Soltimes Costa Calida - Issue 475

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BE pARt Of It!

Hotel owners jailed 02-08 May 2017

ESt 2005

The three owners of the Hotel Playa Grande, located in the port of Mazarrón, have each been sent to prison for two years.

The case involves the defendants, Juan José M.M., Josefa M.M. and Natividad M.M who were accused of breaking legal noise pollution limits over a period of years and caused four neighbours to suffer post traumatic stress, anxiety attacks and depression.

Before being jailed, the accused accepted the sentence agreed by both the prosecution and the defence and also to pay a fine and an amount of €54,000 as compensation payments to those affected.

This latter amount has already been paid.

Prosecuting counsel had originally requested a six and a half years custodial sentence which was reduced at Friday’s hearing following the accused admitting the offenses and the pre-payment of damages. A fine of €9,000 was also requested to be enforced.

Excessive noise levels came from the hotel between the summer months of 2003 to 2012 and led to a total of 45 complaints from neighbours and numerous others, many of whom had no choice but to report the matter to the local Ombudsman.

Local police officers were also able to confirm that on several occasions the measured decibel levels were well above those permitted by the law.

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Local News News

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London teen in heart breakthrough An innovative code developed by a sixth form student with a team of doctors at London’s St Bartholomew’s Hospital could save the lives of heart attack victims by ‘writing’ their medical history inside their chest.

While observing surgery at the hospital’s Barts Heart Centre, one of Europe’s biggest cardiac centres, 16 year old Ben Wald correctly noticed how missing or incomplete medical records may result in extra risk to patients who have had previous heart surgery. There are a number of reasons for this – the patient could have been treated at another hospital, in another country or a number of years ago – making it difficult to quickly retrieve medical records necessary in an emergency.

To solve this problem Ben suggested that the surgeon leave a message in the patient’s chest to indicate the number and locations of heart bypass grafts a patient has received. He and his father, Professor David Wald came up with the idea of using the twists and positions of the metal wires used to close the sternum as a code.

Professor David Wald, cardiologist at St Bartholomew’s Hospital and Professor at The Wolfson Institute of Preventive Medicine Queen Mary University of London said: “When operating, cardiologists need to know if the patient has been operated on before and how the previous surgeon has re-plumbed the arteries. When this information is missing, the idea of using sternal wires to let future doctors know what operation was done before is a simple solution that could help many patients.”

About one in six patients who have previously had coronary artery bypass surgery and are taken to hospital suffering a heart attack are at increased risk of complications because the necessary surgical records are not available.

Mr Shipolini, cardiac surgeon at the Barts Heart Centre, said: “This is a fresh and unique idea that solves a common problem many hospitals have. I have used the code and it’s easy to apply using surgical equipment that is already in place. The challenge

is now making this code routine and we are talking to surgeons across the country to do so.”

Ben Wald, an A level student from Dulwich College, in southeast London, said: “It was amazing to observe a cardiac surgeon and a cardiologist at work and I am grateful to St Bartholomew’s

Spanish exports surge...

But so do imports In the period January-February 2017, exports of Spanish goods increased by 12.6% compared to the same period in 2016 and stand at €43.5bn; a record high for this time of the year.

At €49.2bn, imports were also up 15.1% resulting in a trade deficit for the first two months of the year of €5.7bn - a staggering 38.4% higher than the equivalent 2016 figure.

The performance of Spanish exports between January and February was significantly better than that of neighbouring countries: in the Eurozone exports grew by 8% and in the EU-28 exports grew by 7.9%. In Italy sales abroad grew by 7.2%, in Germany by 7.1%, and in France by 1.1%. Overseas sales abroad by the USA (6.9%) and Japan (6.5%) also underperformed Spain's figure, while in China exports shrank slightly (down 0.2%). The only country of the major economies for which exports outperformed Spain was the UK, where exports grew by 19.2% on the back of the depreciation of the pound.

The most important sectors posted export growth. Capital goods (accounting for 18.6% of the total) grew by 7.5%, food, drink, and tobacco (17.6% of the total) increased by 13.3%, and automotive (17.6% of the total) was up by 7.2%.

By geographical areas exports to the EU (67.8% of the total) grew by 12.3% in the first two months of the year. Significant growth in exports to other areas around the world include China (37.2%), India (27.1%), Morocco (17.8%), Brazil (13.3%), Argentina (10.5%) Australia (8.8%) and Japan (7.1%).

The autonomous regions with the strongest export growth were the Balearics (63.5%), Asturias (42%), and the Region of Murcia (39.8%). Only in Castile and Leon did export growth shrink (down 2.1%).

Postman to be sent to prison A jury in Torrevieja today (Tuesday) will be asked to judge the case of a local postman who hid post in his locker over the course of a three year period.

The prosecution has asked for a custodial sentence of 18 months for the crime of failing to deliver a total of 266 items of post between 2011 and 2014. Of these, 174 were sent from within Spain with the majority being electric bills, bank statements and other official letters. According to the indictment, the accused postman also committed irregularities in non-delivery of certified mail depositing the letters and packets in the post boxes of the houses without obtaining any signatures as proof of receipt.

Hospital for giving me that opportunity.

“It’s strange, but thrilling, to think that a simple question led to this code that could save people’s lives in the future.”

In March 2017, the code was awarded the prestigious Patrick Magee Prize for Innovation from the Society for Cardiothoracic Surgery.

Legal foreign workers on the increase

In a further sign that employment prospects in Spain are improving, the average number of foreign workers registered with the Spanish Social Security system stood at 1,739,720 in March - a month-on-month rise of 2.2% and equivalent to 37,473 more workers. This is the best figure posted in the month of March since 2007 (38,012) and before the start of the world economic crisis that hit Spain more than other countries.

The year-on-year rate of foreign workers rose by 5.88%, or 96,656 more workers than in March 2016.

The highest total numbers of foreign workers contributing to the Social Security system come from Romania (318,958), Morocco (221,162), China (96,445), Italy (87,661) and Ecuador (66,884). These are followed by the United Kingdom (61,303), Bulgaria (56,159), Colombia (50,826), and Bolivia (48,349).

These March figures show that 998,798 of the total foreign citizens registered with the Spanish Social Security system are from countries outside of the European Union, while the remaining 740,922 are from EU countries.

The majority of foreign citizens are registered under what is called the ‘Regimen General’ – a total of 1,451,212. This number includes Agricultural Workers (213,749) and Domestic Workers (187,621). This is followed by the Self-Employed Workers (284,077), Seamen (4,270) and Coal Workers (161). Of the total foreign citizens in the system in March, 965,287 are men and 774,433 are women.

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02-08 May 2017

Car manufacturers Brexit alarm

Ahead of the EU-Brexit summit held last weekend, European automobile manufacturers and suppliers sounded the alarm over the potential damage that Brexit could do to the competitiveness of their industry, which represents 6.5% of EU’s GDP and provides employment to some 12.2 million Europeans across the continent.

Automotive manufacturing is a highly complex industry.

A single vehicle part may be composed of over 30 components, and undergo over one hundred process steps to become a finished product. It may pass through 15 countries, and cross borders multiple times in its material journey. A single vehicle, in turn, consists of around 30,000 parts. Vehicle manufacturers currently operate some 300 assembly and production plants in Europe. They often manufacture engines or transmissions in one country and assemble the final vehicle in another. The European Single Market provides for a high level of economic and regulatory integration in this respect. This level of integration is reflected in how the automotive industry has strategically set up its business operations in terms of supply chains, production sites and distribution networks.

Today, the EU is the UK’s biggest trade partner. More than half of all the cars and 90% of all the commercial vehicles built in the UK last year were bought by customers in Europe. The other way around, the EU represents more than 80% of the UK’s motor vehicle import volume, worth €42 billion. Seven out of every 10 new cars sold in the UK come from EU plants.

Addressing journalists at a press conference, Erik Jonnaert, Secretary General of the European Automobile Manufacturer’s Association (ACEA) stated: “Today, the automotive industries of the European Union and the United Kingdom are closely integrated; from the economic, regulatory and technical points of view. Any changes to this level of integration will most certainly have an adverse impact on automobile manufacturers with operations in the EU or the UK, as well as on the European economy in general.”

This impact would potentially be felt in a number of areas, including tariffs, customs procedures, the regulatory framework, and access to labour. Tariffs, for instance, could amount to 10% for passenger cars, 10 to 22% for commercial vehicles, and 3 to 4% on average for parts and components.

News

International fiestas encouraged More than 50 representatives from the international community attended a working breakfast last week to find out about a series of grants that have been made available to organise local fiestas...but reflecting their own countries.

The gathering took place at the Club Náutico in Campoamor on the Orihuela Costa in the presence of Provincial Council Vice President Eduardo Dolón, the Mayor of Orihuela Emilio Bascuñana and Councillor Sofia Álvarez, who explained how to obtain the grants to promote the encouraged traditional fiestas of the more than 90 nationalities living in the area.

Torrevieja’s former mayor, Dolón, was delighted to help with such celebrations and said: “Alicante province has something new and different to show every day and this gives us the chance to offer our visitors extra quality that distinguishes us from the other destinations,”

AECC Cancer Conference

The popular local organisation, Asociación Española Contra el Cáncer (AECC), has organised a seminar for this Friday, May 5th in Orihuela and starts at 8.0pm in the Lonja Auditorium in the centre of the city.

Entitled ‘Early Diagnosis of Gynecological Cancer’, the talk will be given by Dr Fabiola Rubio Fernández addressing the women of Orihuela with the aim of educating them in how to diagnose such tumours in time, the associated risks and how they can be treated. The talk will be followed by a question and answer session.

The AECC cordially invites all those that are interested to attend this conference which is completely free of charge and will prove very useful for women to meet, get to know each other, and to perhaps discuss their own worries and concerns.

Brexiteers backtracking Leading Brexiteers have been arguing over the week as to who was right or wrong to make the famous referendum pledge that leaving the European Union (EU) would save £350m a week which would instead be spent on the NHS. On the morning the result of the June 2016 poll was known, the then UKIP leader Nigel Farage famously stated on the ITV breakfast couch when questioned that he hadn’t made that pledge, but had come from the official ‘Vote Leave’ campaign group of which he wasn’t a member.

In an interview with Nick Ferrari on LBC, Boris Johnson – from a rival Brexit group to Farage – said that the pledge “was right” even though others claimed it wasn’t true. However, later in the day on his own LBC show Nigel Farage explained that

he deliberately didn’t “openly condemn” the statement as being wrong until after the UK had voted to leave the EU. He said: “When you’ve got your army and you’re facing their army, what you don’t do is shoot your own side in the back given the significance of what we were facing.”

Farage has now also gone as far as saying that he wants the Foreign Secretary to stop suggesting that the NHS is in for this huge amount of money following the UK’s departure. “It’s wrong… Yes sure we send over £250m a week, but we get bits back because the European Union do give us money”, said Farage. “But net it’s £250m a week. Had he [Boris Johnson] just used that net figure that would have been big enough to convince voters that actually we were wasting an awful lot of money.”

02-08 May 2017

5 News

Eye in Torrevieja It’s only a proposal at this stage, but the Port of Torrevieja could soon be getting a version of the iconic London Eye. Dutch company, SkyView Attractions, sent representatives to visit the centre of Torrevieja on Friday to look at the feasibility of building a giant Ferris wheel.

SkyView Attractions already have several similar types of attractions dotted around Europe and have previously carried out a study of the area after ruling out Benidorm as a potential location. Costa Blanca’s busiest tourist resort was rejected due to a perceived lack of available space close enough to the beach for such a project to be enjoyed to its full extent.

Both the promoters and the Torrevieja City Council agreed that the ideal location for the planned 60m high wheel would be close to the port area, next to the sea and right in the heart of the tourist zone. The promoters have been given tourism figures from over the years to aid the decision making process.

Before such a construction can get passed the planning stage, rigorous technical conditions will need to be met taking into account the location of the water table, height limitations and the fact that Torrevieja is on a well-known earthquake zone. Current building regulations in force explain why there are no skyscrapers in Torrevieja compared to Benidorm less than 100km along the coast.

The popularity of the giant Ferris Wheel attractions was started with the launch of the London Eye on December 31st 1999 which stands at 135m (443ft) high. One of the most recent additions to the SkyView Attractions portfolio is found at The Hague in Holland and stands 40m high.

No decision has yet been taken on the height of the planned ‘Torrevieja Eye’ but will probably be no more than six stories above the ground.

Can you vote on June 8th?

If you are a British citizen living abroad, you can apply to be an overseas voter.

You must have been registered to vote in the UK in the last 15 years and be eligible to vote in UK Parliamentary general elections.

If you were too young to register when you left the UK, you can still register as an overseas voter.

You can do this if your parent or guardian was registered to vote in the UK, as long as you left the UK no more than 15 years ago.

An overseas registration expires after 12 months. You must renew your registration each year, and will be reminded to do so by your local Electoral Registration office.

If you have already renewed your registration and it will last until after 8 June 2017, and you are registered as an overseas voter. You do not need to register to vote again. If you voted

as an overseas voter in the EU referendum and your registration has not expired (and will not expire by 8 June 2017) you will be able to vote as an overseas voter on 8 June. You do not need to register to vote again. If your registration has expired, you will need to register to vote again and do so by Monday 22 May. You can register to vote online at gov.uk/register-to-vote You can choose your method of voting depending on your personal circumstances.

