Olive Press Newspaper - Issue 259

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The story behind the Lord Clive set to be risen from the deep

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Brits are valued Exclusive interview with ambassador Simon Manley

Page 11

Zest to know

Do you know your satsumas from your ponkons?

Page 42

ED Sheeran has revealed how he fainted with pain while getting a tattoo of a famous Spanish church.

The British Shape of You singer, worth €40 million, has had Barcelona’s Sagrada Familia inked onto his stomach during his trip across Australia last year.

“I passed out while it was being done,” said Ed, 25, who has 60 tattoos covering his body and wants 30 more.

Vol. 11 Issue 259 www.theolivepress.es February 15th - February 28th 2017

By Joe Duggan

To the surface

Holy ow!

Voted BEST expat paper in Spain

EXPATS in Spain could be hammered by the British government’s approach to EU citizens, a leaked document suggests.

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn insisted that the aggressive approach of the Tory Party is putting ‘families, jobs and homes in the balance’ and showing the ‘human cost’ of Brexit.

He urged the government to act swiftly to end migrants and expats uncertainty and guarantee their rights to remain in their countries postBrexit.

“There must be an end to this Hunger Games approach to Brexit negotiations, which gives no consideration to EU nationals in our country or British nationals living abroad,” Corbyn said.

He was reacting to a report drawn up by the European Parliament’s legal affairs committee, warning that the apparent reticence to give Europeans permanent residence status in the UK could lead to a backlash abroad.

“The fact that it appears to be particularly difficult for foreign nationals, even if married to UK nationals or born in the UK to acquire permanent residence status or British nationality may colour member states’ ap-

Hunger Games

Expats’ livelihoods ‘in the balance’ over Brexit, says Labour leader as Brits abroad launch a fight for their future proach to this matter,” stated the report.

The document also pointed out it could now be left up to individual member states to decide if British nationals can live in their country.

Since the June 23 vote, there has been an almost 50% rise in EU citizens applying for permanent residency in the

UK, according to the Guardian, that was leaked the report.

There has also been an apparent drift of expats back to the UK, with a rise in home sales reported by the official government body in Malaga that

monitors property sales.

The leak comes after the UK’s ambassador to Spain Simon Manley highlighted the economic benefit of expats to Spain.

The commercial relationship between the two countries is

EXCLUSIVE

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worth some €46 billion, he said, with a €10 billion trade surplus to Spain and €1 billion to Andalucia.

Manley told the Olive Press: “From Prime Minister Rajoy down through to regional government presidents and many city mayor all of them tell me they value the presence of Britons in Spain.”

He hinted that Spain might make a separate bilateral arrangement with the UK over expats in both countries.

And during a meeting between Rajoy and Theresa May last month, it is believed the pair, discussed an amicable arrangement for both countries.

Meanwhile, campaign group Bremain In Spain have backed demands for Brits to be issued with EU passports

by Brussels after Brexit.

If their petition gains one million signatures from at least seven EU countries, proposed legislation will be put before the European Parliament.

Next Friday, The Guardian’s Madrid-based correspondent Giles Tremlett will address an Bremain In Spain discussion group in La Cala de Mijas.

Opinion Page 6

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Stories and features in this edition of the coast’s number 1 English newspaper

News IN BRIEF

Adana goes green THE Estepona-based dog rescue charity is now 100% dependent on on solar energy, which should allow it to save up to €6,000 a year.

New chef

THE well-loved Marbella restaurant El Lago has a new head chef: 33-year-old Juan Jose Carmona from Fuengirola, who will focus on local, seasonal produce.

Cultural interest

A NEW museum will be built at Manilva’s Duquesa castle, after the zone has been declared a protected site of cultural interest after a decadelong bureaucratic delay.

No confidence

A VOTE of no confidence has been motioned against Mayor of Frigiliana Jose Antonio Gonzalez and his party, the Partido Popular. The vote is due to take place on February 20.

EXCLUSIVE

By Laurence Dollimore

A BRITISH sex shop owner has become the latest victim of a wave of robberies rocking the Marbella area.

Laura Tona, 43, owner of Boudoir Boutique in Nueva Andalucia, is one of over ten victims of the gang over the last few weeks.

“I was fortunate that they took nothing, but others have not been so lucky,” Tona told the Olive Press.

“I wish they could be stopped, they’re ruining people’s businesses, you would think someone would have put an end to it by now.”

Expat Tom Gagen, 34, who owns the Den Bar in Nueva Andalucia, has had three robberies at his expat haunt in just two months.

“They first hit us on December 12 and again a few weeks later, they went straight for the cash in the till and took our safe, they took thousands.”

Gagen, from Sheffield, stepped up his security, but that didn’t stop them trying again just last week.

CRIME

February 15th - February 28th 2017

Catch them if you can Expats demand answers after being repeatedly targeted by robbers “Unbelievably they came back but I was here and made enough noise to scare them off, it’s ridiculous, people are turning up to their businesses not knowing what they’re going to find.”

He added: “I haven’t heard a thing since reporting the crime to the police.”

During the same night, nearby restaurant Vovem was hit in the early hours and had a ‘considerable amount’ - at least €2,000 -

stolen from the register.

It was the third time they were targeted in just two weeks.

Meanwhile, just around the corner, Scottish expat David Morrison, from Galloway, had his Scandi Supermarket and house robbed.

“They emptied the cash register and stole cash from our home,” said Morrison, “we reported it to the police but they haven’t been in touch since.”

On the same night, two men in

balaclavas brandishing crowbars stormed into the nearby Coviran supermarket and ripped out the cash register before speeding off on a moped.

Bar Grana, the Los Naranjos chicken shop, the Taj Mahal restaurant, Antonio’s restaurant, the Makkafe cafe and others have all also been targeted since January.

The group are now getting together to demand action from the police.

“It is not good enough what is being done,” said Morrison. “It is a big problem.”

National Police insisted they could not comment on the cases ‘at this time’.

Cops may have found Lisa’s body

THE remains of missing expat Lisa Brown may have been found after she vanished from her home in San Roque more than a year ago.

Over 20 police and town hall workers scoured an area in Guadiaro, near Sotogrande, turning up ‘remnants and objects’ that could be connected to the Scot.

Brown, 33,disappeared from the house she shared with lover Simon Corner nearby in November

2015.

It was feared she may have been murdered before being dumped in the sea, but Spanish cops never ruled out that she may have been buried on land.

It comes after forensic officers last year revealed that a violent incident had taken place at the property she shared with yacht salesman Corner.

Lisa’s brother Craig Douglas has

been encouraged by the new find.

He said: “They have kept us up to date with as much information as possible. It is encouraging that things are still ongoing and the people who are investigating are being relentless.

“They will not let this go just like we as a family won’t either.”

The items have been sent off for analysis, while Corner is currently awaiting trial in prison.

Goldfingered JOHN ‘Goldfinger’ Palmer’s top lieutenant has flown back to the UK from Spain to face questioning over his boss’s brutal murder.

Richard Cashman, 50, voluntarily returned to Britain, where he attended a police station by appointment and was questioned under caution as a potential suspect.

Suspect

Brit Cashman, from Tyneside, was charged alongside the crime boss - known as Goldfinger just four weeks before he was shot dead in his Essex home in 2015.

The pair were accused of running a multi-million euro timeshare fraud.

British police believe the timing could prove significant.

Palmer was once known as the UK’s richest criminal, and is thought to have been worth around €350 million.

He got the name 'Goldfinger' after he was arrested on suspicion of melting down gold from the infamous Brink'sMat robbery at London's Heathrow Airport.

NE WS

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Sing when you’re winning POP music fans have chosen Spain's Eurovision entry.

Catalan Manel Navarro will represent Spain at this year's flamboyant contest in Kiev, Ukraine with his catchy, upbeat song Do It For Your Lover.

Navarro, 20, gained the same amount of public votes as other contestant Mirela Cabero Garcia in the

Pin-elope PENELOPE CRUZ stunned at the Goya Awards as she posed with legendary Spanish director Pedro Almodovar in Madrid.

The star rocked a full-length Versace dress with a Swarovski crystal accented bustier and a daring thigh-high slit.

The 42-year-old actress has worked with Almodovar on I’m So Excited, Broken Embraces, Vovler and others.

Goya round-up on page 14

Birthday in Barcelona THE Clooneys enjoyed a weekend break in Barcelona in early February.

Human rights lawyer Amal was in the city for a conference, examining the role that business can play in human rights.

She was accompanied by her actor husband George and his parents.

The conference fell on Amal’s birthday, and the group were spotted making the most of the weekend break in Barcelona’s Rooftop Smokehouse restaurant.

Malaga prison given starring role in new Ridley Scott flick LEONARDO DiCaprio is set to land on the Costa del Sol to star in a new Ridley Scott thriller.

The American superstar is tipped to have landed the lead role in the film The Cartel, which will be shot mostly in Malaga this summer.

DeCaprio, who has been a regular visitor to Ibiza, has not been to Malaga before.

Scott has decided to use the atmospheric Antigua Prisión Provincial, in the Cruz de Humilladero area, as a huge Mexican maximum security prison in The Cartel.

An adaptation of a novel

by Don Winslow, the story centres around a cat and mouse game between a US drugs detective and the head of a cartel.

The 14,000m2 building, was visited by Scott last December while he was looking for locations for another upcoming film, a Western called Wraiths of the Broken Land.

The prison is currently undergoing a major reno-

nail-biting TV contest, leaving it to the show's professional jury to cast the deciding vote.

He also beat Malaga's half British Mario Jefferson, 26, and LeKlein, who was the favourite to win, along with two others.

Posting on Twitter after his win, Navarro said: "You are the best!

“Thanks to everyone, to my lover and all of the team.

"We are going to Kiev!"

Costa Caprio Can’t get him out of her head

EN ROUTE: Hollywood icon Di Caprio

vation project to become a huge arts and community space.

Spanish army helicopters may also be drafted in for the film, which was

first publicly revealed two years ago.

Scott recently visited the airfield of Colonel Maté near Madrid, which could also feature in the film.

Fun, Fun, Fun

ON TOUR: Beach Boys

THE Beach Boys are coming to the Costa del Sol. The legendary quintet will Get Around the costa this summer as they are the latest stars to be added to the 22nd Fuengirola Music Festival.

They will join the likes of Sting, Jamie Cullen and Michael Nyman at the Sohail Castle in June and July.

Exact dates are yet to have been announced.

KYLIE Minogue has been left heartbroken after a Spanish TV actress stole her fiance.

While the Australian singer, 48, was making wedding plans with her (now ex) Joshua Sasse, he was playing away with his co-star Marta Milans.

The 34-year-old beauty, who is fluent in seven languages, including Russian, met Sasse on AUDITIONS for the next series the set of No Tomorof ITV’s hit comedy Benidorm row, a romantic comwill be held on February 24. edy drama which aired Hopefuls must live in the Benion US network The CW dorm area, but this is the only late last year. selection criteria.

