'll need several days for more involved projects, such as shampooing carpets and organizing closets. Whether you prefer to proceed from the attic to the basement or start outdoors and wind your way inside, focus on one task at a time. And be sure to enlist the help of family members Throughout the House The tips below outline basic techniques that will help you clean almost every surface (or object) in any room.

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The tasks on the next page are broken down by location, including outdoor spaces. The final page of this foldout focuses on window washing and upkeep, which is essential if you’re going to let the sun shine in on the bright days to come.

Wipe Walls and Ceilings: Use a vacuum to remove dust. Tackle stubborn surface grime, especially prevalent in kitchens, with a solventfree degreaser (test it first in an inconspicuous area to ensure it won’t mar the surface).

Reseal Grout Lines: The cement-based material between wall, floor, and countertop tiles is extremely porous and stains easily. Protect it with a penetrating grout sealer; it’s best to apply it with a small foam brush.

Vacuum and Shampoo Rugs: Synthetic carpets and rugs with waterproof backings can

be deep-cleaned with a rotary shampoo machine and a hot-water extraction machine.

Rugs without backings, including Orientals, require professional cleaning.

Dust Books and Shelves: Take everything off the Shelves, and brush shelves and books with a feather dust- er.

Use the dust-brush or crevice tool on a vacuum to reach into tight spots.

Wipe the spines of leather-bound books with a clean, soft cloth.

Clean Upholstered Furnishings: Take cushions outside and gently beat them by hand to remove dust. If there are stains, check the pieces for care labels. Use a vacuum’s upholstery and crevice tools to clean under seat cushions. h t t p : / / w w w . marthastewart.com/

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LOOK GOOD FEEL GREAT Tel: 950 121 936 - sales@soltimes.com

'Stunning' operation regenerates eye's lens

A pioneering procedure to regenerate the eye has successfully treated children with cataracts in China.

More than half of all cases of blindness are caused by cataracts - the clouding of the eye's lens.

An implanted lens is normally needed to restore sight, but the operation described in Nature activated stem cells in the eye to grow a new one. Experts describe the breakthrough as one of the finest achievements in regenerative medicine.

The lens sits just behind the pupil and focuses light on to the retina. About 20 million people are blind because of cataracts, which become more common with age although some children are born with them.

Conventional treatment uses ultrasound to soften and break up the lens, which is then flushed out.

An artificial intraocular lens must then be implanted back into the eye, but this can result in complications, particularly in children. The technique developed by scientists at the Sun Yat-sen University and the University of California, San Diego removes the cloudy cataract from inside the lens via a tiny incision.

Crucially it leaves the outer surface - called the lens capsule - intact. This structure is lined with lens epithelial stem cells, which normally repair damage.

The scientists hoped that preserving them would regenerate the lens. The team reported that tests on

rabbits and monkeys were successful, so the approach was trialled in 12 children. Within eight months the regenerated lens was back to the same size as normal.

Dr Kang Zhang, one of the researchers, told the BBC News website: “This is the first time an entire lens has been regenerated. The children were operated on in China and they continue to be doing very well with normal vision.”

It also showed a dramatically lower complication rate “by almost every measure, supporting the superiority of the treatment”.

However, he says larger trials are needed before it should become the standard treatment for patients.

The procedure was tried in children because their lens epithelial stem cells are more youthful and more able to

Kim Clar k benefits consultancy Do you suffer from mobility problems, breathlessness/pain or falls/stumbles?

Do you need help washing / dressing or supervision?

You could be entitled to extra income by claiming UK sickness / disability benefits while living in Spain

For advice or to book a consultation call 950 169 729 or 663 297 568 or visit www.ukbenefitsinspain.com

regenerate than in older patients. Yet the overwhelming majority of cataracts are in the elderly. Dr Zhang says tests have already started on older pairs of eyes and says the early research “looks very encouraging”.

Commenting on the findings, Prof Robin Ali from the UCL Institute of Ophthalmology, said the work was “stunning”. http://www.bbc.com/

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950 121 936 - sales@soltimes.com

March 2016

Bermuda Triangle mystery explained?

Hello and welcome to CanDu Computer was unusable! But as much Bytes, Your Only Stop for solutions to Your as I don’t want to admit it, computer problems. My ‘drop-in’ clinic that’s all changed. Touch (like the way doctors used to be!) is at Maloans Bar (opposite the BP) on a Friday is quite good on Windows 10. But a little afternoon. To arrange an appointment history. In the early 2000s, when touch for another time or place use the Phone screens started becoming popular in cars number or Email address below, Skype and GPS devices, they didn’t quite work (Look for the name “saiminja”), Viber or like the touch screens we know today.

Whatsapp (use the phone number) for free advice concerning your computer. Sales They could only handle one point of touch and they were slow, and worse, inaccurate. pitch over and on to the topic for today.

Do you have a laptop that also has a Sometimes you had to press really hard to touch screen? Does it infuriate you because get it to register. Windows XP “tablets” had it is something from a SciFi movie? Well, similar problems–plus the targets were Microsoft, want you to believe that it is the impossibly small. To add to the frustration, best thing since sliced bread! The following has come directly from the Microsoft much of the hardware required you use a stylus for “touch” to work in the first place. website: If you have a computer with a It was bad, it was expensive, it worked touchscreen, you might find that gestures poorly, and it mostly just frustrated people. (motions that you make with one or two Windows Vista and 7 didn’t improve the fingers) are easier to use than a mouse, experience much, and 8 went much too far pen, or keyboard.

Use flicks to perform tasks! You don’t need in the other direction – It was too touchto tap or click a menu item or a button on a centric, making keyboard and mouse use toolbar to perform common tasks, such as difficult without the knowledge of shortcut copy, paste, undo, and delete. Instead, you keys. W8.1 was an improvement, but can use a flick of your finger. For example, an upward flick moves a page down, and pathetically little improvement and still a downward flick moves a page up. There missing the point. I find that this is what are two categories of flicks: navigational happens when we all get so single minded and editing. on a task that we stop looking at ALL the To learn how to use flicks, see http:// options (just a thought :-), (Microsoft don’t windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows7/ want me as their ‘conscience’ - I’ve asked!) practice-using-flicks.

For me the best thing (and probably, You can customize flicks to do frequentlyperformed tasks. To learn how, see http:// the only good thing) about ‘Touch’ is that windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows7/ you will never have to say “Where is that customize-flicks. flaming cursor?” again. Want to type in Press and hold does the same thing as right-clicking an item. To perform the a field? Reach out and touch it. Need to action, touch the screen where you want access the start menu? Touch it. Click to right-click, hold until a complete circle submit on a form? You get the idea. appears, and then lift your finger. The The use of touch on Windows has finally shortcut menu appears after you lift your matured to a point where it has gone from finger. unusable to nice value add. It’s certainly Windows Touch gestures: If your touchscreen can recognize at least two not a necessity, but definitely makes touch points, you can use Windows Touch the computing experience a little more gestures. To find out if your touchscreen pleasant. If you have a touch-enabled supports more than one touch point, check laptop but haven’t taken advantage, give the information that came with your laptop it a shot. You may be pleasantly surprised. or touchscreen.

Now my thoughts.

For further information or advice on It was bad! No wait, computing,contact Trevor on 689 892 745 or bad is probably a canducomputing@hotmail.co.uk little too generous, it

A Curious Case of travelling Laundry Part 2 My wife’s face explained that this was my problem to sort out fast! How could I travel the three hours back to the laundry and collect our laundry unless it’d been given to stripy tee shirt owner; then drive three hours back to where I was standing now; ready to catch our ferry (the last of the day) in two hours time?

This round peg didn’t fit its square hole so I ordered more beer; by now the bar owner had noticed there was a situation unfolding. I explained my cock up and she smiled knowingly at the stupidity of men. Pitying my wife she lent me her phone and I called our previous hotel to tell them the story of the missing laundry. They agreed to go the laundrette and call me back. Luckily there was a bright orange dress (not mine) plus a cream tee-shirt with a VW microbus stencilled on it (mine) so the hotel staff could easily see if it was our bag.

Then the mobile I was using ran out of juice and there was no charger. The girl at the next table had been watching our escapades and kindly gave us her mobile to use. I called the hotel with our new contact number. So, more beer drinking and worried pacing until they called back with good news and bad news. I like good news so took that first, the launderette had liked my VW tee shirt so much; it was top of the pile and obviously ours. Then bad news as no taxi was available to get the bag back to us in time for the ferry. Then good news as a taxi could reach the ferry by the next afternoon; then more bad news as it was going to cost Fifty US Dollars plus another five for the laundry.

Money being no object where marital happiness is concerned; I stuffed fiftyfive Dollars in an envelope for the taxi, wrote out an address label with our new hotel on for our laundry, wrote another address label for the stripy tee shirt bag to be returned safely to its owner; then met the ferry manager and explained our predicament. The very nice man laughed and said he would deliver our

Underwater gas explosions could explain Bermuda Triangle disappearances Scientists may have come up with an explanation for one of the world’s greatest mysteries - the Bermuda Triangle.

The Bermuda Triangle, which lies in a section of the North Atlantic Ocean, has been blamed for the disappearance of at least 20 planes and 50 ships in the past 100 years.

A discovery of giant underwater craters at the bottom of the Barents Sea could offer a viable theory for the disappearance of ships lost at sea.

Large underwater exploding gas deposits could offer an explanation for mysterious disappearances in the Bermuda Triangle.

Scientists have found craters almost a kilometre wide and more than 45 metres deep, believed to have been caused by build-ups of methane off the coast of natural gas-rich Norway, the Daily Mail reported.

The methane would have leaked from deposits of natural gas further below the surface and created cavities which finally burst.

Details of the discovery will be released next month at the annual meeting of the European Geosciences Union, with a key question being whether such bubbles could threaten ships.

One theory is they may explain the disappearance of ships in areas like the Bermuda Triangle.

A researcher from the Arctic University of Norway told the Sunday Times multiple craters existed on the sea floor in an area in the west-central Barents Sea, which probably caused enormous “blowouts” of gas.

“The crater area is likely to represent one of the largest hotspots for shallow marine methane release in the Arctic.”

This is not the first time this idea has been floated to explain the disappearance of ships in the notorious Bermuda Triangle area, which stretches from the British Overseas Territory in the North Atlantic Ocean to the Florida coast, to Puerto Rico.

In 2015, Russian scientist Igor Yeltsov, the deputy head of the Trofimuk Institute, said: “There is a version that the Bermuda Triangle is a consequence of gas hydrates reactions.

“They start to actively decompose with methane ice turning into gas. It happens in an avalanche-like way, like a nuclear reaction, producing huge amounts of gas.

“That makes the ocean heat up and ships sink in its waters mixed with a huge proportion of gas,” Yeltsov said. stuff.co.nz

Enjoy Stephens musings? Pop over to http://findmeahomeinspain.wordpress.com as the articles are posted on there too...and they’re a bit longer too! Findmeahome are always looking for quality homes for their sales and rental portfolios, please contact Stephen for a valuation: stephen@findmeahome.eu Telephone: 636 266 641

laundry pack to the island free of charge next afternoon.

The bar owner said she was off tomorrow afternoon but her trusty number two (a man) would pay the taxi driver, take our laundry from him and give him the stripy tee shirt bag in return. Then he’d walk the 20 paces to the ferry and give them the package for us. The plan had come together and I bought beers all around before we boarded the ferry to our desert island hotel.

Next day at early O’clock we woke in our island paradise and the hotel gave us the good news that our laundry had arrived. There waiting for me at reception was the blooming stripy tee shirt bag. So my laundry story was repeated. On the mainland the trusty number two had ignored all instructions, choosing instead to chuck our laundry on the first boat out of town. We now had some poor chap’s clothes even further from him and ours was nowhere to be seen. Phone calls confirmed that the trusty number 2 was anything but; our laundry was sitting under the bar counter on the mainland. Luckily our hotel had staff with brains, with two of them on a day off on the mainland. They kindly went to the bar, presumably slapped No.2 with a wet fish and put our laundry on a ferry to the island. Our hotel arranged for the stripy tee shirt to be returned to the mainland, with the bar owner promising to personally supervise its return.

That afternoon marital bliss was resumed as our clean clothes arrived.

Unsurprisingly a week later when we returned to the mainland to thank the bar for cocking up and then rescuing the situation; the stripy tee-shirts were still under the bar. So we made new arrangements for their return but who knows if they made it? If any reader ever hears a tale of a poor chap who lost his stripy tee shirt in Cambodia; please put him touch.

www.soltimes.com

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GREAT NEWS FOR MOTOR HOME OWNERS The freedom to travel the world in a motor home is a wonderful experience.

So why compromise your vehicle by holding back on its capabilities?

Motor Homes are normally built around a large van chassis and engine.

Unfortunately the engines are not set up or tuned for optimum economy or power output for motor homes.

Most manufacturers sell their vehicles all over the world and have to allow for differing conditions within each export market. Conditions such as climate, emissions regulations and fuel quality are all taken into account. They have to take into account expectations of many commercial vehicle fleet buyers, who are happy to accept a compromise that copes adequately with average commercial use, not necessarily what is most effective when those same vehicles are converted for use as motorhomes.

The great news is that today the engines on most turbo diesel engines can be tuned to increase the economy and performance without any component changes to the engine at all.

Great Benefits Your vehicle’s throttle response is now sharper, turbo lag and flat spots have been eliminated, gear changes arrive sooner, your whole vehicle feels livelier, as though you had chosen the bigger engine option. These are just some of the benefits you will enjoy with a “Veloc Tuning” remap.

How It is achieved by carefully changing the software within the vehicles “ECU” or “Engine Control Unit”. This is the brain of the engine that controls how the engine runs. How must air and fuel goes into the engine, the timing for the injection of the fuel, also the duration, and turbo boost pressure. All can be adjusted mostly by plugging into the vehicles “OBD” port or “On Board Diagnostics” port under the dashboard of the vehicle.

Some vehicles require the ECU removing to make the tuning modification, and will take a little longer, but the end result is the same.

Using state of the art equipment and the skill and training we have received, we can retune your engine to make these great improvements to save on fuel, and give very useful extra pulling power, also a smoother, happier running engine.

FROM JUST 199€ FOR CARS TO BE REMAPPED, AND FROM 249€ FOR A MOTOR HOME. THE VALUE FOR MONEY IS OUTSTANDING. For full tuning details for your motor home or car, check out our “Motor Home” section on our website.

Our tuning service is fully mobile, so will come to you on any Campsite, or your home along the Costas and inland Spain.

We offer a lifetime software guarantee for all tuning work. Also a 30 day money back guarantee if you are not totally happy with the results. Then, in that case the vehicle will be returned to the original manufactures software.

Also we always let you test drive your Motor Home before asking for any payment.

We cover Costa Blanca, Costa Calida, Costa Almeria, and Costa del Sol. Discounts given for groups and friends, if the tuning is done on the same day, and location.