If you’re not in the UK you can apply to vote by proxy which is the most recommended method. This means you appoint someone to vote on your behalf.

You can vote by post as an overseas voter but experiences from the 2015 General Election and the 2016 EU Referendum suggests the Spanish post system makes this the least reliable method of voting.

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02-08 May 2017

News

Ryanair...

Come fly with us Cities across Spain are the latest venues for a recruitment drive for cabin crew to work for low-cost airline Ryanair.

They will be in the country for exactly a month.

Despite all the concerns and rumours surrounding Ryanair’s expansion plans for the UK in view of Brexit, they are looking to increase their workforce by an extra 3,500 during the course of this year. This figure is made up of 2,000 members of the cabin crew, 1,000 pilots, and 250 engineers. The remainder will be 300 staff promoted in-house.

The popular Irish airline run by businessman Michael O’Leary currently operates out of 84 airports across Europe.

Anyone looking for a career as a member of the Ryanair cabin crew doesn’t require any previous experience as full training will be given. The attractive package on offer includes major travel perks. There are two ways to register interest in these available positions. Either contact the website at Crewlink.ie or by attending, in person, any of the following events being held throughout May: Granada on Wednesday, May 3; Barcelona on Thursday, May 4; Madrid on Wednesday, May 10; Málaga or Sevilla on Friday, May 19; Valencia on Thursday, May 25, or Madrid or Barcelona on Friday, May 26.

Hire Car Costs Drop

According to new research, the cost of hiring a car abroad has dropped across a number of holiday destinations throughout Europe, sometimes by an average price drop of 40% compared to figures from 2013.

Car hire company AUTOEUROPE. CO.UK analysed its rates with its suppliers over a five-year period in a number of popular sunshine hotspots, including: Alicante; Barcelona; Malaga; Nice; Palma and Tenerife, all of which have seen holiday car hire rates become increasingly cheaper.

The figure was calculated using the average daily rate for holiday car hire across the continent between the months of April and August.

The savings throughout popular Spanish holiday hotspots continue.

The price for a ‘mini-sized’ vehicle in Alicante start at £33.18 a week, compared to £62.16 in 2013, saving

holidaymakers 47% (£28.98).

Meanwhile, in Palma, Mallorca, the start price to hire a ‘mini-sized’ car for a week is £45.43 in 2017, compared to £78.82 five years ago (42% saving). In Tenerife, day rates are now as low as £7.06 compared to £12.07 in 2013 (41% saving).

The lowest price for a standard car in from Malaga in the Costa Del Sol is £142 for seven days. This works out at around £20 a day, a saving of 24% on 2013 prices (£184.73).

A spokesperson for AUTOEUROPE. CO.UK, said: “There’s never been a better time to take advantage of hiring a car on a European holiday, especially since rental prices are at the lowest they’ve ever been according to our data.

The lowest prices are likely to go up, however, as more people leave it late to make their main holiday bookings, often at the very last minute.”

02-08 May 2017

News

Benidorm death plunge A 25-year-old British woman has died in Benidorm following a fall from the 10th floor of an apartment block. National Police in the popular holiday venue stated that she plunged from the veranda of the building located on Calle Almeria in the Rincón de Loix area; a location normally full of British tourists.

It happened around 8.0am on Saturday morning and she died instantly. Authorities are investigating the circumstances that lead to her death, but reports on SKY News suggested she was partying with a group of friends at the time.

The British Consulate in Alicante has stepped in to give the necessary help and support and are in the process of informing the next of kin of the so far unnamed victim.

Spain’s pensioners income boost

Calle Los Arcos 19, 03170

As the British Prime Minister, Theresa May, is being pressed on a daily basis to guarantee the current ‘triple lock scheme’ for pensioners should the Conservative’s be re-elected on June 8th, official data has been released showing the current amount being paid to Spain’s retirees.

Year-on-year figures show the monthly total of contributory pensions paid out by the Spanish Social Security system amounted to €8.71bn to the year ending April 1st - an increase of 3.13% over that 12 month period. UK state pensioners have just received their annual increase of 2.5% under the triple lock method of calculation.

The average Spanish monthly retirement pension stood at €1,060.09, 2.04% higher than for the same period last year. The average pension from the Spanish Social Security system as a whole, which includes all the various types of pension available (retirement, permanent disability, widowhood, orphanhood, and those paid out to relatives), stood at €917.71 representing a year-on-year increase of 1.91%.

In summary, there are a total of 9,490,771 contributory pensions paid out each month - an increase of 1.2% on last year. At 5,802,753, more than half of these are retirement pensions, while 2,360,460 are paid to widows, 945,830 are permanent disability pensions, 341,186 are orphanhood pensions and 40,542 are pensions paid out to relatives.

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02-08 May 2017

A man with plenty of bottle

An 81-year old pensioner from Elche has been granted a place in the world famous Guinness Book of Records for possessing the largest collection of brandy on earth.

With the very appropriate surname of Bru – Manuel Bru has a grand total of 1,057 bottles in his home. The oldest on the shelf was manufactured in 1888. Having begun his collecting habit at the age of 55 he said getting his world record certificate is a “dream come true”.

He never realised his collection was anything near record status until he met a fellow brandy fanatic from Mallorca whose own number totalled a mere 840 bottles and applied to have his claim verified. He will appear in the October 2017 issue of the famous annual book.

Manuel says that he hasn’t collected so many bottles over the past few years due to the sales of brandy dropping combined with a sharp price hike, but now he’s broken the world record he won’t have a problem in selling his haul to the right person and the right price, “who was keen to take them on and had the cash needed to maintain the collection rather than drinking the contents.”

His passion for brandy began over half a century ago when he helped his mother run a small food and drink shop which had a bar on site, and he kept hold of the unsold bottles when they closed the business. The oldest of his 1,000 plus collection was bought for 150 pesetas (less than €1 when the currency was introduced) in the Chinatown district of Barcelona.

Local News News

Local Radio Owner Imprisoned

The original owner and the driving force behind one of the first English-speaking radio stations serving the Costa Blanca, TKO’s Chris Adams, has been sentenced to a total of 13 months imprisonment in the UK following a bomb hoax in the wake of the March Westminster Bridge terror attacks.Sentenced under his real name of Christopher Massey, and now living in Essex, he called the police and said that he’d left two kilograms of explosives outside the Southend Mosque and Islamic Trust in his adopted home town of Westcliff-on-Sea. The hearing at Basildon Crown Court was told that he infomed the operator at the end of the line of the 999 call he made: “You better get round there because it’s going to go up like a bomb”. This was only two hours after the Westminster Bridge attack that killed five people. Massey’s call put the full force of the local police into operation with specialist officers immediately searching the mosque, but nothing suspicious was found.

The 46-year-old was then arrested by Essex Police after tracing the mobile phone used to make the bogus call.

Prosecuting officer, Cyrus Shroff, said: “This defendant has demonstrated racial and religious hostility and this was a hate crime. When he was arrested, he

said that he was a racist.”

In his defence, Carly Dennis said: “He has asked me to express his deep remorse, shame and embarrassment for this incredibly unpleasant incident. Unfortunately the day prior to this incident, he was informed that he had been made bankrupt.

Coupled with no contact with his children and what happened in Westminster, he turned to alcohol.”

Massey admitted making the threat and also breaching a community order he was

subject to at the time following a previous conviction for harassment.

Judge Ian Graham told Massey on handing down the sentence: “Offences such as these must inevitably attract a custodial sentence. They put people in fear and are a distraction to the forces of law and order.

Any sentence must be a deterrent to anyone tempted to act in this way.”

Massey was jailed for 12 months for the bomb hoax and a further month in prison for breaching the community order.

Lightning kills local favourite

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A much-loved and well-known member of the Spanish community living in Guadahortuna in the Granada province has been killed after being struck by lightning.

The 58-year old went out with members of his family to check on the state of his almond trees in the aftermath of the series of storms that had hit the Andalucian region. As the victim returned to his car parked exposed in a country lane with no buildings or trees to shield him, he became the highest point in the area and a target for the fatal lightning bolt.

Paramedics arrived at the scene shortly after being alerted by his wife on Sunday evening around 9.0pm, but found the man had been killed instantly by the force of nature.

Ironically, the storm – which included some very violent hailstorms – hadn’t caused any damage in the area and reports indicate that no other farmers had been harmed when they made similar checks to their own crops.

Josefa Caballero, Mayoress of Guadahortuna, has declared three days of mourning.

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02-08 May 2017

Gibraltar doesn’t, shouldn’t and won’t bother the Spanish

News

Pilar feels Easter tourism boost The Department of Tourism for Pilar de la Horadada has reported on the number of visitors using the Tourist Information services this Easter, and showed a 32% increase compared to 2016.

Councillor for Tourism, Pilar María Samper, stressed that “both the programming of events for these dates and our tourist resources and the good weather enjoyed over these days have led to an increase in the number of visitors in our town.”

Visitors from the United Kingdom topped the list of nationalities using the facilities, followed by those from Germany and Belgium and the French close behind.

Gibraltar is only a bugbear to Spanish people when it’s mentioned. It seldom is. How many times do you recall outrage and protests outside the U.K embassy in Madrid?

No. One must be careful to avoid thinking the Spanish see Gibraltar as some kind of occupation. It’s neither a nightmare of history or a daily affront on par with a zoned Berlin in the Cold War. It’s absurd to assume that 6.7 square kilometres are a tipping point to war for most people, save for the hawks which exist in both countries.

Lord Howard’s remarks in recent weeks did just that: the elderly Lord, who holds no government position, told a breakfast show that it was the anniversary of the Falklands War and that: “I’m absolutely certain that our current prime minister will show the same resolve in standing by the people of Gibraltar.”

The history of the peninsula is steeped in a confusion that is actually quite simple.

An Anglo-Dutch force captured Gibraltar from Spain in 1704 during the War of

the Spanish Succession on behalf of the Habsburg claim to the Spanish throne.

The territory was subsequently ceded to Great Britain “in perpetuity” under the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713.

Flashforward, and in both the 1967 and 2002 referenda, Gibraltarians overwhelmingly rejected proposals for Spanish sovereignty by 99.19% and 98.97% respectively.

In 2006, it solidified its constitutional identity following another referendum in 2006, though some of its powers, such as defence and foreign relations, remain the responsibility of the UK government.

Despite all of this, the Spanish Government still contests Gibraltar’s sovereignty, all while forgetting its own territorial arrangements. The government of Morocco has repeatedly called for Spain to transfer the sovereignty of Ceuta and Melilla, together with the rest of the Spanish plazas de soberanía (small islands and peninsulas) on the North African coast. Morocco has claimed the territories are colonies and demands their return on the grounds

of restoring its territorial integrity, even though a majority of the residents want the region to remain Spanish.

The Spanish Government position is that both Ceuta and Melilla are integral parts of the Spanish state, and have been since the 15th century. While they are autonomous and have their own administrations, the United Nations list of Non-Self-Governing Territories does not include these territories because they are Ciudad Autónoma de Ceuta; sitting somewhere between a standard Spanish city and autonomous community. Gibraltar, because it has its own government and is all entirely selfgoverning, sits on the list.

The commonality is that these territories are living relics of imperialism that have transformed into unique communities.

It makes no more sense for Britain to demand the transfer of Ceuta and Melilla to Morroco than it does Spain the transfer of Gibraltar to themselves.

Context, perhaps, is in the eye of the beholder.

Blue flys to the reds It will now be even easier to travel between Alicante-Elche Airport and Liverpool in future. To add to the services already run by Ryanair and EasyJet, Blue Air has begun operate three days a week with flights on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.

Blue Air’s inclusion on the Alicante to Liverpool route increases the number of flights on offer from the UK to more than 4,925,000 for the forthcoming summer season – an increase of 17.2% on last year and shows no effect from foreign currency fluctuations or Brexit.

AENA – the operators of Alicante-Elche Airport – confirmed that the arrival of the first flight from Blue Air – a Boeing 737 – was greeted with the traditional ‘bow of water’ from the airport firefighters reserved for when a new company’s aircraft lands.

Blue Air has been operating for 13 years and now offers flights to 70+ scheduled destinations in Belgium, Cyprus, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Portugal, Romania, Sweden, Spain, and the United Kingdom. Furthermore, under its own brand and with the slogan “Follow your dreams and fly”, Blue Air operates charter flights on behalf of leading tour operators and holiday destinations throughout Europe and West Asia, mainly the Mediterranean region.

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02-08 May 2017

News

Guernica – Toledo to host spain’s history 80 years on At precisely 4.30pm local time on Wednesday 26 April, around 200 people gathered at the Zollo cemetery in the Spanish town of Guernica. It marked the exact time 80 years earlier when the area was bombed during the Spanish Civil War by Nazi warplanes.

The attack gained infamy because it involved the bombing of civilians for the first time by a military air force. The number of victims is still disputed to this day; the Basque government reported 1,654 people killed at the time, while Spanish figures claim around 126, although this figure may not include victims who later died of their injuries in hospitals or whose bodies were discovered buried in the rubble.

Representatives of the many associations connected with this historic event laid wreaths at a monument based on the Pablo Picasso’s famous painting ‘Guernica’. Among the gathering was a 94-year-old survivor, Luis Irionso, who told the gathering that: “A rain of fire, blood and death fell upon us.”

