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Kill Bambi THE Balearic government is calling for deer to be ‘eliminated’ after local residents in Cala de Pi saw just one of the animals. Officials say that the residents are worried that they could be next to be hit by an ‘invasion’ of deer after the animals caused ‘havoc’ in Llucmajor and Montuiri, on one occasion even causing a traffic accident. Now the authorities have called on the public to help eliminate the animals and the threat they cause to the countryside. It has even set up a hotline for people to report sightings of deer.. An Environmental Department spokesman said: “Deer are considered to be alien species on the island that bring risks to the population including possible traffic accidents.
Harmful
“They are also very harmful to local agriculture as they can cause considerable damage both to stone walls and to crops. “With the presence of bluetongue disease on the island, they could also be carriers of diseases that can be transferred to livestock species.” But the creatures are proving to be elusive. One hunter told Ultima Hora: “We see signs that indicate their presence, be it droppings or some damage to crops, but it is very difficult to see the animals themselves.” The hotline number is 665 01 29 40.
TARGETTED: Mallorca’s deer
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Last orders Time called on drink sodden escapades while call made to scrap 90-day visitors rule By Fiona Govan & Alex Trelinski
THE Balearic Islands have called time on trashy booze-fuelled holidays demanding ‘a zero tolerance’ approach when tourism picks up again next season. The President of the Balearic government, Francina Armengol, insisted that ‘holiday excesses would no longer be tolerated’ in a snipe at the ‘downmarket’ resorts of Magaluf and San Antonio in Ibiza. She was speaking at London’s World Travel Market, where her counterpart from the Valencian region called on the Spanish government to scrap the painful 90-day rule that limits the length of stay for Brits since Brexit.
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EXCESS: The kind of behaviour no longer welcome in the Balearics
Valencia’s regional president, Ximo Puig called on prime minister Pedro Sanchez to ‘correct the restrictions’ and to relax the rules that mean that even British homeowners in Spain must depart after three months.
In a joint meeting the trio pleaded with Spain’s central government to help ‘facilitate the visa situation’ and to ‘correct the restrictions’ caused by Brexit. “British visitors are fundamental to us and we are working on trying to get a reciprocal deal so that Pleaded they can spend six uninterrupted His calls were echoed by Spain’s months with us,” insisted Mazon. ambassador to the UK, Jose Pas- Tourism chiefs across Spain have cual Marco and Alicante tourist slammed the current 90-day rule, boss Carlos Mazon. which can only be extended by visitors or tourists by applying for a visa to stay longer. The latest figures show that the Balearics were the most popular destination See page 5 in Spain for international tourists in the months of September when nearly one in four visitors to the
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country landed in the islands, including 223,743 holidaymakers from the UK. Excessive drinking by holidaymakers has long been a problem in the Balearic Islands, so much so that in January 2020, a new law was introduced to stamp out anti-social behaviour in Playa de Palma, s’Arenal and Magaluf, as well as Sant Antonio in Ibiza. In October Balearic Island Tourism minister Iago Negueruela announced that a more concerted effort to curb ‘tourism of excesses’ would be made ahead of the 2022 summer season. She said further plans were being made to ‘improve the quality of certain hotspots in the Balearic Islands’, particularly in those resorts popular with Brits.
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CRIME
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NEWS IN BRIEF Smoked out A 79-YEAR-OLD woman and her 51-year-old son have been hospitalised after suffering smoke inhalation poisoning following a fire in their home in Soller. The origin is still unknown.
Not guilty A MAN who was accused by his ex of mistreating their four children has been cleared after a court found no signs of mistreatment and it appeared that the children's testimony had been rehearsed.
Gold seized GUARDIA Civil and customs at Palma airport have seized 30 gold coins valued at €47,000 from a passenger who was about to board a flight en route to the USA.
Tall tales THE Consumer Affairs Department in the Balearic Islands has dealt with 693 complaints over misleading advertising and promotions so far this year. Mallorca received 590, Ibiza 94 and Menorca nine.
November 5th - November 18th 2021
Video evidence
HORSING AROUND
A WEALTHY businessman has been arrested in Palma for having sex with a minor, videotaping it and threatening to broadcast the images if she did not comply with his lustful desires. The businessman, a Spaniard aged 45, has been arrested for corruption of minors and sexual abuse. The victim, aged 16, had been to the police days before the arrest accompanied by the detainee to lodge a complaint for alleged domestic violence by her parents. In compliance with the established protocol, she was separated from her parents and taken to a guardianship centre. Staff found a video on her phone in which she had sex with the man who had accompanied her. Investigators believe the man had told the girl to make a complaint against her parents to give him easier access to her for sexual encounters.
A FAKE vet has been fined after she was found to be charging €100 a time to treat sick horses. The 24-year-old woman has been found guilty by Palma’s court of ‘professional intrusion’ after practising as a veterinarian without qualifications. She has now been ordered to pay a fine of €3 per day for four months, plus costs. The woman had been reported
STICKY END
Sleepless fight
Fugitive Brit accused of murdering his own mother found dead
A SCOT who went on the run after being accused of murdering his own mother 19 years ago has been found dead in Spain. Sean Flynn, aged 37, had failed to appear at the start of his trial at Livingston’s High Court in Scotland. He was accused of murdering his mother Louise Tiff-
ney, 43, who disappeared without trace in May 2002. He had been tried and cleared of her murder by jury in 2005 but was due to stand trial again after new evidence was found in the
A MAN who has been dubbed a ‘sexual predator’ and is alleged to have harassed or sexually assaulted 42 women has been taken into psychiatric care. He is in the psychiatric ward of Inca hospital by court order after he allegedly assaulted four women after being released from a previous detention. Investigating police say the man is obsessed with finding a girlfriend and in recent months has harassed or sexually assaulted women in Santa Maria,
Much more than four stars.
to police last year by the College of Veterinarians who discovered that she had treated at least three horses - and accepted cash to do so. President of the College of Veterinarians, Ramon Garcia, welcomed the conviction, saying: “An erroneous diagnosis or inadequate treatment due to a lack of qualifications can have dire consequences for the animals.”
case. In April 2017, her remains were finally discovered hidden in woodland and police relaunched their investigation. Prosecutors applied for per-
Sex order Sineu, Binissalem, Lloseta and Inca. He is expected to spend a week in psychiatry, under medication and strict medical supervision. A definitive decision on his future will be taken afterwards. Investigators fear that not only may he commit more attacks but also that his safety is at risk, with some families of his victims reportedly out for revenge.
Friends.
mission for a retrial under double jeopardy legislation, which came into force in 2011 and allows a person to be retried for a crime for which they were previously acquitted. Judges had quashed the previous verdict and authorised a fresh prosecution. Flynn (above) is believed to have fled to Germany before flying to Spain where he took his own life. He had been staying in a sixth floor Airbnb flat in Peniscola near Valencia when his body was found. It was originally though he had fallen from the balcony.
A MAN who asked a noisy neighbour to keep the volume down ended up having a bottle smashed over his head. Police arrested a 38-year-old Brazilian man after the 6.25am attack in Port d'Alcudia. Officers had received a tip-off from neighbours that a fight had broken out and headed straight to the scene. Officers found the victim, a 33 year old Moroccan man with a deep wound to his head and the aggressor with a bruised eye. The victim said that he asked his neighbour to stop making so much noise on the floor above because he needed to sleep. His noisy neighbour said he could do what he liked and the pair met in the hallway of the flats. The victim was then hit over the head with a beer bottle and attempted to defend himself afterwards. Neighbours had tried to intervene to stop the fight before calling the police.
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www.theolivepress.es FRENCH footballer Lucas Hernandez has escaped a jail sentence after he broke a restraining order to marry his girlfriend. The case dates back to February 2017 when he and his girlfriend Amelia Lorente, were both convicted of domestic violence after fighting each other in Madrid. Neither made a complaint, but the public prosecutor brought a case against them both. A restraining order was placed on each, banning them from seeing each other for six months.
November 5th - November 18th 2021
What a result!
But just four months later Hernandez was arrested at Madrid airport when he and Lorente arrived back from their US honeymoon after getting married. The Bayern Munich defender – who became the Bundesliga’s most expensive player when he was sold by Atletico Madrid for €80 million in 2019 – was jailed for six months. On appeal, the sentence has been suspended for four years and a fine of €96,000 imposed.
Storm over teacup EXCLUSIVE: Helicopter sent off to locate the right porcelain set for Lady Diana’s Spanish tea time in The Crown THEY might have had the perfect hillside mansion to portray the legendary secret escapes of Lady Di to the Costa del Sol in the 1990s. But producers of the hit drama The Crown were left choking on their Darjeeling when they spotted the wrong set of porcelain during filming of the fifth
PLUSH: Interior for tea
series. So lousy were the tea cups a helicopter had to be dispatched to pick up a new set in Cordoba some 200kms away, the Olive Press can reveal. “It was deemed the quickest way to get the filming back on schedule,” revealed a source from the production, which has been shooting in Spain. The scene involved Diana taking tea with a close friend at the villa, which was rented in La Zagaleta, near Marbella, and based on the actual estate of Torre de Tramores, in nearby Benahavis. While the actors, in-
Clocking in!
BRITISH actor Malcolm McDowell, who famously played Alex in the controversial ultra-violent film A Clockwork Orange, was the star attraction at the premiere of a new documentary in Spain. Director Pedro Gonzalez decided to mark the 50th anniversary of the infamous Kubrick film from an unusual angle - the events around its first screening in Spain. In something of a coup he managed to persuade McDowell to narrate the documentary. The film was banned under the Franco regime, but just seven days after the dictator’s death it got its first airing at the Valladolid International Film Week. In La Naranja Prohibida (The Forbidden Orange) Gonzalez has tracked down many peo-
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STUNNING: The Zagaleta villa featured cluding Elizabeth Debicki, 31, tea set. who has replaced Emma Corrin “Amazingly this as Diana in the fifth series, were meant going somedressed perfectly, the tea set where in Cordoba and was out of place. only took an hour or so. “The director shouted cut as ap- “He turned up with two parently there was no way that light blue cups with matching such an esteemed estate would saucers. Job done, filming rebe serving tea out of such low sumed, having lost less than rent porcelain,” continued the two hours.” source. Despite spending thousands A high-level meeting was con- changing the furniture of the vened and a flunkey was duly rented villa - and bringing in rushed off to take the produc- vintage cars such as a Rolls tion helicopter to get the right Royce Corniche cabriolet there were other things out of place. In another scene filming had to be stopped because a mirror Diana was making up in had a black frame.
