Olive Press Andalucia Issue 427

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Single mother and young son are branded squatters by ‘heartless’ landlord despite never missing rent

A BRITISH single mother is being evicted from her home in Spain for being a squatter - despite not missing a rent payment in SEVEN YEARS.

Kate Langshaw, 44, and her seven-year-old son Lucas were given notice to leave their property, after becoming embroiled in an inheritance row between the owner and her ‘heartless’ politician son. Despite Kate winning her case in May, the son, who stood in the local elections for the anti-feminist Vox party, was able to reverse the decision on appeal in just three months.

Questions remain over how the ruling was made so rapidly in a legal system that is famed for its slow pace.

Kate, for example, has not received a single alimony payment from the father of her son for four years after a successful domestic violence case against him.

She is now facing tens of thousands of euros in court costs, legal fees and backdated rent - and the prospect of being

‘ORGY’ VILLA OF KISSING FA BOSS

EXCLUSIVE

EXCLUSIVE

By Laurence Dollimore

left homeless with a young son and their dog Orri.

Kate told the Olive Press: “I’ve always paid my rent and did everything I was told to by the rental company, it’s terrifying to think we could all be on the streets.

“We are still in the summer season and I cannot afford to find a new place near my son’s school.

“I might even have to give up my dog as very few rental properties accept pets which would be heartbreaking for me but especially my son. He suffers from anxiety and Orri is crucial for his mental health.

“How can it be fair that I’m being kicked out? It’s madness. I hear stories that it can take three years to evict an actual squatter, and yet I am being asked to leave as a single mother paying rent.”

The issues began when the millionaire patriarch of the influential

Bas family, based in Javea on the Costa Blanca, died some years ago, leaving a slew of homes, land and money to his wife Christine English - and his four children.

The father had been a successful property developer and was behind the large Don Pepe urbanisation just off Javea’s celebrated Arenal beach.

He left a number of apartments in the block, plus various other homes, over which the siblings are understood to have squabbled.

The Olive Press understands at least one child, including son Daniel, took their mother to court to obtain more properties and money from her.

“They didn’t want to wait for their inheritance,” claims Kate.

the rental company handling the tenancy advised her to continue paying rent to the mother, particularly as official notary papers still indicated that Christine was the owner.

Finally last year, the son tried to ‘bully’ Kate to pay him instead of the mum with an increase of €200 more a month, despite her having a fixed contract in place until 2026. When this failed, he instead took her to court, claiming she was a ‘squatter’ because she had no contract with him - despite proving she had paid rent since 2017.

He claimed he had the right to any earnings (known as usufructo ) on the property, including rent.

However his case failed in Denia court in May, when a judge ruled that mother Christine had the usufructo when Kate signed the rental agreement and she had therefore paid the right person.

The Olive Press has tracked down a villa allegedly rented by controversial football kiss row boss Luis Rubiales to host an orgy with ‘eight to 10’ young women.

The stunning home is nestled in an exclusive Costa Tropical urbanisation, near where the ousted Spanish FA (RFEF) boss grew up in Motril, Granada.

Rubiales is alleged to have held the late night ‘orgy’ in Salobrena, with women as young as 18 during the Covid lockdown in 2020, according to his uncle Juan Rubiales.

The pair are embroiled in an ongoing feud after Luis sacked him from his press officer role at RFEF.

The series of wild nights, which went on until 6am and broke Covid rules, was anything but popular with angry neighbours, the Olive Press can reveal.

“I remember when he was here, the noise was crazy,” one neighbour revealed. “Boom, boom, boom until the early hours, there was lots of music, drinking and lots of girls.

“I could hear them all laughing and partying until five or six in the morning. They were here for a couple of days.”

The local, who only gave her name as Maria, said the property is owned by an Italian businesswoman. She added: “It was during the Covid pandemic and it was annoying but we did not call the police because that’s not the kind of neighbours we are.” Last year, Juan Rubiales, told an anti-corruption trial in Madrid that Luis had illegally used RFEF funds to rent the luxury villa for an ‘orgy’.

TRAUMATISED: Lucas needs his dog Orri

Unbeknown to Kate, who began renting her two-bed villa from mother Christine in 2017, son Danie managed to acquire the deeds to the home in 2019.

Despite this,

But the son took an appeal to the courts in Alicante, and, extraordinarily, the decision was reversed in July making the latest rental contract void.

Worse, he is now suing Kate for backdated rent which totals over €30,000.

The case has shocked the local expat community, which has set up a GoFundMe page to help Kate with legal costs and a deposit for a new home, if needed.

See Sordid and seedy, p6

G ibraltar

SUMPTUOUS: Four bed villa in Salobrena, while (top) his controversial kiss

Paddlers vigil

AROUND 60 people held a vigil on Malaga’s Huelin beach to support the families of two Argentinian men who vanished a week earlier as they went out to sea on a paddle board.

Cartel sunk

A JOINT Serbian and Spanish operation seized 2.7 tonnes of cocaine off the coast of the Canary islands. The cartel kingpin and five of his henchmen were arrested.

Sainz snatch

SPANISH F1 driver

Carlos Sainz had his €300,000 Richard Mille watch snatched from his wrist in Milan just hours after coming third at the Italian GP. It was recovered soon after by police.

Speeding in

NARCO speedboats are being repurposed to bring hundreds of illegal immigrants to Spanish shores, with Almeria becoming ground zero, with 186 migrants by the Red Cross in just one day.

Snowed under

POLICE have made Spain’s biggest ever cocaine haul in Algecirasworth €3 BILLION.

The authorities are still rubbing their eyes over the seizure of the nine tonnes of cocaine from Ecuador.

The joint operation, dubbed ‘Op -

eration Nano’, has so far not produced any arrests.

The previous record for Spain’s largest cocaine seizure dates back to 2018, also in Algeciras. The so-called ‘fardos’, or packages, bizarrely carried giant swastikas and had names like ‘Hitler’.

BEATING THE RAP

INFAMOUS Irish mobster, John Gilligan, 71, walked out of court a free man, after doing a plea bargain deal with prosecutors over drug trafficking and gun possession.

The gangster - accused of being behind the murder of crime journalist Veronica Guerin - will not spend another night in prison in Spain.

The same applies to seven of

Infamous Irish mobster John Gilligan walks free from drug trial after bargain plea deal

By Alex Trelinski

BEACH PAEDO

A MAN who allegedly filmed dozens of naked kids at a beach on the Costa del Sol has been arrested after being apparently caught in the act.

Police spotted the 45-year-old when he was running away from a group of people who had discovered him filming children at a beach in Estepona.

He had allegedly been videoing kids in the beach showers when they were being undressed by their parents to wash them.

Officers seized his phone and discovered over 50 videos showing footage of naked children at the beach.

Agents then conducted a search in the hotel room where the accused was staying, seizing a laptop and a number of memory cards.

He was arrested and will be remanded in prison until a trial takes place.

The gang had faced drug offences and belonging to a criminal organisation, while the boss had an extra charge of weapon possession

his associates, including ‘Fat’ Tony Armstrong, who were told of the good news by a Costa Blanca judge on Monday. after a gun was found in his villa garden, in Torrevieja. He had been accused of masterminding an operation to smuggle cannabis and powerful sleeping-pills to his native Ireland in consignments of flip-flops. Other defendants at the Torrevieja hearing included Milligan’s son, Darren, 47, who skipped Spain last autumn - forcing two trial postponements - but was extradited in July. Police had first raided their homes between Torrevieja and Orihuela Costa in 2020. The three-day trial ended before it started when judge Francisco Ruiz was informed about the plea bargain deal.

‘Predator’ snared

A SPANISH carer who allegedly raped a British girl 10 times has been dragged before a Gibraltar court.

Pedro Luis Garcia Vallejo, 25, from La Linea, has been charged with one count of sex with a child and ten counts of rape against an underage female.

The Care Agency has since suspended him pending an investigation.

The age of the girl, confirmed by Royal Gibraltar Police to be a British citizen, has not been disclosed.

In a second court hearing, the defendant was granted bail for the sum of £2,000 and ordered to attend further proceedings at Gibraltar’s Supreme Court on September 14.

Despite prosecutors wanting Gilligan jailed for over eight years, the deal gives him a 22-month suspended sentence and fines amounting to €14,000. The rest of Gilligan’s crew each got suspended 18-month prison sentences as opposed to original demands for nearly seven years behind bars. Gilligan spent 17 years in an Irish jail before being freed in 2013 after he was convicted of running a large-scale drug trafficking gang in the nineties that netted over €35 million. He was acquitted in 1996 for the murder of journalist Veronica Guerin with associate Brian Meehan receiving a life sentence for the killing.

He was ordered not to approach the alleged victim or set foot within a 200 metre-radius of the care home where the attacks are alleged to have occurred.

Car trouble

COPS have arrested 21 people and recovered 24 high end cars that were due to be sold abroad. The gang acquired the vehicles in Spain, falsified their documentation, and then sold them on in third countries – mainly in Romania, but also Portugal, Germany and France. Some 14 arrests were in Spain – in Barcelona, Lerida and Madrid – and a further seven in Romania.

FREE: Gilligan cut a deal

Ice cool Jenni

SHE could be the most famous woman in the world right now. But female football star Jenni Hermoso looked nothing but ice cool as she spent a few days on holiday in southern Spain. Heading to Marbella after getting embroiled in the massive Spanish FA kiss scandal, she was spotted out and about in the Old Town. And luckily the sharp eyed boss of ice cream parlour La Valenciana managed to

get a snap to record her visit.

“She came in with her family and ordered a nougat and white chocolate ice cream,” said Daniel Vila, who was working behind the counter at the time.

“At first, we didn’t realise it was her, but then I saw her tattoos while she was reaching out to pay.

“‘It’s the world champion!’ I blurted out.” After agreeing to pose for a picture she revealed she was in Marbella for a week, before jetting to Mexico.

See Sordid and Seedy, p6/7

HIDDEN THOUGHTS

IT was on a long drive back from Portugal to Denia to catch the ferry to Ibiza that Paul Richardson stumbled across the little known region that would eventually become his home. He was to turn his back on fastpaced modern life for a rural idyll – for the second time.

A decade earlier, he had landed in Ibiza to escape a hectic life in London, arriving on the White Isle in his ‘little brown mini’.

Apart from a suitcase full of New Romantic-style clothes he also had a deal to write his first book.

So eschewing the party hotspots – the clubbing scene in Ibiza was exploding in 1989 – he found a typical whitewashed cottage and settled into a self-sufficient lifestyle growing vegetables and keeping chickens.

“I didn’t know how long I’d be in Ibiza, but I knew it’d be at least a year to write the book,” Paul told the Olive Press. “In the end I was there for 10 years.”

While he still loves the island, he slowly watched the rural lifestyle disappear, as it became the St Tropez of Spain.

“Affordable rural living was not an option any more,” he explained, adding he had been harking for the old lifestyle back – and that was when he came across the perfect spot by accident.

He had been to Portugal to interview classical pianist Maria João Pires, ‘she is quite brilliant’ says Paul, and on the way back he crossed into Caceres province. Here he was to find what he had lost. He fell in love with the wide-open landscape, traffic-free roads and lack of ugly modern buildings and was to return to explore alongside his partner, Nacho Trives, several times.

On one of those occasions they came across a finca for sale outside the village of Hoyos and made the decision to stay.

Now 23 years on he and Nacho - who married in 2010 - are still there. It is this period in his life that is the subject of his latest book Hidden Valley, which came out this summer.

“Everyone thought we were mad to leap off a cliff moving to such a remote place, especially as a gay couple,” said Paul.

In fact this is part of what the 59-year-old former Chichester Cathedral choirboy, Old Etonian and Cambridge University alum-

As the Olive Press continues with the serialisation of respected author Paul Richardson’s new book, Dilip Kuner finds out about his last 30 years in Ibiza and finally unspoilt Extremadura

the land and the people he got to know on his journey through the coming decades – but it was definitely not all a bed of roses.

Paul added: “It was like the wild west. People lived full on, with bar fights and all. It was a hard environment and you had to be tough enough to stand up for yourself.

“I was petrified and stayed at home a lot. It was quite a while until l earned their respect.” But earn their respect he did and the help and advice he got from

that is very satisfying – it is a twoway process,” says Paul. But all things change even in Extremadura.

Paul explained: “Up until five to 10 years ago the matanza (pig slaughter) was a big thing. Everyone had a pig and came together for the slaughter. It was a cultural experience, something that had been done for hundreds of years. This is just one example of what is being lost.

“When I moved here it was remote, now communications are vastly improved.

“Madrid is just three-and-a half hours away. It is not just a transport thing. It is communication. Back when I moved here there was no internet, no mobile phone coverage. Now everyone is connected.

“Youngsters don’t want to stay, so farms and land are abandoned, which leads to fires.

“Old ways of doing things –collective knowledge – are forgotten. Even the weather has changed.”

He concluded: “It is a real shame that this cultural richness is being lost.”

Will he move on again? Are there any more, hidden rural idylls out there for Paul to discover? We’ll find out in his next book, perhaps.

NOW turn to page 26 for the next serialisation of his new book Hidden Valley, exclusively in the Olive Press

Hidden Valley: Finding freedom in Spain's deep country is published by Abacus Books.

ONE of British television’s most successful and popular actors is coming to Spain this month to shoot a drama series about - British television!

