BRITISH expats have sounded the alarm following the arrival of a sophisticated QR code ‘malware scam’ in Spain.
Cars have had paper slips placed on their windshields notifying owners they have received a parking fine.
One told the Olive Press: “These scammers are placing them on cars everywhere. People need to be careful and made aware.”
The slip reads in Spanish: “Vehicle infraction… you have parked badly.”
It then shows a QR code with writing next to it that says: “To pay the fine, scan this code.”
Beware, as the code will take you to a fake website that has been created solely to steal personal and banking data.
The Olive Press has since discovered the scam has gone nationwide, with slips so far being spotted on the Costa del Sol, Bilbao, Madrid, Tenerife and Valencia.
Apparently, when scanning it, the browser takes the user to a website where there is a ‘malware’ (similar to a virus) that is downloaded and infects the phone.
This virus, known as a ‘trojan’, collects personal data that is sent to the thieves for their use.
It is not known who is behind the operation but it is large in scale, spanning across the mainland and both the Canary and Balearic Islands.
KITCHEN NIGHTMARES
FROM the moment Steven Nadja received an evocative postcard of emblematic Arcos de la Frontera, he was enamoured.
A friend had invited him to visit the stunning inland town (above) for a holiday in 2019.
It was during the five-day break that he stumbled across the very same historic home - the Casa del Conde del Aguilaon which the postcard featured.
To his surprise, there was a sale sign on the door and thinking it was fate, the Yorkshireman jumped at the opportunity to snap up half of the ground floor of the listed 19th century property.
Seemingly a bargain at €135,000, he quickly began to turn it into his dream home.
It wasn’t long however, before the 67-year-old realised he had made a grave mistake when after a couple of days strangers began to appear in his
EXCLUSIVE
By Yzabelle Bostyn
kitchen.
Unbeknown to Nadja, a pharmaceutical boss, his kitchen was shared by two neighbours who had the right to enter at any time.
“It started one morning when a random stranger appeared with her dog,” he told the Olive Press. “When I asked her what the bloody hell she was doing, that’s how I learnt there were two doors that led directly from other homes into my kitchen,” he added.
“I obviously immediately queried it with my lawyer and it turned out she was right.”
Nadja, who currently lives in France, continued: “It was completely devastating: I bought it thinking it would be
the basis for a new life in Spain, but now I hardly come over because I don’t want to live under the threat of random people sitting down in my kitchen.”
The irony is that Nadja insists he specifically asked the seller, plus his lawyer, and even the town notary to check the deeds to ensure the kitchen was his.
British expat moves into his picture postcard home only to discover he has to share his kitchen with his neighbours
They all confirmed that while the kitchen was once shared with two other homes, ownership ‘would be transferred’ once the purchase was complete. The problem is both neighbours
have ‘access rights’ and keys to get in. Despite both of them having their own kitchens, neither of them have ceded their rights. And worse was still to come, when a few months later he discovered that one of the neighbours had stolen his coffee machine worth over €1,000. He also ‘lost’ all the plants and an irrigation system he had put in the communal courtyard. And then a neighbour illegally connected a pipe
to his water, siphoning off his supply.
“I was just recovering from a stroke when this all happened,” he continued.
“It’s taken a big toll on me both financially and mentally.
“I’ve spent about €20,000 on all the work, including paying for a neighbour’s house to be repainted and for new beams in the kitchen to save my neighbour’s house from collapsing,” added Nadja, from Huddersfield.
“It is my understanding that these costs should be shared but my lawyer is useless and can’t get the residents together.
“Ironically, my kids told me I would regret buying a house in Spain and unfortunately they were right.”
BLAME THE POSTIE: Steven (top) bought his ‘dream home’ after seeing it on a postcard from Cadiz
Christmas is coming
THE festive season has kicked off in Palma as the city turned on its Christmas lights last weekend.
Police drain
AT least a dozen officers have left the Muro police force this year, blaming ‘awful’ working conditions.
Rent crisis
THREE women have been arrested in Palma for beating up a couple and kicking them out of their shared home over €300.
Rising rents
THE average price to rent a 100 square metre home in Palma de Mallorca has now reached €1,990 a month – and in the rest of the Balearics it’s €2,229!
SECURITY cameras will be nearly doubled in Pollenca to try to catch dog poisoners and fly-tippers.
The Llenaire dog beach has suffered from several cases of animal poisoning in recent years.
Pollenca’a police councillor, Maria Jose Jimenez, said: “We are respond-
ing to an urgent demand by residents to reinforce security in what is an important area.” The current 18 cameras will be boosted by 15 at a cost of €86,000, which
will also pay for a new control centre. The councillor added that ‘illegal fly tipping on rural roads is out of control and cameras will be placed at strategic points’. Areas frequented by pickpockets will also be monitored plus more roadside cameras will be erected.
Camera boost Car death trial
DEFENCE lawyers for two men accused of throwing a German tourist to his death from a moving car in Playa de Palma have alleged the 20-year-old victim, Tim V, fell because he was drunk.
Court proceedings into the case, which occurred in 2022, started on Wednesday. Prosecutors are seeking 25 years in prison for murder as well as €86,464 in compensation for the victim’s parents and a further €24,709 for his sister.
Men accused of throwing German tourist to his death tell court he ‘fell out of car because he was drunk’
year for robbery and threats.
By Yzabelle Bostyn
The two Spaniards are currently in prison and claim they are innocent despite the prosecutor alleging they ‘knew that throwing the man onto the motorway would kill him.’
“We’re not here because a drunk German fell from a van. We’re here because the victim, just 100 metres from his hotel’s front door, was kidnapped by these men and put in a van,” said the family’s lawyer.
A representative of the family has claimed both of the accused had lengthy criminal records and one of them had been arrested six times that
NONE of the 40 women who died this year in Spain as a result of gender based violence were from the Balearic Islands.
The islands have not registered any deaths since 2022.
Every day there are 560 reports of gender based violence and 55 reports of sexual violence in Spain, 13 of which were rape.
The last mortal victim was just last Sunday, when a woman was shot to death by
He alleges ‘something happened’ inside the van and that the victim was ‘already dead’ when he was thrown out of the vehicle.
GRIM STATS
her husband in Estepa, Sevilla. Since 2003, 1,285 women have died as a result of gender based violence. Andalucia is the most populated region and has also registered the highest number of gender based murders, with 266. It is followed by Catalunya (211), Valencia (162) and Madrid (134).
The defence team criticised the lawyer’s claims, saying he had made up the two accusations.
“The victim died when he was hit by a motorised vehicle. No one attacked or killed him. All we know is he was very drunk,” they said.
They also claimed there was ‘no motive’ and called the investigation ‘terrible’.
The incident occurred at 10.30 pm on October 8, 2022 in a Citroen Berlingo driving along the Avenida Frai Joan Llabres, near the Playa de Palma.
It is alleged the victim was walking in the area in a ‘drunken state’ when he was picked up by the two men.
Just minutes later, on the Ma19 motorway towards Palma, the accused allegedly threw the victim out of the left side door of the van.
He was left on the ground but died just seconds later when he was run over by a Renault Clio.
A HARD-DRINKING couple glassed a patron and tried to steal the cash register after bar staff demanded they pay their tab.
The shocking scenes broke out in Palma last Friday after staff finally refused to serve the 38-year-old man and 40-yearold woman until they settled a bill they had run up over several days.
Horrified witnesses reported that the woman smashed a bottle on the head of a female customer who tried to intervene. The pair - since arrested - then reportedly attempted to make off with the bar till before smashing more bottles outside as they made their escape.
Tricky customers Fire probe
THE Guardia Civil has launched an investigation to determine if the Albufera fires were started with criminal intent.
It comes after director of Albufera Nature Park, Matias Rebassa, recognised there were striking similarities between the three fires.
“They all started in the northwest area of the park on days where there were strong westerly winds,” he said. “I don’t recall there ever being fires so close together that affected such a large area of vegetation.”
The last fire began on October 16 and burned 170 hectares.
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Rafa’s farewell
RAFAEL Nadal shed a tear as he gave an emotional speech following his last professional tennis match. He ended his illustrious career with a straight sets defeat to Dutchman Botic van de Zand-
schulp in Spain’s Davis Cup quarter-final tie in Malaga.
Speaking afterwards, Nadal saidL “What I’d like to be remembered for is as a good person from a small village in Mallorca.”
The tribute ceremony included video messages from Serena Williams, Andy Murray, Novak Djokovic, Conchita Martinez, and Roger Federer.
High tea on the high seas
Tea, glamour, and a brush with Brigitte Nielsen in Puerto Banus
WHEN the world’s most expensive afternoon tea sailed into Puerto Banus, I had to see what all the fuss was about.
Sandwiches served in diamond-encrusted handbags, champagne nestled in golden designer shoes, and an eye-watering price tag of €69,000 - this wasn’t just tea, it was the pinnacle of decadence.
Originally the opulent afternoon tea was crafted by multimedia artist Debbie Wingham, known as the Countess of Confection, and was a bespoke creation for a 21st birthday aboard the stunning Malex yacht.