Gold
EVIL: McDowell as Alex ple who were involved in the screening. Presenting the documentary at this year’s 66th International Film Week in Valladolid, McDowell recounted anecdotes from the making of the movie and his unforgettable experience working with the late director Stanley Kubrick.
“The director was insistent it had to be gold and cut the scene sending it off for some gold paint,” continued the source. “It was nearly an hour wait while it had to be carefully painted with some gold lame.” Debicki has been joined by Dominic West playing Prince Charles in the new series, which airs next year, while the Queen is being played by Imelda Staunton and Prince Philip by Jonathan Pryce.
QUEENS OF BLING WHEN it comes to bling, rapper Kanye West might feel a bit deflated when he realises that European royalty put him in the shade. While famous for his purchases of expensive jewellery he simply can’t compete with ‘old money’. A report has revealed that three pieces of Spain’s royal collection are among the most valuable jewellery in the world. The Marichalar Meander Tiara, recently worn by princess Elena, is valued at a cool €3.5m, with the Fleur de Lys Tiara of Queen Letizia (above) coming in at €2.9m and The Prussian Diamond Tiara of Queen Sofia worth €2.3m. Now, West is a wealthy man and could conceivably afford similar items, but one royal collection blows him out of the water. It emerges that the world’s four most expensive pieces of royal jewellery, worth a combined €179.3m, are all owned by the British royal family. Top of the list is the Nizam of Hyderabad Necklace, last worn by the Duchess of Cambridge (left) and worth a staggering €78.6m, reported website jewellerybox.
Precious Stone SHARON Stone brought some Hollywood glamour to Sevilla at the Elle Awards. The 63-year-old actor famous for roles that include Basic Instinct and Casino has taken her social media followers on a tour of the Andalucian capital. “Look how gorgeous this is,” she said in a Twitter video filmed in Plaza Espana, which has clocked up more than 270,000 views. “I’m at the Elle Awards but with COVID I don’t like to go to after parties where people can get in my face so I like to walk around and see where we are,” she continued. “Isn’t it gorgeous?” She ends her dispatch with: “Sharon Stone, reporting from Seville. Good Night.” She also posted a video of the Giralda Tower at sunset, its bells ringing out across the city.
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Powering off CHINESE electronics giant Xiaomi has closed its store in Palma as it followed dozens of other businesses forced into closure by the COVID pandemic.
Sun down THE Balearic government has refused to approve airport authority AENA’S plan to build a solar farm in Son Bonet after an avalanche of 1,500 resident complaints and a series of protests.
Yoga no go AT least 30 people have been forced to quarantine in the Bellver hotel in Mallorca after testing positive for COVID-19 while attending a yoga retreat. Most of them were foreigners visiting the island.
Marine licence MENORCA wants the government to make it compulsory for people who want to sail dinghies to be licenced to improve safety and oblige them to pass a test on the care of the marine environment.
Stupid vaccers
On the up
A CROWD of anti-vaccers protested in front of the Government's new ‘Vacubús’, the mobile vaccination unit against COVID-19 recently positioned on Palma’s Plaza España. Protesters carried a large banner with anti-vaccination messages, such as ‘end experimental inoculation immediately’ and ‘they are not safe. The ‘Vacubus’ was unveiled the day before as a new means of vaccination. People can drop in without an appointment from Monday to Friday from 7.30am until 6pm until November 12. Health Minister Patricia Gomez explained that, despite 83% of the Balearic population having been vaccinated, ‘it is still not enough’.
THE number of jobless on the Balearic Islands fell by 29,774 people compared to October last year, bringing the total number of unemployed to 51,939 people. This contrasts with figures from 2020 that had recorded 36.44% more people out of work year-on-year. Across Spain, 159,479 more people were registered as employed in October, brings the total to more than 19.6 million employed. The figure for those registered as unemployed is 3,257,068 people.
ON ALERT
Embassy warns expats against fraudulent residency applications - particularly through third parties THE UK authorities have warned expats about submitting fraudulent residency applications in Spain directly or indirectly. It comes after the Olive Press revealed how a number of gestors had been caught submitting bogus paperwork to get people officially registered in the country. Embassy officials say the Spanish are now ‘on alert’ for forged healthcare insurance certificates, padron
By Simon Wade
certificates, as well as rental contracts. They are also looking out for youngsters falsely claiming student status. “If you are using a gestor make sure they are as reputable as possible,” notes the warning. Since the UK left the EU due to Brexit there has been a number of instances of gestores submitting false res-
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idency claims on behalf of UK Nationals. The Olive Press revealed in June (see right) how one British-run gestor on the Costa Blanca had been caught putting dozens of expats' paperwork through illegally. We revealed how many of them were now living in legal limbo and facing stiff fines while 952 147 834 police investigated the alleged fraud by One Way Services, in Ciudad Quesada. To remedy this, the embassy recommends using its online database of registered gestores. It also stressed that if expats are submitting appli-
Vol. 2 Issue 41
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Expats must stay in Spain in limbo for two years while alleged residency scam is probed by police EXCLUSIVE By Simon Wade
How one organised community of expats is putting El Raso on the map
EXPATS caught OLIVE ulent residency up in a fraudscam run by a PRESS gestor on the Costa been told by policeBlanca have can’t leave the country that they while the case is investigat ed. Dozens of people life in legal limbo are facing a years while policefor up to two investigate the alleged fraud cided if they face before it is decan legally stay. deportation or It comes after reported on a the Olive Press of expats who had been group 952 Tel: 952 147 834 detained 147 by834 police over padron certificates SCOOP: that appear to have been doc- broke How the Olive Press tored by one particular the story last edition gestor they hired to process their TIE One Way Services, applications. a doctored certificateabout why had been submitted on their behalf. Grilled “Smith said he They included to help people,” was only trying she told the Olow Lily Higgins71-year-old wid- ive Press. and friend Jay STUCK: Jane Long Elliott, who were “He said he’d their town hall grilled over his guilt to already admitted Elliott were ‘treated(above) has been told by police the police, before like criminals’ registratio forms, which were n shredding after using One that she can’t travel while Williams, 63, told Lily Higgins and Way Services us he One Way Services. handled by front of my my fake padron in to give Jay eyes” a statement at also had Several more have Alicante He added that she added. police station last she should week. forward to complainsince come pect a phone call from the ‘ex- It involved the property about the merely British gestor, in to answer a few police who has lived in Spain owner, da, which is at Ciudad Quesa- tions’. ques- en years, for sevhaving his fingerprin investigation. the centre of the However, ts after being taken taken, as well as getting These include Jane away photographed. in a police car, Long of Torheld for “It was revieja who was two hours, te Police Station taken to Alican- photographed,fingerprinted and Olive astonishing,” he told the Press. and she questione “I’m was told by over her part d court case could now told the in ‘an alleged detectives at the Policia Naciotake 18 months fraud’. nal that she will to two years, possibly be considere The 53-year-old more.” said she and ‘guilty, until proven innocent’. d He continued: “I started her husband Nigel all this Mrs Long despaired on September 1, had con- I couldn’t : “I was but fronted Matt Smith, even travel back told apparent as time wentit became owner of UK to the was something on there because I’m a criminal!” amiss. “I feel T h e found this can go two ways: I'm guilty and deported K e n t ter possibly or aftwo years I'm grantw o m a n ed residencia . revealed “I put all my faith into that the Services One and have been Way p o l i c e down, so let a very stressful had in- me time for working and countless alongside the f o r m e d added. others,” he Civil to now investigat Guardia ents that they would her, ‘ane all resnot be held idencia applicatio o t h e r ns in Alicante criminally responsible. made in 2021. “So it is totally Cleared 40-plus clear now that The lawyer later the criminal p e o p l e When the Olive Press called to the Olive Press confirmed ing focused investigation is bewill also Matt Smith for only against my that Smith ent 35 years experience • an explanatio had made a statement cliso be Interior and exterior ar- he refused to answer questionsn lice clearing to po- start for sure the fiscal will not criminal actions “Speak to my rested.’ Best quality products lawyer,” he said. knowledge of his clients of any his clients against the alleged fraud. F e l l o w before hanging up. used sadly affected,” “My client explained Special effects, stencillin he said. B r i t , National Police confirmed [to the If it g & feature walls etc to the police] that none emerges that any B r i a n Olive Press that Fully legal/registered • other of detectives are had produced theof the clients One Way clients Full liability insuranc were to be themselves [but] applications tained over e the matter, the deonly paid my All works guarante lawyer said: client “Mr ed Smith will proceed to apply for immediately to the TIE on their Contact Michael for of police or/andclarify in front behalf,” David a FREE quote the court that Gui- these clients jarro Mayor from michaelwillis5@sky. have no relation com at all with any criminal See page 23 ABC solicitors activity.” the Olive Presstold in Have you response to written been affected? Please contact questions. us on He sought to reas- desk@theolivepress.esnewssure One Way cliOpinion
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Bear in the for series of frame grizzly livestock killings in the Pyrenees See page
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The Olive Press TV investigation helps into the death of Kirsty Maxwell
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The female who took onwarriors army - and Drake’s won!
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‘Hellish and as British humiliating’ expats arrested over ‘fraudulent’ residency applications
A GROUP HUMILIATED: have been of British expats detained by Lily Jay were after their padron police EXCLUSIVE questionedand certificates proving they even deportation. By Simon Wade lived in appear to “I’ve never have been Spain derly expats tored. before but been in trouble doc- situation described At least eight as ‘humiliating’ the treated like here I am, being a common people have ‘hellish’, after and inal,” been grilled crimthey were held said for questioning over the town hall registration miliating.” Higgins. “It’s huunder cauwere all handledforms, which tion. They added that the same gestor company by the same They told the Olive gestor is being on the Costa they were carted Press how for changing investigated Blanca. te police station to Alican- least the date National Police about falsifying and grilled cants.22 more British on at confirmed the Olive applito documents Press that tives are working Another detec- submitted with alongside card applications. their TIE not to be couple, who asked the Guardia named, told vestigate all Civil to now in- “We were wrongly ive Press the Olcations in residencia appli- for submitting fake arrested questionedhow they had been Alicante made padrons, to even when they 2021. collect went in rect though we put the that his is cor- “We were their TIE cards. ones in with only gestoranything but the our papertaken work for residencia,” read our rights into a room, dragged into business to be said Jay explain Elliott, 66, and Fraud the investigaof Orihuela tion why our 2021 told to who has lived Costa, had It comes padron “Nobody has fraud’ was after ‘widespread over five years. in Spain for 2020been doctored to show been arrested, allegedly detected She that is a fact,” date - it was a in over 22 Britons and her hell.” All adding: “Other he insisted, attempting gins, 71, hadfriend Lily Hig- Onethose detained had to become gestors are used Way Services, also being brought planned for peaceful retirement This week resident here. a based a gestor in as part of an ongoing a number in the revieja,in Quesada, near of el- sun but are now investigation Torinto TIE applications.” to living with the threat plications process their apof a court A police spokesman - including case or padron. the told the Olive Press: “All residencia Owner Matt Smith insisted Continues
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cations themselves, it is importantTel: 952to147 834 provide as much documentation as possible to avoid being turned down. The most important factor proving they moved to Spain before January 1 this year. Organisations that form part of the UK Nationals Support Fund can provide free, confidential support.