David Tennant is one of an all-star cast filming Jilly Cooper’s novel Rivals set in the ruthless world of television back in the 1980s.

The Scottish actor shot to fame in 2005 when he took over the iconic role of Doctor Who from Christopher Eccleston and has reprised that role for three 60th anniversary specials that will be screened in November.

Shooting for the Disney+ production is heading to the Costa del Sol on September 18, where Tennant will be joined by an all-star cast including former Eastenders hard-man Danny Dyer.

One out, one in

NO sooner had heir to the Spanish throne Princess Leonor graduated from her Welsh school then her alma mater welcomed another royal student.

Her younger sister, the Infanta Sofia, has started her Baccalaureate studies at the UWC Atlantic College.

The school is 35 kilometres from Cardiff, and her schooling will cost her parents around €82,000 from their own pockets for the two years of study.

HAPPY COUPLE: Paul (left) and Nacho at home on their finca

Everyone had a pig and came together for the slaughter

Families come first!

SPANISH fishermen ‘don’t care’ about British territorial waters, they have brazenly told the Olive Press.

They insist they are more interested in ‘feeding their families’ than the sovereignty of Gibraltar’s waters.

Sparking the likelihood of further incidents, two fishing bosses have backed the trawlers as they prepare to continue operating off the Rock.

It comes despite the threat of massive fines and jail sentences - in a potential headache for UK-Spain relations at a sensitive time.

The fishermen, from La Linea - one of Spain’s poorest towns - claim they are ‘struggling to provide for their families’ due to the ongoing border row off the British Overseas Territory. There have been multiple skir-

EXCLUSIVE: Fishing chiefs vow to continue trawling off Gibraltar despite risk of further skirmishes and legal action

By Kayleigh Beardsley in La Linea

mishes between Spanish boats and Gibraltarian police this summer which have threatened to drag the UK and Spain into an international spat. Spain’s Foreign Ministry made a diplomatic protest to the British Embassy in Madrid over the ‘serious incidents’, while the Junta called on Gibraltar to ‘stop harassing’ the fishermen.

It came after the boss of La Linea’s Fishing Association, Jonathan Sanchez, 33, faces court for allegedly fishing ‘il-

legally’ off the Rock.

“I was fishing one mile from Gibraltar and our government says those waters are Spanish,” he insisted to the Olive Press.

“As the nets I use are illegal in Gibraltar the police there are harassing us on a daily basis.” Sanchez insisted he will not attend his court hearing, expected this month, if the Spanish Government does not provide him with a lawyer. However, he did admit the Spanish authorities have told him not to fish again near Gibraltar to avoid ‘making the conflict worse’.

Partying Pedro

“The Guardia Civil have asked us not to fish there until the situation calms down.”

The problem, he insists, is fishing further into Algeciras bay means netting far fewer fish due to an ongoing algae plague.

“We have gone from mak-

ing €1,800 a month to not even €1,000,” he claimed.

All aboard!

THE call has gone out for a boat bus to cut congestion on the deadly A-7 motorway along the Costa del Sol. The idea comes from the new president of the Municipalities Association of the Costa del Sol, Manuel Cardeña.

He sees it as a good way of solving high season hold-ups on both the A-7 and AP-7.

“I’m committed to talking about maritime connections between municipalities to unclog the roads, especially as there are not many alternatives,” he insisted.

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SELLING COUNTRY PROPERTIES

SINCE THE LATE 1990’S

SPAIN’S prime minister Pedro Sanchez enjoyed a night of music at an international festival on the Costa del Sol last weekend.

The socialist leader, 51, took a break from trying to form a government to enjoy the likes of The Strokes at the Cala Mijas music festival.

The PSOE chief was seen posing for selfies with fans before taking to X (formerly Twitter) to praise the event. He wrote: “Atmosphere and good music at CalaMijasFest.

“Very proud of the cultural power of Spain. We are a country of enormous musical talent and the leading global destination for music festivals.”

“I almost cannot afford the petrol so I will have no choice but to fish nearer Gibraltar to provide for my wife and kid. I have a mortgage on my house as well as the boat.

“It is our livelihood and I don’t care who owns the water,” Sanchez added. His opinion is shared by Leoncio Fernandez, President of the Shipowners of Algeciras Bay, who added he ‘couldn’t

care less’ about the sovereignty of the waters.

“We don’t care who owns the waters, I don’t care if they are British or Spanish, we just need to fish because we do it for a living,” he told the Olive Press In response to the claims, the Gibraltar government ruled it was ‘certain’ where its territorial waters began and it would enforce international laws if fishermen from Spain entered them.

“His Majesty’s Government has absolutely no doubts about the sovereignty of the waters around Gibraltar, so we are asking for unnecessary incidents in the water to be avoided as they create risk for the crews of the vessels.”

Illegal tuna fishing in territorial waters carries a hefty fine of up to £1,000.

Recently, a Spanish fisherman landed a £600 fine and a 12-month ban.

Sea connections could be set up at existing ports like Benalmadena, Marbella, and Fuengirola.

Other options include trying to better promote public transport or trying to revive old plans for a coastal train service.

Removing tolls on the AP-7 Mediterranean highway has also been mooted to get traffic off the A-7 frequently voted by motorists as the worst road in Spain.

VINUELA BOOST

HEAVY rain has benefited Vinuela reservoir, which has been sitting at record low levels.

The weekend’s 61 millimeters of rain per square metre was the highest fall for 15 months.

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VOW: Fishermen say they will return to Gib waters

RAVE PRESS: Selfies at Cala Mijas festival

DEADLY DANA

Half a dozen dead, including a man in an elevator, as extreme storms rock the country blocking railways and roads

AT least five people have died, while railways and motorways were blocked in serious floods around Spain.

The ‘historic’ DANA storms wrought destruction throughout the mainland, leaving a further three people missing.

Thousands were forced from their homes as the weekend’s heavy rains swept through the country, with San Jose del Valle in Cadiz seeing a record 223mm fall in just eight hours.

The deaths came despite everyone in the Madrid region receiving alarming text messages telling them to stay in their homes.

Among the saddest deaths was a 20-year-old man stuck in an elevator in the Toledo town of Casarrubios del Monte.

The man got caught when he went down to his basement garage to move his car away from rapidly rising floodwaters.

However, the power cut while in the lift, trapping him in what would become a metal coffin.

"We heard him inside, crying for help, but it was impossible to reach him," revealed neighbour Manuel de Vera, 28.

Body

As the sun rose on Monday morning, authorities also discovered the lifeless body of a man inside a stranded car in the nearby town of Bargas. The body of a 50-year-old man from Camarena meanwhile, was found in an open field.

To the north, two more lives were lost after a pair of hikers went missing exploring the Gorgol ravine in Tramacastilla de Tena, in Huesca.

Authorities had better luck when they managed to save the life of a terrified 10-year-old boy who had spent a whole night clinging to a tree branch in El Santo, near Toledo.

The car containing young Ethan and his family had been swept away into the Alberche River - which according to neighbours looked like the ‘Mississippi’ - as it crossed a bridge. His 14-year-old sister fell out of the backseat door but made it to a nearby fire station soon after, while his mother was found clinging to another tree.

Ethan was carried by the torrent a full three kilometres until he managed to grab the branch of a seven-metre ash tree that his rescuer said was ‘as thin as a finger’.

“Thank you, thank you, thank you,”

Ethan repeated to the security guard who found him, his face covered in mud, bruises and scratches .

“He clung on to life, I don’t know how he made it,” the security guard said.

Ethan’s father is still among the missing, as well as an 83-year-old man swept away by the current in Villamanta and a woman, 54, vanished

Travel hell

RAIL passengers between Madrid and Andalucia suffered a day of travel hell after being forced to sit on trains for up to five hours before leaving the station.

Train operator Renfe saw many of its services delayed due to a number of stretches remaining flooded following heavy rainfall.

Chaos reigned at Madrid's Atocha station on Monday night as thousands of people gathered around the monitors, which showed every train’s status as 'delayed'.

By Walter Finch

from her car in Valmojado. An extensive search with divers is scouring the flood zones to find them. In more extreme flooding, all the railway lines south to from the capital were blocked on Sunday night and through most of Monday.

Separatist risk

SPAIN’S deputy prime minister Yolanda Diaz has been slammed for meeting with Catalan independence leader Carles Puigdemont.

The politician has been living in self-imposed exile in Belgium since 2017 in a bid to avoid arrest for his role in the independence drive in Catalunya that year.

Popular Party leader Alberto Nunez Feijoo called Diaz’s meeting ‘outrageous’ and insisted if Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez had not given her permission, she should be sacked.

TORNADO: Formed off the coast of Torremolinos

Voted top expat paper in Spain

A campaigning, community newspaper, the Olive Press represents the huge expatriate community in Spain with an estimated readership, including the websites, of more than two million people a month.

OPINION

A kiss isn’t just a kiss

THE Rubiales-in brigade like to wring their hands and ask what is Spain coming to?

What is the world coming to if in this famously kiss-happy country a man cannot give a woman a peck on the lips in a moment of joy?

But Rubiales has not become a hunted man over a single kiss.

The kiss tore a gaping hole in the veil that concealed his reprehensible conduct throughout his career as a football administrator.

The kiss drew attention to the numerous scandals, allegations of corruption, collusion and misuse of funds which Rubiales seems to have inherited directly from his Andalucian forebears.

Rubiales descends from a long line of Andalucians who seem to think that one only goes into politics to enrich themselves and abuse the power bestowed upon them.

That they, along with their buddies and confederates in the public institutions of power, will enjoy impunity because none of them will ever hold the other to account.

Luis Rubiales’ father, Manuel Rubiales, is a former mayor of Motril who was caught up in Andalucia’s dreadful ERE scandal in 2020.

Just like his son, Rubiales senior ended up being disqualified from his position of power and has a trial pending which could see him behind bars for three years.

Meanwhile, the mother, Angeles Bejar - who presumably lived very well from her husband’s career - went on a pitiful three-day hunger strike because she could not conceive that her son might have done wrong.

The sense of impunity and entitlement which underpins the endemic corruption in Andalucia has clearly been passed down through the generations.

Which is why it’s so important that we take a stand now, and show these people that their behaviour will no longer be tolerated.

Spain demands and deserves a better class of leader.

PUBLISHER / EDITOR

Jon Clarke, jon@theolivepress.es

Dilip Kuner dilip@theolivepress.es

Alberto Lejarraga alberto@theolivepress.es

Jo Chipchase jo@theolivepress.es

John Culatto

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WITH his own mother locking herself in a Granada church and going on an ‘indefinite’ hunger strike until the ‘inhuman witch hunt’ against her son ended, it’s easy to think that Luis Rubiales must be a victim. The boss of the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) has certainly tried to play the underdog as he took on the might of the Spanish government and Fifa. His unquestioning belief that it’s OK to kiss a female player on the lips, throw another over the shoulder, and joke about marrying another in the locker room, has certainly

led to much navel-gazing in Spanish society. But crucially, his kissing of Spanish striker Jenni Hermoso as Spain won the World Cup has shone a light on his six year-long position at RFEF, as well as how he got onto the podium in the first place.

And it isn’t pretty reading, with numerous ‘victims’ and witnesses coming forward over the way he allegedly trampled on and abused them on his way to the top of Spain’s football pyramid.

The accusations range from misogyny and sexual harassment to misappropriation of

SUPPORT: Locals get behind Rubiales calling for ‘the truth’

‘HE’S one of our own, he’s one of our own. Jude Bellingham, is… well, actually he’s another expat, settling in well into one of the largest diaspora in Europe, the Brits in Spain. Movie star looks and being the first Englishman to win La Liga’s Player of the Month award - a feat neither David Beckham, Steve McManaman nor Gary Lineker ever achieved - has certainly helped the English midfield maestro feel at home. Indeed, it couldn’t have been a better start for the Brummie, who has become an instant hero in Madrid following his €103 million signing from Borussia Dortmund last month. He has even managed to equal Real legend Cristiano Ronaldo’s explosive start to life in Madrid after netting five goals in his first four games - including his most recent feat: scoring a 95th minute winner against Getafe at the weekend. We will have to wait two weeksafter the international break - when Madrid take on Cham-

public funds, while anyone who dares to expose his alleged conduct is subject to aggressive legal threats - as Hermoso disgracefully, found out herself.

“The list of women and men aggrieved by Rubiales and his insults, bravado, blackmail, threats, espionage and persecution is too long and must stop,” La Liga President Javier Tebas wrote on X (formerly Twitter) after the furore broke. And the rotten smell of corruption and sleaze has, it turns out, been pervading the halls of the Spanish RFEF in Madrid for years. Indeed, his own uncle, Juan Rubiales, came out

SORDID AND SEEDY ONE OF OUR OWN

from his job at RFEF over accusations of leaking confidential information with the aim of damaging his nephew’s reputation. Juan Rubiales confided that Luis would use a villa on the Granada coast (see Orgy Villa on page 1) to host sordid parties for his closest allies and fellow board members.

Present at these gatherings, he described as ‘orgies’, would be around eight to 10 young women, under the pretence of a ‘work event’, with their pay and all other expenses stuck on the federations tab. “He is a man obsessed with power, obsessed with luxury, obsessed with money, even with women,” he claimed to El Confidencial . “I think this boy needs a programme of social re-education.”

