NOT ONE, BUT TWO TRAVEL SUPPLEMENTS ON GIbraltar and casares - From P17
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the Unholy disruption TRAVEL over the Easter period has been thrown into jeopardy after a rail strike was called for March 23. The strike, on the day that Spaniards traditionally depart for their Easter holiday, is in protest against rail firms Renfe and Adif breaking a promise to hire more workers. Game of thrones - Page 14
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EXCLUSIVE: John Lennon wedding photographer makes urgent plea to track down his missing negatives, worth over £100,000
HELP!
SPECIAL REPORT By Joe Duggan
THEY are some of the most iconic photographs in rock and roll history. But controversy surrounds the original negatives from John Lennon and Yoko Ono's 1969 Gibraltar wedding taken by British photographer David Nutter, it can be revealed. Showing the Beatles singer celebrating his nuptials to his Japanese lover out of the glare of the public eye, the pictures have been published in thousands of publications around the world ever since. Yet, the valuable negatives - estimated to be worth over £100,000 - vanished in the 1970s after Nutter, 77, lent them to a friend Anthony Fawcett to use in his book, John Lennon: One Day At A Time. Included in the missing batch, taken on Nutter’s Nikon camera, are around a dozen never-before published photos of the wedding day, some seen for the first time in the Olive Press, this issue. Music photographer Nutter - who had flown out for the wedding from London to Gibraltar on a commission from the Beatles record label Apple - has spent the best part of the last four decades trying to recoup his property. Tet two separate investigations by British police and the FBI in America have so far failed to recover them. Now however, in a sensational twist, the Olive Press can reveal that various anonymous ‘sellers’ have recently tried to sell back Nutter’s own images. The London-born snapper, who now lives in New York, revealed that another photographer Brian Hamill, has also been suspiciously offered two strips of his original negatives taken of John Lennon. New Yorker Hamill had also lent the original negatives to Fawcett - a British art critic, author and media consultant - for the same book.
ICONIC: John and Yoko on wedding day and (top left) with certificate while (above) police letter
“Now we are being offered our own photographs back for thousands of pounds,” Nutter told the Olive Press, this week. “It is an outrage and it adds salt to the wounds that go back over 40 years,” he added. He had ‘stupidly’ lent Fawcett the negatives after they became friends, while living in New York in the mid 1970s.
Fawcett had worked with Lennon and Yoko as their assistant for a while and was writing a book about Lennon’s life. “He asked me if I could help with images for the book and I stupidly said ‘yes’ and lent him all the negatives. “When I asked for them back a little while later, he told me his apartment had been repossessed... and everything
had been taken. “Even when I called in the police, I never got them back.” Indeed, a 1983 letter from Southwark Police to Nutter (above), seen by the Olive Press, shows that officers questioned Fawcett at his home in south London. Fawcett told the officers about his flat being repossessed in the Big Apple and that while most of his property was later returned, the photographs and negatives were not included. "However, he (Fawcett) did say he knew someone in possession of the photographs and agreed to telephone Mr
Photos worth over £100,000!
A
world-renowned Beatles memorabilia expert estimated the set of wedding pictures to be worth over £100,000, last night. Peter Miniaci claims that he, himself, was offered the images in 2007, when he received an email offering him 'some rare John and Yoko wedding photos'. "I was suspicious and asked if the sender had the rights to the images, to which it was claimed that ‘the photographer is dead’ so I didn’t need to worry about it," he told the Olive Press. "Right away the red flag went up. I rang May Pang [Lennon's former PA] and she told me ‘definitively’ David Nutter took those photos and he is alive and well in New York." He later called the anonymous seller, who had a fake British accent, to try and track him down. He said he wanted £20,000 for the contact sheets (which are not as valuable or good quality as the original negatives). "Whoever offered me the contact sheets must know where the negatives are. If David could sell the whole set of photos I'm confident, because the majority are unpublished, he could get £70,000 to over £100,000 for them.”
SUSPICIOUS: Hamill
Nutter with the details,” the letter reads. But according to Nutter, Fawcett never called him with the name. Now living a hand to mouth existence in New York, he is desperate to get to the bottom of the mystery. "I go crazy thinking about it," he said. “I would write my initials in ink on every frame so I would know straight away know they were mine. “And, in any case, who else could have taken them… nobody else was there in Gibraltar. I know they’re still around. How do I get them back?” He continued: "It's heartbreaking. I’ve sort of given up. I could have done very well with those images and people are always asking me for them and I don't have them. I am living in poverty. “I could have made a lot of money not that that was the important thing. Its just the idea of someone having my stuff. I want them back.” As fellow photographer Hamill, who also suspiciously lost negatives in the 1970s to Fawcett, said last night: “Me and David are two old guys who survived the sixties. Those photos for us could mean something for my daughter and granddaughter.“ The Olive Press tried to contact Fawcett repeatedly by email and phone this week to discuss the missing negatives but received no response.
Voiceless BUDDING singer Corinne Cooper gave a valiant performance on UK talent show The Voice. Despite the Gibraltarian’s powerful ballad, she was sent home at the blind audition stage. Performing Sam Smith’s Lay me down, Cooper impressed but unfortunately didn’t wow the judges.
MARATHON: At Dusk
Dusk til dawn PARTY-goers are gearing up for a 12-hour live electronic festival. Dusk’s annual Spring Festival will feature bands and djs, including Dead City Radio, My Sick Project, Lazy Daiz and DJ Rookie. Starting at 6pm on March 12, the festival will also feature a tattoo and piercing studio, graffiti art display as well as a Harley Davidson show. Two-for-one cocktails will also be on offer as well as free tapas.
Monica Fabiani · Documentary Photographer · Create your memoir.......
JET SET: Nutter (below, now) and (left) en route to wedding with couple in plane
Telephone: 0034 617 616 533 or fabiani.monica1@gmail.com
HISTORIC: Unseen negs and (above) our appeal 10% discount for OP readers Quote OP10
EXCLUSIVE
Lennon photos found at last Olive Press tracks down Thai-based conman selling stolen photos from John and Yoko’s wedding in Gibraltar
Get Back… to where they once belonged! - Page 3
Young expats are routinely being denied the right to play football in racism row
EXCLUSIVE CHIEF Minister Fabian Picardo issues plea to Spain’s expats, as part of a special Gibraltar supplement
Our country needs EU! - Page 20
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EXPAT children are being denied the opportunity to play football in Spain. New rules introduced by the Spanish Football Federation mean they are finding it increasingly difficult to obtain a licence (ficha) to play in Spain’s amateur leagues. While the parents say this is discriminatory, Spain’s FA argues that the regulations have been introduced to combat child trafficking. SOS Racism has now filed a complaint to UEFA and FIFA, following numerous complaints from disgruntled parents. One, Reg Winkworth ‘can-
EXCLUSIVE By Rob Horgan
not believe’ the discrimination his 16-year-old son Sam has faced since joining Club Deportivo Guadiaro in Sotogrande. Born in Marbella, Sam has
played in Spanish leagues since 2013 when he played for Castellar. However, he has been un-
Putting a foot wrong! Under FIFA rules brought in to protect children from ‘exploitation and abuse’, a player must be 18 to be transferred internationally. This law applies to all FIFA-regulated amateur leagues in Spain, and came in after a study found that 15,000 young players leave Africa each year under false pretences of playing in Europe. However, it should not be enforced if a player’s parents have moved country for non-football related reasons.
able to get a licence since transferring to Guadiaro in August 2015. “It is blatant racism, no question about it,” Winkworth, who has lived in Spain for 20 years, told the Olive Press. “Sam has paid his fees (€60) like everyone else, he trains hard every week and it is heartbreaking for him that he is not allowed to play.” He added: “At first I thought Sam was being singled out but the more parents I speak
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FRUSTRATED: Sam and (left) playing for team to it is clearly endemic. “Every week we see Cristiano Ronaldo and co wearing their Kick it Out tops on match day, but it is totally hypocritical when this kind of discrimination is taking place at grassroots level.” Sam’s club told the Olive Press its ‘hands are tied’ by the ‘excessive red tape’ that has been introduced. A spokesman for SOS Racism described the situation as ‘intolerable’. “Many children are being discriminated against,” he said. “The regulations put in place exceed the FA’s goal in the extreme.
Unfair “It is unfair to put foreign children at a disadvantage compared to nationals.” The regulations (see box, above) were put in place to stop child trafficking, largely from Africa, to professional and semi-professional academies across Europe. The Spanish FA refused to comment on ‘FIFA approved regulations’. Both UEFA and FIFA are yet to respond to SOS Racism or Olive Press questions.
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CRIME NEWS
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www.theolivepress.es March 16th - March 29th 2016
Soldier credited with ‘helping liberate’ Belsen concentration camp later made millions fraudulently in a string of investment scams
Do it for Stephen HE is one of the evil ‘killers’ of young black student Stephen Lawrence. Now Jamie Acourt, 39, is being sought in Spain over links to a €5.25million cannabis smuggling ring. UK police believe Acourt has fled to the Costa del Sol, after brother Neil admitted to being part of the gang. Detectives have revealed that the Londoner spends a lot of time in Spain and was last seen in the capital on February 1. Acourt was named as being one of 16-year-old Lawrence’s (pictured) murderers, along with his brother Neil, although neither was ever convicted.
Tortured! A SPANISH police officer has been found guilty of torturing a suspect. The Mallorcan officer has been given a three year prison sentence, after he held an empty gun to the suspect’s head and pretended to shoot him three times.
Man who sold the World
A FORMER British soldier who helped liberate Belsen concentration camp was a Costa del Sol con man, banned in Gibraltar, it can be revealed. Colonel Leonard Berney who died this week aged 95 - turned to financial scams after leaving the British army. Despite being credited as one of the first soldiers to enter the hellish Nazi camp, he turned to a life of crooked schemes, perhaps traumatised by what he had seen. Basing himself in Marbella, he ran a string of dodgy investment companies, which left hundreds of victims around the world. His projects funded a lavish lifestyle, involving exotic holidays, a Bentley car and ‘gastronomic extravagances’. In later life, his ill-gotten gains even afforded him a €4 million luxury apartment on the exclusive cruise liner The World, with its own hot tub and jacuzzi. Sadly though he accrued these incredible riches via arange of
EXCLUSIVE By Joe Duggan investor scams which were slammed by financial watchdogs in Britain, Gibraltar, Ireland, New Zealand and Hong Kong. Operating without any sort of licence, Berney claimed to have been investing in FTSE options since 1985. An advert placed in newspapers by Marbella firm Sensible Options asked people to invest in a British Government bond that would provide a ‘regular monthly income of 12% a year’.
But no such bond existed and hoodwinked investors were directed to place €25,000 in Gibraltar firm Rock Financial Services. Bets on the FTSE’s movements would then be placed by a South American-based firm also registered under Berney’s name. When the scheme was finally uncovered, the Gibraltar Financial Services Commission ordered Rock Financial Services to stop trading and pay back €8m to compensate investors. In 1998, Berney used a similar ruse while operating out of
Closing in on Christy COSTA del Sol drug kingpin Christy Kinahan is facing arrest over money laundering allegations in Spain. Prosecutors claim they have enough evidence to try the Estepona-based crime boss and his sons, Daniel and Christy Jnr. The Kinahans are are also being investigated over their links to a spate of murders both on the Costa del Sol and in Ireland over the last year.
Dublin and offering investors an 18% return, a claim the Irish Central Bank described as ‘unlawful’. Expat David ‘the Dogman’ Klein, whose Costa Del Sol Action Group claims to expose financial scams, was adamant Berney had plenty to hide. “He was a villain,” businessman Klein, who is now officially retired, told the Olive Press. “There were various false companies set up offshore and behind it all was Leonard. We could never reach the man. He ran some very big operations.” Another long-term Costa del Sol expat, writer Andrew ‘AJ’ Linn, knew Berney for more than 30 years after the former soldier bought a luxury apartment in the upmarket development Playas Del Duque, in Marbella. Linn admitted Berney received ‘a lot of negative criticism’ from his business practices, but was adamant ‘he was never accused of fraud or
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HERO TO VILLAIN: Berney in soldier uniform and (left) recently
financial misappropriation’. “He lived a life of luxury and his favourite thing was oysters and champagne,” Linn revealed to the Olive Press. “The first time his cruise liner The World came into Marbella he invited all the Marbella Business Institute aboard and paid for 60 people to eat caviar and drink champagne. “He was a real bon viveur. If I went out for a meal with him, he would always pay the bill. His last car was a Bentley and he was a bit of a ladies man.” Berney’s son John Wood, 56, defended his father, saying: “My father ran a series of high-risk investment schemes, and because they were ‘high risk’ that was the nature of the beast. “Dad was both ethical and above board, but when someone loses money they obviously become upset.”
NEWS
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Get Back… to where they once belonged!
ROCKER: Lydon
Rotten returns HE’S the man who brought punk rock to the world. And now John Lydon is taking the road to Spain with Public Image Limited. The Sex Pistols singer is playing dates in San Sebastian, Valencia, Santander, and Madrid during May. Lydon earned worldwide notoriety as Johnny Rotten, the flame-haired frontman of the seminal British punk band before forming PiL in 1978.
the Olive Press November 11th -29th 25th2016 2015 March 16th - March
EXCLUSIVE By Joe Duggan
THE Olive Press has tracked down the stolen negatives from John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s Gibraltar wedding. Masquerading as a mystery buyer, we discovered that the original photos were being sold by a Beatles biographer from his Far East home. The writer, who we are not naming for legal reasons, put our undercover reporter in touch with an alleged Thailand-based ‘middleman’ before emailing proof sheets showing some of the neverbefore-seen wedding negatives (see right). The incredible shots, valued by Beatles experts at over £100,000, went missing in 1975 when British photographer David Nutter lent them to Anthony Fawcett to use in
Olive Press tracks down stolen John and Yoko wedding pics
DISCOVERED: Missing negatives belonging to Nutter (pictured right) with Lennon and Ono his book John Lennon: One said ‘these were in fact stolen Day At A Time. from my New York apartAs we revealed last issue, Nut- ment around 1976 along with ter - who had been hired by everything else from my flat’. the Beatles’ record label Apple Acting on a tip-off that the for the commission on the negatives were being pedRock - has been trying to get dled online, our undercover them back for four decades. reporter approached the However, when the Olive 62-year-old Beatles biograPress contacted Fawcett, he pher in the Far East.
SPAIN-BOUND: Vaccines
Time to get Vaccinated
BRITISH rock group The Vaccines are set to play their first ever gig in Granada. The London-based band come to Andalucia on Saturday March 19 as they tour their third album English Graffiti. The band are also playing in Barcelona on March 17 before heading to Madrid the following night. The Vaccines have described English Graffiti as ‘genre-defining’ and released the first single, Handsome, off the album on January 19 last year.
AN extraordinary collection of photos of iconic Mexican artist Frida Kahlo is to go on display for the first time in Malaga. The wonderful set of 55 intimate unseen images by photographer Leo Matiz are on display at La Termica gallery until May 29. They capture her early life in the 1940s with lover, fellow artist Diego Rivera.
Frida unseen
Issuing instructions that the fee for the negatives would be €7,000, he put us in touch with the mysterious seller.
Remarkable
Our reporter was told to send 90% of the agreed price after two contact sheets showing the original negatives were sent as proof of ownership. Despite Nutter being commissioned by Apple executive Peter Brown, the seller claimed Nutter was working for HIS company Sparrow Photos. He also said Nutter was ‘dead’ and never owned the copyright anyway. After a week of exchanges, two remarkable never-before-seen contact sheets from the wedding were emailed over. But when the writer suspected our undercover reporter was working for Yoko Ono he launched into a vile tirade against Lennon’s widow before threatening to sue and ending contact. Nutter, who had unsuccessfully called in police over the theft, is furious with the writer and wants his negatives back. Speaking from his New York home, last night, Nutter said: “This is criminal. They are my stolen property... end of story.”
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SINGLE: Fergie
La vida loner
FERGIE has been ditched by her Spanish lover. The Duchess of York Sarah Ferguson, 56, is ‘distraught’ following a break-up with exotic SpanishIrish toyboy Manuel Fernandez, 47. The pair had been together for over a year, holidaying in Fernandez’ native Asturias last June, as well as skiing in the Alps. Now sources close to the Duchess - who is a regular visitor to Sotogrande very summer - revealed ‘Manuel’s finished it and she’s been very tearful.’
In the mix THEY are the biggest UK export of Girl Power for a decade. Now Little Mix are heading to Spain for a double-header of gigs. The X Factor winners, who got two Brit Award nominations last month, will be jetting into Barcelona on June 24 and Madrid on June 25, on the last two dates of a long 51date world tour. The Black Magic hitmakers will be promoting their third album, Get Weird, following two number one singles.
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March 16th - March 29th 2016
British expat converts van into a mobile kitchen to feed refugees
MISSING: Lisa Brown
Lisa reward offered A 6,500 pound reward is being offered to anyone with information helping to solve the case surrounding missing Scottish expat Lisa Brown (left). The family of Lisa, who disappeared from her home near Sotogrande four months ago, have issued the reward as they grow increasingly desperate. Lisa was due to start a new job in Gibraltar the day before she disappeared, and her eightyear-old son Marco is now living with his father in La Linea. The reward money was raised via a GoFundMe crowd-funding page. Meanwhile, a petition calling on the British police to intervene in the search has reached over 2,500 signatures. Lisa’s family and friends have grown frustrated at the apparent lack of action from the Guardia Civil. Her boyfriend known as Simon Corner was due to meet Guardia Civil officials but missed it, going AWOL for a second time.
Man and his van
NEWS IN BRIEF
In the can THREE Brits were arrested after 28 kilos of cannabis was found stashed in modified tabletops at a house in Alhaurin el Grande.
Kitted out
ON A MISSION: Josh in van
A YOUNG British expat is campaigning to raise money for refugees in Greece. Having spent the last two months on Lesbos with his mother, 22-year-old Josh
By Rob Horgan Turner-Hunt is now home in Casares for a new fundraising effort.
Trained as a lifeguard, Josh intends to return to the island to help with the ‘incredible number’ of boats that arrive every day. He also intends to take over
Close them! A HUMAN rights organisation has called for the immediate closure of the migrant detention centres (CIE) in Tarifa and Algeciras after numerous ‘incidents’ over the lastmonth. The Andalucian Pro Human Rights Association (APDHA) has described the centres, in Algeciras and Tarifa’s Isla de las Palomas, as ‘places representing the most flagrant infringement of human rights’. APDHA confirmed an ombudsman ruling on February 5 to not admit women
to the Algeciras centre due to poor construction conditions has been ‘completely ignored’. The organisation also wants to investigate fire precautions in the Algeciras centre, where money was pledged on March 4, but no formal inspection appears to have been recorded. “All doors in the Algeciras centre are closed by lock and key which is a huge fire hazard,” Campo de Gibraltar volunteer Andres de la Pena told the Olive Press.
PROTEST: Against detention centres
“People that have committed no crime are being housed in a deplorable state and awful conditions where they are ultimately expelled after a maximum of 60 days.” “We have been denouncing these centres for many years but we get completely ignored.”
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essential supplies and has launched ‘The Big Red Van Project’ to feed and clothe incoming refugees. “The instability of this crisis is worrying, that’s why mobility is so important, to be where I am most needed,” Josh, originally from Plymouth, told the Olive Press. “I have converted my van into a mobile kitchen kitted with three big hobs and plenty of industrial sized pots and frying pans.” He added: “The pain, suffering and humility from those that have journeyed so far from lands torn apart by war is hugely upsetting. “Yet they show so much love, warmth, dignity and strength that it is truly inspiring.” Josh, who has lived on the Costa del Sol for 18 years, is aiming to raise €4,500 for his journey back this spring. To donate visit www. chuffed.org/project/redfood-van
A TOTAL of seven people have been arrested after 20,000 ISIS uniforms and supplies 'able to equip an army' were located at two Valencia and Algeciras ports.
Cop caught AN ex-policeman is among two men arrested for the murder of a housekeeper at a suspected drugs warehouse in Alhaurin de la Torre in 2008.
Last laugh A SPANISH man has been jailed for one year after ‘joking’ on Facebook that his favourite sport was ‘killing fascists’.
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OPINION Belsen Berney IT’S impossible to imagine the horrors witnessed by Leonard Berney at Belsen concentration camp. As the first British officer to liberate the Nazi camp, Berney was confronted by a scene from hell. We can only guess the impact on the human mind of seeing first-hand man’s worst depravities. But by veering into a life of financial scams Berney has sullied his outstanding war record. A host of financial regulatory bodies, including Gibraltar’s Financial Services Commission, waved red flags about crooked schemes he was linked to. Duped victims have hit out at their losses, which helped finance the former businessman’s lavish life on The World luxury yacht. It’s sad that a war hero’s legacy has been tainted by his dishonesty.or east of Dover.
Foul play SPORT can be a wonderful force for unifying. It brings people together, it builds allegiances and it is all about healthy, competitive fun. That is why it is so appallingly sad to hear about expat children being denied the licence to play in Spanish amateur leagues. As is too often the case, politics has totally missed the point. And innocent young boys and girls are paying the price.