Another survivor who hid in a shelter with his mother and sisters during the deadly bombing raid, Rosi Nebreda – now 88 – said: ““When we came out, all of Guernica was burning.”

As part of the 80 year commemorations, air raid sirens sounded across the town – now home to 17,000 people – at the exact time planes were first sighted over Guernica.

Sent in to support General Franco’s forces, aircraft from Hitler’s ‘Condor Legion’ carpet-bombed the town and its people – many of them at the weekly market – over a three hour period.

Famous for its traditional sword making and, since 1986, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Toledo, located in the province of Castilla-La Mancha, will be the site of a unique theme park for Spain.

With the aim of opening its doors to its first paying customers in two years time, the ‘Puy de Fou’ centre will cost €200m and will centre on bringing a ‘History of Spain’ experience to visitors. Construction is due to begin next year.

Seating up to as many as 4,000 spectators at any one time, the new park will include a nightly live show in the 25 acre arena of a short history of the country from the very early days through to the 19th century.

The ambitious plan includes the addition – before 2020 – of an ‘historic village’ tour which will see visitors take a short stroll through almost every province in Spain displaying the traditional architecture and period costume of the time. This unusual idea for a tourist attraction will be funded by the French company Puy de Foy that currently have a similar type of park in France and featuring the history of that country.

Company founders, Philippe and Nicolas de Villiers have stated that it won’t be a case of “France imposing its vision” on the history of their European neighbours, and that it will be “entirely Spain-driven” by

Jesús Sáinz, the regional Spanish manager.

If you’re expecting all the usual fun of a theme park with rollercoaster’s, then this isn’t the place for you. The founders said that it will be educating and interesting in equal proportions and suitable for all ages and sexes.

The location of Toledo has been especially selected due to so many of the events central to the history of Spain taking place in the region of Castilla-La Mancha.

It’s projected that at least 1,000 people will be directly employed by the theme park and a further 2,000 to 4,000 indirect jobs are planned to be created as a consequence of the park’s location.

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02-08 May 2017

Torre market on the move After seven years of ‘will they or won’t they’ and a final cost of more than €5m, Torrevieja’s popular Friday market is finally on the move and will begin trading from its new home on May 12th.

A series of studies, negotiations and planning started back in 2010 when more and more complaints from the neighbours in Nueva Torrevieja, where the market is currently held, were lodged.

They have suffered years of the disruption that comes with a traditional street market such as parking, noise, public health, and lack of emergency and medical access to the area. If one of the neighbours is taken ill during the Friday market, it has proved impossible for an ambulance to reach the patient and losing vital time. Moving to the new site will also reduce the weekly gridlock of traffic congestion in the city centre. Local PSOE councillor responsible for markets, Javier Manzanares, formally announced the move at a press conference on Thursday.

The new 80,000m site located close to the Torrevieja Aqua Park alongside the Avenida de Delfina Viudes will feature places for 700 stalls and will also allow the traders to park their vehicles in a safer and controlled environment. The site will include a

News

dedicated spot for the Local Police and public toilets – which will be regularly cleaned throughout the morning until the time the market closes - among other services.

Traders will be able to access the area from 4.00am and there is enough space on the site to allow them to park their vehicles as close as possible to their stalls.

For the valued customers, there are more than 750 parking places in the site as well as some available in the local streets. There will be two new taxi stops – one at each end of the market – and a new bus service with 30 stops in the city of Torrevieja and taking a total of 30 minutes to reach the market. This will essentially be an extension of the current ‘Linea C’.

As with any change, the decision to move the Friday market so far out of town has not gone down well with everyone, especially the older folk of Torrevieja that have for years always walked to the market. The new site is some two kilometres away from the current one, and many of the locals never use the local bus services. Local businesses close to the existing market in Nueva Torrevieja are also unhappy about the severe loss of custom.

Drivers on speed Figures released by the Spanish General Directorate of Traffic (DGT) showed that more than 31,000 were stopped for speeding in the country over the course of only one week.

In the seven days that began with Easter Monday (April 17) until Sunday April 23, one in 20 drivers was found to be over the limit on both major roads and motorways.

Four of the 31,096 were arrested and

later charged for driving over the set limits by as much as 80 kilometres per hour (50 mph), which means they were doing 160 to 180 kph (100 to 113 mph) on a road with a top speed of 100 kph (63 mph), and as fast as 200 kph (125 mph) on a 120 kph (75 mph) stretch of motorway. n total, police counted a total number of 350,360 on secondary, B-roads – fining 19,723 – and a further 230,934 on the motorways pulling over

11,263. Fines between €100 and €600 are usually levied on such offenders, although if the lower amounts are paid quickly and before a set date they can be reduced in half.

If a driver breaks the speeding limits by as much as 70 kph (44 mph) on a Broad or 80 kph (50 mph) on the motorways they can expect a larger fine or even a three to six months suspended custodial sentence.

Final sailing from Restaurante El Alto La Dolores

For over 3 years Restaurante El Alto La Dolores, in Guardamar, have hosted charity fund-raising nights each month, and the owners donated a Mediterranean Cruise as 1st prize in each raffle. Recently there was a change of ownership, and a change of objectives and values. These fund-raising nights were organised by Marlene Brown and Joan Rampton, on behalf of the Restaurant, and they are saddened by the loss of this lovely venue.

Not to be thwarted by such a ‘minor detail’, the organisers, were keen to continue their fund-raising efforts, which were raising an average of 850 euros each month, for local charities. Two events were arranged with the owner of a new bar in Torrevieja,

Restaurante Don Calvito, but the capacity is limited, and from June this year, organisers will be holding monthly charity nights at, and on behalf of, Quesada Fish & Chips. This newly refurbished restaurant, is already very popular with customers from a very wide area, and this new partnership is bound to be very successful in providing quality entertainment, coupled with excellent value cuisine, and most importantly, raising lots and lots of money for the very deserving charities in our local area.

The last cruise winner was Larry Pereira, from Formentera. And this event raised 480 euros for Torrevieja Stroke Support. Entertainment was provided by Danny Fisher, with a Rock ‘n’ Roll night, and including his tribute to Elvis.

16

02-08 May 2017

Property with SOLTIMES SOLTIMES

Landscape of your dreams SEE PAGE 19

Create your garden... Online SEE PAGE20

Home & Garden Inside

02-08 May 2017

17

Property, Home & Garden

Tourism up but homebuyers down

Figures recently released show that whilst tourism to Spain is still in the boom phase, especially from the British market, the demand for holiday homes in some areas of this country has fallen dramatically. In this case, the drop has been blamed on the falls in the pound and uncertainties surrounding Brexit.

As an example, before the June EU referendum a property in Spain on the market for €300,000 would’ve cost a UK purchaser £229,000. Fast forward almost 12 months and the same villa would be £254,000 – an increase of £25,000 and almost 11%.

According to a report from the Spanish Association of Land and Commercial Registrars released last week, demand for a second home in Spain from potential British buyers was down nearly 30% when compared to the levels before the referendum.

Official figures show around 300,000 British people have chosen to make their home in Spain, many taking advantage of the free movement rules due to the UK membership of the EU, and more than 600,000 owning second homes.

In the aftermath of the combination of the global banking crisis that began in 2008 and Spain’s property crash, sales of Spanish holiday homes to buyers from the UK plunged by 50%. However, from 2012 until the 2016 Brexit vote, purchases were on the rise again by an average of around 20% per annum; but that trend has now reversed substantially, with the recent report showing sales to buyers from the UK dropping from 2,800 to 2,000 in the first quarter of this year.

Not all of Spain’s property market is suffering though. Murcia aren’t seeing a drop in purchasing as most of the buyers in that area are Belgian and Swedish, with the latter benefitting from the krona being strong at the moment. With Germans being the

largest purchasers on Mallorca, they aren’t suffering from the decline in the British buying power either.

Chris Clover, boss of Panorama Properties in Marbella said: “The pound-euro exchange rate has a bigger effect on people at the

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lower end of the market, in the €200,000-€400,000 price range.”

He went on to say that his company sells properties at an average price and that therefore, “those with more money can take advantage of low interest rates to hedge against the weak pound.”

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02-08 May 2017

Property, Home & Garden

Bloom of the week: Lantana Seen in gardens all around Spain at the moment, the Lantana is a genus of about 150 species of perennial flowering plants in the verbena family, Verbenaceae. They are native to tropical regions of the Americas and Africa but exist as an introduced species in numerous areas, especially in the Australian-Pacific region. The genus includes both herbaceous plants and shrubs growing to 0.5–2 m (1.6–6.6 ft) tall.

Lantana’s aromatic flower clusters (called umbels) are a mix of red, orange, yellow, or blue and white florets. The flowers typically change colour as they mature, resulting in two- or three-coloured blooms.

Most of the plants sold as lantana are either Spanish flag or one of the many hybrids.

Although lantanas are generally hardy and, being somewhat toxic, usually rejected by herbivores, they may still become infested with pests.

unpaid

02-08 May 2017

19

Property, Home & Garden

Your landscape dream is possible A bit of thought and planning will go a long way toward a professional, polished landscape that is the perfect expression of you and your home wherever you are in the world.

CREATE AN OUTDOOR LIVING SPACE Outdoor space means expanding your home to include the natural environment. It also allows for more and larger entertaining.

Consider adding a stone patio, grilling area, or fire pit to your design. A deck is also a good option for many homes. Regardless of what you use, you’ll have less grass to trim and more enjoyment from your lawn.

DON’T FORGET THE MULCH Instead of grass next to your outdoor living space, use mulch instead. It’s a good investment on a number of levels. Mulch will break down and fertilize your plants. It also helps prevent weeds. You also don’t have to trim it or water it – making it a low maintenance addition to your design. The best parts? Much is inexpensive and only needs replaced once every 1-2 years.

PLANT PERENNIALS AND OTHER NON-FUSSY FLOWERS Perennials get planted once and then return year after year. In addition, select plants that bloom at different times of the year.

This way, you have a landscape where something is always in bloom and adding colour to your home USE POTTED PLANTS Pots are versatile and movable. If you’re having guests over you can move several of your pots to your outdoor patio. Terracotta is a classic look that goes well with many designs, but potters also make use of unique and interesting gloss finishes.

DIVIDE YOUR SPACE Use structure to add interest to your landscape. Hedges or low fences divide or section your space and allow you to have multiple and unique identities in each. It’s also a perfect solution if you have troublesome areas that you aren’t sure what to do with.

Similarly, an island bed that floats in the middle of the lawn is a simple yet gorgeous solution for many. An island bed can add height to your design as well as a classy and professional feel.

REMOVE THE LEAVES The best way to winter-proof your lawn is to remove the leaves before the end of autumn. Leaves that are left will rot the grass over the winter, creating more work and expense for you in the spring.

ADD IN A FEW RAIN BARRELS For an environmentally friendly, and extremely easy, way to use water, add in a few rain barrels to your design. Many attach directly to your downspout so that you collect all the water that runs off of your roof. The come in many designs and sizes to complement your taste.

INVEST IN A GOOD BARBEQUE Because these appliances will stay outside and are subject to the weather, it’s important to invest in high-quality items. You are looking for something that will last as long as possible. Granite countertops are perfect for outdoor spaces and adding a stone veneer to the front of your barbeque will help it last longer.

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02-08 May 2017

Property, Home & Garden

Create your garden...Online MyGardenSchool has launched a new online course for people all over the world with city gardens who want to create designer outdoor spaces – ‘Small and Urban Gardensl’ Annie Guilfoyle, Former Director of Garden Design at top London design and interiors college, KLC is the latest in a string of world experts (including Piet Oudolf, and tutor turned investor Dr Noel Kingsbury) to join MyGardenSchool.

This new online garden design course is aimed at anyone in the world who wants to create their own personal sanctuary. The new online small and urban gardens course costs £360 and gives you personal access to top garden designer and lecturer, Annie Guilfolye for 6 weeks. It inspires those who want to rebuild or restructure a small backyard or just redecorate a corner to get more privacy and atmosphere and host beautiful soirées summer after summer. This course can be a starting point to renovate an old rooftop into the new bar in the neighbourhood as well as to rearrange the herb section in an existing and well designed backyard.

Annie will guide you step by step through design process, starting with where to get inspiration and how to assess your site.

The next stage is surveying and analysing every element of the garden, before working on the site arrangement and the detailed design. Once you are happy with the layout of your garden you can choose and design your own planting scheme. If you have a small garden that is really puzzling you, then this is the course for you. Annie gives you personal feedback throughout the course and marks your set assignments.

Annie Guilfoyle is an award-winning garden designer with her design studio Creative Landscapes in West Sussex (UK). Her work is varied from contemporary to traditional and urban to rural. Annie is inspired by the natural landscape, modern art

Top Summer Gardening Tips 1. Take care of budding plants Mulch and water deeply once or twice weekly during hot, dry weather to limit loss of buds and leaves 2. Help pots to stay cool Potted plants, especially those in terracotta pots, are vulnerable to overheating.

Lightly mulch and, where possible, position them out of hot western sunshine.

Remember that standing potted plants in saucers of water encourages root rot and mosquito breeding.

Instead, stand them in saucers filled with sand, and keep the sand moist.