Milans and Sasse have “It doesn’t matter your age, race, not been photographed colour or your weight”, producers together, but her Inshave said, “we want to see every tagram account shows one of you.” that she visited London, Auditions will take place at the where he lives, over the Hotel Melia, from 10am to 2pm New Year, and it was and then 4pm to 7.30pm. revealed that Kylie blew Applicants must bring both their off her engagement over NIE number and their social sesuspicions of Milans. curity number to the audition.

The Madrid-born acThe show has been nominated tress enjoys singing and for a National Television Award. yoga and is a Real Madrid supporter.

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Plea for action THE family of missing Amy Fitzpatrick has made a fresh plea to launch a new investigation.

Her aunt, Christine Kenny, led a vigil outside the Irish government in Dublin on what would have been Amy's 25th birthday to urge the Irish government to pressure Spanish police into following up unresolved leads.

Fitzpatrick went missing from her home in Riviera del Sol, in Mijas, in January 2008.

Aunt Christine Kenny, said: "We want to keep Amy at the front of everyone’s mind.

"I want a set of fresh eyes to have a look at this case. That’s what is needed.”

Costa del cheap THE Costa del Sol has been named the third cheapest holiday spot for 2017.

A study compared the prices of alcohol, coffee, essential items in ten countries to determine which hotspot would cost the least.

Portugal’s Algarve was the cheapest, with daily essentials €38, followed by Bulgaria.

The Costa came third with an average price of €44 for the items.

NE WS

February 15th - February 28th 2017

MAULED!

Police search for rottweiler owner after British man is nearly killed while out walking his dogs

HORROR: Expat savaged by devil dog in horrific attack A BRITISH man came close to death when a vicious dog attacked his neck.

Paul Hughes has called in police after he was set upon by two rottweilers on a country walk, near Marbella.

The Essex man was left needing emergency surgery after one of the dogs bit his throat just millimetres from his jugular vein.

Hughes, 53, needed six stitches in his neck and was gouged several times on his right hand, while his family’s dogs Poppy and Molly

EXCLUSIVE

By Chloe Glover

received life-threatening injuries.

He and his dad John, an expat antique dealer, had been walking in the Barranco Blanco valley, between Marbella and Coin, when the attack happened.

“It was awful”, said John, 80, who rushed Paul and his dogs for emergency treatment.

“One of the rottweilers bit him on the front of his neck, very close to his jugular vein.

“He was bleeding very badly. I was very scared.”

He continued: “We didn’t know if Poppy would make it due to her injuries but thankfully both she and Molly have survived.”

He said the two dogs, believed to be owned by a local Spanish lady, came out of nowhere.

“They were totally out of control, didn’t have muzzles and were not on leads,” he continued.

“At first they went for my dogs and started biting Poppy, which was when Paul

intervened and that’s when they turned on him.”

The dogs eventually turned back to their owner, who was then able to put them on leads.

Warehouse manager Paul has filed a denuncia to the Guardia Civil in Coin in the hope of tracing the owner.

“I am furious”, he said. “The two dogs are very dangerous and it is pure irresponsibility on the part of the owner.

“I hope that the authorities can trace her before her dogs kill a dog or worse, a child.”

TOMB: PSOE’s demand

Franco’s final bow?

GENERAL Franco’s body could be dug up if a PSOE party bid is successful.

The Socialist Party wants the dictator’s remains removed from the emblematic Valley Of The Fallen, 50km outside Madrid.

The main opposition party’s motion will be debated in parliament in the coming months, but the outcome will be non-binding.

The PSOE wants the vast mausoleum to ‘stop being a memorial to Francoism and be reconverted into a space for the culture of reconciliation.’

In 2011, the PSOE was set to return Franco’s body to his family, but the right-wing PP dropped the plan once it took power.

The bodies of around 30,000 Civil War casualties from both sides are buried at the site, which was mainly built

by Republican forced labour.

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Voted top expat paper in Spain

A campaigning, community newspaper, the Olive Press represents the huge expatriate community in southern Spain - 200,000 copies distributed monthly (130,000 digitally) with an estimated readership, including the website, of more than 500,000 people a month.

OPINION

Hunger games

JEREMY Corbyn’s approach during the entire Brexit odyssey has been questionable, at best. But this week he has bared his teeth at the UK government over expats’ rights. Whether it is EU citizens in the UK, or Brits living in the single bloc, we all share the same fears and concerns.

But a leaked document now appears to cast doubt on the ease with which Brits’ future living arrangements can be agreed.

The entire Brexit process has been confused, and confusing. But on expats’ rights there is a sharper degree of clarity. Those currently living here want the right to remain, on the terms with which they first came.

Serve justice

ANYONE who lets aggressive dogs off a leash should face punishment.

If a child or infant had been around when those two rottweilers attacked, they could have been killed instantly.

There is no excuse for allowing violent dogs to run free and they should at least have been wearing muzzles.

Let’s hope the police are taking this attack seriously before anyone else gets seriously hurt, or god forbid, dies at the hands of an irresponsible dog owner.

Flying into trouble LAST week’s unprecedented standoff between the RGP and the RAF was the talk of Gibraltar - and beyond. Now, it transpires the ‘contents of a laptop’ of a person onboard the plane, who was arrested, are what alerted the attention of the RGP. The truth will out, but so far the silence from the Ministry of Defence is deafening.

Publisher/ Editor

Jon Clarke jon@theolivepress.es Admin (+34) 951 273 575 admin@theolivepress.es

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2012 - 2017

Named the best English language publication in Andalucia by the Rough Guides group.

n e k n u S

SUNKEN TREASURE: A team is raising the British Lord Clive just off the coast of Argentina

The raising of centuries-old ships can reveal a treasure trove of information about our buried past, writes Elsa Maishman

A

N operation to raise a 250-yearold British ship from the waters around Uruguay began on February 10.

As the Olive Press reported last week, the move will be spearheaded by Argentinian treasure hunter Ruben Collado, who hopes to find as much as £1 billion in gold bullion on board.

But Collado is interested in more than the money. The sinking of the Lord Clive was an important historical event, he says, and raising it will allow us to see ‘the true magnitude of the story’.

This is a story of why a British ship was sunk by Spanish cannon fire while defending a Portuguese colony on the coast of Uruguay, 254 years ago.

It is a story of colonialism, alliances and declarations of war which changed the course of world history and helped to shape the countries that we know today.

The Lord Clive was sunk while attacking Colonia del Sacramento, a Portuguese fort built in 1680. The area formed the frontier between Portuguese-held Brazil

history TREASURE HUNTER: Ruben Collado will help raise the Lord Clive ship

(both ruling houses were members of Robert MacNamara resolved to take the Bourbon family), bringing the coun- Colonia del Sacramento instead.

The ships took up position on January try into war with Britain in 1762.

Spain then allied with France to at- 6, 400 metres from the shore. This was SUNK: The Lord Clive ship tack Portugal which, though neutral, too close and the Anglo-Portuguese fire and Spanish-controlled South America. had long been an important economic aimed too high and missed its target.

It was the subject of a continual tug of ally of Britain’s. Hoping to distract Brit- The Spanish forces were better prewar between the two colonial powers, ish troops from attacking French soil, pared than MacNamara had expected, changing hands four times in eight de- Franco-Spanish forces swiftly invaded and cannons hit the Lord Clive, explodcades; and then a fifth time in 1762, both on Portugal’s European frontier ing the magazine and sinking the ship. when the Spanish retook it in the Fanand in its South American Over almost before it started, 272 peotastic War. colonies. Colonia del Sacra- ple drowned but there were only four Spanish casualties.

This war was fought between mento fell in The Lord Clive lies in just Spain and Portugal from 1763.

16 feet of water, but the 1762 to 1763 but, as there It was at this The Spanish Spanish dropped rocks on were no major battles, it was point that a its hull so that the rest of nicknamed ‘fantastic’. group of Britforces were the Anglo-Portuguese conThe Seven Years’ War (1754ish merchants better prepared tingent couldn’t refloat it.

1763) was primarily fought stepped in, between Britain and France deciding that than MacNamara The Treaty of Paris returned Colonia del Sacon a range of frontiers across an attack on ramento to Portugal in expected almost every continent. Britthe Spanish1763. But in a political ain did badly at first but held terrigame of ping-pong it came out well in the end tory would be passed back into Spanish when, as British statesman useful to the nation and George MaCartney famously VICTOR: King Charles financially beneficial to hands in 1777, was subsequently reremarked, Britain owned ‘a businessmen. The East India turned to Portugal and owned by Brazil vast empire, on which the sun never Trading Company bought the Lord Clive for a while, before Uruguay was foundsets.’ (formerly the HMS Kingston which they ed in 1828.

Spain and Portugal were both initially rechristened after the Commander in The British, however, never had another neutral, but in 1759 King Charles III Chief of British India), and sent troops look-in. As Collado points out, the sinktook over as the new ruler of Spain. and finances from London to South ing of the Lord Clive had a big impact.

Concerned that Britain might come out America, picking up Portuguese allies “If that ship had not failed in its attempt to retake the city of Colonia del Sacraof the war a stronger colonial power on the way. than Spain, he signed the Bourbon The plan was to attack Montevideo but mento, today we could be speaking Family Compact with France in 1761 the waters were too shallow so Captain English throughout Latin America.”

WEBSITE

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Fe at u re

Road to

hell

On the 80th anniversary of the N-340 massacre, Joe Duggan recalls a Civil War atrocity

E

VERY day, the N-340 ferries Gibraltarians, Spaniards and sun-seeking tourists along the coast. But 80 years ago this month, this main artery became the road to hell.

The Malaga to Almeria road massacre is one of the most shameful episodes in the bloody carnage of the Spanish Civil War. In February 1937, with Malaga besieged and attacked from land, sea and air, thousands of refugees fled the city and headed northwards.

Most were children, elderly and the sick. That didn’t spare them. They were strafed by Franco’s air force and navy, with thousands killed.

“You can’t imagine the desolation,” recalls one old lady, a survivor, in Yo Estaba Alli, a documentary and oral history of Malaga during the war by University of Malaga Professor Fernando Arcas.

“It has been calculated that there were more than 100,000 on the road,” Professor Paul Preston told the Olive Press this week.

“It is impossible to know accurately but the death toll seems to have been over 3,000.”

The parallels with modern atrocities in places like Syria are stark. But this slaughter happened on a road most of us travel along each day.

T h e estimated casualty rate was far higher than at Guernica, REFUGEES: Thousands fled Franco forces on what is now the N340 where it is thought up “My father carried the smallest child on his to 1,650 perished on Malaga, and launched his new book, also shoulders,” she recalls. at the hands of entitled Yo Estaba Alli.