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or admin@theolivepress.es or sales@theolivepress.es A campaigning, community newspaper, the Olive Press represents the huge expatriate community in southern Spain - 200,000 copies distributed monthly (130,000 digitally) with an estimated readership, including the website, of more than 500,000 people a month. Luke Stewart Media S.L - CIF: B91664029 (+34) 951 273 575 Carretera Nacional 340, km 144.5 Calle Espinosa 1 Edificio centro comercial El Duque, planta primera, 29692, San Luis de Sabinillas, Manilva
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The Supreme Court ruling over the Algarrobico was a great victory for environmentalists, but the fight to preserve Spain’s wild spaces goes on. Rob Horgan and Tom Powell examine fierce ecological battles which remain unresolved across the country
URING a decade-long struggle, a 20-storey hulk on a Cabo de Gata beach came to represent everything about Spain’s internal war between the forces of economics, politics and the environment. The Supreme Court’s decision to – once and for all – declare the Algarrobico Hotel illegal could mark a turning point in environmental thinking. Following the landmark ruling, it looks likely that ‘El Horrible’ will finally be torn down. This decision could result in much more than an enormous pile of rubble on a barren beach – it has the potential to kickstart an environmental revolution. The ruling sends out the mes-
August 6thMarch - August 19th 2015 29th 20166 www.theolivepress.es 6 16th - March
BATTLEGROUND: Infamous Algarrobico Hotel
sage that Spain is putting its wild and wonderful environment above the back pockets of the corrupt elite. But wait, hang on, haven’t we heard this all before?
A little investigation reveals the Algarrobico is far from the only environmental planning battle being waged, and that there’s a long way to go before we win the war.
Deja vu... TO demolish an enormous hotel like the Algarrobico is a massive task, but not unprecedented. In 2002, The Gran Hotel de Atlanterra on the Costa de la Luz in Cadiz was blasted to pieces in a controlled demolition. The nine-storey megalith had been built by a German company in the early 1970s, but was ruled to have broken environmental protection laws and never opened. At the time, then Environment Minister Jaume Matas hailed the act as a ‘milestone in the recovery of protected coastal areas’. “This is an important day for environmental policy in Spain and all the people who spent 20 years fighting and vindicating the recovery of this natural area,” he said. “This must serve as an example which will follow for the rest of Spain’s coast.” Only time will tell if the Algarrobico will follow the Atlanterra Hotel and become another humongous pile of debris or kickstart real change.
EVEN before plans were announced by David Cameron to hold a referendum regarding Britain's future in the EU, many Britons who have planted roots in Spain had begun enquiring about the possibility of acquiring Spanish citizenship. Nationality would afford them the opportunity to skirt the bureaucratic paperwork they would have to endure as a foreigner living in Spain. The Brexit referendum has many Britons living across the European continent scared about their future. A political dream by ambitious eurosceptics has turned into a nightmare not only for many of the 1.3 milion Britons living in Europe but also leaders in London and Brussels. The consequences of a Brexit are not clear but last month the FT reported that more than three-quarters of about 100 economists interviewed believed that the country's medium-
No winners A political dream by ambitious eurosceptics has become a nightmare term economic prospects would be affected. Trade, for the better or worse, would definitely be altered, while many foreign companies may pull out of the UK because the costs of their foreign operations would no doubt skyrocket. Frequent air travellers to and from Spain will see the price of their tickets rise by more than 40%, according to airline officials. The days of low cost
non-passport flying to the UK may be over. On the other hand, Brexit supporters believe leaving the EU would give the UK better options for trade with other countries by avoiding current rules set up by Brussels. What they don't talk about is the possibility of the EU increasing the prices on British imports as a form of ‘secret sanctions’ to help defray the burden the Brexit would place on Brussels. There will be no real winners following June 23. If the
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MADRIDS MATTER Brexit is successful, then confusion will set in. The majority of British voters will go to the polls not really knowing the consequences involved but instead fueled by the passionate speeches of such leaders like Boris Johnson, who has taken aim at Cameron's call to remain in the union. After four decades in the EU, Britain cannot afford to gamble on its future as the economy is still weak and the pound's value lingers against major currencies. Britons must remain within the EU and reject the Brexit leaders’ discourses. But they also must demand fairer rules from Brussels regarding trade and other important issues regardless of the vote's outcome.
on
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THE Trafalgar lighthouse on the Cadiz coast commemorates an old battle – and now it’s embroiled in a new one. The public monument, built in 1860, stands in an area of serene natural beauty near Canos de Meca on the Costa de la Luz. The landmark is a popular tourist attraction, looking out to the very spot where Admiral Nelson’s British Navy defeated an allied French and Spanish fleet in 1805. Now, 200 years after Nelson’s heroic victory and death, a German firm has been awarded a contract to convert the monument into three luxury holiday apartments, and in the process remove public access. Floatel is to take control of the 34-metre lighthouse for the next 30 years, and plans to begin renting the apartments as early as this summer. A group of Cadiz businessmen including long-established expat James Stuart, boss of the Califa Hotel group, filed an official complaint with the Cadiz port authority over ‘irregularities’ in Floatel’s application. They had hoped to turn the lighthouse into a museum and visitor centre for all to enjoy, a campaign backed by the Olive Press (see left). But at the moment, the second Battle of Trafalgar isn’t going as well for the Brits as the first.
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PROPERTY BOMBSHELL
The strongest boy in the world?
MARBELLA is in shock after its 2010 urban plan was scrapped, leaving 16,500 houses in legal limbo. All properties built since 1986 could be illegal. “It brings great uncertainty to potential investors, who could recoil as a result of the ensuing chaos,” Marbella lawyer Antonio Flores told the Olive Press.
EXCLUSIVE Meet the 15-year-old Brit pulling trucks, flipping tyres and smashing world records
Page 3
EXCLUSIVE By Tom Powell A DESPERATE battle is being waged to stop the iconic Trafalgar lighthouse being privatised and lost as a public monument. The historic landmark, close to where Admiral Nelson’s British navy defeated an allied French and Spanish fleet in 1805, is loved and cherished by many expats. The emblematic lighthouse, built in 1860, is also in a spot of serene natural beauty, located near Caños de Meca, on the Costa de la Luz. But now, 200 years after Nelson died in a heroic victory, a second battle of Trafalgar is being fought. For a German firm has been awarded a contract to convert the stunning landmark into three luxury holiday apartments, and in the process cut it off from the public. Under the controversial agreement, company Floatel is to take control of the 34-metre lighthouse for the next 30 years, with the option to renew for another 10. However, a group of Cadiz businessmen including longestablished expat James Stuart is taking up arms against the project. Joined by local environmentalists, Stuart, boss of the Califa Hotel group in Vejer, has now filed an official complaint with the Cadiz port authority over ‘irregularities’ in Floatel’s application. The businessman, who runs a string of hotels and restaurants on the Costa de la Luz,
Marbella SOS - Page 31
We will fight them on the beaches
Expat unites with green group to save iconic Trafalgar Lighthouse from privatisation
BATTLE OF TRAFALGAR: The lighthouse is being converted into private apartments while (right) Stuart is fighting to stop it has united with a group of key Spanish businesses in a bid to keep it entirely open to the public. “We firmly believe the lighthouse and its environs should be in the public domain,” Stu-
art told the Olive Press. “It should have the same status as the Roman ruins at Baelo Claudia, near Tarifa, where there is a museum and the site is free to the public.” His group believes the Port
Authority is simply looking for a way to ‘relieve itself of the financial burden of maintaining the site’. Insisting the last-ditched protest has nothing to do with his group’s own application
being turned down, he added: “We would also take over the running and costs of the lighthouse, but at the same time keep it open for everyone to enjoy.” The Califa group’s proposal,
NAVAL HERO: Nelson which came second, guaranteed to maintain the appearance of the lighthouse, as well as add a free interpretation centre, restaurant and picnic area employing 15 to 25 staff. By contrast, Floatel’s plan involves employing just two staff, closing the main entrance and cutting off more than 50% of the land and buildings to the public. It also plans to charge for entry with limited opening times. Stuart was motivated to challenge the decision after being swayed by local opinion. In particular, green group Ecologistas en Accion has filed a complaint with the Cadiz Port Authority against Floatel’s plans. “We are against the privatisation of public facilities such as the Trafalgar Lighthouse,” explained a spokesman. The Cadiz Port Authority has until November 15 to respond to both appeals.
Opinion Page 6
What a waste PLANS for a giant composting waste site are being fought by Estepona residents. Nearby homeowners launched their protest when the town hall approved the project to be built on protected land. They are complaining that the site infringes on environmental law because it is also less than 2km away from thousands of residential properties. The protestors have collect-
IT is one of the most expensive tracks of railway that will never be used. Incredibly, some 77 kilometres of AVE rail track was laid between Antequera and Marchena, before the project was scrapped by the European Union. Costing €279 million, the ‘El AVE ghost line’ was abandoned after the EU slammed it for breaking environmental laws, in particular, for building a viaduct over the protected Los Ojuelos lagoon.
AN artificial island home to 180 villas, a luxury hotel and an 18-hole golf course is sending birds sparrow in Extremadura. The Marina Isla de Valdecañas was denounced by environmentalists as long ago as 2007. In fact a demolition order was passed by the Supreme Court in 2011, as the island development was deemed to be responsible for a major drop in bird population. However, the order was suspended when the Junta de Extremadura claimed demolition would cause greater damage to the birdlife than keeping it there. (The €32 million estimated cost of knocking it down was no doubt a factor in the decision.) Ecologistas en Accion has now submitted a plan to the regional government which reduces the environmental impact of demolition while also cutting the cost.
GREEN groups are desperately campaigning to save a pine forest from being turned into a huge battery chicken farm. Production company Jesus del Rio has applied for permission to upgrade its current premises in Segovia in order to home 228,000 chickens. However, Ecologistas en Accion claims that the original installation of a 35,000-chicken farm was illegal in the first place. The group has been campaigning for the removal of the livestock factory since 2007 when 2.9 hectares of the Pinarejos forest were cleared to make way for it. That, claims Ecologistas en Accion, is almost six times the amount that was authorised by regional government. The planning office is currently reviewing the expansion request.
ed over 100 signatures in a change.org petition, and served the town hall and the Junta with a denuncia for breaching environmental law. The site’s developers, however, insist that the composting site violates no laws and will have no impact on nearby homes. A meeting between residents, landowners and architects is scheduled for this month, with a decision expected to follow.
Rail to nowhere
Upsetting the bird bath
Chicken run
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Battle of Trafalgar
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European Environment Commissioner Janez Potocnik demanded that the bridge be torn down two years ago as it disrupts the habitat of key breeding birds protected under EU law. As of yet, no action has been taken and the AVE line remains a scar on the face of Spain’s wild habitat.
El Bulli battle TROUBLE is brewing at the site of what was the most famous restaurant in the world. Plans to expand former 3-Michelin star restaurant el Bulli into a gastronomic hub took a blow last month, when environmentalists got wind of the plans and kicked up a storm. They claimed - and the law agreed - that chef Ferran Adria’s plans were a breach of environmental law as el Bulli is located in the Costa Brava’s Cap de Creus Natural Park. In the face of opposition, Adria has been forced to scale back his expansion plan by 300%. But he has not given up his dream to create a mega, gastronomical think-tank on the site of his former restaurant. New – albeit scaled-back – plans for the national park site have been submitted, and Adria is also considering a move to Barcelona.
SCRAPPED: Plans
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POLITICS
High life THE brains behind the ongoing Gurtel political corruption scandal has set up home in Sotogrande. Almost four years after Francisco Correa was released from Madrid jail Soto Real, he has been accepted among the exclusive community of the millionaire’s playground. Even though Correa must report daily to the San Roque court and present himself weekly at Madrid’s High Court, he attends a €120-per-month gym and dines in Sotogrande’s restaurants. He has been described by neighbours at his urbanisation Valgrande as a ‘loner’.
Facing the music!
Former Junta heads probed over role in multi-million euro ERE fraud
EX-JUNTA chiefs Manuel Chaves and Jose Antonio Griñan are to be grilled over their links to corruption this
finally probing their exact involvement in the so-called ERE scandal. Both men are suspected of
IN THE DOCK: Grinan and Chaves being involved in the multimillion euro bogus employment scam, the biggest public money scandal in Spain’s
No clear winner likely THE country looks to be heading for yet another election stalemate, according to a new opinion poll. While a second general election is looking in-
HIGH-LIFE: Correa pictured in Sotogrande
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week. Despite attempts to postpone the start of the hearing, Madrid’s Supreme Court is
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creasingly likely for June, a clear result is extremely unlikely. It comes after a detailed poll found that the four main parties are all still
UNLIKELY LADS: Iglesias and (right) Rivera
neck and neck. In the Metroscopia survey, the PP would gain just 26%
Battle for control SPAIN is facing a ‘serious constitutional crisis’ as the rival political parties battle for control of Congress. With the exception of the PP, all parties are demanding the acting government surrenders control by submitting itself to regular question times. PSOE, Ciudadanos and Podemos are demanding that weekly congress sittings should involve questions to President Rajoy and members of his execu-
tive. Rajoy however insists that his acting government should only be answerable to the courts and insists that the Ministry of Defence will not participate in any such session. If the parties refuse to back down it could spark a constitutional crisis. “It is unheard of for a government to declare itself in contempt of Congress,” said PSOE deputy Antonio Hernando.
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of the vote, down from 28.7% secured in December’s election, while the PSOE have risen by 1% to 23%.
Popularity
While Podemos’ standing has dropped to 17% from 20.7% Ciudadanos has seen a rise in popularity from 14% to 19.5%. The parties have until May 2 to cobble together a new government or a general election will be called for June.
history. They face charges of fraud and embezzlement of at least €855 million between 2000 and 2010. The money, which came from Brussels and Madrid, was first used to create bogus companies, which would later lay off the fictitious staff in a so-called ERE. Under the scheme millions in redundancy payments were syphoned into a ‘reptile fund’ which was used by senior Junta executives and their families. Chaves, 71, who led Andalucia for 19 years, previously told the court he had no idea that his Employment Ministry was syphoning tens of millions every year. However, a damning 129page report from Judge Alberto Jorge Barreiro states there is substantial evidence that both he and Grinan, his successor, were involved. Former Employment minister Jose Antonio Viera Chacón will also take the stand with many more senior Junta politicians - past and present - set to stand trial in the coming month.
GREEN NEWS Spanish ‘pirate’ family behind bars for poaching fish
March 16th - March 29th 2016
FISHY BUSINESS: Antonio Vidal
Netted, at last
SAFER: Plants
Nuclear activity SPAIN’S nuclear power stations are close to completing vital safety enhancements put in place after Japan’s 2011 Fukushima disaster. The measures were introduced in 2012 by the European Nuclear Safety Regulators Group following a European Council report. Work to protect Spanish plants from natural disasters including earthquakes and floods is now 80% complete. Extra cooling systems have been added, and a central emergency support unit set up.
Unforeseen “Nuclear power plants are solidly prepared to face unforeseen events at their design bases," said a statement from Spain’s nuclear industry body Foronuclear.”
A WEALTHY family of fishing barons has been detained for poaching a protected species. In total, six people are being held on charges of illegally fishing Patagonian toothfish in Antarctic waters. Five of them are members of the Vidal family who run Ribeiro Vidal Armadores and have a previous record of illegal fishing. The arrests took place following an Interpol and Spanish police raid on Vidal-owned property in Galicia, where the
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By Rob Horgan family owns a factory producing Omega-3 products. It comes after the final ship in the suspected poaching fleet Bandidos 6 was successfully sunk by environmental group Sea Shepherd. The fish, which is rich in Omega-3 fatty acids, is known as ‘white gold’ in the industry as it can sell for as much as €130 per kilo. A large catch can be worth as much as €50 million.
“This is the first time Spanish police and Interpol have joined forces against illegal fishing in a joint action,” said Lasse Gustavsson, executive director of the NGO Oceana in Europe. “This announcement is a watershed moment in the fight to eradicate illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing of our oceans.” The high court is now involved and criminal proceedings are said to be underway. A police spokesman said that at his time of arrest Antonio
Spring clean in Estepona DANGEROUS rivers in Estepona will finally be cleaned up. Aiming to be more ‘environmentally friendly’, Estepona Town Hall has pledged to eliminate waste water from beaches and rivers. It comes after the Olive Press revealed that two rivers in the town were an environmental threat. Following an Olive Press investigation, a strand of the
killer E-Coli bacteria was detected in the Arroyo del Hornacinos, a stream often played in by children, last May. The town hall faced yet another probe into a dangerous river, when levels of methane had been detected in the Arroyo Judio, in El Padro. An EU investigation last summer found that waste being pumped into the river caused it to be a fire risk as
Clean-up on hold HOOKED: Toothfish
Vidal did not deny fishing in the Antarctic. Vidal has already been convicted in the USA for attempting to smuggle toothfish. His olive pres s 3 vessels have been 1 2 3 blacklisted but River of sh the ships have ame as well as been renamed and reflagged in a typhoid countries such h e a l t h as Equatorial hazard. Guinea, MauritaDespite nia and Panama a subseto evade the auquent Guardia thorities. Civil investigation, both rivIn 2015 Spain’s ers are yet to be treated. agriculture minHowever, the town hall has istry imposed now announced a project to fines of over €17 remove all waste water and million on three improve on the current sewof Vidal’s vessels. STILL THE ‘BEST
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THE winds of change TOWIE star have truly Elliot blown in Wright launches dozens of as anti-corruptio a no-holds-barred parties made n TV presenter column on gains in town substantial Page 3 halls across Nick Knowles before we grill Spain. and stunning our food pages.him on Voters made Arty tapas is See the clear they wife Jessica The Wright are ready special of the lift day the lid on their Pages 54-55 Stuff on traditionalto ditch Spain’s in a new column two-party escape to Sotosystem as from former new parties grande on Page Podemos Michelin-starred and Ciudada3 nos performed TV chef Steven well at regional and Saunders. on Sunday. local elections See Page 49 All over governingthe country the PP lost absolute majorities, meaning it will have at least, oneto pact with, other party Estepona to form Town Hall ernments.legitimate govup a deadly fails to clean Some of the river big mayors often danger include in children played in Marbella’s Angeles by Munoz A DEADLY Malaga’s bacteria has Francisco and found Torre. been de la in an A strand of Estepona river. EXCLUSIVE What is E-Coli? bacteria has the killer E-Coli See A Spring By Rob Horgan been detected of Change, the Arroyo on Pages in E-Coli is a del Hornacinos, 4 and 5 type of fecal a stream often Residents of coliform bacteria the neighbouring played in by children. Villas Andaluzas usually found in the ing in the Guardiaare now callanimals and intestines of Civil’s ronmental Its presence humans. arm Seprona, enviin water is written complaints after strong indication a to the town hall came to of recent sewage or animal They insist nothing. waste contamination. overrun withthat the area is When the bacteria rats and quitos and animal or human lives in the town hallmos- CONCERNED been completely intestihas nal tracts it : Resident is harmless. Sam Hall spite receiving ‘inactive’ deHowever when at river’s the first report worse. in April. bank in inadequatelyit appears “It is an Independent absolute water it produces treated from water shows analysis of the and worse, a seriousdisgrace ous Surrey, as well as which is harmful a toxin varineighbours, that the river hazard,” said health poses a serious and potentially fatal British resident ted a number have submithealth risk Sam Hall, 78. to humans. and could be plaints to the of formal comfatal. He added: A report town hall. “It’s In response, ing about it,” Rafael Perezfrom Laboratorio worrying because especially spokesman a town hall Rodriguez stated seen children we have “On hot days Hall added. that the quantities playing near Mayor Josetold the couple unbearable the smell is the water of forms’ were Urbano was so so high that ‘coli- the sea. where it flows into ‘aware of the problem’ able to sit outthat we are unwere ‘too many’ there would be ‘sorted and it Ironically, in our garden.” “If anyone to count. E-Coli can out’. were to However, Estepona was when a clean cently honoured diarrhoea, cause vomiting, down, it would be be struck was Which ageing reliver disease finally a national up Flag Award with a Green scandal.” costa and Hall 18, nothing‘promised’ for May show was ronmental for boosting envihappened. and his wife cancelled DJ’s awareness. Susanna, “They say one thing Estepona Town after he crashed you happy to keep Hall failed and then do respond to to his new €60,000 Olive Press noth- tions. quesRange
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THE USA has confirmed it will not negotiate the nuclear clean-up in Palomares until Spain has a government. Radioactive contamination from the plane collision in 1966 was not tackled sufficiently and after decades of protests, John Kerry finally agreed to find a solution ‘as soon as possible’ in October 2015. But the US government has now confirmed it won’t negotiate until the Spanish government has been formed - a process which could take months. And the US presidential elections could stall the process further. The clean-up is thought to cost €640 million which will be paid by both Spain and the USA.