Contact us for a chat and a free quote for your Motorhome

Call Paul on M: 600827517 or T: 950104488 paul@veloc-ecu-remapping-spain.com www.veloc-ecu-remapping-spain.com

8 great Spanish Easter break ideas

March 2016

Relaxing and fun escapes for making the most out of the first holiday of the year

From Andy Warhol in Bilbao to walks around movie locations and subterranean secrets – whether you have four, seven or even more days to recharge your batteries over Easter, here are eight exciting Spanish travel ideas for the upcoming break.

Music in Cuenca First held in 1961, this year’s 55th edition of the Religious Music Week in Cuenca overlaps with the Easter holidays, running from March 19 to 27 in venues such as the city cathedral, the Menédez Pelayo University, the auditorium, and the churches of San Miguel, San Pedro de la Merced and Santa Cruz. Highlights include Bach’s Mass in B minor conducted by William Christie and performed by German baritone André Morsh and the British soprano Katherine Watson. Some concerts are free, while others cost between €9 and €40 (a season pass for all the concerts is €250). www.smrcuenca.es Movie marshes Spanish director Alberto Rodríguez’s excellent recent thriller La isla mínima (Marshland), set among the rice fields of the Guadalquivir river in Andalusia, has inspired a trip to the Doñana National Park organized by trekking agency Gente Viajera from March 23 to 27. The price is €428 per person, which includes transportation from Madrid, full-board accommodation in the rural Lantana Garden hotel in Pilas (Seville) and a selection of routes on foot, horseback or by jeep around Doñana and the landscapes seen in the movie. www.genteviajera.com The camellia trail March is the best time to visit the gardens of Galicia, where more than 800 varieties of camellia bloom every year. The Ruta de la Camellia website proposes a route that takes in around 15 Galician country houses that open their gardens to visitors. www.cameliagalicia.com March is the best time to visit the gardens of Galicia, where more than 800 varieties of camellias bloom every year Warhol’s ‘Shadows’ US pop artist Andy Warhol’s Shadows series of paintings is now on show at the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao until October 2. The exhibition is composed of 102 silkscreens in large format. From March 18 to September 4, you also have the chance to see French-American artist Louise Bourgeois’s disturbing Cells installations. The stylish hotel Miró, located in front of the Guggenheim, is offering a promotion, Art Bilbao,

that includes accommodation for two people, breakfast and tickets to the museum for €185 a night. www.mirohotelbilbao.com Underground Burgos The Ojo Guareña cave, in the Las Merindades district of northern Burgos province, has opened a section of its 120 kilometers of underground galleries to the public. Up on the surface, this protected space offers 10 easy circular routes for trekkers. One of the starting points is the San Bernabé Chapel carved out of the rock, which in March opens its doors to the public from Tuesday to Sunday. A combined visit to the Ojo Guareña cave and the chapel costs €4. www.turismocastillayleon.co Roman baths in Extremadura Among the most appealing itineraries on offer this spring is the Vía de la Plata stretch of Extremadura between Mérida (Badajoz) and Baños de Montemayor (Cáceres), an ancient Roman spa town at the foot of the Béjar mountain range (Salamanca). One accommodation option is the Hospedería del Valle de Ambroz, in Hervás (Cáceres). www.hospederiasdeextremadura.es The Ojo Guareña cave in Burgos has opened a section of its 120 kilometers of underground galleries Beautiful beaches According to Trip Advisor users, the Ses Illetes (Formentera), El Cotillo (Fuerteventura) and Bolonia (Cádiz) beaches are among the 10 best in Spain – so why not pay one of them a visit?

Hotel reservations website Booking. com is offering four-night stays from March 24 to 28 in apartments close to Bolonia for around €200 during Easter week. www.booking.com Water features The arrival of spring sees the snow begin to melt and waterfalls start to appear. One of the most spectacular spots is the Monasterio de Piedra in Zaragoza province: a succession of lakes, waterfalls, caves and forests only 105 kilometers from Zaragoza city and 229 from Madrid. Founded in 1194 and refurbished eight centuries later, the monastery is now a hotel and spa that has preserved the Gothic cloister, cells, chapter house and the crypt, which has been converted into a wine museum for the Calatayud region. www.monasteriopiedra.com http://elpais.com/

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Top tips to help you sell

Selling a property in Spain can be a complicated process, but there are a number of tools at your disposal that can help you make sure your property is sold quickly and for its optimum price.

Make sure you familiarise yourself with the conveyancing process as well as any implications that could arise from being a non-resident seller.

We have put together our top tips to get the best out of the selling process: Be open to listening to a surveyor It is a good idea to get a good idea of anything that could affect the sale of your house before you begin the process – either so that you can fix it before the house goes on the market, or so that you are aware of areas that might arise as possible negotiation points. Make sure that your property is completely ready for sale.

It is better to sell a property without furniture Prospective buyers will want to build your house into their own home, and are more likely to want an empty shell. Presentation is also really important – you need to make sure you house is tidy at all times, that you de-clutter all areas and fix those DIY projects you have been

meaning to do for a while.

Don’t sign any exclusivity agreements – contact all the local agents, as they will all know the area Speak to the agent that sold you your house as they will have the best knowledge on how to sell it again. Other local agents will also know the area, and you want to have as many agents working on promoting the property as you can as this will optimise the audience that the property reaches.

Make sure you have all documents ready and prepared Speak to your estate agent and lawyer and make sure you have all the documents and reports that you are legally obligated to have in advance – for example, you must have an efficiency energy certificate to confirm the rating of your property. You will need to pass these on to the estate agent to make sure that they can answer any and all questions from prospective buyers. This will also speed up the process once you have found a suitable buyer.

Be ready for a quick sale Make sure there are no issues before you put the house on the market, and that anything you haven’t been able to fix is transparently communicated to

Home Sales Fell by 2.9% in January

Sales of housing in Spain fell by 2.9% in January, compared to the same month of 2015, to a total of 32,417 transactions, according to the latest Statistics on the Transfer of Property Rights published this week by the National Statistics Institute. Prior to this January decline, home sales had registered 16 consecutive months of year-onyear increases.

The new builds market has been responsible for this decline, with the number of transactions for new housing decreasing by 28.9% yearon-year in January, to a total of just 6,334 transactions, compared with a 6.6% annual increase registered in sales of second hand housing, which reached a total of 26,038 transactions.

Some 89.7% of the home sales transacted in January were for free housing and 10.3% related to

subsidised housing, with the former registering a 2% decline in January year-on-year, to 29,093 transactions, while the latter decreased by 9.9%, to 3,324 transactions.

El Economista reported that, in January, the highest numbers of home sales per 100,000 inhabitants were recorded in Valencia (113) and the Balearic Islands (108).

Andalucía was the region which carried out most housing transactions in the first month of the year, with a total of 6,216 home sales, followed by Catalonia (5,099), Madrid (4,776) and Valencia (4,444). In contrast, the regions which registered the fewest housing transactions in January were La Rioja (227), Cantabria (351) and Navarra (451).

In relative terms, sales of housing rose in eight regions and fell in

SOLTIMES

17

PROPERTY SUPPLEMENT

THE BEST PROPERTY SUPPLEMENT ON THE COSTAS!!!! prospective buyers. It’s also really important to make sure you know what you are going to do when your property is sold – repatriate back to the UK, or find another home to buy in Spain.

Think about your exchange rate If you are going to repatriate funds from selling your property back to the UK, you need to be aware that the exchange rate could fluctuate dramatically between the day you

nine. The greatest increases in transactions were registered in Navarra (+18.4%) and Castilla-La Mancha (+17.9%), while the most

accept an offer and the day that you complete. Before you put your house on the market, speak to a currency transfer specialist such as Smart Currency Exchange, who will be able to talk you through the best options and offer you a better exchange rate than your bank. You may also be able to ‘fix’ your rate for up to a year – ensuring the price of your property in sterling doesn’t change during the process. http://www.spainbuyingguide.com/

significant declines were recorded in La Rioja (-25.3%) and the Canary Islands (-16.2%). kyero.com

Are you looking for an agent you can trust to rent or sell your property?

Please contact us on info@opgroupspain.com or call: 966 729 653

OP

GroupSpain

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March 2016

living in Spain

There are just so many wonderful things to enjoy here for free or a small outlay, which is why so many of us have chosen to live here

Spain is officially still one of the cheapest countries to live in! In a recent survey by the UK Post Office, Bulgaria achieved the accolade of

So, how does this bear out for those of us who live here? Generally well, although where I live on the Costa Brava, the prices are higher than in many other spots in Spain by the sea. Restaurants have kept their prices down, though, and you can usually expect to pay between €1.50 and €2.50 for a glass of wine, or perhaps around €3.00 in a very smart hotel or upmarket bar. Compared to Britain, this is still excellent value; when I am in London or even Yorkshire with my family, I am shocked at the cost of drinks every time we go to a pub – especially a small glass of wine, which is often at least £4.95.

Of course, living somewhere is different to spending time there on holiday, as there are all the usual utility and other regular payments to be made, but when I talk to family and friends in the UK, I realise that we actually have a pretty good deal here in Spain. Then I ask myself, am I living here just because it is cost effective? Certainly not. I am living here because I enjoy the so many “free” things - more sunny days than not, spending more time outside the house than in, many, many evenings on my terrace with friends - or on theirs, a stroll along a beach, music in my town square, waking up to blue skies, chatting to my local friends for rather longer than just a “hola” and “adios” (people have time to talk here; there are much less likely to be just dashing around), and, of course, living life at a slower pace altogether. None of these things cost 1 céntimo.

Nor do the friendships made with locals and others. This costs nothing more than time and a little effort. You can’t afford to be shy, you need to make contact,

the cheapest, but Spain was a very close second. In fact, the survey found that a coffee on the Costa del Sol at €0.90 was even cheaper than Sunny Beach, a similar tourist destination in Bulgaria. This part of Spain is about half the price of Sorrento in Italy, and even 12.7% less overall than it was in 2014.

so speaking Spanish goes a long way to helping you - but there are people from all over the world living in Spain, and many will speak English even if they originate from Holland, Germany, Japan, France or any other nonEnglish speaking country. The British expats won’t be far away, and for many this is comforting, but as an expat who has lived in several countries, I have to say trying to speak the local language will open up so many great new experiences and relationships that I think it is without doubt one of the best things you can do to fully participate in the life of Spain. This may cost a little money, but it’s worth more than 100 Sangrias on the beach.

By the way, the Spanish don’t usually drink Sangria - they prefer beer or wine or even “tinto de verano” - summer red wine which is similar to Sangria but less alcoholic. It is made with red wine and a slightly sweetened soda called “gaseosa” or even lemon-lime soda and for those with a less sweet tooth, a splash of soda. It is never expensive and is a pleasant way to enjoy a drink around a pool or on the beach.

Personally, though, I prefer my wines unadulterated; it’s all a question of taste.

Speaking of alcohol, I really do recommend that you try a Spanish cider. Asturias is considered to be the region that produces the best, but I often ask for a cider on a hot afternoon and it may well come from other areas of Spain. It is less gassy than British cider; more apple-y and really refreshing. It’s also inexpensive. ht tp://www.spainbuyingguide. com/

Average Price of Spain’s Housing Rose by 2.7% Y-o-Y in February

According to data from appraisal company Tinsa’s latest IMIE General and Large Markets Index, which measures any fluctuations in the average price of new and second hand finished housing in Spain from the housing valuations carried out by the company, average prices registered a year-on-year increase of 2.7% in February. This increase in average values is more significant if compared with February 2015, when the decline in average house prices intensified putting the index at May 2003 levels, their lowest since the outbreak of the crisis.

Notwithstanding the marked decline the index recorded a year ago, the towns grouped in the Mediterranean Coast category showed the largest year-on-year increase in average prices in February (6.1%), despite registering a slight cumulative decline of 0.1% in the first two months of the year. Among the five areas analysed

by Tinsa, the category made up of the Capitals and Large Cities registered the second best result, with a yearon-year improvement in the average prices of 4.6%.

Tinsa’s press release reported that the average prices also increased by 2.5% in the Balearics and Canaries group, compared to February 2015, and in the Metropolitan Areas, average prices rose by 1.5%. In the smaller towns, grouped in the Other Municipalities category, average values in February showed a slight decline of -0.7% compared to a year ago, while in contrast they have accumulated an increase of 2.7% in the first two months of 2016.

Since the maximum values reached in 2007, the average price of housing in Spain has accumulated a decline of 41.1%, with the greatest declines being those recorded in the Mediterranean Coast (-48.1%), the Metropolitan Areas (-44.7%) and the Capitals and Large Cities (-44%).

In contrast, the Balearics and Canaries and Other Municipalities groups have both registered accumulated d e c l i n e s lower than the average, of 30.7% and 36.5%, respectively. kyero.com

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March 2016

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CELA

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March 2016

UK Spanish property buyers ponder nationality over Brexit vote

With the UK Brexit referendum date nearing, some UK buyers of property in Spain are asking if it’s worth obtaining Spanish nationality.

Peter Esders, Commercial Director of leading legal advisor, Judicare Group, says if the decision is to exit the European Union in the Referendum on 23 June, then it is likely that treaties will be put in place to try and recreate the status quo.

Judicare has had inquiries from clients asking if it is worth getting Spanish nationality now in advance of buying a property just in case Britain exits Europe.

Mr Esders says, “Cameron has struck a deal with the other EU leaders for changes to the British membership of Europe. On the other hand there is a call to exit Europe. Whilst the deal that Cameron has struck has been widely reported, what doesn’t seem to have been talked about in great detail is the effect of a full exit.”

People buying and owning property within Europe have several concerns and these revolve around certain issues: The ability to buy and own property At the moment within the EU we have the right to buy property without having to apply for permission from the government of that country. That will not change under the Cameron deal.

On the other hand if there is a full exit from Europe then in theory this may be necessary. In some countries foreigners are not allowed to buy properties and in other countries you have to get permission from the authorities to buy property. Would this be the case if there was a Brexit? We think that this is unlikely as the mechanics of unravelling the current situation would be too much to consider. With so many British people owning property in Europe and Europeans owning property in Britain if there was a full exit then new treaties would have to be signed with each country allowing the reciprocal right to buy property otherwise you would have a total stagnation of the property market for foreigners buying property within Europe and a major problem for those who already have properties.

The ability to visit, live, work and retire within the EU It is difficult to get accurate figures for the number of Brits who live or work abroad in Europe. There is estimated to be around 5 million Brits living abroad and figures seem to vary from between 1.5 million and 2 million of those are within Europe.

Under the deal negotiated by Mr Cameron there appears to be no change to those people in that they can continue to live and work within Europe. Under a full exit then potentially all these people would have to apply for a visa to live, work or retire within countries within the EU. How this works in practice for those who are already living within the EU nobody seems to know but it would seem sensible that there is a transition period within which they have a certain period of time to apply for a visa to continue living in that country. How that visa would work (i.e. whether you have to apply for it each year or it is valid indefinitely) again seems to be unclear but it would be likely that the British government would have to negotiate treaties with the individual countries so this may vary from country to country.