By Yzabelle Bostyn
tured edible perfume bottles and jewellery trays. Everything was adorned with the latest fashions from a vintage Van Cleef & Arpels bracelet to ornate diamond studded detailing worth €34,000 alone. Add in the yacht charter, swag bags for 10 friends and all the food and drink, and the cuenta reaches the staggering total of €69,000.
A fusion of Willy Wonka, the Mad Hatter’s tea party and Marbella luxury, the afternoon tea fea-
ROCK ON
GLAMOUR:
Yet, for those without a yacht or a six-figure budget, Wingham has introduced a more accessible €89-per-head version, and I couldn’t resist sampling this slice of luxury.
As I stepped aboard the Malex,
Debbie (above) has brought diamond encrusted tea to Banus, with Brigitte and (inset) Yzabelle enjoying a taste
the setting was sheer glamour. The tea itself was an art form - handbags masqueraded as mugs, and milk jugs disguised as perfume bottles. Lemon meringues and apple pies, crafted with ingredients from Wingham’s own garden, added a rustic yet refined touch to the extravagance.
And then, there was Brigitte Nielsen. Sharing pastries and pleasantries with the statuesque star of Red Sonya felt surreal. She
was every bit the icon, exuding warmth and humour as she reminisced about her Hollywood days. Between the exquisite food, the artful presentation, and brushing shoulders with Nielsen, this wasn’t just afternoon tea - it was an unforgettable journey into a world of glamour, creativity, and indulgence.
Debbie Wingham hasn’t just redefined luxury; she’s made it tantalisingly accessible, one stunning bite at a time.
CANADIAN rocker Bryan Adams will bring his Roll With The Punches world tour to Valencia on January 19, 2025, at the Pabellon Fuente de San Luis.
This performance marks his first-ever concert in the city, promising an unforgettable night for fans.
With a career spanning four decades and over 100 million records sold, his live shows are renowned for their energy, heartfelt performances, and timeless sound.
The concert will showcase Adams’ classic hits, such as Summer of ‘69 and Heaven, alongside tracks from his new album, which inspired the tour's name.
Doors open at 9pm, with tickets ranging from €60 to €120.
Fans eager to attend should act quickly, as tickets are selling fast across multiple platforms.
Don’t worry if you can’t get a ticket – the Olive Press has four to give away to subscribers. See page 7 for more details on how to enter our competition.
NO GOING BACK
DESPERATE Housewives star Eva Longoria has doubled down on her decision to quit the USA for a new life split between Spain and Mexico following Donald Trump’s election win.
The Texas-born actress, 49, says she is ‘done’ with life in
what she describes as a ‘dystopian’ USA.
“I’m not going back,” she said, adding that even her Hollywood career - both in front of and behind the camera - has shifted.
Open from Monday to Sunday 13:30 – 17:00
(Last reservation at 15:30) 19:00 – 00:00 (Last booking at 22:30)
Longoria has been working outside the US more frequently, including filming her travel series Searching for Mexico and Searching for Spain.
She has a villa in Marbella and a residence in Mexico, where she spends much of her time with her Mexican husband Jose Baston and their 6-year-old son, Santiago.
FRESH public order fines set to be enforced in Palma have been revealed.
The new measures include a limit on guided tours, which will now be restricted to 20 people per walking group or four for small vehicles.
Guides will also have to carry an official licence and the use of speakers and megaphones will be banned.
Violating the rules will lead to fines of up to €750.
Drinking large amounts of alcohol in public areas will also carry fines of up to €1,500, especially if that area is frequented by young people.
Riding bikes, scooters and using roller skates will also be banned on pathways and users will need civil responsibility insurance
NEW ORDER
with a minimum coverage of €120,000.
If found without insurance, they could face a fine of up to €600.
They must also wear helmets, while electric scooter users must wear reflective vests.
Betting in a public setting is also set to be sanctioned, with fines of between €31,000€450,000.
Peeing, spitting and defecating in public spaces will be subject to fines of up to €750.
If someone defecates in a busy area or one with ‘influential’ buildings and monuments, this will be considered a ‘serious infraction’, leading to a sanction of up to €1,500.
Shut up shop
Expat bars targeted by Palma council over noise complaints
A PAIR of popular expat bars have found themselves in the sights of Palma council, with one closed down for three weeks and another facing a six week shut-down over excessive noise allegations. The Three Lions on the Paseo Maritimo will be shut for a period of three weeks after an ‘intense’ investigation by the government. And the neighnouring Shamrock - like the Three Lions a popular haunt of expats and tourists alike - is facing a six week ‘precautionary closure’, but remains open as the owners
By Yzabelle Bostyn
appeal.
“We’re taking control where there was chaos,” said Llorenc Bauza, Deputy Mayor and Councillor for Nature, Healthy Environments, Markets and Innovation.
In the face of confusion, the Shamrock has issued a
Left behind
FOOD and drinks are the most common items left in Mallorca holiday rentals, according to Holidu.
The booking platform revealed 34% of the accommodation owners surveyed said they find food and drink in their properties.
Next up was clothing items such as hats and shoes, which 28% said they’d seen left behind.
This category was followed by books and magazines at 14%, children’s toys at 7% and tech devices at 6%.
“Tourist flat owners have found everything, from sex toys to a Real Madrid branded potty,” said Holidu.
press release saying they are still open.
“We’ve always tried to be good neighbours and respect local rules. We’ll continue collaborating with local authorities so everyone can continue enjoying their favourite Irish pub in Palma,” it said.
“We know the rumours could be worrying, but we are here to tell you that Shamrock Palma will continue to be the heart of live music and unforgettable nights on the island.”
Between December 2023 and July 2024, Palma Council has imposed over a dozen proceedings against businesses for failing to comply with noise management laws.
The Three Lions refused to comment when contacted by the Olive Press.
The Shamrock has been contacted for comment.
DON’T LOOK UP!
A BRITISH expat has sounded the alarm after falling prey to ‘bird poo’ scammers in Spain.
Sue Oswick and her husband were enjoying a walk by the river in Fuengirola (Malaga)when they were unknowingly robbed of their credit cards.
They only realised they had been targeted by the classic con when the thief attempted to use their cards to do his shopping in Mercadona.
Sue explained: “We were both splattered with what we thought was bird crap.
“This ‘nice’ man, who had just sat down on the next bench to us, jumped up and offered to help us clean ourselves up.
He had water and tissues.
“He was helping to clean my husband's shirt and shorts and then said we could keep the water to finish off. He then left.”
Sue said that just 20 minutes later she received a message from her bank.
She added: “I got a text from the Bar-
TWO endangered loggerhead turtles have been found dead on the Formentera coast in just two weeks, with experts suspecting plastic ingestion.
The most recent was found on Wednesday along the Es Carnatge coast, between Cala en Baster and Es Calo, just a kilometre away from the first.
Neither showed signs of wounds from plastic or netting – which can cause sea turtles to drown – but the second had injuries to its abdomen.
Weighing up to 170kg and measuring over a metre in length, the loggerhead turtle is listed as vulnerable by the IUCN Red List. However, their population trends in the Mediterranean have improved enough to reclassify them as ‘Least Concern’ in the region.
claycard fraud team saying somebody had been trying to use our card in Mercadona.
“When my husband checked, he noticed that two of his cards were missing.”
Sue said the bank told her someone was also trying to use their cards in Benalmadena.
She said: “I think he may have had an accomplice who dropped the poo onto us from the ramp behind where we were sitting.
Wrong
“We thought he was a nice man for helping. How wrong we were, be careful in that park!”
Last month, a man was arrested for carrying out such scams on the Costa Blanca.
The master thief, who had a variety of disguises, would carry biscuits in
THE number of migrants who have arrived in the Balearics this year has almost tripled the figure from the same period in 2023. Authorities intercepted 172 migrants across Mallorca’s southern coasts and Formentera early on Wednesday morning, adding to the six boats carrying 128 individuals the previous day. It pushes the total for 2024 to 5,099 arrivals on 305 boats, up from 1,821 in 101 vessels during the same period last year – a 180% rise. With still over a month left in 2024, the figures have already exceeded last year’s total of 2,278 undocumented immigrants by 124%.
Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska stressed that the figure could have been even higher – he pointed to efforts to dismantle human trafficking networks that have prevented 40% of departures.
VICTIMS: Sue Oswick and husband
his bum bag, which he would chew up into a mush before throwing the mixture at his victims. He would then play the part of a helpful passerby while picking their pockets.
UNLUCKY: Shamrock is appealing a closure order
Illegal construction
WORK on a new bullring and two associated buildings in Canet de Esporles could be halted because there are no licences for the project.
The Mallorca government is investigating the illegal work being carried out by the Madrid-based Valears Investment Group.
Residents complained about excessive noise and movement of machinery on the LoftOtel agrotourism site in Canet off the MA-1120 road.
An Esporles council inspector demanded to see building licences but none were produced.
The authority has submitted a report to the regional government - asking for a rapid intervention to stop the work.
Esporles council has informed the land owners that they are obliged to suspend construction until they get the permits.
FOUR children were among six killed when a speeding car overturned and crashed into a wall in Menorca a little before 8pm on Saturday evening. Inside the vehicle were two Spanish families travelling together, the adults aged 48 and 52.