He has a point. While president of the Football Players’ Association (AFE) between 2010 and 2017 he would allegedly ask marketing manager Tamara Ramos what colour underwear she was wearing and tell her to ‘put her knee pads on’. When she informed him in confidence she was pregnant, the first thing he did was to organise a meeting to announce it to the whole office - clearly irked that she would soon take maternity leave.

pions League (CL) debutants Real Sociedad to see if he can break Ronnie’s record. But is he to become a galactico, like Ronaldo, Zidane or Beckham - or a flop like Michael Owen and Eden Hazard?

The first warning signs must come from the awkward spell of the last famous British player who attempted to adapt to life in Spain. Despite winning four Champions League medals, Welshman Gareth Bale became a major figure-of-fun over his lack of Spanish and efforts to integrate after arriving for a world record fee in 2013.

While the former Tottenham forward performed wonders for the merengues (in particularly CL finals), he was not well-liked either in the dressing room or the stands.

Bellingham, the opposite face of Bale

What’s been apparent since Jude landed in Madrid has been his attitude as

much as his football.

Unlike Bale, he has made it clear he is keen to integrate as quickly as possible, which will mean eating at strange hours, getting used to extreme temperatures (cold and boiling) and plenty of late nights.

According to sources he is also insistent on mastering the language, unlike Bale who ‘only spoke in English’.

But then again, he does have a head start: He studied Spanish at school until the age of 13 and apparently has sought the advice of Beckham who stressed the importance of learning the lingo.

From day one, he has been seen joking with everyone, with many of the players sharing pics of themselves with Belli at the gym or just hanging out together.

It is probably fair to say that his previous experience in Germany served as the ideal apprenticeship. While he spoke to the media in English, he was known to

From orgies with ‘eight to 10 young girls’ to using public money to pay for home renovations, the scandalous own goals of football boss Luis Rubiales are raining in, writes Walter Finch

‘Belli’ in Madrid: Instant hero or just another expat struggling to adapt and settle in his new life in Spain? Walt Finch finds out if Jude Bellingham is to be the next Gary Lineker or a flop like Michael Owen

LEGEND: €103m Belli has won over the fans in a month

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By Laurence Dollimore

THE unpretentious tourist resort of Motril, on Granada’s Costa Tropical, should have been enjoying the last few days of summer last week.

Instead, it found itself at the centre of a global media frenzy over a story that wouldn’t look out of place in a Pedro Almodovar film.

The protagonist was the 72-year-old mother of ousted football boss Luis Rubiales, who had locked herself inside the Divina Pastora church, declaring a hunger strike over the ‘mistreatment’ of her ‘honourable’ son.

Angeles Bejar insisted he had done nothing wrong by kissing Jenni Hermoso and she was passing the hours of her self-confinement ‘crying and praying’.

Within hours, dozens of camera crews and journalists from Spain, Portugal and the UK had camped outside - including the Olive Press.

We were expecting a huge backlash and, indeed, we heard that a counter-protest would be arriving, but it soon transpired to be the total opposite.

While thousands of Jenni supporters had gathered in Madrid, there was no chance of Motril turning on their ‘son’, the local boy who had ‘made it big’.

for the PSOE socialist party at the Junta. Indeed, he had risen to the very top as the Employment Delegate for Granada and, almost inev-

HUNGER: Angeles on strike in local church

itably, we discovered got sucked into the huge ERE scandal.

It emerges he is still facing trial for his part in the biggest corruption case in Spanish history that during a decade alone saw €680 million stolen from public coffers.

An inconvenient truth brushed under the carpet by local supporters

And we quickly discovered why: Luis was born into privilege as the son of Manuel Rubiales, the mayor of Motril for over a decade. And therein lay the crux - indeed probably the exact reasons why poor little Luis thought he could get away with anything.

For daddy had not only run the town like his fiefdom, as most mayors invariably do in Andalucia, but he had gone on to become a senior bigwig

He is facing three years in prison for using public money from Brussels, via Madrid, to help stimulate employment and help ailing companies.

But that’s ancient history here in old school Andalucia - an inconvenient truth brushed under the carpet by locals who are still suspicious of the central government. Indeed the onslaught of national - and international - criticism against Luis only served to provoke a rally-round-the-flag effect in Motril.

Dozens of residents showed up to voice their support for Rubiales and his mother, decrying the ‘extreme feminism’ they claim is ‘sweeping across Spain.’

This fervent support laid bare the fractures caused by Spain’s ongoing culture wars, symbolised by the rise of Vox, which calls to redefine domestic violence as ‘intrafamilial violence’, claiming male victims are too often ignored.

Gender-based violence is a key issue for far-right Vox and shows the country has a long way to go to shake off the ‘machismo’ attitudes that still run rife in southern Spain.

Motril is no exception, with women and men of all ages blasting the ‘witch hunt’ of Rubiales.

“Men do much worse in the streets everyday and never get punished,” one local told the Olive Press, adding: “The justice system in Spain is broken.”

While the dust has seemingly settled on Motril, for now, the issue of women’s rights is far from over in Spain.

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After the meeting he allegedly made the vulgar comment that she should have ‘got f***ed from behind instead’. He has insisted the claims are false and announced ‘legal proceedings’. Almost as sinister are the allegations he used

GALACTICO: Belli slots the 95th minute winner home against Getafe

speak halting German among his teammates.

An atypical football player

Bellingham decided at a very young age to bravely take the step to try a new country and quickly adapted to life in Germany, having landed in Dortmund at just 17.

However, the difference between England and Germany is not as great as with Spain

Fortunately the powers that be at Real believe he can adapt to life in the capital, although inevitably there are still some niggling ‘fears’ that he will find the pressure too much.

For now, the backroom staff at Real - not to mention his entourage of staff and family - are working around the clock to ensure one of the great talents of world football stays wrapped in cotton wool off the pitch. And on the pitch - fingers crossed unless you are a Barca or Athletico fan - we are looking at a cross between Zidane, Ronaldo and all-time legend Emilio Butragueño.

€120,000 of AFE funds to pay for a renovation to his house, not to mention suspicious trips to New York with female colleagues.

Architect Yasmina Eid-Mached claimed he told her to ‘send the costs’ of his sumptuous Madrid villa to the union.

She also alleged that during a later argument, he subsequently pushed her aggressively and grabbed her arm, leaving her with injuries to her wrist and ribs.

This apparent attitude towards women continued after he won election to become the president of the RFEF in 2017.

It was most publicly noticeable in his rock-solid support for divisive and unpopular women’s coach Jorge Vilda (who eventually managed the team to its World Cup victory).

Come late 2021, three senior players of the women’s team, Alexia Putellas, Patri Guijarro and Irene Paredes, wrote an email to the RFEF complaining about Vilda and the federation itself.

Among various complaints was their anger that Vilda refused to let the players lock their hotel room doors and search their bags while on national duty.

Rubiales and the RFEF then made a public statement lambasting the criticism and threatening the players with a five-year ban from the national team.

They implied the players were blackmailing them by ‘applying pressure to the federation’.

Many of the players had simply had enough, and on September 23, 2022, 15 players posted an open letter to the federation.

This resulted in all the players being banned ‘until they apologised’. Only three did in the end. Now they are joined by the rest of the squadsome 56 in total - who have announced they will not play again for Spain while ‘the current management’ remains at the RFEF. It is hard to disagree with them.

After Rubiales mum brought her own protest to a rapid end after just three days, she would do well to put herself in the boots of those four and a half dozen players… and the thoughts of 99.9% of the Spanish female population.

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My poor little boy… the son of a political ‘fraudster’!

FATHER AND SON: The Rubiales

Look up

CROWDS of more than 300,000 are expected for this weekend's eighth edition of Torre del Mar’s International Air Festival.

The festival, which kicks off this Friday, promises three days of ‘thrilling aerobatic displays and cultural festivities’.

The festival has steadily grown in popularity and features a wide variety of aircraft, including jet fighters, aerobatic teams, and historic planes. This year, the Swiss aerobatic teams will make their debut in Spain.

BIKE CRASH HORROR

British motorcyclist, 70, is killed after being ‘knocked into wrong lane’ in Marbella

By Laurence Dollimore

TRIBUTES have poured in for a much-loved British expat who died after being knocked off his motorbike on the Costa del Sol.

Ray Wyer, 70, who lived in Manilva, was killed in a collision in San Pedro de Alcantara on Friday. According to eyewitnesses, a van rammed into his side, forcing him to veer onto the wrong side of the road.

It is believed Wyer and the van driver had a roadside argument some moments before the fatal crash, reports Manilva WS. After being knocked into the wrong lane, he then collided head on with another car. The driver of the van was later arrested by police in Marbella.

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POPULAR: Ray Wyer was hit by a van

The funeral for Wyer took place in Arboleas, Almeria, where he lived for 15 years before moving to Manilva in 2021. The service was live streamed on Facebook to allow his

DOGGY FUN

MANILVA is set to get a dog beach with several possible sites identified by council staff. There are eight official dog beaches in Malaga province that can be used during the holiday season with the nearest one in Casares. Fuengirola, Totalan, Torre del Mar, Marbella, Torrox, and Benalmadena have the others.

friends from across the country and back home to say goodbye. Friend David Clark wrote in a tribute online: “Ray was a lovely man. He was a very down to earth chap and a pleasure to be around. He was fun, playful, and very mischievous, a kindhearted individual who will be missed by all.”

Pumped up

PETROL prices are at their highest ever level in southern Spain after new increases. Diesel and petrol prices have been on the rise for eight consecutive weeks, seeing a 12% overall increase.

The average cost of a litre of petrol and diesel in the region is €1.75 and €1.70, respectively.

With the current prices, filling up a 60-litre tank with petrol costs €105 on average and €101 for diesel.

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Climate change cost

AUTHORITIES in Tenerife are estimating that the forest fire that broke out on the Canary Island on August 15, and which razed 15,000 hectares of land, has caused €80 million worth of damage.

The fire is still burning three weeks later, but is reported to be stable. The blaze has so far affected a perimeter of 90 kilometres across a total of 12 municipalities, with 13,000 people evacuated. Most of these have since returned home.

The island’s premier Rosa Davila gave the damage estimate, and added that the local government is likely to declare the island a ‘disaster area’.

Calling the blaze ‘the biggest seen in the Canary Islands in the last 40 years’, Davila added that the impact would

Wolves out

THE EU is having doubts about the viability of a project tackling the recovery of the wolf population in Europe.

The institution is now considering how ‘dangerous’ the species can be for humans and other animals.

“The number of wolf packs in some European regions is becoming a real danger,” Ursula Von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, said.

She added that the commission is having talks with scientists and environmental experts to implement ‘measures’ to tackle the issue. The talks come a month after wolves were declared extinct in Andalucia, however, they are still present in other areas of Spain.

Damage worth €80m of devastating fire on Tenerife

By Simon Hunter

be severe for those working in agriculture and livestock farming.

She also used the opportunity to call for a ‘permanent base for firefighting planes’ to be built on the island.

“After three years suffering terrible fires all over the Canaries and after the fire that the island of Tenerife has suffered, I don’t think there is any question that the Canary Islands need a permanent base for firefighting planes,” she said.

Elsewhere, firefighters have been tackling devastating blazes in Greece, Italy and Portugal, driven by searing

temperatures and dry and windy conditions that scientists have linked to climate change.

RUNNING DRY

RESERVOIR levels in Andalucia are continuing to fall as the region suffers the worst drought in the past 30 years. They sit at 20.6% of storage capacity - less than half the level of a decade ago, when they sat at 50.6% in late August. These figures are from just before the recent rain, but are not expected to have changed significantly.

Malaga’s levels lie at 24%, with key reservoirs, such as Lake Viñuela (8.5% full), remaining at a critical level. Some 60ml/sqm rain fell on La Viñuela over the weekend, but several weeks of rainfall are needed to make an impact.

Sevilla’s reservoirs are 29.2% , Jaen’s at 21.2%, Granada’s at 25.6% and Cordoba’s at just 15.1%.

The worst affected are in Almeria, where levels stand at just over 14.3%.

Regarding the Guadalquivir basin, the largest in the region, it is at 19.5% of its capacity, having experienced a 0.5% decrease in just a week.

Dozens of municipalities in the region have implemented water cuts.

NOT ALL EMISSIONS CAN BE REDUCED TO ZERO

By Martin Tye

Industrial processes will always produce emissions.

These gases increase global temperatures by trapping the sun’s energy.

WHERE DOES 2050 COME FROM ?

Now politics come into play.

Back in 2015, some 197 countries agreed to try to limit global temperature increases to 1.5C by 2100. We have failed to do this. For this to happen, scientists calculated that we would need to reach net zero emissions by 2050.

As with most political endeavours talk is cheap, and making long term promises just kicks the problem down the road.

Individuals can do their bit – reduce travel, install solar panels, switch to electric vehicles, eat less red meat etc, but real changes need to come from the world’s governments. In the main, governments continue to over promise and under deliver.

To negate this we have to offset these emissions by actively removing greenhouse gases from the atmosphere.

Planting trees is a natural method…but rapid world deforestation still continues. Fewer trees absorb less CO2.

The world’s largest polluters do not have a cohesive, effective, plan.

China says it aims for carbon neutrality by 2060. The US still emits more carbon per head than China. The EU still talks about 2050, but is failing miserably.

India, a huge emitter, has pledged net zero by 2070 but has published very little by way of policy to make you believe this is possible.

India is more intent on its massive space programme investment.

Russia has claimed 2060 as a target date. But nobody believes much that comes out of the Kremlin. Meanwhile we witness increasing climate devastation around the world.