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School infections THERE were 83 new cases of COVID-19 reported in Balearic schools between October 22 and 29. Four teachers and 79 students tested positive, according to the Ministry of Education. Of this total, 65 are from Mallorca, one from Menorca 13 from Ibiza and none from Formentera. There are currently 39 classes in isolation in 34 schools, of which 29 are in Mallorca, one in Menorca, four in Ibiza and one in Formentera.
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TENNIS legend Rafael Nadal has proved that not only is he one of the best sportsmen the world has ever seen, but he is also one of the sweetest. The former world number one sent a surprise birthday message to one of his biggest fans, a Galician grandfather who turned 90 years old. “Today is a very special day,” said the Mallorcan tennis star in a video message. “I want to send you a big hug, congratulations and wish you all the best.” Appearing a little perplexed at the start of the message, the grandfather soon realised who it was and couldn’t contain his emotion. “Thank you for making time for me,” said the 90-year-old who is known as ‘O Parrallo’ to all his friends and family. “It’s a dream come true,” he said in response to the message as his voice cracked and his face crinkled with emotion. His granddaughter Pilar Leon, filmed the moment the message was played and she posted it on twitter with a huge thank you to Nadal. “Eternal gratitude to Rafa Nadal and all those who have helped make his 90th birthday unforgettable.” The video has been viewed 150,000 times in just 36 hours.
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Farm the sun A MASSIVE solar farm that will cover up to 79 hectares - equivalent to 147 football pitches - is planned for Bunyola. The first stage has been declared a ‘strategic project’ by the Consell de la Industria and will see nearly 80,000-panels installed on 32.2 hectares on five plots in the Ses Veles industrial estate. It is planned to be expanded in the future. The initial project will see the installation of 79,920 solar panels. The plant will produce some 40 million watts, equivalent to the electricity needed for 12,000 homes. Jobs will also be generated through the construction of the solar park as they will need at least 400 workers during the installation and 15 new jobs once operational. Storage batteries of 80 milliwatt hours will be a ‘very important’ aspect of the project to store energy for night time.
Wrap up! IT is time to batten down the hatches as weather warnings have been issued across the Balearic Islands as strong winds and torrential rain are predicted. Thunder storms and strong winds are forecast for the weekend, with a warning to be careful in coastal areas issued. Deputy spokesman of AEMET in the Balearic Islands, Miquel Gili warned of heavy rain, strong winds, storms and cooler temperatures that will continue over the weekend, with yellow alerts issued.
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November 5th November 18th 2021
Harsh lesson Irish teacher furious after being forced to sleep outside airport in ‘wet and cold’ conditions A FURIOUS granny has slammed a Spanish airport after being forced to sleep outside in ‘freezing and rainy’ conditions. Mary McIntaggart was forced to spend the night in a bus shelter outside Almeria airport during a thunderstorm last week. The Irish teacher was left stunned after being refused access to the terminal overnight as she waited for an early-morning flight to the UK. The 58-year-old had been
EXCLUSIVE By Kirsty McKenzie & Elena Goçmen Rueda
forced to get there the night before in order to take her early morning flight to Manchester to see her grandson. But McIntaggart, a teacher living in Aguilas, was told she could not stay in the lounge to wait for the 10am flight as the airport shut at 11pm. McIntaggart, who is now a resident in Spain, was ordered out by airport staff
Taking off? THIS is the new air taxi designed and manufactured in Spain. Straight out of a sci-fi movie, the single person aircraft could change the future of travel. Powered by four drones and 16 independent motors, it will be the first vertical take-off craft in Spain. Covering 15 kilometres in 15 minutes, the aircraft can carry one person or loads of up to 150kg. Reaching an altitude of up to 300 feet, it will travel at speeds of up to 90 km/h. The prototype could be operational by 2024.
STUPID: Acres of space but nowhere for Mary (pictured with grandson Theo) to shelter
and forced to stand ‘freezing and distraught’ beside a bus stop. “There were no buses and no taxis so there was no way I could get to a hotel,” she told the Olive Press. “I ended up having to spend the night sheltering outside from a thunderstorm. “There was flooding in Almeria that day and it was freezing.” A spokesman at Almeria airport told the Olive Press: "We are deeply sorry for the extreme situation that Mrs McIntaggart suffered”. She added that only six Aena airports are open 24 hours a day. Palma is one of them. “Almeria airport in particular is open from 6am to 11pm. Providing a waiting
area would mean keeping the airport fully open, and due to the expense and taking into account the number of flights it has it is not an expense we can afford,”she added. Opinion Page 6
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NEWS FEATURE
www.theolivepress.es 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 POOR CONNECTIONS THE shocking story of an expat grandmother being forced to spend a night outside in the rain highlights the sometimes deplorable infrastructure found outside of Spain’s main transport hubs. The airports of Madrid, Malaga, Barcelona, Valencia and Alicante are always bustling and are well served by flag carriers and budget airlines alike. In Madrid, as befits a modern capital, there’s a choice of a fast and frequent dedicated bus service direct from the door to the city centre for those that don’t want to catch the metro or train. But the same cannot be said of Spain’s smaller airports, as one Olive Press reader found out to her peril. She thought she was making well laid plans by arranging to arrive at the airport late at night before an early morning flight from Almeria. In fact she wasn’t aware that unlike most airports where travellers are often found stretched out on a bench or snoozing in a departure lounge, or drinking coffee in an all night cafe, Almeria airport won’t allow passengers to stay in the terminal overnight. Given the fact that Almeria airport is a gateway to a region that is hugely popular with visitors and expats from across northern Europe, it’s astonishing just how bad the services are there. No airport hotel within walking distance, no rail connection and few buses from there to resort towns along that stretch of coast and with no late flights due in, not a taxi to be seen. The bad luck in Mary McIntaggart’s story was that her unfortunate sojourn coincided with a stormy night – an unusual occurrence in a zone that boasts more than 330 sunny days a year.
Adventures in
A
S an admin-phobe, my main beef with Brexit was the paperwork that would ensue; I had an inkling it would be a ball-
buster. For three years at least, I prayed the whole nightmare would go away. The referendum vote would be overturned or Brexit would exist in name only. When I finally pulled my head out of
A bid for Spanish nationality leads to a Kafkaesque scenario involving inaccessible authorities and missing documents, writes Heather Galloway
the sand, it was to confront the worst deal short of no deal. I changed my UK driving license and Spanish residence permit relatively
HARD WORK: Janie leaves the register office empty handed and with her mum, heather
PUBLISHER / EDITOR
Jon Clarke, jon@theolivepress.es Dilip Kuner dilip@theolivepress.es
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Simon Wade simon@theolivepress.es
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2012 - 2020
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painlessly towards the end of 2020 in the thick of COVID. Then came the hardest nut to crack: acquiring Spanish nationality for my oldest daughter, Janie, to allow her access to an EU university outside of Spain on manageable fees. Though born and brought up in Madrid, Janie is a UK citizen and was awarded a student loan for a threeyear ballet course in London. Unfortunately, injuries to her feet and a dislocated knee prevent her pursuing a career in dance, but she is not entitled to a further loan in the UK. We hold our breath and take the plunge. Spanish nationality has to be obtained. How hard can it be? Having triumphed with the other paperwork, I am tentatively optimistic. But that is only because I have yet to become acquainted with the disaster that is the Ministry of Justice. I hand the necessary documents over to my nearest civil registry which happens to be the local town hall. Time is of the essence but
Purr...pers please Here’s what you need to know about Spain’s plan to introduce ID for pets
T
HE government has unveiled plans for a national ID scheme for domestic animals as part of a far-reaching animal welfare reform bill. The new legislation will act as a sort of bill of rights for animals giving them an elevated status of a ‘sentient being’ above that of a possession, which is the current legal status. a pet passport. The Olive Press understands that the new ID system will allow for a record to be kept of any mistreatment suffered by the animal and to make it easier to locate the owner in cases of abandonment. It may also include a photo of the animal in the same way that Spain’s National Identity Card has for humans. As well as stricter punishments for those guilty of animal abuse there are tougher guidelines on the care of domestic pets, from how many you can keep to how long they can be left alone. Part of the legislation currently being reviewed, is the need for animals to have a unique ID to be included on a national database that will make it easier to register and identify the animal’s owner. According to Ione Belarra, the Minister of Social Rights, the identification of domestic animals will serve ‘to guarantee that we are on the right path and have a model where no ani-
mal is left helpless in Spain’. The pet ID will work in conjunction with a microchip that is already compulsory for owners of dogs and cats and will include essential information such as breed, date of birth and details of owner. But it is, as yet, unclear how the new ID document will differ from the health certificate booklet already issued by vets to responsible owners in Spain. This already shows the microchip number plus vaccination records of the animal. For those who take their pets across borders with the EU, it can already be issued in the form of The draft bill is set to be discussed by the cabinet this month before being presented for parliamentary debate.