The four children, three being children of the man and the fourth from the woman, were aged nine, nine 11, and 15.
Reports from the scene indicated that none of the occupants were wearing seatbelts.
Police are investigating to determine why the car veered off the road near a roundabout in Mao, close to the airport.
Traffic tragedy Squat nightmare
AN elderly couple have had their retirement ‘ruined’ because a British woman has been squatting in their Mallorca flat for over a year and not paid €15,000 in rent and bills.
Maria Elena Collado, 70, and Jose Maria Perez, 77, own the seafront property situated in a large apartment block in the El Toro area of Calvia.
They say they bought the flat to earn rental income to top up their self-employed pension which would have allowed
CALVIA Vila residents have voted overwhelmingly against a child migrant reception centre opening up in their area amid fears of rising crime from a tiny number of girls.
Female teenagers would be housed at the old Ses Monges convent, which is being purchased by Calvia City Council.
The Calvia Vila association of friends and residents met on Wednesday at the Sa Societat theatre.
Some 128 attendees voted against the reception centre plans, with 20 in favour and 12 abstentions.
The government proposal is to house just
By Alex Trelinski
them a more comfortable retirement including the chance to travel.
The British woman lives in the three-bedroom El Toro home with her two children and has been there for two years.
Initially there were no problems as she reportedly lived with an Irish man, but since he left over a year ago, she stopped paying the €900 per
TEEN FEARS
eight girls aged between 12 and 17 years in the convent.
Resident group president, Pere Torrens, said: “The number, however, is not clear, because we have already been warned that there is room for up to 16 people.”
Other Calvia Vila residents have slammed the negative attitude and started a petition, saying that opposition ‘seems to us unsupportive, alarmist and lacking any humanitarian feeling towards people in a clearly vulnerable situation’.
month rent.
Maria Elena Collado, said: “She owes us €15,000 and on top of that, we have to pay her water, garbage, community fees, and IBI property tax,”
When the non-payments started, the Spanish couple hired a lawyer after being told by Calvia Council that the woman and the children cannot be evicted because they are a ‘vulnerable family’.
Jose Maria Perez said: “They have stolen our flat. We have worked very hard all our lives to be able to enjoy retirement, but since we cannot collect the rent and we have to pay all the expenses, we cannot enjoy our retirement.”
“It is very unfair, who are the
vulnerable ones?” the couple asked.
“We even have to pay a lawyer, while she has one for free because it is a public defender,”
Jose Maria added.
He said the situation has got so bad that his partner is finding things difficult to take and is seeing a psychiatrist.
“The toughest thing is that the squatter laughs at us and we can’t approach her as our lawyer has told us not to do so or we could have legal problems,” said Jose Maria.
The couple has been told by their lawyer that they won’t get their flat back and will have to live off their basic savings without the retirement nest egg that they deserved.
Vanlifers beware
MOTORHOMES are facing a crackdown in Mallorca after the Palma city hall voted to fine those who live in their campervans.
The authorities have announced hefty fines of up to €1,500 for those caught sleeping in them away from designated areas.
Motorhomes will be banned from camping within the city, using extending awnings or making noise under a new civic ordinance expected to pass in December.
Mayor Jaime Martínez said: "Vehicles are for transportation, not living. In Palma, people live in homes."
The regulation also restricts parking for campervans to regular parking zones, where they cannot stay for more than 10 consecutive days - a rule already applied to ordinary vehicles.
Fine
As well as the fine, rulebreakers could have their van removed –although police are barred from entering the vehicle except in rare circumstances.
The move targets informal campervan settlements like those in Son Gual and Son Hugo, which have sparked complaints from residents, which some see as encroaching on local neighbourhoods.
But critics argue that the regulations unfairly target individuals facing tough economic times.
NO RENT: The apartment block in the El Toro area of Calvia
A
Voted top expat paper in Spain
OPINION
Scammers’ paradise
OUR edition this week has laid bare the importance of keeping your wits about you in Spain, a country which remains a hotbed for scammers and charlatans.
While enjoying your holiday or new life of sun, sea and sangria, it’s easy to be lulled into a false sense of security.
But you must remain on the lookout for the countless con artists who are looking to take advantage.
They are, unfortunately, operating at all levels here, ranging from classic pickpocket tricksters to shady high-flying lawyers.
Our front page story of Steven Nadja is a classic case (Kitchen Nightmares, p1).
The Brit bought a home in Andalucia without being warned that he would be forced to share his kitchen with his neighbours.
Any decent lawyer would have pored over the purchase contract and prevented him from signing until it was cleared up.
More than likely, he simply didn’t care as he looked out for his next commission.
It’s why we launched a campaign called ‘Lawyers in the Dock’ a decade ago and tragically the need for it is still there.
When carrying out any major deal or purchase in Spain, it is paramount that you hire a respected lawyer with a solid reputation. And on top of that, double check their work.
Ask Brits in your area who have already made the move for advice, or consult community pages on Facebook such as Citizens Advice in Spain.
Do NOT hire the cheapest person available, as it will likely cost you far more in the long run.
You must also be aware of the everyday street scams that seem to be on the uptick.
Poor Sue Oswick and her husband were targeted by the vile ‘bird poo’ con, for example (Don’t Look Up! p4).
The scam consists of a pickpocket launching chewed up food on their mark before offering to clean it up, telling them it must be bird excrement - all the while taking advantage of the chaos to pick their pockets. Eyes peeled at all times, dear readers!
PUBLISHER / EDITOR
Jon Clarke, jon@theolivepress.es
Dilip Kuner dilip@theolivepress.es
Walter Finch walter@theolivepress.es
Yzabelle Bostyn yzabelle@theolivepress.es
Ben Pawlowski ben@theolivepress.es
Laurence Dollimore laurence@theolivepress.es
Alex Trelinski alex@theolivepress.es
Simon Hunter simon@theolivepress.es
Cole Sinanian cole@theolivepress.es
‘IT WILL HAPPEN AGAIN’
EXPERTS have warned another Valencia style disaster could strike Spain next year if urgent action is not taken. Antonio Gallegos, flooding expert at the University of Malaga (UMA) claimed the Andalucian city was ‘lucky this time around’ but could soon face a catastrophic natural disaster.
The geography professor told the Olive Press: “The intense rain in Valencia was extraordinary but it’s happening more and more.
“Luckily in Malaga we haven’t had such
It is only a matter of time before the lethal floods that struck Valencia are repeated in Malaga and other regions, a flooding expert has warned the Olive Press
By Yzabelle Bostyn
“We haven’t implemented measures like creating parks on floodplains designed to absorb water so we’re already late, these things have been urgent for years.
“Now that the tragedy in Valencia has happened, it has made us realise we need to act. Hopefully politicians will be proactive, it’s in their hands now.”
Malaga is not the only place in Spain that
storms more common and intense.”
This puts the Balearics, Murcia, Costa Brava and many other parts of Mediterranean Spain at high risk.
To avoid the devastation seen in Valencia, Gallegos says prevention and better disaster management are crucial.
“For many professionals, it never occurred to us that over 200 people could die in Spain in the 21st century as a result of a natural disaster. But in the case of Valencia, the management was very bad,” he said.
“Climate change caused the storm, but the lack of prevention and management is responsible for the consequences.”
Luckily, there are many things we can do to better face such challenges in the future, starting with a deep study of the failures in
“The fact they didn’t give the warning until
“ “
We need to educate. If we had done that in Valencia it wouldn’t have panned out the way it did
‘Let’s get that pint!’Expat dad of pop star Danny Jones hopes to build bridge with the I’m
DANNY Jones’s ‘estranged’ British expat father has lifted the lid on their decades-long rift for the very first time, revealing how he hasn’t sat down with the I’m A Celeb star in 18 years.
In an exclusive interview with the Olive Press, Alan Jones, 72, suggested a bitter divorce from Danny’s mother Kathy tarnished his relationship with his son, who he describes as a ‘lovely lad’ with a ‘heart of gold’.
He said they had an ‘excellent’ bond throughout the McFly gui tarist’s childhood in Bolton, and that he had ‘dedicated his life’ to helping kick-start his successful music career.
The radio DJ, who now lives in Benidorm with his cur rent wife Sharon, has yet to meet his six-year-old grand son Cooper, who Danny shares with his wife and former Miss England Geor gia Horsley - but he is holding out hope that ‘one day it will happen’ and that he’ll ‘finally get that pint with his son’.
Danny, 38, has never visited his father in Spain, where he moved to in 2016, and Alan was not present at his daughter Vicky’s wedding last year.
Speaking from his radio station in L’Alfas del Pi, Alan explained how his marriage to Kathy went south
By Laurence Dollimore
when Danny and Vicky left home in the early 2000s.
Danny was in London after signing a record label alongside Tom Fletcher to form the band McFly - which would go on to sell more than 10 million records worldwide.
“It should have been a time where the marriage got a bit closer, but it didn’t,’ he said.
‘I can’t explain why but it didn’t, so we had two very bad years… and then I met Sharon and that was it.”
Danny was 19 when Alan walked out on the family in 2005, and has previously revealed how he sought therapy for anxiety over the incident.
Alan met his now-wife as friends in 2004, a year before he left Danny, Kathy and Vicky.