Many Brits have bought properties in

Europe rather than further abroad due to the ease in travelling to European counties in terms of flight times and lack of visas. If you had to apply for a visa each time you travelled to your holiday home (even for a long weekend) would this put people off from buying abroad?

Finance, pensions and health care Most of the focus on the European deal has been around finance and migration.

At the moment, and under the deal there is the free movement of money to Europe and Brits living or visiting European countries have the benefit of free medical care. If we had an exit from Europe then it might be that the movement of money abroad may become more difficult. Certainly until new treaties are struck with individual countries, visitors are likely to have to take out private healthcare or travel insurance rather than being able to rely on the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) as they can at the moment.

At the moment within Europe people who have retired from the UK to Europe have the benefit of annual increases in the state pension. This does not happen in some countries outside of Europe.

Would an exit mean that pensions for those living in Europe are frozen or would new treaties be drawn up to replicate the existing situation.

In terms of exchange rates (which affect not only property prices but also the cost of living and the cost of visiting a European country) there are so many other factors that come into play that it is difficult to see how either staying in Europe or coming out would have an effect. Undoubtedly once the result of the referendum is known this will have an immediate effect one way or another but after that initial change other economic factors will also have an effect.

Tax When you own a property in Europe and rent it out you should declare income tax in that country and also declare that income tax in the UK. Similarly if you sell property abroad you should declare the Capital Gains Tax in that country and also in the UK. Similar principals apply for inheritance tax paid on assets in Europe. You don’t however need to pay tax twice as we have Double Taxation Treaties with various countries so that you can offset the tax paid in that country against the tax you would have paid here. These treaties should not be affected should we come out of the EU and therefore as far as tax for property owners is concerned a Brexit should not be affected. Having said we have seen situations in, for example, Spain where governments have had a different rate of tax for residents and non-residents and have been forced to equalise the rates as they were considered discriminatory by the European Court of Justice. Could an exit allow a return to discriminatory tax treatment of British people as they are no longer within the EU? We doubt as it would be difficult to apply one tax for non-residents who are inside the EU and one for those who are outside the EU. “The effect of staying in Europe with the terms negotiated with the other European countries would have very little effect for most people who live, work or visit European countries. The right to buy property, work, retire and receive healthcare would continue as it

does at the moment.

“If we have an exit then the effect would be that all of this would disappear but as there is already so much interaction between the countries and so many Brits living and working in Europe and even more who own property it is likely that it would be necessary to put into place treaties to recreate the situation that we have at the moment or at least allow those who are already in the system to continue as they are.

Lorenzo Mercolini, Investor Relation Specialist of Italy Sotheby’s International Realty, says any move away from Europe will not damage Italian property demand.

“As the UK does not share a common currency with the EU there will be no immediate strong impact, if this had been the case it may have resulted in an

immediate significant shift in property values.

“A Brexit would take a long time to take effect, resulting in a long period of relative uncertainty. Uncertainty is generally harmful to an economy, so a number of UK residents may wish to bring part of their assets into the Eurozone.

“Having said this, Italy has always been one of the favourite destinations for British investors, both for those seeking secondary homes in lifestyle destinations and for those seeking return on investment. The most plausible impact is a higher British interest for Italian real estate, especially if the markets end up pushing Sterling upwards and/or the Euro downwards.”

Read more at http://www.opp.today/uk

Housing Foreclosures Fell by 13% in 2015

The number of foreclosures initiated on primary residences in Spain amounted to a total of 30,334 in 2015, which represents a reduction of 13% compared to the figure for 2014, according to the latest foreclosure statistics published last week by the National Statistics Institute.

El Economista reported that the latest figure also indicates a change in trend since the number of housing foreclosures initiated in 2014 increased by 8%.

In the fourth quarter of 2015, a total of 6,898 foreclosures were initiated on regular homes, which is 15.7% more than in the previous quarter, but 23% less than the number registered in the fourth quarter of 2014.

The Institute stresses that not all mortgage foreclosures end up with the eviction of the owners, and that the main objective of this statistic is to provide, on a quarterly basis, the number of foreclosures initiated and registered in the Property Registers during the period of reference.

In 2015 a total of 101,820 foreclosures were initiated, which is 15.5% less than the total initiated in 2014. Of those, some 96,760 related to urban properties (including dwellings) and 5,060 related to rustic properties.

Andalucía was the region which registered most housing foreclosures in 2015, with a total amounting to 16,094, followed by Catalonia (11,165) and Valencia (10,751), while the regions with the least number of housing foreclosures initiated last year were La Rioja (272), the Basque Country (300) and Navarra (338).

Of all the foreclosures initiated in 2015, once again Andalucía was the region which registered the greatest number, with 28,126, followed by Valencia (17,548) and Catalonia (16,548), while in contrast, the regions to register the least foreclosures were La Rioja (539), Navarra (566) and the Basque Country (625). kyero.com

23

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2 bed 2 bath detached villa in Turre with great views, 8m x 5m private pool, separate reading room, air-con, raised terraces, log burner, fitted wardrobes and walking distance into the town. A beautiful home.

3 bed 2 bath detached villa in Arboleas. A simply stunning setting with amazing, unspoilt, open mountain views. Very private with a huge enclosed terrace for dining, fly free eating area, air-con, casita store, short walk to a tapas bar and a very generous build size!

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A 2 bed 1.5 bath 1st floor apartment in Puerta Rey with the beach and all shops close by. The apartment is immaculate with a huge terrace looking over the pool and gardens.

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24

March 2016

water softeners

property services

where I live is about 30 grains per gallon, we get rocks out of our tap. The water guys won't tell you this, but you can measure the hardness the same way they do by going to a Hard water; is THAT why you can't see through your drinking pool supply store and purchasing a water test kit. You can glasses anymore? And perhaps you do make an effort to test the chlorine level and the hardness very easily for about clean your bathrooms; right afterwards, they look as though 6 dollars. Or better yet borrow the stuff from someone who no one has cleaned them in months?? Imagine what your hot has a pool, you'll only need to use it once or twice. A more water heater looks like, or your dishwasher??? What causes expensive solution would be to put a pool in, that way you'd have to have them on hand at all times. All the test involves is hard water and what can you do about it???

Hard water is really just water with a high amount of taking a small amount of your water and adding a few drops dissolved calcium and magnesium in it. Calcium in particular of a chemical to it, which turns it pink, then adding another causes the ugly scaling you see on your faucets and tubs. chemical to it drop wise until the color changes from pink Once out of solution, it seems to permanently bond to the to blue. The number of drops correlates to the degree of surface, and cleaning up with hard water just deposits more hardness in grains of your water. We personally like to have calcium on top of the stuff you are trying to get rid of! So the water softener guys come and do ours, it makes them obviously, So obviously, getting rid of those ions is the ONLY elicit lots of low whistles when they have to use up so much way to solve your problem, of their chemicals. unless, of course you just How does the unit do this??? Through a mysterious and love buying new appliances complicated scientific process called ION EXCHANGE. Your and having your house re- water, laden with "hard ions" passes over a bed of beads that are saturated with "soft ions", either sodium or potassium. plumbed every few years!

Allright, take heart, there Now the beads and the water hang out for a bit and swap IS some way you can make stories, and the water leaves the beads free of its hard ions an informed decision on this! and some cash, while the beads hang on to the hard ions.

You can't do anything about The water that comes to your tap is thus "softened". So when the sales people though, you take a shower, you might not feel so "squeaky" clean, they are a necessary evil, which only means that you are not being coated with calcium assuming you ARE going to anymore. purchase a water softener. The system continues to work for many years because the Spend a few minutes unit will flush itself out and reload itself with soft ions every thinking about your family's few days from the brine tank. Here is where the sizing of the water usage. First thing unit is critical. Too small a unit and you never decrease the to consider is, how many hardness enough. Too large a unit and you waste salt, about people are in your household 12-15 lbs for each regeneration cycle and water. You should and how much water do you select a system that can remove about 3-4 days worth of use a day?? The average hardness from your water before regenerating. human uses about 75 gallons How does your unit know when to regenerate itself?? It of water a day, (the average doesn't, really. Some units rely on a resistance meter, which teenager about 750, what senses a change in electrical current, caused by the saturation with all the showers.....). So of calcium ions on the resin bed, then signals the unit to multiply 75 by the number start the regeneration cycle. Unfortunately, the resistance of people in your house. meters get corroded by constant exposure to the salt and Impressive, isn't it??? need replacing every few years. A lower tech method is to Now, here is the tricky use the figure for 3-4 days worth of hardness, which should science part- how hard is be below the maximum capacity of your resin bed, and just your water?? Water hardness set the unit to regenerate itself at that time. Regeneration is is measured in the units usually accomplished at night, when your water usage is low, called grains.

Anything and takes a few hours. over 1 grain per gallon is You can use either sodium or potassium to soften your water. considered "hard" The water People who are on sodium restricted diets should consider a potassium based system, and people who have renal dysfunction should consider sodium based systems.

Another consideration is Prompt and reliable service, what type of waste water system you have. Sodium no job too small. is notoriously destructive to Full bathrooms or just makeovers concrete, which is probably what your septic tank is and handyman service. constructed out of. There is a 24 hour call out definite price differential also, with the potassium being 3-4 Boilers: 80 litre fully installed from 160â‚Ź times the price of sodium.. ht tp://www.thefunplace. com/

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Alqueria and the Arts who completed the application but being

The income from the export of Remitroot, in all its forms provides the bulk of the finance which keeps Alqueria ticking over. More or less everyone takes part in the production, sales and shipping.

Some are involved in more imaginative ways such as Pepe Lopéz better known as El Hígado de Cuero who is a self appointed taster for Remitroot Whisky and wine.

Now and again the Village coffers demand more cash and a creative approach to Village finances is called for. One method of bringing in cash was simply to do more work but this was rejected out of hand.

The solution arrived at by the Government of Alqueria was to approach the International Arts Council for a huge grant. Accorded to the application, Alqueria is a hotbed of culture with aspiring writers, painters and sculptors waiting for nothing more than hard cash to realise their full potential. In fact the only talent in the Village is the talent for total inertia. But the application had all the correct boxes ticked and the cheque duly arrived, it was cashed and spent in the same afternoon.

The International Arts Council, very unreasonably in the eyes of the Alquerian Government sent a delegation of five ‘experts’ to the Village to see how their money was being spent. This could have been a bit of a problem for those

experts in this sort of deception an exhibition was duly organised to showcase the very best of Alquerian art.

Held, as most events are in Alqueria in the bar of the La Casa Devante the exhibition was advertised as the greatest artistic event of the century. It was thought that the hype might muddy the waters as far as quality is concerned and hopefully cloud the judgement of the visiting critics.

The three ‘exhibits’ were a literary piece, a sculpture in granite and a water colour.

The literary piece was plagiarised from a work by Ivan Bogeroff, a little known Siberian Haiku Poet. The work was translated from the original Siberian Turkic into Alquerian Spanish by Nester Clacketo who has no knowledge of the former language. The sculpture resembled the corner stone of the Bar La Golondrina Verde, which coincidently went missing just before the exhibition opened. The water colour looked like the bottom of an aviary, which it was.

The Arts Council weren’t fooled and asked for their money back. What offended them the most was the claim that the literary work and the sculpture could be likened to the works of Hemingway and Henry Moore. But as the organisers pointed out, Henry Moore was lousy writer and Hemingway couldn’t sculpt to save his life.

25

Michael

In the matter of communication Pete can be a little less than straightforward.

He has a vocabulary that is entirely his own invention; it has the most tenuous of connections, can cause utter confusion to the uninitiated, and can make me, even after all these years, scratch my head and wonder where the heck that one came from.

It goes like this: ‘Where’s the car?’

‘Hyde.’

‘Hide what?’

‘Hyde Park.’

Translation: The car is in the car park.

Or: ‘I’ve got Gilbert.’

‘Who’s Gilbert?’

‘Gilbert and Sullivan.’

With great mental agility I work out that Gilbert and Sullivan = the Mikado = Ko-Ko’s song I’ve got a little list – so he means I’ve got the shopping list.

Enquiries about supper may well elicit ‘2.15’ accompanied by a brushing of the hand over the shoulder. This one I know: It has nothing to do with eating the evening meal in the middle of the day – it is the 2.15 at Haydock Park Racecourse, (haddock) accompanied by brushing an imaginary chip off the shoulder, (chips) so haddock and chips for supper.

A sudden strangled scream is easy – Ice Cream!

Not even the animals are safe.

By Jos Biggs

josbiggs@hotmail.co.uk While putting Lucy the dog’s smart new blue collar on her he referred to her as ‘Loose the Spruce Goose.’

I have never seen a dog less like a goose, let alone a spruce one!

Neither is Sayyida the cat exempt.

She can at times act extremely kittenish and playful, causing me to call her Psycho-Cat, abbreviated for dignity’s sake to ‘Si-Cat.’ So it is not surprising that neither she nor I knew the answer to the question ‘Where’s Alfred?’

It’s easy when you work it out: Psycho-Cat = Psycho = Hitchcock = Alfred.

However, I was a bit worried recently when I enquired what he wanted for our next meal. ‘Michael.’

He answered without pause.

I nearly asked which Michael, and were we going to eat all of him, or maybe just the juicy bits, when the penny dropped. Of course - He meant Michael Fish – He wanted fish!

Phew!

LEGAL CORNER WITH MICHAEL DAVIES, ABOGADO/SOLICITOR

If you wish us to print an article about a particular topic, please e-mail info@daviessolicitors.com - www.daviessolicitors.com MENTIONING A TRUST ON A SPANISH WILL IS ASKING FOR TROUBLE. SOMETIMES WHAT IS LEGALLY POSSIBLE AND WHAT IS PRACTICAL IS NOT THE SAME THING. THIS IS A PRIME EXAMPLE. Question: I had a Spanish will made out for myself and my wife some time ago. We have recently hired a solicitor to handle a conveyance and he has taken a look at the wills and told us they are not good and that we should make new ones. We are now uncertain of what to do. We have attached the wills for you to take a look at them. Our instruction to our original solicitor in Spain was for him to do exactly what we did in the UK on our English wills. He said that since the Directive 650/2012 this can be done.

Answer.

As my granny would always say: a little knowledge can cause a lot of damage.

There is no doubt, the will is dreadful.

You must change it. I doubt the person who prepared your will has ever dealt with probate in Spain and in fact I doubt the person is even a solicitor. ( I say this because any solicitor I know would tell you that your will is asking for trouble). The will essentially translates the English will you handed over and sets up a trust to protect your children versus your second wife. Even though Directive 650/2012 allows English law to be applied (by choice of the testator) to how an estate is distributed in Spain, using institutions like trusts will cause endless problems and expenses for your heirs because Trusts are not understood in Spain the same way as in UK. So Certifications of English law (which are very expensive) will be required to help wind up the estate (by explaining the content of English law). To this you

will have to add a lot of problems with Spanish Inheritance tax (remember Directive 650/2012 has no effect on the taxation of the estate).