This ensures roots stay cool and plants remain healthy. If potted plants dry out to the point where re-wetting is hard, soak them in a bucket of water for half an hour, then drain.

and architecture and writes regularly for the premier UK garden magazines such as Gardens Illustrated and has been commissioned to write a book on the creative approach to garden design.

Elspeth Briscoe, Founder, MyGardenSchool commented: “There are millions of enthusiasts out there who would like to make the most of their outdoor space. Some are passionate about plants, but many who simply would like a world class garden designer to help them optimise their outside space for entertaining and relaxing in.

Briscoe added: “It is commonly accepted that an harmonious and thoughtful garden adds between 5% and 15% to the value to your property and even more after some years. Not only is it a great financial investment to re-design your outside space, but it will change the way you entertain and use your house. Garden designers often charge by the hour. Their rates can vary between £60 to £200 depending on where you are and in which country.

You would definitely not be able to hire a top garden design for 6 weeks in the offline world for £360!”

Be one of the first on our new online course on Small and Urban Gardens today and start your course at any time from 31st of May 2017 by going to www.learningwithexperts.com/gardening/ courses/small-urban-gardens.

HOUSE CLEARANCE BAR CLEARANCE

1 HR COLLECTION CASH WAITING TEL 669 723 709 www.auctionlosmontesinos.com

22

02-08 May 2017

Legal

Buying and selling legalities still confuse A YouGov survey commissioned by Landmark Valuation Services (formerly Quest) and Countrywide Surveying Services has found that many home owners do not know who is responsible for advising on the physical condition of a property prior to purchase. Additionally, they are unclear on the purpose of a mortgage lender’s property valuation report, suggesting a need for greater clarity within the home-buying process.

When asked who benefits from the data contained in a mortgage valuation, respondents were not clear with many opting to choose incorrect answers. 65% correctly stated that the valuation report is for the benefit of the mortgage lender, yet over a third (35%) thought it is for buyers to use to determine whether the property is worth the agreed purchase price. Just over a quarter (26%) felt it is there to provide buyers with details on the condition of the home, while 15% of respondents directly stated that they did not know what the valuation report is for.

In addition, when asked what would help improve the current home-buying process; • Seven out of every 10 respondents said they would like to receive information upfront regarding the physical condition of a property • 58% said it would be desirable to receive outline costs for specific repairs needed to a property prior to purchase, • 45% felt that receiving upfront information relating to environmental issues connected to the property would be beneficial.

Paul Wareham from Countrywide Surveying Services said: “The YouGov survey shows a general lack of understanding as to who people should turn to when looking for assistance with assessing the physical condition of a property, before

they buy. It’s clear that from the survey that consumers really do need better information to ensure that everyone is entering a property transaction ‘eyes wide open’ as to any potential issues or risks.”

Michael Holden, Head of Client Relationships at Landmark Valuation Services said: “A study by ComRes for RICS showed that, on average, homebuyers spend £5,750 on repairs once

they have moved into their homes, which is often down to not getting the right survey done. If the public were more aware of what surveys and reports are out there, there would be greater transparency for all involved. There is certainly an appetite for home owners to have an understanding of a property’s condition before they buy it however there appears to be confusion as to how this can be achieved.”

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02-08 May 2017

Community news Send us your what’s on information & we can keep your community in the loop, send to Production.soltimes@ewnmediagroup.com

PasO a PasO

Modern jive class and social dancing time and venues.

MONDAYS 12.30pm Absolute beginners / improvers plus practice time at THE CLUB, 1 Calle El Abedul, QUESADA. 03170 ----------------TUESDAYS 8pm FROM 31st JANUARY Classes for all levels and social dancing till late.

LOS ROSALES RESTAURANT, CV895 Lemon Tree Road, CAMPO de GUARDAMAR.03140.

Its great news to be back at one of our first venues although a different night -----------------THURSDAY 8pm Classes for all levels plus social dancing till late.

EL PARASIO, Calle Francisco Diez Matinez, Urb Jardin Del Mar 3, TORREVIEJA 03180..nr Carrefore.

----------------Regular advanced workshops, private tuition and our Dance Junction Disco is available for all private functions.

No partner Never Danced No problem....

No need to book, just come along and make lots of new friends Clubs members and friends social events already planned for 2017 18th March. Mad Hatters Paddies Ball 22nd April. 70s Disco Ball 22nd July. Maxines Annual Shabby n Chic Ball All the above being held at Los Rosales Rsstaurant €10.50 including a two course meal and dancing to Dance Junction Disco till late.

To book your party table call or message Maxine 670711408 / Adam 638330342 for more info or follow Paso A Paso on face book. www.modern-jive-spain.com

COsTa CObRas RFC

ROCk anD ROll Class

‘Strictly Dance’ Rock and Roll for beginners and intermediates every Monday at the Emerald Isle La Florida 7:30-8:30pm. Ballroom and Latin for beginners and intermediates every Tuesday at The Country Club, Quesada 8-10pm and every Thursday at The Madhouse, Pueblo Principe.

New courses every 3 weeks, singles welcome.

Come and join our fun group and keep up with the ‘strictly’ gossip. For further info call Lyn on 966188430 or 635584431 or email strictlydancelyn@gmail.com. Also you can follow us on facebook. Look forward to welcoming you to one of our classes soon!

50+ sOlOs

IS open to ladies and gentlemen who find themselves on their own but would like to get out and meet people through a difficult time.

A get together normally twice a month for a meal. chat and perhaps a quiz at different locations in the Torrevieja area. We have run this little group for some 10 years and more such events are needed, 966 789 063.

COFFee MaTes

If you would like to have a coffee and a friendly chat, please join us at the La Laguna Hotel, Lo Marabu every Friday morning from 11am ANN - 966 717 390 - 666 747 398

FRienDs aFTeR beReaVeMenT. F.a.b FOR sHORT

sPiRiTualisT beniJOFaR

CenTRe,

The Spiritualist Centre, Benijofar meets at Hamilton´s Bake House, 62 Calle Vicente, Blasco Ibañez, Benijofar 03178. We hold a Sunday Service at 11.30 a.m., a Tuesday Evening of Mediumship at 7 p.m. Also, every alternate Thursday from 23rd February, there is an Development/ Awareness Circle where you can develop your skills commencing at 6.30 p.m. Spiritual healing is available every Sunday and Tuesday after the service. The Divine Service with Mediumship on 7th May will be taken by George Lawson (UK Medium).

George will also take the Evening of Mediumship on Tuesday, 9th May. The Divine Service with Mediumship, on Sunday, 14th May will be taken

by Jackie Kershaw (UK Medium). Contact Wendy on 965323028. www.spiritualistcentre-benijofar. com New email is phoenixchurch23@gmail.com or info@spiritualistcentre-benijofar.com Identificacion Fiscal G54713789.

THe ROYal naVal assOCiaTiOn

Torrevieja Branch, meet at 1700 on the first Wednesday of each month at the Restaurante El Paraiso, Urb. Jardin del Mar 3, (behind Carrefour), Torrevieja. Contact Paul Edwards, Chairman, 618 644 934 or Margaret Forshaw, Secretary 966 921 996.

a PaRkinsOns suPPORT

We are a mixed group of people who meet on a GROuP Training at San Fulgencio sports ground on Saturday afternoon between 2 to 4pm.

Monday and Wednesday from 20.30-22.00 all The club is run by Joan. We are a very friendly On Tuesdays at 11am At Bobbie Jo·s, Los ages and nationalities welcome, together with my group with a lot of chat but with plenty of time Montisinos For a chat and a cup of tea For further to listen. We try to help bereaved people to take contact details, Garry 692 767 242 whatsapp. information contact Wally Williamson On their first steps to new friendships, we understand bereavement as each and every one of us has been 966 770 871. baDMinT0n aT PilaR De bereaved. la HORaDaDa CHess Club For more information please contact Joan on Mon, Tues, Wed and Thurs. 10-1pm.

Friendly Chess group looking for more players. phone number 634 336 103 where she will give you For information ring John McGilvray on FRIDAYS 1.00 PM - REFLECTIONS BAR SAN LUIS information on any questions you have, and where 966 786 774 or Mobiles 634 658 506/695 871 we hold our meetings. We look forward to seeing (Lakeside) Tele: John 966 786 774 or 634 658 506 (M). new friends and old friends alike.

707 or email carolejohn_3@hotmail.com

welcome eVeNTS

For your information there will not be a dance during July and August.

May 17th. We have something different for this months dance, a Rock’n’Roll fest. Dress up in your best gear and win prizes also a Jive competition with awards for the best.You will be dancing to a superb duo Roadrunner. €8 Ladies Afternoon – Wednesday 14th June at the Club House. Included will be a fashion

show, stalls, bingo and raffle as well as a cold buffet also entertainment by Byron (Sax) G Man. €10 June 21st The Welcome Summer Ball at La Cumbre Hotel in Puerto de Mazarron. Enjoy a 6 course meal with drinks, there is also a Mega Raffle. Finish the night dancing to the music of Rob Sweenie. €29. Coach travel is available €5 June 26th Welcome day out to Tabarca island just off the coast from Alicante, don’t forget your swimming gear and snorkel or just relax.

Coach, ferry and lunch are included €39 p.p.

September 9th. Trip to the ancient Roman town of Tarrragona staying for 4 nights at the 3* Hotel Urbis Centre in the town centre on B&B. Cost includes two excursions, first to visit a Cava producer and second to the Roman amphitheatre and ruins. Stopping on the way home for a boat trip. All this and coach travel for €280 p.p.

October 8th Almeria & Mini Hollywood. Staying 3 nights at the 3* Hotel Nuevo Torreluz on B&B

Table Tennis

Held Tuesdays and Thursdays 13.30 to 17.30 at Casa Ventura.

Equipment and coaching provided if required.

Contact Del on 653564831

OzOne TORReVieJa bOwlinG CenTRe

A reminder that there is NO BOWLING the next two weeks, 11th and 18th April, the league will recommence on the 25th April, which will also see the final of the league cup , between Splash and X- Factor .

Well done to all who won in the Easter Egg Scramble, remember to eat responsibly!

Write up and Photo’s will follow.

The next Raffle will be held on the 25th May.

The Royal BRiTish legion Spain DiStrict north

• The Royal British Legion provides lifelong support for the Armed Forces community – serving men and women, veterans and their families.

• If you feel we can help you, please ring 676 451 780 (9-5 weekdays) or email assistance.rbl.dns@gmail.com • Any general enquiries to 648 860 251 (10-4 weekdays)

To the memory of the fallen and the future of the living

in the centre of Almeria with a day trip out to Mini Hollywood including lunch, there is also a visit to Mojacar. Coach travel included for €165 p.p.

Welcome Christmas Trip to Benidorm – Saturday 23rd December for 4 nights at The Helios Hotel on Full Board with a Special Gala Lunch including wine and water on Christmas Day. Coach travel included. €299 p.p.

For more information or to book your tickets call Steve on 697 960 590.

24

02-08 May 2017

TV & Entertainment

CaSUalTy FanS HEaRTbROKEn aFTER Cal’S SHOCK MURdER

OUR PICK OF THIS WEEK’S MUST-SEE MOVIES & TV

Fans of hospital drama Casualty have taken to Twitter in their droves to complain of broken hearts following the shock death of Cal. Cal, played by Richard Winsor, was stabbed by an angry relative who believed his father's passing was the fault of striking doctors.

The killer had been planning to target Cal's brother Ethan (George Rainsford), but Cal stepped in to try to stop the attack and ended up being fatally injured himself.

Viewers found the storyline particularly tragic as the brothers had only just put aside their love rivalry over fellow medic Alicia (Chelsea Halfpenny).

One viewer tweeted: "Cal dies trying to save his brother. Oh lord. I'm devastated."

Another shared: "Probably one of the most affecting episodes ever of #Casualty. Bye Cal." Fans of the programme began sharing

FILM OF THE WEEK La La Land

their devastation at the scenes in which Cal bowed out.

One tweeted: "Seeing Ethan breaking down over Cal's body pushed me over the edge. Heartbreaking."

Another fan wrote: "Bawling my eyes out at #casualty what a heartbreaking ending. Can't believe Cal is gone."

The episode was traumatic for viewers who had grown attached to the character.

Cast: Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone, John Legend, Rosemarie DeWitt, J.K. Simmons, Finn Wittrock, Callie Hernandez, Jessica Rothe, Sonoya Mizuno, Tom Everett Scott.

Director: Damien Chazelle Genres: Romantic Comedy, Drama, Music Release Date: December 25, 2016 DVD Release Date: April 25, 2017 PG-13|128 min Sick of serving coffee to movie stars, Mia is an aspiring actress rushing around Los Angeles to audition for the big break that will finally let her quit her day job; Sebastian plays jazz piano at dive bars while waiting to be discovered. These two fall head-over-heels in love with each other but when their careers start to take off, their new found success puts their romance to the test.

They will have to decide whether living their dreams of fame is worth the heartbreak.

A fan tweeted: "Literally proper ugly crying. on a train. people watching me. I have no shame. Cal has broken me."

The BBC drama had teased that tragedy was in store but had placed a red herring with Lily (Crystal Yu) suffering an accident in the car park.

A viewer tweeted: "I was not expecting Cal to die... I was literally denying it, thinking they wouldn't kill a main character until I heard the bleep."