Alan and Sharon got married in 2007 and in 2016, they moved to the picturesque village of Polop, just a 10-minute drive from Benidorm.
The La Alberca resort where they live is mostly made up of two-bedroom, sand-coloured chalets worth up to €250,000,
boasting mountain views and a communal swimming pool.
Alan is a DJ and presents a three-hour show on Radio Fresh between 2pm and 5pm, Monday to Friday.
He presents the programme from a humble radio shack situated on a camping site filled with holidaying Brits and Germans, after zipping down from the mountain on his moped.
Alan said it had been his ‘lifelong ambition’ to move to Spain.
He insisted he has always been open to repairing his relationship with Danny, saying it had been ‘excellent’ throughout his childhood as he gushed about his talents.
“We had a superb bond, I was either taking him to guitar lessons or football,” he said.
“He was absolutely joined at the hip with his guitar, his uncle was a musician and I think a lot of influence came from him.
“When he was 10 or 11, we used to take him to local pubs and he would get up and sing and play his guitar, which was great for character building.”
Alan said he has never met his grandson Cooper but would love to.
“I always keep my fingers crossed that one day it will happen, but Danny is in charge of that, not me.
“I can’t just fly back to England and say ‘Hi, I’m here’, that’s too much for him. I think one
Olive Press editor Jon Clarke takes readers on a personal first hand tour of the magical town of Ronda, which he has called home for two decades
@aguas_deronda
errania de onda R
A TRIP BACK IN TIME
them through 2000 years of history.
In fact, millions of years, as a series of easy-to-listen audio guides explain how this remarkable gorge was formed, along with its waterfalls and deep, swimmable splash pools.
More intriguing is how a string of 13 flour mills were somehow installed along its edge, making use of the original Arabic acequia watercourse cut in the 9th or 10th century.
It is also encouraging to learn how the team of architects carefully ensured that the acequia wasn’t touched - and the bridge stood up, particularly after an earlier attempt collapsed killing 50 people.
For a small fee you are handed a hard hat and pointed down the walkway, sustainably made from local Ronda stone and rocks.
Eventually the path will continue all the way to the wonderful Arabic baths that are a must for any visitor to easily Spain’s most evocative mountain town.
For now you’ll have
Arabic baths and Hemingway working in Ronda and (top) the Cathedral which was once a mosque. (Below right) A local woman takes the air from her balcony
to backtrack and cross over to the eastern side of the Casco Histórico where you should head first towards the Moorish baths.
Most likely, if you’re lucky you’ll find classical guitarist Eugen strumming away (perhaps a classic from Bizet’s Carmen that was filmed in the town - or a flamenco copla) in Plaza Maria Auxiliadora. En route you must, however, take in the Casa del Rey Moro and its remarkable La Mina steps that also drop right down to the Guadalquevin river below.
This was an important visit for Michelle Obama and her daughters a few years back and gives you the best possible understanding of the steep walls of the Tajo.
These 300 slippery spiraling steps were effectively a siege tunnel, used as an escape route during times of siege, as well as to fetch water.
The tunnel was carved out by Christian slaves during the reign of Ronda’s Moorish king, Abomelik (above) and he definitely had a penchant for gardens, as his palace grounds are certainly reminiscent of the Alhambra, albeit on a far smaller scale.
Just below, you you’ll hit the Old Bridge (Puente Viejo built in 1616) and finally the so-called ‘Roman bridge’, which was actually built by the Moors in the 13th century.
Next to this are the wonderful Moorish baths, the best preserved in Spain and built during the times of Al Andaluz, when it was an absolute essential pitstop for ablutions after arriving in Ronda after a long journey.
It would have been a wonderful time to be a traveller arriving in Ronda from say Cordoba or Granada, after at least a day striding through the impressive nearby hills.
Spanish and English, brings the past back to life and is a must-watch, before continuing your tour up the hill into the old town.
Front row seat to history
By the time of the collapse of the Moorish empire, Ronda had been entertaining foreign visitors for around 1500 years.
One of Spain’s oldest towns, in Roman times it was a truly bustling place, boasting its own wine industry and even its own mint, fittingly its coins bearing a tendril of grapes.
Established in 9BC as a military bastion, it was given the name Arunda meaning ‘surrounded by mountains’ and it is easy to see why.
Take a look at any of the monuments dotted around the town and chances are you will see dozens of faraway peaks that literally ring the town, from the recently inaugurated National Park of Sierra de las Nieves on one side to the Parque Natural of Grazalema on the other.
are now able to definitively link the production of wine in Ronda to 3AD. No surprise then, that so many writers and historical figures have waxed lyrical about Ronda… Austrian writer Rilke dubbed it the ‘City of Dreams’, while Orson Welles relocated to Ronda and immersed himself in bullfighting, later having his ashes scattered at a nearby estate.
Spain’s most famous writer Miguel de Cervantes of Don Quixote fame lived in the town (and you’ll find a plaque if you look carefully), while Ernest Hemingway’s tome, The Dangerous Summer, is largely about Ronda’s bullfighting dynasty, the Ordonez family.
Later he wrote of Ronda in Death in the Afternoon: “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 is why Carmen the movie was filmed here and why Madonna insisted she had to film a video around its cobbled streets.
The 11th century Banos Arabes offer the best explanation of the sophistication of the former Moorish inhabitants, who ruled for an incredible 700 years until the late 15th century (it’s a little-known fact that Ronda only fell to the Christians in 1485, seven years before Granada finally fell in 1492).
A superb demonstration of urban planning, the baths sit in atmospheric gardens and have three rooms - hot, cold and tepid - each fed with water from the river outside.
The domed ceilings with their starshaped 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
Ronda is a true front row seat in history with these nearby mountains literally swollen with ancient remains.
They include the Roman sister settlement of Acinipo with its wonderful amphitheatre, as well as the ancient salt mines of the Cerro de las Salinas, near Arriate, and the historic wine storage village of Setenil de las Bodegas.
As far as you can see in any direction is a romantic backdrop
Then you’ve got the remains of a Roman aqueduct running south of the town, the hidden Arabic baths in the Llano de la Cruz valley, and the recent discovery of a Roman grape-treading floor for winemaking nearby.
Uncovered at a vineyard, called Morosanto, archaeologists have excavated
a sizable 2,000year old wine operation with pipes through which wine was transported to vats.
The remarkable find, alongside a 21-metre Roman swimming pool and sauna, means historians
This year meanwhile, we had Helena Bonham Carter, Iain Glen and Martin Freeman wandering the town as they filmed Agatha Christie classic Seven Dials for Netflix. It’s also why Adrian Brody, Anne Hathaway, Bill Gates, Ricky Gervais and Jodie Whittaker have all had recent holidays in the town, while celebrity chefs Jamie Oliver and Gordon Ramsey dedicated episodes of their TV shows to Ronda. Celebrity chefs have such a pull to the town that handsome whiz in the kitchen Jean Christophe Novelli once told me he was moving to Ronda, but after two months was unable to find the right property to buy (he was probably more likely shacking up with a mistress).
And then there is Benito Gomez, a classic blow-in from Catalunya, who has done so well in the town that he now boasts two Michelin stars (maybe three by the time you read this) with his amazing restaurant Bardal and a second Tragata.
But, take my word as a local - who chose this mountain hideout over the bright lights of Marbella or Malaga some two decades ago - while it is magical in so many ways, Ronda is also an incredibly tough place to settle.
The extremes of weather (its spiky dry heat in summer and freezing winters
ATMOSPHERIC: The perfectly preserved
From front page
Photos by Jon Clarke
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 landscape, history and architecture.
Few places in Spain have such a wonderful mix of buildings, from the Moorish Palacio Mondragon to the neoclassical town hall and from the Arabic baths to the splendid Renaissance mansion the Palacio del Marques de Salvatierra.
And don’t forget the cathedral (once a mosque) as well as the oldest bullring in the country.
Still owned by the Ordonez family, with two fitting statues to Antonio and Cayetano outside, is an excellent introduction to a pastime that goes back 300 years in Ronda.
Built by the godfather of bullfighting Pedro Romero, who fought well into his 80s and was painted by Francisco Goya, it is worthwhile to visit for its collection of Goya etchings alone.
Pedro Romero killed over 5,000 bulls and passed his skills down the line to the Ordonez family who have, so far, provided Spain with three generations of bullfighters… the youngest Cayetano,
becoming a handsome Armani model.
Sipping a caña or coffee in the heart of town it’s not difficult to imagine Hemingway scribbling in the shadows of a backstreet cafe.
His legacy looms large all around the town and he (like Orson Welles whose ashes are scattered at a nearby farm owned by the Ordonez family) has a small street named after him behind the Parador hotel. He celebrated his final birthday in Ronda in 1960 and was fittingly, further immortalised with a statue beside the bullring in 2015.
It is here, or nearby on the bridge, at Semana Santa (Easter), that you will find some of the most evocative, moving scenes, be you religious or not, like me. The epiphany that cemented my own sense of belonging in the City of Dreams (above left) came just last year, when at nearly 1am when I ventured out of a nearby wine bar to take a picture of the bridge with a nearly full moon above it.