In Spain it is the beneficiary that pays inheritance tax and not the estate.

Descendants and spouse in Andalucía are exempt if they each receive less than 175,000€. In this case the trustee is a non-family member and as he has faculty to dispose of assets, the Spanish tax office could interpret that he is in control of the estate and is the person who owes the tax. As non-family he would receive a large tax bill. (This could all be battled out but it would be a mess.)

Conclusion: Keep things sensible and uncomplicated. In this case achieve what you want using methods that are common practice in Spain. (Even though with the Directive it is possible to have the will run under English law you must remember that probate will need to be obtained in Spain, so making a will that nobody understands in Spain is not a good idea It would be up to your heirs to prove what UK law says and I can tell you from plenty of experience that dealing with Trusts in Spain is nightmare scenario.) In this case leave the life possession of your property to you wife and the residual value to your children.

With the values you have sent me the estate will be exempt, probate will be simple and both your children and your wife will be fully protected as you asked for.

Michael Davies. Abogado.

Michael Davies is a Spanish Abogado and has been practicing law in Almería since 1993. He is member of the Law societies of Almería and Madrid and has offices in Mojacar and Almeria High Street.

“English spoken”

Deborah Cubel fisher 7 years experience in this area

“on parle francais”

legal & fiscal advice for residents & non-residents, Tax Payments and refunds • Wills and Inheritance process • Purchase / Sale private contracts • Land property and Catastro registration licenses • Conveyancing / Notorial documents

• Translations / Interpreter • NIE’s, Residencia, Medical Cards....

• Vehicle registration / driving licenses • Mortgages

• T axes (local rates, rubbish collection, vehicle, tax returns for residents and non residents and refund of the capital gains tax)

Special offer !!!

Wills €125 / each Including Notary Fee

Yearly contract €149 Including VAT 21% •Y early tax returns (no increase if more than one owner, or more than one property) • Legal and fiscal advice FREE throughout the year • Free assistance / advice for any visitors staying at your property • Free visit from a technician / architect to offer independent expertise on matter such as: putting in insurance claims, confirmation of the legality of an extension / building work, free estimate for any work to be carried out

If you introduce another client to us you will not be charged your next annual fee C/ del Mar, 33 - Galeria Alcana Local 11 Vera 04620 (Almeria) Tel: 950 39 06 21 Fax: 950 39 02 12 email: dcasesores@notin.net

puzzle pages

26

March 2016

jimmy carr

wwe live

new order

Formed in 1980 the Manchester band have regrouped & are touring the UK

Funny Business Tour, TVs Funnyman is on the road in another side splitting tour.

Watch your favorite stars in action in the UK. John Cena, Big Show & Sheamus

GET YOUR TICKETS TO THESE plus MANY OTHER EVENTS AT WWW.SOLTIMES.COM

4. Which film couple had a daughter named Bonnie Blue?..............................

5. Which man, whose name is now an eponym (a thing named after a person), led the disastrous charge of the Light Brigade?................................................

6. Which London born actor has hosted the Academy Awards a record 18 times?.

7. What was the name of the Burmese UN Secretary General between 1962 and 1971?.....................................................

Answers

CRYPTIC crossword

10. Antonio Salieri 9. Sarah Bernhardt 8. Josiah Wedgwood 7. U Thant 6. Bob Hope

CROSSWORD

1. Adolf Hitler’s mother 2. W. C. Fields 3. Geography 4. Scarlett O’Hara and Rhett Butler 5. Cardigan

SOLUTIONS

FEAST DAY FESTIVAL GREEN GUINNESS HERITAGE HISTORY HOLIDAY HOLY DAY IRELAND IRISH LEPRECHAUN LIMERICK MARCH

wordsearch answer

standard SUDOKU

10. Who was Mozart’s great rival in Amadeus?..............................................

BEER BELFAST BISHOP CABBAGE CELEBRATION CELTIC CROSS CHRISTIAN CLOVER CORK CORNED BEEF DANCING DUBLIN EVENTS

easy SUDOKU

9. Which French woman was the most famous actress in the world in the late 19th and early 20th century?..................

MISSIONARY MUSIC PARADE PATRON SAINT POTATOES SEVENTEENTH SHAMROCK SNAKES SODA BREAD TRADITION YEARLY

SAINT PATRICK LIVED IN THE FIFTH CENTURY

8. Which famous English abolitionist, whose name is now an eponym, created the famous anti slavery medallion “Am I Not A Man And A Brother”?....................

Answers

squiggle SUDOKU

3. Eratosthenes is the ‘father’ of what?...

soltimes film Quiz

6. Egypt 7. Chris Evert 8. A divided tennis skirt 9. Andrew Jarrett 10. Watson

Find and circle all of the words that are hidden in the grid.

The remaining 34 letters spell a secret message.

1. In 2000 who equalled Willie Renshaw’s record of seven Wimbledon Men’s Singles titles?......................................

2. Who, aged 16 was the youngest winner of the Ladies Singles title in the 20th century?...................................

3. In which year of the 1980’s did the colour of the balls at Wimbledon change from white to yellow?.................................

4. The first non British player to win the Men’s Singles title did so in 1907. What nationality was he?....................................

5. Only two players other than the William’s sisters have won the Ladies Singles title in the 21st century. Which two?.........

6. In 1954 the Czech born player Jaroslav Drobny won the Men’s Singles title representing which country?....

7. During the 20th century which player lost a record seven singles finals?................

8. What did the Spanish lady Lili de Alvarez wear on court in 1931 to cause quite a stir in the staid tennis world?...................

9. Following the retirement of Alan Mills in 2006 who was appointed the new Tournament Referee?...................................

10. In the very first ladies final in 1884 two British sisters played each other for the title.

They were Maud and Lilian, but what was their surname?..........

1. Pete Sampras 2. Martina Hingis 3. 1986 4. Australian 5. Sharapova & Mauresmo

wordsearch St Patrick’s Day

1. Who was Klara Pölzl?..........................

2. The hard drinking William Claude Dunkenfield was better known as?.........

E

Answers

soltimes People Quiz

IDENTIFY THEse FAMOUS films

sol picture quiz!

E: Planet of the Apes F: Aliens G: The People vs. Larry Flynt H: Apocalypse Now

on this day 16th march

1660 – The Long Parliament of England is dissolved so as to prepare for the new Convention Parliament.

1815 – Prince Willem proclaims himself King of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, the first constitutional monarch in the Netherlands.

1942 – The first V-2 rocket test launch. It exploded at lift-off.

1958 – The Ford Motor Company produces its 50 millionth automobile, the Thunderbird, averaging almost a million cars a year since the company’s founding.

1989 – In Egypt, a 4,400-year-old mummy is found near the Pyramid of Cheops.

www.soltimes.com

puzzle pages

27

UK Motorhomes Wanted

Contact Karl on 0044 7976 662395

email: carlskitt@live.com

across

STANDARD CROSSWORD

1 Meet (9) 6 Islamic jurist (5) 9 Absorbent paper (7) 10 Put in place (7) 11 A line of trees used to block winds (7) 12 Giving a speech (7) 13 Land around barns (9) 15 Inhabit (5) 16 The anvil bone in your ear (5) 19 Without happiness (9) 22 A reference book (7) 23 Flapjack (7) 25 Hunting guide (7) 26 Motives (7) 27 Smooths (5) 28 Put forward (9)

Down

1 Arm joint (5) 2 Singer (7) 3 Completely (7) 4 Toss (5) 5 In an extremely harmful manner (9) 6 Condiment (7) 7 Easily damaged (7) 8 Unlawfully (9) 13 Stew (9) 14 Lack of acceptance (9) 17 Put together (7) 18 Footwear (7) 20 Drag along (7) 21 Harbor (7) 23 A place for wives and concubines (5) 24 Made easier to bear (5)

SUDOKU PUZZLES

easy

squiggle

famous bithdays on this day

standard

1963 – Jerome Flynn, English actor 1965 – Richard Daniel Roman, EnglishSpanish songwriter and producer 1986 – Joe Denly, English cricketer 1989 – Theo Walcott, English footballer

CRYPTIC CROSSWORD

ACROSS 1 Be opposite French card (4) 3 Change pro-Estonia military actions (10) 9 Tool reps return with - Ann inside (7) 11 Advance money is put back in storehouse (7) 12 First in, one, it returns Aluminium (7) 13 Happens Conservatives belonging to us surrounding (6) 15 Let in commercial M1 toll initially (5) 16 First class prisoner’s accommodation after former partner half enters (9) 18 Practices making Essex rice (9) 21 For second nice change (5) 23 Brought in listener, new editor (6) 25 First gap (7) 27 Creatures return slam in middle of May (7) 28 Adapted shingle language (7) 29 Party home is glass building (10) 30 Smile in long rinse (4) Down 1 Sad tin cafe moves and is intrigued (10) 2 Ruin mac, surprising part of skull (7) 4 A Princess enters returning or wireless (5) 5 Rebuilding clay pit is characteristic (7) 6 Notice strange Old English verbs (7) 7 Location is returning initially to England (4) 8 Sign up new tinsel (6) 10 Queen enters bread products for curlers (7) 14 Fortify odd gents (the Royal Navy) (10) 17 One lost in Tom Cruise’s poor buyers (9) 19 Test probe (7) 20 Hold in company tin, an organisation (7) 21 Snow vehicle (second) left at border (6) 22 Louder? No! I rise erratically (7) 24 Place of music, or type of music (5) 26 Prohibit good loud noise (4)

soltimes minion quote

28

March 2016

FOOD & ENTERTAINING...

INGREDIENTS

Guinness Cupcakes

(Makes 12) 75g/2¾oz cocoa powder 175g/6oz plain flour 2 tsp baking powder 225g/8oz caster sugar 3 free-range eggs 225g/8oz cooked beetroot (no added vinegar) 100ml/3½fl oz Irish stout 100ml/3½fl oz corn oil

Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6. Line Sift the cocoa powder, flour, baking pow a 12-hole muffin tin with paper cases. eggs, beetroot, stout and oil in a food procder and sugar into a bowl. Blend the into the flour mixture until just combined essor until smooth. Stir the beetroot (do the muffin cases and cook in the oven for not overmix). Spoon the mixture into have risen and the tops are springy to the 20-25 minutes, or until the cupcakes aside to cool. For the cream cheese icingtouch. Remove from the oven and set vanilla together in a bowl until smooth; then , beat the butter, cream cheese and the icing onto the muffins with a knife or slowly beat in the icing sugar. Spread spoon the with a 1cm/½in star nozzle and pipe the icing into a piping bag fitted icing onto the muffins.

INGREDIENTS (Serves 6) 170g/6oz self-raising wholemeal flour

170g/6oz plain flour ½ tsp salt ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda 290ml/½ pint buttermilk

Soda Bread

Preheat the oven to 400F/200C/Gas 6. Tip the flours, salt and bicarbonate of soda into a large mixing bowl and stir. Make a well in the centre and pour in the buttermilk, mixing quickly with a large fork to form a soft dough. (Depending upon the absorbency of the flour, you may need to add a little milk if the dough seems too stiff but it should not be too wet or sticky.) Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead briefly. Form into a round and flatten the dough slightly before placing on a lightly floured baking sheet. Cut a cross on the top and bake for about 30 minutes or until the loaf sounds hollow when tapped. Cool on a wire rack

Ruby’s

URBANISATION EL RASO, CAMPO DE GUARDAMAR, JUST OFF THE CV895 LEMON TREE ROAD, 03140

TEL 622 434 912

Opening times 10am till Late Tuesday - Sunday

Menu Del Dia 12.30pm - 4pm Tuesday - Friday 4 Course 7.95€ Full Main Menu 6pm - 9pm Sunday Lunch Available 2pm - 7pm 3 Course 9.95€ / 2 Course 7.95€ Happy Hour 4pm - 6pm Wednesday is quiz night with Nick Marshall with our great 5€ meal deals for quiz players PLUS Karaoke with guest singers Last person standing, winner takes all

GREAT FUN NIGHT OUT

St Patricks Day Celebrate In Style With These Recipes From Bbc Food INGREDIENTS (Serves 6) 2 tbsp vegetable oil 1 kg/2lb 4oz beef stewing steak, cut into 2.5cm/1in chunks 2 onions, 3 celery stalks 4 large carrots 1 litre/ 1¾pint beef stock 900g/2lb potatoes 25g/1oz unsalted butter sea salt & ground black pepper

Irish Stew

Preheat the oven to 200C/180C Fan/ Gas 6. First cook the beef by placing a large saucepan over a high heat, add 1 tablespoon of the oil and brown the beef pieces. Do this in batches so the pan isn’t too full. Remove the beef from the pan and set aside on a plate.

Don’t clean the pan, as you’ll need this to fry the vegetables.

While the beef is frying, peel and chop celery. Heat the remaining oil in the sam the onions and carrots and slice the e carrot for 4–5 minutes or until the onions saucepan and fry the onion, celery and bits from the bottom of the pan. That will have softened. Scrape any cooked on salt and pepper. Mix the beef in with the add flavour to the stew. Season with heat. Tip the meat and vegetables into a vegetables, then take the pan off the over the top. Peel and slice the potatoeslarge ovenproof dish and pour the stock into ½cm/¼in thick slices and arrange over the top of the beef. Dot the butter over the top then cover tightly with foil.

Bake for 1 hour then remove the foil and bake for a further 15 minutes until the potatoes are crisp and golden-brown. Serv e in deep bowls.

INGREDIENTS (Serves 3) 150ml/5fl oz whole milk 1½ tbsp plain flour 400g Irish grated cheddar cheese,

160g/breadcrumbs 1 tsp English mustard powder 120ml/4fl oz stout 2 free-range eggs, yolks only 4 spring onions, finely chopped 6 slices toasted soda bread

Irish Rarebit

Warm the milk in a saucepan and whisk in the flour.

Keep stirring and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer. The milk should thicken slightly. Add the cheese and stir over a low heat until it has melted. Add the breadcrumbs, mustard and stout. Continue stirring until the mixture comes together, it should leave the sides of the pan. Remove from the heat and tip into a bowl, leave to cool slightly. Once cooled add the egg yolks and beat vigorously with a wooden spoon until the egg is thoroughly mixed in. Add the chopped spring onions. Spread the rarebit on toasted soda bread and place under a hot grill until bubbling and golden-brown.