www.theolivepress.es
November 5th - November 18th 2021
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Hunter of Monsters
O NOT ALL MISERY: Heather and Janie fret over the laptop but still have time to enjoy Spain
the first appointment is November 11, 2020. I say I am worried that Janie’s UK passport will be close to its expiry date by then, but am told it will be no problem as long as it is valid when submitted. I go home with the receipt and the sense of a job well done. The months pass and no word. In May, 2021, I decide to investigate online and am asked for a number I don’t have. An R number. I scour the receipt then I phone the Ministry of Justice. Finally I get through to a woman whose customer service skills were acquired in the Franco era. “You can’t know the status of your application without the R number,” she barks. I say I don’t have one. “Well, I can’t do anything without it.” I go back to the receipt and search again to no avail. I call the ministry again. “How do I get the R number?” I ask the woman on the other end of the line when I finally get through. To my surprise, she reels it off. Aha, I say, feeling as though I have been thrown a bone. I enter the R number online and Janie’s file comes up. Missing a paper, it says, with no further clues. I get back on the phone and provide the R number and Janie’s details to the gentleman on the other end. “You’re missing a paper,” he tells me. “I know. Which one?” “I can’t say.” “Why not?” “Look Mrs, it says a paper is missing. That’s all.” “So, how do I find out?” “Listen! Listen to me! You have to go to your daughter’s citizen’s file.” I call off. My head is about to explode. Vital weeks are passing. Every phone call is a morning’s work. We go through the laborious process of getting Janie a Clave Pin and finally get into her citizen’s file. The missing paper is the passport, but it is now too late to submit it as we have missed the three-month window. This, it
says, will result in the application being annulled. Okay, I think. Calm down. Never mind. We will start afresh. I get the papers together again and hand them over to the local registry with copies of a passport with 10 years on it. I get my receipt and go home. In September, almost a year after the first application, I phone the Ministry to get the R number for the ber I can ring?” new application. A woman answers. “No,” says the woman, categorically She says no application for 2021 has not. Nor can the woman be expected been registered but the first applica- to get in touch with the Department tion is still active and missing a paper. of Nationality, which is buried some“But it said that application would where in the same building. be annulled if I didn’t provide “Doesn’t the department have a the missing paper in time, which phone?” Janie cries. I didn’t,” I say through gritted teeth. “Write them a letter,” she says. “If you don’t annul the first appli- She gives Janie two sheets of paper cation,” she shoots back, “both so she can make two handwritten applications will be annulled.” copies, as though the photocopier or “How do I do that?” scanner were too futuristic to be at “Write a letter.” home in this environment. “To who?” Fighting an urge to sob, “The Department of writes two identical The world is no Janie Nationality.” letters, hands over one I write a letter. Dear longer anyone’s and leaves. Madam/ Sir. To whom it A month later, no news. oyster, except Janie’s future is uncermay concern. And send it by registered post. I for the likes of tain. The adventure has might as well have writbeen so ludicrous as to Boris Johnson verge on exhilarating. We ten to Santa Claus. A few weeks pass. hate the Ministry of JusJanie’s citizen’s file tice but most of all we is now empty. There is no word of a hate Brexit for forcing us to deal with missing paper anymore. it. We hear that Brexit might also be No word of anything. But responsible for the empty shelves in the ministry still says the UK, for the lack of lorry drivers she’s missing a paper. I and queues at petrol pumps. To cap decide to send a copy it all, there is a suggestion from Brexit of her passport on the mastermind Dominic Cummings that off chance, linked to UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson nevthe ghost application. er entirely grasped the implications Now the submission of the withdrawal agreement that he of the passport reg- hammered out. isters in the citizen’s I think of my daughter, who at 21, canfile but the applica- not now study or work in another EU tion continues to country aside from Spain. I think of say it is missing a all the youngsters Janie’s age whose paper. horizons have shrunk. It strikes me My daughter goes that the pro-Brexit contingent were down in person to perhaps too arrogant to consider plead and beg for an- that by restricting the movement of swers. people coming into the UK they were “What do you ex- also curbing their children and grandpect me to do?” children’s opportunities. The world is the woman dead- no longer anyone’s oyster except, of pans from the other course, for the likes of Boris Johnson side of the desk. – ‘the trolley’ as Cummings calls him, Janie doesn’t know. who has pockets deep enough to side“Isn’t there a num- step all the red tape.
LIVE Press editor Jon Clarke has had dozens of exclusive stories and investigations published in the international press over the last few decades. Now he is making headlines himself. In a terrific accolade, Spain’s national newspaper ABC has run a three-page profile on him following the publication of his book My Search for Madeleine. Dubbing him Un Cazador de Monstruos, or A Hunter of Monsters, it charts his dogged reporting on the missing Madeleine McCann case - and its current prime suspect Christian Brueckner over the last 14 years. But, as ABC points out, this is not the only high profile criminal case that he has reported on – and gone into far deeper than most. His first big hits in Spain came during the 2003 investigation of the so-called Costa Killer over the murder of teenagers Rocio Wanninkhof and Sonia Carabantes. He wrote a book on the case, securing the only exclusive interviews with the wife and mother of British killer Tony King, also known as the Holloway Strangler. He had earlier probed and exposed Prince Andrew’s controversial links to global paedophile Jeffrey Epstein in a string of exclusives for the Mail on Sunday. And most recently he revealed how another arguable monster Boris Johnson was having a holiday here. And the list of exclusives goes on. It is no wonder the Olive Press has maintained its standards and remains the best English language newspaper and website in Spain While some media groups are headed by number crunchers and sales people whose eye is only on the bottom line, the Olive Press places journalism at the very heart of its operation. It is probably why hundreds of you are signing up to our website every month.
NATIONAL NEWS: Jon’s Maddie stories in The Sun and (above) the Times
The top five most read stories on www.theolivepress.es in the past two weeks are: - EXCLUSIVE: German and Portuguese cops 1wanted meet to swap evidence on prime suspect who to catch something small in Madeleine McCan case
go back in 2021 and 2- Whenwhydodotheweclocks change the time in Spain Halls across spain deliberately 3- Are Towntargeting expats for cash the Benahavis villa that serves as 4- This issecret hideout for princess diana Are brits really leaving Spain 5- ANALYSIS: in droves. Where’s the evidence?
Get in touch today at sales@theolivepress.es or call us at 00 34 951273575 for more info
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GREEN
www.theolivepress.es
Rafa Nadal making the switch to EVs By Dilip Kuner
TENNIS legend Rafa Nadal has thrown his weight behind a move to eco-friendly motoring by pledging to use electric cars. He took delivery of a Kia EV6 crossover at his academy in Manacor, Mallorca as part of a sponsorship deal with the Korean multinational. Nadal will use the car whenever he is in Mallorca as well as at major tennis tournaments such as the 2022 Australian Open. He is also looking at switching all vehicles used
Electric dreams
at the Rafa Nadal Foundation to electric vehicles by 2022. Accepting that his lifestyle of jetting around the world is not eco-friendly, he said: “My job naturally requires a lot of travel, and my lifestyle is not fully sustainable. But I’m determined to make the necessary changes where I can, starting with my personal use of the EV6 crossover in Mallorca and beyond.
GOING GREEN: Rafa Nadal
Wind giants A NEW floating windfarm with the capacity to generate 28% of Almeria electricity could be built off the coast of Nijar and Carboneras (Andalucia). The 300 MW Mar de Agata Offshore Wind Farm will be developed by BlueFloat Energy and SENER. It will create 7,500 jobs during the construction and decommissioning phases, 50% of them direct, with an estimated contribution to GDP of €630 million. There will be 12m tonnes of CO2 saved during the life of the wind farm, estimated at 30 years. The wind farm will be equipped with 20 turbines, each up to 261 metres above sea level, and will be 15km from the Cabo de Cata viewpoints.
November 5th - November 18th 2021
REPSOL plans to invest €2.55 billion in projects to produce clean hydrogen. It will develop capacity by using different technologies including electrolysis and biogas to build 1.9GW of capacity by 2030. At the moment, most hydrogen is made
“I would like to encourage others to join me in driving these kinds of vehicles wherever possible.”
Cunning plan from natural gas, which negates hydrogen’s green credentials. Hydrogen can be used to power EVs using fuel cell technology giving greater range then conventional electric vehicles. While the figures sound impressive, it is a downgrade from original plans, which would have seen up to €2.9 billion spent by 2026. The plan, if fulfilled, will still make it the market leader in hydrogen for Spain and Portugal.
Martin Tye explains why solar power is back from the dead in Spain
Sunshine resurrection
Green Matters
By Martin Tye
O
PTIMISM has returned to the Spanish solar market after a decade of sluggish growth. It’s hard to believe that Spain was once a leader in the European solar energy market. It started well until the government killed it, effectively putting the solar industry into a coma for 10 years. In 2008, a massive 2,718 MW of new solar capacity was installed. In 2009 it decreased to a measly 44MW. This happened because of two key reasons: ● The financial crisis ● The appalling handling of the crisis by the Spanish government Spain should be leading the way with solar energy production. With solar irradiance in excess of 6 Kwh per square metre, as the climatic conditions are perfect.
SOLAR: Comeback
After all, one of the reasons most of us chose to live here is the sun. At the beginning of the new millennium the Spanish government had successfully stimulated the solar energy market with attractive remuneration schemes for developers and investors. When the crisis hit, unlike elsewhere in Europe, the government retroactively cut and killed subsidies. Investors fled the country. Lawsuits are still pending. Spain went backwards. In 2019 there were fewer than 1,000 houses in Spain with solar panels installed. Compare that to Germany with more than 1,000,000 homes generating electricity. Compare the climates – it just doesn’t make sense! Things started to change with the Paris agreement on climate change and its common EU commitment to reduce carbon emissions significantly before 2030. The Paris agreement was in 2015. It still took Spain until October 2018 to abolish the infamous sun tax, introduced by the former Mariano Rajoy government, under the influence of the former state monopolies Endesa and Iberdrola. I still find the concept of being taxed for producing renewable energy for self consumption beyond bonkers. “The country is finally freeing itself of the great absurdity, scorned by international observers, that is the sun tax,” said Teresa Ribera, the Minister for Ecological Transition. The solar market no longer requires subsidy to stimulate investment.
COLOUR: The Eiffel tower was turned green to celebrate the Paris Agreement
Electricity prices have soared, solar panel costs have decreased in the past 10 years and their efficiency has increased. Return on investment used to be 15 years. It’s now less than five years. At last there is no more punishment, just encouragement.
Thought of the week If Spain had carried on installing solar panels as it should have, we would not be suffering as much from the horrific electricity prices we are now all subjected to. We actively support Debra España, the charity that helps Butterfly Children. A donation of €1 will be made for every contract we organise.
Martin Tye is the owner of energy switch company Mariposa Energy. +34 638145664 Email him at martin@mariposaenergia.es
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LA CULTURA
November 5th - November 18th 2021
Change in plans
THERE has been a change of plans for the Christmas lights switch-on in Palma due to the crowded events in the last full week of November. The switch will be thrown on November 24, a day earlier then planned as it clashed with the International Day against Gender Violence, with Black Friday on the
26th. Palma council decided to stagger the events to avoid a build up of crowds.