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WATERY WORLD: Nerja museum plans
What lies beneath... IT has quickly become one of the most extraordinary museums in the world. Now Nerja is hoping to emulate Lanzarote’s underwater sculpture park, which began construction last month. The town is studying the cost of creating the first underwater museum in the western Mediterranean, capitalising on its wealth of
already sunken treasure. An actor from the cult Nerja-based TV show, Verano Azul, Miguel Joven, and the director of the Nerja SCUBA centre, Bernabe Toledo, presented the plan to the town hall. He claims the museum will help preserve Nerja’s underwater ecosystem.
Dog days are over
Expat to be reunited with beloved dogs after heartfelt campaign
A BRITISH expat forced to go back to the UK to look after her ailing mother has managed to find a way to get her beloved pet dogs back thanks to Olive Press support. Nerja expat Clare Volland (right), 36, feared her two Chihuahuas, Teddy and Jack, would be put up for adoption after the man looking after them had three heart attacks and was hospitalised. HOMEBOUND: Dogs Marketing expert Volland, who is currently in London caring for her mother, contacted police and rescue centres to locate her dogs as she could not travel due to IT has become an Easter tradilosing her passport. tion to rival chocolate egg hunts Eventually it emerged they and the Easter Bunny. This month the Competa art were fit and well and staywalk returns for its eighth year, ing at the APA rescue centre with works by 28 international in Nerja. artists on show at 18 locations After the Olive Press put in the village. her story online she was inArt lovers from the Costa del undated with support and Sol, Costa Tropical and further found a transport company afield are invited to Competa to ferry her dogs back to from Wednesday 23 to Sunday England for £400. 27 March for a cultural celebraFunds were raised via ontion. line support and the dogs From 11am to 7pm each day, will travel home by ferry. artists and craftsmen will show“I am overwhelmed with case and discuss their work, the help I have had from techniques and inspirations. the Olive Press and family For more information and a and friends to get my boys map of the route visit www.arthome,” said Volland, who competa.com or the ‘ArtCompeta’ Facebook page. has lived in Nerja for seven years.
Walk this way!
NEWS IN BRIEF Manhunt POLICE are searching for a 77-year-old Alzheimer’s sufferer who has disappeared from his house in Velez-Malaga after going for a coffee on March 13.
School cash THE Axarquia has poured €35,000 into school improvements across the region with the largest cash injection at Torre de Benagalbon school Los Jarales.
Fruitless DESPITE avocadoes and mangoes from the Axarquia reaching record high prices in February, 30,000 fewer tonnes of the fruits will be produced this year due to drought.
Writing’s on the road
VELEZ Malaga town hall has been left red-faced after a Cervantes tribute daubed on the road disappeared in just ten days. The giant quote painted by a local artist was thought to be ‘in very durable paint’ but it will now have to be repainted in asphalt. It immortalises a verse which mentions the town to celebrate the fourth centenary of Cervantes’ death. The passage reads: “Thanks be to God, sirs, to such a good part he has driven us. If I am not mistaken, the land on which we walk is that of Velez-Malaga.”
QUOTE: Cervantes
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Bolly good show DANCERS from Spain and India have come together to entwine flamenco dancing with traditional Indian music. Commemorating the 60th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the two countries, Spanish film director Carlos Saura has produced Flamenco India. Set to be staged in India later this year, Flamenco India will become an annual event in both countries, with Bollywood directors said to be inter-
ested in taking the production to the big screen. “Usually bilateral relations are focused on politics and business but we want to introduce the exchange of culture too,” said Magdalena Crux Yabar from the Spanish Embassy in India. “It is wonderful to see culture binding the two nations.”
Save our Bacons! By Iona Napier
Heist of the decade as thieves make off with five Francis Bacon masterpieces worth €30 million
FIVE Francis Bacon paintings worth €30 million have been stolen from a Madrid mansion in a ‘professional’ art heist. In the largest modern art burglary in recent Spanish history, thieves successfully entered the property near Encarnacion Square, deactivated the alarm and took the works while the owner was absent. The paintings were nabbed from a 59-yearold art lover with the initials J.C.B. who was a personal friend of Bacon and received the
VALUABLE: Bacon (right) and his work
art as an inheritance gift. The paintings have not been identified but have been described as ‘portraits and land-
scapes’. Investigations ongoing since the theft was reported in June have led police to believe
The Duchess’s secret life THE palatial home where the Duchess of Alba spent her final years has reopened as a museum, offering an insight into the private life of the charismatic royal.
The 15th century Palacio de las Duenas in Sevilla was opened by her son, Carlos Fitz-James Stuart, 19th Duke of Alba, after the house was deemed of cultural interest. "Our objective was not to intervene with the decor or layout,” projA TYPEWRITER is an unlikely cast member ect manager Ricardo in the latest production by Marbella’s oldest Gasco said. “We wanted to keep the essential theatre group. Described as a ‘ghostly romp through the ab- condition of the buildsurd’, Ghost Writer by David Tristram runs ing, to preserve the way it was lived in. from March 18-20 at Atalaya Park Hotel. Presented by the International Theatre Stu- “The Duke of Alba has dio, the supernatural comedy centres on a been heavily involved in the project and was ghost and her playwright husband. For tickets, call 629 261 309 (daytime) or 952 always eager to open the palace up to the 880 240 (evenings and weekends). public.”
Ghost blockbuster
the paintings have not yet left the country. The ‘professional’ thieves left no fingerprints or clues and have so far not attempted to sell to undercover agents posing as art buyers at the recent contemporary art fair in Madrid, ARCO. “The thieves are not going to have an easy time of it… It is not easy at all to offer a Francis Bacon, either small or large, without it reaching the ears of the scouts operating in this very special sector,” an art expert said. Bacon’s 1969 work Three studies of Lucian Freud fetched €127.2 million at auction in 2013.
GRAND: Duchess of Alba (inset) and her last resting place
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March 16th - March 29th 2016
Game of thrones
EMANA Santa marks the week when the Spanish love for procession, pageantry and communal expression reaches its zenith. This incense-scented week of penitence and processions is most keenly observed in the orange-blossomed streets of Sevilla. Vast thrones (pasos) supporting ornate religious effigies are paraded through the city. But although ostensibly a religious festival, Holy Week’s long nights and packed streets have much in common with any Spanish fiesta. Families burn the midnight oil to watch the parades, the odd drop of vino is usually on hand to help lubricate proceedings and it’s as much through local pride as religious piety that Sevillanos call out ‘Guapa!’ when the Virgin’s statue passes. Nevertheless, for the first-time observer, the hooded ranks of Nazarenos - the week’s defining image - can be a little startling. Their beautiful medieval robes are co-ordinated in the colour of each religious brotherhood, or cofradia, but their conical hoods, with slits for TRADITION: Crowds gather for procession and (right) bollos de hornazo eyes, have an almost menacing solemnity. a sweet bread made with eggs, sugar and aniseed - as Sol y sombre, Spain’s two defining extremities, are well as hot-cross buns and Cadbury’s Creme Eggs. both here during Semana Santa before the city finally The presence of Roman centurions at the parades explodes into a riot of colour for La Feria. adds to the theatre and underlines that this is an occaThe cofradias organise the processions and the task sion for everyone (in Spain, even the dastardly Romans of carrying the thrones is highly sought-after, with the who were responsible for it all are invited to commemocostaleros - or ‘sack men’ - carrying out this role. Until rate Christ’s crucifixion). the 1970s, sturdy dock workers were hired to perform The sheer scale and length of the occasion can be a the sinew-straining job. little overwhelming, but if you are lucky enough to be Down in Gibraltar, British and Spanish traditions are in Andalucia during Semana Santa you will be right at fused as Easter revellers gobble up bollos de hornazo - the heart of one of Spain’s most extraordinary events.
As Spain prepares for its spectacular Semana Santa celebrations, Gibraltar is baking bread, writes Joe Duggan
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Semana Santa by numbers March 20 - 28: Spain celebrates Semana Santa 1500s: Celebrations of Semana Santa begin in southern Spain 14: The hours a procession can last 50: The number of costaleros it can take to carry the floats bearing images of Christ and the Virgin Mary 70: Cofradias involved during Sevilla’s Semana Santa 1,000,000: Visitors who come to Sevilla for Semana Santa 50,000 : Nazarenos parading through the streets of Sevilla Six to nine: The number of processions in Sevilla each day 400,000: Jobs created in Spain during Semana Santa, according to Adecco One: Every Semana Santa, a convicted criminal is released from prison through a collaboration with Jesús Resucitado y María Santísima de la Asunción 5,000: The weight in kilos of the heaviest pasos carried through Malaga Five: The length in metres of the longest floats in Malaga 10,000: Number of people who attend the Passion of Christ tradition, El Paso, at the El Calvario outdoor auditorium in Axarquia
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15 15 March 16th - March 29th 2016
Guardian art critic Laura Cumming turns detective to reveal Spanish master Velazquez as never seen before - through the daring quest of a humble Victorian bookseller from Reading
EXTRACT
The joy of Las Meninas
Art thriller
FROM LEFT: Las Meninas, Christ in the House of Mary and Martha, Old Woman Frying Eggs, Sebastian de Morra
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IPPING into the pages of Laura Cumming’s magisterial The Vanishing Man: In Pursuit of Velazquez brings back warm memories of Mr Moretta, my old English teacher. For three hours a week, he took a group of distracted teenagers and opened up our young minds to great works of literature, revealing the magical intricacies of Joyce, Shakespeare and Chaucer. Instead of simply seeing and reading, he helped us understand and cherish,
Review by Joe Duggan
to stop and admire. In the same way, Cumming takes the reader by the hand and guides us into the world of Spain’s greatest painter, Diego Rodríguez de Silva y Velázquez. I have been to the Prado and seen Velazquez’s masterpiece, Las Meninas. It was hugely impressive, even to a nonarty type like me. But after reading Guardian art critic Cumming’s book, I wanted
to linger and appreciate its mastery. While reading The Vanishing Man, you will find yourself constantly flicking to the photographs in the book to admire the reflection from a brass bowl, a dwarf’s facial expression or a maid servant’s swollen eyelids, from being harried in her work. Details lost to the casual observer are summoned by Cumming’s shimmering prose and expert eye. But underlying this homage to Velazquez’s mastery is a riveting tale of a humble 19th-century art lover from Reading. While researching in a library one afternoon, Cumming stumbled upon the astonishing story of John Snare, a bookseller whose world was transformed when he chanced upon a portrait at an auction on sale for £8 (€10) which he was convinced was a Velazquez. Standing down the dissenting voices of art critics, the bookseller embarked on an exhaustive quest to nail the painting’s provenance, a path strewn with setbacks and tribulations on the way to vindication. An Edinburgh court case brings matters to a nerve-shredding head as the reader is plunged into a good old-fashioned thriller. Cumming’s detective work is every bit as impressive as her subject’s. Following her acute journalistic instincts, she embarks on a labyrinthine journey of her own, knitting together Snare’s journey by sifting through Victorian pamphlets, journals and newspapers. The reader is transported from Napoleonic battlefields to the narrow streets of Victorian Soho and from New York galleries to Prince Philip’s Spanish court. Snare, a hitherto anonymous figure, is brought to life, but Cumming also shines a light on Velazquez, a diffident character of whom little is known. The Vanishing Man is a meticulously well-researched piece of journalism as well as a love letter to both a humble English bookseller and a revered Spanish genius. Cumming has written an exceptional page-turner.
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Y father died quite the here and now of this mosuddenly when I was ment, brief and bright as firein my late twenties. flies beneath the sepulchral He was a painter. The gloom. And what keeps them fatal illness attacked his brain, here, what keeps them alive, then his eyes. In my raging or so the artist implies, is not grief, I could not bear to look at just the painting but you. any paintings but his, as a way You are here, you have apof holding the memory of him peared: that is the split-second as close and tight as possible, revelation in their eyes, all I suppose, and in blind protest these people looking back at against the blighting of his life you from their side of the room. and art. The princess in her shimmerSeveral months passed. I went ing dress, the maids in their to Madrid in a bitter midwinter, ribbons and bows, the tiny a city chosen because neither page and the tall, dark painter, he nor I had ever been there the nun whose murmur is just and I couldn’t speak the lan- fading away and the chamberguage. There could no no old associations and no new conversations; time could stand still while I thought about nothing and no one but him. Every day I would leave my hotel room and walk round and round the streets, spiralling out to the freezing suburbs and the snow-capped hills beyond. I did not know what else to do. But Madrid is not large; I would pass the Prado Museum time and again, sometimes twice in one day, steeling myself not to go in. Eventually the effort to avoid the place became a distraction in itself and it was there, in that crowded lain silhouetted in the glowing city within a city, that I had the doorway at the back: everyluckiest of strikes. On a hunt one registers your presence. for El Greco, one of my father’s They were here like guests favourite painters, I was pass- at a surprise party waiting for ing the opening to a large gal- your arrival and now you have lery when a strange frisson of entered the room - their room, light caught not the real the edge of one around my eye. As I you - or so it I had no idea how mysteriously turned to look all the people The vast it would be - seems. standing at whole scene an image the size twinkles with the other end of the gallery of life, and fully as expectation. moved aside That is the first profound as one, clearsensation on ing an open the threshold view to the of that gallery source of that in the Prado light: Velazquez’s monumental where Las Meninas hangs: Las Meninas. that you have walked into their I had no thought of it, no idea world and become suddenly as it would be there or how vast present to them as they are to it would be - an image the size you. of life, and fully as profound. The painting I saw that day The living people revealed the seems to hold death back from painted people behind them the brink even as it acknowllike actors in the same per- edges our shared human fate. formance, and flashing up be- It shows the past in all its morfore me was the mirror-bright tal beauty, but it also looks vision of a little princess, her forward into the flowing future. young maidservants and the Because of Velazquez these artist himself, all gathered in a long-lost people will always be pool of sunlight at the bottom there at the heart of the Prado, of a great volume of shadow, always waiting for us to arrive. an impending darkness that Las Meninas is like a chamber instantly sets the tenor of the of the mind, a place where the scene. The moment you set dead will never die. The gratieyes on them, you know that tude I feel to Velazquez for this these beautiful children will greatest of paintings is untold; die, that they are already dead he gave me the consolation to and gone, and yet they live in return to my own life.
LETTERS
www.theolivepress.es 16 the Olive Press 16 November 14th - 25th 2016
POTTED POINTERS EMERGENCIES Police 112 Medical service 112 Fire 112 EURO EXCHANGE RATES 1 euro is worth 1.11 American dollars 0.78 British pounds 1.47 Canadian dollars 7.46 Danish kroner 8.61 H Kong dollars 9.42 Norwegian kroner 1.53 Singapore dollars ANDALUCIA RESERVOIR LEVELS This week: 67.75% Same week last year: 76.57% Same week in 2005: 65.40% AIRPORTS Gibraltar 00350 22073026 Granada-Jaen 958 245 200 Jerez - 956 150 000 Malaga - 952 048 844* *For English press 9 Sevilla - 954 449 000
Food for thought
Chas McDonnal, Torremolinos
Spent energy I AM looking to move and I am amazed at the cost of having a property energy certificate assessment. Unfortunately this expensive, compulsory service is just another financial sticky finger dipping in the pie when it comes to renting or selling a property. What with taxes, administration fees, estate agents, banks and solicitors costs, it’s a wonder people have any of their property sale money left afterwards. It never ceases to amaze me just how many ways the Spanish Government is able to extract money from people who own property.
George Smith, Benalmadena
March 2nd www.theolivepress.es -
Brexit battle
DEAR OP, GASTRONOMIC empires earn enough money to fund their enterprises without expanding onto protected natural public land (Bullied out of it, issue 234). There is no need to expand el Bulli restaurant into a culinary hub. Allowing permission for the expansion would be as bad as allowing a monstrous, megahotel to be built on an unspoilt beach on the outskirts of a natural park. Oh wait…
Each print issue of the Olive Press can be read in its entirety on www.theolivepress.es And our site is updated Marchdaily 15th 2016 with the latest news, making it one of Spain’s most visited news websites.
Devil you know
Why leave?
THE truth is, nobody actually knows, or can know, what would ensue after a Brexit (When the borders close, issue 234). We do know what it’s like to be in the EU, we’ve had half a century to see what it means (good and bad). Leaving would be a ‘leap into the dark’ as the British ambassador says, that’s what frightens people. There are many conjectures about the benefits of quitting, but that’s all they are, pipe dreams. It is up to those behind the Leave campaign to make their case, they are the ones itching for it. Better the Devil you know than the one you don’t. There’s a lot of mileage in that old saying.
I AM not interested what the Stay campaign has to say, because if the UK votes to stay in things will continue as they are. I am far more interested in what the Leave campaigners have to say regarding our status, health care, taxes etc. should the UK vote to leave. So far I have heard nothing and given that Iain Duncan Smith is one of the leading members of the Leave campaign I don’t think he will have much sympathy for us expats, considering the devious lengths he went to in removing the winter fuel allowance. He will no doubt lie through his teeth to secure his position on the plush green leather seats of the House of Commons.
Stefano Liwinski, Marbella
Peter Johnson, Axarquia
Dry funds I WRITE in response to the letter by Gina Watson (issue 233) on expats’ rights to a winter fuel allowance. Since the UK has been paying child benefit for children of migrants not born or living in the UK then I consider it criminal that pension credit and winter fuel allowance is not been paid
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to those of us living here. My soon to be ex-husband has every available benefit as he lives in the UK. Someone needs to form a group petition to raise this issue with both the UK government the EU and human rights organisations. If we all came back claiming in the UK, how would the Government react? Perhaps Spain - as it is in the EU - should be forced to pay the deficit to pensioners.
Janet Hayden, La Vinuela
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Project fear THE comments from UK Europe minister David Lidington are scaremongering at its very worst. Lidington, (and the government for allowing it) should be thoroughly ashamed of themselves. There is absolutely no proof, nor logical explanation, to support his ludicrous claims. Would a Brexit mean that the three million plus EU passport holders would be deported from the UK? No, of course not. PJ Biddulph, Malaga
A stork’s tale STORKS in churches are as iconic as the Black Bulls on the hills, (which are disappearing as well). Removing them is not only an insult to nature but an insult to tradition as well (Unwanted church-goers, issue 234). Surely a few stork nests cannot cause so much damage to church buildings as is being claimed by the priests. I personally think they should be allowed to stay, and as a diminishing species we should do all we can to preserve them.
Steven Roche, Valencia
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Better late than never THE news that the Algarrobico is to be torn down is - albeit a little late - good news on the whole (Heartbreak hotel, issue 234). Useless conservationists aside, I’m with the rabbits on this one. The issue is not just the monstrosity itself, it’s the corruption and abuse of law that allowed this project to near completion that requires it to now be demolished. The owners of this hotel would doubtless have
profited massively from this illegal venture, and now they will not. That is some consolation. Someone has to pay for demolition and it should not be the taxpayer. The tragedy of this event was that it was allowed to be built for so many years without the rule of law stopping it. Too little, too late. Spain in a nutshell. Fred Smith, Marbella
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A
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Gibraltar
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Vol. 10 Issue 235 www.theolivepress.es
It’s still the place to buy British... but these days Gibraltar offers the best high-street brands alongside smaller family-run businesses, writes Tom Powell
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worth the trip to ‘Britain in the Sun’ during the late 20th century, when Morrisons supermarket virtually achieved tourist attraction status. In fact, even the biggest names from the glory days of the Costa del Crime raved about the convenience of being able to nip over the border for a pork pie and a tin of Ovaltine. Nowadays, you can buy British all along the Costa
Something for everyone
WITH its mix of high-street brands and independent, family-run stores, Gibraltar has something for everyone. Shops like Stagnetto’s have one of the best selections of wines, spirits and cigars you will find anywhere in the world. They know the owners of the vineyards and distilleries personally and customers come to visit from all over the world. Stuck for ideas on what present to buy? Look no further than All Wrapped Up, which is just after Marks & Spencer going towards the law courts. The Jury’s is unsurprisingly a favourite hang out for barristers and their clients, but if there is no space try the
new Bistro 292 opposite. Take time to walk up some of the lanes and side streets off Main Street to explore. It’s a different world up there. You never know what you might find. Engineers Lane, Bell Lane or Irish Town are all less crowded and are the preferred routes taken by locals who want to get from one end of town to the other in a hurry. After a morning wandering down Main Street why not drop into one of the restaurants for some coffee or a light lunch. In Irish Town, Corks and Sacarello’s, which has brewed coffee for 150 years, are local institutions, while Cafe Solo and Lord Nelson in Casemates Square take some beating.
March 16th - March 29th 2016
Where have all the queues gone?