I thought the classic Easter parades had long ended, but atop the bridge I found two lines of drummers made up of soldiers from Ronda’s crack Spanish Legion brigade (coincidentally, Spain’s fin-
TRADITION AND FAMOUS FACES: Spain’s Foreign Legion carries Jesus in an Easter parade (left), while a little known path leads down past the walls. (Inset below) Recent visitors include Gervais, Hathaway, Whittaker, Obama, Bonham Carter and Freeman
est shock troops, similar to the Paras).
Dressed in short sleeves despite the cold northerly breeze, they stood rigid and to attention, staring straight ahead and tapping their drums quietly, rhythmically in perfect unison.
It was hypnotic and insistent and, incredibly, I found myself almost alone beside just a handful of spectators on the bridge.
After what was easily 15 minutes, out of a side street suddenly loomed a statue of Mary on a float, carried by two dozen other legionnaires. Just behind was another group carrying Jesus lying
THE PHILIPPE EFFECT
The giant red bull’s head looming over the Serrania de Ronda is a Starck masterpiece, writes Jon Clarke
IT cost well over 20 million and will hopefully create something of a ‘Guggenheim
Effect’ for Ronda.
That is Philippe Starck’s amazing new organic olive mill recently finished near the town.
A towering six-storey 40-metre giant made of concrete and steel it peers out over the beautiful Serrania like a beacon.
Built over four years, La Almazara - shaped in the head of a Picasso-style bull - is the largest and easily the most original in Europe.
Created by legendary designer Starck, it’s a fully functioning mill, as well as museum and restaurant, that currently makes extra virgin organic olive oil out of thousands of trees on its surrounding 26 hectare estate.
The brainchild of the French creator - known for designing a string of hotels, yachts and chairs - it came about after he met a local landowner in New York many decades ago.
The aristocrat, Pedro ‘Perico’ Gomez de Baeza, was already behind
the high quality local La Organic olive brand, alongside businessman Santiago Muguiro, now CEO of the entire project.
Having already been behind the amazing Frank Gehry-designed hotel at the bodega Marques de Riscal, in Rioja, they thought they might do the same in Ronda.
First came a cool olive can designed by Starck in 2000, who is an investor, and already lives between Sintra in Portugal and Formentera in the Balearics, plus ‘many other homes’.
Then came the project for the hillside, between Ronda and Arriate, which also has a five-room rental villa and conference facilities.
While it took years for the sleepy town hall to award a licence, it finally started to go up in 2020 and is now finally open for visitors for €25 a head, including an olive oil tasting with bread.
The visit takes punters on a fabulous windy tour of the 9,500-tree estate and its fruit orchards, organic vegetable garden and vineyard. They will also enjoy the fascinating museum, which celebrates the introduction of olive oil into the Andalucia region in the days of the Phoenicians.
As well as being able to watch the olives actually being introduced into the machinery below, tourists learn about other important local Ronda characters, including Pedro Romero and Abbas Ibn Firnas, who is considered one of the inventors of flying.
A fully-fledged restaurant, with chairs and tables all designed by Starck, is set to open imminently.
prone on his back.
The mood was incredibly sombre and he was carried past, legs first facing upwards to the stars, the moon shining brightly from behind a convent. I looked up and, as a trumpet started to play, I felt a sense of permanence. The sort that (might just) carry one to the heavens. I knew I was in Ronda for good.
AMAZING: The new mill is the most original in Europeinside and out
STUNNING: The view from the terrace and (right) Philippe Starck
GO into any wine shop in Ronda, or any of its restaurants, and you will be amazed at how many local wines are now being produced.
In just three decades, around two dozen vineyards have launched and collectively there must be around 100 different wines on offer from the nearby hills.
Ernest Hemingway would most certainly have approved.
An infamous drinker, he once wrote: “Wine is a grand thing. It makes you forget all the bad”.
So the fabled writer would be amazed to discover that Ronda has so many wine producers and even, today, has its own appellation.
The DO Sierras de Malaga, Serrania de Ronda was confirmed in 2004 to represent the local vineyards, which grow dozens of grape varieties, some indigenous, including Melonera, Rome and Tinto Velasco.
There is also a well signposted wine route, which aficionados can follow around the local valleys and the Milamores Centro Integral de Vino helps to coordinate them, while also offering a museum on the area’s history.
Vintage vats
It was the Romans who first planted vines in the Serrania de Ronda.
An advanced race, they realised the soil and the climate were perfect for winemaking.
To best understand this, take a ride up to Ronda la Vieja, the next valley over to the west.
GRAPE EXPECTATIONS
The growing winemaking prowess of Ronda can be traced back to its Roman coins which featured grape tendrils, writes Jon Clarke
It is here at a height of 1000 metres that you’ll find the ancient Roman settlement of Acinipo, which once spread around its still largely intact amphitheatre.
All the land - allegedly hundreds of hectares - was dedicated to grape growing and the area had soon started producing wine good enough to export back to Rome, with Ronda becoming known back at Imperial HQ as the ‘city of wine’.
So popular did it become back in Italy that the local legionnaires were even allowed to mint their own coinage, appropriately with the tendrils of a vine and grapes on one side.
The neighbouring village of Setenil de las Bodegas (a clue is in the name) handily provided its famous caves as cellars for the maturing wine.
And once they were approaching the right age and/or strength they were dispatched on the week-long journey to Rome, as was the local olive oil in amphoras.
Further proof of the Romans making wine in the area can be found on the south-east facing slopes near Arriate.
Here, at Bodega Morosanto, archaeologists have excavated a sizable wine operation with pipes through which wine was transported to vats.
The discovery – among columns, stat-
ues and a 21-metre Roman pool - now means that historians can definitively link the production of wine in Ronda in 3AD.
The nearby rolling hills between Arriate, Ronda and
Acinipo were largely under vine and today the numbers are rising up again.
This includes the two dozen hectares planted by Ramos-Paul at Bodega El Chantre, and the largest local producer Chinchilla that has brought up various plots scattered around the area and is now said to have planted over 30 hectares.
Proof of the Romans making wine in the area can be found near Arriate
The rebirth of the area’s winegrowing prowess started, ironically, thanks to expats.
It was German aristocrat Principe Alfonso Hohenlohe who first planted vines in the area in the 1980s, having sold his shares in the Marbella Club hotel, which he built in the 1950s.
Looking for another challenge he planted 80,000 French vines at Cortijo de la Monjas, which nestled in a natural valley,
and sought help from various winemaking pals, including Marqués de Griñon and Michel Rolland. The wines however were rather disappointing until a skilled local oenologist Juan María Vetas, who had done his time in Bordeaux, was drafted in. Improvements led to the vineyard being sold to an international conglomerate with Juan Maria heading to his own smallholding just outside Arriate, where today he makes his highly rated Vetas.
Another key trailblazer was Friedrich Schatz, a German from Baden-Württemberg, the best wine-producing area of Germany.
He moved to Ronda nearly four decades ago with his parents to set up a vineyard on the road to Acinipo. Today his half a dozen wines frequently win international awards.
Other German-speaking vintners have followed suit.
Martin Kieninger from Austria and Theodor Conrad from Switzerland arrived two decades ago, while recently an American winemaker bowled up in the Ronda La Vieja area.
The majority of bodegas are small family-run wineries, but they can still be visited by appointment in the main, some offering far more than others. A top pick is that of Martin Kieninger, an architect by trade, who not only planted an incredible vineyard in stunning countryside near Ronda, but also built his own home and bodega. To visit call Martin on +34 630 161 156 or visit www.bodegakieninger.com
MATURING: A vineyard in Ronda la Vieja, with Acinipo in the distance
people were already drowning is something that needs to be studied because it is responsible for a large number of deaths,” said the environmental expert.
“We also need to re-do maps and statistics of flood risk areas as they do not use contemporary data and only consider the flow of ‘clean water’, which does not overwhelm systems as quickly as the muddy, debris filled deluge that battered Valencia.”
Joaquin Martinez-Campillo Garcia, delegate of the Spanish
College of Geologists in Valencia, agrees: “I hope Valencia is a turning point, but the cost has been too high. We need to take note, listen to the ecosystem and remember we are capable of preventing these situations.”
“A good example is Ontinyent in the Valencian Community. They had very serious flooding and are modifying their river limits to make sure the water does not pick up such dangerous speeds.”
Another key action is educating flood zone residents how to react when warnings are issued.
“We need to educate; If we had done that in Valencia it wouldn’t have panned out the way it did. People kept going about their daily lives because they didn’t know otherwise. When you get a red alert, don’t think about your job or deadlines, think about saving yourself and your loved ones.”
Climate scientist Dr Anabela Bonada, works tirelessly on such education courses in her native Canada.
She is the Managing Director of the Intact Centre on Climate Adaptation, which develops guidelines to mitigate extreme weather risk.
“A lot of people think that because they don’t live near water that flooding can’t affect them, but with climate change that is changing so
it’s very important to be aware,” she advised.
“There are some simple things you can do to mitigate your risk such as cleaning out your gutters, ensuring your downspout is directed away from the home or adding a rain garden
day, you know, I always hope it will happen.”
He added: “I would say the last time I shook Danny’s hand was about 18 years ago.”