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Ambitious rhetoric lacks the extra investment needed and the new policies that need implementing are left in limbo.

It’s ironic that the world’s biggest polluters are suffering the most.

THE hottest date on Gibraltar’s annual calendar is on September 10, when it celebrates its historic National Day. This year, the Rock marks its 56th anniversary as a self-governing British territory, and thousands of revellers will flock to its public and private spaces to commemorate this grand occasion.

The festivities, returning in full force for the first time in four years - the pan-

RED, WHITE AND TRUE

It’s back! National Day celebrations return after four long years

demic and then death of the Queen led to cancellations of the events - will be held in Casemates Square, John Mackintosh Square and Governor’s Parade.

A tradition started in 1992, the celebration marks the identity and independence of Gibraltar and gives residents the chance to come together as one.

Plenty to celebrate

For Gibraltar, the date of September 10 signifies several historic moments.

The most important is the 1967 sovereignty referendum, where residents were asked to vote whether they wanted to go under the sovereignty of Spain or remain with the UK, but with self-governed institutions. The result came out 100% in favour

of remaining with Great Britain.

G ibraltar National Day

A small nation with a big heart

Interview with Richard Buttigieg, SDGG chairman

Q-What sort of feelings does this year's national day conjure after not being able to assemble together for so long?

Here we go!

The group as a whole and I personally are very excited to once again engage with our community in person on 10th September. Whilst it was of course understandable that we weren’t able to do so the last three years, and we did try to maintain the day alive as best we could, there is nothing like a packed Casemates Square and Gibraltar filled with our people in red and white celebrating the day. I believe that fostering a community spirit is crucial to creating a sense of pride and unity, which I consider to be essential traits in cementing and developing our unique national identity.

A-

Where is the struggle for self-determination now in context of the ongoing talks over the EU treaty and what effect do you foresee that a deal or no deal could have over SDGG arguments at UN meetings?

Q-

eyes, hearts and minds of the Gibraltarians, they held the first National Day at John Mackintosh Square (the Piazza) on September 10, 1992.

that the attending crowd could not fit into the square!

A-

If one thinks about it, there is an element of self-determination in the ongoing talks and all surrounding issues in the sense that it is Gibraltar (through its Government and representatives) that is making its own case for what it wants its post-Brexit reality to be. This ability to choose what we want ourselves is at the very heart of the SDGG ethos. It is a bit speculative to try and predetermine what the SDGG’s arguments at the UN will be depending on the outcome of any deal. We shall have to assess what Gibraltar’s position is and proceed accordingly but, whatever the position, we shall continue to put across Gibraltar’s views and aspirations as forcefully as we can!

PROUD: Richard on a previous National Day

progress our rights.

At the time, the idea was to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the 1967 sovereignty referendum – they could not have seen the phenomenal growth and popularity of the event they had created!

Coincidentally, September 10 also marks the date when the Gibraltar Legislative Council became responsible for internal affairs in 1964, giving plenty to celebrate, all on one day.

Instant popularity of National Day

After that first year, the Gibraltar government stepped in to help organise the event, provide some funding for the occasion, and declared September 10 a public holiday.

In 1993, the venue was changed to the larger Grand Casemates Square and, in 1998, to the naval ground.

Today, the celebration runs at multiple sites and the residents don their national colours of red and white for fun family activities and a rousing public rally.

Q-

On the topic of UN meetings, has there been any progress recently considering the different government in office and its political will to enter in more constructive dialogue?

A- Not if one looks at it just from the perspective of having achieved decolonisation. That said, we find that there are increasingly more sympathetic ears to our cause and the exercise of self-determination in society in generally has become so important that, I think, the political aspect of this issue will gain increased support. Of note is that HM Government of Gibraltar was able to have a private meeting with the Secretary General of the UN during its last visit. That is not an easy thing to achieve and hopefully is a sign of them taking us seriously and paying more attention.

Q- Does the fact that Spain and the EU ignore Gibraltar as an entity in talks over the EU treaty frustrate you in the call for self-determination, even if the local delegation is ever-present at meetings over the last years?

The inaugural run of National Day on September 10 1992 was so successful

On top of that, the Rock’s private venues host their own special events in commemoration of National Day. Emilia Hazellsmith of Ocean Village, a thriving area of the Rock’s social scene, says: “National Day is an all-day event with music, dancing and great food and drinks – not to be missed, especially in Ocean Village where live music and fun is the order of the day!”

A-

I think that although the official position is that negotiations are officially between the UK and Spain, Gibraltar is far from being ignored. Not only is it present in all meetings but, as I understand it, it is Gibraltar’s views and positions that are shaping the discussions and even the minutiae of the outcome.

Dress up and come on down

Q-

To what extent do you think Gibraltar is moving forward in its bid for self-determination, considering in effect it is now needing to contend to so many different voices - the UK, EU and Spain - just to maintain its current way of life?

Q-

A- As I said above, negotiating a deal for Gibraltar post-Brexit is already a way of manifesting our wishes and ensuring they are respected and, if possible, implemented. We will need to wait to see what the final outcome of those negotiations is but the SDGG will remain steadfast in its resolve to campaign for the right to self-determination. One must remember that such a right is not exercised once and for all, or indeed only once. The right to self-determination is a continuing right in the sense that we must always be in charge of our own future. So we can, and should always try, to

What is the future for self-determination in Gibraltar considering the increasing pressure on similar territories like Taiwan, Basque Country, Catalunya, Western Sahara, Kurdistan and Hong Kong? Does the lack of diplomatic muscle evidently doom these and the Rock's struggles to oblivion?

As is tradition, the official National Day celebrations start with a children's fancy dress competition on Main Street, followed by a street party in John Mackintosh Square.

A-

We must continue to fight for it. Yes we are a small nation with limited resources but we have always punched above our weight. In this day and age it is inconceivable to me that any third party should have the right to impose its intentions on our country against our democratically expressed wishes. As more and more countries or territories such as the ones you mention seek to pursue their own agendas, Gibraltar’s position can be strengthened and it might become more difficult to refute our arguments. We must therefore continue the fight however frustrated we might sometimes get and however long it takes. It is a fight worth fighting. For our sake, in honour of those generations before who gave up so much and for the sake of our children.

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In the private sector, many of the Rock’s bars and restaurants have organised their very own celebrations, starting with breakfast parties and continuing all day long with various offers on food, drink and entertainment.

The day’s main attraction is the Freedom of the City ceremony, where the mayor reads the Gibraltar National Day Declaration to the gathered crowd.

The official entertainment also includes live music, aerial displays and family activities.

Ahead of the big day, the SDGG has been inviting residents to sign the National Day Banner, which is an expression of unity for inhabitants of the Rock. After being signed by thousands of people, via a stall in Casemates Square, it will be displayed on the National Day stage on September 10.

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WITH the holiday season winding down, tourists heading home and the nights drawing in, this can only mean one thing: the kids are back to school.

While most parents and children look forward to the vuelta al cole, and some can’t wait for the school gates to open, it can be a nerve-wracking experience for some families, especially if they’re new to the Spanish system.

Perhaps your primary-age daughter is shy about joining class, or your teen has spent most of the holiday out till 5am and lying in bed and it’s a major jolt to the system.

Many of you will have a child who isn’t fluent at Spanish and is worried about communicating with classmates.

The Olive Press attempts to demystify Back to School 2023, by mother-of-two Jo Chipchase

Some students will be changing their school, which can be a life-changing decision. They might be switching from a state school to an international college, or a Montosorri or a Warldorf establishment.

Other students will be repeating an academic year, having failed to pass an exam or two in June, presenting a particular set of challenges for both the kid and parents alike.

Or, perhaps, you’re simply wondering where to obtain this year’s school materials without it costing a small fortune.

Whatever your child’s school circumstanc-

es this September the Olive Press sets out to demystify ‘back to school 2023’.

What types of education are available in Spain?

For parents who consider their children to be individual ‘square pegs’, who don’t fit into the ‘round holes’ of state educaContinues on next page

I SENT MY SON TO A STEINER SCHOOL A parent’s view

LIVE PRESS reader Annabelle Grey insists her son, 10, has ‘grown in confidence’ after switching from state education to a Steiner school in the Granada region.

“He really disliked mainstream school. He was quiet and introverted and felt that the other children received more attention because they demanded it of the teachers.

“Now he is seen and valued. When he first started, he wouldn’t speak in morning circle time – the first part of the day when children and teachers share their news and feelings. Now, he willingly shares each day. He has a noticeable sense of self-assurance, enjoys learning now, and discusses what he’s doing at school.”

The curriculum includes maths, English and languages, but they are taught in a visual way with stories and illustrations on the blackboard. And they are also learning geography, astronomy, botany, zoology, geometry, agriculture, music, noise mythology and more.

“Everything is taught in blocks of around 4-5 weeks, except for key subjects which are every week, so the children learn and explore many different things.”

Crunching the numbers...

OFrom front tion, based largely on continuous assessment and exams, there are alternative choices available throughout Spain. There are 7,806 private schools in Spain, with 14,694 In the public sector…so roughly a third of the schools are independent. Among other interesting official stats, with a 97.3% enrolment rate, there isn’t much homes -

STATE EDUCATION

PROS

3 Your child will be involved in your local community

3 Their friends will live locally

3 They will quickly be fluent at Spanish / bilingual

3 There’s no need to transport your children to school

3 It is free of charge

CONS

2 Rigid structure based on continuous assessment

2 Difficult for parents who don’t speak Spanish to understand what’s going on

2 Not much creative learning, in terms of art, drama, etc.

2 It is relatively easy for your child to repeat a year. Re secondary education, the repetition rate is 5.5% for state institutions combined to 1.4% for independent.

chooling or truancy going on in Spain. Meanwhile 9.9% of Spain’s pu pils are foreign, while in Andalu cia, 21% are educated outside the state system and in Valen cia this rises to 25%, explaining why there are so many interna tional schools on the costas, including many with French, British and American syllabuses.

PRIVATE EDUCATION

PROS

3 Cambridge exams are provided

3 Caters for entry to UK universities

3 International Baccalaureate entry

3 Individualised learning plan

3 Constant contact with parents / partici- pation in the learning experience

3 Speak to educators in English

CONS

2 The cost each year

2 Paying for school uniform, that your child must wear

2 Less immersion of your child in their local community

2 Friends might live further away

2 Child is less likely to be fluent at Spanish

2 The need to transport children to school – possibly at a geographic dis- tance

2 The school holidays do not match Spanish holidays

International schools

In the case of British schools, these offer Cambridge exams and allow pupils to take GCSEs and A-Levels.

Most offer an individualised learning plan, which wouldn’t be available in state schools and they are likely to have excellent purpose-built facilities.

They communicate with parents in their native language, making parent-teacher meetings a breeze.

International schools also provide a convenient pathway to enter the UK university system seamlessly. They are a popular choice with parents who come to Spain for contract work, or a limited time only, and

OPPORTUNITY: International schools provide a pathway to UK universities

don’t plan to remain here – although this sort of working life has decreased with Brexit.

Parents can expect to pay from €10,000 to €35,000 per year, depending on whether the child boards at the school.

Parents will also have to buy uniforms and other extras for their

SERVING UP A TREAT

Giant multi-million euro investment in new kitchens, dining room, bathrooms and classrooms at Laude this term

BRAND new kitchens, a future coffee truck and even an outdoor dining room await the new students at Laude International school, in San Pedro Alcantara, this term.

But that’s not all. Thanks to a massive investment from ISP (International Schools Partnership) there will be a completely new menu and coffee bar for the community.

“We are focussing on more choice of main courses, more salads, and all round better food,” explained headmaster Andrew Atkinson.

“The kitchens have been gutted and replaced with the latest kit and we are making an outdoor decking dining area to eat in nice weather,” he continued.

“We have also refurbished over 20 bathrooms with better hand dryers, new fixtures and fittings, and large mirrors, etc,” added Atkinson, who is celebrating his first anniversary, since joining last year.

The former global Head of the International IB Diploma Programme, he is slowly moulding the school into the sort of establishment he believes Marbella needs.

He is also particularly proud that the school’s retention rate of students has soared from 74% to around 85% since he

joined.

“Because we will have around 1065 pupils this school year we have had to create three new classrooms to absorb the new kids starting this month,” he explained.

They have created more space by moving the school shop outside and there will be three new form classes in years 5, 6 and 9 this year.

Fully aware of the needs to expand further, he also announced that the school is studying to open a possible Sixth Form centre nearby next year.

“We are aiming to have it open for our 20th anniversary in September next year,” added Andy, who has taught both drama and geography for over 30 years in International Schools and holds a Masters Degree from Trinity College, Dublin.

The school meanwhile has a new Head of Secondary, Mr. Tim Webb, as well as 20 new teachers, including John Banks, who previously taught geography in Tanzania and Lewis Proctor, a Geordie, who will teach English and Media Studies.

“They are a diverse bunch from all around the world and we are offering them amazing opportunities here in Andalucia,” concluded Andrew.

EDUCATION: The right school means happy kids

BE PREPARED

AS ‘Back to school’ season is right around the corner, parents all over the country will be fretting about the upcoming school year while their children are glued to their tablets.

To help soothe this arduous season, the Olive Press has created a list of important tasks to tackle to ensure a smooth sailing start to the year.