“The bombing was so savage we had to travel the German con- But the first book published about the atrocity at night. There were shooting us from above, dor legion. And was written by Norman Bethune in 1937, a Cashooting from behind.” Fascist ships travelling yet the world nadian anti-fascist doctor who travelled with the up from Estepona continued the bombardment seems to have refugees as they fled from Malaga. The Crime of from sea. forgotten the The Malaga to Almeria Road is cited by Arcas as One man describes how, after the fascists had Malaga mas- the key first-hand document of what took place. executed his father, he was forced to sing their Horrified by the dimensions of the Dantesque sacre. anthem Cara Al Sol (Face To The Sky). “My faDuring the scenes he encountered, as Franco’s men ther’s blood was still fresh,” he says.

Franco dictator- mowed down the defenceless group, Behune Another man, the rage welling up inside him, ship, Arcas tells bravely used his medical skills to help the inspits out his anger at General Franco. me, the regime did jured. It is believed he was the only doctor trav“He was a murderer. A million their best to cover up elling in the convoy. A street has dead, just like that,” he says. been named in Bethune’s honthe atrocity.

“I’ve seen so many things.

“Books about the war by Eng- our in Malaga.

‘He was a Many people killed.” lish writers like Gerald Brenan and Hugh Thom- Bethune’s photographs of the For Arcas, a close friend of hisas were circulated clandestinely because they desperate refugees are a vital murderer.

A torian Paul Preston, the battle were banned,” he tells me at a well-attended document of an atrocity which few now living can remember. million dead, just for Malaga, and the horrors Costa Press Club screening of his film. of the road to Almeria, were During Arcas’s 2006 docu“But under Franco the story could never be mentary, old Malagueno like that. I’ve seen a grim prelude to the second told. In the case of Guernica, Picasso did war. survivors of the war a huge painting and exhibited it in Paris so many things’ world “The Malaga Almeria massarecall, often in heartand the story of what happened there becre was an antecedent of the breaking detail, what came infamous. huge civilian displacements happened 80 years ago.

“The Malaga massacre had no paintthat took place from 1939,” he tells me.

At the start of the film, one old man ing.”

Franco used Moroccan, German and Italian goes through the names of his The anniversary has been troops to take the city, an international alliance friends and family who died. He marked by a series of events. which was a microcosm of what was to come reels off 20, the names all painOne group are retracing the in 1939. fully etched into his memory. His refugees’ steps and walking “We don’t know exactly how many died on the words are fired with the ferocity from Malaga to Almeria. A road to Malaga,” says Arcas. Perhaps it will of bullets. memorial exhibition marknever be known, despite the good work of men Another old lady recalls how ing the event has opened in like Emilio Silva, whose ‘Association for the Rethey fled Malaga when they Almeria. cuperation of Historical Memory’ search for the At the Costa Press club SNAPPED: The massacre was heard rumours that approachbodies of Franco’s victims buried in unmarked screening, Arcas gave a talk chronicled by Canadian doctor ing Francoist troops were cutgraves. ting off Republicans’ heads. about the effects of the war Norman Bethune

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A ‘SERIOUS criminal offence’ caused an edgy stand-off between the Royal Gibraltar Police (RGP) and the crew of an RAF Hercules.

The incident - which led to a two hour halt for traffic coming in and out of Gibraltar - can be revealed to have involved ‘the contents of a laptop’.

A senior police source confirmed to the Olive Press that the RGP sensationally halted the departure of the plane, in order to arrest someone on board over illegal material.

The as-yet unconfirmed documents or photos are understood to have led to the arrest of the man who was eventually removed from the plane.

While GBC claimed the material was of a ‘sexual nature’, this week neither the MOD in London, the RGP or the government would give further details about last Wednesday’s flashpoint that made international news.

The high-level source told the Olive Press last night: “This was something that needed to be retrieved immediately before anything was wiped.

“If it was anything else they would have gone for a Europe-

Child ponography on a laptop is being blamed for a tense border closure that lasted two hours

CHAOS: Huge tailbacks following dramatic incident an Arrest Warrant and waited.”

Another Olive Press source meanwhile confirmed that the incident was indeed ‘something very big’.

The senior figure said: “If the RGP stops an MOD aircraft from taking off it is something very big, I can tell you that.”

He added: “The Ministry of Defence had better come out and say something soon.”

On Monday, the government insisted that it was still ‘seeking to clarify all aspects’ of what occurred and would be issuing a statement ‘in due course’.

The drama unfolded from

around 4.30pm when an RGP vehicle blocked the RAF Hercules plane from taking off along the runway.

Hundreds of motorists and pedestrians were left waiting until the RAF plane was finally able to depart at 6pm and the barriers reopened.

An RGP spokesperson told The Olive Press: “We are not making any comment at the moment, but may be in a situation to do so in the near future.”

A MOD spokesperson in London told The Olive Press: “We can confirm that an incident necessitated an unscheduled closure of Winston Churchill Avenue in Gibraltar.

“As this incident has occurred as a result of an on-going police investigation we are unable to comment further at this time.

“Despite the unscheduled closure, incoming commercial flights were unaffected but a small number of departures suffered minor delays.”

A series of Olive Press reports on the incident were used in The Sun, The Star and The Daily Mail.

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Fun of the fair MASKS and merriment will be order of the day when carnival comes to town this month.

Streets around Andalucia will explode with colour and sound with carnival events planned in dozens of towns and cities to mark the start of Lent.

The most famous place to witness the spectacle is in Cadiz, which has a world-renowned event starting on February 23 for 11 days.

Hundreds of thousands of revellers are set to arrive on the busiest weekend of February 25 and 26.

Malaga meanwhile will host the second biggest event in the region from February 16 to 26.

Among its highlights will be the grand parade on February 19, a drag queen contest on February 24, and a gran finale on February 25.

Popular bloke SPAIN’S prime minister has been re-elected head of his party for the fourth time.

Mariano Rajoy gleaned 95.65% of the votes cast in the right-wing Partido Popular’s presidential contest held at its national congress.

News

9

Green light at last

A LONG-AWAITED city metro system is to finally crank into life.

Granada’s 26-stop tram network will launch on March 31, 10 years after construction first began.

Costing €558m, the mostly above ground EXCLUSIVE

By Laurence Dollimore

A BRITISH expat was left planning his own funeral after being prescribed a lethal painkiller in a Spanish hospital.

Hugh Wilcock was left bedridden after the now-notorious Nolotil - banned in the UK destroyed his white blood cells and left him for dead.

The 79-year-old, who lives in Benalmadena, was prescribed the drug for pain relief following several back operations.

But six weeks into taking the pills, Hugh developed sores on his forehead and felt weaker and weaker until he had to be rushed to Malaga’s University hospital.

“I felt horrendous,” Hugh told the Olive Press, “They immediately knew I had been prescribed Nolotil and put me into isolation straight away.

“I could barely open my eyes, and my immune system was at so much risk that my family had to wear masks so they didn’t infect me.”

Hugh was told by doctors that his condition was ‘very serious’.

“I was planning my own funer-

16km track will link up the suburbs of Albolote and Armilla with the city centre.

The project, which has 3kms underground, has faced numerous delays, in part due to having to wait for credit from the European Bank.

Funeral planner

Briton was planning his service after banned killer drug destroyed his immune system

al, it was touch and go,” he said.

Hugh (above), originally from Manchester, says he is shocked that the drug, banned in the UK and most of the EU, is being

prescribed so willingly in Spain.

“I spoke to two private doctors, one Spanish and one English, and they told me that they were shocked at what happened to me.

“They said I was ‘one in a million’, but I know several others who have had similar experiences.

“They then blamed my genes, saying that it only seems to affect British and Irish people.

“But what was more worrying was that they said they prescribe it all the time.”

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February 15th - February 28th 2017

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Hip-hippo-hooray A RARE pygmy hippo has been born at a Costa del Sol zoo.

The unnamed female calf can now be seen splashing around at Bioparc Fuengirola, which is leading the way in a worldwide project to save it from extinction.

Ten times smaller than the common Nile hippo, the adorable mammal has been classified as threatened since 2006 by the

Home birds BIRDS are wintering in Andalucia in record numbers this year.

Almost one million migrating breeds have been recorded in the region’s wetlands, 115,000 more than in 2004, the last peak year.

Andalucia’s environment councillor, José Fiscal, said that higher than normal rainfall is to thank for the increase, which has heightened water levels in places such as Donana National Park, where 70% of the birds were recorded.

Fiscal said the Junta would continue to develop its protection of the region’s wetlands, which are important sites for biodiversity.

NATURE lovers in Malaga are backing a campaign for an urban ‘forest’ park on a former toxic site.

Almost 25,000 people have signed a petition asking Malaga Council to turn the old Repsol petrol storage plant into a 177,000m2 Hyde Park-style attraction.

They object to the current potential plan of the city council to use 100,000m2 of the land between Avenidas Europa and Juan XXIII to house four new skyscrapers for homes and offices.

Hundreds of campaigners staged a cycle ride through the city on February 11 in support of the proposal for the site, which has lain abandoned for decades.

They want the land to be grassed over and planted with thousands of trees native to the Costa del Sol. They would also like it to include bicycle and walking paths.

“Málaga City Council should commit to not fur-

International Union for Conservation of Nature.

It now only exists in the wild in isolated pockets of the Sierra Leone, Ivory Coast, Liberia and he Gulf of Guinea.

It is the fifth baby to be born at Bioparc, one of only three Spanish zoos involved in a conservation breeding project which hopes to reintroduce them into the wild.

NEW BORN: Bioparc pygmy hippo

A walk in the park?

Malaguenos demand former toxic wasteland be turned into a giant urban park

ther increasing neighbourhoods with housing to instead provide the city with a real urban forest that places Malaga in the line with other great European capitals,” said a spokesperson for the campaign.

A huge study is currently taking place on the site due to fears it could still be contaminated.

It was used by Repsol to store petrol in the 1970s

CAMPAIGN: Urban park demanded

Trampling on nature OFF-ROAD running has been blamed for causing lasting damage to protected mountain zones.

Some ten environmental groups have voiced their concerns in an official letter to Spain’s minister of agriculture.

Trampling of ground, litter and noise pollution are among the issues they believe are not being adequately addressed by some race organisers.

“Runners trample on vegetation, causing it to disappear,” said Mari Ángeles Nieto, spokeswoman for Ecologistas en Acción.

“Trash, the passage of vehicles, lights at night etcetera alter these delicate areas of high mountain and it is problematic to restore them,” she said.

“Although some organisers are sensitive, in general they are not."

ANGER: Protestors slam mine ‘risk’

New defender for Donana

A CONTROVERSIAL uranium mine has been denounced to the EU. Global conservation group WWF has told the European Commission the open cast mine in Salamanca, which would be the largest in Europe, poses risks to nature and people.