OUR CHOICE Spectacular Spain with Alex Polizzi

ONE TO WATCH

Ep 6/6 Friday 5 May 9.00-10.00pm Channel 5 Most of Alex Polizzi’s tour of Spain has been a giddy round of glorious food and alcohol, stunning scenery and architecture, swathed in an air of flirtatiousness.

However, her visit to Galicia in the north west starts more sombrely at mass graves containing the bodies of victims executed by Franco’s regime. Spain, she’s staggered to learn, is second only to Cambodia for the number of disappeared.

Passion is the word she’s used most in this series and it crops up again when she tries the art of ancient sword fighting. However, nowhere is the description more appropriate than in Santiago de Compostela, the spiritual destination for pilgrims.

The presenter discovers a lush, mountainous region in the north-west with a very different climate and culture from the rest of Spain. In many ways Galicia resembles Ireland rather than southern Europe and after visiting its rugged stretch of shoreline notorious for its many shipwrecks, Alex meets Mari Carmen, who scrapes the prized local delicacy of gooseneck barnacles off the rocks to sell. Alex also explores the ancient forests of Ponferrada and Galicia’s Celtic past, and makes her way to the pilgrim city of Santiago de Compostela, where she visits a martial arts school.

Benidorm

Ep 9/9 Wednesday 3 May 9.00pm-10.00pm ITV When Baby Jesus contaminates the swimming pool with weedkiller, the guests have to be evacuated. The chips are down as Crystal HennesseyVass pressures Joyce to sort things out pronto. Joyce hastily arranges a trip to the circus, but circus manager Andre fails to tell her that the acts are not available.

Mateo surprises Joyce with his linguistic skills as they try to put a show together. Bean, the resident clown and old friend of Mateo, comes to the rescue. A fabulous show is pulled off and Monty uses all his connections to get the hotel re-opened in record time - but is it enough to keep Crystal happy?

Joyce needs a show-stopping act for Neptunes to save her job, and Jacqueline suggests some friends who are in town.

Monty hopes to gain further approval by getting his nephew to do a number, as he has a very important question to ask Joyce.

02-08 May 2017

Leisure

BOOK REVIEW

25

By Carol Naylor look after yourself.”

Leon is mixed race and Jake is white, blue-eyed and blonde, the exact opposite. For the first four months Leon tries to look after his sick mother and half-brother until the money runs out and the boys go hungry. Carol won’t get out of bed and she wets it.

Leon wants to make her better but Carol has to be taken to hospital. Leon is vulnerable and he tends to bottle things up and represses his anger and frustration so when he is placed in a foster home with Jake he struggles to cope.

Heart-breaking.

Maureen has fostered 22 children and takes on Leon and his brother.

Usually difficult cases.

Initially, Jake shares a bedroom with Leon who continues to care for him until Jake reaches 10 months and the dreaded news destroys Leon when he learns from one of the many social workers, Salma, that Jake is to be adopted but Leon is to remain with Maureen.

My name is Leon

by Kit de Waal

“A brother chosen. A brother left behind. And the only way home is to find him. And a family where you’d least expect it.”

The story is set in the 1980s with the breakdown of a family set against the 1981 riots and the Royal Wedding of Diana and Charles. The protagonist is a young boy called Leon, coming up to nine. He is keenly observant of people around him and protective towards his mum, Carol who suffers from extreme post-natal depression after the birth of her second son, Jake. Home is a London council f lat near a dual carriageway. His father, Byron is in prison.

“I want you to always love each other. Look after him and

The Stars ARIES

You might not be able to see past obstacles in your path, but to all outward appearances you have the answers.

Sometimes the appearance of having the answers (rather than having them) is more important. Tues & Wed, propelled largely by your agreeable nature, the world will be much more amenable to your desires than you expect. Suddenly you’re sailing down the river at an incredible speed. Thurs & Fri you hit a weird patch in the current, and Sat is stalled by the needs of your family. But Sunday is a stellar day.

Maureen disapproved of the boys being split up and tells Salma her thoughts. She has to convince Leon that he will get through this. “You will be alright. You will see your brother again. He hasn’t gone forever.” Unfortunately, Maureen becomes ill and suffers a stroke and pneumonia so Leon goes to live with her sister, Sylvia until she recovers. It takes another 12 months before he is able to see his mother for a supervised visit. It is clear that she is unable to cope with Leon and offer him the necessary care that a growing

boy needs. Leon resorts to petty crime, stealing money and goods that will be useful when he decides to run away to find his brother and mother. His sole aim in life.

He forms a friendship with two men at the local allotments, Tufty a West Indian who has been subjected to racist remarks throughout life and Devlin an Irish man who was a former IRA member. These two men dislike each other intensely but they encourage Leon to grow seeds and nurture the plants. Leon learns about Irish Republican hunger strikes and police brutality against black people that sparked the 1981 riots. Leon is caught up in the brutality of this, saved by his oddball friends w h o are injured.“We are the warriors you made. We have dignity and worth.”(Ode to Castro who was killed in police custody.)

Maureen comes back into his life to provide him with stability and love, demonstrating human kindness to a damaged little boy. This is Waal’s first novel echoing her own experiences with a West Indian father and an Irish mother. I was fortunate to meet her at the Lichfield literature festival in March 2017 and was moved by My Name is Leon.

Audio Penguin 2016. Read by Lenny Henry. Publishers: Viking. ISBN: 13. 978-024-1207-086. Penguin ISBN: 13978-024-197-3387.

REVIEW it by Carol Naylor.

Your weekly horoscopes TAURUS It’s not like you’ve been rubbing your socks against the carpet, but there’s a lot of static electricity in the air on Mon & Tues. Expect interactions with others to be charged (so, therefore, if someone ends up barking at you, or you at them, chalk it up to the stars). Wed & Thurs are best spent arm-in-arm with someone who understands you; but Fri & Sat are destined to be fraught with dilemmas no matter what you do, dilemmas of small but vexing variety. Take all the time you need. Sunday comes as a relief.

GEMINI You’ll wish you were made of steel on Mon, as a challenge requires superhuman strength. Combine what brawn you do have with a tremendous amount of your brain and you should be set. Tues & Wed are an extended juggling act.

What you really need -- and what you’re not going to get on Thurs & Fri -- is a break. Instead, you’ll be putting out fires, guarding your territory and telling friends to simmer down.

What an exhausting week!

CANCER

LEO

VIRGO

Money matters are muddled at the week’s start -- it’s hard to figure out how much you have, and it’s hard to figure out what you want to spend it on. If you’ve had your heart set on something that you might not be able to afford after all, then it’s time to teach your heart some flexibility.

Wednesday and Thursday, money is not much of an issue because it doesn’t cost anything to daydream. On Fri & Sat the most pressing challenge involves an authority figure, but Sunday is social and, food-wise, extremely filling.

Frustration on Mon isn’t so much that you don’t like being a cog in a machine -- it’s that you don’t like the machine you’re part of. Find a way to bust out of this familiar territory; infiltrate a new social group. Tues or Wed, if someone invites you to a party, convey your enthusiasm with a magnificent piece of fruit. Thurs and Fri see a return to conservatism in the social realm -- why come on too strong, after all?

Saturday fills you with a warm, wonderful glow, and Sunday’s utopian.

Everyone else has to take three strides to equal one of yours on Mon. Your birds-to-stones ratio is just higher than everyone else’s right now. It’s almost as if you’re magic.

Tues & Wed, you are absolutely in control of your destiny. If you are, for example, jubilant, these days will be filled with men in fedoras and shiny shoes dancing around light poles -- and who wouldn’t want to see that? Thursday through Saturday, your world is considerably less theatrical, but Sunday is busy in a very pleasant way.

LIBRA

SCORPIO

SAGITTARIUS

Heaviness prevails on Mon. If you’re wearing a backpack, take it off for a second. Follow a deep conversation with a funny pop song. Tues & Wed you have a lot to talk about -- find someone, or a rotating cast of people, to share these days with -- but Thurs you’re better off keeping your head down and working than you are with trying to explain yourself. Friday and Saturday, as much as you may feel like jumping ship on a project, don’t. Someone needs an answer on Sunday, and they’ll rely on you for it.

Doing battle with an opponent isn’t the way to go on Mon. You have your pride, sure, but giving in would clear up your time for a bunch of other things. Flexibility, fluidity, not being too attached -- these are useful qualities. Tues & Wed, you are tempted with a financial risk (don’t do it) and Thurs you’re considering going somewhere you’ve never been for dinner (absolutely do it). Fri & Sat, the world yields happily to your desires, especially, paradoxically, if you don’t try too hard. On Suny, play it cool.

Choose one battle on Mon -- it doesn’t need to be contentious, just something you care about -- and explain to others why it’s important to you. On Tues & Wed you think of yourself as the leader of a movement in the old-fashioned mold, the strength of which is based on the strength of relationships. On Thurs & Fri, expect to negotiate varying levels of engagement among a group of very different people.

CAPRICORN

AQUARIUS

PISCES

Mon should, above all else, be fun. If there’s a lot on your desk that can wait, well, clear off your desk and do a puzzle -- a complicated nature scene, maybe. Tues & Wed, the challenge in front of you is to fly straight through a cloud of gossip and distraction. Thurs & Fri, arrows are landing in bull’s-eyes left and right, thanks to your clarity of mind. Sat is equally successful on the small scale, which in turn leads you to think more about the big scale: long-term goals, you in five years, stuff like that. Sun best spent around as few people as possible.

On Mon you find the key that opens the door that unlocks the mystery that explains the long-standing question -it’s one of those days, as if you’re in a children’s book or something. Tues & Wed, the storybook is much more grownup: Thurs & Fri are a sort of reality check: You are reminded that the world is not one non-stop fairy tale; responsibilities loom. Sat, do something active, something good for your body, because Sun you’ll want to sit around the house writing music, or at least listening to it.

Beauty presents itself to you again and again on Mon, but so do a number of illusions. Before you go gaga over someone or something, make sure that they (or it) actually possess(es) the qualities that appeal to you. Tues & Wed, as the efficacy of certain illusions dawns on you and begins to dissolve, you have this frustrating situation to deal with: Everything you thought you knew is called into question.

Thurs & Fri, interestingly enough find you in a theatrical mood, conveying illusions yourself. Saturday is romantic & Sunday is private.

02-08 May 2017

6

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3

4

5

7

8

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10

McDonald 8. Steve Battersby

old west wordsearch

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

The remaining 46 letters spell a John Wayne quotation.

3. Lake Baikal in Russia/Siberia is the lake containing the largest volume of water in the world. Lake Tanganyika comes second on this list. In which four countries can one find Lake Tanganyika?.......................

4. In which country would you find the Rangipo Desert?.

5. The second highest mountain above sea level is K2. In which country does it reside?.....................................

6. Mount McKinley is the highest peak in the USA. In which state can one find it?...........................................

7. Which is further east, Portsmouth or Southampton?...

8. The Yucatan Channel separates which two countries?

9. Mumbai (form: Bombay) is the most populous city in the World (defined according to the concept of city proper) - plus or minus one million inhabitants, how many people call Mumbai ‘home’?.................................

10. In a standard game of trivial pursuit, which colour represents a geography question?.................................

14. In which city would you find the famous Phoenix Park?.....

15. Which is the largest island in the Mediterranean?.....

answers

CRYPTIC CROSSWORD

7. Portsmouth.

8. Cuba and Mexico.

9. 13,662,885.

10. Blue.

11. Rocks.

12. Belgium.

13. William Wordsworth.

14. Dublin, Ireland.

15. Sicily.

CROSSWORD

1. Trinidad and Venezuela.

2. Chad in the north, Sudan in the east, the Republic of the Congo and the Democratic Republic of the Congo in the south, and Cameroon in the west.

3. Tanzania, DRC, Burundi, Zambia.

4. New Zealand.

5. Pakistan (The location is in the Northern Areas of Kashmir, territory under Pakistani control but claimed

by India).

6. Alaska - it is the centrepiece of Denali National Park

SOLUTIONS

RAWHIDE SADDLEBAG SAGEBRUSH SASPARILLA SETTLERS SILVER DOLLAR STABLE STOCKADE TOWN TRAIL BOSS TRAIN STATION WAGON TRAIN WRANGLER WYATT EARP

GOLD RUSH HAYLOFT HOLSTER HORSE TROUGH HORSESHOE JAIL JESSE JAMES KEROSENE LIVERY MAYOR MERCANTILE PASTURE PIG FEED PLOW PROSPECTOR RANGE

STANDARD SUDOKU

13. Who was the most famous occupant of Dove Cottage in Grassmere?...................................................

EASY SUDOKU

12. In which country is the Albert Canal?........................

ANVIL APOTHECARY BANK BARBER BOARDING HOUSE BOUNTY HUNTER BRIDLE BUFFALO BILL CODY CATTLE CHURCH COAL MINE DALTON GANG DEPUTY DODGE CITY FRONTIER GERONIMO

Answer: COURAGE IS BEING SCARED TO DEATH AND SADDLING UP ANYWAY

11. What can be metamorphic, sedimentary or igneous?

soltimes sports Quiz

1. How many players are there in a Hockey team?....................................

2. Which athlete won the gold medal for the 100 metres at the 1924 Olympic Games?................................

3. What downhill skiing event has the second longest course?...............

4. For which country does Sachin Tendulkar play cricket?......................

5. Which British father & son both held world land speed records?.........

6. What nationality is Michael Chang?.. .......................................................

7. Which American football team is called the Chiefs?..............................

8. What term can mean a swift clever reply especially in fencing?................

9. Which Australian city was the first cricket test match played?.................

10. What type of race is Doggetts coat and badge?................................

11. What year were Arsenal first promoted into the top division in England?............................................

12. Which game was invented by Dr James Naismith in 1891?....................

13. Which Arthur Conan Doyle character had a horse named after him and subsequently a horse race?.

14. Where is the Ailsa golf course?.....

15. Who has managed WBA, Man Utd, Atletico Madrid, Sheffield Wed, Villa and Coventry?............................

answers

SQUIGGLE SUDOKU

1

identiFy these Famous games

9. Melbourne 10. Rowing 11. 1919 12. Basketball 13. Brigadier Gerard 14. Turnberry 15. Ron Atkinson

9. Ivy Tildsley

2. The Central African Republic is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It shares borders with five other countries.