More than Marmite at Morrisons
HERE was a time when British expats in Spain merely relied on the Rock for their home comforts. Gibraltar was a Godsend where foreigners could get their fix of British classics to chase away any homesick blues. Yorkshire tea bags, cheddar cheese, Marmite and Heinz baked beans were just some of the favourites
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THE go-slow and restrictive checks by Spanish Customs officials have been greatly reduced over the last year. The stop and start horror stories of three summers ago have all but dissipated and getting in and out is much easier these days. The frontier has been upgraded, new lanes have been added and, generally, with the exception of rush hour - going in between 8am to 10am and coming out after 4pm - you can get across the border in around 10 minutes. If you are still concerned, you can also keep an eye on the exit into Spain by checking the online webfeed: www.frontierqueue.gi and you can also check what the estimated queuing times are at @gibraltarborder or #gibfrontier
del Sol while Gibraltar has developed into an altogether more sophisticated shopping experience. The downtown area has undergone a spectacular regeneration, complete with floral hanging baskets and smart black and gold signposts. In convivial Casemates Square, chilled cafes set up inside the battlement walls spill out onto an expansive, sunlit plaza while bustling Main Street boasts shops to rival any traditional British high street, with Mediterranean sunshine thrown in. Just don’t walk more than three abreast along this narrow, cobbled thoroughfare, especially when there’s a cruise ship - or three - in port! Here you will find big name brands such as Marks & Spencer, BHS and The Early Learning Centre, as well as Next, Pandora, Boux Avenue, Holland and Barrett, Dorothy Perkins and F&F. But they are interspersed with locally-owned and family-run emporiums selling everything from dutyfree perfumes and cameras to cuddly toy monkeys. Clone town it is not. The recent opening of high-end jewellery store Cadenza is a clear indicator of where Gibraltar is headed (Oxford Street-sur-Med), with no less than Chief Minister, Fabian Picardo, cutting the ceremonial red tape. Of course, a fully-stocked Morrison’s still has some specific treats the Costa del Sol cannot keep up with, while Eroski has recently started offering an extended range of Waitrose products. The obvious draw for shoppers is Gibraltar’s VAT-free status and we’re not just talking about tobacco and alcohol. You can also save 21% on luxury items like perfume and designer sunglasses. And with zero import duty on electronic goods, computer software, DVDs and CDs and reduced duty for watches, jewelContinues on Page 19
TIMELESS: Main street has always been an important commercial hive and (below) is crammed full of historic, attractive buildings
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Gibraltar
March 16th - March
Shop ‘til you drop! From Page 17
HM BIN CLEANER: The bins even get cleaned on Main Street
lery, clothing and mobile phones, there are calls due this year. bargains to be had. Many Main Street shops are run by the diPlus, as the currency is British Sterling – al- rect descendants of the families who foundthough with specific notes – UK bank cards ed Gibraltar as a trading destination during can be used without the 1800s, thanks to its strateincurring exchange rate gic location. losses. In contrast to these old curiosiBy cable-car, Meanwhile, although ty shops, the ICC Centre - where Spanish as well as Engyou will find the excellent Aimee taxi or Shanks’s lish and the local ‘llanito’ Jay shop - offers undercover patois are all spoken, pony, a trip to the mall shopping, spread over two opening times aren’t floors, with multi-storey parking top of the Rock on top. at the mercy of the siesta in the same way as But what truly turns shopping is a must Spain’s. in Gibraltar into a star attracMost shops open on tion are the extra-curricular Sundays, especially activities. when there is a cruise ship in town - an in- Whether by cable-car, taxi or Shanks's pony, creasingly frequent occurrence, with 227 a trip to the top of the Rock is a must for sen-
A family day out on the Rock Moorish Castle
Trafalgar cemetery
THE medieval fortification known as the Moorish Castle looms over Casemates Square like an ancient watchman, and is particularly attractive when lit up at night. A trip around the Tower of Homage and Gate House make for a fascinating trip back in time.
TRAFALGAR Cemetery radiates patriotism, with its nearby iconic statue of Admiral Nelson whose body was brought to the Rock after his heroic death.
Med steps THOSE looking to stretch their legs will find no better path than the Med Steps, a fantastically varied old route which twists and turns up the Rock starting from Jew’s Gate. It takes in tunnels, hundreds of old stone steps and magical views across the Straits of Gibraltar to Morocco.
Europa Point THE windswept southern tip of Gibraltar is the polar opposite of the busy town centre. Think quaint lighthouse, cottages, abandoned cricket pitch and wide open spaces, with a small cafe and play park next to the bus stop. New last year, this is also now the location of Gibraltar’s university.
Catalan Bay THE quaint fishing village of Catalan Bay is the antithesis of modern, buzzing Ocean Village. Located on the eastern side of the Rock, it consists of a motley collection of coloured homes bookended by the classy Caleta Hotel. It is the perfect place to escape the humdrum and unwind with a quiet drink overlooking a charming beach. Unless it’s summer, when the place is positively packed!
sational views and Barbary macaques, of course. St Michael’s Cave, Gibraltar’s spectacular stalagmite-strewn concert venue, and the siege and wartime tunnels that riddle the limestone rock like holes in Swiss cheese, are other boxes to tick. The neanderthals at the Gibraltar Museum, the leafy Alameda Gardens, historic Trafalgar cemetery, the ghosts at the Moorish Castle… they are all other great excuses to leave the ladies to their spending spree and escape, if shopping is not your bag! And if ye olde British pub is more your style, you’ll find plenty of those on and off Main Street and in Casemates Square selling draught lager and bitter and traditional pub grub. For something a little more Mediterranean, immaculate Ocean Village over the road from Casemates boasts more waterfront restaurants than you can shake a knife and fork at, along with the opportunity to dine at swanky La Sala Gibraltar aboard the Sunborn Yacht Hotel. Afterwards, you can doze off lunch in front of your favourite English movie at King’s Bastion Leisure Centre or, if you still have energy, challenge the family to a lively game of 10-pin bowling. Alternatively, leave the kids at home and save the money you didn’t spend on that new pair of jeans for the Admiral Casino. Gibraltar may no longer be the quintessential Yorkshire tea shop that first attracted Costa del Sol’s expats but it’s comforting to know you can still get it, along with trolley loads of family fun!
Upper Rock Nature reserve NO visit to Gibraltar is complete without a trip up the Rock, but the Barbary Macaques are not the only delight waiting to be discovered. The spectacular St Michael’s Cave is an unforgettable site, with its deep stalactite-dripping caverns. While the Great Siege Tunnels at the other end of the Upper Rock Nature Reserve provide a fascinating glimpse into Gibraltar’s military history, and a stark reminder why the Rock was so impenetrable.
Cable car IF you don’t fancy the gruelling hike, by far the best way to get to the top of the Rock is by the cable car which departs from MidTown. The views are sensational, as long as youre not scared of heights!
Alameda Gardens AT the heart of Gibraltar is the oasis that is Alameda Gardens, also known as the Botanical Gardens. They ooze tranquility and are immaculately maintained, providing a wonderful shaded spot to stroll.
Top tips for shopping in Gibraltar
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UROS are not legal tender in Gibraltar but virtually all shops will accept them. But beware that if you pay in euros you are accepting the exchange rate charged by the trader and this may be very different from the rate used by banks. There is no legislation to govern this and traders are free to charge whatever rate they like. Therefore, it would be better to change any euros into sterling at a bank locally or at one of the many exchange kiosks on Main Street. If you pay in euros your change will be in sterling. UK sterling is legal tender in Gibraltar, but beware, Gibraltar pounds are NOT legal tender in the UK. If you are going to a restaurant and want to pay in euros, ask what the exchange rate is BEFORE you order your food. If you think the rate is too high then you can choose to go elsewhere or go and change some money into sterling. Most bars and restaurants offer a reasonable exchange rate but don’t be caught out. It is too late once you have eaten your food and you are presented with a bill charging you a rate of €1.50 to the £1. You could also pay by credit card although sometimes there is a minimum charge so again, check before you place your order.
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A
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Gibraltar
March 16th - March 29th 2016
Our country needs EU!
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N our thriving and modern small nation, native Gibraltarians and people from Britain, Europe, and further flung corners of our planet, have been living and working together for over 300 years. So I always feel a little ambivalent about the description ‘expat’ which sounds rather outdated after so many decades within the European Union. The fact that many of you come over regularly to the Rock to share in our diet of British sausages, Sunday roasts and a pint down at the pub, is perhaps a simple reminder of the fact that British values and traditions are very much alive in all our hearts. But of course, those values are not just down to nosh. Democracy and fair play are just a couple of the traits that underpin our way of life. Many of you will be able to vote in the coming referendum as UK nationals living abroad who have been on the electoral reg-
In an exclusive heart-felt plea, Chief Minister Fabian Picardo QC welcomes visitors to the Rock… and calls for expats to vote to stay in the European Union ister in Britain over the past 15 but I would say that Brexit is years, and have therefore been simply about the practical reenfranchised. alities of a huge and costly We in Gibraltar will be voting divorce. en masse to stay, and I would This, in circumstances in which urge you all to also vote to re- Prime Minister David Cammain EU citieron has already zens. shown it is not If Brexit does In Spain impossible to alone there reverse many of occur the reality are some the issues that would be a whirl 319,000 poannoy us. tential BritThe way the EU of slow, chaotic, ish voters. conducts its horse trading The Rock has business can be 23,000. changed, and we All of us can steer Europe share similar concerns. and our national sovereignty in We also face real uncertain- the direction we choose, but ties, given that the British only if we remain members. Government itself has stated I suspect that those of us living unambiguously that Brexit is a in continental Europe have a step into the dark. deeper sense of the important I don’t believe in ‘Project Fear’, role the EU plays in underwrit-
ing our peace and prosperity. In practical terms, you will all be wondering what will happen to medical services and pensions, if the EU is no longer there to ensure you receive the same payments and services as you would at home in your member state, the UK. Don’t let it happen. Let’s avoid these pointless risks. If Brexit does occur the reality would be a whirl of slow, probably chaotic, horse trading and negotiating. It’s unlikely that any state will offer a service or facility to now ‘foreign residents’ that is not equally reciprocated by the UK, say, for Spaniards working and living there. Depending on who is in power in Madrid, Gibraltar could face uncertainty at the border. It
UNITED: Picardo and (right) Olive Press editor Jon Clarke is not about survival, but it is plus questions that can be about economics and quality avoided by joining in protecting our common interest and votof life. We in Gibraltar will fight on and ing to remain part of a dynamic prosper. But why break some- Europe. Please use your right to vote. thing that only needs fixing? Would Spain and/or the new ‘Stay’ and enjoy your life under EU want us all to have Schen- this splendid southern sun. And the best of British luck to gen visas? That’s just one in a thousand- us all!
Shining example The Budhrani family has been selling jewellery on Main Street since 1918 – and the business is still growing
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AKE a stroll down Main Street and you’ll walk past no less than seven jewellery stores owned by the Essardas Group. Come back in the summer and there’ll be eight. This family-run firm is very much part of the fabric of the Rock and has been growing and prospering here since 1918 when, through the ties between Gibraltar and the Commonwealth, Indian businessman Essardas Budhrani arrived to set up shop. Essardas had 11 children, and his large, hardworking family was able to keep the business going through two world wars and one border closure. His three great-grandsons who currently drive the business forward are confident the business will still be expanding when it hits its 100th anniversary in two years’ time. “We are a very, very strong family unit,” they say. “The key to our success is that we truly offer something for everyone, whether the budget is €30 or €30,000.” The Essardas Group prides itself on being able to offer extensive collections of certified Loose
Diamonds, which can be set for customers within two hours. The team of fully qualified Gemologists will assist you every step of the way. It also sells a fine selection of gold, diamond and gemstone set jewellery, along with dozens of prestigious brands of watches which include Hublot, Chopard, Zenith, Ulysse Nardin and Gucci to name a few. Another factor in the family’s success is its strong focus on customer service, using the simple motto ‘treat your customer the way you expect to be treated’. And then there is the location: the lively, pedestrianised Main Street, the perfect spot. “Main Street is a great shopping destination,” agrees Vikram. “It is extremely safe, and has that charming high street atmosphere which has been lost in the UK, but is stronger than ever in Gibraltar.” Of course, Gibraltar has the added benefit of being a tax-free jurisdiction - NO VAT, ‘meaning greater value offer here than across the border’. For more information visit www.essardasgroup.com
PERFECTLY PLACED: Essardas on Main Street for nearly 100 years
ESTABLISHED 1918
TAX-FREE SHOPPING
GROUP
OFFICIAL RETAILER:
GIBRALTAR FINE WATCHES & JEWELLERY
MARCO BICEGO
DIAMONDS
OUR STORES: JUST DIAMONDS, 15 MAIN STREET,
T: +350 200 51018
RADHIKA, 60 MAIN STREET,
T: +350 200 63360
ESSARDAS, 64 MAIN STREET,
T: +350 200 78441
HOURSTYLE, 105 MAIN STREET,
T: +350 200 66121
CROWN JEWELS, 121 MAIN STREET,
T: +350 200 77756
GEM 122 MAIN STREET, JEWELS & GEMS,
T: +350 200 48841
PANDORA BOUTIQUE, 133 MAIN STREET, E: CUSTOMERSERVICES@ESSARDASGROUP.COM
T: +350 200 77752
W: WWW.ESSARDASGROUP.COM
CERTIFIED DIAMONDS:
GIA
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Gibraltar is number one for bowling and movies at King’s Bastion Leisure Centre
Strike!
MEMORIAL: Europa Point tribute
Monumental conspiracy
NOT a lot of people know that Europa Point showcases a monument to a former Polish Prime Minister who lost his life in a freak plane crash on the Rock. Wladyslaw Eugeniusz Sikorski died in 1943, when his plane crashed into the sea just 16 seconds after taking off from Gibraltar Airport. At the time, the crash was attributed to cargo moving to the back of the plane during takeoff. But several conspiracy theories are still doing the rounds today. Shoddy maintenance causing the controls to jam, a deliberate crash-landing from the pilot (the only surviving passenger) are two of the most popular. And recently, various articles and films produced in Poland have claimed the general was murdered. In 2008 the Polish government ordered a reassessment of the accident, but could not reach a conclusion. One thing is certain: in the months before his death, Sikorski was proving to be a thorn in the side of the Russians as he promoted an independent Poland.
March 16th - March 29th 2016
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HEN it comes to bowling, Gibraltar scores a strike. The Rock’s bowling alley is a hugely popular venue for children’s birthday parties, and it’s great for adults looking for an alternative to sitting around in the same old bars. King’s Bowl & Bar is at the King’s Bastion Leisure Centre. It has 14 lanes and is open until midnight every day.
Advance bookings can be made for children’s parties and corporate events. The weekday cost is a steal at £3 per person per game, rising to £4 at weekends. Wheelchair access is available. Those who are really serious about their bowling can join the Gibraltar tenpin bowling association. It’s tantamount to a law that where there are bowling alleys there must be cinemas,
and Gibraltar complies with pleasure. King’s Bastion Leisure Centre has two cinema screenings rooms, one with 99 seats and the other, 136. Both have disabled access. Normally four films are shown each day, ranging from family entertainment to the latest blockbuster thriller, along with 3D spectaculars for the full, immersive experience.
Did you know?
CLOSED DOWN: Franco shut border
• The height of the Rock is approximately 426 metres or 1400 feet • The distance between Gibraltar and the coast of Africa is 24 kilometres or 15 miles • The Rock was formed approximately 200 million years ago and is composed of Jurassic Limestone • The UK pound can be used freely in Gibraltar, so there is no need to convert UK notes to Gibraltar ones. However, Gibraltar banknotes are not legal tender in the UK and will not be accepted there • In recent referendums the nearly 30,000 Gibraltarians who live on the Rock voted overwhelmingly to reject any involvement by Spain in their government • Queen Elizabeth II last visited Gibraltar in 1954 • The border was closed by Franco in 1969 and was shut for 13 years, only reopened partially for pedestrians in 1982 before being reopened fully in 1985
ROYAL VISIT: Queen in 1954
Get Creative
Easy to clean easel, double-sided chalk board and white board
I’m new
Forest friendly wooden easel
Includes paper roll and 4 paints
Doodle all the way to the bottom
Library Street,Gibraltar +35020041166
THE NATURAL
WONDERS
REQUEST A BROCHURE GIBRALTAR TOURIST BOARD e: info@gibraltar.gov.uk t: +44 (0) 207 836 0777 w: visitgibraltar.gi
visitgibraltar @visit_gibraltar @visitgibraltar
Image: The Reenactment Society, Main Street
#VISITGIBRALTAR
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Roman oasis
Vol. 10 Issue 235 www.theolivepress.es
Casares may be famous for its bread but with its amazing beach, breathtaking countryside and enchanting white village, you’ve got butter and jam on top, writes Iona Napier
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HE picture-perfect hilltop town of Casares has come a long way since neighbouring Gaucin coined the ditty: ‘In Casares buy bread and don’t hang around’ (‘En Casares compra pan y no te pares’). And given that Brad Pitt, Axl Rose and Peter Andre all had to ignore that advice, modern Casarenos have the last laugh. And then there is Julius Caesar, after whom the town got its name, when he dropped in for a dip in its healing waters a few centuries back. The Roman emperor is said to have taken to the healing, sulfurous waters of La Hedionda, currently under renovation (and sometimes falsely attributed to Manilva), below the town. Alleged to have been suffering from something of an itch, after a couple of days it is said to have cleared up and Caesar gave the tiny settlement his royal Roman seal of approval. It led to the town inheriting the name Caesaria, from which Casares eventually emerged, and for the spot to become sometimes known as the Roman oasis, not to be confused with the same name restaurant nearby. La Hedionda - which means foul smelling - is set in a beautifully lush valley, through which a footpath takes the more adventurous on a lovely hour or two hike up to the white village above. One of the Costa del Sol’s most stunning walks it criss-crosses rivers, takes in ruined mills and offers up some of the best scenery of karst rocks and distant mountains. Plan it well and you can take in one of the town’s fantastic restaurants for lunch, or alternatively take in one of the many other well signposted walks (there are 200kms of them in total) around the village. Wherever you head, you will inevitably see vultures, eagles, kestrels and other majestic birds of prey soaring over the vertiginous village. The village itself is well worth a poke around, with its
IDYLLIC: Classic view of the village, while (top, right) bust of its most famous visitor Julius Caesar
RestauRante Venta La Choza C/n 340km CasaRes tuRn off foR Doña JuLia goLf teL. 952 890 925 www.ventalachoza.com
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COSTA DE L S OL
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charming white streets and handful of shops and restaurants. It is one of the most photographed of Andalucia’s celebrated pueblo blancos and is topped by a ruined castle and church. Such is its fame that Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie recently took a spin around the village, allegedly ending up buying bought two pieces of art at the Studio 54 gallery. TV presenter-turned-politician Robert Kilroy Silk liked the place so much he bought an incredible mansion on the outskirts, which he sold last summer. The area also boasts a large expat population, with Casares Costa officially hosting 1,000 Brits among its population of 2,570, although the expat presence is considerably higher than the latest padron (electoral role) suggests. It is no surprise, having one of the coast’s best beaches, stunning views and excellent connections to Sabinillas one side and Estepona the other. Dublin journalist Diarmaid MacDermott is just one of many smitten expats. He arrived in 2001 and now broadcasts a weekly summary of the news in English on Radio Casares. “I fell in love with Casares when I first came here almost 15 years ago,” MacDermott told the Olive Press. “The beaches were lovely, the old town interesting and the people were friendly and open. I like the contrast between the mountains, where Casares is situated, and the coast only a 12km drive away.” He added: “It is a good base to visit many other interesting places in Andalucia, with Gibraltar and Marbella within easy reach and the Costa de la Luz only a short drive away.” For a more authentic Spanish experience, head to Secadero
A slice of paradise TIMELESS: Swim in Casares’ roman oasis
Catalogue of events The cultural calendar includes Culture Week which brings street theatre, flamenco and a book fair to town from April 25-30, and an annual summer music festival in June or July. Duracell bunnies can take on the 21km Mountain Race Challenge on April 10, while there is also a ‘beginners’ race of 10km and a 500m kids race. Meanwhile film junkies are being invited to make their own Casares blockbuster for the third edition of the Andalucian Film Festival, split in two parts: the 48-hour film competition (June 3-5) and the main festival with Spanish screenings (June 6-11). where the orange tree plantations extend for hectares. You might even bump into its most famous resident, Europe’s number one amateur golfer Mario Galiano who continues to make the locals proud of his killer
People of Casares Rosario Lorin has lived in Casares for 26 years and runs Ecotours Casares from the tourist office
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STUNNING: View to Africa
FORTRESS: Overlooking Casares beach From Page 25
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swing. With three courses, Dona Julia, Casares Costa and world-famous Finca Cortesin he gets plenty of practice. The latter is one of Andalucia’s leading courses with a stunning five-star hotel to match. While Real Madrid forward Gareth Bale and Everton captain Phil Jagielka have been spotted
playing the course, celebrities including Axl Rose, from Guns and Roses, Patrick Stewart, from Star Trek and Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt are said to have stayed there. But Casares has also become synonymous for something else over the last couple of decades… dining! It’s famous road up to the coast counts no less than half a dozen excellent places to eat, while the village itself also counts a couple of top eateries. See On restuarnat road on page 28. Head out of town on the Gaucin road to find emblematic Queseria Sierra Crestellina cheese factory, where you can buy day-old fresh cheese, two-month-old semicured and four-month-old cured cheese. Running for four generations, there are farm tours for the kids and tastings, and a ‘make-yourown-cheese’ day. First, milk your goat! Back down on the coast, a new beach scheme will introduce kayaks, a massage service and more help for the disabled this year, while the town has now applied for blue flag status. It is down here on June 23, that you will find one of Casares’ best nights out. Celebrating the longest day of the year San Juan is hard to beat with its fireworks, live music and massive beach bonfire. As long as you wash your face and feet three times in the sea, a happy year is guaranteed… I did it last year and I haven’t looked back!