It believes that the Spanish government and Castile y Leon Junta were wrong to give the go-ahead to the project, now under construction, before ‘assessing the risks.’

Australian mining company Berkeley Energia is currently building the mine in a European Unionbacked nature protection zone.

It wants to extract the element for use in nuclear power stations.

A WWF spokesperson claimed that the mine could lead to the extinction of certain animals and wreck habitats, as well as causing potential health problems and destroying the local economy.

A state-owned mine operated in the area from the early 1970s until the early 2000s but was mucher smaller in scale.

Berkeley Energia has not replied to The Olive Press’s request for a comment.

AN OMBUDSMAN has launched an investigation into the worrying risks to Donana National Park.

Andaluz official Jesús Maeztu wants to give people 'transparent information' on the current situation of the beleaguered Sevilla/Huelva zone, which risks being added to UNESCO's list of endangered world heritage sites.

He also hopes it will help politicians propose fresh measures to guarantee its conservation.

Maeztu hit out at controversial economic projects either proposed or already carried out there, such as the dredging of its wetlands, widening of nearby roads and Gas Natural Fenosa's plan to store gas underneath it.

The 543 km2 Donana is one of Europe's most important wetlands and is home to some 4,000 plant and animal species.

Uranium mine shafted

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Close call SOCIALISTS would once again win Andalucia’s Junta elections were they to be held again now.

But the centre-left PSOE party would lose to the right wing Partido Popular in two more provinces than in the last election in 2015, according to a survey of voter intentions.

Altogether, 28,6% of Andalucians would today vote for the PSOE, down from the 35.4% who actually voted for the party last time.

The PP’s vote would reduce by a smaller amount to 26.2%, down from 26.7% in the election.

The PP would now win out in both Malaga and Cadiz, according to the University of Granada poll.

February 15th - February 28th 2017

You’re worth it Ambassador tells Olive Press expats are valued

by Spain as much as he rates hispanophiles like Brenan, Orwell and Lee

HUG: Iglesias & Errejon

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW

by Joe Duggan

BRITISH ambassador to Spain Simon Manley insists Mariano Rajoy and the Spanish government ‘value the presence of Britons in Spain’.

Speaking to the Olive Press, the UK’s man in Madrid revealed

CAPTION: he has met with national and local leaders to put across expats’ Brexit fears.

Middleman MAriano SPAIN’S prime minister has offered to become Donald Trump’s middleman in Europe and Latin America.

Mariano Rajoy made the commitment in an official 15-minute telephone conversation, the first since Trump came to power.

He also pledged to do the same for North Africa and the Middle East, claiming Spain was in the ‘best condition’ to take on the role with its ‘stable government’ and an economy growing by more than 3%.’

Security and defence were also on the agenda, due to the countries’ joint control of the two military bases in Rota and Moron.

11

ON LINE: Trump

SCRIBES:Orwell (left), Brenan (above), Lee (right) and Manley (inset) Manley is also holding discussions with expats as the UK government prepares for negotiations over leaving the EU, with access to healthcare one of the primary concerns.

Manley told the paper: “We are trying to meet with expats and groups representing them to understand their concerns and transmit those to London.

“Many expats have suffered from the fall in sterling, which has affected pensions.”

He continued: “We want to work with Spanish authorities at the national, regional and local level to ensure Brits can continue to live and buy property here.”

He added: “Whether it be the Spanish national government, from Prime Minister Rajoy down, through to presidents of regional governments I have

Yes he can met and many a city mayor, all of them tell me they value the presence of Britons here in Spain.”

Manley was speaking after he had taken a tour of the cemetery with mayor Francisco de La Torre.

The ambassador and De La Torre stopped to lay flowers at the grave of British writer Gerald Brenan.

Manley said: “People like Brenan did so much to enable Britons to understand the reality of Spain in the 20th century. His cultural legacy lives on.

“I read about Spain through the works of Laurie Lee, Orwell and Brenan. It’s important to try and understand the context in which we’re working and understand more about the historical relationship between the UK and Spain.”

PABLO Iglesias has been reelected as Podemos leader in a landslide victory.

The popular leader cemented his control of the anti-corruption party by winning 89% of the votes to remain as the general secretary.

Iglesias, 39, also won the vote for his own particular brand of politics, which he insisted was vital to remain in the top job.

In this key rubber stamp for his leadership, he beat the more moderate Inigo Errejon, whose policy package gained only 33% of the votes against Iglesias’s 56%.

It is not yet known if Errejon will continue in his role as the party’s political secretary and spokesperson.

Former economics professor Iglesias’ loyalists also triumphed in the elections to the party’s citizens’ council, the main decision-making body, by gaining 60% of the total seats.

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New Longman’s bookshop presents a painting and opera night from 7pm.

Local mezzo-soprano Clarice Williams will perform a mini concert, and artist Emour app now and manuel Janvier Download will present his work. begin enjoying the best Spanish on the go. alaga,newsFebru-

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At 12pm the Malaga Philharmonic Orchestra will perform John Williams’ soundtracks for the Indiana Jones and Harry Potter sagas, conducted by Arturo Diez Boscovich. Tickets €15.

Freud and Bacon to visit The Olive Press Malaga’s arbella, until February Picasso TOP23 for news in Spain!

‘Relaciones’ is an exhibition of artwork from Museum

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Austrian Dana Nowak, showcased by the Magpie International Gallery.

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alaga, until February 26

Don’t miss the Malaga Carnaval! Main attractions include the fancy dress competition and parade on the 19, and the battle of the flowers on the 25th. Info at www.carnavaldemalaga.es.

ON SHOW: Legendary British artists at Picasso museum (above)

CULT British artists will be the focus of a huge new Picasso Museum exhibition.

Works by Francis Bacon and Lucian Freud will be flown

over from Tate London for the five month showcase, open from April 26 to September 17.

Titled Bacon, Freud and the School of London, the exhibi-

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THREE people have been arrested in connection with the theft of five Francis Bacon paintings.

The €25 million haul was stolen from a private residence in Madrid in June 2015.

According to the Policia Nacional, six properties in the Madrid region were raided as part of the operation.

A gun, ammunition, safe cracking manuals, laser devices, tools to cut metal, fake keys and uniforms were all seized.

The three arrested are thought to have been employed to break into the Madrid house where the Bacon paintings were hung.

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Cheap seats THEATRE, concert and dance tickets are set to get cheaper in 2017.

The government has announced that it will reduce the VAT on live performances from 21% to 10%.

The drop in VAT income will cost about €200 million a year.

This will not include cinema tickets, which will retain a 21% VAT until the state is ‘on track with the deficit’ said Minister of Culture Inigo Mendez de Vigo.

Spain currently has the fourth-highest rate of VAT on cultural performances in the EU.

tion focuses on post-war and late 20th century art which discuss the symbolism and fragility of the human figure.

Among the famed works going on display will be Freud’s Girl with a White Dog (pictured top left), which features of painting of his first wife Kitty while she was pregnant.

Other renowned artists on show include Frank Auerbach, David Bomberg, William Coldstream, B Kitaj, Leon Kossoff, Paula Rego and Euan Uglow.

Talking about the exhibition, a spokesperson for the museum said: “By painting the human figure and their own everyday landscapes, these artists conveyed the fragility and vitality of the human condition. “Simultaneously, they developed new approaches and styles, translating life into art and reinventing the way it is depicted.”

Stop this circus!

ACTIVISTS have demanded a meeting with Andalucian politicians to ban animal circuses.

Animal rights group Toniza is hopeful that Chiclana Town Hall officials will accept its invitation to discuss why it continues to allow travelling circuses with performing animals to stop in the town.

It is the latest step in the group’s campaign to stamp out Big Top business when animals are part of the show.

It made the request after Joaquín Páez Landa, the town’s environment councillor, admitted to a local TV channel that the council had ‘begun a period of reflection’ on the issue.

Animal circuses have already been banned in almost 300 other Spanish towns.

“We don’t think there is any legal reason why an agreement (to ban circuses with animals) cannot be made, as has been done in many other towns,” said a group spokesperson.

“The Ley Andaluza 11/2003 forbids the practice of any activity that could cause suffering to animals and the keeping of them in inadequate facilities.

“In light of all the evidence available, we think the council must not allow circuses with animals to stop in the area.”

Younger than they look THE Nerja cave paintings could be much more recent than previously thought.

A new method of calcium dating has put the caves at 20,000 years old - relatively modern art compared to their previously believed age of 40,000 to 43,500 years. An investigation team led by Cordoba University’s Jose Luis Sanchidrian has been working at the site for five years. The paintings could have been the work of Homo sapiens rather than neanderthals.

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Art in action SOME 500 people attended the annual Art in Action exhibition in Benahavis.

The champagne was flowing as more than 20 artists, accompanied by a live band, exhibited their works at the Gran Hotel.

Organised by the Benahavis Decorative Fine Arts Society, local and expat painters, sculptors and potters displayed their finest works.

“It’s been a fantastic day,” said Debbie Lush, 37, from Dublin, who moved to Marbella 11 months ago.

“Obviously the interest and sales have been great but events like these show how many talented artists there are here and there has been a great community feel to it, I will definitely be back next year.”

Pollocks to Bilbao

ICONIC paintings by American greats have gone on display in Spain.

Works by Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko and Willem de Kooning are among 130 exhibits by 33 artists in the US Abstract-Expressionism retrospective, on show until June 4 at Bilbao’s Guggenheim Museum.

It is the first time that some of these paintings ICONS: (Left) Pollock and (above) have ever been shown outside the States.

London’s Royal Academy of Arts is behind the the Guggenheim in Bilbao

A GLITTERING cast of Spain’s brightest and best movie stars added extra sparkle to the country’s 31st Goya Awards.

Juan Antonio Bayona’s A Monster Calls swept the board at the dazzling Madrid ceremony, where it took nine of the 12 gongs it was nominated for.

The touching fantasy, based on a book by British author Siobhan Dowd, walked away with prizes in categories such as best direction and special effects.

Winners

LOCAL TALENT: Debbie

February 15th - February 28th 2017 February 15th - February 28th 2017

Raúl Arévalo’s The Fury of a Patient Man (Tarde Para la Ira) was crowned best film, beating both A Monster Calls and Pedro Almodovar’s Julieta.

It was one of four Goyas won by the Spanish thriller, with Algecireno Manolo Solo winning the best supporting actor award.

Madrilena actress Emma Suarez beat Pe-

Andalucians feature among the winners of Spain’s Oscar awards

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exhibition, when both art institutes will introduce viewers to the ‘vibrant energy’ and ‘influential’ nature of the movement.

Begun in New York in the 1940s, abstract-expressionism represented a desire to break free from accepted art conventions by experimenting with diverse styles in a spontaneous manner.

Entry to the exhibition is included in the €13 adult museum ticket fee.