Name them....................................................

answers

10. Elsie Tanner

sol times geography Quiz

1. Dragon’s Mouth is a strait that separates which two countries?.....................................................................

sol picture Quiz!

1. Alf Roberts 2. Ashley Peacock 3. Deidre Barlow 4. Emily Bishop 5.Gail Platt 6. Mike Baldwin 7. Leanne

on this day 2nd may

1194 – King Richard I of England gives Portsmouth its first Royal Charter.

1536 – Anne Boleyn, Queen of England, is arrested and imprisoned on charges of adultery, incest, treason and witchcraft.

1611 – The King James Version of the Bible is published for the first time in London, England, by printer Robert Barker.

1879 – The Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party is founded in Madrid by Pablo Iglesias.

1982 - Falklands War: The British nuclear submarine HMS Conqueror sinks the Argentine cruiser ARA General Belgrano.

Puzzles

1. 11 2. Harold Abrahams 3. Super giant slalom 4. India 5. Malcolm & Donald Campbell 6. American 7. Kansas City 8. Riposte

26

02-08 May 2017

Puzzles

Across

6 Fails to remember (7) 7 Female organ (5) 9 Not false (4) 10 An unavoidable event (10) 11 Decapitated (8) 13 Relating to the iris of the eye (6) 15 Largest continent (4) 17 Malicious setting of fires (5) 18 Falls behind (4) 19 Prey (6) 20 At an indefinite time (8) 23 Warrantied (10) 26 Scarce (4) 27 Moral principle (5) 28 Type of glasses (7)

standard CrOssWOrd

Down

1 Immaterial (10) 2 Refused (6) 3 Anglo-Saxon slave (4) 4 A province or territory (8) 5 An Indonesian island (4) 6 Strength (5) 8 Sharp high-pitched dog cries (7) 12 Amounts of medicine (5) 14 Inability to read (10) 16 Smudge (7) 17 Reference books (8) 21 Change (6) 22 Wall painting (5) 24 A tributary of the Rhine River (4) 25 Decreases (4)

sudOKu PuZZles

easy

squiggle

tOday’s famOus birthdays

standard

1551 – William Camden, English historian and topographer 1737 – William Petty, 2nd Earl of Shelburne, IrishEnglish politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom 1892 – Manfred von Richthofen, German captain and pilot 1915 – Peggy Mount, English actress 1936 – Engelbert Humperdinck, English singer and pianist 1949 – Alan Titchmarsh, English gardener and author

27

CryPtiC CrOssWOrd

Across 6 Seeming alright in loin garment at first (7) 7 Bound to be embarassed when around topless policeman (5) 9 Slow-moving birds (4) 10 Sign of Asian country taking Chinese leader into new formation (10) 11 Blew up grenade exploding with a bit of Lithium inside (8) 13 Enjoying Labour leader, if initially coming before monarch (6) 15 Returning peaks to a particular place (4) 16 Cut Shanghai’s leader with

parasites (5) 17 Covers a partially solid structure (4) 18 Someone giving money includes never-ending petition (6) 20 Taoism, say, could be a combination of lion and headless tiger (8) 23 Emergency vehicles for Seaman Club, perhaps (10) 26 Fail seriously to hide troubles (4) 27 Near the beginning, there was darkness (5) 28 Solid figure of Egypt? (7)

Down 1 With new head internally, it’s expensive to take in insect all the time (10) 2 Quoting Chinese leader with it in final printing (6) 3 Starts to ache generally everywhere - definitely getting old! (4) 4 Clue: beer could make a martial arts star! (5,3) 5 Hints turn up for saliva (4) 8 Submerged doctor had possession (7) 12 Machine with less water? (5) 14 Weight of immoral keg when

broken (10) 16 First real vehicle surrounded by groups of maids (8) 19 Norma’s production empire (5) 21 Openings of landmark offices - Shanghai even registers some failures (6) 22 Nothing I guided was lubricated (5) 24 Impulse of a sturgeon (4) 25 International sportsmen’s headgear? (4)

28

02-08 May 2017

Food and Drink

Roast Leg of Lamb with Basil & Mint Pesto IngredIents

2kg lamb leg, skin scored (see tip) fresh garden herbs, to serve (optional) sliced lemon, to serve (optional) For the pesto 1 small garlic clove, roughly chopped small pack basil, leaves only small pack mint, leaves only 25g pine nuts 25g grated Parmesan 125ml extra virgin olive oil juice ½ lemon

MeThOd First, make the pesto. Put all the ingredients (except the olive oil and lemon juice) and a pinch of salt into the small bowl of a food processor.

Pulse until very finely chopped.

While the processor is on, drizzle the olive oil in to make a paste. Tip the pesto into a small bowl and stir in the lemon juice.

Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6.

Put the scored lamb leg in a large roasting tin and use half the pesto to generously coat the skin and flesh, pressing it between all the cracks

for extra juiciness. Put the rest of the pesto in the fridge, covered with cling film, and remove just before serving.

Roast the lamb for 1 hr 45 mins.

Check during cooking that it’s not drying out – if the base of the roasting tin starts to look dry, spread a little more pesto over the top of the lamb.

Remove the lamb from the tin, cover with foil and leave to rest for 30-40 mins before serving on lemon slices and fresh garden herbs, if you like.

Carve at the table and serve with the remaining pesto to drizzle over.

Jersey Royals with Quail’s eggs and A warm salad of new potatoes, in a garlicky anchovy sauce.

For the salad 1 tbsp olive oil 3 shallots, finely sliced lengthways 18 quail’s eggs 400g (14oz) Jersey Royal potatoes 350g (12oz) purple sprouting broccoli 2 tbsp light extra-virgin olive oil 1 tbsp lemon juice 2 tbsp flat-leaf parsley, very finely chopped

Method Heat the olive oil in a frying-pan and gently sauté the shallots until soft but not coloured.

Cook the quail’s eggs in boiling water for four minutes, then drain.

To make the dressing, put the anchovies and their oil into a food processor with the garlic and pine nuts. Turn it on and start adding the extra-virgin oil in a steady stream.

Taste, add the lemon juice, then taste again.

Boil the potatoes in lightly salted water until tender – approximately 12 to 15 minutes.

While this is happening trim the base of each piece of broccoli – they can be a little dry and rough – then steam for three to four minutes, timing them to be ready with

New Summer Nights at Oasis Benijófar Getting known as one of the best spots in Benijófar, the Oasis has a wonderful sun kissed terrace where you can enjoy the afternoon and evening sun and take in a tea or coffee with a great range of homemade cakes, tarts, scones or teacakes.

New for this year their Summer Nights Menu is available from 7pm each Thursday to Saturday. They have taken the best of their classic menus and created a Bistro evening menu that includes Sirloin steaks and other grills, homemade tapas, wonderful salads and a range of mouth-watering burgers. Or if you just fancy a deli style sandwich they can be found on the new menu too! Plus, to compliment your meal there is a new Shaken&Stirred cocktail menu featuring classic and modern recipes and some Oasis originals.

If you haven’t been to the Oasis in Benijófar recently why not pop along and experience the difference.

Plaza de la Constitucion, Benijofar 03178.

Tel 865 775 171 / 603 169 090

29

02-08 May 2017

Food and Drink

Purple Sprouting Broccoli, Anchovy Cream Recipe sprouting broccoli and quail’s eggs, dressed Serves six as a side dish

the potatoes.

For the anchovy cream Drain the potatoes and gently mix them in a 55g (2oz) tin anchovies in olive oil bowl with the broccoli, olive oil, lemon, parsley, 2 cloves garlic shallots, salt and pepper.

55g (2oz) pine nuts Peel and halve the eggs and gently mix these into 100ml (3½fl oz) extra-virgin olive oil the other ingredients. Drizzle on some of the (fruity or buttery rather than grassy Tuscan) anchovy cream (don’t drown the dish – serve the juice of ½ lemon rest in a jug). Serve warm or at room temperature.

Strawberry Mojito

Treat Yourself

IngredIents white sugar, for rimming 2 large limes, quartered 1/2 bunch mint leaves 7 strawberries, quartered 1 cup white sugar 1 cup white rum 2 cups club soda Method Pour 1/4 to 1/2 inch of sugar onto a small, shallow plate. run one of the lime quarters around the rim of each cocktail glass, then dip the glasses into the sugar to rim; set aside. squeeze all of the lime quarters into a sturdy glass pitcher. toss the juiced limes into the pitcher along with the mint, strawberries, and 1 cup of sugar. Crush the fruits together with a muddler to release the juices from the strawberries and the oil from the mint leaves. stir in the rum and club soda until the sugar has dissolved. Pour into the sugared glasses over ice cubes to ser ve.

Big Mac Delivered to your Door...

Why McDonald’s is Trialing New Home Delivery Service in UK The fast food giant said it was looking to launch a “small” delivery pilot this summer, with specific locations yet to be decided.

A McDonald’s spokeswoman said: “It is no secret we have been looking at the potential of delivery in recent months. “This service is offered in other markets around the world and its growth within the UK continues to gather pace. “Listening to our customers, we know that this is a route they would like us to explore, and I can confirm that we are looking to launch a small delivery pilot this summer.

“Specific locations to be included within this pilot are yet to be decided.” The announcement comes a week after KFC launched home deliveries across 30 restaurants in Greater London via the Just Eat

platform. Recent figures show home deliveries of ready-to-eat food grew 10 times faster than the eating out market last year.

The delivery sector jumped almost 10% to 599 million visits in Britain last year, while total visits out to restaurants and other dining venues rose by just 1%, according to analysts NPD Group. The delivery channel was worth £3.6 billion last year, a 6% increase on 2015 and 50% more than in 2008.

The study found the average bill for delivered food is nearly £1 lower than for a meal eaten on the premises.

Cyril Lavenant, foodservice director for the UK at the NPD Group, said ordering ready-to-eat food for delivery via an app or by phone “is growing so fast that ‘eating in’ is becoming the new ‘eating out’”.

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30

02-08 May 2017

Health and Beauty

New patient / doctor confidentiality guidance The UK National Data Guardian, Dame Fiona Caldicott, has welcomed the revised confidentiality guidance for doctors, which came into force last Wednesday.

Dame Fiona, in post since 2014, helps to ensure that personal confidential data is held and used to support better outcomes from health and care services issued the following statement: “I very much welcome this revised guidance from the General Medical Council, (GMC) and believe it will play an important role in helping doctors to protect the relationship based on trust that is cherished by both clinicians and patients.

“As patients we take for granted that we can trust our doctors with the most personal information about ourselves. We understand that they may need this in order to know how best to treat us. We expect that they will treat this information with respect.

“Much of the time, the way that doctors should protect and share information to maintain this trust is straight forward. However, sometimes both doctors and patients find that the situation is more complicated.

“How about the family of an elderly patient who want to talk about their concerns, and possible treatments, with a doctor, but the patient does not have the capacity to consent to the doctor discussing their case? How about when a doctor is told by a mother that her partner has been violent and she fears for the safety of her children? What is a doctor’s duty when the police want to know something about a patient to help with an investigation? How should a doctor proceed when she thinks that a patient’s health means he shouldn’t be driving anymore? This document provides clear guidance to help doctors navigate such challenges.

“The guidance itself rightly lays emphasis on the importance of talking, and listening, to patients so that they know what they can expect to happen to information about them – who will see it, why and what choices they have. And it clarifies that confidentiality is not in itself a reason to refuse to listen to family and friends and doing so can be helpful to the patient’s care, for example providing additional insights into a patient’s condition.

“It remains as vital as ever that people can talk in confidence to their doctors. New challenges to that trusted relationship will emerge with time, but we protect when we as patients, doctors, others in the health and care system continue to talk to each other.”

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Two of the most well-known faces from the historic 1966 England World Cup winning team have joined forces to bring a higher awareness of Alzheimers, especially as the condition has begun to affect some of their former team mates.

Goalkeeper Gordon Banks and the hat-trick hero Sir Geoff Hurst have been doing the tours of the UK TV chat shows and news organisations telling the heartbreaking stories of Martin Peters, Ray Wilson and Nobby Stiles whose level of dementia is such that they can’t remember their remarkable achievements 50 years ago. A fourth member,‘Big’ Jack Charlton is also showing some of the early signs of this cruel condition.