ETERNALLY FAMOUS
True beauty of Canary Islands revealed with Marvel latest blockbuster THE rugged coastlines and dramatic landscapes of the islands of Lanzarote and Fuerteventura are about to make it big on the silver screen. These Canary Islands were chosen as the location for filming on Marvel’s latest blockbuster Eternals, which premieres in cinemas on November 5.
Stars
Featuring Hollywood stars including Angelina Jolie (pictured inset), Richard Madden and Salma Hayek, the $200 million movie directed by
THE spectacular Cirque du Soleil is returning to Spain in 2022 after a COVID-enforced break of a yearand-a-half. It’s new show called Luzia can be enjoyed in Barcelona (Districte Cultural de L'Hospitalet) from March 17, Alicante from July 14 and Madrid (Escenario Puerta del Angel) from November 5. The last day the famous circus was in Spain was on March 8, 2020 when it put on a show in Sevilla. “It has been nearly two years since then, a long time in which all the artists and workers who are part of Cirque du Soleil have been waiting impatiently to be able to meet the public again,” a spokesman for the Canadian company said. “This is the moment we have all been waiting for,” said president
Daniel Lamarre. In the past, the circus has presented 14 different shows in 19 Spanish cities. In more than two decades, 9 million spectators - in Spain alone - have attended its shows, with more than 3,500 performances.
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Cirque du sol
Impressive
‘Luzia' is a production created and directed by Daniele Finzi Pasca, which transports the viewer to the heart of an imaginary Mexico. “With impressive acrobatics and great visual surprises, the show invites the audience members to immerse themselves,” explained the company.
SPECTACLE: Daredevil antics
GET READY! All set to submit your Self Assessment tax return (SA100) asks Emilia Carvell
By Amber Edirisinghe
double Oscar winner Chloé Zhao showcases the true beauty of the Spanish islands.
Pablo Pi-cash-o
ELEVEN artworks by Malaga-born Pablo Picasso have been sold for over €93.6 million at an auction held in Las Vegas. The works had been displayed in the Picasso Restaurant at the Bellagio Hotel before being put up for sale. The most expensive piece was ‘Femme au beret rouge-orange’ (1938), which went under the hammer for €34.3 million at the auction held by Sotheby’s. This is one of the last portraits Picasso painted of his muse Marie-Therese Walter. Its estimate had been between €17m and €25m.
The film was shot on location in 2019 across the island of Fuerteventura, from La Solapa beach to Las Peñitas Dam, and Lanzarote where the volcano of El Cuervo serves as the backdrop for a dramatic finale. Tourism chiefs expect the movie to boost the number of visitors to the islands as the destination is introduced to new audiences.
Popular
A trailer for the film could easily be used as an advertising campaign for island tourism. Spain has long been popular as a film location destination. Game of Thrones chose destinations across Spain, from the craggy cliffs of the Basque Country to the Arab palaces of Andalucia, as the backdrop to scenes. While the popular Netflix series The Crown has recently been filming on the Costa del Sol and Mallorca.
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I
T’S that time of the year again! The 31st of January is fast approaching which means it’s time to submit your 20-21 tax return! Now we know that this isn't exactly seen as a fun task - in fact it’s probably always on the bottom of your to do list! But there are some simple steps you can take to prepare for submitting your Self Assessment Tax Return (SA100).
STEP ONE - Dig out your government gateway ID & Password Now, bear with us here - we know that this may seem super obvious, but not having access to your government gateway ID & Password, could cause you to have a late filing penalty! If you aren't planning on submitting your tax return until the deadline of the 31st of January, and you can’t find your government gateway credentials, then you won't be able to submit & file with HMRC (or software like APARI). Somehow, I don't think “I've lost my password” is a valid excuse for late submission, and even worse, could result in a £100 fine.
STEP TWO - Get your tax records up to date! If you’ve read our articles before, you’ll know that this is something we talk about - a lot! The biggest part to being tax savvy, for any type of tax, is good record keeping. Whilst we would always recommend doing this throughout the year, there is still time to get up to date before the submission deadline. If you’re not sure where to start, your business, or property bank statements are always a great place to get stuck in. You can even use a record keeping tax software like APARI and automate some of this process - but if software isn’t quite your thing (yet), then a good excel spreadsheet will work too! Remember to check all receipts for business related payments and receipts that you may have paid in cash. Getting on top of your tax records won’t only save you time when it comes to submission - it could also save you money! By keeping track of everything spent for
your landlord business, you may even unearth some additional tax-deductible expenses - every deduction helps, and if you were ever to be subjected to some sort of review form HMRC, then having good proof of your business income and expenditure will always help. Sign up to the APARI community to keep up to date on what you can claim.
STEP THREE - Check your calculation & submit! Don’t worry we don't expect you to start doing mental arithmetic or long division! But there are a couple of ways that you can check your tax liability before submitting to HMRC. As a landlord, it is likely that your income and expenditure is pretty similar year on year - that means that last years tax return is usually a good guide as to what this year's tax calculation should look like (unless of course there have been any major changes). You can also use a software, like APARI - we can calculate your tax liability for the year, AND submit directly to HMRC - meaning the only thing left for you to do is pay your tax liability! Regardless of how you do your tax return, the most important thing is to remember that the deadline is looming! So, get started today and remember to submit before the 31st of January!
For all the latest information and advise, visit www.apari-digital.com
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The online British education that revolves around you At King’s InterHigh, your child can learn and shine as part of a diverse and welcoming school community that’s built around their needs and interests. With small classes, interactive lessons and lots happening outside the classroom, they can benefit from a highquality British education from anywhere. All with the backing of Inspired, one of the world’s leading education groups. With over 16 years of experience, we are the original online school.
BUSINESS
SOUTHERN Spain is the cheapest part of the country to die in, according to the OCU consumer association. The highest prices for funerals and cremations were reported in Vigo in the north-west, averaging out at €6,115. Cadiz in the south averaged a far more modest €2,551. The OCU survey contacted 113 funeral homes in 29 cities. It said a third of those spoken to showed a ‘lack of transparency’ in providing proper estimates for their services. The consumer group recommends ‘shopping around’ to get a range
Price of death
of prices as it discovered significant variations even within a local area. For example, it got quotes of between €4,886 and €6,164 for an Alicante funeral.The tariffs are far lower in Valencia, ranging between €2,542 and €4,434. The most cost-effective area to die appears to be southern Spain. Cadiz has the lowest average rates (€2,551) among the OCU surveyed cities, but Malaga also has a low average funer-
school
lem in reverse. They export 40% of their production and are finding it difficult to deliver their stock abroad, despite being willing to pay higher transport costs. Bosco Torremocha, the executive director of the Spanish
SPAIN’S inflation rate has soared to 5.5% due to steep energy price rises. The rate for October was 1.1% higher than September. It’s the biggest inflation hike since September 1992 when Spain’s old currency of the peseta came under pressure from Germany’s deutschmark.The rise is around 1% higher than predicted.
Kings_InterHigh_83x170_The_Olive_Press
School is changing, find out how
ity UK curriculum in real-time classrooms. InterHigh’s 15-plus years’ experience of delivering unparalleled virtual education has fostered a thriving community of 10,000-plus successful alumni. Innovative online learning means different things to different people. Some recent pilots and work at King’s InterHigh include virtual science simulations for exam years (think science experiments like a game!), additional gamified and and shine as AtPlaystation King’s InterHigh, your child can learn AI-driven learning in foreign languages as well as part of a diverse and welcoming school richer, more varied online learning in the Primary community that’s built around theirbringing needs and With years. Online learning means new interests. concepts to life in a virtual and connected small classes, interactive lessons environand lots happening ment. outside the classroom, they can benefit from a highDue to their very nature of being online, schools British education fromboth anywhere. like quality King’s InterHigh cater to families inside All with the backing of Inspired, one of the and outside the UK. With students joining world’s from leading education countries acrossgroups. Europe and many international destinations, the global community of online learners continues to grow and thrive. Students, Withteachers over 16 years of experience, we are and families share a high re- the original gardonline for theschool. British curriculum and the many opportunities it brings for both fulfilling careers and pathways to univerkingsinterhigh.co.uk sities and future studies. So how is school changing? King’s InterHigh is one example of a school without walls where students are not constrained to one location and where opportunities for learning are available on line and in person. While education should be student centered and focused on learning, schools that bring learning online in an engaging and effective way, represent a viable alternative for many families now and into the future.
The online British education that revolves around you
To discover more, visit: www.kingsinterhigh.co.uk
not seem to be affecting that sector as much, with many breweries running their own transportation systems within Spain.
Across
OP SUDOKU
I
Spirits Association, (FEBE) said: “We do not expect to recover the sales levels of 2019 until the end of next year or beginning of 2023.” He cited a rise in maritime freight costs, logjams at customs – partly due to Brexit – and shortage of glass, cardboard and energy costs, as factors that could badly affect Spain’s 3,800 distillers. Torremocha added: “The issue is not only an increase in costs, but also the fact that even if you pay, you are not sure when you are going to have stock delivered.” Fortunately for beer and wine drinkers, the same issues do
OP QUICK CROSSWORD
THE COVID-19 pandemic changed the idea of education dramatically
t introduced many of us to the power of online learning and the opportunities it brings forth. Some schools have not only embraced this change but are passionately working towards elevating the perceptions around online learning, demystifying ‘remote’ or ‘distance’ learning and continuously increasing the quality of the outcomes delivered online. There is a similar conversation also taking place in the world of work with companies implementing ‘work from home’ policies and hybrid working environments. This November, the UK’s leading online school InterHigh becomes King’s InterHigh. While it may seem like a small change in name, it moves the conversation around education to a new level. It represents a rich addition of the King’s group of schools and their 50 years’ experience in delivering educational excellence and a connection to the global Inspired group of 70-plus schools spread across 5 continents to the original online school, InterHigh. Pioneers in online learning, InterHigh was the world’s first fully online school to offer a high-qual-
Coffin
The OCU says an average Spanish funeral costs €3,739. A cremation service package would come in marginally lower at €3,617. The price of a coffin is the costliest element, coming in a range between €600 and €1,300 for a ‘no frills’ casket. The OCU survey reports that most people pay around €1,200.