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G

OOGLE is a wonderful thing. There's a whole host of information at our finger-tips, and the anonymity of search engines means we don't have to be embarrassed about asking silly questions.

However, if enough people ask the same question then Google Suggestions will keep a treacherous record of it. Here at the Olive Press we've used this to take a look at some of the most burning questions typed into Google Espana, and done our best to answer a few.

la cultura

February 15th - February 28th 2017 February 1st - February 14th 2017 February 15th - February 28th 2017

15 15

Who were the Welsh? and why is the UK an island Top search engine reveals what Spaniards really think of the British, writes Elsa Maishman

Search ing for answers

Why don't British people wash themselves?

It rains a lot, we don't need to.

Why don’t Scottish men wear underwear?

They sometimes do. Probably. But not when wearing kilts if they are a true Scot. the The ‘tradition’ is merely a holdover from centuries past, but no one knows its specific origin.

Why does the Queen of England have two birthdays?

How are the English as lovers?

We're well known for being warm, spontaneous and passionate.

She’s the Queen. She can get away with it. But if you must know, her actual birthday is on April 21 and her official birthday is on a Saturday in June.

Official celebrations to mark a sovereign’s birthday have often been held on a day other than the actual birthday, particularly when the actual birthday has not been in the summer.

Why is the United Kingdom an island?

wet weather.

We decided that Europe just wasn't quite the thing any more so we all waded out a few feet into the channel, put our hands on the beach and pushed really hard in the direction of Iceland.

Why are the English so cold?

It's probably the weather. Rain does awful things to your ability to smile.

Who were the Welsh?

Don't worry, there are a few of them left, we promise. They can be found north west of England herding sheep or complaining about the

Why don’t British people cry?

We don't have tear ducts, and we we were raised with stiff upper lips, of course.

Why don’t British people eat rabbit?

on glasses from 89€

Perhaps we can't produce enough wine. According to the Tea and Infusions Organisation, the British consume 60 billion cups per year - That’s more than 900 cups a year for every man, woman and child in Great Britain.

What do two British people do when Why do they eat so badly they enter each other's field of vision? in England?

We can’t show emotion to humans, so it all builds up and is directed at horses, dogs and other small fluffy animals instead.

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Why do British people drink tea?

Mutter something about the weather and hurriedly look the other way. A packed London Tube during rush hour will always remain one of the quietest spots on the planet.

No idea what you’re talking about. Yorkshire puddings, chips, battered fish, crumpets, fried bread and sausage rolls all contain hearty, fortifying carbohydrates. And Marmite has celery in it.

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www.theolivepress.es Thank you

Number crunching

I have just seen the notice about my art exhibition on page eight and I wanted to express my thanks to you and the team. With such a large number of people who look forward to their Olive Press, I hope this will persuade some of them to come and have a look at my paintings.Thanks again.

22 jobs have been given to friends and family by the university of Sevilla’s cleaning supervisor

Margaret Riordan, Axarquia

75% , the amount by

Burning topic WEBSITE

Readers react to our feature on the Spanish history of hunting (Badwill Hunting, Issue 258).

Franco and Prince

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A VICTORY for mortgage been awarded owners has by the European of Justice.

Court The court mortgage has ruled that two million holders in to additional Spain refunds from are entitled because It came they paid too muchthe banks due to the interest. clauses’ that saw most so-called ‘floor fail to lower Spanish banks rowers to their interest rates match the the European base rate to borCentral set by The court ruled that Bank. that repayments it was unfair and entire life should time that of the mortgage cover the during the continue interest rates were low and When theto be. lowered central bank base economy to stimulate the rate was some years eurozone repayments ago, mortgage should have 1.5% to tracked it continued2%, however many to to pay 3.5% borrowers The surprise and be appealed. ruling is final more. and cannot Around two now be set million borrowers should timated to to receive repayments, be worth esbillions of euros.

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a cool The chic BRITISH new addition bella, spree in expats are on a buy-to-let the just east of the to Bahia MarEngland. London and the south latest town, includes east of installed technology, According sound system, with a preto mortgage International and there has lender Skipton The underfloor heating. solar panels cant rise property, been cent years.in expat investment a signifi- Properties, marketed over re- with sits in a gatedby Panorama New figures 24-hour security. community to-lets are reveal 40% of are in the in the UK capital,expats’ buy“Prices in pricey south east. while 25% nificantly London have increased ing that in the past few years, sigmeanattractivecapital gains have mortgage for investors,” saidbeen very director Nigel Skipton “Expats have Pascoe. ing and long many reasons term investment for investthe most is usually The trendimportant.” has occurred come easier as it has pats, who to secure lending becredit checkspreviously struggledfor exwith Some 35% and recent credit history. vestment of expats cited long term ing, while as their main reason inanother 19% for of their pension said it was buypart plan.

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MALAGA €2 millionprovince’s second La Estrella project failed to biggest castle will being used castle is spreadtake off almost a finally be renovated decade ago. over during the after a Spanish filming of 25,000 square metres ‘Douglas, A project TV series which features to give the el Guardian and is currently onset of the structure the battle of Teba, de Historia’ global financial a face It now back where – crisis. lift was abandoned the castle lies.a investigation, on, and will improve in 2008 consolidate a t the structure. accessibility, the walls undertake and generally archeological improve the existing

PAGE 13

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Expat’s rescue animals mercilessly killed over ‘hunting row’

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Farmers are rapidly becoming the number one environmental enemy in Spain (British expat gets UN to help fight farming scandal in southern Spain, where excessive olive tree farming is draining water supplies, issue 258). They can’t see past their own noses as the destructive effects of over-growing, which in turn depletes the water table, leads to desert-like conditions in which nothing will eventually grow (not even their own crops). Illegal planting and irrigation is another major issue, and without enforcement (which admittedly is very difficult) this process will continue until nothing else can be grown on these lands.

The recent Spanish harvest has been a disaster, and can only get worse.

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Fred G, Malaga

Awful Before anybody gets on their high horse, most Spanish oppose unnecessary animal torture, including bullfighting (You will pay: Local mayor’s promise to hunters who killed expat’s rescue dogs, issue 258).

I hope these guys pay! The very thought of taking someone’s pet’s life is just horrendous.

The worst thing about this was that they were rescue dogs who had already been res-

Wolf cubs were strangled in Los Picos de Europa Park by a member of SEPRONA about 10 years ago when the squad was investigating calf and goat killings. The squad came across a wolf den some meters within the park. One of the squad members went into the park and strangled the cubs. It only came to light a few months later when his witnessing member, greatly disturbed by the illegal act, reported the killings to his superiors.

The guilty officer came from a local cattle herding family and did what cattlemen do – kill wolves and vultures any way they can – frequently with meat filled with poison or carpet tacks or glass. It took a huge amount of courage for the observing officer to turn in the guilty party. No doubt the social pressure was enormous.

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Vol. 11 Issue 258 www.theolivepress.es February 1st - February 14th 2017

PAGE 19

and counting …

Olive Press Facebook page reaches new milestone. See Page 6

THEY ARE DRAINING US DRY A BRITISH expat has successfully enlisted the help of the UN to probe a farming scandal that is ‘killing the last desert’ in Europe.

Thanks to green campaigner David Dene, the UN Office of Human Rights is investigating the alleged destruction of the ‘El Rio de Aguas’ area of Almeria due to intensive olive tree production.

Environmentalists claim the trees are depleting a precious underground aquiDANGER: Olive trees and (right) Dene fer, which is rapidly running dry. They

EXCLUSIVE By Chloe Glover

insist the lack of water is already wreaking havoc on the environment and forcing whole communities to move.

“It’s a massive human and environmental rights abuse, which is why the UN is now looking into it”, explained Dene, who works with charity Sunseed.

“Four million trees have been planted by large industrial producers over the last few years. “Each is extracting 10

litres of water a day from the aquifer, which is a basin of non-renewable water that both humans and nature depends upon to survive in this area.

“Already a few communities have been forced to move and we now have to drive 15km to the nearest spring to get our water.”

Dene continued: “At the current rate, unless something is done, the aquifer will run dry in just a few years”, he said.

“It’s killing the last desert in Europe.”

Leave her alone!

Expat defends Ukrainian girlfriend after coroner rules she killed her husband EXCLUSIVE

By Laurence Dollimore

would be happy if this person would be found and brought to criminal responsibility.

“I am tired of harassment and intrusions in my personal life, of the lies, smear and unreasonable accusations. After all, nobody cancelled the presumption of innocence.”

She added: “There is no crime without motive and I had none.

I lost everything I dreamt of when my husband died: family, business, respectable life.

“And what is most crucial – I lost the loving and the loved

BOYFRIEND: Ivan outside villa (pictured above) one. I had no motive to kill my husband, I have nothing to do with an incident.”

Anna has refused to cooperate

with UK police and did not attend the coroner’s hearing in January of this year.

Our investigation has found Est 1984

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that the former lapdancer from Ukraine bought a villa in Nueva Andalucia in September 2014, before buying a two-bedroom apartment for her parents nearby a year later.

In total her property portfolio is worth €1 million and she is understood to own other plots, including a car parking space in Marbella.

Convinced of her guilt, the brother of her slain husband, Shaughan, has vowed to continue a nine-year battle for justice which has already cost the Pring family €230,000.

“She’s living like the Queen of Sheba,” said the still-grieving 54 year old, “The Ukrainian po-

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HUNTING HOTSPOTS

Cold-blooded

It is not however, the first time hunters in Spain thanks to a lawless few. have violently resisted the efforts of conservaThey insist they respect the laws of the land, are tionists and animal rights groups. equally into conservation, and claim the tradiIn Asturias last year, measures to protect livetion gets them ‘closer to the deepest laws of the stock from the Iberian wolf saw hunters deEarth.’ capitate two and leave their heads hanging from While the sport becomes less and less popular lamp posts. with the younger generation, it continues to be Meanwhile, examples of the extremely rare embedded in certain pockets of Spain, particulynx (the most endangered big cat in the world) larly in Andalucia. have been found apparently shot or poisoned by Indeed, Spain’s largest region boasts more landowners over the last decade, while the Olive hunting opportunities than anywhere else in EuPress investigated the shooting of rare eagles rope with species to hunt including board, deer, and vultures around the Serrania de Ronda ibex and partridge. area a few years back.

It is a profitable business with tens of Even the extremely rare and endanthousands of foreigners flying in gered Iberian brown bears have each year to take advantage from time to time been found of the rich diversity of shot in the north of Spain. game.

Environmentalists say Among them are the the lack of a tradition British royals, in ● The hunting season for game is from midof conservation in particular princes October to early February. There are large Spain means huntWilliam and Harry, fines for anyone caught hunting out of seaers are inclined to who have long son ‘shoot anything that been regular visi● There are more than 900,000 licensed huntmoves’. tors to the estate ers in Spain Their actions conof the Duke of ● There are 35 million hectares of hunting land tinue to clash with Westminster, in Spain a rise in the animal near Conquista, ● More than 25,000 foreign hunters travel to rights movement in Cordoba provSpain each year particularly among ince. ● The minimum age for hunting is 14, but Spain’s youth.