BUYING UNIFORM/NEW CLOTHES

One very important thing to remember when preparing your child for going back to school is clothing. Even if your school does not require a uniform, children grow very quickly in very short periods of time. New clothes that are adequate for all weather types and that fit your child perfectly are necessary for back-to-school prep.

EQUIPMENT

The list of equipment your child needs will grow exponentially as they get older. Helpfully, schools sometimes send out lists of what you will need, from pencils to protractors. It may also be helpful to ask your child if there is anything they personally would add; not every child is the same, and some may work better with extra or different items.

LUNCH

Lunch is a big part of the school day, and sometimes it is a child's favourite hour. Whether pack-up or school dinner, making sure they have either money or food is essential. For school dinners, it's pretty simple—setting aside some money every day for them. Packed lunches are a little more complicated, but they are great for picky

eaters or for you to keep tabs on what your child is eating. Some schools have some strict rules about the contents of the lunchbox, so check in to see if anything is prohibited.

TRAVEL

Whether your child is starting at a new school and you haven’t decided on the best way to get them there or you need to get them a bus pass, having travel to school sorted is imperative. It’s the first obstacle for your young ones on their first day back and having an easy experience with the bus or already being familiar with their walk will make them feel well prepared for their first day back.

PREP THE UNIFORM

Children may not like having tags in their clothes as it is not ‘cool’ but having your child's name in their uniform can be a game-changer. No more rummaging around in a pile of jumpers left in a pile at school. In addition to adding their names to their clothes, getting them to wear in their shoes is a life saver. The first day of school may be daunting for them anyway, why add uncomfy shoes to the mix? Letting them wear their shoes means no blisters on the first day and one less thing for them to worry about.

PRINT OUT A TIMETABLE

As soon as your child has got one, print out a timetable so you can keep up to date with what they need everyday. Gone are the days of being told they have no ingredients for their food tech lesson or PE kit for their PE lesson. Not only does this help for classes but also for any after school clubs.

Half a dozen things to think about before starting school, with Kayleigh Beardsley

CHOICE: There are several systems for your kids to go through

children.

Montessori

Spain has various Montessori schools, with most big cities offering at least one.

Developed in the early 20th century by Italian physician, Maria Montessori, and based on scientific experimentation, the emphasis is on developing natural interests and activities, and on hands-on learning and real-life skills, rather than using teaching methods.

The idea is to encourage independence by supporting children to learn in a well-prepared environment and it discourages grades and tests.

Popular elements of this system in-

Get to know the Spanish state system

There are four phases:

• Educacion Infantil (Preschool) - 3 to 5 years of age (inclusive, i.e. three years). This is optional.

• Educacion Primaria (Primary Education) - 6 to 11 years of age (six years). Compulsory.

• Educacion Secundaria Obligitoria or ESO (Compulsory Secondary Education) - 12 to 15 years of age (four years).

• Bachillerato (Post-Compulsory Schooling) - 16 and 17 years of age (two years).

The Pre-school stage (infantil or popularly known as pre-escolar ) is free for all children but not compulsory.

However, it is regarded as an integral part of the education system with infants’ classes at almost every primary school.

There are some separate nursery schools, colegios infantile s, also.

The next two phases, primary ( colegio ) and secondary school ( instituto ) education are compulsory and free of charge.

At the end of the ESO successful pupils are awarded a Secondary Education Certificate, which is necessary to enter the post-compulsory stage of schooling for their university or vocational studies. Alternatively they may leave school and get a job.

Once pupils have their Bachillerato they can take their university entrance exam.

clude mixed-age class rooms, freedom of students to choose their own activities, uninterrupted work time, and specially-trained teachers. The cost can be from around €200 per month.

The Waldorf / Steiner system

Spain has over 70 Waldorf, or Steiner schools. Dating back to 1919 in Germany, they are based on the educational phi losophy of Rudolf Steiner. It is one of the world’s largest

STATE VERSUS INDEPENDENT

JENNI STEPHANIDES of Sevilla is both a parent and teacher, with one daughter attending a state school, while the other is at the international school where she teaches.

“Both girls started at the international school, as my husband and I work there. We were offered free places, which ensured the girls could continue their education in the British system, in case we decided to move back to the UK.

“But after three years, my eldest daughter was moved up a school year. Because of her birthday, she had been placed into the correct academic year for the UK, but not for Spain – this was holding her back educationally.

“My youngest meanwhile was placed into the correct academic year.

“When we decided to stay in Spain, we gave both girls the choice to move to the Spanish system to integrate more with the local community. Both declined at the time.

“My eldest is about to start her final year and intends to attend university in the UK. However, my youngest moved to the Spanish system last year and thrived immediately.

Friends

“In the international school, she had many friends from around the world, but the Spanish girls didn’t include her, and she wasn’t confident speaking Spanish.

independent school groups

and the educational style is holistic and is intended to develop the pupils’ intellectual, artistic and practical skills, as well as their imagination and creativity. Under this system, teachers play a significant role in defining the curriculum and classroom methods. Assessments are integrated into the daily classroom activities and formal testing is limited to the actual requirements for students to enter post-secondary education, and not the continuous, formal assessment that occurs in a state school. Fees are from around €200 per month.

“Now, she is fluent in Spanish, has achieved fantastic grades in her first year in the public system, and has many friends from the state system. My eldest stands by her decision to stay at the independent school.”

Peter Jones is the opposite. Both his children started their education in inland Valencia province at a state school from a young age and enjoyed it and thrived.

But as they entered their teens Jones, a businessman who spends his time travelling around Europe, agreed with his wife and their children that they should try out a private school on the Costa Blanca coast. The family felt that they would get more chances to excel in arts and music and, above all, meet a more international group of children, who would in turn ‘broaden their horizons’.

“It has definitely worked and they are both loving it, with the eldest taking her A-levels and planning a good university in the UK, while our younger daughter will probably do the international baccalaureate and go to university in Holland or Germany.”

He continued: “While it meant coming up with around €2,000 more a month, it has definitely paid off. They are completely bilingual and still friends with their old local pals, who, of course, are all planning universities, if at all, in Spain.”

CYBER SCOURGE

BULLYING may begin in the school playground but it no longer ends there.

The greatest threat to 21st century schookids is cyber bullying and it can happen relentlessly anytime, anywhere. This insidious form of antisocial networking is the biggest battle parents, schools and pupils are fighting and it's a massive problem not only in Spain but throughout the world.

The National Police say mobile phones were a game changer and in their experience, most bullying cases also start to involve cyberbullying over time and the probelem is getting worse. "The talks we used to give to 15-year-olds, we now give to elementary school kids,” said a spokesman. “Parents give phones to their kids without much thought, it's as though they were giving them a car without explaining the rules of the road."

Mobile phones for minors is ‘like giving kids a car without explaining the rules of the road’

Statistics show that 45.2% of 11-year-olds have a phone, rising to 75% of 12-year-olds and 92% of 14-year-olds. And not having one can also be a reason for social isolation.

Spain has in the past cracked down on the problem. Madrid banned the use of mobile phones in classrooms, following the lead of schools in Galicia and Castile La Mancha. Around 1,700 public schools and around 800 thousand pupils were affected by the ruling.

"This is a measure aimed at improving students' academic achievement, especially those who have major problems with studying, and is also focused on fighting

cyberbullying and bullying," said a spokesman for the Ministry of Education.

But this measure came in before the coronavirus pandemic, which has seen youngsters spend large periods of time at home rather than in school, which in turn has left them even more vulnerable to cyber bullying.

Children are using social media and apps like TikTok, FaceTime, and Zoom a lot more frequently than in the past. These leave them exposed to more online risks such as cyberbullying, shaming, and exploitation. In fact, initial research indicates that cyberbullying is on the rise during the stay-at-home orders.

According to L1ght, an organisation that monitors online harassment and hate speech, there has been a 70% increase in cyberbullying in the US in just a matter of months.

A parent’s view

20 YEARS OF EXCELLENCE

The Swedish School Marbella keeps expanding and now offers its Swedish students the possibility to study the Cambridge International curriculum

CELEBRATING 20 years, the Swedish School Marbella has been offering its students from pre-school to 18 years the very best Swedish education here on the Costa Del Sol.

Founded in 2003, the school offers Swedish-speaking children the same excellent curriculum and services that they receive back home.

The Swedish School Marbella is certified by the Swedish National Agency for Education and all teachers are trained and qualified in Sweden.

To this end every child is treated as unique, making them feel seen, heard and accepted for who they are. Small class sizes mean that students can thrive

Family foot up

HALF of Spain’s families pay for private lessons for their children.

in a harmonious atmosphere, which ensures each child receives the best possible education; this also provides children with a safe and productive space where excellent one-on-one guidance can be accessed. They also benefit from all of the perks of the school including healthy, home-cooked lunches, school trips and physical education including indoor gym and pool.

Looking forward to the new school year, Swedish School Marbella has expanded, increasing the number of classrooms to accommodate still more students, yet keeping to their small class sizes. Starting from the 2024/2025 school year, students in year 8 and beyond will also be offered Cambridge International courses which will entitle alumni to study not only in Sweden but anywhere in the world. The Swedish School Marbella is proud to offer its students the unique opportunity of having an internationally recognised education whilst maintaining a strong connection to Swedish national identity.

Half of Spain pays for private lessons for their kids

A survey by the Esade Centre for Economic Policy found that 47% of families stumped up extra money for their kids from 2019 to 2020.

In total they spent €1.7 billion for extra classes, with languages - especially English - as the main priority.

The largest outlay came from homes where chil -

By Alex Trelinski

dren go to state schools, accounting for two-thirds of spending.

The report also observed that the spend on private language lessons would rise in parallel with household income ranging from

€235 to €606 per youngster.

“A greater emphasis in private classes towards widening, perfecting and enriching languages and arts is indicative of parents wanting to increase their children’s learning opportunities,” said an Esade spokesman.

“It could be viewed as a comment on the quality and quantity of classes within the school curriculum when it comes to both languages and arts,” he added.

It suggests that the only way to reverse the upward trend towards private tuition is to increase confidence in state schools and their teachers.

The study believes if the trend is not changed, then public funding of state institutions may suffer.

952 868 252 OR VISIT THE WEBSITE WWW.SVENSKASKOLANMARBELLA.COM

It's also concerned that demand for private classes is being driven by a 'highly competitive exam system' with high rates of failure and youngsters increasingly taking re-sits.

MOST EXPENSIVE IN HISTORY

SEPTEMBER’S start of the new school year in Spain is dreaded by most youngsters after the long summer break, but there’s a different concern for parents who would normally relish getting their offspring out of the way. Families are having to work out the cost of going back to school, which according to price comparison site Idealo works out at an average of €449 per student. That total does not cover school

Spanish takeover

A SURGE in popularity for studying the Spanish GCSE has led to an increase in entries of 11.3% in 2022’s figures in the UK.

The rise continues the steady upward trend of recent years, putting the option on track to overtake French as the most commonly taken language at GCSE.

In addition to Spanish, French also had a boost in entries, up 1.1% on last year, with the other modern languages also gaining more applicants.

Spanish saw the second-largest rise after business this year, with the latter gaining a whopping 14.8% more applicants.

One reason why students may seek out Spanish over other languages is because Spain is a major holiday destination for Britons.

Over 15 million of us took a trip to Spain last year. There are a multitude of reasons for the increase, with Vicky Gough, a school advisor at the British Council, saying: “Spanish is the most popular language taken at A-level. It is also more prominent in popular culture - in music, films, and TV shows - so it is attractive to pupils.”

It may also be easier than French or German for beginners. According to Babbel.com, French and German are significantly more difficult than Spanish for beginners whose first language is English.

uniforms and additional expenses, with the main item being textbooks, which come in at over €309 - 19% more than in 2021. Compared to other countries like the UK, most Spanish families have to pay for books used in schools.

Idealo’s Kike Aganzo said: “Spain has the highest prices for textbooks in the European Union which impacts on family budgets.”

The picture also varies around the country with some regional governments covering the full cost of books or at least partially paying for them.

The most expensive regions are the Valencian Community, Catalunya, and Navarra, with Extremadura, Castilla-La Mancha, and the Canary Islands at the other end.

The National Catholic Confederation of Families and Parents of

Students goes far further than the Idealo study and says textbook costs are just part of the problem. President Rafael Araujo said:

“This will be the most expensive school year in history and families will have to bear the cost.”

“It's not just books, but school buses, food, uniforms, excursions, insurance, extra-curricular events, and AMPA (parent-teacher association) fees,” he added.

SWITCH TO PRIVATE

Lower birth rates mean state school closures while independent sector booms

FALLING birth rates are said to be having a ‘profound’ impact on Spain’s public education system with over 304,000 fewer children in kindergartens and primary schools compared to 2018.

Some 112 schools have closed down in a decade but 80 additional private schools have opened during the same period.

In the last five years, children in school aged between three and six years have dropped by 145,071 students, while there are 159,288 fewer in the six to 12 years category.

The figures are only going to continue to decline as the

By Alex Trelinski

first half of 2023 recorded a birth rate low of just 155,629 babies.

Right now there are 32 fewer primary schools in Spain compared to 10 years agoa 0.2% fall - with a total of 13,387 centres.

Many of the public schools closures have been in rural areas that have been suffering from depopulation while the private school network offers a ‘full service’ from infant to secondary age ranges, and are also predominantly based in more-affluent urban com -

munities. Just four regions - Madrid, Aragon, the Basque Country, and the Balearic Islands - have seen public schools actually increase in numbers.