F O K TAL OWN T E H T

29

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F O K L TA N W O THE T Open 7 Days a Week 12noon till 10pm

QUESADA FISH & CHIPS

Menu of the Day 12noon till 5pm

Cod or Haddock Chips, Peas, Bread and Butter CH 2015 (7 of 7) 73mm high x 111mm wide,

€7,00

Sunday Special Fish, Chips & Peas

€6,00

All Day

Takeaway Also Available Quesada Villamartin Plaza

966 719 136

966 764 441

Plaza de la Constitución, Benijófar 03178. Open Daily from 10am

Experience the Oasis Difference this Easter Easter Sunday Lunch with Roast Lamb or Turkey mains special starters and dessert choices included 2 courses €10,95 or 3 courses €13,95 both of which include include a drink Tapas on the Terrace evenings are back Thursday to Saturday evenings from 24th March For further details, telephone 603 169 090 or email oasisbenijofar@outlook.com / www.oasis-benijofar.es

harry’s bar 965 999 973 Open Daily from 9am until late Avd. Costa Azul (at the top) Quesda LUNCHES, SNACKS AND EVENING MEALS AVAILABLE DAILY

Easter Sunday

FULL ENGLISH BREAKFAST

Served 10 – 3pm only

3.50€ inc. Tea/Coffee

27th March Fabulous Sunday Lunch

SUNDAY ROAST from 7.95€ QUIZ NIGHT

With Play Your Cards Right Every Monday from 9pm Special dietary requirements catered for.

Please advise when booking.

SPECIAL DEALS for group parties, clubs & societies

Kitchen Open: Mon – Sat 10am – 3pm & 6pm – 9pm. Sun 10am – 7pm

FOLLOW HARRY’S BAR ON FACEBOOK FOR UPDATES QUOTE ‘SOL TIMES’ FOR THIS OFFER

SATURDAY 19TH MARCH OFFER COME AND ENJOY A 200G ARGENTINIAN STEAK OR FRESH SALMON ON THE STONE

SERVED WITH CHIPS, FRESH SALAD, ONION RINGS AND PEPPER SAUCE ONLY 9.95€ includes half a pint of beer

Call 656 613 356 for Reservations OPENING HOURS: Tuesday-Sunday:12:30 to 10pm

Urbanisation El Raso, just off the Lemon Tree Road, Guardamar Make Sundays special with our delicious Sunday Lunch menu 3 course menu, 13.50€, including wine Served from 1pm to 9pm. Our A La Carte menu is also available.

Easter Day 27th March You can book now for this special Sunday Tables available from 1pm to 9pm

Come and enjoy warm hospitality and great food.

Relax in our comfortable and smart surroundings. Enjoy live music entertainment with us every Saturday

19th March: RANDALL CAIN

3 course Set Menu (15€ pp) plus A La Carte menu available Table Reservations

965 077 444

info@laurelandhardys.com

Opening Hours Tuesday-Saturday from 6pm Sunday from 1pm-9pm Monday - Closed

Calle Los Arcos, 21 Ciudad Quesada w:laurelandhardeys.com f: Laurel & Hardy’s, Quesada Elevator available ● Gift Vouchers available

30

March 2016

Tesco to give all unsold food to charity after finalising deal

The Flavors of Spain in Seoul

Kim Mun-jung’s restaurant Tapas Gourmet, one of the best locales for tapas in the city.

The chef spent over a decade in Spain learning about its cuisine, publishing cookbooks and launching projects.

A very unique restaurant in South Korea is winning over the locals. Tapas Gourmet is located in Seochon, an old part of the country’s capital, and it looks and feels like a traditional Korean home, but this place, as the name suggests, serves Spanish fare.

Kim Mun-jung runs the show, and her restaurant is a top-ranked venue in the city, according to The Korea Times. This comes as no surprise, as her research into (and passion for) Spanish cuisine runs deep.

She left her country behind and headed to Spain in 2002 on a whim,

and ended up enrolling in the University of Barcelona’s School of Hotel Management and Tourism. She excelled there, and stood out especially for her knack for cooking. Mun-jung went on to place very well in various competitions, which got her noticed by many chefs, among them Jordi Roca.

In total she spent over a decade in Spain learning about its food and trying out her recipes.

She got her Master’s degree in Mediterranean Diet and Cultural Studies at the University of Barcelona, and went on to graduate from the prestigious Hofmann Culinary School. She was the first Korean to do so.

She eventually launched her first solo project: a restaurant with one table, called Casa Gourmet, run

Supermarket giant says it aims to eradicate all food waste at its stores and distribution centres by 2017

a l o n g with a guesthouse, in the same city.

She had so much success with that venture, that she published two cookbooks, Spain is Delicious, and a few years later, Casa Gourmet.

Today she runs her very successful restaurant in Seoul, while helping to raise the profile of Spanish food. h t t p : / / w w w . foodswinesfromspain.com/

Is fermented food a recipe for good gut health?

Fermentation as a way of preserving food dates back thousands of years, but it is now being held up as a potentially important source of friendly, healthgiving bacteria. So should we all be eating sauerkraut and kimchi? Allowing bacteria to form in a sealed jar of vegetables over a few months might not seem like the most appealing way to create an appetising dish, but fermentation has a lot going for it.

Just ask the Koreans and Japanese, who have been fermenting vegetables, fish and beans for generations.

When the Korean cabbage dish kimchi is made using traditional methods, cabbage is soaked in salt water to kill off any harmful bacteria. In the next stage, the remaining bacteria, called Lactobacillus, convert sugars and carbohydrate into lactic acid, which preserves the vegetables and gives them a tangy flavour that many people love.

This type of bacteria is not the enemy - it is actually good for our digestion and for our health. We need it in our guts to fight off the harmful bacteria, restore the balance of our immune system and help the body to work at its best.

Good job These "good bacteria" are called probiotics, which literally means "for life", because of the job they do. But are there enough of them in fermented food to make a difference? Tim Spector, professor of genetic epidemiology at King's College

London and author of The Diet Myth - The Real Science Behind What We Eat, says it is a complicated picture. "There are many fermented foods out there and not many have had formal testing so it's difficult to know what they do," he says.

"But there's nothing harmful about them if they are produced naturally, rather than using vinegar." Fermented food comes in many forms, for example, yoghurt, sour cream, sour dough bread, vegetables, chutneys and pickles. Often probiotics are added, in the form of live bacteria or yeast, if the foods are not made using lactic acid bacteria as in kimchi.

Even wine and beer can be included on the fermented list, but they are not all beneficial to the same degree - and so they cannot all be classed as healthy.

The most important consideration is whether the good bacteria can survive all the way through the gut to the bowel and the colon where they have a chance to be of benefit.

Studies suggest this is not guaranteed and that probiotics would have to be eaten regularly and in quite large numbers to survive the journey.

If and when they manage to breed in the gut, scientists have a theory about the role they perform. read more on http://www.bbc.com/

Tesco has agreed a deal to donate all the unsold food from its stores to charity. The supermarket giant announced plans to work with 5,000 local charities across the UK in an initiative that aims to eradicate all its food waste by the end of 2017.

It said the plan followed a "farm to fork" commitment to tackle food waste by its suppliers.

The latest figures released by the company show 55,400 tonnes of food were thrown away at its stores and distribution centres across the country in 2015. The plan is part of a nationwide roll-out of a 14-store pilot programme called the Community Food Connection. The project, which lasted over six months, has provided more than 22 tonnes of food for vulnerable people - the equivalent of 50,000 meals. The roll-out began in 15 big cities and regions, including Manchester, Birmingham, Southampton and Portsmouth, this week and will gradually be introduced in all stores.

It is the second major retailer to announce a major food waste initiative after Morrisons announced its own distribution scheme using “community champions” last year which has now been rolled out nationwide. Tesco has partnered with food waste FareShare to launch a digital open platform called FareShare FoodCloud which allows staff and charities to liaise to distribute surplus food. They are appealing for 5,000 charities and community groups to join up and receive the food.

The supermarket has also called on other retailers to adopt the FareShare FoodCloud to create an industry-wide platform. Tesco chief executive Dave Lewis said: “We believe no food that could be eaten should be wasted. That’s why we have committed that no surplus food should go to waste from our stores. “We know it’s an issue our customers really care about, and wherever there’s surplus food at Tesco stores, we’re committed to donating it to local charities so we can help feed people in need.” http://www.independent.co.uk/

It's Spanish Pork!

Spain is the world's fourth most important exporter of pork, reporting total exports of nearly 2 million tons of Spanish pork products to 126 countries in 2015.

According to data compiled by the Interprofessional Food and Agricultural Organization for White Pork (Organización Interprofesional Agroalimentaria del Porcino de Capa Blanca), or Interporc – which represents over 90% of the Spanish pork industry – Spain is one of the world's top exporters of pork products, trailing only Germany, the United States and the Netherlands.

In any case, this is just some of the good news released by this organization, which also reported that exports of Spanish pork products reached a value of four billion euros in 2015, reflecting a 8.41% growth with regard to 2014, and a 22.5% increase from 2013. Nearly three-quarters of this export value corresponds with European markets.

In terms of products, 73.2% of exports are of fresh pork and scraps, followed by items like cured and cooked hams and sausages (20.6%).

What remains i s given over to pork products including lard and live animals. h t t p : / / w w w . foodswinesfromspain.com/

www.soltimes.com

Tel: 950 121 936

MABS MAZARRON EVENTS

REGULAR EVENTS CRAFT GROUP - every other Wednesday from 1.30 at the MABS Information Centre – restarts 9th September after the summer break BOOK SALES – every 3rd Friday at Commercial Sector B Event tickets on sale at the book stall between 10.00am and 1pm or from the MABS Information Centre on Sector B Camposol or by Calling 620 582 418

CHURCH OF ENGLAND COSTA CALIDA & ALMERIA

Priest: Reverend Pauline Williams 950 956 166 / 687 250 860

Archaeological Museum

- community news welcome events

Welcome Group Events Wednesday March 23rd. - Dance at Mariano’s with two fantastic artists, Sandy Fitzpatrick and Darren Jones always a great night. €8 Sunday April 10th. - Annual Treasure Hunt. Explore the countryside you have not seen, solve clues and win prizes. Lovely buffet at the end. €9 THURSDAY April 21st. - This months dance at Mariano’s features PDQ, a live band with excellent musicians and vocalists. Dance your socks off while enjoying this superb group. €8 Wednesday 15th June. - Ladies Afternoon at The Club House, Camposol - Fashion show, Stalls, Bingo plus a Cold Buffet. Dancing to Terry J. €10

Every Day, Open from 10:30-14:00 and 17:00-20:00.

Closed Monday mornings. At C/ Conde de Aranda.

Tel: 968 493 287. Entry: Individual €1.20 Groups €0.60

Wednesday June 22nd. The Welcome Summer Ball at La Cumbre Hotel, Puerto de Mazarron. Start the evening with a champagne reception, followed by a 6 course meal including drinks, and then dance the TABLE TENNIS AT PILAR DE LA HORADADA night away with Rob Sweeney. Rooms are available Sports Centre every Monday at 10am Five tables for €50 if you would like to stay the night or book a equipment supplied, coaching given if necessary, all seat on the coach for €5. This is always a very popular standards welcome. Contact George on 965 326097 event so book early to avoid disappointment. €30 or Gordon on 966 848304 or e-mail drewgeorge49@ NEW September 12th. Trip To Barcelona. On the yahoo.com. way up stay overnight in Valencia at the 4* Tryp St. Nicholas Ecumenical Church Oceanic, in the morning continue to Barcelona for We hold services each week at 10.30am on 3 nights in the very central hotel HCC Montblanc Camposol, Mazarron. Everyone is welcome to join both on B&B. Cost includes return coach travel and us. For further details, call Rev. Maureen Kent 968 a trip to Montserrat. €375 p.p. (€75 deposit when 970 637 booking) NEW November 3rd. Benalmadena & Gibraltar. Due A parkinsons Support Group On Tuesdays at 11am At Bobbie Jo·s, Los Montisinos to popular demand this trip returns for 2016. Staying For a chat and a cup of tea For further information 3 nights at Hotel Mac Puerto Marina on half board inc. wine & water with dinner. A trip to Gibraltar and contact Wally Williamson On 966 770 871 an evening Ricky Lavazza show included. €200 p.p.

Roman Catholic Church

Saladillo, Mazarron ( close to Camposol) Mass in English every Saturday at 4.30 pm Mass in Latin every Sunday at 4.030pm For further information please contact Father Octavio on 676 219 445 or Father Carlos on 628 824 555.

Talks & Workshops

MABS Murcia North East - Sew’n’So’s - Sewing Group Every Mon Fortuna. Taking place every other Monday at Urb. Las Kalendas from 14:00. For further information email: mabsmurciane@gmail.com

SAMARITANS IN SPAIN -

In 2016 we aim to expand our teams of listeners around Spain.

If you are resident in the Mazarrón área and would like to hear how you can join us as a Listener or spare a few hours a week to help with fundraising / other events held in the area please contact our General Manager stephenrbaker@outlook.com to register interest in attending an initial group meeting locally. www.samaritansinspain.com Also on Facebook and Twitter. (Volunteer positions are unpaid but certain expenses can be claimed)

MARKET DAYS IN THE AREA

Monday - San Pedro del Pinatar Tuesday - Los Alcazares / Alhama de Murcia Wednesday - Santiago de la Ribeira / Fuente Alamo / Totana Thursday - San Javier / Camposol Sector A / Lorca Friday - Isla Plana (Summer only) Saturday - Mazarron Pueblo / Aguilas Sunday - Puerto de Mazarron / Mar Menor / Cabo de Palos

31

sales@soltimes

For more information or to book your tickets, call Rosemary on 620 105 179

Ex-Servicemen’s Association

Mazarrón District (Founded 1 May 2006) events 2016 SWednesday 13th April Bocapizza Puerto de Mazarron 7.30pm for 8.00pm Wednesday 11th May Costa Celbracion Rooms Mazarron Town 10th Anniversary Dinner Dance with Grand Raffle and Live Entertainment 7.30pm for 8pm Membership and enquiries, Ian 629818611 or esamd.espana@gmail.com

Costa Almeria and Costa Calida Anglican Church services for Holy Week

Palm Sunday 20th March San Pascual Mojacar 11am Liturgy of Palms and Holy Eucharist Llanos del Peral 11am Liturgy of Palms And Holy Eucharist Maundy Thursday 24th March Aljambra Chapel 11am Holy Eucharist Albox Llanos del Peral 6pm Commemoration Of the Last Supper Good Friday 25th March San Pascual Mojacar 11am At the Foot of of the Cross Easter Sunday 27th March San Pascual Mojacar 11am Holy Eucharist Llanos del Peral 11am Holy Eucharist

The Mar Menor is a

huge (135 square kilometres) saltwater lagoon, separated from the Mediterranean by the 24 kilometre long La Manga del Mar Menor (The Strip).

The average depth of the Mar Menor is four metres and at its maximum it is seven metres which means that the seabed slopes very gradually and you have to get

several hundred metres in before the water is of any depth.

The Mar Menor’s salinity provides buoyancy so it is, supposedly, one of the safest places to swim in the world. The mineral-rich waters are said to have therapeutic effects and because of this the area has a significant spa tourism industry.

The sludge in the salt pans is also credited with beneficial effects on the health, so

there are often dozens of mud people wallowing in it at any one time.