Asked if that was tough for him, Alan said: “Oh yeah, absolutely. I mean, I really did dedicate my life to… I wouldn’t say getting him to where he is today, but to his start, and his mum did too, she did a lot.”
He said he ‘absolutely’ wishes he was closer to Danny, adding: “At the end of the day I can sleep at night, I know he’s okay, he’s safe…
“But hopefully one day we’ll have that pint, sooner rather than later, time’s getting on.”
Alan said he will ‘definitely’ reach out to Danny when he leaves the jungle to congratulate him ‘whatever happens’.
Asked if he had a message for his son he said: “Yes… just keep being yourself, keep doing what you’re doing.
‘He’s an amazing guy and I have followed what he’s been doing since I left home and I’ve supported him and stuck up for him if anyone said a bad word. “No matter what the outcome, I will tell him ‘you’ve come across as a great guy’, which he is, he’s a lovely lad with a heart of gold.”
to absorb excess water.”
If you live in a flat, as many people do in urban Spain, she advises keeping an emergency grab bag filled with supplies to sustain you for at least 72 hours such as water, food, a torch and medicine.
She also recommends knowing where your nearest high ground is and where you keep your valuables in case of an emergency.
“But ultimately, the responsibility for this awareness raising falls heavily on the government’s shoulders,” she said.
“Likewise, they need to improve the alert system and stop building on floodplains.”
Spain partially banned construc-
tion on floodplains in 2015, but developers can still build on some of this land if certain ‘safety conditions’ are met.
Thousands of people also live on floodplains built before this law came into place, especially on the Mediterranean coast where huge property booms led to heavy urbanisation of coastal flood zones.
Indeed, the Balearics government earlier this year approved a change in the law to permit even more construction on flood plains. This local legislation has now been frozen following the Valencia disaster, while all political parties discuss modifications.
Despite the fear many Spanish residents are feeling right now, Dr Bonada encourages a healthy optimism.
“Things need to be done differently, but we have the solutions, so for me that provides hopeful optimism,” she shared.
“But we also need to be proactive, if we want these actions to be implemented, it’s up to all of us to push for it and vote for a government that we know will implement these actions.”
WE DO IT FOR YOU!
Register to the Olive Press website for a chance to win Bryan Adams tickets
THE Olive Press is giving away two pairs of tickets to see legendary singer Bryan Adams.
The Everything I Do singer will be performing a sell out show at the Fuente de San Luis Pavilion in Valencia on January 19. The Canadian songwriter will perform his greatest hits as part of his Roll With The Punches Tour.
We will only be offering the competition to our registered users, and will send out details on how to enter next week.
For those of you who are not yet registered, it could not be simpler to set up an account. Scan the QR code on this page (above) and fill in your name and email address.
Registered users are able to comment on stories and will be able to take advantage of future promotions and competitions, which this year have included free meals, furniture giveaways and concert tickets.
Registered users are also sent weekly newsletters on travel, health and property and a personal message from our digital editor Laurence Dollimore each Saturday.
We have seen an incredible surge in registered users and subscribers over the past few weeks, with thousands of readers deciding to join the conversation.
We thank you all for your support, which helps us keep bringing you the news and exclusives you love.
BLACK FRIDAY SPECIAL
MEANWHILE we have a very special one-off Black Friday sale going on for a limited time only.
So if you want to snap up an annual subscription for half price at just €25 you need to get online fast.
EXPERTS: From left, Joaquín Martínez Campillo García, Dr Anabela Bonada and Antonio Gallegos
McFly star Danny Jones has not seen his dad Alan (inset) for 18 years
DISASTER: Will be repeated if urgent action is not taken claim experts
OUTRAGE: On the streets of Valencia, with regional president Mazon in the firing line
Pasaje 19 de
10 y 11,
QUICK CROSSWORD
Tel: (+34) 971 69 30 04 Fax: (+34) 971 69 15 05
Going straight
SPAIN will grant residency and work permits annually for the next three years to around 300,000 migrants who are in the country illegally.
The policy will take effect next May and aims to expand the country’s ageing workforce.
Migration Minister Elma Saiz says Spain needs around 250,000 registered foreign workers a year to maintain its welfare state.
The new policy simplifies administrative procedures for short and long-term visas and provides migrants with additional work protection.
It also extends a visa offered previously to job seekers for three months to one year.
In 2023, Spain issued 1.3 million visas to foreigners.
WINGS CLIPPED
Ryanair among five airlines slapped with fines of nearly €200 million by Spain for ‘abusive practices’
By Alex Trelinski
and Easyjet with a whopping fine totalling €179 million for abusive practices.
The rap sheet includes charging extra for hand luggage and reservation fees for adjoining seats.
The biggest individual penalty is almost €108 million for Ryanair, followed by Vueling on €39 million and
Easyjet with €29 million. Norwegian and Volotea have both received fines of
BILL DUE
SPAIN’S state-backed insurance company is looking at a bill from Valencia’s historic flooding that tops out at over €4 billion.
The Consorcio de Compensación de Seguros (CCS), which steps in when policyholders face losses from extraordinary risks such as acts of terrorism and natural disasters, has received 138,317 claims so far.
The majority of these are for vehicles, residential properties, businesses and agricultural sites devastated in the deadly floods that struck the region on October 29.
Six out of ten relate to vehicle cover, a third were for residential properties, 6% from small business owners and 2% came from industrial sites.
Growth dent
SPAIN has been pegged back after surging ahead of the USA to become the fastest-growing developed economy in the world.
The catastrophic floods in Valencia, which killed at least 219 people, will trim as much as 20 basis points off the expected economic growth this year, according to CaixaBank.
The destruction, loss of life and stop in economic activity will likely see the economy grow by between 2.9 and 3% in 2024.
This is down from 3.1% that had been forecast before the recent storms battered Spain.
The Valencia Generalitat has asked for €31 billion to start reconstruction, with the central government in Madrid so far having said it will ‘mobilise’ some €14 billion.
Some of this will come in direct aid from government coffers and others in financial guarantees for bank loans.
over €1 million. The Consumer Affairs ministry started a probe in June 2023 to see whether airline practices were abusive or unfair and whether they contravened regulations. The investigation came as a result of complaints from consumer organisations. Four practices came under the spotlight: charging a surcharge for reserving adjoining seats to accompany children and dependents; a lack of transparency in pre-contractual information on the final price to be paid: charging a surcharge for carry-on luggage; and not allowing cash payments at the airport to cover extra services.
Extra
“It’s akin to buying beans and then being charged extra at the checkout for the tin,” said Prem Sikka, a member of the UK House of Lords.
“They have been price gouging and misleading customers for years.”
The penalty has been confirmed by Spain’s Minister of Consumer Affairs, Pablo Bustinduy, after sanctions and their amounts were proposed back in May.
“No company, no matter how large or powerful, is above the law,” Bustinduy said. Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary called the fine ‘politically motivated’ and has said the company will launch a legal appeal.
Marzo,
Poligono Son Bugadellas, Calvia, Mallorca
PASSION PAYS OFF
ONE man’s certainty that Roman artefacts were buried in northern Spain has led to the discovery of swimming pool remains dating back to the first century.
Archaeologist Jesus Torres was so convinced that the site on the outskirts of Aguilar de Campoo in Castilla y Leon offered rich pickings, that he did most of the digging work himself with volunteers.
Torres’ patience was rewarded with the discovery of the Huerta Varona site, which besides the pool, also has remnants of a possible sauna and massage area.
“The area was probably a town and ironically plunderers finding coins back in the 1980s opened the door to further investigations,” said Torres.
LA CULTURA GREEN
LOOKING FOR
November 29thDecember 19th 2023
Brit’s Gaudi adventure
Expat involved in finishing architect’s Barcelona masterpiece
A BRITISH structural engineer, Tristram Carfrae, has played a key role in the final phase to complete Antoni Gaudi's La Sagrada Familia in Barcelona.
“It’s the best project I’ve ever worked on,” said 65-year-old Carfrae, who has been involved for 10 years.
“It just inspires you, causes all sorts of emotions and feelings, and to be able to be involved is almost enough, let alone to make an actual contribution.”
‘Demented’
By Alex Trelinski
The church is iconic for a number of reasons but is just as famous for not being finished after construction began in 1882.
Now, approaching the centenary of Gaudí’s death, the church’s completion is within touching distance – with construction happening 10 times faster now than when it first began.
“Gaudi went for a much big-
ger church than the original design, including one of the massive towers, the Mary
comic book cleared
THE publisher of a satirical comic book about Jesus Christ has been cleared of discrimination and hatred as well as sexual provocation. It sends up children’s activity books with colouring and painting pages that ridicule anti-gay attitudes.
Baby Jesus Doesn’t Hate Sissies attracted legal action from the Spanish Foundation of Christian Law-
yers who claimed it was an ‘apology for paedophilia’.
Billionaire Elon Musk, owner of the X social media platform, posted that the comic book was ‘demented’.
A Valencia area judge dismissed the case saying ‘no crime has been committed’ and that the book was clearly aimed at adult readers, with an obvious comic spirit.
Tower, that sits vertically right above the original crypt from the first smaller design,” Carfrae said.