Aragon's former Education Minister, Felipe Facci, said: “We had a policy of where just three pupils were needed to keep a rural school open and when a school does close, that has an impact on the rural environment which sees associated services like school canteens,

CLOSING: State schools are shutting but private facilities take up slack

transport, and other activities cease.”

Book worms

PRIMARY and secondary schools in Andalucia are to include an extra two-and-a-half hours a week of dedicated reading time in the curriculum to boost shockingly poor reading levels.

The new initiative, from the Junta’s Ministry of Education, is in response to a report which revealed that the region came second last in reading comprehension across all of Spain.

“Some children start their first year of secondary school and can barely

read. They have to follow the words with their finger,” said Toñi Vallejo, a language and literature teacher. Education Minister Patricia del Pozo said: “Many academic failures could be prevented if pupils read enough. “Reading is one of the most powerful tools to improve our pupils’ performance,” she continued. “Many times they fail exams because they don’t understand what they are being asked, and that is directly related to reading comprehension.”

“The last thing parents want is for a school to close and for their children to travel up to 30 kilometres a day elsewhere,” the minister added.

Large communities have also suffered due to falling birth rates with schools and teaching staff being integrated with larger class sizes as a consequence.

The Esade Centre for Economic Policy is an independent think-tank based in Madrid that looks at creating public policy based on consensus and evidence. Its education head, Lucas Gortazar, said: “The incessant decline of the birth rate is the greatest educational

challenge of our time.”

He believes there will be extra money available to spend per student but the issue will be what the cash will be spent on.

“Do you want more teachers to reduce classes, offer more activities, create more scholarships, or extracurricular activities?,” he asked.

Gortazar admitted that closing rural schools is regarded as 'politically incorrect', but that keeping youngsters in very small schools is very expensive. He argues that pumping huge budget surpluses into tiny schools would waste opportunities that could be offered by larger establishments.

Save money on school materials

WITH school materials predicted to have risen 20% in 2022, how can parents save money on those vital school supplies this September?

Check if your child has unused notebooks from last year, that they have stashed away somewhere. By salvaging these, you can save trees and money!

Go through old pencil cases for unused rulers, pens, pencils, rubbers, etc. Then put the pencil case in the washing machine so it looks new again.

Your primary school pupil has probably hidden last year’s Hohner recorder (‘flauta’) in a drawer. You don’t want to end up with 2-3 of these expensive flautas. Find the noisy thing!

Large hypermarkets usually have large back to school offers, with many items costing just 1 euro. It’s worth the fuel to drive there. Buy a rucksack from a discount store or Wallapop/ eBay or do a swap with another parent. Hand an older sibling’s rucksack to a younger one – voila! It looks new.

Be sure to wash it first.

TEEN SPIRIT

How to motivate your teen for the new academic year

GETTING your teen back to school after the long summer vacation can be tricky – especially when they’ve developed lazy summer habits or, as has been suggested in recent reports, are fearful of what lies ahead in class.

The Olive Press speaks to two public school teachers about how to motivate teens and be involved in their education.

Anna Moreno Rodríguez –Teaches in Almanjáyar, Granada

Anna is a mathematics teacher at the La Paz institute in Almanjáyar, Granada - a school classified as having ‘special difficulty’ because of social issues in its municipality. She has taught since 2006. She advises: “Motivation for teenagers is always difficult, especially after the holidays, as it’s difficult for them to return to work after lacking routine in the summer.

“If there’s a good relationship with the students, more goals are achieved. When school returns, teachers try to present the content in an entertaining and fun way, by working on projects and using new methodologies and resources – both manual and digital.”

Considering the age-old problem of kids bunking off school, she says: “We have some protocols where the families are notified first, but if this doesn’t work, they’re referred to social services.”

Nobody wants the social services at their door – so how can parents avoid this?

“Teachers can advise families on habits, study techniques, conflict resolution and emotional intelligence, but the key thing is the involvement of the families in education and values at home. This is a problem today.”

She thinks that some parents have lost sight of what’s happening with their kids’ schooling and should be more involved.

She says: “Parents can constantly access the teaching and learning process, with face-to-face and telephone appointments and online messaging systems.”

One of these is iPasen, which parents can install on your mobile phone.

From 2022, students who have failed their final exams in June can no longer re-sit them in September: this has caught some parents unaware.

“From this academic year, there’s no longer a September recovery option, except in the first year of baccalaureate. The evaluation of students is continuous and it’s not only exams that count. It’s difficult for a student to fail if they did well in the first trimesters.

“If a student is repeating the year, a personalised follow-up is carried out at our school so that they improve and meet the objectives. If they need to do better at something, the families are called.

“To motivate a repeating student, you

KIDS’ ADVICE FOR PARENTS – AVOID EMBARRASSMENT!

TEEN opinion on what not to do, if you want to be cool at school.

Don’t let your primary school kid take odd and unnecessary items to school – such as gadgets that can be stolen or confiscated.

Don’t do the school run in pyjamas.

Always dress correctly and don’t turn up to collect your kids underdressed, like you’re going to the

THE HUNT IS OVER

Map for expat parents charts all British schools worldwide

IF you would like to see where to get your children an education offering the British curriculum world-wide, then an interactive map is available online. Spain - a top destination for British expats - has one of the most complete coverages of British schools in the world, with more than 60. The map was created by expat advice service Expat&Offshore as a resource for British families who want a smooth transition when moving abroad. The majority of the schools are scattered throughout Europe, but there are also large concentrations in India, Pakistan and down the coasts of Africa, particularly in Nigeria. They all follow the British curriculum from Key Stages 2-5 to the end of GCSEs.

BRITS ABROAD: Mapping the spread of British schools

More than 1,000 schools are listed on the map, along with important information such as address, website and student population. A spokesperson for the British School of Valencia said: “Our teaching and training activities reinforce the ties between Spanish and British culture, encouraging

the integration of our students and stimulating the person from the academic and personal point of view.”

The map and full list of schools can be viewed at www.expatandoffshore. com/british-schoolsabroad.

beach. This is really embarrassing, especially if it’s not the summer. Avoid dressing your kids in anything that isn’t clean and tidy. Never let your child attend school in flip flops. Don’t park your vehicle directly outside the school gate, and then shout and gesticulate loudly at your kids when they are with their friends.

OP QUICK CROSSWORD

should make them see that doing a year again isn’t punishment, but that they must be more mature in their work.”

Eleuterio Leal Figueroa

–

Secondary teacher in Alcala la Real Eleuterio works in secondary schools, and baccalaureate, and currently teaches at the IES Alfonso XI in Alcala la Real, Jaen. She has been an English teacher since 2006.

“It’s always difficult to motivate students, but after the holidays, it’s more difficult! Try to make them see the importance of doing well academically for their future work and motivate them daily.

“With the parents, we try to make them see the importance of a good education for their children's future and insist that they be constant.”

“The parents can access specific information about their children during the course, as well as exam grades, using tutoring systems (such as the iPasen mobile app).”

“Try to convince the student that they must make an effort and work more to complete the course.”

Across

1 “Tales from the --woods” (Strauss waltz) (6)

5 Moony (6)

8 Chopped up tree fern is complimentary, property-wise (4-4)

9 Leave out (4)

10 Pond flower (4)

11 Christmas tradition (4,3)

12 Cargo platform (4)

14 Not hers (3)

15 Rotate (4)

17 Stomach-related (7)

19 Salt away (4)

20 Heroic narrative (4)

21 Too much (8)

22 Programme of political violence (6)

23 Inhuman human (6) Down

2 Climber’s tool (3-4)

3 Bananas (5)

4 Marshal (5)

5 Support for climbers (7)

6 Not much water (7)

7 Not being straight (5)

13 All at sea, aspired to give up (7)

14 Conceal (7)

16 Examines and corrects (7)

17 Brilliant reflection (5)

18 Ships’ companies (5)

19 Got into bed (5)

All solutions are on page 31

MOTIVATE HIM!: Or your teen may take after Kevin

LEARNING a new language can be difficult and, for many, intimi dating.

But whatever your age –whether a child or a granny – if you have made Spain your home then the ability to speak Spanish will make your life a whole lot easier and definitely more enjoyable.

There are many different op tions and the indecipherable long lists of schools online would put off even the most enthusiastic of students. But here, the Olive Press has broken down all you need to know about picking the best language lessons for you.

If you go solo you’ll have 100% of the

LEARNING a language is hard.

¡HOLA!

SPEAK THE LINGO

Learning Spanish may seem difficult but it is well worth it

tutor’s attention, making your lessons more intensive and solely structured around But many people find a group learning environment more eficial, and that a sense of camaraderie boosts their en-

Luckily for us living here in Spain, Spanish is one of the easier languages to pick up.

But we are all busy and despite having the best of intentions it can be difficult to find the time to learn and improve. Below we have rounded up four top tips which will let you learn the lingo that much faster.

BE OPPORTUNISTIC

Try to take advantage of opportunities to speak Spanish whenever you can.

Chat to the locals in the bus queue, in shops and in the street.

Look up local conversation classes or ‘intercambios’, where groups of English and Spanish meet for a copa or cana to practice each other’s languages. You should also try living with a Spanish speaker which will force you to speak the lingo on a daily basis and will naturally improve your vocabulary.

DEDICATE TIME TO LEARNING

Putting money towards lessons can really help you prioritise your learning and is especially helpful if you’re just starting out.

TRY TEACHING ENGLISH

thusiasm.

Learning from your peers is invaluable, and if you’ve recently moved to Spain language classes can be a good way to meet like-minded people in a similar situation.

There are many ways of tracking down a tutor, the most useful way canbe to check ads in community areas like post offices and newsagents and of course look online.

Learning in a group can be a really fun way to learn.

If you can’t afford lessons, make a weekly timetable and set aside at least four hours a week to learning. Make sure you nail the basics and try to set yourself daily targets of X amount of new words.

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

Don’t underestimate how important it is to practiceconstantly and consistently.

Throw yourself out there and speak to the bus driver, hairdresser, shopkeeper or anyone who will lend an ear.

If you’re not in a Spanish speaking country, then repeat phrases in front of the mirror, to family and friends or even your dog—basically anyone who will listen! Don’t be scared, the more you practice the more confident you become.

MAKE IT YOUR ROUTINE

Try to incorporate Spanish into your everyday routine. This means playing a language app like Duolingo everyday, listening to Spanish music and/or radio and watching your Netflix or TV with Spanish subtitles. Pick out the odd word and translate it and add it to a vocab list either on your phone or in a notepad.

The key factor for choosing a personal tutor is to find someone who you get on well with. Don’t be afraid of asking for a discounted first lesson, to make sure that the tutor is the kind of person you’re looking for.

The search for a group class can be even more baffling, but if you are clear in your own mind about what you’re looking for, you can simplify the search before it even begins.

THESE ARE THE MAIN FACTORS TO CONSIDER:

The intensity of timetabling varies greatly from course to course. Some schools offer six hours of lessons a day, while others offer a couple of hours a week. Take into consideration how much time you want to dedicate to your lessons before choosing a course.

Smaller classes are nearly always preferable, as they ensure you will get more time with the tutor and the class will progress more quickly.

Look for schools that specify a number of pupils in each class, as the ones that don’t are likely to accept applications until the class is too big to handle.

Check the credentials of the teaching staff - the schools that show the credentials are proud of the quality of their staff.

The best schools offer several options. You can study in a classroom, have one to one lessons in your own home, and increasingly popular ‘virtual’ classes done online. These should not be confused with self-teaching – they are proper classes with a tutor with lessons tailored to your needs, conducted live. Whatever your choice – good luck!

THE recent boom in private language schools offering English has meant a bigger demand for English teachers in Andalucia.

This means that increasing numbers of expats are finding the opportunity of either starting off on a new career or simply obtaining an additional source of income.

But can anyone get a job in a language school?

Surprisingly there are no legally required qualifications to work as an English teacher in Spain.

This has, of course, led to plenty of poor quality language schools setting up.

Those looking for work in the sector can start by checking out schools belonging to ACEIA, the Association of Andalusian Language Schools, whose website www. aceia.es has a list of members.

If you have little, or no, previous teaching experience or wish to re-cycle, it would be a good idea, and a very rewarding experience, to take a Cambridge CELTA teacher training course. Employers around the world, not just in Spain, ask for CELTA - an internationally recognised TEFL qualification which will provide you with the skills necessary to teach in the classroom as well as hands-on experience.

A CELTA certificate is regulated by Ofqual at level 5 on the Qualifications and Credit Framework.

A teaching qualification does not automatically lead to employment, but it certainly gives you a head start over other people applying for work.

G ibraltar National Day SPREAD THE WORD!

6 facts that make Gibraltar one of the coolest places on the planet 1

- English is the official language of Gibraltar, but many Gibraltarians also speak Llanito, a mix of Andalucian Spanish, British English, and traces of Genoese, Maltese, and Portuguese. Words like chakaru, for bouncer or a ‘chucker-out’, chinga, for chewing gum, or juva, for vacuum cleaner, pay homage to both Spanish and English origins.

2- On March 20th, 1969, John Lennon married Yoko Ono on the Rock of Gibraltar. The iconic couple initially wished to get married in Paris or at sea. However, due to the difference in their nationalities, there would be a delay in having a ceremony in any place but Gibraltar, where Lennon’s British citizenship would allow them to marry immediately.