“Casares is popular with tourists but at the same time it conserves its traditions and its village life. It’s not like other places on the Costa del Sol, it’s more authentic and has beautiful views and great walks in every direction.”
Montse Espinilla lives in Casares del Sol and runs an artisan shop on Calle Villa “Casares has everything: mountains, sea, nature and tranquillity – everything you could ask for for a good life well lived.” PICTURESQUE: Pueblo blanco and (inset) Galiano
Food fest
The annual food festival (jornadas gastronomicas) on April 23-24 turns the streets into an open market with stalls groaning under the weight of cheeses made from the endangered Payoya goat, ‘chivo’ kid meat and the town’s signature bread.
SCENIC: Hike through Hedionda valley
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C asares P ueblo
eblo
Pu Casares
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LA ANTIGUA VENTA NUEVA
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One of the oldest spots in the village, there are few nicer places to sit and watch the world go by than at la Antigua Venta Nueva. There is a nice wine list, which includes some local wines and dishes including garlic goat, duck breast and langoustines in Jack Daniels! Owners Nicholas and Monica open it for breakfast too.
OPENING HOURS: 10:00 - 16:30 / 20:00 - 00:30 CLOSED: Tuesday Plaza de España Nº 17 · Casares Pueblo
Tel. 610 345 182
10.
MI CORTIJO
When you finally arrive in Casares Mi Cortijo takes some beating, with its amazing views of the white town and a coquettish French host Elizabeth, who knows how to knock up a decent lunch. A real queen of the kitchen she has fantastic foie gras, wild boar stew and other authentic local dishes.
It’s route one (to 1 fans... the road up one of the true gou Andalucia, writes D Andalucia.com edi
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LA BODEGUITA DE EN MEDIO
With its amazing top floor terrace for summer and charming dining room with views of the sea in winter, the Bodeguita is a place for all seasons. Boasting a very seasonal menu, including mushrooms in winter and the best fish in summer, it also has loads of local classics such as stew and lentils. In the heart of the village, it is important to book your table in advance.
7.
ARROYO
Things reall citing when chef Ch nese wife Noriko op a decade ago. A t Christian honed hi and the Far East. Th weekly and he use produce. With an e dishes, with a twis include such delig tail with Parmesan truffle oil and king p a Wakame salad a You might find Tem with ‘nam jim’ dress salad. They also of through the winter, like loin of venis jamon serrano and His miso cod also ro
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THE FORGE
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VENTA VICTORIA
The grandfather of the modern restaurant scene in Casares is The Forge. Opened two decades ago by Michael and Athene Forge, this 200-year-old farmhouse is elegant in the extreme and has a fabulous menu to match. Thanks to the couple’s love of jazz and theatre, it is little surprise to discover numerous stars have dined in this charming spot over the years. Sit on the terrace or the candle-lit dining room and opt for exciting starters such as Devils on Horseback (melt-in-yourmouth chicken livers wrapped in bacon) or spicy minced lamb ‘empanadas’. Mains include Cape Malay chicken curry and roast rack of lamb and a superb pudding is chestnut cheesecake. The punters keep coming back.
Open since 1942, charming Venta Victoria is one of the most authentic places to eat, beautifully decorated inside and with a nice dining terrace, sheltered from the sun and wind, at the back. Open most of the day, expect to eat the most hearty of meals, including lamb chops, bull’s cheeks and stew.
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VENTA GARCIA
Previously a spit and sawdust ‘truck stop’, today Venta Garcia has an Ibizan feel with chic urban lines and a fantastic use of light. Broadly ‘modern Spanish’ the menu is enticing with an emphasis on quality ingredients and good, solid cooking. Busy at weekends, it has been in the same Casares family for three generations.
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RESTAURANT ROAD
10) for food to Casares is urmet routes in Dining Secrets of itor Jon Clarke
I
T was once a brassic backwater where local transport was by donkey and the main reason to come was to collect wood and esparto grass, to weave baskets and shoes. Today, the road from the coast to Casares is a true foodies’ paradise full of veritable dining secrets, where those-in-the-know come for a cheeky lunch or a gourmet weekend. As editor of www.diningsecretsofandalucia.com I have long headed into these hills to seek out its chestnuts, often combined with a lovely walk. “The Casares road has long been known as the place to come and eat,” explains Michael Forge,
O HONDO
Plaza España, 15 / Casares Pueblo OPENING HOURS: 12:00 - 16:00 & 20:00 till late CLOSED ON MONDAY 667 511 811 - 952 894 036 VENTA COZAR
It may be a venta in style but this places oozes charm and warmth and sits with stunning views to the hills and coast. Run by Andres Cozar and his wife Loli for the last two decades, it specialises in meats cooked on the bbq, as well as other classics such as beef stew with mushrooms and the emblematic oxtail meat balls, as well as rabbit in garlic sauce. Friendly in the extreme, at weekends punters come from as far as Gibraltar and Malaga.
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EL JARDIN/KABUKI
For those with deep pockets looking for a real treat head into Finca Cortesin, one of the true high-end, glamour spots of the Costa del Sol. Here, you will find two excellent restaurants, the first, El Jardin, run by German Lutz Bosing and the second, Kabuki, which was recently awarded a Michelin star. El Jardin has a distinct Portuguese feel with a fantastic terrace for lunch and warm summer evenings. Kabuki Raw is an Asian-influenced fusion joint, where you will appreciate creativity at its very best.
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an English expat, who opened his restaurant The Forge with his wife Athene two decades ago. An atmospheric place, set in stunning wooded scenery, he adds: “It sort of happened out of the blue and in summer you often need to book a week in advance if you want a table.” Fellow chef at Arroyo Hondo Christian RobsonBurrell believes that it is the healthy mix of styles and ‘bags of ideas’ that has helped to turn the road into a true ‘ruta gastronomica’. “There are none of the usual boring ventas and each place has its own USP with everything from modern Spanish to traditional mother’s cooking and the Asian influence,” he estimates. “And above all, we all work hard.” Going from the bottom to the top of the hill, here are your best picks:
ly started to get exhristian and his Japapened Arroyo Hondo true Dining Secret, is skills in London he menu is changed es mostly seasonal emphasis on quality st, the menu might ghts as braised oxn gnocci with white prawn tempura with and Ponzu dressing. mpura soft shell crab sing and a sea weed ffer plenty of game r, as well as dishes son wellington with d mushroom duxelle. ocks.
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VENTA LA CHOZA
The tour begins at the bottom of the MA-546, beside Playa Ancha beach, with its ancient watchtower. Here, you will find historic Venta la Choza, beside the N-340 main road with its turn off up to Dona Julia golf. A friendly spot run by a local family, it is an authentic and attractive place to eat, with some real chestnuts such as clam and mushroom stew, which is delicious, and a Parmesan and spinach crepe, which oozes with goodness, not to mention king prawns with cream and boiled rice and shoulder of lamb.
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Swooping down for lunch IT is almost impossible to spend a day in Casares without spotting at least one large bird gliding overhead. And when we say large, we mean very, very large, for the large colony of vultures that lives nearby have wingspans of up to 2.8m. These scavengers are majestic griffon vultures,
who have made their home in limestone formations on the western side of the Sierra Crestellina. Circling around overhead, they keep a watchful eye out for dead animals and for the farming community, and the vultures are generally helpful for clearing away carrion, although they have also
Blas Infante - the ‘father of Andalucia’ - was born in Casares and gave his life for the region, writes Tom Powell
T
HE ‘father of Andalucia’ and a son of Casares, Blas Infante is as much a part of the region as the vultures and eagles soaring above it. The writer and politician was born and schooled in the village of Casares, where he is now immortalised through a small museum in the very house in which he entered the world in 1885. He is most famous for sowing the seed of Andalucian nationalism, designing the flag, composing the anthem and fighting non-stop for the region’s ‘self governing statute’. He wrote a book titled ‘Andalucian ideal’ and delivered Andalucia’s first ever Assembly in nearby Ronda in 1918. He was also elected council representative for the district of Gaucin-Casares-Estepona in 1918, a year before he
married Angustias Garcia Pradas, with whom he had three daughters and a son. In 1936, after the February elections, the Andalucian campaign intensified and Blas Infante was proclaimed President of the new assembly. However, his political ideals did not sit well with the fascist Franco regime and in August that year, as civil war broke out, he was arrested at his house in Sevilla and locked away in an old cinema.
Tragically, nine days later, without trial or sentence, he and two others were driven away and then shot dead at the side of the main road to Carmona. As his body crumpled to the ground, he is believed to have roared: “Long live free Andalucia!” Nowadays, his memory is
‘Long live free Andalucia!’ ICONIC: Infante and (right) tiles in the village
honoured in Casares with the placing of flowers at the base of his statue every year in plaza de Espana.
Country living
T
Accounting laboral Contracts Fiscal Company book keeping Self employed Insurance Estate administration
Pedro González Valadez 648 92 80 57 / 952 89 40 81
Colegiado Nº 2714
been known to carry off the occasional new-born goat. The vultures have become very much a part of Casares, featuring in everything from art all the way through t o school-yard tales, with children at the local school pointing in delight as they swoop past.
HEY represent properties all over Andalucia, but there’s a reason Oscar Ernsten and Anita Schmidt chose Casares as their home. The founders of Villas & Fincas Country Properties fell in love with the region’s stunning natural setting the moment they set eyes on it. And now more than ever they recognise what a ‘privilege’ it is to live in such beautiful countryside. “The current legislation prevents all building on rustic land, so we cherish what we have,” states Oscar. “Sales over the last two years have been booming and we’ve noticed that clients realise how unique these villas and estates are.” A country house in Casares offers privacy, stunning views and various hiking and biking trails, yet is still just a 10-minute drive from the coast and its facilities. Many estates have excellent equestrian facilities too, while the toll road towards either Malaga or Gibraltar is close by. The larger estates, which tend to be located towards the Gaucin area, offer owners the possibility to plant a vine- TEAM: (From left) Aurelia Perez Romo, Luna Lane Notario, Anita Schmidt and Oscar yard or establish their very own olive Ernstsen and (below) one of their properties grove. “What joins the people here is the love for nature, peace and tranquility, yet none of us want to be isolated,” adds Anita. “Our children go to international schools on the coast, which are still within half an hour’s drive and we also like to join the hustle and bustle of the coast every now and then.” Villas & Fincas Country Properties Barriada de los Ponis 8b 29690 Casares 952895139 info@villasfincas.com www.villasfincas.com
The founders of Villas & Fincas Country Properties discuss the privilege of rural Casares life
www.theolivepress.es
the Olive Press November 11th - 25th 2015
Villas & Fincas | Casares Property Agent Ctra. de Casares s/n, 29690 Casares Malaga SPAIN Phone: + 34 952 895 139 Mobile: +34 636 546 796 E-mail: info@villasfincas.com
March 2nd - March 15th 2016
Villas & Fincas is specialising in Luxury Country Villas, Equestrian Properties, Haciendas & Cortijos, Hunting Estates, Vineyards and Olive Farms in Andalusia. Call us now to list your property, we have clients waiting for Luxury Country Properties, Vineyards, Quality Equestrians and Hunting Estates. Ref. Nr. 186-00466P
Ref. Nr. 186-00472P
HACIENDA, CASARES – POA €
CASARES – 2.450.000 €
Bedrooms: m² Built: Pool: Garden:
Bedrooms: m² Built: m² Terrace: Garden:
EXCEPTIONAL COUNTRY ESTATE, HACIENDA 10 2.160 Yes Yes
Bathrooms: 12 m² Plot: 368.000 Pool: Yes
LUXURY COUNTRY VILLA, PRIVATE, LARGE PLOT 4 502 150 Private
Bathrooms: m² Plot: Pool: Garage:
Ref. Nr. 186-00242P
4 23.115 Private Yes
Ref. Nr. 186-00280P
CASARES – 1.950.000 €
SPACIOUS PROPERTY WITH STUNNING SEA VIEWS
Bedrooms: m² Built: Garage: Garden:
5 332 Private Private
Bathrooms: 3 m² Plot: 12.300 Pool: Private
Ref. Nr. 186-00238P
Ref. Nr. 186-00026P
CASARES MONTAÑA – 895.000 €
CASARES MONTAÑA – 790.000 €
CASARES – 790.000 €
Bedrooms: m² Built: Garage: Garden:
Bedrooms: m² Built: Garage: Garden:
Bedrooms: m² Built: m² Terrace: Garden:
LUXURY COUNTRY VILLA IN A PRIVATE SETTING 4 361 Private Private
Bathrooms: 3 m² Plot: 20.500 Pool: Private
COUNTRY VILLA WITH SENSATIONAL SEA VIEWS 5 228 Private Private
Bathrooms: 3 m² Plot: 20.000 Pool: Private
SPACIOUS COUNTRY HOUSE, PANORAMIC VIEWS 4 287 45 Private
Bathrooms: 4 m² Plot: 3.869 Pool: Private
Ref. Nr. 186-00471P
Ref. Nr. 186-00470P
Ref. Nr. 186-00196P
CASARES – 785.000 €
CASARES – 725.000 €
CASARES – 675.000 €
Bedrooms: m² Built: Garage: Garden:
Bedrooms: m² Built: m² Interior: Garden:
Bedrooms: m² Built: m² Terrace: Garden:
SUPERB VILLA WITH SPECTACULAR SEA VIEWS 3 268 Private Private
Bathrooms: 2 m² Plot: 10.000 Pool: Private
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SUPERB VILLA WITH SPECTACULAR SEA VIEWS 4 316 316 Private
Bathrooms: 3 m² Plot: 10.000 Pool: Private
SPACIOUS COUNTRY HOUSE, FINCA, SEA VIEWS
FOLLOW US ON:
3 210 100 Private
Bathrooms: 3 m² Plot: 4.340 Pool: Private
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RABBING food out of bags, snatching someone’s glasses and sneaking through a kitchen window... but this one takes some beating. This little monkey has a penchant for all things sweet, including a can of coke. Now numbering around 300, the Barbary Macaques are the only wild monkeys in Europe. A major tourist attraction, but also at times a vicious menace, and, according to folklore it has long been claimed that Gibraltar will no longer be British if the monkeys leave. Winston Churchill certainly appeared to believe so, shipping over extra macaques from North Africa when their population fell to just seven during the Second World War. Signs have sprung up warning people to steer clear of the monkeys and feeding them is illegal, punishable by a fine, yet attacks continue to grow more and more frequent.
Photos by Jon Clarke
Have a coke and a smile as Gibraltar’s apes get ever cheekier and more of a menace, writes Tom Powell
MAJESTIC: An ape at the top of the Rock and (inset) inspecting a Coke can
Last year, one Gibraltar family came back from work to find that their kitchen had been raided. “It was a huge shock. They had taken a lot of food and made a hell of a mess,” said a friend. Environment minister Dr John Cortes, a biologist, warned that they have ‘lost their fear of humans’, at the launch of a 2012 Government campaign to increase public awareness of their dangers. Traditionally Gibraltar’s most famous residents have roamed free on the rock’s upper reaches, but a cull of 25 was ordered in 2008 when they began to descend upon the tourist hot-spots of Catalan Bay and Sandy Bay. With the monkeys now making themselves at home in the built-up areas, some tourists and residents are calling for stricter measures to avoid attacks.
FINE: For feeding monkeys
Women Men Children
Main Street Gibraltar
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Gibraltar
March 2nd - March 15th 2016
Pocket of patriotism HERO: Statue of Nelson for a state funeral and burial at St Paul’s cathedral. However, he was initially taken to Gibraltar’s Rosia Bay, in his ship HMS Victory, where his body was put in a vat of rum to conserve it, before being sent to the UK. But the connection goes deeper, before his heroic death Nelson would have been a regular on the Rock, especially at naval haunts like the Victualling Yard and Old Naval Hospital. And it was his close friend Aaron Cardozo – a wealthy Gibraltarian merchant – who inherited Nelson’s medal commemorating his victory in the Battle of the Nile.
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Marry in style
T’S the perfect symbol for enduring love; a Rock so solid that nothing can break it down. And for decades Gibraltar has been luring couples in from the the world over to tie the knot. John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s rather impromptu registry office affair is the most famous, but many other celebrities have followed suit. Names include Hollywood couple Lawrence Harvey and Margaret Leighton, best-selling crime writer Frederick Forsyth, Status Quo frontman Rick Parfitt and comedian Des O’Connor. Although James Bond actor Sean Connery’s 1962 Gibraltar wedding to actress Diane Cilento ended in divorce, he was sufficiently shaken and Caption stirred to return in 1975 to marry present wife Micheline Boglio Roquebrune. Of course, there are also thousands who descend on Gibraltar every year to celebrate the happiest day of their life who aren’t famous. Interestingly, only around one PICTURE PERFECT: Wedding snap on Alcaidesa beach third of couples are from the UK. The other hotels, including the O’Callaghan Eliott in two thirds comer from America, Canada the town centre and the Rock Hotel. and the world over. For a more natural and tranquil setting, The Rock is a simple, quick (only 24 hours head to Alameda Botanical Gardens. First notice is required) and easy place to wed, developed in 1816 to provide Gibraltar’s plus it’s almost guaranteed sunshine and residents with a green space to rest and there’s no shortage of top venues to cel- relax, they have grown into a place of seebrate afterwards. rene beauty. One of the best is Queensway Quay, where At their heart is the Dell, an Italian-style the Waterfront restaurant offers a special garden designed in 18420, where wedwedding service, including a mouthwater- dings are also permitted. ing menu. (Lobster thermidor and choco- If it’s unbeatable views you’re after, Mons late fondue, anyone?) Calpe Suite is located within the Cable It’s the perfect place to unwind after a cer- Car’s top station. “It is a very special venemony in one of Gibraltar’s top-quality, ful- ue which has now been recognised by a ly licensed wedding venues which includes leading wedding magazine, which is a fit-
Gibraltar has all the facilities to create an unforgettable wedding
Photo by Jon Segui
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ESPITE its name, Trafalgar cemetery is home to just two victims of 1805’s almighty battle. Instead, many tombstones commemorate those who died in three devastating yellow fever epidemics around the same time. Nonetheless, this tiny pocket of Gibraltar still radiates patriotism. Its moss-covered graves and low-hanging branches could tempt anyone in for a moment of reflection. The cemetery was abandoned for many years until a huge restoration effort in the 1980s. Each year on the Sunday closest to the battle of Trafalgar (October 21), the Royal Navy holds a ceremony here. While most of those that died at Trafalgar were buried at sea, Lord Nelson’s body was transported back to London
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ting tribute to my entire team,” said manager Fernando Valdivielso Gomez. Finally there is the Mount, a former residence of the Royal Navy’s senior officer, which boasts wonderful gardens. Weddings in Gibraltar have become a significant part of the tourist trade, and thus services have blossomed to cater for that. Professional photographers, makeup artists and florists can be easily arranged, either through the venue or externally. The government website offers information on marriage in Gibraltar and the requirements, while enquiries can also be addressed to the Registration Office or recognised travel agents and wedding planners.
Abacus is now offering Qualifying Recognised Pension Schemes (QROPS).
Take control of your retirement dreams
CEO Chris Pitaluga commented, “We have been contemplating entering the pension market for some time and are delighted to launch the Prosperity QROPS, our first QROPS under the Abacus branding.” He further commented, “Abacus is committed to Gibraltar as a jurisdiction and we aim to attract the highest quality introducers as part of our long term plan.” Our Prosperity QROPS could be of benefit to you if you currently have a UK Registered Pension scheme and are living abroad or intend to do so. Deciding on the right pension plan is a fundamental part of retirement planning and will have a significant impact on your retirement lifestyle. Why not benefit from the following? • Increased tax efficiency. • Wider investment control and flexibility. • Income withdrawals from age 55. • Exemption from the UK Lifetime Allowance test. • Pass on your pension fund to future generations. • The simplicity of consolidating all your UK pensions into one QROPS. If you, or your independent financial adviser, feel that a QROPS may be the right solution for you to achieve your retirement aspirations, please contact us. We are here to help.