Playa Paraiso beach on a summer weekend.

The beach at Playa Paraiso is very popular, partly because it has road access right onto the beach. On summer weekends it will be packed with Spanish families, who move

most of their house onto the beach.

The sea is very shallow, with netted off areas to exclude watersports, fishing and jellyfish.

The jellyfish are mainly harmless and much reduced in numbers from previous years, apart from the summer of 2006 when they were back with a vengeance. Playa Honda beach During the week the beach is quiet.

Luz del Sol

new properties s.l.

Call us on 968 199 068 www.luzdelsol.co.uk

Centro Comercial #34, Sector A, Urb. Camposol, Mazarron 30875, Spain

SolTimes

Have A Drop Off Point Here For Payments Private Or Trade Advertisers, Birthdays Or Other Announcements

32

March 2016

animal corner

To advertise here call : 950 121 936

Betty

Mountain View

Cat hotel Hondon de las Nieves/Frailes

Betty is very striking tortie , about 6 months old.

She was abandoned with her sisters in Catral.

She loves other cats and is very affectionate towards people.

Like all girls she loves attention and enjoys being spoilt.

Centrally-heated houses with large individual runs Love and care will be lavished during your cat’s stay My 29 years of experience in animal and veterinary care will give you piece of mind

Pick up & delivery service offered for coastal areas

Telephone: 966 195 816

Answerphone - we will call back: Mobile 654 155 473

www.mountainviewcathotel.webs.com

APAH

When Harry was rescued as a puppy he looked like his brothers and sister, but now they’re grown up, they look like Great Danes and Harry is the odd one out.

He loves being with people and is full of energy, so he needs space and someone able to exercise him. To meet Harry and the rest of his family

If you can offer Betty a home please call

610832726 or 600845420.

Chip

This is what it is all about. Just after Christmas K9 rescued this elderly lady after she was abandoned. Her name is Chip and she was very traumatised, in fact she was terrified of everyone.

Well here she is after being with our new Kennel Managers only 60 minutes!!!!!!!!

Wonderful .

If you would be interested in adopting Chip

Please contact K9 or PHONE: 600 84 54 20 for more info

www.k9club.es

please call 630 422 563 or 616 210 850.

SOL CLASSIFIEDS AIRPORT PARKING

For sale

ADVERTISE YOUR UNWANTED ITEMS UP TO 300€ FOR FREE EMAIL:SALES@SOLTIMES.COM BY THURSDAY 5PM

pool tables snooker tables, table tennis tables, darts.

Tel: 666 933 726 www.spainpool.com

C AMPIN G GAZ EXPERT BBQ with cover & full bottle of gas 70€Tel: 966 722 299 Mob: 620 135 988, Buyer collects Torrevieja area Brand new white slate shower tray 80 x 70 95€, Wrought iron DB headboard in cream 35€ Headboard - DB size in white with black inset 35€, Pair of bedside cabinets in white 25€ Tel: 966 713 707 Quesada area.

F RID G E FREEZER w WHIRLPOOL size 170 –60 –60 white no frost fast freeze

option can be seen working ex condition 75€, MICROWAVE white range of settings including defrost good condition working order 25€ Tel: 966 716 646 Quesada.

Decathlon Do n n y ’ s exercise cycle with manual 40€, Gents Raleigh mountain bike Manta ray 21 gears 50€, Ladies Raleigh cycle Aluminium frame 18 gears 50€, Auto massager, stand on with belt 2 speed old but works 12€, Aerobics step on short legs with height

adjustment underneath 12€, Delta ABTech workout with manual 12 euros, White b at h r oo m cu p boa r d , top is slightly marked, W 23 1/2”/60cms D 12”/30.5cms H 3 21/ 2 ”/ 8 2c m s 12€, Lovely gl a ss dropped chandelier 5 glass shades bayonet fitting with bulbs.

15€, Arched B at h r oo m mirror with etching, glass shelf and 2 lights H 29”/75cms W 23 1/2”/60cms 15€ Tel: 968 131 879 Camposol Area

4€ 1 DAY

30€ 10 DAY

60€ 1 MONTH

Annual contracts from 229€

• New Indoor parking too • 100% secure and insured • Cheap car repairs & MOT • Meet & greet valet parking service • Only 2 mins from the terminal (closest airport parking) • 24hr short/long term parking

Tel: 615 374 404 info@europarkingalicante.com www.europarkingalicante.com

alternative power

www.ecocorpshop.com are you getting frustrated at ever increasing electricity bills do you want a clean, reliable energy alternative if so call ecocorp on 671 716 597 or 950 930 187 for a no obligation quotation

Pets In Spain

Benji’s has been in a foster home with us for quite a while, his owner sadly passed away and his owners wife was taken into a care home, Benji is around 5 years old and great with other dogs

and cats, he is one of the most gentle dogs we have had and will make a wonderful companion.

Call: 645 469 253 www.petsinspain.com info@petsinspain.info

Call Jane on: 950 121 936 or 902 750 190 Ext 330 building

electrician

B BETTER B BUILDING COMPANY C

Electrician available for all works Small or large. Call Dave 693 251 562 davendonc@aol.com

Extensions - Terraces Tiling - Patios - Roofing Brickwork - Plastering Balustrades - Gates - Grills

insurance

ALL WORK FULLY GUARANTEED

asssa medical

email: betterbuilding@hotmail.com

Asssa Mazarron, Diane Nolan

968 030 674 642 321 472

business opportunity “Internet Millionaire Reveals Secrets Of Making £1,000 A Week & More Without Any Previous Experience” If you would like to start earning extra money now! Then the internet is definitely the place to do this. You can earn money whilst relaxing by the pool or even earn whilst you’re sleeping. This is the reality for people that are making money online.

Read why you should be cashing in on today’s booming economy and discover for yourself how you can turn your passion into a large monthly wage,

every single month.

For Free Information Visit

www.howtomakemoneyfrommembershipsites.co.uk

insurances

968 153 396

mazarron@asssa.es

personals “Readers of a sensitive disposition may find some of the ads in this section offensive”

ELEGANT slim, sexy, naughty Italian lady available home/house visits. Torrevieja, La Manga, Torre Pacheco & Mazarron, Quesada plus all other areas. Escort available home & house visits.

Tel: 693 357 526 Spanish lady Playa Flamenca near new Carrefour before La Florida. 37 years, attractive, classy lady, private house, parking. Offers all erotic services, massage, sexy lingerie, prices from 40€. Full discretion. Tel: Ana 865 646 437

33

www.soltimes.com

Call Jane on: 950 121 936 or 902 750 190 Ext 330 or email: sales@soltimes.com

www.soltimes.com legal

pools

removals

LWB Sprinter van going from south to North of the UK & back

SERVICES WE OFFER ● INHERITANCE ● fiscal representation ●TITLE DEEDS ● CONVEYANCING •SPANISH WILLS CALL 609 656 056 - 965 352 552

Email: info@costamedconsulting.com www.costamedconsulting.com Office: C/ Gabriel Miro 1, 1D, Pilar de la Horadada

Pets- Transport

Pet transportaion service UK|Spain|UK

TRANS-PET 600 55 20 30 r Doo 965 96 06 58 2 00 44 7801 272 162 or Do

Kennels & Cattery Passport service-DEFRA authorised Fully insured- Vehicles inspection certificates www.trans-pet.co.uk sharon@trans-pet.co.uk

DEADLINES All adverts Friday at 5pm prior to publication

All Swimming Pool Reforms, Re-grouts and ReTiling, Pumps Repaired and Replaced, New Roman Steps, New Sand Filters and Sand Changes, New or Repairs to Skimmers, Jets, Hoovers, Bottom Drain, etc... Structural Repairs, Leak Detection Tests.

Fully Legal in Spain 24h rs a e servicre 10 Y Over erience E xp Covering all areas from Miraira to Mazarron

every 2 weeks, based near Murcia

Rainbow

Airport. Tel: 610 846 260/ 0044

Satellites

7519 186 355. or email:

for all your TV

van.man@hotmail.co.uk

needs with clients all over the Murcia Region. Contact

Call 634 186 710 or 638 175 699

want to know whats in the news? go online

www.soltimes.com

sat/tv services Cont...

surveyors

structural

surveys

Mark Paddon BSc Hons. MCIOB. CAAT.

Property buyer’s surveys and expert defects diagnosis

962 807 247 653 733 066

www.surveyorscostablanca.com

upholstery KENT UPHOLSTERY

Matt or Alan on

UK-SPAIN-UK fortnightly service SPAIN: 914 143 164 UK: 01773 513 013 www.britonsremovals.com britonsremovals@ic24.net

686 358 475 or rainbowsats@ gmail.com

sat/tv services

spas

SAT MART

euro spas

FOR ALL YOUR TV NEEDS FULLY LEGAL & PROFESSIONAL QUOTATIONS SPARES & REPAIRS 1.4M HIGH GAIN DISH FULLY INSTALLED HD OFFER OR STANDARD BOX NO MONTHLY PAYMENTS OVER 250 TV & 60 RADIO

299€

FULL SKY TV PACKAGE 150€ PER YEAR HOLIDAY PACKAGE UNLIMITED INTERNET 19€/MONTH. FREE TO TURN ON/OFF SO YOU ONLY PAY FOR THE MONTHS YOU USE PLEASE CALL JOHN / MIKE 693 969 872 MOBILE 965 319 830 LANDLINE WWW.SATELLITETVTORREVIEJA.COM SATMARTINSTALLATIONS@GMAIL.COM

vehicle hire

Spas at factory prices.

Used & Ex display models.

Spares & repairs.

Part exchange Telephone 650 722 905

For all your upholstery needs Homes Sofas/Garden furniture etc Cars Seat repairs inc. soft top Boats Interior/exterior

Foam cut + supplied

Contact Ken: 634 334 776 email: kentuphol@yahoo.com near Lumsden Auctions Formentera www.zenithupholstery.org

wigs

WIG BOUTIQUE Choose from the best human or synthetic hair.

Private fitting room.

Ladies & Gents Professional Service

Head to Toe

Hair, beauty, nails, massage La Zenia 966 773 216

34

March 2016

motoring section for sale and Wanted

vehicle registration

“RE-PLATE” MATE GB

E

Don’t take a chance!

Don’t break the Law! Let us take the hassle away from you and re-register your vehicle on to Spanish plates 490€ plus Road Tax plus CO2 emission if applicable WE PROMISE TO BEAT ANY GENUINE QUOTATION For a full service contact:

Alan 662 249 159

www.replatematecostablanca.com

Email:info@replatematecostablanca.com

Mercedes B180 CDi Sport 2014 - 5 door hatch 1.5 Sport 6-Speed 46,700 kms, 2 owners Fully serviced A/C (Climate), Alloys PAS, ABS, Cruise E. windows/mirrors Cruise, Isofix, Head Lamp Wash, Bi-Xenon ESP, Parktronic Head lamp wash Met silver Half leather

Hyundai i10 2012 5 door hatch 1.0 Classic (68 bhp) 34,000 kms 1 owner Manufacturers warranty!

Full service history A/C, PAS, ABS Electric windows, CD Remote locking Rear head restraints Metallic grey

Ford Focus 2012 - 5 door hatch 1.6 Trend 78,000 kms 1 owner Full service history A/C (Climate), PAS Front fog lights, ABS E. windows/mirrors CD player Remote locking Rear head restraints Also available in silver!

Metallic blue also Available in silver.

Skoda Fabia Dec ‘05 - 5 foor hatch 1.4 TDi 57,000 kms 2 owners Full service history A/C ABS, CD player Remote locking E.windows/mirrors Multi Airbags, PAS Rear head restraints Metallic silver

KiaCarnivalEX 2002 - SEVEN SEATER 2.9 EX CRDi 16v 177,000 kms, 3 owners Fully serviced A/C (Front/Rear), Alloys Front fog lights, PAS E. windows/mirrors Roof rails/bars, CD Centre arm rests, ABS Twin sliding side doors Metallic blue

VW Polo 2006 - 5 door hatch 1.2 (64 bhp) 119,000 kms 2 owners Fully serviced A/C, PAS, ABS E. windows/mirrors CD player Remote locking Rear head restraints Isofix, Nokia Bluetooth Metallic silver

Mercedes SLK 200 Kompressor Cab Aug ‘06 - Cabriolet 1.8 Kompressor 82,000 kms, 2 owners Full service history A/C (Climate), Xenon 17” Alloys, Cruise Head lamp wash Auto fold mirrors Rain/Light sensors Reverse camera Navigation, Bluetooth Metallic silver

€19,450

€6,450

€10,750

€5,250

€4,995

€4,995

€16,950

www.fwreurocars.com

www.fwreurocars.com

www.fwreurocars.com

www.fwreurocars.com

www.fwreurocars.com

www.fwreurocars.com

600 726 221 965 687 976

600 726 221 965 687 976

Looking for a car ?

For re-registration of cars, motorbikes and motor homes contact Graham Shelton Who after re-registering over 1800 vehicles will put you on the right side of the road.

605 319 889 or 966 753 375 www.spanish-number-plates.com info@spanish-number-plates.com

mechanic

We have a good selection of LHD & RHD vehicles for sale or exchange Quality cars purchased all paperwork legally undertaken Telephone 600 726 221 or 965 687 976

www.fwreurocars.com

ecu remapping

www.fwreurocars.com

600 726 221 965 687 976

600 726 221 965 687 976

600 726 221 965 687 976

600 726 221 965 687 976

wanted cars for cash CASH CASH

Best prices paid Spanish English Anythingconsidered

tel: Tim on 662 211 993

CASH

Same day collection

We pay instant cash same day for cars, vans, bikes, quads, caravans, trailers, absolutley anything!

From 1€ to 10,000€

Call Phil: 607 848 332

600 726 221 965 687 976

Do you have a vehicle, boat or motor bike for sale?

Phone Jane 950 121 936

To advertise your vehicle in the motoring section & reach over 32,000 readers

Corvette Stingray Coupe Pacific Concept

Mobile Auto Electrician ENGINE MANAGEMENT DIAGNOSTICS

fault Finding & Repairs Engine Diagnostics Aig Bag, ECU, Instrument Cluster, Diagnostic & Repair Air-Conditioning Re-Gas & Repairs

Telephone Al - Monday - Friday 9am - 5pm FULLY MOBILE

638 323 499

ACB Diagnostics andybulletvan@gmail.com

658 109 849 Service parts included from 80€ All brakes with labour from 170€ RHD to LHD light conversions from 100€ Accident repairs free collection or repairs at yours www.acbautorecambioscostablanca.com

Chevrolet’s designers created the Corvette Stingray Coupe Pacific Concept, a red-hot looking track-inspired ride in anyone’s book. This is a Z51-equipped Corvette Stingray Coupe with the LT1 V8 mated to a seven-speed transmission, dry sump oiling system and the transaxle features an electronic limited-slip differential.