Spirits sink as transport problems cause shortages of whisky, gin and rum
INFLATION SETBACK
An
al cost of €2,966. Further north, Murcia comes in at €3,051, while Palma de Mallorca charges €3,636.
Sobering issues
THIS Christmas you may have to stick to the beer and wine. International transportation ‘issues’ could lead to a shortage of whisky, gin, vodka and rum in Spain, industry bosses have warned. Already many bars, restaurants and nightclubs in some parts of Spain have had difficulties getting their usual supplies. And Spanish distillers are facing the same prob-
kingsinterhigh.co.uk
November 5th November 18th 2021
8 Where to scrub Skodas or mop Mazdas (3,4) 9 Runs moderately fast (5) 10 Tiny particles (5) 11 Defiant remark (2,5) 12 Disgrace (5) 14 Tire out (7) 16 Willingly obedient (7) 18 Lebanese city and ancient Phoenician port (5) 20 Tympanic membrane (7) 22 Thick sweet liquid (5) 23 Sudden forward thrust (5) 24 Of little consequence (7)
Down 1 Orts (6) 2 Disdainful (8) 3 It’s said on Sunday (4) 4 Virginal (6) 5 Sudden side pains (8) 6 Completed (4) 7 Give the green light (6) 13 Carried out badly fed crone (8) 15 Be beneath (8) 16 Makes a home (6) 17 Bounds (6) 19 Incendiary gel (6) 21 South African money (4) 22 Dirty (4)
All solutions are on page 12
FOOD & DRINK
November 5th November 18th 2021
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RAISE A GLASS
ONE of the country’s most famous sherry and wine producers has been voted ‘Best Spanish Winery of the Decade’. The AEPEV association of wine journalists gave the accolade to Jerez-based Gonzalez Byass, which is behind the internationally-renowned Tio Pepe brand. The business was founded in 1835 by Manuel Maria Gonzalez and British importer Robert Byass. Gustav Eiffel, who designed the famous tower in Paris, built a large bodega for the firm, called La Concha in 1862. Over
a century later, the family company constructed their giant three-storey Tio Pepe bodega at Jerez in 1963. Relatives of Robert Byass ended their interest in the producer in 1998, leaving it solely in the hands of fourth and fifth generation members of the Gonzalez family. The firm expanded 13 years ago to takeover the Viñas de Vero wineries in Aragon The AEPEV said it wanted to ‘recognise the essence of a family company that offered consistency and innovation along with respect for the environment’.
BEST: Top bodega
On the fast track Renfe set to challenge struggling Eurostar for tunnel route, potentially linking the costas with London in 24 hours RENFE, Spain’s state-owned rail operator, is in talks to take on Eurostar. It plans to operate a highspeed passenger service between London and Paris. Since its high-profile launch in 1994, the channel tunnel service has been provided by just one operator, completely unchallenged. Renfe wants to run its own two-hour service between the two capitals, utilising time slots still available through the tunnel. HS1, which manages the tracks between London St Pancras and the south coast,
By Simon Wade
is reported to be ‘very interested’ in the development of the project.
Vurger King ONE Burger King in Spain is going entirely meat free for a month. The branch on Madrid’s famous Paseo del Prado has teamed up with The Vegetarian Butcher to offer plant-based food only. There will be a plant-based Whopper and vegan ‘chicken’ nuggets as well as a Long Vegetal – a vegetarian take on the Long Chicken in the restaurant dubbed ‘Vurger King’. But vegans beware – the mayonnaise in the sandwiches contains eggs, so you will have to ask for no mayonnaise if you want a fully vegan option. “We want to reach both people who base their diet on vegetable products and those who do eat meat but want to reduce their consumption,” said Burger King boss. The Vegetarian Butcher – a Dutch company owned by Unilever - and Burger King are working to get plant-based burgers on the menu in 25 countries.
Eurostar’s majority-owner, SNCF, launched heavily-discounted services from France into Spain only this year. Trips from Paris to Barcelona cost €39, and Marseille to Madrid is still only €59. Renfe looks to have countered the bold move by claiming: “According to the demand analysis carried out, it would be viable and profitable for [us] to compete with Eurostar.” Pre-pandemic, Eurostar carried more than 11 million passengers and provided more than 80% of journeys between London, Paris and Brussels.
Deal
However, travel restrictions during various COVID lockdowns reduced services to as few as one a day. They were bailed out with a £250m loan in a refinancing deal with shareholders and banks in May, 2021. With high-speed RENFE services now reaching the south coast of Spain, when will we see a rail connection from the costas all the way to London without having to change? Currently, Orihuela to Madrid takes 2h 30m via Alicante. From Malaga it is 2h 40m. Madrid to Paris averages 19 hours, and Paris to London is a swift 2h 20m. In theory, and with timely connections, the trip could be made within 24 hours on one ticket, with one service provider.
FOOD,DRINK & TRAVEL
November 5th - November 18th 2021
MOORISH JON CLARKE waxes lyrical about his hometown of Ronda, where the sense of history is only matched by its soaring mountain scenery
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T’S one hundred metres, and 300 slippery spiralling steps, to reach the bottom of the siege tunnel of the Casa del Rey Moro. One of various escape routes during times of siege, there is no better reminder of Ronda’s fascinating historical past. A must-visit, alongside the nearby Arabic baths, the 13th century House of the Moorish King was a highlight of Michelle Obama’s visit to Andalucia a decade ago. America’s former first lady had insisted that she wanted to witness first-hand how the Arabic defenders took and received messages and collected water during the regular sieges in the dark days of the end of the Kingdom of Granada just over 500 years ago. On a cultural holiday to explore the
days of Al-Andaluz, she and her daughters spent a day wandering around the gem of a town that sits less than an hour inland from the Costa del Sol. Having visited the charming Arabic gardens of the Palacio Mondragon and the town’s iconic bullring - Spain’s oldest - she decided to undertake some exercise. By navigating the ‘la Mina’ staircase down to the bottom of the gorge, she was really getting a true understanding of what makes this mountain town so wonderful. For down at the bottom by the River Guadalevin - with the steep walls of the famous Tajo towering above, and the swallows and rooks swooping around with gusto - you truly step back in time. Re s to r e d in 1911, the deep
tunnel was originally carved out by Christian slaves to get water during the reign of Ronda’s Moorish king, Abomelik. While intended as a secret, Christians then living in Andalucia used the refrain that ‘in Ronda you die carrying water skins’. They were certainly not likely to have enjoyed the wonderful welcome mostly Muslim travellers would have received in the nearby Arabic baths. The Banos Arabes, built in the 11th century, are said to be the best preserved in Spain today and, for me, are the best place to start a history tour of Ronda. Take my advice, for having lived in the area for nearly two decades, nowhere else offers up such a good introduction to the wealth and sophistication of the former Arabic inhabitants who ruled this part of Spain for an incredible 700 years until the late 15th century. With clever urban planning, a careful use of water and tactical planting of trees and shrubs towns like Ronda (and others including Priego de Cordoba, Alhaurin and Alhama de Granada) became genuine paradises to live in. The Arabic baths, which sit in their own atmospheric gardens, had three main rooms - hot, cold and tepid - and were fed with water from the river outside. The domed ceilings with their star-shaped air vents were part of a complex astronomical symbolism so popular in Moorish times. The baths were the main hammam and lay just outside the defensive walls by the main gate to the town from the direction of Granada. A clever virtual reality video, in both Spanish and English, brings
INTACT: The 13th century Arabic baths and (left) gargoyles being hung on a street chapel pillar the past back to life and is a mines of the Cerro de las Salimust-watch, before continuing nas, the hidden Arabic baths in your tour up the hill into the old the Llano de la Cruz valley, the town. remains of the Roman aqueduct By the time of the collapse of on a private estate south of the Arabic rule in 1485, Ronda had town and the recent discovery been receiving foreign visitors of a Roman grape-treading floor for around 1500 years. and bodega at Morosanto vineEstablished in 9BC, it is one of yard just outside Arriate. Andalucia’s oldest towns and Here, on a lovely wide open in Roman times was completely slope, archaeologists have exindependent with cavated a siza thriving wine able wine operindustry and even ation with pipes Arabic towns with its own cointhrough which age, fittingly with wine was transbecame a tendril of grapes ported to vats. on its flipside. The discovery genuine A bustling military – among a separadises to bastion known as ries of columns, Arunda - which statues and a live in means ‘surround21-metre Roman ed by mountains’ swimming pool - it had a sister and sauna - now settlement of Acinipo a few miles means that historians can link away in Ronda la Vieja. the production of wine in Ronda The nearby mountains between to 3AD. the two ancient settlements are You most definitely feel the pull literally swollen with ancient re- of the Romans (and later Moors) mains. just wandering around the old They include the pre-roman salt Casco Historico, with its wonder-
OP Puzzle solutions
Quick Crossword
Across: 8 Car wash, 9 Trots, 10 Atoms, 11 So there, 12 Shame, 14 Exhaust, 16 Dutiful, 18 Sidon, 20 Eardrum, 22 Syrup, 23 Lunge, 24 Trivial. Down: 1 Scraps, 2 Arrogant, 3 Mass, 4 Chaste, 5 Stitches, 6 Done, 7 Assent, 13 Enforced, 15 Underlie, 16 Dwells, 17 Limits, 19 Napalm, 21 Rand, 22 Soil.
SUDOKU
Pictures by Jon Clarke
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ful buildings, sleepy alleyways, doorways and arches. It is little wonder that so many writers have waxed lyrical about the place… Orson Welles moved here and had his ashes scattered at a nearby estate, while Austrian writer and poet Rilke described it as the ‘City of Dreams’. Ernest Hemingway part-based his novel For Whom the Bells Toll here and much of his work is a love letter to the town. The Dangerous Summer is largely about its Ordonez family bullfighting dynasty, while in Death in the Afternoon he wrote: “It is where you should go if you ever go to Spain on a honeymoon or ever bolt with anyone. The entire town and as far as you can see in any direction is a romantic backdrop.” It’s why Madonna has shot a music video here, why the film Carmen was filmed here and why Bill Gates, Adrian Brody, Ricky Gervais, Anne Hathaway and Doctor Who star Jodie Whittaker, plus many more celebrities, have recently taken holidays in Ronda.