OUR PROSPERITY QROPS CAN MAKE IT A REALITY
For further Information contact:
For further Information contact:
Joanne Rodriguez or Erica Power
Joanne Rodriguez or Erica Power Abacus Pensions Trustees Limited (Gibraltar Office) T: +350 200 78267 Ext 530 E: pension.services@abacus.gi
© Abacus Financial Services Limited Licensed by the FSC no.702481
www.abacus.gi
Abacus Pensions Trustees Limited (Gibraltar Office) T: +350 200 78267 Ext 530 E: pension.services@abacus.gi
© Abacus Financial Services Limited Licensed by the FSC no.702481
www.abacus.gi
www.theolivepress.es
the Olive Press November 11th - 25th 2015
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Get Married on Gibraltar`s Waterfront! A Traditional British Wedding at the gate of the Mediterranean · W edding M enu ·
“The Waterfront is an approved venue for the celebration of civil marriages and civil partnerships in Gibraltar. Please call 200 45666 for a personal consultation with our friendly team”
STARTeR Crispy serrano ham on a garlic croute topped with quails eggs Herb crusted lamb cutlets served with a crispy leek & artichoke salad King prawns wrapped in smoked pancetta drizzled with watercress dressing MAIN COURSE Fillet steak with boulangere potatoes & bernaise sauce Lobster thermidore served with wild rice & market fresh salad Pan seared salmon served with asparagus, almondine potato and champagne & chive sauce DESSERT Chocolate fondue with homemade salted caramel ice cream Millionaire’s cheesecake Cheese board & biscuits
4/5 Ragged Staff Wharf, Queensway Quay, Gibraltar · +350 200 45666 Email: waterfrontrestaurant@gmail.com
www.thewaterfrontgib.com
"Quote the code "LOVE2016" when contacting The Waterfront to receive your exclusive reader discount or special gift."
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March 16th - March 29th 2016
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HISTORY GUARANTEED!
FAMOUS FACES: (from left) Guinness, Churchill and Flynn have all stayed at The Rock Hotel (above) RROL Flynn, Alec Guinness and Win- that opened in 1932. the sensitivity towards the historical design of ston Churchill are just some of the fa- The hotel’s famous brilliant white façade is the original building. mous names that appear in the guest seen for miles around and boasts a beautiful “The hotel’s 1930’s origins are evident in the books for the Rock Hotel, an institution reception and entrance lobby which reflects subtle colours and timeless decoration combining an element of the colonial with more contemporary touches”, explains General Manager Charles Danino. These days the hotel prides itself on exceptional customer service as well as the highest level of food, beverages, event and dining experiences. It is a top class hotel to be enjoyed by the local corporate and leisure community as well as the global traveller. Head Chef Alfred Rodriguez, 57, has been with The Rock Hotel since his late teens, while also having spent some HONOURED: time away working on the QE2 Gomez and for the Roux brothers at London’s Michelin-starred Le Gavroche. “I am always looking for new dishes to create with a high quality and selection of ingredients available through local suppliers as well as from Morocco,” he says. The Rock Hotel offers comfort“The uniable bedrooms and a new conversity is ference and banqueting facility a great and private terrace which adds example to the hotel’s already extensive of how Spain and is confident that the University exterior space, which includes Gibraltar of Gibraltar will forge closer ties the much loved Wisteria Terrace, can work with Cadiz university over the which has been enhanced offering an al fresco venue for all-day together next few years. through education.” In fact, The University of Cadiz has taken a spe- dining. He added: “The most exciting thing about work- cial interest in Gibraltar, holding a lecture on Corporate events can be held on the private Sunset Terrace and ing at the university, is that they view the re- the Rock every year since 1980. gion - Andalucia, Gibraltar and northern Moroc- “From next semester I hope to hold lectures at Victory Suite as well as the pool co - as one place. the University of Gibraltar for students in Ca- in the evening and the Khaima poolside marquee. “The general consensus is that politics should diz,” he continued. not interfere with progress and research, espe- “It would be great to see other Spanish univer- Visit www.rockhotelgibraltar.com cially in relation to international law.” sities team up with Gibraltar in order to share Gomez, who found- each other’s resources.” ed his law firm Go- Currently working on two projects, Gomez mez and Co in 1988, hopes to publish a paper on the political camhas been holding paigns since August 2013 and a historical looklectures on English back at the political set up on the Rock since legal language at the 18th century. the university, as As well as a running a busy and varied court well as other parts practice and providing advice on all matters of of Andalucia for Gibraltar law, Gomez’s company also specialSpanish law stu- ises in conveyancing and property law. dents. With a department dedicated to property law, He also hosts lec- Gomez and Co. provides a competitive fastturers closer to track scheme to ensure that the purchase, sale home at the Garri- or lease of property always runs smoothly. son library at differ- Serving Gibraltar’s two largest trading compaent times through- nies as well as a number of smaller firms, Goout the year. mez also represented the government when the Now Gomez, who is Rock was slandered in Spanish daily ABC last regularly involved year. in high level court For more information visit www.lawequitygibralcases on the Rock, tar.com LUXURIOUS: The hotel
The grand dame of Gibraltar The Rock Hotel has put up everyone from Winston Churchill to Errol Flynn
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The long arm of the law!
Gibraltarian barrister Charles Gomez is healing border tensions as he makes history with Spanish University honour, writes Rob Horgan
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BARRISTER is leading the way in improving border relations with Spain. Charles Gomez has made history as the first Gibraltarian to be appointed an honorary professor by a Spanish university. Working with the University of Cadiz over the past few years, Gomez is hoping his accolade is a sign of better relations between the neighbouring countries. Awarded for his work within the faculty of international law in Cadiz, Gomez told the Olive Press he was truly humbled by the award. “It was a massive surprise for me,” he explained. “Obviously it is great to be personally recognised but the award says just as much about the university as it does about my own achievements.
UNIS UNITED: In Cadiz and (above) Gibraltar
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Lunching like a Lord
Jon Clarke picks out a selection of interesting spots to eat on the Rock WHERE TO EAT
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T’S the Gibraltar equivalent of Piccadilly Circus and there is no better place to watch the world go by than on Casemates Square. For fine dining on the square look no further than Café Solo, while if you are after pub grub then Lord Nelson is a complete winner. Steak and Ale pie is a personal favourite, while the fish and chips and all day breakfast are very popular with hungry visitors. There are loads of beers on draught and, naturally, all the best sporting events are on the screens.
Another institution, also big on its coffee is Sacarello’s, in Irish Town, which has been serving up a decent brew for nearly two centuries. A true Gibraltar haunt for
WATCH THE WORLD GO BY: At Lord Nelson morning coffee, lunch, afternoon tea or supper, this charming old spot also counts on one of the best private art collections on the Rock.
This is all thanks to current boss Patrick Sacarello, 64, who is a huge art lover and regularly travels to exotic countries to acquire his paintings. It was his great-grandfather
Bartholomew who founded the existing business in 1888, following in the footsteps of his Italian grandfather, a trader, who had arrived on the Rock in 1817. “Although I studied at a Lon-
don university, I ended up coming back to coffee because it’s such a beautiful business.” For a more formal fine dining experience you should head to charming Queensway Quay, a milliowwnaires’ playground, where houses start around the £4.2 million mark.
Excellent
Here, you will find the excellent Landings restaurant, which has counted John Prescott, First Minister Fabian Picardo and a variety of Coronation Street stars as guests. “We get a lot of wealthy yachtie types too,” explains owner Ann Hudson, who heralds from the south coast of England. Last, but not least, the hottest place to dine is aboard the Sunborn hotel, where you will find La Sala.
HISTORY HOUSE: Sacarello family (right) have brewed coffee for centuries
FINE DINING: La Sala on the Sunborn
Largest selection of draught beers on the Rock!
COFFEE SHOP & RESTAURANT
FULLY AIR CONDITIONED FREE WIFI AVAILABLE
Full menu served all day including British Fish & Chips HMS Victory All Day Breakfast Nelson’s Steak & Ale Pie Salads - Wraps - Burgers & more Find us in the corner of Casemates Square www.lordnelson.gi +350 200 50009
Try Our “Just Roasted” Family Coffee from the Oldest Coffee Shop in Town Varied Lunch & Snack Menu · Salad & Quiche Bar Regional Specials & Pasta · Home-made Cakes · Afternoon Teas Busy Local Atmosphere & Arts Venue. All in a converted 19th Century Merchant’s House on the “Old Commercial Street”
57 Irish Town · Gibraltar
T. +350 200 70625 /Sacarellos-Coffee-shop
www.sacarellosgibraltar.com
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March 2nd - March 15th 2016
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the Olive Press June 25th - July 9th 2015
March 16th - March 29th 2016
Ghost town awakes AN infamous Spanish ‘ghost town’ has started to come back to life. El Quinon, about 30 miles south of Madrid, opened in 2007 and became a desolate monument to Spain’s burst property bubble when the recession struck in 2008. Prices for a three-bedroomed, 100-square metre flats in the complex near Sesena now cost around €100,000, up from €50,000 in 2011. The number of residents is now 6,411, double the figure of two years ago.
ICONIC: Edificio Espana
Magic Wanda
MADRID mayor Manuela Carmena is adamant a landmark Madrid building will be refurbished by the Chinese-owned Wanda Group. Reports had suggested Wanda were pulling out of the deal to renovate Edificio Espana, which it bought for €265 million from Santander bank in July 2014. Carmena has denied she even met with Wanda’s head to discuss the matter. “Wanda is staying in Madrid,” Carmena said. “They are delighted to stay and we are delighted that they are staying.” Wanda had intended to turn the building into a shopping complex, but Madrid’s Local Historical Heritage Committee had said the facade and side wings of the building couldn’t be removed.
11+
years experience in
ALL PROPERTY MATTERS
RICS SURVEYORS & VALUERS BYBUILDING CAMPBELL FERGUSON
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New builds
BUILDINGS are popping up across the country as a new construction boom is in full
Price is right RUBBLE: Regeneration begins and (below) iconic plaza
Demolition day By Rob Horgan A STRING of buildings have been torn down in the historic centre of Estepona, to make way for an underground car park and a brand new hotel. Major regeneration of the old town has been put into motion as the town hall continues its plans to boost tourism. Two cafes and a number of
Iconic streets reduced to rubble as millions of euros is spent on Estepona’s Old Town small shops have been torn down off quaint Plaza de las Flores to make way for a 740 m2 hotel. The 42-bedroom Maravilla Palace has cost private investors €10 million and will
Sit and wait Tension builds around UK Referendum in June
VERYBODY is follow getting exit is such a strong possibilFor peace of mind awfully excited about ity that they will want to sell these property buying the possibility of rules the out now before the chaos
UK Referendum in June showing a decision to exit the EU. Find Your Property Decision day is three and a half months away so there’s going to be a huge amount written about it in that time, bothInstruct informative andInstruct scaremongering. Building Surveyor Lawyer For householders here, all we really can do is sit and wait. There doesn’t appear to be any informative planning so far, soBuy there is Knowledge really little that with can (or needs to) be done un& Confidence less one assumes that there is going to be an exit. My own opinion is that Brexit is unlikely, but many will not +34 952 923 520 with us! let facts get in the wayConnect of their admin@surveyspain.com advice and decisions! surveyspain.com However, in the short term it’s likely that we will see some delaying of decisions from UK buyers/investors due to the uncertainty, which will show itself as reduction in demand. It’s much easier to keep the money in the bank for a short time, ‘just in case’. Equally, there will be some people who consider that
RISING UP: Sesena
they assume will happen the day after the decision is announced. Accordingly, the gradual increase in prices that we have seen is likely to slow or even marginally reverse as we see some ‘distressed’ sellers willing to drop their price in order to achieve a quick sale. For those of a bolder nature, and for all the other nationalities who are not going to be affected, these will provide opportunities. All the statistics are showing prices rising, principally due to foreign demand, but with a sprinkling of Spanish investors. The attitude of the Spanish banks to British purchasers looking for a mortgage will be interesting over the period until the referendum, with them perhaps looking upon UK applicants with a slightly more jaundiced view. On the other hand, others are looking at Brexit from the EU as being a positive thing for the UK and therefore the
pound could strengthen in the medium term, thus ensuring easier repayment of mortgages that involve cross currencies. When one looks back, the residential Costa experience has been principally supported by UK buyers and their loss would be disastrous for the local and indeed the national economy. For this reason, I see there being little likelihood of change in the medium term. Other matters that I’ve talked about in the past, such as the licensing of residential lettings with all the openness that involves, and the declaration of worldwide assets, will continue to have more effect upon the market and be controllable 100% by Spanish administration and bureaucracy. Hopefully, we’ll still be seeing Ryanair, EasyJet, BA and all the others continuing to carry pale faces to our coast. Indeed, if the statistics for bookings are correct, this year is going to be the most challenging yet on the roads and finding a parking space!
Contact Campbell and the team on +34 952 923 520 or email info@surveyspain.com
be the first 4-star hotel to be built in the Old Town. It brings the number of hotel beds in Estepona to over 3,000. Meanwhile, a €1.2 million underground car park is being installed at the Plaza Antonio Gerrero (AKA Plaza del Huevo), which has seen the iconic egg-shaped bandstand demolished. Spread over three floors, it will be Estepona’s first reduced-price public car park, with a fee of just €1 per day. Disruption to electricity and water supplies in nearby houses has been intermittent since work began on the 100-space capacity car park last month. And the regeneration is not limited to the old town. Estepona Town Hall has also recently sold a €25 million plot by the marina to representatives of two companies, one being an American consortium. However, a change.org petition titled Do Not Ruin Playa Del Cristo has now been launched and already has 200 signatures. The plans show five buildings of eight stories are set to go up, each with the possibility of underground parking and a penthouse on top. In total, they will comprise 890 residential units.
HOUSE prices have rocketed by 3% across the country according to year-on-year statistics. Data appraisal company Tinsa’s latest report shows that the biggest growth was in cities, which saw a 4.6% increase. The Balearics and Canary islands property markets are also showing signs of growth, up 2.5% in both.
swing. A total of 49,695 building licences were approved in 2015, according to the ministry of public works. That represents an increase of 42.5% compared to the year before. Of the total number of permits granted during the whole of the year, 35,025 were for apartments in blocks, while 14,651 were for individual family homes. The figures represent a change in mindset, with 2015 breaking a seven-year negative streak in the number of licences granted. Naturally the number of registered construction workers also increased, going up by 4.7%.
Property Botched job
Olive Press42 June 25th - July 42 42 the Olive Press November 14th -the 25th 2016 www.theolivepress.es
Marbella Real Estate Photos NEW on the Costa Del Sol Prices from EUR 90 + IVA Get those all important viewings with good pictures
9th 2015
www.theolivepress.es March 16th - March 29th 2016
A RESTORATION disaster is unfolding in Cadiz after a 9th century castle (right) was ‘extended’ by builders. Historians and locals are outraged with ‘repairs’ done on national monument, El Castillo de Matrera. “They called the builders instead of the restorers,” said one local, “and they’ve wrecked it.”
Towering costs Spanish architect slammed after opening his €3.65 billion World Trade Center hub in New York THE Spanish architect behind the €3.65 billion World Trade Center Transportation Hub in New York City is facing criticism over its cost. What is now the world’s most expensive station opened on March 3, and 50,000 commuters pass through it every day. The building replaces one destroyed in the September 11 Twin Towers attack, and has been meticulously aligned so that on each anniversary it is flooded with sunlight at 10:28 am, the exact time the second tower fell. Valencian-born Santiago
www.marbellarealestatephotos.com
Calatrava calls his design ‘a message of love’. “We really hope from the bottom of our heart that New Yorkers embrace it and love it,” he says. “I wanted to celebrate New York City, and those people who work so hard in it every single day.” However the building has been criticised for massively exceeding its original budget. "The cost of projects, big and small, matters — a lot," said Patrick Foye, executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.
Fit for a PM
OVER BUDGET: Calatrava’s hub "Cost overruns consume precious resources and undermine public confidence." New York resident Jeff Gorenstein told the Olive Press: “Sadly that kind of government waste doesn't even really register
Drone warfare
THE Prime Minister of Spain lives in a house worth €156 million, a Spanish property consultant has revealed. And that’s without taking into account the historical value of the eight-bedroom, nine bathroom pad. The 200 square metre Moncloa Palace also has eight meeting rooms, three dressing rooms and extra buildings connected by underground bunkers. Nuroa.es calculated its worth thanks to the the €2,700 per square metre neighbourhood. The presidential residence has seen changes with each president; while Adolfo Suarez built a tennis court, Felipe Gonzalez installed a garden, Aznar built a padel court, and Zapatero repainted completely. Rajoy’s changes have been minimal.
THE tax office in Menorca is using drones to crack down on illegal builds. The innovative new strategy has discovered around 2,500 illegal houses in Menorca. The buildings had mostly not declared extensions, renovations or pool constructions. The plan to regularise all building on the Island was put into action in late 2013 and officials claim it was for ‘when people bend the rules’.
Uncertain times ahead Brexit could lead to problems with mortgage rates, insurance
brackets and currency conversions. Stick with the devil you know BREXIT-bashing is the flavour of the month, especially among expats on the Costa del Sol. Those backing the Leave campaign claim that the UK is being taken for a ride by the EU. While those in the Stay camp are throwing everything at the negative repercussions of an independent UK. Whatever side of the fence you sit on, you cannot argue that a Brexit - and even the build-up to a referendum - is proving bad for business. Last year was undeniably the best year since the crisis for economic growth. That was largely due to Brits investing their hearty Pound in business and property on the Costa del Sol. But that trend has already begun to falter. Since the Brexit debate began and a referendum date set for June, I have had clients prefer to put off their purchase because they are worried about Britain pulling out of the EU and the resulting effect on Sterling. There is no doubt in my mind that the referendum is already taking its toll on expat business in Spain. I would estimate that 10% of British buyers are already delaying plans to buy abroad.
Just like us expats, many of my clients are concerned about what Britain’s relationship with the EU will be post-Brexit. And so - unsurprisingly - scores of ready-to-be expats are postponing their foreign adventures until after the vote. No doubt they will come flooding back and Brits will continue to invest in Spain should the UK vote to stay. The truth is, nobody actually knows what would happen should the UK pull of Europe. The good news is that Brits should continue enjoying the same mortgage rates and loanto-value percentages that they currently do. Nothing is certain, but I would safely assume UK buyers would be given the same rates as other English language speaking countries outside the EU (USA, Australia and New Zealand, for example) which are in line with those enjoyed by EU nationals. In other words, Brits will most likely get the same mortgage rates in Spain whether they leave the EU or not. I’m afraid that is where the good news ends. The biggest issue for me will be the currency, with everyone from Goldman Sachs to Barclays Bank predicting a major slump in the Pound,
here -- to some extent I think it's expected, no one is surprised, and people shrug it off. “Design-wise I think it looks pretty cool. A welcome splash of modernity in the oldest part of NYC.”
Foreclosure fall THE number of housing foreclosures dropped by 13% in 2015. A total of 30,335 houses faced repossession last year, significantly less than the year before. It is a reverse in the trend that had seen repossessions increase by 8% between 2013 and 2014. Andalucia sees the highest concentration of foreclosures in Spain.
MORTGAGE THINK by mortgage broker Tancrede de Pola
should Britain leave the EU. Some are even predicting the Pound will reach parity with the Euro should Britain jump ship. Whereas, if things continue as they are, forecasts are predicting another strong year for the Pound, reaching up to 1.40 versus the Euro. And a weaker Pound obviously equates to fewer expats coming to Spain, which in turn hits the Spanish property market, especially on the Costa del Sol. And then there is insurance. Currently life cover, for example, is not available to nonEU customers and other types of insurance rates, such as health could be altered should a Brexit ensue. Another area of concern would be taxes. The EU has battled for expat rights in Spain over the past few years so that Brits who have bought property in Spain pay the same amount as their Spanish counterparts. With the EU gone, there is no saying if Spain would reintroduce these discriminatory tax rates. But then again, it might not, only time will tell. As far as I’m concerned it is much better to stick with what we’ve got than twist and risk upsetting the apple cart.
To contact Tancrede for all your mortgaging needs call: 666 709 743 or for insurance queries call: 951 203 540 Email: tdp@thefinanacebureau.com The Finance Bureau Centro Commercial Guadalmina, 2nOffice No. 7 Guadalmina, 29670
Top Dollar Feeling the Roth
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December 10th - 22nd 2015
EXCLUSIVE By Rob Horgan
SPANISH translators have completed essential work in the ongoing investigation against Baron de Rothschild. Denia Court has now received translations from the Benidorm Translation Services Offices and ordered a letter rogatory to be sent to the investigating judge in Paris.
Mercadona’s Amazon tussle
March 16th - March 29th 2016
Essential work completed in probe into Rothschild equity release scheme
The Rothschild Financial Services Group stands accused of falsely advertising an equity release loan scheme, bought into by more than 130 pensioners between 2005 and 2008. The Baron was indicted in France over the allegations last year, after victims –
mostly expats living in Spain – bought into his loan scheme. More than 20 British pensioners in Spain took up legal action against Rothschild’s company after losing their dream properties and thousands of euros. Marbella-based lawyer Antonio Flores
of Lawbird said this was a ‘breakthrough moment’ in the case. “It is a step in the right direction,” Flores told the Olive Press. Rothschild’s product, the Credit Select Series Mortgage Loan, was sold to pensioners as a legal means to reduce the value of their homes for inheritance tax mitigation purposes. The Tax Agency ruled that such a scheme constitutes fraud and Flores
INDICTED: Rothschild believes Rothschild should be held accountable. “In short, independently of what happened to the investment, Rothschild advertised a loan aimed at reducing inheritance tax, which is a breach of tax law,” he said. The Rothschild Group has so far failed to comment.