3- Gibraltar is home to the Barbary macaque, a species of monkeys that have been celebrated for years. From 1915 to 1991, the British army and the Gibraltar Regiment named, fed, and controlled the monkey population. Some of these detail-oriented records taken by the so-called Keeper of the Apes were published in the Gibraltar Chronicle. One such announcement reads: “Rock Apes. Births: To Phyllis, wife of Tony, at the Upper Rock, on 30th June 1942— a child. Both doing well.”

4

- Gibraltar International Airport has a runway that cuts through one of the territory’s busiest 4-lane highways. If you think the commute you take every day is bad, imagine having to wait for a plane to take off or land for the road to open back up again.

5

- Despite its five kilometre length and one kilometre width, the Rock boasts 52 kilometres of bombproof underground tunnels. Fearing a German invasion during WWII, Gibraltarians built nearly an entire city below ground, complete with electric generators, telephone lines, bakeries, and hospitals.

6- For nearly 300 years, Gibraltar was the sole home to the Jewish community in the Iberian Peninsula. Once numbering in the thousands across the peninsula, after their expulsion from Spain in the 15th century they took refuge in the British territory, and now make up 2% of the Rock’s census.

MANY small and medium-sized businesses in Malaga city are being forced to shut up shop due to massive rent increases.

Last year 500 small shops and businesses closed or moved out of the city centre, according to Malaga’s Historic Centre Association.

They claim that mass tourism is one of the main causes of this situation as holi -

Shutting up shop

day lets take over the rental market.

“Small businesses rely on locals as their best customers, but many residents have moved on because of rent rises,” Fuensanta Villalobos, the association’s director, said.

Prices rise

INFLATION in August stood at 2.6%, according to preliminary figures from the National Statistics Institute (INE). The top line rise - up by 0.3% on July’s figure - came as no surprise due to the surge in fuel costs with motorists having to pay the highest pump prices for nearly a year.

Cuts in Saudi Arabia oil pro-

Fuel pumps up inflation as costs surge

By Alex Trelinski

duction have been the cause, which has also impacted on electricity and oil tariffs.

Raymond Torres, director of economic think-tank Funcas, said: “We have seen rebounds

A warm welcome

SPAIN welcomed 47.6 million tourists - 9.8 million of them British - to its shores in the year from January to July, up 21% on the same period of 2022.

That’s according to the latest figures from the National Statistics Institute (INE), which also reported that visitors spent nearly €60 billion while in the country, a rise of 25% compared to 2022.

The number of tourists in the period this year was, however, o.8% lower than the same months in 2019, the last full year before the Covid-19 pandemic. Spending has risen compared to 2019, with the €60 billion figure representing a 25% ries.

in gas and oil, and they may cause some upside surprises, but we are still far from the highs reached last year.”

Tourists paying higher hotel, bar, and restaurant prices has also boosted consumption and therefore inflation.

Despite the rate rise, Spain's inflation stands at over half of the rest of the Eurozone and is just above the European Central Bank's target figure of 2%.

In August 2022, inflation was at 10.5% and the average rate was 9% for the first nine months of last year. So far in 2023, the average nine month rate is 3.6%.

Core inflation which excludes energy and fresh food is at 6.1% - 0.1% down compared to July's figure.

Economic experts estimate that the year will finish with a core rate of between 4% and 5%.

Our A La Carte menu is also available on Sunday

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SUNDAY ROAST

Served every Sunday from 1:00pm to 4:30pm and from 6:00pm

Chicken, roast pork or beef, all served with fresh seasonal vegetables, roast potatoes and Yorkshire pudding

Set in its own grounds, El Muro Mijas has a relaxed atmosphere and offers ample private parking.

We have a chill out area as well as a terrace looking up to Mijas Pueblo as well as two other terraces and an inside dining area.

Our menu has many different dishes including meats, fish, pasta, pizza, Asian cuisine and others to suit all, including various vegetarian options.

Come and check out this exciting new restaurant found on the road up to Mijas Pueblo!

Wednesday - Friday: 17.00 - 23.00

Saturday & Sunday: 12.00 - 23.00

T: +34 951 104 424

www.aicorestaurants.com

AT just over 1,500 metres above sea level, it could be the highest-rated restaurant with rooms in Spain.

‘Certainly in Catalunya,’ insists chef, Oliver, a lively father-of-three, who trained at a cookery school in Barcelona before making a life choice to run the stunning Can Borrell retreat in the Pyrenees with his wife Laura.

It was her parents’ hotel, a retreat for hikers and skiers just a 40-minute drive from the nearest ski station, and counting on roaring open fires and views to die for.

Two decades on and they’ve had three boys, all junior national skiing champions, who help out in the kitchen and sala at the busiest times of year. It’s all part of the charm - these strong, stocky specimens floating about with verve, particularly in midsummer.

This is surely the best time to visit - when the rest of Spain is roasting, and Can Borrell delivers no more than 27 or 28 degrees, dropping to 16 at night.

It’s normally warm enough to dine on the charming terrace, with its agricultur- al vernacular to the fore - and you can sleep with the windows open as it’s mostly mozzie free.

CHARMING: Can Borrell in the Pyrenees

FOOD, DRINK & TRAVEL

It’s also a popular weekend retreat for sophisticates from Barcelona, who come to hike in the nearby hills. There are a myriad of paths from the door, a couple that take you to swimmable glacial lakes in just over an hour, plus the third highest peak in the Pyrenees, Puigpedrosnow that’s a challenge!

There are nine functional rooms - and one amazing suite - that adhere to the rustic architecture of this centuries-old farmhouse (or Can, in Catalan) - but you can expect central heating in winter.

The main dining room and entrance area will sweep you back a century, and romance is guaranteed, if that’s your thing.

My wife and I ended up staying here for three days two decades ago, arriving from the Costa Brava after a two-day bout of gastroenteritis. It was the perfect tonic and we bimbled around the hamlet of 60 souls, until

HIGH LIFE

A unique dining experience in a inspiring location boasting stunning views of the Andalusian landscape all the way down to the Mediterranean Sea

we’d improved enough to attempt Puigpedros. Why on earth we’ve only just made it back now is anyone’s guess, but I guess like Laura and Oliver, kids got in the way.

And the best thing of all is that while the food was good back then, today it is so much more assured.

Think mountain tucker, but with real verve and plenty of extra touches, thanks to the proximity of France just over the hill. Take the foie gras starter which has a touch of black truffle. It’s a great kick off, despite

its obvious negative connotation today.

The goat’s cheese and spinach in puff pastry may be more palatable to many, while the ‘brik of duck’ melted in the mouth.

Mains were, naturally, meaty with the standout dish being a fantastic solomillo from a local free range breed of cattle that hugs the nearby contours.

The tarte tatin comes with tremendous vanilla ice cream.

There were other options to eat (albeit at least a 10 minute drive downhill) but as a mark

of how good this is: we stayed put

four nights in a row!

It’s fair to say, we’d truly acclimatised to the High Life!

www.can-borrell.com

Monday to Saturday: 11am-12am

Sunday: 11am-6pm

Ctra. de Ronda, A-397, Km. 44, 29679 Benahavís, Málaga

Jon Clarke reviews the charming mountain retreat, the highest restaurant with rooms in Catalunya

WINE TIME

THE simplicity of late-summer eating, the sensuousness of it and the concentrated taste of produce at a pitch of ripeness: figs, nectarines, melon, pears. The balm of an ice-cold salmorejo, silky with oil and piquant with garlic. Yellow figs, intensely sweet, with thin slices of ham. A Russian salad made with cooked carrots and peas, potatoes and a little onion and a boiled egg, all of it diced and bound together with homemade mayonnaise.

Hunger comes at odd times of the day and night. I’ve taken to eating at five in the afternoon and sleeping until eight. For lunch today, my summer staple: linguine with a raw tomato sauce. For midnight supper a thin fillet of our own pork, a scatter of oregano, pepper and salt sizzled on

Figs, pears and melons in baffling quantities… And - finally - the

grapes swelled and were ready to pick for wine. Their variety, no one could tell me, writes

Paul Richardson of life in September in his new book, Hidden Valley

the griddle and sliced into strips.

Just beside the stove stands a bowl with the remains of the grated raw tomato from lunch, ready seasoned with fresh basil and olive oil, so I slide the red slick on to the hot pan, push it around a bit, et voilà, an instant sauce for my pork steak.

Struggling to eat the fruit that now arrives in baffling quantities. Pears that are green and hard and

then turn yellow, aromatic and juicy. (I’ve taken to drying them in slices out in the sun, on the chicken-wire rack we use for sun-drying tomatoes.) Strawberries, smaller and smaller as the season progresses but more and more strongly perfumed, to the point that a cloud of strawberry smell bursts out from the fridge when you open the door. Japanese nashi, shaped like apples but tasting more like pears, with a pellucid crispness to their pearly flesh. Small yellow peaches, good to eat but even better peeled, sliced and bottled in syrup for the winter. Cantaloupe melons, the round ones with the orange flesh, gloriously perfumed, the best of all possible breakfast foods. The pig gets all the peelings and pips. Meanwhile the fire has retreated from the forefront of my consciousness. This morning on my early rounds I catch myself thinking: How can a landscape be so ravaged, so damaged, and still retain its loveliness? Yet it does. The surface may be temporarily scarred, but the lie of the land, its shape, its soul, can’t be touched. As the sun came up I walked out of the house and away to the edge of the forest. From here there was a view that filled up my senses always,

PICKING: The grapes were plentiful but noone knew the variety

the land falling away towards the stream, the valley holding the village clustered around the church as if in cupped hands, and sometimes a big horizontal brushstroke of snow tinted rose-pink on the distant peaks. All around me lay the vineyard. A faint dew had fallen overnight, moistening the leaves. Trailing fronds of grapevine reached out to touch each other, their leaves having lost their sprightly greenness and begun to turn brownish yellow and redden around the edges, as if the lifeforce was now being diverted away from the plant itself and into the swelling fruit.

I liked the way the vines surrounded the house, hugging it protectively, gently bobbing like a lake of green. At any time of year they were worthy of my attention. The black, wrinkled stumps standing mute and unflinching in a winter downpour had an air of something mineral rather than vegetable, as if carved out of black volcanic basalt. In April the buds burst into delicate shoots, which unfurled into tiny leaves and grew tiny clusters of green pinheads: embryo grapes. One vine on its own was a lonely thing, but a large number of them was a magical collective entity, sprouting and fruiting as

One vine was a lonely thing, but a large number of them were magical

FATTENED UP: The pig gets all the peelings and pips

In search of setas

IN the damp afternoon after a rain shower I go to the woods to walk, and also to forage for wild fungi

Mushrooming is a subtle and mysterious art. The mental attitude required is a via negativa, a not-wanting-toomuch, a not-looking-too-hard. Synoptic vision, casting your whole eye over an expanse of ground, ready to pick up the signals, the curve of the cap, the colour a shade or two away from the surrounding variants of brown, a fungal aroma your nose detects. When you see one there’s a tiny charge of pleasure in the brain, like the dopamine hit a new email in your inbox is meant to produce.

It’s a knowing before you even really know; a prescience. Or perhaps a reverse déjà vu: you imagine you knew it was there, how could it not have been?

you’ve poked carefully with a stick or your foot at dozens of such tell-tale liftings and found nothing under neath but a tussock of grass that has pushed through a wodge of dry leaves and raised it slightly, and even as you did so some thing told you it was a waste of time, so there’s hard ly a cast-iron logic there.

around that cool, dry pillar, that’s when you know you’ve found your perfect Boletus edulis. That’s the first satisfaction. The second comes soon after, bundled up with the first. I like them best baked with potato and garlic, with buttered eggs, a rich autumnal rice with rabbit and pumpkin, and raw in paccio-thin slices dribbled with olive oil and scattered with parme -

The tell-tale way the mushroom has pushed up the leaf layer then again,

Yet this time it’s textbook. The hard, round cap the russet brown of a Hovis loaf; the thick bulbous stem white as marble. When your fingers reach one, branches moving in the breeze like a single organism.

Baudilio, the old man who had worked this land for half a century, once told me his father had first laid out the vineyard nearly a century ago, planting it with vine cuttings brought from an important winemaking region far from here where he regularly worked the grape harvest. Baudilio had more vineyards around the village and a bar in the main street serve glasses of his strong, pungent white wine.

In springtime he ploughed between the rows with a plough drawn by the family mule, which lived in the hut that would eventually become my bedroom. What no one could tell me, not even he, were the grape varieties. In the old days nobody much worried about such things; varietal identity is a modern obsession.

There was white and there was red, and these were mostly white, with an occasional red one popping up randomly in the midst of them. The wines we had tasted in the village bars were white, but strong and sometimes slightly oxidised or sherry-ish, and surprisingly pallid in colour. They were fermented and stored in big-bellied clay urns or vats, which made the cellars of village houses look like a set for Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves. The vats were treated inside with a resin derived from pine sap to seal and disinfect the clay, which often gave the wines a hint of the balsamic piney taste you find, much more prominently, in Greek retsina.

The idea was appealing to me: I imagined a link, over huge distances of time and space, between the amphoras of Attica and the clay vats of this village in twenty-first-century Spain.

Tonight Namakes a salad in the scattergun inventive manner of his cooking, and it’s a palpable hit. Peppery rocket and carrot julienne and crisp sweet apple and shavings of raw cep, which imbue the dish with their insinuating perfume; a memory of damp leaf mulch; a whisper from the woods.