FOOD,DRINK S & TRAVEL S
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November 5th - November 18th 2021
errania de Ronda
DETAIL: Ronda is filled with architectural delights around every corner
TRADITION: the bullring and (left) matadors have been star attractions for 300 years
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Pictures by Jon Clarke
Vol. 15
Culinary dynamos Gordon Ramsey and Jamie Oliver both told me how lucky I was to live there, while making TV shows in the area, and celebrity chef Jean Christophe Novelli once gave me an interview in which he told me he was moving to Ronda (he actually only stayed for a couple of months, after failing to find the right property to buy). There is something inextricably magical and tough about Ronda in equal measures. The extremes of weather (its spiky dry heat in summer and freezing winters thanks to its altitude of 800m) doesn’t suit everyone. Equally its inward-looking locals, so typical of conservative mountain types the world over, are not openly friendly and take a while to warm to you. But there is no denying its location and landscape. Take the view from the famous new bridge across the Tajo (or Ronda’s famous gorge). It goes on forever towards the Grazalema mountains on one side and the recently inaugurated national park of the Sierra de las Nieves in the other direction. In the old town the highlights include various museums (the one at the Palacio Mondragon particularly worth a visit) while keep your eyes peeled for the splendid Renaissance mansion known as the Palacio del Marques de Sal-
vatierra, which has a portal full of colonial images of Peruvian images (see top left). The neoclassical town hall is also an architectural gem, while the cathedral (once a mosque) is also well worth a poke around. The bull ring, which is still privately owned by the Ordonez family, is an excellent introduction to a pastime that goes back 300 years in Ronda. Built by the godfather of modern bullfighting Pedro Romero, who was painted by Francisco Goya and fought into his eighties, it is a one of Andalucia’s top visitor attractions and particularly worthwhile for its collection of Goya etchings, not to mention the perfect proportions of its soft sandstone arches. It was here that Michelle Obama had ended her tour at the next door restaurant of Escudero (now moved outside the town), where she had prawns as a starter, followed by ‘a fine fillet steak’, at least so says her waiter on the day, one Jose Manuel. Then finally (before taking the windy hour-long drive back to her hotel on the coast) the world’s then most powerful woman is said to have told the mayor that she would ‘definitely be back.’... and next time with her husband! I’ve not yet bumped into Barrack. But believe me, it really wouldn’t surprise me in Spain’s most evocative town.
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errania de Ronda
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November 2021
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MOORISH Ronda, about his hometown of JON CLARKE waxes lyricaly is only matched by its soaring where the sense of histor t) its food mountain scenery and (almos
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and 300 slippery spiT’S one hundred metres, bottom of the siege ralling steps, to reach the Moro. tunnel of the Casa del Rey during times of One of various escape routes reminder of Ronda’s siege, there is no better fascinating historical past. nearby Arabic baths, A must-visit, alongside the of the Moorish King was the 13th century House visit to AndaluObama’s Michelle a highlight of cia a decade ago. lady had insisted that America’s former first first-hand how the Arashe wanted to witness received messages and bic defenders took and
regular sieges in the collected water during the Kingdom of Granada dark days of the end of the just over 500 years ago. the days of Al-AnOn a cultural holiday to explore spent a day wandaughters her and she daluz, of a town that sits less dering around the gem the Costa del Sol. than an hour inland from Arabic gardens of Having visited the charming and the town’s iconic the Palacio Mondragon - she decided to underbullring - Spain’s oldest take some exercise. Continues on Page 2
DINE IN
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INTACT: The 13th century
TA K E A W AY
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Arabic baths and (left)
gargoyles being hung on
a street chapel pillar
DELIVERY
10 November 2021 WHERE TO EAT
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DINING HIGHLIGH From Page 9
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da errania de Ron
tel: 952 87 89 85
15 18 17 Away – Delivery: 951 Reservations – Take to 16:00 & 19:30 to 23:30 Thur to Monday: 12:30 y: 19:30 to 23:30 Tuesday: Closed Wednesda Ronda Calle Santa Cecilia 3, m www.pizzeriadavincironda.co
11 Calle Virgen de los Dolores España 29400 Ronda, Málaga, aronda@gmail.com ber 2021 Tropican
9
Novem
PEAK DINING WHERE TO EAT
A pair of Michelin top stars, Trip Advisor’s and Spanish restaurant an international line: Is up of talented chefs ucia’s Ronda now Andal top foodie escape, asks Jon Clarke
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ago that RonT was two decades for its Micheda became famousnt Tragabuches, lin-starred restaura local bannamed after its infamous
errania de Ron da
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He has been here though for well over decades, having first two Another endary El Bulli geniuscut his teeth with leg- rasateguithree-star Betrainee is he opened at HaciendaFerran Adria, when Jose Antonio junior at lucar la Mayor, near Benazuza, in San- Tropicana Sevilla, gaining two , which was stars in almost as recently voted Spain’s I first met Benito many years. top restaurant by Trip former three-Michthere, standing in for the Advisor. pretty much the elin maestro, where I ate One for Yes, ‘Number best Best Everyday meal of my life 25-course four-hour masterclass, for - a Dining in Spain’ and €99 - that literally just tops for all blew my mind. round good From there he moved quality, have lived since 2003, to Ronda, where I restaurantgreat local s. first working under Dani Garcia at Tragabuch es before leaving It is an amazing accoto open his own lade rant Tragatapas aless formal tapas restau- father,and he and his decade Jose ago. Antonio It coincidentally senior, better and wherekeeps getting better and amazinghave done an nan, runs the showhis wife, a local Ronde- this place job turning with military precision. into yet Another former other ‘must visit’ anjoint keeps improving, Tragabuches hand, who in Spain’s most evocaArgentine, who is is Martin Abramzon, an tive mountain also now a genuine town. denan local. Ron- While not an enormous His hip joint Kutral fan of al estate and is stylesits in Ronda’s industri- website,the global food personifie there is no d. Focusing on the doubt able cooked on a best cuts of meat avail- it right they are getting parilla-style BBQ, with Tropicana, quickly made a name he has which really for himself. is magical. But there is a lot The picks including a more besides, with top team father and son deliver a great burrata salad with UP AND UP: Martin dried tomatoes, amazing sun at Kutral, while (right) Argentinian em- range of carefully considered dishes Pedro Romero panadas and a mean focus- looking lemon curd pudding. ing very much on local ingredient out over the ancient It is no surprise s with lots of small Spanish legend to learn he trained with about twists. It is hard to fault anything da, with a mountain backdroppart of RonMartin Berasateg the has cooked for Gareth ui and location place, in particular its decor and an almost Biblical landscape behind and folding out in but if there is one front of you. Ronaldo among others. Bale and Cristiano it is Junior’s major amazing service stand out, The hard-working owners and advice girlfriend in English on the Jose Manuel and food and wine. Test him. and busy Rocio have created a charming He’s the best. eatery in possibly the hardest time in history. Another great new joint Jose really is Escudero, which knows his a definite must-visit is worked in the restaurant onions having the outskirts of town.on 20 years, firstly with Dani trade for nearly Garcia at Tragabuches, then later The views are among at his family restaurant where he personally the best in Spain, waited on the likes , Michelle Obama. of Yet another well-traine d chef is Javier Pimentel of hip El Almacen, who travelled the world working don and San Sebastianin Ireland, Lon, before opening his restaurant It’s a stylish spot, three years ago. with a great selection of music, including a huge pile of re-
STAR: Benito Gomez with Jon and some of Bardal’s inventions
than justifies it. a recent visit more (me included) I particularly love his passion for Ronyear with many critics ts - that are soon pull to thrive out of the believing he could actually win three da’s finest local ingredien y - and his who have begun hes. geograph and many, due to its support of Andaluthe unspeakable leading to the igno951 48 98 ng bernael mismanagement star and the buzz ashes of Tragabuc of this is Benito Go- off for his amazing joint. hola@ta dit. rly total18unswervi of its with the help of Analmacen The best example .com in general, particula www.tab starred Bar- stars is a genuine character, a real cian cuisine Guided to the top culinary superstar minious lossscene fizzling out with it. ernaela lmacen.com Gomez food whose two Michelin of a culi- mez,has been on the up and up since livewire, totally passionate aboutmenu, given he is a Catalan. the of the local dalucia’s current g of one somethin hisCl Los Remedios, dal tally Ronda became Dani Garcia, it became 7. Continues Page 10 29400 on for foodies the nary desert once again and you (most- opening five years ago, coincidenhes. and constantly changingin price since Ronda, Málaga villagTragabuc doubled of hip, must-visit eateries have nearby bustling the may kitchen a to on out which spawned in the former to the in 2019, but ly) had to head world over… and for over a year due got his second star that was as au- es to eat well. … in While shut it reopened earlier this he food scene in Ronda changed has c, that Now however, staff, pandemi thentic as it was exciting. to various former it made it, TragabuBut, as quickly as poor promotion and part, thanks ches sank due to
ZON BY MAR TIN ABRAM
NUMBER ONE: Dad and son at Tropicana and views at Escudero and (above) a
dish
Come and try amazing wines Ronda’s with a tapa TEL: 672 284 146
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November 2021
RONDA ALL STARS:
Javier at Porton,
Javier at El Almacen,
and Tomas and Carlos
at Pedro Romero
Traditional dishes
of Ronda
tel: 952 87 11 10 FRIENDLY: At Cerveceri a Bandolero in Plaza cisco and (below) San FranMonolo at cords, thanks to his Almocobar But you are here girlfriend, who is the Maitre. disappoint, after for the food and Javier doesn’t training at San three-Michelin cathedral Sebastian’s The dishes are amazing, of cuisine Akelarre. but they are have some excellent twists. No wondertasty and denans love it so the Ronmuch. For history lovers take a ride to the est restaurant Pedro town’s grandRomero sitting opposite the bullring, with and posters, as youwonderful bullfighting photos It is a classic family might expect. and in the hands restaurant, now 40 years old, whose children areof brothers Carlos and Tomas, and their 86-year-oldstarting to come into the fold This is the place for father still regularly pops in. classic dishes, de toro, which is the such as rabo leading sommelie best in town, while Tomas, a Soulful Almocabar, is well up on wines. sistently one of the r meanwhile, has been conwell over a decade,town’s finest places to eat for with a superb wine atmosphere personifie list and the square outdoors d, particularly if eating in It has long been one at summer time. local places to dine of the town’s most reliable slow of the hat to local and there is a major doffing In food. His wine list is also second ingredients and the the same square to none. concept of Cervecer in Barrio San Francisco ia Bandoler is, the friendliest place o, which really could be to eat in Andalucia It’s very much service . with a smile from two cousins, who these charming guests run backwards and forwards and plying you lent simple and local with fare, with a bent excelCarnes a la Brasa. towards For wine lovers you mustn’t miss which has over 100 wines from Entre Vinos, more than a dozen Ronda, with wines available by There are some excellent the glass. tapas and it’s a charming place to while Just up the hill is away a few hours. ly that ‘Always theSiempre Igual, which is exactsame’, it’s a bloody place to enjoy tapas excellent and some excellent with friends. Run wine by a friendly family always have some team, they experimen tal new dishes, worth a try and in a great location, the bullring. just up from For those up in the heart of Ronda, AUTHENTICITY: Siempre Porton – an institution authentic Igual 40 years - has wonderfulrun by Javier for the last old photos and a guarantee on the wall d feel good factor. Here, you will find ite Ronda tapa, the my favourquails egg with ham wonderful on toast. Venturing out of Ronda there are so many amazing country escapes for lunch Also in the centre or supper. ly-rated Da Vinci is the highActually giving restaurant. run for its moneyTropicana a visor, this Pizzeria on Trip Adrestauran t is normally packed a week and serves five days famously SELECTION: One of the best wine lists is at Entre Vinos Continues on Page 12