LIBERTYHOME
MERCADONA’s boss has said he doesn’t fear Amazon’s new online shopping service. Juan Roig also confirmed that the Spanish supermarket giant would not start opening on Sundays. Mercadona made €611 million in 2015 but lost €30 to €40 million in online sales. “I am not going to talk about Amazon,” Roig said. “It’s a big company that has its strategies as we have ours. So far we haven’t been profitable on the internet [and so] that is not our priority.” Roig added that he would try to ensure Mercadona’s website is ‘more like 2016 and less like 1998’.
NO FEAR: Food chain
Poverty trap ANDALUCIA has three of the poorest towns in Spain, a new report shows. Unemployment in La Linea de la Concepcion (40.1%), Sanlucar de Barrameda (42.3%) and Jerez (39.4%) is among the highest in the country, according to the INE survey. Torrevieja was named the poorest town in Spain for the third year in a row. Pozuelo, on the outskirts of Madrid, is Spain’s richest town according to the report.
Hungary for success A RESOURCEFUL homeless man teaching English in Barcelona bars is on the verge of earning enough money to take a job in a London hotel. The 55-year-old Hungarian, known only as Laso, lost his job and ended up on the streets after a lifetime working in the hotel and restaurant industry. Laso refused to take help from strangers and instead approached Diego Bernal who helped him teach English classes for €7 an hour. “He told me that he had spoken with the head of the London hotel and that he was offering him a job to start now,” said Bernal. “He used the €148 he had earned in the last few days to go to Madrid, to the embassy. His passport had been stolen in a hostel – as soon as he gets his documents, he will be off.”
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The Olive Press – 338 x 256mm
16th March
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Top Dollar
Treasure tussle
March 16th - March 29th 2016
NEWS IN BRIEF
Spain and Colombia battle over sunken galleon treasure
A SUNKEN Spanish galleon housing a €15.4 billion hoard of treasure has sparked a tugof-war between Spain and Colombia. The San Jose’s booty, which could be worth billions to the Spanish economy, was sunk by British pirates off the Colombian coast in 1709. Diamonds, emeralds and Spanish ‘pieces of eight’ coins are among the ship’s treasure chest, which was being transported back to King Philip V. Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel García-Margallo and TUG OF WAR: Over loot Colombian counterpart Ángela Holguín are meeting for discussions on the American country hasn’t signed any internationhoard’s future. al conventions on discovered treasure. Garcia-Margallo has admitted there are differ- The ship was discovered last November off the ences between Spain and Colombia as the South coast of Cartagena de Indias.
Expansion plans
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MALAGA was ranked fifth in Spain’s most profitable tourist destinations last year. A study by Exceltur showed especially strong growth in the coastal area of the province, with an 18% rise in income between 2008 and 2015. Good value hotels are key to Malaga’s success. The average room rate of €55.60 per night is below the national average, making it cheaper for visitors to stay in Malaga than Barcelona, where rooms average €91 per night, San Sebastian (€78), or even neighbouring Cadiz (€66.70).
BRITS nipping off to Spain are waiting an average of 15 minutes longer as delayed flights hit a five-year high, with just 73% taking off on time last summer.
Money man FOUNDER of retail company Inditex, Amancio Ortega, has overtaken Carlos Slim as the second richest man in the world, worth €61 billion, according to Forbes magazine.
Lidl raise MERCADONA workers taking home €15,150 have been overtaken by the generous employers at Lidl whose full-time staff earn €15,257 a year.
Shop drop ONLINE retail junkies in Spain are lagging behind their international counterparts, with just 19% of consumers shopping online, compared to 45% of Brits.
AGONY ANT
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Touching the void A
RECENT Supreme Court ruling (March 2015) has sent shockwaves through the many insurers that are offering single premium life insurance policies. Whether named as unit-linked singlepremium life assurance policy, life assurance bonds, capital assurance or any other more or less fanciful denomination, any life insurance bond that is made up solely for the purpose of investment faces one very serious prospect: being declared void by Spanish Courts. But this ruling has not come from nowhere: for some years already the administrative section of the Spanish Supreme Court is applying a not-too-well known article of the Consolidated text of the Private Insurance Supervisory Act, which states the following: Article 4. Forbidden transactions and sanction of nullity It is forbidden for insurance companies, and its conclusion will determine it utter nullity and voidness, the following transactions:
Thousands of life insurance policies could be voided
a) Those that lack actuarial technical base But what does the word “actuarial base” mean? Simply put, traditional actuarial base or science largely revolves around the analysis of mortality and the production of life tables, and the application of compound interest. Which is exactly what these ‘life insurance’ policies, for want of a better word, actually lack. The Spanish highest Court, in declaring the nullity of these contracts in at least eight rulings, has argued the following: “Judging by its features, this contract cannot be classed as an insurance policy but a capital investment”. “In normal insurance death impacts the assurer in such way that, when a claim occurs, it is the company that suffers a loss”
“The blurring of the risk element is, in these contracts, complete and distorts the very nature of an insurance contract” “If there is no transfer of risk from insured to insurer there is no insurance contract” “it makes no palpable difference if the insured lives or dies” “Where age or medical condition –absence of medical questionnaire being symptomatic- are not parameters of any interest, the contract is doubtfully an insurance policy” “The nature of financial product has been repeatedly concluded by Section 3 of the Supreme Court.” Judging by these conclusions, thousands of contracts signed by expats face a serious risk of nullity: to name a few, Lex Life/ Altraplan’ life policies, Nordea’s Capital Managed Plan, Seb-Irish Life’s Spanish Porfolio Bond, Prudential’s Spanish International Prudence Bond, Old Mutual’s Executive Investment Bond, Danske Life/ Danica Life…and there is no time limitation to being a claim.
Email Antonio at aflores@lawbird.es
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Brexit fever On the mission to ensure all expats entitled to vote are heard...
W
ITH Brexit fever sweeping the UK, the Foreign Office decided to dispatch Britain’s Ambassador to Spain, the alwaysengaging Simon Manley, to the British Consulate in Malaga. Ambassador Manley was on a mission to ensure that all expats entitled to vote do so in what he called a oncein-a-generation opportunity. As befitting such a momentous event, the mandarins at the Foreign Office decided to invite a carefully selected band of distinguished members of the press for an informal, yet vitally important briefing. Somehow, an invitation
dropped through my email letterbox and landed on the virtual doormat. (As an aside, did you know that the French for kitten is ‘Chaton’? As in ‘The cat chaton the mat’...) Obviously the Foreign Office wasn’t aware that my journalistic and broadcasting credentials aren’t the most traditional when it comes to interviewing ambassadors. Up until last year I had a regular Saturday Night Rock show, and previous interview subjects have included 80s Page Three goddess Samantha Fox (who didn’t know what silicone was) and bad boy actors Danny Dyer
EXPAT PALS: Giles with Ambassador Simon Manley
and Tamer Hassan (which ended in a looooong night out and a firm friendship. Tattoos were mentioned at one stage, but it was all a bit blurry).
Moors v Christians As students show their respect for their Muslim heritage in Jerez, OP blogger Luke Andrews ponders the status of the town’s last mosque
J
EREZ is a city with a tangled history. Like many Spanish towns it has been first Muslim and then Christian during its 1,000 years of existence, when all its mosques were destroyed except one. The mezquita del alcazar de Jerez only survived because it was converted into a chapel. But last week a group of visiting students gave the last Almohad mosque of Jerez the respect it deserves: they took their shoes off. A simple gesture that made a valid point. This is neither crazy Christian Spain nor Al-Andalus. This is modern Spain. Western society teaches respect and acceptance of all, regardless of race, creed or culture. Why can’t modern Spain accept and celebrate its Islamic heritage? Instead the building was given a rather shoddy altar, decorated with two poems by Alfonso X, and called a chapel. Rammed haphazardly onto one side, the rest of the building retains its Islamic charm. The entrance is still dominated by a courtyard with a fountain for cleansing, an essential aspect to any mosque. Before prayer, Islam teaches that everyone must wash themselves to be clean before God. Inside, there are vestiges of the original Islamic prayer room. Its wall still holds the all-important niche indicating the direction of Mecca. A-top this mosque-cum-chapel, the minaret also survives intact. It is clear that the old mosque is still perfectly capable of executing its former Muslim function. Why shouldn’t it be reinstated? It is an argument that could open up a Pandora’s Box as many of Christian Spain’s holy buildings occupy former Islamic sites. The cathedral of Sevilla, for example, rises directly above the foundations of its Islamic predecessor. The surviving court-
CONTROVERSIAL: Jerez mosque yard and minaret attest to its origins. Reinstating the Alcazari mosque could make a lot of people ‘mosqueado’ (a somewhat appropriate Spanish word for ‘angry’ or ‘resentful’). It could certainly spell trouble for Seville’s cathedral, and many other famous holy buildings in Spain. Similarly, it could open up old wounds and anger the Islamic community. ISIS, with its continual spiel of nonsense, is determined to remember Andalucia’s Islamic heritage. The terrorist organisation has published several videos online threatening to retake it for the ‘Caliphate.’ Absolute rubbish and scaremongering, but it raises an important point. Lenience towards former Islamic sites could attract unwanted attention. Spain has so far largely escaped the scourge of terrorism but making a fuss about its Islamic heritage could turn the tables. Although flipping the coin, giving the old mosque back to Jerez’ Muslim community could be a good thing. In respecting their culture, Jerez Town Hall would demonstrate its commitment to western values and desire to celebrate every aspect of its culture. Reinstating the Alcazari mosque would certainly set tongues wagging. What should Jerez do? Are we too far down the road of Islamophobia to respect another religion’s heritage? Is it simply just too late?
But an invitation is an invitation, so I threw off the Van Halen T shirt, threw on a suit and headed across to Malaga. Plus, as it was an Ambassadorial event, I reasoned that there might be a Ferrero Rocher or two on offer. Those of a certain age might remember the advert that claimed Ambassador’s parties weren’t complete without the aforementioned chocolates... I haven’t been to Malaga for a while, and made the fatal mistake of missing my turn to the Consulate. The city’s fiendish oneway system finally spat me out by the semi-Guggenheimesque conference centre and it took half an hour of frantic rat runs and back-street driving (and in my seven seater 4x4 nicknamed ‘The Tank’, that’s not for the faint hearted) to get back to my original destination.
Ready
Ambassador Manley was unruffled by my late arrival and somewhat frazzled appearance, as you would expect from Our Man in Madrid, and seamlessly explained what the Foreign Office was advising (In a nutshell, go online ASAP and register). He even managed to bat away my ludicrous suggestion that British aircraft carriers might moor off the coast to evacuate expats if Britain voted to leave the EU. “I don’t think our aircraft carriers would be ready in time” he replied, with a slightly weary smile. Briefing over, Ambassador Manley headed to catch the AVE back to Madrid (and probably more serious questions than mine). While I took the opportunity to use all the journalistic skills that I have honed over 25 years of living in Marbella. Within minutes I was getting stuck in to the Ambassadorial buffet table. Alas, no Ferrero Rocher chocolates were on offer...
FOOD, DRINK & TRAVEL
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the Olive Press November 11th - 25th 2015
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Dish update
The only English newspaper in Spain with a dedicated food and drink section every issue
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Fish out of water
THOUSANDS of fishermen braved the Galician rain as they marched in protest over proposed law changes to the fishing industry. Protesting in the city of Santiago de Compostela, fishermen took to the street’s over the regional government’s ‘betrayal of
IT already attracts the world’s top athletes and celebrities but now there is even more reason to visit La Sala. The Puerto Banus restaurant is introducing three new signature dishes to make your mouth water. Introducing a filet burger with lobster, pad Thai dish and a succulent lamb option, La Sala has something on the menu for all to enjoy. The eatery also offers a two-course set lunch menu which changes weekly.
its fishing industry’. They are demanding the draft law is dropped, as it ‘threatens to paralyse the industry’. The draft law will implement restrictions on the amount of fishing to improve the environmental impact of trawling the oceans.
Taking the cake to Europe Traditional tortas from Axarquia aiming to conquer continent A SWEET treat from the Axarquia is set to take the European cake market by storm. Tortas de Algarrobo (Algarrobo cakes) are popular snacks made with olive oil, sugar, cinnamon and aniseed in a recipe that dates back to the Moorish empire. Producers are now preparing to enter the European market by obtaining the necessary certification of quality. One firm, Carmen Lupiañez, which produces 1,000 cakes daily, has begun expanding its premises in order to increase production and marketing. Boss Mark Gil Lupiañez, the seventh generation of a family dedicated to manufacturing the cakes, said the company aims to produce 700,000 cakes daily from its Algarrobo bakery in the future. "We believe in our product and we want to take it to other markets," he said. "You cannot launch a product in Europe without having prepared the proper certifications and the production facilities have to carry it out," he added.
A SPIRITED EFFORT HOW he fitted in writing a book on top of his mayoral duties is a mystery. But Marbella Mayor Jose Bernal has published ‘El aguardiente de Ojen. Historia y leyenda’, about the world-famous drink and the now closed distillery in the hills above Marbella. Bernal, a doctor of History from the University of Malaga and former teacher, has already published several history books. “Ojen’s aguardiente had the same kind of global fame in its day that Coca Cola has today,” he told the Olive Press. “It’s a real Marbella legend which older people used to tell, I investigated it in my doctoral thesis and wanted to explore it further.”
READ ALL ABOUT IT: Vegetarian munch
Veg mag Arrives
DRINK IT IN: Marbella mayor
THEY used to be an unknown entity but Spain’s vegetarians are growing in force and there is a new magazine to prove it. ‘Slowly Veggie’ arrived on the shelves of Spanish newsagents in March and is set to be a hit with our two million vegetarians and vegans. The objective is to promote vegetarian food and offer recipes from the best veggie and vegan chefs. The veggie community in Spain is thought to grow by 1% each year.
Jamon king IT might not have the glitz and glamour of a Hollywood ceremony, but for one Spanish farmer, claiming the top prize at an international cured meats awards was ‘better than winning an Oscar’. Spanish pig farmer Eduardo Donato, from Huelva, won the annual Biofach award for his rather pricey ham. Costing €4,100 a leg, Donato’s ham is officially the most expensive in the world. Made from the Manchado de Jabugo pig, Donato is credited with saving the species from the brink of
PIGGING OUT: Donato
extinction, when he started farming them 25 years ago.
FOOD, DRINK & TRAVEL with DINING SECRETS of ANDALUCIA.com
50
More Madeira M’Dear!
In the second in a new series of travel articles Guy Hunter-Watts goes walkabout on Madeira and discovers an island that’s not for the faint-hearted
M
ADEIRA and its levada footpaths had been on my walking radar for years. So when friends told me of plans to sell their family home in Funchal, and that it was ‘now or never’, I jumped at the chance.
‘Bring a jacket for dinner’, they advised. ‘Life’s still a little oldfashioned out here’. A few weeks later I was peering out across a glittering Atlantic towards towering black cliffs as my T.A.P. flight – Take Another Plane – suddenly seemed less of a joke as we dropped down towards a scary runway which, like Gibraltar’s, finishes in water at both ends. The landing, like nearly every aspect of life on the island, was charged with a big splash of epic drama. Madeira feels like it was never intended for human inhabitation, a place of savagely beautiful landscapes that tell a story of man and his endeavour to tame the colossal forces of nature. The island pushes straight up from the Atlantic with some of the highest sea cliffs in the world, a truly cataclysmic volcanic invention. And, just back from the coast, gorges clad in dense laurisilva (ancient laurel forest, now designated as UNESCO World Heritage) stretch precipitously away towards the highest peaks of the island, reaching a staggering 1,850m in little more than 10kms.
Jaw-dropping
The closest I’d come to such jaw-dropping scenery was on journeys into the Amazon basin through the cloud forest in Peru. Yet here, just an hourand-a-half from Lisbon, was a place with just as much ‘Lost World’ mystique. Its mountainsides reads like an O-level geology lesson with red and black layers of loose, post-eruptus tufa and scoria cut through by thin bands of silver-grey basalt. The 15 kilometres between the airport and Funchal along the coastal highway, marked by a series of kilometre-long tunnels and high viaducts, take you where drivers were never supposed to go. Like nearly
The nitty gritty Top walks: Caldeiro Verde and Caldeiro del Infierno close to Santana, the 25 waterfall circuit in Rabiçal and the ridge-top walk between Pico do Arieiro and Pico Ruivo Top eats: Almazem do Sal, Funchal. Madeiran cuisine with an innovative twist Top tipple: sundowners at Reid’s Hotel – it could be a chilled poncha, the local mix of rum, honey and lemon Top hotel in Funchal: Reid’s for that Graham Greene moment e v - ery other public works project, from the elegant dragon-tooth paving of the old town and the walled terraces that climb high up every hillside to the levadas (water channels) that bring H2O for miles around the bowl of every valley, it beggars belief that all of this could have ever been conceived, yet alone constructed. Prince Henry the Navigator dispatched the first colonists to the island in the early years of the 15th century to claim it for the Portuguese crown, even though the island had appeared on maps since Roman times. They named it ‘Madeira’ – ‘wood’ – and set about clearing the dense, indigenous forest in order to plant wheat and sugarcane. Europe was mad for sugar which was dispatched from warehouses in Funchal in loaves clad in mahogany caskets. By the middle of the century a flourishing merchant class was flouting its new-found riches, commissioning paintings, sculptures and altarpieces from the finest workshops in Europe. A visit to Funchal’s Museu de Arte Sacra, stashed full of works by some of the great masters from Flanders, paints
a fascinating picture of Madeira’s entrée en scène on the world stage during Portugal’s Age of Discovery. If the early settlers from Portugal established vineyards, it was the British who came to dominate the wine trade. Knowing that the best way to preserve wine for shipping was by fortification with brandy, they also discovered that heating the oak barrels improved both the depth and flavour of the precious liquid. Thus was born the island’s most famous export – that’s if you leave aside Cristiano Ronaldo – at a time when sweet Malmsey wines were de rigueur at the
www.belmond.com Top hotel north coast: Quinta do Furão is a great base for exploring the northern levadas with soaring sea views and top notch cuisine www.quintadofurao.com Top self-catering: cottages in the grounds of the Zino quinta in a leafy suberb of Funchal fzino@netmadeira.com. See HomeAway property 420501 Top tourist tips: don’t miss Blandy’s wine lodge, the cable car ride to Monte, the Botanical Gardens and Madeira’s maddest tourist attraction, a sledge ride down to Funchal from Monte
best tables in Europe and Paul and Donatienne de America. Chazal, showered me with kindWine, along with tourism, still ness and hospitality, introducoccupies central stage in the ing me to their oldest friends Madeiran and showed me economy round the garand no visit dens that have I visited the to the island made Funchal is complete one of the finest gardens that made without a tour botanical desFunchal one of the tinations in the and tasting at the Blandy world. We sipped finest botanical L o d g e , cocktails at Redestinations h o u s e d ids (Madeira’s within an take on Raffles, exquisitely with Churchill restored conand Hemingvent at the heart of old Funchal. way numbering amongst its During my first week on the guests), listened to fado in the island my multilingual hosts, old town and feasted on the
HIGH LIFE: Madeira mountains and incredible pathways for walkers and hikers
shockingly ugly yet surprisingly tasty scabbard fish. On our final evening together at his family’s beautiful quinta, high above the harbour of Funchal, Paul disappeared to his cellar before pulling the cork on an 1860 vintage Madeira (see pic right). The golden-amber liquid had a multi-layered intensity and depth of flavour the likes of which I’ve never experienced. I marvelled that when this wine was bottled, the motor car had yet to make its appearance and Britannia still ruled the waves, yet it was still improving with each passing year!
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51
MARVELLOUS MARCH IN THE MOUNTAINS
GARDENS: Botanical beauty and (right) a flower seller
After a week of fine dining and fascinating encounters with families whose roots lay deep within the fabric of Madeira, I was ready to get to grips with the network of footpaths that have made the island one of Europe’s prime hiking destinations. Walking on Madeira is synonymous with one word: levada or water channel. In Andalucían parlance, we’re talking acequia. These channels run for thousands of kilometres, arching round every valley on the island and bringing the water that falls as rain, and very occasionally as snow, down to the coastal settlements. Beside each of the channels, a narrow path serves both as its lower bank and a route for access: the water conduits require frequent maintenance due to the damage caused by flash floods and rockfalls. Often hewn out of rockfaces on precipitous cliffs, with long sections of head-height tunnel and narrow bridges spanning 100 metre-high abysses, the levadas provide as dizzy a challenge as any seasoned walker could hope to find.
FANCY A CHANGE?