A new season

Late September: practically its own season. Bright, fresh days with the memory of water – the downpours of last week, which stopped summer dead in its tracks – still present in corners of the land where the sun seldom reaches, still damp, the soil still dark after rain. How the grass revives, brave little blades of a vivacious green pushing up and out, stippling the ground like a computer-generated colouring-in.

There’s a pleasant mental confusion about walking out in the early morning and seeing these tender shoots, feeling the humid air on your face. The sheep are energised, running this way and that, hardly able to believe these pastures

new, this deliciousness right under their muzzles.

The maize hangs in long rows, the dry cobs tied into pairs – a job that has us channelling crabbed old Galician grandmothers as we sit on wooden stools out on the porch. We tear off the dry outer sheaths leaving just enough on either side to twist and tie, shooting the breeze all the while. This year’s colours in the cobs’ mosaic patterns are a pastel pink, a drop-dead coral red, dark elegant grey and a dun green that’s almost khaki. As we twist and tie we speculate and joke about the randomness or otherwise of the cobs’ intricate patterning: a message from an alien culture? Some kind of heavenly barcode? Or simply nature in all her meticulous unfathomable beauty?

PERFECTLY RIPE: Succulent peaches and tasty peppers

PRODUCE: Everything from the maize to olives and fruit gets conserved and potted

FOOD,DRINK & TRAVEL

A FAIRYTALE city fit for a Disney princess, Sintra is a day trip not to be missed. It’s just 30 minutes from Lisbon (by train or car) to this mystical city awarded UNESCO World Heritage Status. With a skyline to rival Manhattan, a host of 19th-century turrets and domes stand majestically above the colourful town houses. Cupped between two impressive mountains, both can be climbed. The effort is worth it for the rewards at the top: the mediaeval Castelo dos Mouros perches on the crest of one summit and the Pena Pal-

BAIRRO ALTO

BEFORE clubbing until six in the morning, most nights in Lisbon start on the crowded, cobbled streets of Bairro Alto.

Thousands of people stand outside the hundreds of bars packed into just a few square blocks to quaff pints of beer from just €1.50 and pints of mojitos from €6 (yes, pints of mojitos). Most bars also offer even larger 75cl versions – worthwhile for the mojito, but it can end up being more expensive for the beers.

Despite the heavy foot traffic, taxis and even trams worm their way through at night.

Some revellers sit on the boots of council cleaning vehicles to cadge a free ride as they drive past.

HEAD beyond the city centre, west of the magnifi cent 25 de Abril Bridge (a Golden Gate lookalike named after the date of Portugal’s independence from Salazar’s regime) to find Belem, a focal point of Lisbon’s history.

Here, in a single square, you’ll find the Tower of Belem, the Jeronimos Monastery, and some of the best pastries in the city.

From the Tower of Belem (right), you see Lisbon from a different vantage point to anywhere else in the city, a view that underlines its relationship with the Atlantic and the Tagus River.

The monastery is like any great European Catholic church: dark, immense and echoic. Two famous Portuguese legends rest in peace here: Camoes the poet and Vasco da Gama, the explorer.

After sightseeing, head east to a bakery with blue awnings named Pasteis de Belem to try Lisbon’s famous pastel de nata. Make sure it’s dusted with cinnamon and pow dered sugar.

CAPITAL OF COOL

es for a September escape from the costas. But why not think

Lisbon has it all thanks to its rich diversity, cultural heritage and excellent food

The continent’s

westernmost capital has magnificent sights, wonderful restaurants and a fun nightlife scene, without the hefty prices - or overwhelming tourism - of Barcelona or Paris, say. Just a six-hour drive away from Malaga (or nine from Valencia) it also has fantastic beaches at nearby Cascais, as well as plenty of secret beaches within half an hour. And then there is amazing Sintra, the unspoilt gem of a city, hiding high in the nearby leafy hills. An escape to Lisbon is at once entertaining and relaxing, enriching and invigorating and these six must visits, all within its orbit, complete the package.

As the temperatures finally drop and the masses head home, Dilip Kuner offers up half a dozen reasons to take a trip to Lisbon

FOOD,DRINK & TRAVEL

CASCAIS

WEST of Lisbon lies Cascais, an affluent beach town that looks out onto the Atlantic.

The drive alone makes the trip worthwhile, heading out along the Tagus River, travelling west on the scenic N6.

The 30 km route hugs the coast, as the river becomes the ocean, past small beaches hiding in rocky inlets (think Playa del Cristo) where the tide rises and falls against the natural sea walls.

ADRAGA & NEARBY BEACHES

Some of Europe’s best beaches sit just around the corner. Just 20 minutes from Sintra and half an hour north of Cascais, Praia da Adraga is one true gem on wonderful white sand, crashing waves and one of Portugal’s best beach restaurants.

A splendid place for kids with a network of tunnels leading to smaller coves, the waves are surfable, if pretty gnarly for beginners.

Nearby, Praia da Ursa may have a steep climb down, but when you get there you’ll find a dozen beachgoers tops.

A gem of a town with lovely restaurants is Azenha do Mar.

POMBALINE BAIXA

DOWNTOWN Lisbon was almost entirely destroyed during the city’s catastrophic earthquake and tsu nami of 1755, and subsequent fire.

In the devastation’s aftermath, the Marquis of Pombal took complete control of reconstruction.

The Marquis’s vision differed drastically from the old city’s narrow, winding roads.

He commissioned a grid network with wide ave nues, making this Europe’s first modern city, with plenty of wonderful old trams still running.

EVOCATIVE: Lisbon’s steep streets are well served by an excellent tram network, while (above) nearby town

The area hosts the city’s shopping district and is the most bustling daytime sector.

The roads towards the river culminate in the Praca de Comercio, where the city puts on concerts, festi vals and cultural celebrations throughout the year.

Azenha do Mar

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Deadly summer

A TOTAL of 90 people have died of heat stroke in Malaga province this summer.

Some 51 people lost their lives from heat stroke in July, and 39 in August, according to the Carlos III Health Institute. The institution says that this is the highest number of heat stroke deaths since 2015, the year its started registering them.

Some 92% of the deceased (83) were over 65 years old, and 46 of them were over 85. However, two victims were under 44 years old. In Andalucia as a whole there were 609 heat stroke deaths during June, July and August, over 25% more than last year, when there were 434 victims.

Breakthrough

MALAGA scientists have made a groundbreaking discovery in the fight against the most aggressive and untreatable form of breast cancer.

The work has involved identifying a crucial molecule for treating triple-negative breast cancer, one of the most aggressive forms of the disease known for its rapid spread and resistance to conventional therapies.

Laboratory experiments and studies with live animals have honed in on how this molecule can affect the growth and movement of triple-negative breast cancer cells.

LEGIONNAIRES’ DEATH

AN 85-year-old man has died in Caceres from Legionnaires disease, with six others affected and hospitalised.

Among the affected were an 85-year-old woman and three men aged 76, 71, and 55. Additionally, two 65-year-old men were admitted to intensive care..

Rafael Mateos, the city’s mayor, said: “The problems are usually in the vapour sprays, and that is where controls have to be increased.”

Eight public fountains were turned off until the source of the outbreak could be traced. Typically, Legionnaires’ disease is not contagious but is very easily spread through bacteria inhaled from water or soil particles.

The bacterium was discovered as a result of precautionary measures.

The bacteria that causes Legionnaires disease also causes Pontiac fever, an illness resembling flu which usually clears on its own, but untreated Legionnaires’ disease can be fatal.

Extra jabbing

All children under six to get flu jab while new Covid vaccination campaign starts

By Alex Trelinski

ALL children in Spain aged between six months and five years will be eligible to get a flu vaccine this autumn. Previous policy has been for only youngsters with underlying conditions to receive a flu shot.

The age range extension according to the Spanish Association of Pediatrics will mean that between 55% and 60% of young children will get a dose.

Javier Alvarez of the Asso-

HELP NEEDED

SPAIN is grappling with a rise in youth suicides that poses serious questions about the country's child mental health services.

Last year 22 youngsters aged 10 to 14 ended their lives – the highest figures since 1991.

And calls to child helplines have grown nearly five-fold, from 958 in 2019 to 4,554, according to the Foundation Anar, a non-profit organisation that helps children and adolescents at risk in Spain.

The suffering endured during the pandemic exacerbated issues such as eating disorders and self-harm among youngsters.

Spain’s public healthcare system struggled to cope, with only one in five trained clinical psychologists specialising in child and adolescent care – around 540 in total.

Experts are advocating for immediate action, demanding more placements in the psychology training program and a specialised child psychology branch.

People can also call Samaritans in Spain between 10am and 10pm on FREEPHONE 900 525 100 for a confidential service in English or email pat@samaritansinspain.com

Spain’s national suicide helpline 024 also offers a service in English

OP Puzzle solutions

Quick Crossword

Across: 1 Vienna, 5 Tiddly, 8 Rent-free, 9 Omit, 10 Lily, 11 Yule log, 12 Skid, 14 His, 15 Turn, 17 Gastric, 19 Save, 20 Saga, 21 Overdose, 22 Terror, 23 Sadist.

Down: 2 Ice-pick, 3 Nutty, 4 Array, 5 Trellis, 6 Droplet, 7 Lying, 13 Despair, 14 Harbour, 16 Revises, 17 Glare, 18 Crews, 19 Sided.

ciation said: “This will bring added protection as children are the main spreaders of influenza in schools and nurseries - passing on the virus to people they live with.”

He pointed out that flu affects up to 40% of young children, and that 5% of cases end up in hospital - especially if somebody is suffering with other ailments. Evidence also shows that when children are vaccinated, the number of flu cases among adults is reduced.

Covid

The autumn flu vaccination campaign will start in tandem with a fresh set of Covid-19 booster shots, focused on the most vulnerable with everybody aged over 60 included.

The Covid injections will start with the most elderly whose risks of contracting a serious disease increases if they contract the coronavirus.

Other groups include health and social workers as well as people who work in institutions like residences, disability centres, and prisons.

It is not yet clear which drugs will be used as Spain has bought more than 100

million doses that are outdated as new Covid variants have appeared over the past year.

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Late for lunch

A HELICOPTER pilot from Spain’s DGT traffic authority crashed while trying to make a lunch stop a restaurant in Almeria.

Battle ready

A FIVE-DAY course for people wanting to go and fight in Ukraine against Russian forces is being offered by a company in Catalunya’s Lleida for €700.

In vane?

MALAGA’S iconic Caminito del Rey will install a weather station provided by Spain’s Met Office AEMET to display more accurate weather data after it was closed several times for feared high winds that never materialised.

O P LIVE RESS The

Rhythm stick

WITH his unusual yoga stances, he stalked the stage with the grace of a ballet dancer. But, make no mistake, Baxter Dury had the presence of a pit bull, at his first major concert in southern Spain, at Cala Mijas Festival.

The enigmatic Londoner has all the swagger of his famous dad, the legendary Ian Dury (and his Blockheads), but with more finesse.

And the intelligence of his lyr-

While Arcade Fire rocked, it was British talents Baxter Dury, Idles and Underworld who stole the show at Cala Mijas

By Jon Clarke

ics, as well as the way he cleverly ad-libbed his way through various songs, with references to Spain, had the crowd in stitches.

This was Brit pop (for want of a better word) at its best, particularly on standout tracks like Cocaine Man and particularly, Baxter (these are my friends) Another UK band with an even edgier, angrier sound were Idles, from Bristol.

The five-piece blew the (mostly) Spanish crowd away as they stomped around stage behind frontman Joe Talbot, his neck pulsating with aggression. Mesmerizing and brilliant, only guitarist Mark Bowen in full Arabic dish dash came close to

Get on the horn!

A GROUP of bulls managed to successfully block the A3 motorway near Valencia. They managed to escape from their truck after it tipped over. The incident caused tailbacks of two kilometres.

RECORD RIND

matching the showman.

Of the major acts across the well-organized three-day festival, the plaudits had to go to Canadian legends Arcade Fire, who played an absolutely faultless set on Friday. This collective of talented musicians just keep going from strength to strength, and will no doubt be playing these brilliant tunes, like the Rolling Stones do into their 70s.

Thier first headline show of the year in Spain, they had come to enjoy themselves as they descended down the 100 steps from the hills behind, waving to the crowd. Hits; they played them all, with the excellent Rebellion (Lies), Haiti and, in particular, Afterlife, getting everyone jumping. Saturday’s headliners the

Strokes, while hitting the heights, in particular with hits from their seminal first album, Is This It, failed to truly ignite, largely due to lead singer Julian Casavantes clearly being worse for wear. Luckily an excellent performance from experimental French group, M83, made up for it, while the house was well and truly blown away by UK dance legends, Underworld, who came on at 2.30am and rocked till the wee hours.

A SPANISH cheese has become the most expensive ever sold. The 2.2-kilo fromage, from Cabrales, in Asturias, sold for a record €30,000.

Artisan Ivan Suarez smashed his previous Guinness World Record of €20,500 paid in 2019. Made from cow, goat and sheep milk, it undertakes a ten-month maturation process in a cave 1,400 metres up in the soaring Picos de Europa. Suarez has won the award at the Cabrales Cheese Contest for four years in a row. "It's my passion for my local area and its cheesemakers that fuels my competitive streak," he insisted.

ICONIC: Baxter and dad Ian (inset)

PICTURE CREDITS: Walter Finch