errania de Ronda
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PROPERTY
PRIME Minister Pedro Sanchez says that youngsters should be offered a monthly bonus towards rent to help them fly the nest. The €250 benefit would be handed out for up to two years, and forms part of a broader housing package. Whilst Spain has one of Europe's highest rates of property ownership, it also means fewer than 25% of domestic properties are rented. In Madrid and Barcelona, rents have risen exponentially while income has dropped by over 7% in the past year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. If the plans come to fruition, the bonus will be
Government plans restrictions on rent rises By Dilip Kuner
www.thinkSPAIN.com
SPAIN is to bring in rent controls to stop landlords of multiple properties hiking prices and hitting low income families as housing becomes more unaffordable. And owners of property portfolios where homes lay empty will also be slapped with extra tax to try and force them to rent rather than sit on them hoping for capital gains. The new housing bill due to take effect in the second half of 2022 is aimed at people or businesses that own 10 or more properties. Prime Minister Pedro
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Normality
Over in the UK, as the nation returns to a renewed sense of normality, many are making lifestyle changes that reflect their post-pandemic self. With travel restrictions easing, British citizens are thinking about their options, especially in relation to conducting business and work. Spain has long been one of the most popular destinations among Brits to escape to on holiday, and as we come into the cold and rainy British winter, Spain is looking all the more desirable as a pro-
spective new home. Known as ‘the gateway to Europe’, Spain is the ideal place to access other European markets and capitalise on the opportunities that are available. Although the complexities introduced by the Brexit rules may appear off-putting, with the right advice, it is entirely feasible to move one’s affairs over to Spain. This might entail investing in Spanish property, acquiring a Spanish business or moving one’s own operation. At Del Canto Chambers, we are seeing more and more private clients choosing Spain as their preferred destination, both to make their dream lifestyle changes and expand their financial portfolio, particularly as Spain is seeing a big slow down in COVID rates. The two hurdles – COVID and Brexit – can be worked around so that prospective Brit-
paid by Spain's regional authorities to under-35s who earn less than €23,725 a year. Reports from Eurostat show that Spaniards don’t leave the family home until an average age of 30, with the EU average being 26. Chronic unemployment figures point to the reason why young adults stay at home, with Spain’s unemployment rate among under-25’s being the highest in the EU.
Sanchez said: “It was urgent to combat the abusive rise in prices, to fight the growing inequality and degradation that was taking place.
Developers
“It’s a way out of the labyrinth where many people find themselves because they can’t pay for the house they want to buy or find a home to rent at reasonable prices.” The bill may also force de-
Moving to Spain is starting to get easier again as COVID rates lower and new rules become clearer
Malini Peñalva is a Spanish abogada at Del Canto Chambers (Ibiza). Visit the website for more information
FLY THE NEST
KEEPING CONTROL
MAKING THE MOVE T was recently announced that Spain’s COVID transmission rates have taken it into the ‘low-risk’ category for the first time since July 2020. The cases have fallen below 100 per 100,000 and life is starting to get back to normal. More rules are being relaxed as the pressure on the healthcare system begins to ease. Experts have said that the worst of the pandemic has finally reached an end and face masks are one of the only visible reminders. Many restrictions are easing, signalling a return to normality, including fans at sporting events and the reopening of nightclubs, albeit with COVID vaccination status checks on the doors.
November 5th November 18th 2021
ish expats are able to make an easy and successful transition. One of the most important elements to consider, however, is residency. There are, mainly, three visa options available for UK investors and business owners looking to relocate to Spain. The right visa depends on the activity one is looking to embark upon. The ‘Entrepreneur Visa’ is used to live in Spain over a two-year period, providing a project is set up which is in the interest of the Spanish economy. Secondly, there is the ‘Golden Visa’ for which either property purchase is required at over €500,000 – tax and expenses excluded – or a significant investment must be made in a Spanish company. This option, like the ‘Entrepreneur Visa’ rewards investment in the country. Not all UK nationals will necessarily want to invest in property or business in Spain, in which case the ‘Non-Lucrative Visa’ is a good option as it is only applicable to those whose financial situation is ‘sufficient’ enough to sustain themselves and any family members. Being aware of the options available and the vast array of opportunities to capitalise on is essential in the steps to truly making lifestyle changes and relocating to Spain. With more freedom, and the onset of the British winter, now is the time to make the move.
To make a no-obligation enquiry, please either call Del Canto Chambers now on: +44 2070 430648 or complete our online form on www.delcantochambers.com contact page, which after receipt we will come back to you within 24 hours. Our office in Ibiza is located on: Calle Illa Plana 7, 07800 Ibiza, Islas Baleares. Contact us directly on 971 761 171
velopers to set aside lowcost housing as part of their plans. In the past five years average rents in Spain have risen 40%, according to the fotocasa property website. The government will use
Fine time FINES and costs of up to €90,000 will apply to private landlords who illegally increase rents, under new regulations in Catalunya. Barcelona City Council approved a range of measures to strengthen the powers of tenants against money-grabbing landlords last September but no one had yet received a fine under the new laws - until now. Barcelona City Council has now fined a landlord for the first time for setting a rental price above what is deemed appropriate by the Catalunya Housing Agency's Average Price Index. The landlord was fined €9,000 for asking the tenants to pay €1,200 per month, when the previous contract was just €950 a month. He was also ordered to repay the tenants €250 for each month they were ‘overcharged’. The minimum fine is €9,000 and the maximum €90,000.
a reference price index to curb rent increases in areas where housing costs have risen the fastest and priced low-income families out.
Law
Whether the new legislation will have any effect is debatable. It will be up to regional governments to enforce any law, and the opposition PP, which controls several autonomous communities including Madrid, has said it will not do so.
Costa lot THE Balearic Islands are the most expensive region of Spain when it comes to second hand property and the gap is widening. Latest figures from website Idealista showed that the average price for a used home on the islands stands at €3,260m2 ahead of second placed Guipuzcua at €3,197m2 and Madrid where the cost is €2,917m2.
Increase
The islands’ figure was an increase of 1.7% in just one month, which was the biggest rise in Spain during October. Nationally, there was a slight rise of 0.2% last month, with used property an average €1.816m2. Compared to the previous quarter, national prices have fallen by 0.6%, while year-on-year house price inflation has hit 3.7%.
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FINAL WORDS
AN IBERIA Airbus landed at Barajas airport with a dead black vulture embedded in its nose after a bird strike.
Salty scoop ICE CREAM maker Massimo Pozzi has invented an ice cream with payoyo cheese and marine plankton, to be released on November 6 in Da Massimo ice cream parlour in Cadiz.
Old ways AN 89-year-old Spaniard has gone viral on twitter after her grandson posted that, every time she Google searches something she types por favor at the end.
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Jose Manuel Villarejo, a former police commissioner at the centre of the far reaching Casa Kitchen case told the court that secret agents ‘injected female hormones and testosterone blockers to control the monarch’s sex drive after it was categorised as a problem of state’. Juan Carlos, who abdicated in
A CAT that had succumbed to choking volcanic ash was brought back from the dead when a soldier performed ‘mouth to moggy’ resuscitation. The lucky feline on the island of La Palma, where there has been an ongoing eruption for weeks, had been engulfed by ash. But, using up one of its nine lives, the cat was pulled from
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voice in Spain
November 5th - November 18th 2021
ROYAL FLUSH
THE former King of Spain, Juan Carlos I, must be flushed with embarrassment after it was revealed he was injected with female hormones to control his rampant sex drive. This is the sensational claim made by an ex-police chief during a court hearing in Madrid.
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Randy royal ‘injected with hormones to quell libido’ June 2014 after a series of scandals, was a notorious womanizer. One recent book entitled Juan Carlos: The King of 5,000 lovers by Amadeo Martinez Ingles claimed the king, now 83, was a sex addict who had slept with more than 2,000 women between 1976 and 1994. One of his last affairs came
Kissing pussy a mound of cinders and brought back from the brink of death after a soldier with an emergency rescue unit used a tiny plastic filter to give it the kiss of life. The cat survived and was pictured recovering in a cage after the ordeal.
RED FACED: Sex mad king
to public attention when it emerged that the King had broken his hip while on an elephant hunting trip with a companion identified as Corinna zu Sayn-Wittgenstein (also known as Corinna Larsen). She has since spoken out about the affair and is attempting to sue the Royal and Spain’s secret service for harassment. The disgraced former monarch has been living in exile in Abu Dhabi since last year when an investigation was launched into his financial affairs amid allegations of money laundering and backhanders. Adultery in the Gulf state is a criminal offence punishable by up to three years in jail and deportation.
A GIGANTIC sunfish has been caught up in tuna fishing nets off the coast of Ceuta, one of Spain’s enclaves in north Africa. The fish, known as a pez luna in Spanish, measured 3.2 metres long and 2.9 metres wide and weighed in at a whopping two tonnes. Enrique Ostale, a marine biologist at the University of Sevilla was there to study the creature. He said he had only ever heard of sunfish this size from books but never thought he would see one so big. After being weighed and measured, the creature was released safely back into the wild.
Dog’s life IN a Spanish first a judge has awarded a couple joint custody of their dog. The Madrid court decreed that the estranged duo would care for their pooch called Panda on alternate months. The ruling recognised an equal bond between the dog and the two caregivers and said proof of ownership of the dog by one person over another wasn’t enough to override a bond between the dog and the other person in the couple.