Hurst and Banks have featured in a new TV advert for the United Against Demen-

tia campaign organised by the Alzheimer's Society. Goalkeeper Banks, 79, said: “We had such wonderful moments with these lads that have got dementia.

All the times we had jokes with them and a laugh and a drink, and just wonderful, wonderful memories. And to think of them now, like they are now, they can't even remember us and it's just so sad now, it really is.”

The hero of not only England but West Ham, Sir Geoff Hurst – now a remarkably looking 75 himself – was particularly emotional when recalling that for the past 30 years he and fellow Hammer Martin Peters, 73, go on golfing trips and noticing how his friend’s health had deteriorated.

“By that stage of course he had been de-

teriorating so it was quite difficult to see one of your teammates, close up”, said Sir Geoff, and it was seeing someone he’d known for close on 60 years that motivated him to be involved in the campaign.

He continued: “It's such an important charitable cause and the key thing for me is to make people aware, to get people to unite, to unite against dementia.”

Gordon Banks himself is currently fighting cancer and is optimistic about the future.“I have a scan every few months and that hopefully it’s getting smaller.”

Sir Geoff said: “I think it's a huge difference between a physical illness as Banksy is describing and with dementia.

But with dementia you know that it's only going to go one way. It's not going to get any better; it's only going to deteriorate.”

02-08 May 2017

31

Health and Beauty

Cosmetics boost from selfies

The so-called ‘selfie generation’ is helping to drive up sales of cosmetics, according to figures from IRI, a leading provider of big data and predictive analytics for retailers and suppliers. Driven by the desire to share images on social media, the trend for face sculpting or contouring, and for thick, flawless eyebrows has led to a huge boost in the market, now worth close to £1 billion to UK retailers.

According to the IRI figures, cosmetics is now the top-performing category within UK Health & Beauty, worth £893m – up £55m over the previous 12 months and a £100m increase since 2015.

Figures reveal a surge in contouring products where both value and volume sales increased dramatically, thanks to the popularity of selfies from social media stars like Kim Kardashian and Kylie Jenner and the increase in YouTube tutorials. Value sales of

bronzers rose to £43m, up from £23m the previous year. Concealers also saw a boost, with sales of £52m, up from £42m.

Eyebrow grooming and the trend for thicker eyebrows that sit low on the face and are darker than your hair, largely driven by models like Cara Delevigne, has seen eyebrow products become a multi-million pound market in their own right – now worth £42m in value sales, up £10m over the previous year. More than 9m units of eyebrow products were sold in just 12 months.

Chloe Humphreys-Page, Retail Insight Director at IRI, believes the boost in sales is being driven by consumers who are more willing to experiment with their looks: “Consumers are heavily influenced by social media and by their peers, and this has led them to be more experimental in their choices and prepared to try

new things with cosmetics. The result is that there is a lot more new product development among brands in this space, for both female and increasingly male cosmetics, leading to a wider and often more interesting choice of items within stores and online.

“The impact of the so-called ‘selfie generation’ – where people are spending disproportionately long periods of time studying their faces and making sure they are camera-ready – is not just driving sales for certain cosmetics, but also boosting demand for ancillary products, like eyebrow kits, sponges, pencils and brushes.”

IRI is predicting the fuller and thicker eyebrow trend will continue into 2017, but believes we may start to see more bleached brows and the use of glitter and other techniques to enhance the brow area.

Cheese does not get a particularly great press, health-wise Although it is rich in calcium, more and more of us are cutting down or cutting it out because of the fat and salt content.

Cheddar might be incredibly moreish but nobody needs those extra calories on a bowl of pasta.

But new research has found that aged cheeses like cheddar, brie and parmesan might actually have some real health benefits. Eating aged cheeses like cheddar and brie might help you live longer.

The study from Texas A&M University has found that these cheeses could help boost life expectancy and prevent liver cancer because they contain a compound known as spermidine, which stops damaged liver cells from replicating.

Researchers looked a spermidine treatment in mice over their entire lifespan and found that their life expectancy increased by up to 25%.

Spermidine has the ability to prevent scar tissue from accumulating on the liver, as well as protecting it against hepatocellular carcinoma – the most common kind of liver cancer.

But it’s not just dairy lovers who can reap the benefits of a potentially elongated life.

Researchers say that foods like mushrooms, soya, legumes and whole grains also have similar lifelengthening effects (and, no doubt, with far less fat).

In fact, vegetarians might be the ones laughing longest, because assistant professor Leyuan Liu says that perhaps the key to a longer life is cutting out meat. In addition, if you cannot do that, then eating aged cheeses might be your next best option.

‘Severely cutting the number of calories consumed, restricting the amount of methionine (a type of amino acid found in meat and other proteins) in the diet and using the drug rapamycin have been shown to truly prolong the lifespans of vertebrates,’ she says.

‘But eating less and not eating meat will not be welcomed by the general population, while rapamycin has shown to suppress the human immune system – therefore, spermidine may be a better approach.’

32

02-08 May 2017

Travel

Doesn’t Time Fly

On May 4th 1967, 50 years ago this week, the AlicanteElche Airport – originally known as El Altet – began as a national and international centre for air traffic.

In the five decades since it opened for business, some 236 million people have used the airport, and with passenger numbers increasing at an incredible level each year the future is more than bright for the fifth largest airport in Spain.

The first service to land at the newly refurbished airport was a Convair Metropolitan from the Aviaco company and from Madrid. Historical journalist Isidro Vidal remarked in a piece that this first flight was accompanied by a humorous public address announcement in the airport.

“Attention! Attention! Visitors are asked, once they have satisfied their curiosity, to leave the airport!”

The new airport was built on the site of the old aerodrome of the Lignes Aeriennes Latécoère which had been in existence since 1919. The official opening of the new El

Altet Airport took place on May 22nd 1967 and because at that time all airports in Spain were military installations, the ceremony was performed by Air Minister José Lacalle.

Within three years of operation, close to one million passengers were using ‘Alicante Airport’ – only official documents and the locals still called it El Altet after the nearby village – resulting in a new terminal being constructed in 1972 for international traffic with a further extension in 1974.

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In the intervening six years, passenger growth has been unstoppable with 10 million passengers recorded in 2014 and more than 12.3 million in 2016. Despite the crisis that has affected Spain in a very bad way domestically; tourism to the Costa Blanca remained largely unaffected, went against the trend and shows no sign of slowing down.

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33

Animal Corner

Tinder wants you to swipe right to help save the Northern white rhino

Sudan (northern white rhino)The only remaining male northern white rhino on the planet is now on dating app Tinder, as the Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya aims to raise $9m to protect the species from extinction.

The rhino, named Sudan, has been dubbed ‘The Most Eligible Bachelor in the World’.

Users who swipe right on his profile will be directed to his Ol Pejeta Conservancy page, where they can donate toward the cause.

“We partnered with Ol Pejeta Conservancy to give the most eligible bachelor in the world a chance to meet his match,” said Matt David, head of communications and marketing at Tinder. “We are optimistic given Sudan’s profile will be seen on Tinder in 190 countries and over 40 languages.”

Sudan lives at the Conservancy with the last two female northern white rhino, Najin and Fatu – however, both are unable to breed naturally.

That’s why the European Northern White Rhino Working Group is developing a technique to use the 17,000-female southern white rhinos as surrogates for northern white rhino pregnancies. The funds raised will go toward this ongoing research, which is being conducted in the US, Germany, and Japan.

The Group hopes to establish a herd of 10 northern white rhinos after five years of using IVF.

More than two thirds of cat owners are now men

Man’s best friend has got some serious competition as new research reveals cats are stealing the hearts of more and more guys across the UK. According to the Pet Food Manufacturer’s Association (PFMA), the number of pet cats in the country has risen by 500,000 to reach eight million in the last year alone, up 17.1 per cent in 2016 to 18.3 per cent in 2017.

The growth has been put down to the one million more men choosing to make cats their companion.

That means, a 5.5 million men in the UK now own a feline friend - almost one in five.

The research - which saw 8,000 households interviewed - suggests that new pet owners may have been influenced by celebrity cat-lovers like Russell Brand and Ed Sheeran.

Michael Bellingham, PFMA chief executive, said, “Pet ownership is a rewarding experience for everyone. It's wonderful to see that men are realising the huge benefits of pets with an increase in cat ownership in this sector."

The study also revealed that more and more young people are owning cats with an increase of three per cent for those aged 16 to 34.

Meanwhile, a rise of two per cent was recognised for people between 35 and 44.

Surprisingly, neither cats nor dogs made it as the most popular pet though.

That moniker unexpectedly went to fish of which an impressive 33 million are kept in tanks and ponds around the UK.

“The plight that currently faces the northern white rhinos is a signal to the impact that humankind is having on many thousands of other species across the planet,” said Richard Vigne, CEO of the Ol Pejeta Conservancy.

“Ultimately, the aim will be to reintroduce a viable population of northern white rhino back into the wild which is where their true value will be realised.

“This represents the last option to save the species after all previous breeding attempts proved futile.”

French Bulldog set to become UK’s Favourite Dog Breed

Long associated with middle-class families with Agas and Land Rovers, labradors have been the most popular dog in the UK for 27 years.

But for the first time since 1990, the loveable dog breed looks set to be knocked off the top spot by the French Bulldog.

It is a breed beloved of celebrities including the Beckhams and Lady Gaga, and the French Bulldog has become increasingly popular in recent years, with many owners posting snaps of their dogs on Instagram - there are over 10.5 million pictures with the tag #frenchbulldog.

According to the Kennel Club, registrations have increased 47% from 14,607 in 2015, to 21,470 in 2016. What’s more, they predict that by 2018, the canines will be top dog.

In 2007, there were just 670 French Bulldog registrations, showing just how meteoric the breed’s rise has been over the past ten years.

Before 1990, the most popular breed in the UK was the Yorkshire Terrier, but the Lab has been man's best friend since.

The Cocker Spaniel is currently in the number two spot, but it’s likely the French Bulldog will overtake it this year.

However the Kennel Club is concerned about the French Bulldog’s

soaring popularity, fearing people will ditch their dogs after they’re no longer considered so fashionable.

“While the French Bulldog is a lovely breed, it is very unwise for anyone to buy one simply because they think it looks cute or is a fashionable choice,” Kennel Club secretary Caroline Kisko told the Huffington Post, adding that anyone doing so could unintentionally be contributing to an impending welfare crisis.

The club is concerned that more and more people will turn to irresponsible breeders.

“While it’s normal to want to show off your dog, when celebrities do it, it usually results in a surge in the popularity of certain breeds, which is not a good thing as it opens the doors to unscrupulous breeders who see it as an opportunity to breed lots of them without due care to health and welfare,” Kisko explains.

She urges anyone interested in buying a French Bulldog to make sure they go to a responsible breeder, such as one assured by the Kennel Club.

Lady Gaga with her French Bulldog Koji

34

02-08 May 2017

Motoring

May day mayhem to cost motorists £21 million

bank holiday motorists were heading toward the worst day of the year for accidents, according to the latest statistics from accident exchange. in 2016, friday april 29 recorded the biggest spike in accidents of the year, recording a rise of more than 75% on the average. a combination of spring showers, possible snow and northern rail strike action was predicted to be the root cause, after data analysed by accident aftercare specialists accident exchange identified that

the friday of the may bank holiday sees more accidents than on any other day.

The surge in crashes suggests that there will be over 10,500 accidents recorded on the 28th april this year, compared to 6,000 on an average day, as motorists took to the road for their long weekends. With the average repair costing motorists around £2,050, the charge toward the first may bank holiday weekend could end up costing motorists’ insurers more than £21 million. scott hamilton-cooper, director of op-

erations at accident exchange, commented: “a high volume of motorists rushing onto the roads to take advantage of the long weekend and traditionally poor weather conditions means that a spike in accidents comes as little surprise.” The accident doomsday also saw nearly eight times the number of accidents than the least accident-prone day, december 25th.

The study examined 27,000 accidents recorded by accident exchange between January and december 2016.

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Millions ignoring car recalls

millions of motorists are putting themselves and other road users at risk by not getting dangerous faults fixed, even though the repairs would be carried out for free.

There is now a call to make recall checks part of the annual mot test and force owners to have their cars repaired. an investigation by auto express revealed that owners are ignoring official recall notices issued by car manufacturers to fix safety problems such as faulty airbags, fire risks and problems with steering and brakes. many of the issues go unnoticed as they do not affect the way the car drives initially, but could cause a sudden failure or be deadly in an accident. despite the danger, government figures from the vehicle standards agency (dvsa) reveal 2.2 million models were affected by recalls but just 47.7% went back to dealers for the free-of-charge repairs being offered. now the magazine is calling for mot tests to include a check to make sure recall repairs have been carried out.

The top 10 list of recalls since 2012 is led by an airbag fault which affected millions of models from bmw, honda, nissan and toyota. bmw’s recall rate for its driver airbag failure is just 1.5%, while toyota has only fixed a quarter of cars.

The high-profile vauxhall Zafira fire recall has a better 69.7% recall rate, partly because it has also worked with the dvsa to ensure work is carried out during the mot test.