“The foundations, of course, didn’t have the capability or capacity
Stark warning
Mediterranean sea level rises ‘will displace millions of homeowners’ within 75 years unless ‘drastic action’ is taken
A NEW scientific report has revealed a grim future for the Mediterranean coast, with up to 20 million people at risk of displacement due to rising sea levels by 2100.
Mediterranean sea levels have risen over 6cm in the past 20 years - twice the 20th-century average - and could rise by up to a metre by the end of the century in the worst case scenario. This could see salt water get into coastal aquifers, making them unusable for human
By Walter Finch
consumption and agricultural purposes.
Meanwhile, temperatures are predicted to increase between 3.8C and 6.5C in the same period, depending on various greenhouse gas emission forecasts.
Marine heatwaves, already more frequent, have led to mass die-offs of corals, sponges, and molluscs, while tropical
CONTROVERSIAL plans for an octopus farm in the Canary Islands have been thrown into doubt after trials ‘failed’ - but the company behind it has pledged to press on.
Galicia-based Nueva Pescanova announced a ‘breakthrough’ in cultivating captive octopuses in 2019. But now, five years later, sources at Nueva Pescanova say its cultivation programme has not worked out because its octopuses die soon after they hatch.
The proposed €65 million farm in Gran Canaria comes amid ongoing financial losses at Nueva Pescanova and
No bull
ALLOWING children to attend bullfights violates the Spanish constitution and the UN Children’s Rights Convention, says Spain’s Ministry of Youth and Culture. It comes after an amendment proposed by PP and Vox to repeal a law banning children from bull fights was approved by the Balearic government and published in the Balearic state bulletin. The original legislation, approved in 2017, says bull fights could ‘harm the sensibilities of spectators.’
to hold up this tower, so the team thought that the only solution was to build a steel tower and clad it in stone.”
“But, we came up with using a thin and light type of stone within the foundations and therefore honouring Gaudi's original idea of having a stone tower.”
Asked what Gaudí would make of the modern techniques being used to complete his design, Carfrae added: “Well, of course, nobody knows, but my guess would be that he would be quite in favour of it.”
species invade warmer waters.
The regions most at risk of catastrophic climate change lie in the south and eastern end of the sea, with Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, and Palestine listed as most vulnerable. To add to all this is the Med-
Sucker punch
By William J. Furney
continued protests by animal rights groups and environmentalists - most recently on World Octopus Day. But a representative for Nueva Pescanova told the Olive Press that despite local media reporting on the farm’s cancellation, it was still going ahead with the project. It remains convinced that problems can be ironed out.
iterranean’s status as one of the most plastic-polluted seas globally.
Plastics make up 82% of visible waste, 95-100% of marine litter, and over 50% of seabed debris.
Without drastic improvements in waste management, plastic pollution could double by 2040, threatening marine ecosystems further.
Conducted by a team of international experts from 17 countries, the report paints a stark picture of a region increasingly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change.
More frequent and intense heat waves could reduce tourist numbers, while rising sea levels could erode beaches and damage coastal resorts.
The report, from MedECC (Mediterranean Experts on Climate and environmental Change) calls for urgent action to mitigate climate change and adapt to its impacts.
Politicians Cristina Gil (PP) and Sergio Rodriguez (Vox) proposed the new amendment, saying it ‘upholds the cultural values of bullfighting’ and ‘freedom of children.’ Rodriguez continued: “If we let children change their sex and have abortions, we should also let them see bulls.”
However, a Ministry of Youth spokesperson states changing rules back would violate article 20.4 of the Spanish constitution, which aims to ‘protect childhood.’
The Ministry has three months to officially object to the amendment.
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Artist’s impression
LA CULTURA 14
November 29thDecember 19th 2023
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HIDDEN DEPTHS
BBy Yzabelle Bostyn
mance, The Disappearing Act, explores the African influences in flamenco, an aspect often overlooked in its history.
Graves uses her unique Afro-diasporic lens to challenge perceptions of identity and invisibility, drawing connections between flamenco and African dance traditions.
This unique perspective, she says, is the key to its success, having been nominated for two Lorca awards.
“Flamenco is an urban art form that has a lot of influences from many cultures, including those of the African diaspora,” she told the Olive Press.
About 15% of the Spanish population between the 15th and 19th century were African, many ending up in the country after being transported through Sevilla on their journey to the United States.
Of about 80,000 slaves, it is believed at least 10,000 stayed in Spain.
“They are often written out of the narrative,” Graves said. “But when I came here, I could suddenly see the African influence that wasn’t written in the official story of flamenco. But it’s there, in people’s body movements, the rhythm and more. If you look at some dance styles from Africa such as Sabar in Senegal, you can see the links to flamenco.”
captured on film featuring a black man, Jacinto Padilla or ‘El Negro Meri’.
“This link isn’t something that we’ve explored enough, our presence is al ways there but never named,” she said. This feeling of ‘invisibility’ deeply in fluenced The Disappearing Act side Graves’ experiences as an Afri can person living in the west. She said: “Invisbility is part of my existence, in this work I’m reflecting on how to play with that and use it as a tool. How be aware? Or to disap pear as a means of survival?
After university, she moved to Madrid at 24 to pursue flamenco
In fact, the African links with flamenco have always been ready to be discovered, with the very first image of a flamenco cuadro
Down: 1 Barack, 2 Avid, 3 Espouse, 4 A S C I I, 5 Point out, 6 Rhodes, 8 Raged, 13 Readings, 15 Armrest, 16 Votive, 18 Oprah, 19 Rarely, 20 At sea, 23 Deaf.
To ask, what is written out and what is perceived?”
Throughout the piece, she uses various images such as weaves and skin lightening makeup to explore how one can maintain a sense of self within the concept of ‘invisibility.’
A ‘very personal’ performance, the show has toured all over Europe, with further stops in Switzerland, France and Granada.
The performance has featured respected flamenco guitarist Raul Cantizano, British drummer Donna Thompson and Graves’ sibling, Remi Graves. Yinka first showed her talent for dance at just three years old, while living in Nicaragua. She easily picked up the carnival choreography.
On her return to the UK, her parents enrolled her in all sorts of dance classes, from modern to jazz to ballet. However, when it came to university she decided to study Art History, thinking dance ‘wasn’t a real job.’
It was there at the University of Sussex that she discovered flamenco, age 21.
After working odd jobs after university, she moved to Madrid at 24 to pursue flamenco at the famed Amor de Dios school.
“I jumped in at the deep end,” she confessed. “But I made a lot of friends and felt really nurtured, I really improved and learnt a lot.”
Some five years in, she met Malaga based Flamenco dancer, La Lupi and made her move down south.
was created, it’s in the streets, in the way of speaking, in the football, people have flamenco close to them here.
It’s a big part of Andalucian culture,” she said.
During the first few years of her career, she worked as an english teacher and tour guide to get by while nurturing her true passion.
After a decade, she was finally able to fully dedicate herself to flamenco.
“I was very lucky because I got to the point where I was being asked to perform in places where it felt fraudulent not to be a full time
“I realised flamenco was born in Andalucia, it’s like going to New Orleans for jazz, you breathe in the space where that artform dancer,” she said. “That was when I decided, I’ve got to make a choice right now, because there comes a point where it asks so much you have to give it all the time that it requires. It’s not possible to do it part-time.”
She has also formed part of the acclaimed company,
alongside British
Magdalena
and Noemi
from 2014-2017 and performed multiple successful UK tours.
Now she is pushing the boundaries, infusing African influences with the traditional Andalucian art to create a captivating,
ORN in London to Ghanaian and Jamaican parents, Yinka Esi Graves didn’t grow up thinking she could become a
Dotdotdot Dance
flamenco dancers
Mannion
Luz
CREDIT: Miguel Lorenzo
CREDIT: Nina Sologubenko
FOOD,DRINK & TRAVEL
Big cheese
THE World Cheese Awards 2024 have crowned two Spanish cheeses among the top 14 on earth - and the world’s best is made by a Spaniard in Portugal.
The top cheese was named as Queijo de Ovelha Amanteigado made by Spaniard Sonia Marroyo.
The two Spanish cheeses in the list are La Cava Barus, a cured cheese made from unpasterised cow, sheep and goat milk. It is made in Ciudad Real by the Garcia-Baquero cheese makers and placed fourth in the rankings.
The other prize winner, taking 12th place, was the Valleclaro soft goat’s cheese, made in Jaen by Quesos y Besos using goat milk from Malaga.
Some 240 judges evaluated 4,786 cheeses to find the top 104 in the world, which were then whittled down by an expert panel to find the 14 winners.
Join the club!
Top Michelin rating for family restaurant takes Spanish total to 16
AN Asturias family restaurant has joined a select group of 16 Spanish establishments in getting a three-star Michelin Guide rating. The 2025 Michelin Guide award ceremony held in
By Alex Trelinski
Murcia on Tuesday saw 1,251 restaurants in Spain recognised for their quality, with 291 of them boasting the cov-
After being given the title three years in a row, the Danish young pretender Rasmus Munk (Alchemist, Copenhagen) has been handed the accolade by The Best Chef Awards Munk shared the podium with his compatriot Eric Vildgaard (Jordnær, Copenhagen), who took third place. Spanish chef Albert Adria, from Enigma, retains his second-place
HEALTH
Ticking time bomb
SEXUALLY transmitted diseases are spreading fastest in the Balearic Islands and Catalunya, according to experts. Gonorrhea is the main culprit on the islands, described as Spain’s ‘main sex tourism destination and one of the largest in Europe’. That’s according to Valeria Esteban, coordinator of Nueva Vida en las Islas (New Life on the Islands), which offers treatment for people with STDs on the archipelago.