The Corvette Stingray Coupe Pacific Concept features a Torch Red exterior complimented with a carbon fiber hood and visible carbon-fiber weave on the removable roof panel. Like the Atlantic Concept, the Pacific Concept comes outfitted with a carbon fiber trim kit with a front splitter and rocker extensions in black.

Like its right coast Atlantic Concept, the Pacific Concept Stingray Coupe is outfitted by a number of Chevrolet Accessories including the 19″ and 20″ black wheels with a red accent stripe.

are you a mechanic? do you have a motoring business?

Phone Jane 950 121 936

To advertise here in the motoring section & reach over 32,000 readers This size advert for less than 4€ a week

Book Review

Maranda the Mermaid by K.J.Rollinson

www.carolnaylor.blogspot.com - www.carolesleynaylor.wordpress.com - naylorcl@hotmail.es

“Panic and horror replaced the loving look in my eyes. To love a human was not possible. He should be told he had fallen in love with a mermaid.”

This delightful tale is aimed at the parents and grandparents of children between the ages of 5-10. Fantasy of the most innocent kind for those impressionable years. It is suitable for independent readers or ideal as a bedtime story.

Enchanting reading.

Maranda (star of the sea) Melanie Seagrove is 11 years of age. Known as Mysterious Maranda by her two close friends, Jill, also aged 11 and her brother, Ethan, aged 12. This is because of her Houdini act and leading a dual life of part-human, part-mermaid. If she wants to locate her mother, Marella, she uses a large conch shell which acts as a loud speaker, a bit like the “mob” in Golding’s Lord of the Flies.

Our heroine has to change her clothes and stuff all of her belongings into a bag which was then hidden between a cleft of rock in order to guard her secret from preying eyes. She is related to the high-and-mighty himself, King Neptune. Her uncle Adrian is Neptune’s brother. Marella (shining sea) is her mother and Robert, her father. We have a wonderful group of friends, Larry the Lobster, Gerry the Grouper, Pansy the Plaice and Olly the Octopus, characters that children will adore.

The story begins with a potentially worrying situation which becomes easily resolved with the help of Maranda’s army of friends. Simply, Marella isn’t around when Maranda finishes school at lunch-time. She had gone to cut some kelp and hadn’t returned. Uncle Adrian was worried that she had had a terrible accident. She had gone into Olly’s cave when a boulder tumbled down, blocking the entrance.

One of the small rocks had hit her and she was temporarily unconscious.

“Maranda found Olly the Octopus, his chest heaving, tugging at a huge boulder blocking the cave entrance. Four of his legs were wrapped around the boulder, four straddled along the edge of the cave as he heaved and pulled.”

How grateful are we for friends in a crisis! Gerry, the notorious burper, and his friends bulldozed the rocks which splintered, clearing the entrance. Marella was “stretched on the cave floor: the scales on her lower body pale, and blood oozing from a small cut on her forehead.” Olly made a cradle with his arms to carry her to safety. Tension over for the moment.

Maranda always disappeared down to the beach on her own, making sure she wasn’t followed. She had been untruthful to Ethan telling him she went there for solitude so that she could do her homework in peace. She had been partly truthful in telling him where she lived-describing the location of Robert’s housethe end house at the end of the village, near a small cove, although she had a bed in the snug cabin in the sunken galleon made of “soft blankets, woven kelp {which} covered her bed and a soft, yellow sponge {for} her pillow.” Maranda didn’t want to lie to her friends and she suffered constant pangs of guilt but she knew she must keep her identity a secret. “They wouldn’t understand about me being a

Special Offers Visit:

35

950 121 936 - sales@soltimes.com

www.soltimes.com

mermaid.” The children will love this.

When her legs itched and ached this was a sign for her to return to the sea. She was overwhelmed by relief and happiness once she stepped into the water!

Rollinson uses sentimentality to inform us of Maranda’s heritage, hence the bedtime stories when Marella reminds her daughter of her conception and parentage. It begins dramatically with an episode which could have proved potentially life-threatening. A pleasant swim turned into a near brush with death for Robert, usually considered a strong swimmer. A rip-tide tossed and buffeted around, proving too much for the swimmer. “Soon his strength deserted him and he sank towards the bottom of the sea.”

Fortunately, Marella was swimming close by and she dragged him over stones and rocks and once the seawater had cleared from his lungs, he regained consciousness. She stayed with him all night, keeping him warm and hid her tail, being too embarrassed to reveal her true identity. Robert Seagrove did recover and called her his Saviour. It’s not surprising that he felt love towards his Guardian Angel which was reciprocated. A marriage soon followed then Maranda’s birth.

Another bedtime story by Robert this time, told of a heroic rescue involving both of her parents and a cabin boy when a ship hit a terrible storm and crashed into the rocks. Another potentially dangerous situation with Marella heralded as the heroine once again.

Maranda has a wonderful 12th birthday celebration, one with her sea friends and one with her human friends. How lucky is that? Donald, King Neptune’s favourite dolphin was invited to perform his acrobatic tricks and allowed the birthday girl to ride the waves. Ethan and Jill visited Robert’s house for her other party. Whilst they waited on the beach they sauntered into a cave when Ethan found an old coin bearing the faint outline of a shield. He found out from Robert that it was a Spanish piece of eight. Ethan’s father was a diver and he knew his father would be interested in searching for more treasure which would signal danger to the fishes living in the sunken Spanish galleon including Maranda and her mother. How can Maranda resolve the situation without threatening the lives of her friends? How can she hold on to her friendship with Ethan and Jill? How does she deal with the guilt of telling lies to her friends? All will be revealed in time……

REVIEW it by Carol Naylor.

Publisher: Create Space/Quirky Girl Publishing.

ISBN: 978-1523-262595.

www.ecocorpshop.com

Oil is a child of the fossil fuel age and prices will trend upwards.

Solar is a child of the electronics age and prices will trend downwards.

Solar Power system to run in conjunction with your home electricity, reduce your monthly bills

from 6995€

including battery bank.

9 PANELES (250W Full systems - special offer, while stocks last 12 PANELES (250W Eurener) + Inverter Eurener) + Inverter and analizador de and analizador de redes, panel mounting redes, panel mountsystem, cables and ing system, cables and breakers – only €5,995 breakers – only €4,995 (save around €1,100 (save around €750 per per year) year)

No Tax On the Sun! (Real Decreto 900/2015 Boe 243 10th October 2015) Now that the government have passed the new laws with regard to solar energy, there is no better time to subsidize your electricity bills. Our systems can be scaled to suit your energy requirements so as you attain the fastest payback. All systems meet EU and Spanish requirements for connecting to the grid and there is NO TAX to pay!

Solar swimming pool filtration pump kit.

Run your swimming pool on solar

Solar swimming pool heating, extend your swim season or heat your pool all year round.

from 2295€

Auto-consumo solar power kits, supplement your electricity bills

Solar power system servicing & updating, fault finding & diagnostics.

from 5995€

Call Ecocorp on

671 716 597 or 950 930 187 for a no obligation quotation

La Meseta, Bedar, Almeria

WWW.ECOCORPSHOP.COM

Why not consider PX your old, tired system for a new, more efficient one.

36

March 2016

JUMILLA CD 2 MAZARRON FC 2 Two defensive errors cost Mazarron dearly as they twice surrendered the lead at Jumilla before coming away with a 2-2 draw.

The game took a while to come to life but after 20 minutes Jumilla broke away and, with Mazarron keeper Paco off his line, the Jumilla centre forward hit a delightful lob from 25 yards which hit the post before being scrambled clear by a relieved Mazarron defence.

Mazarron were untidy in defence giving the ball away on numerous occasions but took the lead against the run of play after 33 minutes in their first real attack of the game. Palote played a superb through ball to Gilberto and the makeshift striker took a touch before steering the ball into the far corner with a clinical finish.

Mazarron's lead lasted only three minutes before the home team equalised. A right wing corner was fumbled by Paco and Carrasco was unmarked at the far post to hit the ball into an empty net.

The second half was a different story with Mazarron looking far more lively and Willy and Palote combining well up front. Palote's right wing cross was a shade in front of the onrushing Gilberto but Mazarron took the lead for the second time after 50 minutes. Willy made a surging run into the penalty are before finding Palote who stepped inside two defenders and hit a left foot shot into the corner of the net.

Willy, Palote and Gilberto all had half chances to increase Mazarron's

ROCKET’S GOLF SOCIETY

VISTABELLA GOLF – 4th MARCH 2016 It was back to Vistabella on a bright but chilly March morning but the sun got up to strength and made it a very enjoyable day, it was also International Women’s Day which was quite appropriate as a lady won the best guest prize and a Nearest the Pin. This popular course that is in very good condition despite the Bermuda grass being dormant ,the greens that held y as always required good judgement and held putts (when hit properly).

It was a very good turnout and it became shirt sleeve order although ideal day for golf, the scores did not reflect it, as overall they were quite low RESULTS GOLD CATEGORY - 1st Arthur Williams 32 pts, 2nd Malcolm Anderson 30 pts C/B, 3rd Peter Daggart 27 pts.

Silver Category - 1st Ken Hopkins 27pts, 2nd Dave Guerrine 26 pts, 3rd Rocket Ron 26 pts.

NEAREST PIN - Hole 4: Dave Guerrine, Hole 8: Janet Chambers, Hole 15: Arthur Williams LONGEST DRIVE: Ivie Davies Best Guest: Janet Chambers 32 pts So it was back to St James’s Gate for the celebrated munchies, Chicken Curry and Chips thanks to Martin, and Mandy for their hospitality.

Our next game is at Alicante Golf on Tuesday 22nd March. First tee 10:00am so please be there by 09:15 for breakfast. The RFEG have

re-valued courses to allow Men to play from the Red Tees and their handicaps will be adjusted accordingly. Alicante is one such course, so Rockets are going to try this by offering the over 70’s with a 20+ handicap to play from the Reds with NTP and Longest Drive separate from the Yellows. Should be fun.

For more information or if you wish to play with arguably the friendliest Golf Society contact Ron Nicholson on 678 849 142 or email sanmigron@gmail. com

lead but the home team equalised after 70 minutes. Both Juan Fran and Juan Andreo made poor headers when trying to deal with a long ball down the middle and Carrasco was able to run on and lob the ball over Paco's head and into the net for his second goal of the game.

Mazarron should have taken all three points in the 85th minute when Willy raced onto Champi's pass but hit his shot straight at the Jumilla keeper. It was an up and down performance by Mazarron but the point cemented their fifth place in the league going into next Sunday's important home game against SFC Minerva at the Estadio Municipal, kick off 5 pm.

Team: Paco; Alfonso; Juan Fran; Juan Andreo; Alberto (Hafid); Juanlu; Jesus (Champi); Juanma (Silverio); Willy; Palote; Gilberto (Jose).

Man of the Match; Willy

THE SUNSHINE FINALS by Susan Ward

There are certain petanca matches that remain in your memory and the final of the Radio Sunshine Petanca League's Cup and Plate was one of those. It was held on the 9th March at Domino Bar in Los Altos. The weather didn't behave itself that well as the day started off cool and very windy. The sun did eventually show its face but the wind was there most of the time the matches were in progress.

The Cup match was between The Pumas and Rocajuna petanca clubs and although the Pumas won the first two triples they failed to win any further matches and Rocajuna claimed the Cup with a 5 - 2 win. Congratulations Rocajuna and to both teams for playing in a joyful and fair manner.

The Plate was a closely contested fight between Costa Knights and Los Altos Jets. After the first four triples the Jets were 3- 1 up, so the Knights had to win all three doubles - whew, no pressure then! - .

The Knights won 1 double 13 - 3, then the 2nd , so it all rested on the 3rd and the excitement reached fever pitch and although the Knights played well it was The Jets who took the match.

The Jets were the winners with a 4 - 3 score. Big congratulations. This match caused some fun as both teams wear the same colour shirts so if not knowing who held the shot, all one

had to do was shout ' come on you purples'...can do no wrong then.

Both finals were played in a fun and friendly way and afterwards all present were very well fed and lots of laughter could be heard.

The Committees thanks go Domino Bar for hosting the occasion and to Colin for being the referee, who was kept so busy during some matches.

The Sunshine Winter League is now complete but in the next two weeks they have the A.G.M. on the 23rd March, and the presentation of cups and medals on the 30th March.

The presentation is accompanied by a delicious hog roast and all the trimmings.

The Sunshine Summer League starts on Wednesday 6th April.

SOL TIMES

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Sol Times Calida and Sol Times Blanca are independent of political parties, private investment and government. Our policy is to provide readers with a news and information service that is fair, accurate and balanced. Sol Times Calida and Sol Times Blanca are independent publications. Published weekly and produced exclusively in Murcia & Blanca. Sol Times News Group cannot be held responsible for claims made by advertisers, nor can it be held responsible for errors in advertisements caused by poor quality text, photographs or layout instructions. Furthermore, no responsibility can be accepted for any loss or damage resulting caused by any error, inaccuracy or non-appearance of an advertisement. Deposito Legal Sol Times Calida AL 851-2010. Sol Times Blanca AL 852-2010

37

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motoring

news and reviews

Seat unveils Ateca SUV:

Spain finally joins the 4x4 market

This is the Ateca, and it’s going to take a pop at the Nissan Qashqai

N332 - Driving In Spain

Advice and information about driving in Spain.

Doggy Truck Driver Wrecks Tree Despite witnesses reporting that a Golden Retriever dog was at the wheel of an articulated truck which crashed in Minnesota, it is the absent human driver who is being held responsible.

According to the police, the dog was seen in the driver´s seat when the truck impacted with a tree and a parked car, however indications are that the actual driver left the vehicle in

a parking lot with the engine running, and the dog somehow managed to “accidentally” set the vehicle in motion.

Had the incident have occurred in the UK, the dog might well be on its way to learn how to fly on the latest crazy Sunday night animal show on Sky 1, Dogs Might Fly. http://n332.es/

Despite the prolifertion of SUVs throughout the rest of the VW Group, Seat has never had one. That’s unless you count the forgettable Altea Freetrack 4 crossover, of course. And we won’t if you won’t.

So anyway. The wait is over. This is the Ateca, and it’s going to take a pop at the Nissan Qashqai.

That’s quite a task to set yourself. But aside from being more or less the same size, the Ateca treads a promisingly familiar path.

It’s based on the Leon, both inside and out, and features that vehicle’s multimedia set-up and semiautonomous assist systems. Needless to say, Seat is putting a heavy emphasis on the ’sport’ part of the whole sport-utility thing with the vehicle’s styling and general yummy-mummy appeal.

Under the bonnet, at launch there’ll be a choice of 1.0 and 1.4 TSI petrol engines and 1.6 and 2.0 TDI diesels. The latter comes in two states of tune, including a 187bhp range-topper.

The usual six-speed manual box is standard across the range, with a seven-speed DSG unit for a few dollars more.

If you want four-wheel drive, you’ll have to buy a diesel. Even these will only be front-driven as standard, but the same all-wheel drive set-up used elsewhere in the VW Group will be offered as an option.