Head to Molino del Santo this month for: Getting there: Madeira is just a hop and a jump away from Andalucía. There are daily flights from Málaga and Sevilla via Lisbon with TAP and connecting flights from Malaga to Lisbon with Air Europa. Reckon on paying €300-€450 return. Total flying time: approx. 3hrs 30min
v THE CLEAN AIR – breathe deeply and feel your body’s appreciation. v THE PEACE AND QUIET – just the sound of the stream and the birds. v THE GREAT FOOD & WINE – chosen by “The Times” as one of the 20 Best Hotels in Europe for Foodies.
“Best meal I’ve had for years” v THE COMFORTABLE ROOMS – 18 to choose from, each with its own personality. See our Trip Advisor reviews if you don’t trust us! v THE FRIENDLY AMBIENCE – over 20 experienced staff will welcome you.
Waterfalls
Whilst many of the levadas now have protective railing on their lower edge, there are long sections of path where you’ll have precipitous drops just centimetres from your boot. As well as a good sense of balance and a clear head for heights, you need to be happy negotiating the tunnels – head torches are essential – and to be showered by waterfalls dropping down from above. Most levadas are best tackled as there-and-back trails although you can sometimes return to your point of departure by bus, whilst taxis wait at the start and end points of
v THE WONDERFUL LIGHT – the colours and the flowers are a great combination.
“When we arrive at Molino, it feels like coming home” v THE UPLIFTING WALKS – lots of routes of all levels available in reception. WOODLAND: Pretty path
the more popular itineraries. Whilst nearly every levada is within 50kms of Funchal, bear in mind that you’ll average no more than 30kmph on the twisting roads of the interior where you need as much of a head for heights as you do on the footpaths themselves. It was a couple of avid
Liquid Madeira It’s easy to understand why Madeira wine should have been chosen by Thomas Jefferson to toast Independence on July 4th 1776. Americans prized the wine, which could tolerate the long, hot summers of the southern states whilst remaining in tip-top condition a year after opening. The wines lived their ‘Golden Age’ in that century before mildew and phylloxera ravaged the Madeiran vineyards, as they did in mainland Europe. Subsequent replanting has focused on the ‘noble grapes’ - that’s to say Sercial, Verdelho, Bual and Malvasia - and Madeira is back in fashion in the Benelux countries and emerging markets like Japan. Shop around and you can still find vintage wines dating back to pre-Napoleonic times, allbeit with an eye-watering price tag.
hikers from the UK, Pat and John Underwood, who first brought the existence of the levada paths to the notice of the walking community, with a feat of on-foot brilliance to match Kate Clow, who mapped out Turkey’s mesmerising Lycian Way. Today a staggering 50% of visitors to the island come to explore this network of paths, along with those that link the island’s highest peaks. Walking guides and maps are widely available, the best being the Cicerone guide and Pat & John Underwood’s Discovery guide and map. If you prefer walking as part of a group, several UKbased companies offer guided and self-guided walking on Madeira whilst local agencies on the island organise guided walks to suit all abilities.
v RELAXING TRAIN JOURNEY – just 3 minutes walk from a sleepy station. Makes a great day out from San Roque station. Ask for details.
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He might be famous, but can Elliott Wright cut the mustard in the kitchen? Jon Clarke chows down at his new joint Olivia’s
I Calle Virgen Milagrosa 10 29713 Los Romanes - La Viñuela Provincia Malaga t: +34 951 509 071 www.las-orquideas.com/en
T seemed like everyone in the restaurant was queuing up to get a photo with their host. And like the classic showman, Elliott Wright was only too happy to oblige, working the tables like a scene out of The Hustler. A gag here, a compliment there, the Costa del Sol’s most famous restaurateur was showing clearly why he’s a lot more than just another vacuous celebrity out of TOWIE, the UK’s bizarre, yet extremely popular, reality TV series.
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Getting it Wright TASTY DISHES: (From left) Mark and Elliott, scallops and miso cod
Glamour
But that is, after all, the point. While Elliott became popular as the handsome ‘alpha-male’ cousin of key character Mark Wright, he was originally introduced as being a restaurateur
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from Spain. And on that score nothing has changed. For aside from this stunning new spot in La Cala, he has another restaurant, Eduardos, in Orihuela, now running for 15 years, on the Costa Blanca. Opening it at the age of 21, he has worked with the same manager for 15 years and the place regularly gets 200 diners a day. So how about Olivia’s, where over the last six months Elliott has sunk up to €3m into the venture? Well, if you are after glamour, then it doesn’t get much better. The restaurant, named after his daughter, is beautifully designed, maximising natural light, wonderful sea views and top-ofthe-range recessed lighting, which ‘cost a fortune’, Elliott tells me. The candle-lit tables are as welcoming as Sadie, his stunning girlfriend, who is standing in as Maitre D on the night we visit. There’s a big white piano, entertainment every night, shiny, happy staff and a fabulous outdoor dining terrace. “I’ve also just spent 50 grand on a new fish bar,” he explains, leading me up to the wonderful champagne bar upstairs, which will soon be serving lobster and caviar to help wash down the Moet & Chandon.
STAR QUALITY: Elliott with girlfriend Sadie and (left) restaurant
So far so good, but can he cut the mustard in the kitchen? And the answer is a definitive ‘yes’, and a big surprise for me, expecting the place to be high on bling, but a little low on culinary excitement. The first thing to note is the large Asian influence on the menu, inspired by Elliot’s love of the Far East and his favourite restaurant in London, Nobu. I am quickly diving into a super starter of Maplewood smoked tuna, with Japanese tea noodles and organic black sesame with Wasabi foam. There’s scallops with lentils and dahl, pork spring rolls with shredded Asian vegetables, tempura prawns, but next up for me is a fabulous Miso cod, with pickled ginger imported from Japan. It’s a lovely looking dish and a genuine surprise, succulent and with a great mix of flavours and vegetables. We are then steered on Elliott’s advice to his classic
pork belly, which comes out slightly spicy on a white platter, with cauliflower puree and Burgos black pudding. The Japanese ‘cherry apples’ are the icing on the cake, and an exciting first for me. Pudding-wise, there isn’t much to write home about, although the lemongrass creme brulee is surprisingly tasty.
Glitz
So, whaddaya know, Olivia’s turns out to be the perfect refuelling stop between Malaga and Gibraltar and, with places like this, La Cala might just have a stab at becoming a genuine foil to the glamour and glitz of Marbella. It won’t be from a lack of effort on the part of Mr Wright. Oh, and yes, I did get the obligatory picture, as you can see below.
Olivia’s La Cala, Calle Torreon, La Cala de Mijas, www.oliviaslacala.com 952494935
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February March 16th 17th - March - March 29th 1st2016 2016
Emissions scandal deepens
Winning formula
FORMULA One’s biggest celebrity has been in Spain. Triple F1 world champion Lewis Hamilton and the Mercedes team were in Barcelona to test-drive their cars for the new season. “It’s been an incredible week of testing for us because we’ve done more mileage than ever before, and the car looks fantastic,” said Hamilton. Testing used to take place in Jerez but it was moved to the circuit de Catalunya, Barcelona for climate reasons.
European car manufacturers face large scale emissions probe
ALL car manufacturers are at risk of being dragged into the dieselgate row which rocked Volkswagen. If green activists get their way, all motoring companies will be investigated by the European Committee for cheating on emissions. Last year, Volkswagen admitted 800,000 VW cars worldwide have faulty CO2 emissions, 50,000 in Spain.
Green members of the European Parliament are now calling for a wider investigation of carbon emissions within the continent’s motoring sector. “The scandal goes far beyond
Volkswagen,” said Jurgen Resch of NGO Deutsche Umwelthilfe. “We have found that most major European car makers pollute the air more than they should, “It’s hard to pin-point one
Art wheelers SWAPPING easels for trucks, artists in Spain have found an innovative way to spread their work.
Using the side of commercial lorries, moving galleries are rolling around the country as part of Truck Art Project.
Vargas and Okuda San Miguel (who was recently in the news in January for converting a church into a skate park). Over the coming year, more trucks will hit the road in a collaboration between Palibex trucking company and Iam Gallery Madrid. To find out where the trucks will be next, visit www.truck-artproject.com
Boom time
NEW car sales continue to rise across Spain. Over 97,600 new cars were sold last month, according to Spanish vehicle manufacturers' association Anfac. That represents a 12% yearon-year increase in new car sales.
High-class parking
POLICE and firefighters were left baffled when they found a car illegally parked on a roof’s building in Las Palmas, Gran Canaria. The owner of the Daewoo has now been ordered to report to the police station after
So far, 10 colourful vehicles have hit the road after being painted by famous artists including Javier Arce, Marina
cranes were called in to remove it. According to a police spokesmen, a building assessment revealed that the delipidated flat block was ‘in danger of collapse’. Police are still at a loss as to how the driver managed to drive his car up to the roof.
‘good’ car manufacturer.” He added: “I am expecting the European Committee to really break the industrialpolitical complex we have in the automotive sector,” says Jürgen Resch of Deutsche Umwelthilfe. Volkswagen has promised to pay back €50 million, invested by the government following the emissions scandal.
Zoom zoom zoom ELECTRIC cars are driving forward in their popularity in Spain. Sales rose by 213% during the month of February compared to the same time last year, equating to 254 units sold. Madrilenos are by far the biggest buyers for this green way of travelling. The province saw 80 electric cars bought compared to just 10 in Andalucia.
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GOLF In the swing of it 23 54
He just can’t get enough! Real Madrid star Gareth Bale builds golf course in garden THE world’s most expensive footballer has commissioned the construction of a golf course in his backyard. Real Madrid superstar Gareth Bale has brought in the builders to recreate three famous holes at his Vale of Glamorgan home, in Wales. Bale wants three holes from three separate courses to be replicated out the back of his home – the Postage Stamp at Troon, the Amen Corner
March 16th - March 29th 2016
Ladies’ day
A WOMEN’S only tournament has taken place in La Cala to celebrate International Women’s Day. The event is designed to champion women in the male-dominated sport. It includes was a sports day for the female audience is set to begin at the Campo America course at 9.30am on March 6. Prizes and gifts such as a trophy, a stay in a golf resort or a session with a personal shopper were all up for grabs. G.I.R.L.S Golf Society in Marbella has voiced its support for the tournament.
The picturesque course hosted the event in 2005 and 2015, when Catalan professional and Huelva resident Xavi Guzman celebrated an overwhelming victory. “We keep the course in peak condition and I am delighted that we can bring quality tourism to this beautiful area of Spain,” said Donana Golf MD Felipe Lopez. This landmark on the Spanish calendar is set for June 2-5 this year.
Hurry along
GO GIRLS: In La Cala
Prime spot HUELVA’S stunning course Donana Golf is playing host to the Spanish men’s golf championships for the third time. STAR SWING: Bale 11th at Augusta, home of The Masters, and the 17th at Sawgrass, venue for the The Players Championship. “At the moment, I am obsessed with golf, ”he said. “I love the sport, I love the fact that you can just get away from everything, be with your friends, and switch your mind off from football. He added: “I’ve not really thought about what I’ll be do-
ing in 20 years when I’m retired from football, but, hopefully, I will be playing golf.” Bale’s love for golf has grown since he moved to Spain in 2013. He attributes his active golfing life to his improved physique since joining Real Madrid and was seen swinging the irons on the Costa del Sol with England international Phil Jagielka last summer.
Valderrama teeing up for Open VALDERRAMA is just hole golf course in Spain. a few weeks away from The 72-hole event was hosting the 90th Spanish played over two days and Open. won by the 1907 BritReal Club Valderra- ish Open Champion, ma Open de Espana hosted by the Sergio García Foundation will take place from April 1417. The first edition of the tournament was held in 1912 at Madrid Polo Golf Club, the first 18- STUNNING: Valderrama golf course
the Frenchman Arnaud Massy. The tournament left Madrid for the first time in 1942 to be played at San Cugat, just north of Barcelona. Seve Ballesteros won in 1981, 1985 and 1995 with Álvaro Quirós and Miguel Ángel Jiménez in 2010 and 2012 the most recent Spanish victors.
Near miss
SPANISH golfer Sergio Garcia was left clutching his putter after desperately missing out at the Honda Classic in Florida, USA. Garcia lost out by just one shot, as Australian Adam Scott tapped in an expertly-timed 30-inch par putt to claim victory. The victory at The Champion Course ended Scott’s longest career-victory drought, stretching back to May 2014. However, Garcia made it as hard as possible for Scott, birdying the final hole. "He played really, really solid," Garcia said. "I played with him the last two days, and he looked awesome.
Feeling golfy A DISCOUNT card now means golf enthusiasts can save up to a quarter on many European golf courses. The Golfy card offers a 25% discount on green fees and 15% on hotel stays across a total of 150 golf courses in five European countries including Spain. The PGA Catalunya Resort is just one high profile destination which is served by the discount card, of which there are already 50,000 cardholders.
It is currently available for a special introductory price of €45 and can help save money on green fees, buggy hire, golf lessons, restaurant and hotel accommodation and packages.
Go team! THE 20 lucky professional golfers to be incorporated into the Pro Spain Team 2016 programme have been announced. Four more numerous than last year, the 20 budding Sergio Garcias will be trained and nurtured through the first few years of their golfing careers, sponsored by Solan de Cabras water.
GOLFERS are being urged to get a move on. CEO of the PGA European Tour Keith Pelley has slammed a growing trend of dawdling golfers. Following slow play at the Abu Dhabi Championship and Qatar Masters, referees are now permitted to issue a ‘monitoring penalty’ for players taking too much time. "We want to take the lead on pace of play," Pelley said. “We are continually striving to make our product even more appealing and entertaining for our fans and this is a good starting point. Our players are now more aware than ever that slow play is unacceptable." The 'monitoring penalty' allows referees to enforce a one-stroke penalty if indiscretions continue.
sport Testing times
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March 16th - March 29th 2016
Tennis ace Rafael Nadal denies French secretary of sport’s doping allegations RAFAEL Nadal is set to sue an ex-French government minister over claims he has doped. The former minister for sport, Roselyne Bachelot, claimed the 14-time Grand Slam winner missed parts of the 2012 season over concerns he would test positive for a banned substance.
Nadal, who has never failed a drugs test, has been dogged by doping rumours in the past. "A minister of France should be serious," said Nadal.
"This time is the time to go against her. We are going to sue her. "This is going to be the last one, because I'm going to sue
her. I am tired about these things. I let it go a few times in the past. Not any more." Nadal has also said he will sue anyone who ‘alleges some-
Chelsea daggers Polo’s mint condition
INTERNATIONAL polo players are galloping once more towards the Campo de Gibraltar. Santa María Polo Club in Sotogrande hosted the three-phase European Polo Tour with AMG Sotovila winning last weekend. The Spring Season gets underway this weekend with three months of polo involving 12 tournaments. Easter Polo, one of the season’s highlights, starts with the polo classic XXXVII Jose Ignacio Domecq Memorial Tournament on March 18.
STRUCK off Chelsea team doctor Eva Carneiro is seeking a public apology from Jose Mourinho as part of her settlement in her employment case. Carneiro’s case looks destined for a full employment tribunal after the two parties failed to reach terms at a private mediation hearing in Croydon, UK. Gibraltarian Carneiro is suing the London football club for constructive dismissal and is taking separate legal action against the Portuguese manager for victimisation and discrimination. Chelsea chairman Bruce Buck and board mem- BATTLE: Between Carneiro and former ber Marina Granovskaia attended the mediation Chelsea boss Mourinho session but did not yield over a financial settle- Swansea. ment. Since leaving Chelsea, Carneiro has received An employment tribunal will now begin on June the backing of FIFA medical chairman Michel 6, unless the two sides can reach a settlement in D’Hooghe, who claims she was ‘simply doing her the interim. job’. Carneiro departed Stamford Bridge after The English FA cleared Mourinho of using disMourinho labeled her ‘impulsive and naive’ fol- criminatory language towards her in its own inlowing Chelsea’s opening day 2-2 draw with vestigation.
Squeaky bum time Results: Costa Gaels 4-4 (16) vs Gibraltar Gaels 1-3 (6) Costa Gaels 2-5 (11) vs Eire Og Seville 4-5 (17) Gibraltar Gaels 6-10 (28) vs GAEL FORCE: Bottle Eire Og Seville 1-6 (9) GIBRALTAR Gaels will head into the final set of Gaelic football fixtures top of the league. All three sides are still in with a chance of winning the league after the points were shared in the latest round of games in Marbella. The Gibraltar side missed out on the chance to wrap up the Andalucian Championship but are still leading the way. Marbella-based side Costa Gaels still have a slim chance of claiming the title after turning things round since the turn of the year, winning three out of four games. Sitting four points behind the Gibraltar Gaels they will need to win both games in Sevilla and hope Seville Og Eire beat Gibraltar.
Thomas toast of Paris-Nice
I’M CLEAN: Rafa’s plea
thing in the future’. Bachelot had said: "We know that Nadal's famous sevenmonth injury was without a doubt due to a positive [drug test]. “When you see a tennis player who stops playing for long months, it is because he has tested positive and because they are covering it up.” Nadal hit back, claiming ‘I am a completely clean guy.”
Unbeaten Barca BARCELONA extended their record-breaking streak of games without defeat to 37 after a 6-0 win over Getafe. The Spanish champions smashed Spain’s all-time unbeaten record the previous week with a 5-1 win over Rayo Vallecano. Luis Enrique’s team play Arsenal at the Nou Camp in the second leg of their Champions League last-sixteen qualifier tonight.
BRITISH cyclist Geraint Thomas has seen off Spain’s two-time Tour de France champion Alberto Contador to win his first Paris-Nice race. The Team Sky rider held off Contador’s attacks in the seventh and final stage to finish four seconds ahead of him in the overall placings. Although Thomas finished the stage in 11th place, he had done enough to claim a famous victory. "It's definitely the greatest win in my career so far," the 29-year-old Welshman said. "To win ahead of Alberto, who is one of the greatest stage racers ever, and Richie (Porte), who won almost every race he entered last year, I can hardly believe it." A clearly fuming Contador, who launched attacks during the stage’s high climbs,was adamant he should have won. "I don't like second places. I did everything I could to make up for lost time and in the end I nearly won," the 33-year-old Contador said.
VICTORY: Thomas
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On the decks
L E G E N D A R Y trance DJ Armin Van Buuren will play his only mainland Spanish show in San Pedro’s municipal stadium on July 30.
Doherty SOS THE Libertines are headlining Murcia’s SOS 4.8 Festival on May 6 and 7 with Love of Lesbian, Blonde Redhead and the Martinez Brothers also playing.
Covering Andalucia in 2016 with over 200,000 papers (130,000 digital) and around 500,000 visits to the website each month… The Olive Press just keeps growing!
E RE
WHEN David Carter bought Richo from a pet shop he thought he was bringing home a pedigree labrador to his 12-year-old daughter. Richo came at a premium price too, with David, 43, paying the shop in Fuengirola a woofing €350 for the one-month-old ‘pure-breed’ puppy. So he was anything but impressed when a local vet informed him that Richo was a mixed breed and probably half podenco. “I am devastated. They are charging a premium price for pedigree dogs yet they sold me a dud,” David told the Olive Press. The expat, who lives in Mijas, first realised something was up when he noticed Richo was much smaller than other
March 16th - March 29th 2016
EXCLUSIVE By Joe Duggan
labradors of the same age. Returning to the shop, a concession inside supermarket Carrefour, David demanded an explanation. “When I went in, they showed me a photo of Richo’s parents as some sort of proof,” said David. “I showed them a photo of Prince Philip and Queen Elizabeth and said, ‘Well, that’s my mum and dad’.” Although the shop originally offered David his money back in exchange for Richo, they have since changed their minds. David now plans to take Richo to England for further tests to prove he has been sold a dodgy dog.
Relax.. Jacks got it covered
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Expat demands new dog - or money back - after being sold a ‘dud’ labrador
BARKING MAD: David (inset) and Richo
Redfaced
MAD?: Mag cover
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Pulp fiction? Second time around IT is not the first time he has stopped traffic on the Costa del Sol. But it seems odd that Pulp Fiction star Samuel L Jackson would be changing up dollars at a money exchange. Either way, the man, who had an ‘American accent’, was happy to pose up for a photo with Olive Press reader Murilyn Hutchinson’s daughter Olivia-Mae, 12. “It was the highlight of our day,” said Murilyn. The jury remains out however, particularly as we reported that Jackson had been spotted at a pizza restaurant in La Cala in 2014.
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STAUNCH feminist and creator of Girls’ Lena Dunham has ruled that she will no longer allow her image to be retouched. Dunham made headlines last week after she criticised and then apologised to El Pais magazine ‘Tentaciones’ for what she described as ‘mad Photoshop’ on its cover photo of her. She was left red-faced after El Pais published an open letter showing Dunham’s PR-approved image had not been changed. “Thank you for being so good-natured about my request for accuracy. But it’s a weird feeling to see a photo and not know if it’s your own body anymore.”
ONE of the greatest musicians of all time, Sir Paul McCartney, has announced his first Spanish gig in 12 years. The 73-year-old former Beatle will bring his ‘One on One’ world tour to Atletico Madrid’s Vicente Calderon stadium, on June 2. McCartney will play classics spanning his entire career as a Beatle and as a solo artist.