John mcilroy, deputy editor of auto express, said: “it’s scandalous that so many dangerous cars are driving around with faults which could be fixed for free at a dealer. owners are either unaware because records aren’t up to date or they just don’t think it’s worth their time to get it fixed. “vauxhall’s work with the dvsa to get the recall checked at the mot test has been proven to be effective, so should become compulsory for all makers to make sure cars don’t slip through the net. a car should not be deemed roadworthy by a tester if it has an outstanding recall logged. This would very quickly purge british roads of these dangerous cars.” motorists can check if their car has any outstanding recalls at www.themotorombudsman.org/vehicle-recalls.

35

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38

02-08 May 2017

SOLTIMES

Sport FOOTBALL FIXTURES

Please check dates & KO times prior to travel

LA LIGA

friday, 05 May 21:00 Sevilla FC v Real Sociedad saturday, 06 May 13:00 Sporting Gijón v UD Las Palmas 16:15 Atlético Madrid v SD Eibar 18:30 FC Barcelona v Villarreal CF 20:45 Granada CF v Real Madrid CF sunday, 07 May 12:00 Deportivo Alavés v Athletic Club 16:15 Valencia CF v Osasuna 18:30 Depor La Coruña v Espanyol 20:45 Málaga CF v Celta Vigo Monday, 08 May 20:45 CD Leganés v Real Betis

LA LIGA 123

friday, 05 May 20:00 Real Oviedo v AD Alcorcón saturday, 06 May 16:00 RCD Mallorca v Elche CF 18:00 Numancia v UCAM Murcia 18:00 Rayo Vallecano v Levante 20:30 Girona FC v SD Huesca sunday, 07 May 13:00 Tenerife v CD Lugo 16:00 Getafe CF v Córdoba CF 18:00 Cádiz CF v Gimnàstic Tarragona 18:00 CD Mirandés v Sevilla Atlético 18:00 UD Almería v Real Valladolid CF 20:30 Reus v Real Zaragoza

SEGUNDA B G4

sunday, 07 May tBC La Roda CF v Real Murcia CF El Ejido 2012 v AD Mérida Atlético Mancha Real v Lorca FC Córdoba CF B v UD Melilla Linares Deportivo v Granada CF B RC Recreativo de Huelva v San Fernando RB Linense v FC Cartagena FC Jumilla v Marbella FC CF Villanovense v Real Jaén CF Extremadura UD v Atlético Sanluqueño CF

TERCERA DIV G13

sunday, 07 May tBC Real Murcia CF B v NV Estudiantes CF Mar Menor CF v Águilas FC EFCD Algar v CAP Ciudad Yeclano Dep v CA Pulpileño El Palmar v FC Pinatar Arena CD Minera v Lorca FC B El Castillo Huercal Overa v La Unión CF EDMF Churra v Muleño CF CF Lorca Deportiva v Olímpico Totana CD Cieza v UCAM Murcia CF B

WALKING FOOTBALL SAN MIGUEL RETURN TRIUMPhANT

San Miguel Strollers and 7 other teams competed in an away Walking Football Tournament on 21st April held in Moraira.

2 local teams San Miguel Strollers and Playa Flamenca Walking Wanderers traveled to Calpe staying for 2 nights so that they could compete in this event.

The day started with all teams challenging for 2 Trophies. 2 teams from Manchester City in the Manchester City strip also with a team representing Horadada. and 2 teams from Moraira and another team representing their sponsors.

The day went well, with Playa Flamenca Walking Wanderers competing in the 1st final against Moraira's 1st team.

With Moraira's 1st team winning with a penalty shoot out for the main Trophy.

Then San Miguel Strollers competed in the second final for the Silver plate against Moraira 2nd team. San Miguel Strollers coming away the eventual winners.

Walking Football continues to go on from strength to strength and has really taken of in the last few years. It is a good way for people over the age of 55 who may or may not have footballing skills but wish to play and want to enjoy a good social life.

T.M.G.S. @ Alenda Golf 26/4/17

36 players made their way to the course to play a pairs combined Stableford competition. Our new calendar of competitions now includes one team game every month.

The condition of the course has improved dramatically since our last visit back in February, especially the greens, they are now fast and true which probably contributed to a few of the lower handicappers returning good scores, an example is Carsten Pedersen, handicap 6 returned 38 points. Today’s 2’s pot contained a little over€30 and will be carried over to net week at Campoamor, as no 2’s were made today.

The N.T.P.’s today were open to all players. Results; C. Pedersen holes 3 and 16, hole 5 N. Spaniol, hole 13 T. Westcott.3rd place A. Rixson & I. Sutehall 65 pts., 2nd place O. Cederberg & N. Spaniol 65 pts. L/H, winners J. Eyre & L. Williamson 70 pts. or further information about our society for please visit www.tmgs.org or www.facebook.com/tMgsgolf call us on 661 524 101 Dates for the diary, 24/5/17 hacienda Del Alamo, 31/5/17 la Manga (south course) at excellent green fees.

SAN MIGUEL STROLLERS for more information contact:- via e.mail Bill Whitehouse on smstrollers@gmail.com or Bob or Maggie on bobbyg2542@hotmail.com

The Med Bar Golf Society, El Raso O

ff we set on a wet rainy early morning start to lo Romero golf course, it was so early that a certain member forgot what society he was playing with and had the wrong shirt on! By the time we got half way there the rain stopped and the sun was beginning to break through, although on the course there was a biting cold wind for some of the elderly members. This died down during the day Sadly, although the course was in an excellent condition, the staff informed the organisers that the quote for the day was not, as expected, to include buggies. This was expressed when booking was made.

To our disappointment, this was an extra 15 euro per person for the day. Furthermore, we were approached quite a few times from the green staff for “allegedly” having slow play. This was not the case as we all

Lo Romero 25/4/17

went round in under 4.5 hours. This did put a damper on the day and was not a very professional approach from the staff.

We know why we were being rushed as; as soon as buggies were returned they were being turned around for further use. Other societies please be aware of the above and check with lo Romero golf course regarding pricing. Other than the above, the society did enjoy the course but sadly won`t be going back.

Results foR this outing: Gold division and overall winner with 36 points was john Goulder Silver division winner was Colin Phillips with 33 points Nearest the pins on par 3: Ray Muttock holes 12 & 15, john Goulder on hole 7 and new member Brian skinner on hole 5

Nearest the pin in 3 on par 5: john Goulder Longest drive on hole 18: Andy Trefry 2`s pot was shared by Dave capper and martin Morgan Football card winners: Babs skinner and Buck Taylor Many thanks to Steve and his staff at the med bar and bistro for the buffet and service provided. our next outing is at font De lloP on the 10/5/17

Anyone wishing to join our society is welcome and we can either be contacted by e-mail at: medbargolf2016@gmail.com or pop into the bar where all details can be left and we will get in touch with you.

SPORTS SHORTS by Matt Anthony • Sunderland were relegated last Saturday after 10 seasons in the PL and this weekend champions-elect Chelsea play Middlesbrough while Spurs (2nd) visit West Ham on Friday. Arsenal meet Manchester United on Sunday.

• Birmingham, Nottingham Forest or Blackburn will be demoted from the Championship.

• Last night Real Madrid met Atletico Madrid in a Champions League semi-final first leg game; Monaco play Juventus tonight as do Ajax-Lyon in the Europa League, followed tomorrow by Celta Vigo v Manchester United.

• The Badminton Horse Trials begin today and on Friday, we have the first England-Ireland One Day Cricket International; the World ice hockey tournament in France/Germany and the start of the three-week long Giro d’Italia cycle race.

• On Saturday, racegoers will watch the Kentucky Derby in Louisville and the 2,000 Guineas at Newmarket.

• On Sunday, Jerez stages Spain’s MotoGP and Thruxton hosts the BTCC.

• Also, this weekend’s top Aviva PL rugby union matches are Gloucester-Exeter, Northampton-Harlequins and Wasps-Saracens.

• Last Saturday 90,000 fans at Wembley saw Anthony Joshua beat Wladimir Klitschko to become the unified world heavyweight boxing champion. Great fight.

• Mark Selby or John Higgins is the 2017 world snooker champion (the final ended on Monday).

• It was Valtteri Bottas, Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen 1-2-3 in the Russian F1 Grand Prix in Sochi.

• Spain’s tennis star Rafael Nadal won the Barcelona Open singles title.

• Rugby League’s Super Cup quarter-finals are Hull v Catalan Dragons, Leeds v Barrow, Swinton v Wigan and Warrington v Wigan.

• Bayern Munich are Bundesliga champions for the 27th time (five in a row).

• Bolton Wanderers have regained Championship status.

02-08 May 2017

39

Anthony Joshua stops Wladimir Klitschko in the 11th round at Wembley Anthony Joshua produced the performance of his career to add the WBA world heavyweight title to his IBF crown with an enthralling knockout win over Wladimir Klitschko at Wembley Stadium.

A post-war record 90,000 fans at the national stadium were treated to a see-saw contest, Joshua dropping the former unified world champion in the fifth round, before being put down - for the first time in his 19fight career - in the sixth.

Both men looked in danger of being stopped over two rounds which will live long in the memory, before Joshua delivered the clinical blows in the 11th.

The Briton landed a brutal uppercut which gave him the platform to send Klitschko down with an immediate flurry.

The Ukrainian stood, was dropped by a left hook again moments later, then stood again, only for referee David Fields to save him when pinned against the ropes.

Joshua threw his arms into the air as roars rolled down the Wembley tiers. He had come through his stiff-

Marabu Golf Society

(in association with Costa Blanca Green Fee Services)

at La Serena on 27th April 2017

For this month’s meeting a group of 23 players visited the established course at La Serena taking advantage of the excellent society deal obtained from Costa Blanca Green Fee Services.

This is the fourth society meeting of the year where we have had high winds and/or rain and are looking for the golfing gods to give us a break and provide the weather conditions that we all moved to Spain for.

The scores were badly affected by the weather conditions.

The winning scores on the

day were as follows: 1st – Brain Smith - 36 points 2nd – Mike Probert - 33 points 3rd – Roger Bayliss - 27 points 4th – Graham Hall - 26 points 5th – Morten Kristensen - 25 points Nearest the Pins – Allsop,Skorge and Hanaway Dog of a Day – Jack Fanning Best Front Nine – Rod Allen – 13 points Best Back Nine – Steve Hanaway – 12 points Football Card – Arne Skorge After the game we returned to LEAF’s Restaurante, which is lo-

cated at Pueblo Brava, Quesada for a welcome meal prepared by the bar and the prize presentation and we give our thanks for their continued support.

Our next interim fixture is at Font Del Llop on 3rd May 2017 followed by the society day at La Marquesa on 27th May 2017.

Report by Mike Probert of Costa Blanca Green Fee Services on 966 704 752 or 661 345 931 or see us at our web-site at www.costa-blanca-greenfees. com.

est test to date, while Klitschko too had answered questions, showing he remains competitive at world level, even at 41.

ing in a pulsating fifth round. Joshua shook his man before sending him down face first with a flurry of punches.

He will rue not finishing the job when he floored Joshua and appeared tantalisingly close to reclaiming two of the titles he lost in his last fight against Tyson Fury in 2015.

The crowd sensed blood, urging the Briton forward, only for Klitschko - cut above his left eye - to show the heart which has made him the most dominant heavyweight of the 21st century.

At the time of the stoppage, Joshua was up 96-93 and 95-93 on two cards, with Klitschko leading 95-93 on the other.

Listen to the thrilling finale After lengthy ring walks, fireworks, deafening noise and a rousing British national anthem, an opening six minutes of skill over power played out.

Klitschko flicked his jab, his left hand waving in front of Joshua’s face.

Feints from both men stood out as they hunted openings.

A solid right hand early in the fourth caught Joshua, who responded with the same shot later in the round, nodding at his rival on the bell.

And then came the power punch-

He pinned Joshua to the ropes, turning the round on its head, and then came out in the sixth to administer an overhand right which crumpled the champion. In uncharted waters, Joshua answered the count and faced a stiff examination before the bell.

This was now an epic, living up to the hype, heavyweight boxing at its most captivating.

The pace dropped, it had to, though any fear of Joshua’s career-high weight slowing him down was unceremoniously put to bed in the 11th as his power unified the titles.

The sweat flew from Klitschko’s head as the telling uppercut landed crushingly, before Joshua hunted down his opponent to seal a historic win.

Bottas Grabs first Win in Russia Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas secured his maiden Formula 1 victory by holding off a late charge from Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel in the Russian Grand Prix.

a difficult weekend with a race to forget and finished only fourth behind Raikkonen.

New ice age: "I want less talking," Finn Bottas coolly said over team radio with eight laps to go

Bottas jumped Vettel and team-mate Kimi Hamilton slipped to 13 points behind Vettel in the Raikkonen at the start from his third position championship, with Bottas now only 10 adrift of the on the grid and dominated until the closing British three-time champion. stages, when Vettel used a late pit stop to close But Hamilton had reason to be grateful for Bottas' up and pressure the Finn. accomplished performance - without it, Vettel's lead The four-time champion got to within a would be 20 points and edging towards a clear win. second and a half of Bottas with 10 laps to The race confirmed Ferrari's position as a match go but the Finn responded and kept Vettel at for Mercedes and the see-saw nature of the close arm's length for the rest of the race. competition between the two teams in what promises Bottas' team-mate Lewis Hamilton capped to be a very tightly contested title fight.