Further down the line, Seat says there’ll be a hotter FR version, and stay tuned for news of a Cupra. That should certainly tick the sport box – and give Seat something its rivals only tend to offer at the premium end of the market.

The Ateca will go on sale in the UK this autmn.

There’s no indication yet on prices, but what we do know is that Seat is also readying a smaller SUV for launch a couple of years from now. The company is working on a larger sport-ute, too, with a projected on-sale date in 2019. http://www.independent.co.uk/

Bank Account Seized for Not Paying Fines The importance of ensuring that the information relating to your driving licence is correct has been highlighted to a former resident of Elche recently, who discovered that he had been clocking up traffic fines without receiving notifications.

The problem only came to light when the treasury seized his bank account, prompting an investigation as to why, which resulted in the 52 outstanding traffic tickets, valued at almost 6,000 euro, being brought to light.

The sanctions were all relating to a stretch of the A-7 motorway near Mijas in the province of Málaga, where the maximum speed limit is 80 kilometres per hour and protected by a multipoint radar system where the speed is monitored for a stretch of road, not just at the visible point of the monitoring equipment.

The driver, who moved to Benalmádena in 2013, claims to have notified the DGT of his change of

address, but the sanctions were all sent to his previous Elche home. His lawyer has filed several appeals to contest the fines on his behalf, but he has already paid half of the fines through his seized bank account.

The Thirty Thousand Euro Speeding Fine

The driver also said in an interview A French motorcyclist has been hit that he had no knowledge of how the with a 31,300 euro speeding fine, after speed monitoring equipment worked activating a radar speed detector 140 and will be “more careful” in the future.

A trial date has been set to resolve the matter one way or another, but not until 2018. h t t p:// n332.es/

times.

The biker first started his wave of speeding offences in November, 2014, although it was seemingly impossible to catch the dangerous rider as he had altered his vehicle´s registration plate so that is was not visible on the cameras.

However, after the record 140 occasions he was caught, the police did manage to track down the biker in the town of Bastia where the courts upheld the fines after the rider submitted an appeal in an attempt to still avoid paying the price for his actions. http://n332.es/

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38

March 2016

SAMM Pursuit Racing

Five boats took part in the 4th SAMM Pursuit Race; two Sailfish, Mistral and Sirocco from the Balaton Group; two Gambas, Uno and Quatro from the Shoestring Group plus the RS Vareo.

The start sequence was Sailfish first, the Gambas 3mins 15secs later, finally the Vario another 4mins later.

In the first race Sirocco started well but was soon pressured by Uno. Sirocco was passed and it looked like clear sailing for Uno once the last buoy was rounded, however the wind veered and she was forced off the best course. The Vario saw the opportunity, powered up and managed to win by about 3 meters.

In the second race Mistral and Sirocco got a good start on a 30° tack towards the first buoy. In the 3mins before their start, the wind dropped and both Gambas were delayed by another 2mins until the wind kicked in from a different direction and both started, followed by the Vario.

They could all sail straight for the buoy leaving both Sailfish way out on their original tack. Quatro battled with the Vareo, and there was close sailing between Uno and Mistral but Uno had the speed, even though “reefed”, to get home ahead of the competition.

The third race was real excitement and close because the handicaps were adjusted giving the Gambas and Vareo an extra 15secs delay.

Sirocco took a different tack to the

first buoy to find Mistral bearing down on her. A quick 180deg flick round the buoy and he should be ahead but was there enough room?

No, and a very loud “thud” echoed over the Mar Menor . The Vario took the lead with Uno chasing. Round the last buoy the Vario was headed off the sailing line by a wind shift.

Uno pulled tight round the buoy, got a higher and shorter course to the finish, went into the lead but then the wind shifted again forcing her off course. The gust dropped leaving Uno with little forward motion, the Vario found wind but Uno managed to get moving when the Vario came up level. They sailed neck and neck for the last 20 meters with the Vario “pinching it” by half a meter at the finish.

For more information go to www. sailingmarmenor.com

EUROGOLF SOCIETY T

The format for this week’s competition was a team game of `yellow peril` played on our home course La Marquesa.

Some good scores today, despite having to contend with, once again, the recent blustery winds. The winning team of Vince Tocker, Bob Shorley, Connie Parker and Claire Daye-Gretton came in with a splendid score of 151 points. In second place the team of George McCallum, Ray Porter, Bev Evans and Mike Gillett with 143 points.

Third place the team of Ian Pegg, Steve Sayers, Graham Cheetham and Jenny Cheetham with 142 points.

Nearest the pins were 5th Jan Shorley 11th Phyllis Venables 12th (in 2) George McCallum 15th Robin Richards 17th Norman Woods Football drawer winners: Ian Pegg Ken Enever Gary Grierson Norman Woods The results of the TOFFS weekly Stableford competition played on Tuesday were as follows: Overall Winner: Ed Silvester 38 points Category 1: 1st Pino Perito 37 pts 2nd Bob Buckeridge 33 pts 3rd Ian Pegg 31 pts Category 2: 1st Ian Turner 35 pts

2nd David Blanchette 34 pts 3rd Colin Hobden 33 pts Category 3: 1st Ed Silvester 38 pts 2nd John Cross 38 pts 3rd Alan Marshall 33 pts Category 4: 1st David Lewis 36 pts 2nd Claire Daye-Gretton 35 pts 3rd Joy Gray 31 pts N.T.P’s 5th Keith Wright 11th George McCallum 15th Ray Porter 17th Jan Shorley Best front nine Keith Wright 17 pts and best back nine Ray Porter 19 pts A special mention to Chris and Tony Stanley who are celebrating their Golden Wedding Anniversary this week and, what a special way to celebrate than on a cruise ship visiting the many sights of the Far East. Also celebrating a significant anniversary this week are Geoff Evans, a member of Eurogolf for twenty years, and his lovely wife Pat. Geoff and Pat have been married for an impressive 60 years. Many congratulations to both couples.

More information about our friendly society can be found on our website www.eurogolf-quesada.co.uk

EL PLANTIO 2 GOLF SOCIETY

Superb golfing conditions accompanied 26 members and guests for El Plantio 2`s Texas Scramble competition on 8th March.

Nearest the pins – Hole 3 , Claude De Wamme : Hole 5 , Dave Swann : Hole 8, Keith Smith.

BRADLEY BREAKERS

3rd Place, with 45.91 points - John O`Brien, Keith Smith, Penny Goujon, Alan Robinson 2nd Place, with 44.86 points - Ian Craig, Lyn Young, Antoinette, Garry Needham.

1st Place, with 42.93 points - Dave Swann, Claude De Wamme, Michel Goujon, Jef De Marie.

All prizes for the competition were kindly donated by our Belgian guests, Claude and Mireille as thanks for the Society`s warm welcome in their 6 months visit and Claude promptly scooped two of the prizes.

Special mention must also go to Michel Goujon, who contributed 4 of the birdie putts out of the winning team`s 7.

If anyone would like to join our Society, we play at El Plantio Golf Club on Tuesday, Friday and Sunday. We use both courses - the Par 3 nine hole course and the main 18 hole course, so we cater for all abilities. The membership rates are very competitive, so call for more details.

Anyone who wishes to play in the Society as a guest or join as a new member, contact Ian Henderson on 966 716 616 or 636 116 230.

965 723 270 607 848 332

39

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SPORTS SHORTS from Tony Matthews…

• The FA Cup semi-finals at Wembley on the 23/24 April will feature Crystal Palace, who eliminated Reading 2-0, Everton who beat Chelsea, also by 2-0, Watford who ousted holders Arsenal 2-1 and either Manchester United or West Ham who drew 1-1 at Old Trafford.

• Chelsea were also dumped out of the Champions League by Paris St Germain last week.

• Ross County won their first-ever trophy, beating Hibs 2-1 in the Scottish League Cup final.

• Leicester still lead the Premiership from Tottenham.

• Burnley (74 points), Middlesbrough (67), Hull (65), Brighton (65), Derby (61) and Sheffield Wednesday (59) are the top six in the Championship.

• Burton Albion (FL1), Northampton (FL2), Celtic (SPL), Barcelona (La Liga), Bayern Munich (Bundesliga) and Juventus (Serie ‘A’) are all closing in on their respective League titles, while P.S.G. crushed Troyes 9-0 to clinch the top prize in France.

• In the Champions League tonight, Arsenal, 2-0 down, play Barcelona, unbeaten in 37 games, while Manchester City, 3-1 up on Dynamo Kiev, should have qualified for the quarter-finals last night.

• Tomorrow, Liverpool (2-0 up) visit Manchester United and Tottenham (3-0 down) play Borussia Dortmund in the second legs of their last 16 Europa League ties.

• This weekend’s PL fixtures include three derbies: Chelsea-West Ham, the Manchester showdown and Newcastle-Sunderland. Leicester visit Crystal Palace-Leicester, Everton play Arsenal and Spurs meet Bournemouth.

T.M.G.S. @ Campoamor 2/3/16 This course was on our regular visit list this time last, but during the summer, the heat burnt off a few of the greens and some restoration work was required, well I am pleased to say that it is now returning to its former condition, so much so that we had to close the start list when it reached 48 players because the course was full and couldn’t handle any more players.

So our apologies go to those members who didn’t get a game but don’t worry we have booked this venue for the first Wednesday in very month for the next 12 months.

Although it wasn’t in the forecast for today we were again greeted with a strong wind, this obviously help the competitors make par on the easy par 5 first, but made holes 8 & 9 so difficult that bogey was a good score. Cross the road to the back 9 and as the wind dropped the temperature rose up into the mid 20’s which really help most players’ scores.

Campoamor has an unusual back 9, 3 par 3’s and 3 par 5’s, the par 3’s were thought to be significant today as there are 5 in total and that meant that there would be a least 5 chances to secure the “2’s” pot which had been rolled over twice already, so there was a very healthy €135 to be shared out between those lucky enough

to make a “2”. Yes you’ve guessed it; no one managed a “2” so next week at La Finca this pot is likely to grow to the sum of approx. €170 let’s hope that there will be more than one “2” and that it gets shared out. In the N.T.P. Competition however all 5 N.T.P.’s were won and the 5 lucky recipients of a very nice bottle of rioja sponsored by Alex and Karin Alm were; hole 4 Sverre Sonesen, hole 6 John Trehy, hole 10 Ove Cederberg, hole 15 John Hillier and hole 17 Mike O’Regan.

The visitor’s category was won with 36 points by L. Hutter. Bronze ccategory winners were; 3rd place Alex Goslan 33 pts. 2nd Rose Cox 34 pts. Winner John Hillier 37 pts. Silver category results; 3rd place Lars Jernberg 32 pts. 2nd Viking Roger Nilsen 33 pts winner Treveor (whining) Wheeler 39pts.

Gold category results; 3rd Henning Kyvag 33 pts. 2nd B. Watson 33 pts.

L/H, winner Captain John Eyre 36 pts. Forthcoming events, 9/2/16 La Finca Club Championship (Medal) 16/3/16 Alenda final round Annual Medal Trophy and also the battle between the Viking membership and the rest of us.

If you’re looking to participate in a competitive but friendly atmosphere, take a look at our website w w w.t mgs . org follow us at Facebook/ TMGS or via our twitter feed @ T H G S G O LF still need convincing then call the secretary on 661 524 101

• The top Championship game is Middlesbrough against Hull.

• Last Saturday, England clinched Rugby’s Triple Crown with a 25-21 points victory over Wales and 24 hours later ‘won’ the Six Nations title as Scotland beat France. England will complete the Grand Slam with victory in Paris on Saturday.

• Leaders Saracens beat London Irish 26-16 in the first Premiership rugby game to be played outside Europe – in front of 25,000 fans in New Jersey, USA. • England meet the West Indies in their first T20 World Cup game today and take on South Africa on Saturday. The hosts India play Pakistan on Sunday.

• The Cheltenham Festival started yesterday and I fancy Cole Harden and Thistlecrack for tomorrow’s World Hurdle and Silviniaco Conti in Friday’s Gold Cup. And ex-Olympic cyclist Victoria Pendleton rides Pacha Du Polder in the Foxhunter Chase, also Friday.

• Wigan Warriors thrashed reigning champions Leeds Rhinos 28-6 in Rugby’s Super League.

• Chris and Gabby Adcock were beaten in the semi-finals of the AllEngland Badminton championships.

• Geraint Thomas became only the third Brit to win the Paris-Nice cycle race.

• Newcastle have appointed Spaniard Rafael Benitez as their new manager after sacking Steve McClaren.

• And on Friday night, on BBC TV, it’s celebrity Sports Relief… watch and enjoy.

Busters March 2016 report

Friday 4th March we competed for our Alto Real Trophy, this was the fourth year that our members had played for the trophy which I have to say is a very good copy of the ’ Claret Jug ‘, we had a smaller number of members compete for the trophy this year, this being either due to ill health a couple of cases injury, or personal circumstances etc; however as we get that little bit older I suppose we have to accept this sort of thing, but on the bright side our members that were able to play were all of the same ilk , and anyone would have been happy to play with any of them, so a good day was had by all, on the day itself the sun shone with just a soft breeze that got maybe a bit stronger during the afternoon.

Teeing off in front of us were thirty two members of the Vega Baja league, but this wasn’t a problem, and following us were entrants in some Spanish competition, I don’t know Alto Real had been set up for these golfers but the course itself was playing very long with the pin’s located in very difficult positions making the game of golf even more complicated, however the condition of the course made up for that, it was in excellent order, tricky greens well cut fairways and rough that we could play out of.

On to our prize giving which as usual we carried out at the Mini Golf bar a few minutes away from Quesada’s Arches, Lisa and Rik provided bowls of sausage chips with bread and butter which we ate prior to our presentation, with the par threes playing very long we only had two of our members hit two of them from their tee shot, they were on the eighth Ian Allison and the tenth being hit by Preston Ives both received a sleeve of Srixon golf balls,with

Busters having a smaller field than we have been accustomed to we just gave out prizes for first and second places, second place being taken

by Brian Jones who received a cash prize and in first place was Bill Peters with thirty three points playing off a handicap of ten, Bill won our Alto Real Trophy which he keeps for the next year also he received a cash prize and a small replica of the trophy, which is the norm for Busters, following the presentation we had a couple of the landlords excellent beers, along the some banter, before taking ourselves back home to our spouses, our next game is at La Serena on the first of April which one of our members said was an appropriate day for us.

Busters Golf Society is a small friendly group of like minded people who play on the first Friday of the month, depending on the time of the year we generally have between sixteen and twenty four players, over the four years since we first formed the society some of our original members have moved on, either returned to their country of origin or have ventured to pastures new.

So, we are looking for a few more members to swell our ranks, if you are interested in joining our society then please email me Barry Grinsell at bustersgolfsociety@hotmail.com quoting your phone number and current handicap and I will get back to you within a couple of days.

40

SOLTIMES march 2016

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