On top of this, hunters under 18 must be accompanied And the trend is enone of the largest by adults couraging. hunting estates in ●All hunters must pay a yearly licence in In last year’s national Europe is owned by each of the regions where they elections PACMA, a pothe Duke of Wellington, hunt litical party based on animal near Illora, in Granada rights, increased its votes from province.

220,000 to 285,000, a sign of the Hunting, of course, dates back to slowly shifting tide of opinion. prehistoric times, when it was necessary Some 94% of Spaniards now consider it ‘very for survival, but it became hugely popular during important’ or ‘important’ to ensure the welfare the Phoenician era - 1500 BC to 300 BC - when of animals, up 23% from ten years ago. people enjoyed the ‘privilege’ of hunting freely Meanwhile the number of hunting licenses beand without restrictions. ing granted is decreasing with more than one By medieval times, hunting was the favourite million failing to be renewed since 2006. pastime for the country’s elite.

But while modern Spanish hunters receive a While the military would hunt when on the road lot of stick, they say they get a bad reputation and locals would organise hunting parties for

Fact file

food and to protect their families from predators like wolves, the elite saw it as a fun distraction from running the country.

Kings would often retreat to their country houses to enjoy weekend shooting parties involving the tracking and killing of wild boar, deer and birds.

The 18th century King Carlos IV was known as ‘El Cazador’ - the Hunter - and was famed for his preference for hunting in Andalucia over dealing with affairs of the state.

Felipe V, the first Spanish Bourbon King, would often leave Madrid to spend quality hunting time in the country.

But as numbers in the wild depleted, the elite began introducing measures and restrictions.

King Alfonso XIII became so concerned at the lack of Spanish Ibex that he created the first royal hunting area, or Coto Real, near Madrid, in 1903.

Ironically it was one of the first measures taken against the extinction of a species in the world.

Many restrictions have followed since but unfortunately too many have been ignored, leading to the extinction of species and the risks of many more around the country.

Today, Spain has 35 million hectares set aside for hunting in national parks, hunting reserves, national preserves and countless private game reserves.

Most animals are available, including wolves, while bears and lynx are officially protected.

But sadly this has not prevented deaths, leading to Ecologistas en Accion warning that Spain’s biodiversity is the most fragile in Europe… and last year thousands marched in Madrid to demand greater protection for the likes of the Iberian wolf, which can still be hunted with a special licence. While the majority of hunters enjoy their sport legally and respect the rules, it’s clear that the sport is set to come under increasing pressure over the next few years as younger generations become more politically aligned with environmentalism and animal rights. And the massacre of half a dozen innocent rescue dogs in Granada does no favours to the cause. Hunting, like bullfighting, treads on eggshells.

, !

R 17 IA FO 20 ER M EW R L N ME A M OM SU FR FLY

LOW FARES BACK TO BRITAIN FROM MALAGA

SPANISH prime minister Mariano Rajoy has said Brexit is a ‘serious threat’ to Spain because of how many Brits live in and visit the country.

Speaking at a news conference yesterday, Rajoy pleaded for Europe to remain united and said Britain’s departure from the bloc threatened Spain’s economy.

“Brexit is a serious threat,” Rajoy said. “Without wanting to go into other considerations, I will only tell you that one in five tourists who come to Spain are British, and close to 17 million Britons visited

Fears

Won’t dump on Trump!

THE Spanish government has refused to condemn Donald Trump’s ban on immigrants from seven Muslim-majority countries.

A Madrid spokesperson said it wanted to avoid ‘shouting and being too strident’ in its relations with the new US president.

France has called for a ‘firm response’

GANNA: With Barry lice have done nothing.”

Vowing to bring Ganna to justice, he said: “Anna is an extremely manipulative person.

She’s been doing it most of her adult life. Manipulating people for money. Who else could have tricked him like that?”

A coroner in the UK heard how Ziuzina asked her husband to hail a taxi on the edge of a busy road after their boozy anniversary dinner in Kiev.

But while she supposedly dashed back into the restaurant to collect a glove she left behind, Pring was hit by a stolen lorry travelling at 80mph with no headlights on and with no number plates.

Senior coroner Dr Elizabeth Earland returned a verdict of unlawful killing last week.

At his inquest in Devon, Pring’s family told the coroner his ‘cold’ wife was after his fortune.

Unlawful

In a statement read to the court, Barry’s mother Irene said: “We are sure that Anna had some involvement in Barry’s death to get an inheritance.”

Barry Pring, from Devon, owned five properties and was worth an estimated €1.7 million.

According to Olive Press sources, Ziuzina has since settled in comfortably to her new life in the sun.

She was recently spotted shopping in Puerto Banus’s Elit Banus supermarket and the Organic Supermarket in Benahavis, where she is also known to frequent bars and a local gym.

Pring’s death was initially investigated by Ukrainian authorities as an accident but it was reclassified as murder in 2011 amid concerns from his family that he was the victim of a contract killing.

Ziuzina, from Kiev, declined to comment from her Marbella villa.

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Helen Doig, Granada

Interesting piece. I think the issue with hunting comes with the middle sized estates, where there is often not enough money for guards or fencing. This makes them easy to break into and puts them at risk from poachers and illegal hunters.

But bigger hunting places like those of the Dukes make enough money out of hunting to protect themselves.

Helena Paling, Malaga

No entiendo Very interesting article.

I also struggle to under-

February 1st - February 14th 2017

9

STILL CORRUPT

Bad for business

There are fears that further falls in the pound will make fewer Britons want to travel, while retirees living in Spain will have less purchasing power.

with dropping temperatures and

- Heavy snow falls onmore northern parts rain - 4616 viewsof Spain (2,200)

Congratulations, what a fantastic article reference hunting and the recent shocking events of the barbaric shooting of the dogs and the gouging of the eye of the horse! Keep up your fantastic reporting of the truth!

POLITIC S

Spain last year.”

Some 300,000 Brits are known to live in Spain, but that figure may be as high as one million as many expats do not register properly.

www.theolivepress.es

- Snow fallen on Marbella for first time in  Costa del Sol on weather alert decades (6,070)

Issue

KING Felipe IV has said that Russia is a ‘key country for settling various crises and conflicts’ in a meeting with the diplomatic corps in Madrid.

He also expressed hope that Russia would play a meaningful role in ensuring common security and prosperity in Eurasia.

He also underlined the importance of the European Union in keeping the peace.

Spain’s PM worried for his country’s economy postBrexit

Most readMoststories read this

fortnight onweek (8,459) - Big freeze to hit Andalucia this

Keep it up

Russia is key

THE ex-leader of the Socialist party has launched a fresh leadership bid.

Pedro Sanchez announced his candidacy to lead the PSOE again at a huge 3,000 strong rally of supporters in Sevilla.

He is the second politician to announce his intention to stand in this summer’s leadership contest, following the decision of Patxi Lopez, the former Party of Euskadi president.

At the gathering, the charismatic leftist committed to ‘re-democratising’ the party and making it a powerful opposition to Mariano Rajoy’s right wing PP government.

Sanchez, who resigned from the top job last October, left over his irreconcilable opposition to giving Rajoy a mandate to lead the country, an issue that split the party.

“From the bottom of the heart of Andalucian socialism, I want to tell you that I will be your candidate”, said Sanchez, 44. "I have more experience and desire than ever.”

Visitors: xxxxxxxx

1 2 3 4

stand the Spanish hunting culture. We have managed to keep hunters off our land (despite having ‘escenario de caza’ signs put up around our land when we were away on holiday), but nevertheless on neighbouring land, rabbits have been hunted to almost zero numbers and the day-long noise of guns shooting at the Zorzales birds drives me crazy. All that fire power to kill some little birds!

Price one way inc. taxes. Selected flights only, subject to availability. Terms & conditions apply, see website for details.

Destinations vary by departure airport, not all routes operate year-round. Correct at time of print, February 2017.

Richard Easy, Sabinillas

Return from the dead

October 2015

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“I will also tell you that elections in the United Kingdom is the Germany this France and year will be first destination for Span- ‘decisive’. ish companies’ investment He said: “Spain… hopes and our third commercial that its two biggest partpartner,” Rajoy added. ners will maintain their He went on to say that pro-EU vocation and their Britain’s divorce should determination to inspire the EU to be ‘more ward a project push forwhich decohesive, more effective in spite all its imperfections its decision-making and is the best political initiawith better political ambi- tive the world has seen in tion.’ centuries – the EU projThe PP leader added that ect.”

SPAIN remains one of Europe’s most corrupt countries according to the annual Corruption Perceptions Index.

And globally, the country came 41st below the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Botswana, in the Transparency International report.

While Spain has gone up 24 places since being ranked 65 in 2012, it has remained one of the worst performing in Europe and stayed in the same position for two years.

However, according to the NGO, no nation in the world is doing enough to fight corruption.

It highlighted a couple of corruption cases in Denmark, which came first, and said it was ‘highly alarming’ that even the bestperforming countries in the EU aren’t immune from corruption.

Somalia was at the very bottom of the index for the tenth year in row with a score of 10.

Hopeful

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Badwill hunting

got in common?

Voted BEST expat paper in Spain

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separatists attended a protest over the trial of former leader Artur Mas

952 465 588

Vol. 11 Issue 257

18 January

40,000 Catalonian

A BRITISH expat has defended his ‘black widow’ girlfriend who stands accused of murdering her millionaire husband.

Speaking outside their villa in Marbella, businessman Ivan Lister told the Olive Press that the treatment of girlfriend Anna Ziuzina (right) was ‘unfair’.

“It’s all very unfair,” he declared, “but we’re not saying anything because we haven’t had legal advice yet.”

Lister, 48, is believed to have met the Ukrainian internet bride shortly after her husband was killed by a suspected contract killing.

They now have a three-year-old daughter and have been living in Marbella for at least three years.

Anna - sometimes known as ‘Ganna’, as well as ‘Julianna Moore’ - is accused of killing former British husband Barry Pring on the eve of their wedding anniversary in 2008, but she claims it was someone else.

Writing in a now unearthed blog post from 2012, she said she is ‘tired of harassment’ and wants the real killer to be brought to justice.

“It was murder,” she said, “I

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Bracing for Brexit

THERESA May Britain won’t accepthas vowed half out’ Brexit in a ‘half in, a landmark speech that is likely to have long-lasting effects on Gibraltar and all expats in Spain.

The Prime Minister issued a 12-point plan to out of the EU, take Britain ing Street looking with Downsingle market and to scrap EU toms union access.current cusIn the biggest speech month tenure, she of her sixsaid: “To be clear, what I am proposing not mean membership canof the single market.”