Tomeu Moya, a researcher specialising in STDs, agrees: “There are more and more rumors of the Balearics being a sex tourism capital. Some go to ‘professionals’ and others meet up and have chem sex parties.”
Sex
He warned that diseases like gonorrhea are ‘ticking time bombs’ because people often do not present symptoms and continue with sex tourism.
Moya explained: “Some 80% of gonorrhea cases are between homosexual men of an average age of 34 who have not used condoms.”
Chem sex involves taking drugs to make the experience more intense or prolonged and is often associated with the LGBTQIA community.
A 2017 EU study revealed that 14% of queer men had used drugs to improve their sexual experience in the last year, while 7.6% had done so in the last month.
DAZZLING: Spain now has 16 three star restaurants eted stars.
The new three-star winner is Casa Marcial in the small village of Arrondias and is run by Nacho and Esther Manzano supported by their children Jesus and Sandra.
The Michelin judges said the Asturian landscape and its
Dabiz dethroned
position for the second consecutive year.
Beyond the change in reign, the big news from these awards, which held their 2024 gala in Dubai earlier this month, lies in the transformation of their ranking system. Until now, The Best Chef Awards operated as a ranking of 100 names, but the founders have decided to imitate the Michelin Guide by introducing their own rating system. From now on, the awards will only feature the top three chefs on the podium, with other chefs being awarded between one and three knives, similar to the Michelin stars.
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THE European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) has warned tens of millions of people could die by 2050 if tighter controls are not put on antibiotics. They say that unnecessary use of antibiotics leads to dangerous levels of microbial resistance and the European Union should take urgent action.
Antimicrobial resistance caused almost five million deaths world-wide in 2019 and could kill more than 39 million people by 2050.
The latest ECDC report revealed that between 2019-2023, no significant
On the rise
SEXUAL assault is going up, according to an annual report by the Hospital Clinic de Barcelona. The hospital has reported that sexual assault cases have risen for the fifth year running, with a 12% jump. This year, 624 people have been victims, 88% of them women and 99% of the attackers were men. Some 58% of the women were raped and 25% of victims below 45 were attacked by someone they knew in a supposedly ‘safe’ environment.
unmistakable flavours take centre stage in creative dishes that exalt sustainable concepts which can be enjoyed both a la carte and via three ‘wonderful’ tasting menus. Retaining their three stars are AbaC, Cocina Hermanos Torres, Disfrutar, and Lasarte (Barcelona); Atrio (Caceres); Noor (Cordoba), Quique Dacosta (Denia); Akelare and Arzak (Donostia-San Sebastian); Aponiente (El Puerto de Santa Maria); El Celler de Can Roca (Girona); Azurmendi (Larrabetzu); Martin Berasategui (Lasarte-Oria); DiverXO (Madrid) and Cenador de Amos (Villaverde de Pontones).
Another three restaurants have joined a 33-strong group of two-star Michelin restau-
rants this year.
Alevante, inside the Gran Melia Sancti Petri hotel in Chiclana de la Frontera (Cadiz) has chefs Cristian Rodríguez and Alan Iglesias inviting diners to embark on a fabulous journey through the world of seafood.
LU Cocina y Alma, in Jerez de la Frontera, showcases outstanding Andalucian gastronomy with chef Juanlu Fernandez mixing respect for local flavours with originality bringing his take on regional favourites.
The third restaurant to hit two stars is Retiro da Costiña, in Santa Comba (A Coruña) with the judges commenting that the family business shows a clear love for hospitality and has become an institution for Galician cuisine.
LISTED: Linares de
in Teruel was honoured
Seventh heaven
its ranks.
In Badajoz, Llerena made the list thanks to its stunning mudejar facades alongside Jerez de los Caballeros.
Two Teruel enclaves made the cut, including La
In Soria. Berlanga de Duero was honoured for its impressive medieval fortress and whimsical porticoes. Meanwhile in Burgos, Poza de la Sal (below) was recognised for its tudor-esque architecture, cobbled streets and well preserved medieval walls. Letur in Albacete also claimed a spot on the list.
NEXT PANDEMIC
By Yzabelle Bostyn
decrease was seen in antibiotic use.
“We’re going in the wrong direction,” said ECDC director, Pamela Rendi-Wagner.
Of the 24 countries included in the study, 14 had not only failed to lower their use of antibiotics, but had raised it.
The report also showed the use of last-resort antibiotics went up 5.4%, some 2% higher than in 2019.
Risk
According to the World Health Organisation, these should only be used when nothing else has worked against multi-resistant organisms.
Although the ECDC admits their rising use could be out of necessity, it insists that member states reevaluate their consumption. The stats also show slow progress in the EU’s 2030 antibiotics goals agreed last year.
Scientists warn overuse of antibiotics could lead to the ‘next pandemic’
By 2030, it is hoped there will be a 20% total reduction in the use of human antibiotics compared with 2019.
Some 65% of antibiotics consumed must have low resistance risk.
Each year in the European Union, 35,000 people die as a result of antimicrobial resistance, with 4,000 in Spain alone.
CONDOM sales have fallen 15.34% so far this year, according to healthcare company Iqvia. Just two months before the end of the year, only 25,283,747 have been sold, compared to last year’s total of 39,228,562. The data has prompted concern from the medical community, which warns that sinking use of condoms could lead to a rise in sexually transmitted diseases.
THE Beautiful Towns of Spain Association has announced that seven new locations will join
Fresneda and Linares de Mora.
Mora
MADRID based chef Dabiz Muñoz has been knocked off his throne as ‘best chef in the world’.
Pauper to prince
A FIVE-year-old boy will receive VIP treatment from Barcelona football team RCD Espanyol after being turned away from a game in Girona because he wore Barca’s jersey.
Squid game
A MALAGA diner was floored after being charged €30 for calamari and €8 for gazpacho at the Hotel Marenostrum, sparking an online storm.
DIY love
THE Spanish trend of looking for a date in Mercadona has moved to China, where retirees find potential partners while wandering the endless aisles of Ikea.
€200,000 worth of Jamon Iberico stolen in Huelva
POLICE are hunting for thieves who made off with a staggering €200,000 worth of prized Christmas ham.
Some 400 legs of the nation’s finest acorn-fed ham – a delicacy with a Protected Designation of Origin seal – were stolen from a family-run business in Andalucia. The ham, known for its melt-in-your-mouth taste, was set to be served on festive tables worldwide, but
By Dilip Kuner
now it’s vanished.
The ham-burglars struck the Jamones Eiriz factory in Corteconcepcion, a sleepy mountain village in Huelva.
A third of the producer’s entire stock was swiped, sending shockwaves through the small, close-knit community.
Police believe five people were involved in the heist,
A COURT has ruled Mercadona unfairly sacked an employee in Albacete for eating an out-of-date croquette destined for disposal.
The worker, with 16 years of service, was dismissed in July 2023 for a ‘very serious’ offence but received only €944 in severance.
The Castilla-La Mancha Superior Court (TSJ) has now ordered the supermarket to reinstate him or pay €40,000 in com-
and some are even whispering that it could have been an inside job.
Domingo Eiriz, whose family has run the business since 1818, revealed the moment he discovered the crime. Speaking to Antena 3, he said he was alerted by a worker who asked, "Domingo, where are the hams, have you taken them?" What he found was shocking –400 legs of ham gone, each
Expensive snack
pensation. Mercadona chose the payout. The worker, earning €2,000 monthly as a junior manager, admitted eating the croquette and was fired the next day. Mercadona claimed he consumed an entire €4.20 packet, but witnesses testified he ate just one. The TSJ deemed the act a minor infraction.
Water Repellents, Paints and Coatings
HAM-BURGLARS
worth over €500.
“This is not just about money, it’s the destruction of years of work,” Eiriz fumed.
“They knew exactly what they were doing and they did it at the worst time possible – right before Christmas.”
Despite the family’s best efforts to keep their operation secure, the stolen meat was stored in an unusual location to have labels put on, sparking suspicions of insider involvement.
Jamones Eiriz is a small business with only 20 employees, eight of whom are family members.
might call it
Cortes snatched the win at the Panettone World Cup in Milan.
The Suca’l bakery worker triumphed over two Italians to claim the title of ‘world’s best traditional panettone’, judged diligently on aroma, taste and shape. Each participant was chosen via a rigorous, two-year selection process, leaving only the 24 best panettone bakers in the world.
Finalists came from all over the globe including Asia, Australia and the United States.
WE’RE BACK AGAIN IN THREE WEEKS for our special Sierra Nevada supplement on December 20
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SOME
a Pane-phony, as Italy has been robbed of its Panettone crown by a Barcelona-based chef. Mexican baker Tonatiuh