She added Britain longer give ‘huge would no EU, however she sums’ to the conceded that Parliament will have the final vote on the deal.

Maintaining the travel area between common Kingdom and the the United EXCLUSIVE Republic of Ireland is also a priority

By Gabrielle Pickard-Whitehead the Brexit negotiations. during and Laurence Dollimore However, the border rushed to the vets tar with Spain was of Gibral- A BRITISH expat he died 30 minutes not men- after has later. tioned. finding five of her called in police An X-ray showed dogs executed in a late-night massacre. in 2004, found the shot through the he also had a bullet The Guardia Civil five rescue dogs shot roof of his mouth. in their pens on January are now investigatMeanwhile, one of Control ing the horrific attack Mitchell’s 12 horses 6, the night of was also the Reyes (Three that also left one “We want to control attacked, of Illona Kings).

Her beloved seven-year-old eye may have to be so savagely that its migration from the our im- gouged Mitchell’s horses with its eye removed. out.

EU,” said Dizzy, ‘one Vets have of the friendliest May. “We also been The detectives from meet’ and a puppydogs you will ever four-year-old, struggling to treat the the environment importance of recognise the section the brightest Seprona told Mitchell, shot dead at the gatescalled Maisie were he has become named Rocco, because and the best coming too of their pens. here. We it was one of the worst attacks 48, that Meanwhile Coco Deeply traumatisednervous and skittish. recognise the contribution they by the attack - that they seen and were visibly shocked by had shot in their beds, and Domingo, were thankfully was have made.” it.

They have put on not seen by her daughwith Mitchell believing they had cowered extra patrols to keep ter Ella, May is believed to an eye in their kennels so angry 11 - Mitchell continued: “I am before being killed permit system asfavour a work- night. on the estate at weekends and at that someone would do someCoco, two, had beenin cold blood. thing as disgusting trigger Article 50 byshe looks to “I am as this to innocent sickened as to March. range between the shot at point-blank animals.”

It comes as the House why of Lords would carry out such a cruel someone year-old Domingo eyes, while three- Mitchell, from published data showing and bar- week.

Chester, believes was shot through a bor- baric attack on innocent, defenceless side of his face. the the tack is linked to der closure with animals,” she told her recent decision atThey later found the Olive Press this The mother-of-one, above, who put 40% of jobs Spain would to Jack, a six-year-old ban hunters from her huge 173-hectare bought her estate in mountains at risk in Giestate that sits in braltar. near Granada German Shepherd, having convulsions under a nearby tree, the Sierra de Baza. stunning scenery in The 32 page-report, but despite being on Gibraltar governmentbased Continues on Page evidence, estimates 4 10,500 of the Rock’s 26,000 workers Opinion Page 6 Est 1984 crossed the border daily.

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T was one of the most shocking front pages in the Olive Press’ decade-long history reporting Game hunters and animal rights activists are squaring in Spain. up for battle in the hunting hotspot of Andalucia, writes A dog lying prone on the ground after being shot in the head and a horse with its eye nearly Laurence Dollimore poked out...the images were as graphic as they were shocking.

Part of a series of photos taken after the massacre of five rescue dogs on an expat’s land in Granada, we felt it was a story - and issue - that needed to be highlighted. In fact, shouted from the rooftops (see front page right).

The British victim in question, Illona Mitchell, 48, fought back tears as she recalled how she had found her beloved animals strewn around her finca in the Sierra de Baza, on January 7, most of them shot in the head.

While police are now investiSLAUGHTER gating, it is her theory behind the attacks that is, perhaps, of most interest.

For mother-of-one Mitchell, ANTHONYS who ran a pony club on her SALE land, had recently fallen out with hunters, who for years had rampaged across her estate, shooting pretty much anything that moved.

Indeed, Mitchell, who moved to Spain a decade ago, had decided that she didn’t want them hunting on her 173 hectares.

Insisting that she wanted to protect the last remaining deer and boars on her land, she put up signs and told the hunting groups to stay There are various cat- and national reserves, sion is also required out. Her local town hall ratified her decision and egories of hunting land, where a special licence to hunt in a private repromised to honour her wishes. ranging from free zones is required. serve.

And, of course, it went down like a lead balloon - where only a general To hunt in a national re- The most popular huntand she told the Olive Press how she had soon licence (permiso de serve you need a hunt- ing regions are Galicia, received insults in town and actually on her land. caza) is necessary - to ing permit issued by the Pyrenees and in AnBut nobody could have expected what came municipal-owned re- the regional office of dalucia, which boasts next; a cold-blooded execution of half her resserves, private reserves the Ministry of Environ- the Ibex, deer, wild boar cue dogs. (coto privado de caza) ment. Special permis- and rabbit.

Opinion Page 6

which courgette prices in Malaga have increased due to bad weather

Here’s to:

February 15th - February 28th 2017

to Trump’s controversial ban, with Germany stating the terrorist threat doesn’t justify putting Muslims ‘under general suspicion’.

But Spanish spokesperson Íñigo Méndez de Vigo said he wanted to be ‘more discreet’ and ‘talk clearly and frankly’ with the new US administration.

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precautions one should take, however the tactics and sheer audacity is breathtaking. There appears to be carefully orchestrated teams working with spotters or those casing places then trackers who may also be finally the robbers.

Initially I thought that I had been very unlucky but when sharing my experiences with ex-pats living here it is becoming a way of life with both men and women being targeted some more than once. Some gangs use distraction tactics like tripping up in front of their target who naturally goes to help them while a team member slips their hand in from behind to reach for a wallet.

I have been to the police on one occasion but there seems nothing can be done. Several retail outlets have cameras but who checks them?

Another tactic can occur in a supermarket car park where one member of the team puts a nail into the target’s car tyre and while the victim is distracted with a flat tyre another criminal sneaks into the car and picks up any valuables like phones, handbags etc.

For those living here they are starting to look over their shoulders when out and certainly women are being forced not to carry their usual handbags. This is a not the quality of life that people including tourists expect here.

How to solve this? Perhaps get Donald Trump’s advice? I am concerned that these robberies will escalate into self defensive methods having to be adopted which in turn could have more damaging effects rather than the upsetting physiological stress of invasion of one’s privacy.

Anne Geddes, Estepona

Costa del Crime?

I am worried for the tourism and retail business for Spain as people start to avoid or reduce their visits to certain high profile retail and service outlets where the rate of robberies are increasing catastrophically.

Arriving in Spain to stay in Costa del Sol for the winter months I have been the victim of two attempted robberies and one successful and most costly to me in financial and sentimental terms here in Estepona over a 2 month period.

I am an experienced traveller and know the

Chris Z, Sevilla

Great work I hope you ignore the naysayers, the truth sometimes hurts, apparently.

Keep up the great work Olive Press. We all need to stand up and take responsibility and if necessary demand it too. Your resource here is of immense value. Hopefully criminals do not agree.

Nick Williams,

Has anything piqued your interest in this week’s Olive Press? Have your say on the matter by emailing letters@theolivepress.es or alternatively message us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/OlivePressNewspaper or Twitter @olivepress

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Manilva, Sabinillas and Puerto de la Duquesa

Vol. 11 Issue 259

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Puerto de la Duquesa,

Born to be wild

NATURAL WONDERS: Sights on Manilva’s beaches include a shopping line of drying squids, while (inset) kids play on one of the many rocky coves

Chloe Glover discovers the raw natural beauty of the Costa del Sol’s wild west to the half dozen of unspoilt beaches, that lie below the main N340 coastal road.

“These are some of the best beaches on the Costa del Sol and some of the least known,” explains Bish Witkowski, owner of local Castles estate agency.

Indeed on many weekends outside of July and August, you can practically have the beaches to yourself… and a good number have great chiringuitos to eat on.

On one beach at Punta Chullera, you find the perfect place to explore rock pools and dive into the sea, while at another a handful of tourists sunbathe next to a group of squids drying on a line.

But the beaches are just one of the natural draws of Manilva, which is broadly split into three areas; beach-front Sabinillas, port-side Duquesa Continues on next page

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TS hidden craggy coves fringed with wild grasses and flowers owe more to Cornwall’s rugged coastline than Spain’s Costa del Sol. But these are the attractive protected natural beaches of Manilva, a true haven for nature lovers. Worlds away from the heavily commercialised sands of nearby Mijas or Fuengirola, four kilometres of golden playas are being kept wild as an ecological reserve.

Endangered western snowy plovers, chameleons and rare species of dune plants are among the flora and fauna in renaissance here since the conservation zone was created in 2011.

Unsurprisingly, eagle-eyed tourists are also beginning to be drawn

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Castles and country From previous page

and the hillside village of Manilva proper.

“There is nowhere quite like Manilva”, explains local expat councillor Dean Tyler Shelton.

“We share a fantastic and unique micro climate nestled between the Sierra Bermeja mountains and the Straits of Gibraltar, there is a great mix of locals and tourists and there are excellent views of the north African coastline.”

Avid walkers and mountain bikers can take a break from the seaside to enjoy the salty fresh air and the rolling countryside on one of several trails.

Some wind their way up to the pretty white village of Manilva itself, a community that has thrived thanks to its many vineyards established in the 16th century.

Unique

The must-see Nilva Wine Museum is a mecca for thirsty walkers and wine lovers alike, who come to take tours of its grape plantations and indulge in tastings.

It has been backed by eight Michelinstarred Basque chef Martin Berasategui, who personally selected Nilva wine for his eponymously-named restaurant’s wine list.

“He has completely backed our project, sponsored some vines and supports our vision,” said Nilva boss Argimiro Martínez Moreno.

Those without money to splash on a three course meal with wine at Berasategui’s restaurant can pick up a bottle from the museum for as little as €5.

The adjacent Plaza de la Vendimia (Wine Harvest Square) boasts a vibrant mosaic depicting grape-pickers at work.

During the first weekend in September, a throng of visitors pile in to help celebrate the annual harvest festival (la vendimia), tread the grapes and toast the fruits of their labour with large glasses of local vino.

A hidden oasis lies waiting just a couple of kilometres further north, right on the border with Casares; the Roman baths of Hedionda.

Julius Caesar is one of many to have taken advantage of the medicinal sulphur springs gushing from the valley’s limestone outcrop.

The four cloudy blue pools and arched brickwork offer a fascinating step back in time.

The invitingly warm waters are the per-

RURAL: Hills above Manilva, Duquesa port and the Roman baths metre from the waterfront, lined with res- most fascinating flea markets (Rastro de taurants touting everything from Chinese Sabinillas) rolls into town. stir fry and Indian curries to Italian pizzas, Held weekly at the fairground off the Moroccan cous cous and British fish and Camino de los Baños de la Hedionda, it’s chips. a bargain hunter’s delight with some 300 A short walk east along the beachfront stalls selling everything from fruit and veg will bring you to San Luis de Sabinillas, to antiques, secondhand snips, artisan affectionately known by locals as ‘Sabi.’ products, clothing and jewellry.

Traditionally a small seafaring village with After a day discovering Manilva’s manifisherman’s shacks on the beach, it has fold charms, it’s time to put your feet up. boomed over the past few decades to beFrom lux to low key, the come a laid back tourist town has lodgings to resort with a thriving exsuit any depth of pocket. pat community.

Enjoy the lively seafront It has boomed Gaze at impressive vibe of the port at Harto become a laid views of Morocco’s Atbour Club Aparthotel las Mountains from its back tourist resort Duquesa or LAID BACK: Robinson Crusoe charm at Floria, and (top) Castillo de la Duquesa main beach, which fans live like the lord of the out invitingly. with a thriving manor at El Molino del The beach is the epicenfect spot for a late spring picnic under and an exhibition room.

Duque, an 18th century community the shade of the surrounding eucalyptus Visit the archeological museum to see tre of Manilva’s massive mill remodelled into a displays of prehistoric artefacts and oth- full moon party each Autrees. stunning self-catering The impressive site is joined by a host of er curiosities, such as a fourth century gust, a dazzling all- night hacienda that also hoard of coins. celebration. other local Roman archeological gems. serves as an unforgettable setting for Excavation work in 1989 uncovered the The intriguing fencing museum next door Inspired by the legendary parties of Thai- weddings and special events. ruins of a former bath house near Plaza is testament to Manilva’s long involve- land’s Koh Pha Ngan island, the family- With its authentic Spanish coastal vilde los Banos Romano and a Roman ment with the sport and it remains an friendly event features Chinese sky lan- lage feel, Sabinillas is a perfect laid back necropolis lies just north of Castillo de ‘epee centre’, as the local fencing club terns and other eye-catching displays. choice for families and couples alike with still practice their blade skills in the cas- Manilva’s scintillating events calendar numerous places to stay.

Duquesa, another fascinating stop-off. brings together locals and visitors the For a day or to stay over, magical ManilOccupying the site of a former Roman tillo. villa, the 18th century edifice was con- For sport with a more nautical nuance whole year around. There’s even a day va is the perfect antidote to its brasher structed to ward off continuous coastal head to Duquesa’s yachting marina dedicated to tourists who are celebrated Costa neighbours. And with natural atwhich bustles with a happy mix of locals through dance and song. attacks by pirates. tractions by the bucketload and spades There is no rest for the town, even on of authentic charm you won’t have to dig Nowadays, it enjoys a more pacifistic role and British and German tourists. as the home of two museums, a library Taste the globe without budging a centi- a Sunday, when one of Costa del Sol’s deep to discover it all.

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Nautical nice

CULTURAL HUB: (top left) mosaic in Sabi and mural of vinegroves, (above) Castillo de la Duquesa F the idea of travelling around the world in 80 restaurants floats your boat, bustling La Duquesa Port is the perfect spot to drop anchor.

A walk around this whitewashed marina takes scarcely longer than five minutes but just count the blackboards promoting cuisine from all over the globe: China, India, Japan, and Singapore, and a plethora of European ports of Duquesa is the true gem call too! of Manilva with dozens In the maze of alleys behind the port you will also find Hemingways, its bustling Irish neighof restaurants and an bour Kinsales, as well as Tim’s fish and chips, international clientelle to Italian pizzerias and authentic Spanish eateries, packed together more tightly than wheels match in the car-park.

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It could be argued that La Duquesa lacks Spanish identity, with more English voices than yachts and more burgers than tapas.

But step out either side of the port, where Spanish chiringuitos (and boatfuls of grilling sardines in summer) fringe expansive soft sand beaches and you’ll be left in no doubt which country you’re in.

This social meeting point sings through its restaurants, cafes and bars, the people who work in them and the visitors who sit in the sunshine enjoying them.

This elegant enclave of turrets and towers, pretty plazas and steps leading to different levels juts out from the mainland, encircling its attractions like an oyster encloses a pearl.

Quirky and eclectic, it’s like a younger sister to Puerto Banus – less glam perhaps, but less snooty too; more affable and, importantly, very much more affordable.

This sociable spirit is enhanced by the people who work here, who hail from all over the world and are woven into the ethnically diverse fabric of La Duquesa.

It makes sense that one of the men heavily

SCENIC: Duquesa port and its restaurants involved in the port’s growth is Moroccan Zac Hauswirth. He owns five restaurant here - with Casablanca, specialising in food from his homeland.

He also runs the Ocean Café, where one of the bartenders Christian, who has lived in Spain

since 2006, raves about his ‘workplace’.

“It’s friendly, trendy and always busy, rain or shine. Because of the people the port is alive and rapidly growing.”

While Christian admits the average age of customers is over 30, that changes during busy weekend ‘happy hours’ which are popular with young and old alike.

And of course, it’s hip to 21st century requirements, with wifi freely available in all the cafes and every possible amenity a short distance away.

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February 15th - February 28th 2017

Go Rastro-farian

Join the fun of Sabinillas’s bustling weekly market

B

ARGAIN hunters travel from miles around for a rummage around the celebrated ‘rastro de Sabinillas’, said to be the best flea market on the coast.

Held on a Sunday, it offers the perfect opportunity for bargain hunters, with its hundreds of stalls, laid out in the fairground off the Camino de los Baños de la Hedionda, en route to the Roman Baths.

And as it’s open from 9am to 2pm you don’t have to get up too early.

The market is 26 years old and has become a central part of Manilva life.

Ramp up your haggling skills as you wander through an eclectic mix of antiques, beautiful vintage oddities and brand new goods and you too can become a dab hand ‘rastro-farian’.

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Puerto de la Duquesa

Tax watch and more

Looking for a team to trust when dealing with legal issues and tax return? Look no further than Gabi Recio and his team

T

HE Recio & Madrona team have been helping businesses and individuals in the Manilva area for decades.

The homegrown team provides legal, tax, accounting advice as well as specialist assistance with partnerships, vehicle transfers, non-resident paperwork, rentals, sale and purchases, property registry, litigation, wills and inheritance.

Boss Gabriel ‘Gabi’ Recio Madrona is an economist, who has also been a specialist in tax affairs since 1995.

Also knowledgeable in administration management, he is currently the only person in Manilva who can register a vehicle under a new name after sale.

He is also in high demand for changing cars’ foreign number plates to Spanish ones.

He relies on a team that includes cousin Juana, a lawyer since 1997, as well as Carlos, a specialist accountant.

Juana takes care of legal issues and property sales, ensuring sellers are legitimate, handling town hall liaison, and guides you through the whole process of buying a house smoothly.

Juana can also take care of your yearly non-resident taxes and IBI.

OLD SCHOOL: Jose Antonio Madrona and the old Venta

A TEAM: Gabi (right) and Carlos

They have had many British clients and communicate well in English.

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February 15th - February 28th 2017

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Manilva over millennia

6,000 BC - Neolithic farmers were the first to discover Manilva’s assets. Some of their tools and pots were recently uncovered in the remains of the Sierra de la Utrera caves, on the northern edge of Sabinillas 3,000 BC - Other civilisations moved in. Excavations have unearthed pottery of Phoenician traders and foundations of walls, suggesting that a Bronze Age agrarian fort once stood in the area.

Stop off for centuries

2000 BC - Fish salting basins, a market, necropolis and a villa were all built by the Romans in Sabinillas, which historians believe they named Saltum.

Olives and grapes began to flourish, while a kiln was constructed on the site of Manilva’s current park to make bricks, tiles and pottery.

It was once a key lunch stop on the coast… now it is a wine and lottery shop

F

OR decades it was the stop off for artists, politicians and celebrities.

So, it was something of a tragedy when Venta Madrona was knocked down due to the construction of an underpass through Sabinillas a decades ago.

One of the main stop-offs for travellers between Gibraltar and Malaga for centuries, the historic restaurant was always full and served up an excellent range of dishes.

“We had an amazing range of visitors, including Frank Sinatra, Ted Heath and former Prime Minister Adolfo Suarez,” recalls the son of the former owner.

Now running his own wine and lottery shop, La Mar de Vinos, at the same spot, Jose Antonio Madrona recalls the frequent visits from famous flamenco stars like Valerin and Cameron, Spain’s most famous flamenco star.

“He was often here as he was a friend of my uncle. He stayed the night and frequently sang. I remember even dancing for him as a child.”

The venta, which was built in 1929, also counted on the founder of Andalucian nationalism Blas Infante as a regular. “He had plenty of meetings here in the run up to the civil war,” added Jose, who studied history at Malaga University, before studying viticulture.

The shop - which has almost 1000 references of wines - sits right next to the roundabout and is very much one of the main hubs of the community - like Venta Madrona before it.

711 AD - The Moorish invasion established the settlement of Martagina on the southern edge of Los Castillejos de Alcorrin. Here, locals grew bananas and figs until the 18th century 1400-1500 AD - Barbary pirate raids forced most of the population to flee into the hills for security.

However, many still returned daily to fish.

1515-20 - The Duke of Arcos conceded the first lands for vineyards which celebrated their heyday in the 17th and 18th centuries.

ON THE STREETS: Local families enjoy the laid-back nature of Manilva in the 1960s As well as a fantastic selection of Spanish wines, from around the whole country, there is a good mix of champagnes and sherries.

In addition, the shop stocks a great array of delicacies, including pates, cheeses and sauces… and, of course, the coast’s favourite English newspaper, the Olive Press!

Visit La Mar de Vinos at Calle Bolivia, 1, Sabinillas

1530 - The hilltop village of Manilva proper began to take shape thanks to its Duke, who parcelled off pieces of land to encourage people to settle there.

1722 - The Church of Santa Ana in Manilva village was destroyed by an earthquake.

1796 - Manilva gained independence from Casares, when it was given a ‘royal privilege of the town.’

1936-1939 - During the Spanish Civil War Mussolini marched fascist Italian troops down the main Sabinillas artery, now the N340.

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Puerto de la Duquesa

PICTURE PERFECT My Manilva The Olive Press talks to Manilva mayor Mario Jimenez Rodriguez Why did you run for office as mayor of Manilva?

I’ve spent 14 years in public office, and have had the privilege of holding posts such as councillor of sport, youth and infrastructure. I previously worked in the technical office in the Association of Municipalities of the Western Costa del Sol. So it was a natural move to become the head of Manilva town hall.

Wild and wonderful, chic and chilled out - Manilva is the alt C o s t a d e l S o l d e s t i n a t i o n f o r t h o s e i n t h e k n o w.

B r i m m i n g w i t h n a t u r a l c h a r m a n d b e a u t y, b a g s o f h i s t o r y a n plus a good helping of local wind. This lovely destination is to be discovered.

Pictures by Jon Clarke

How would you define yourself politically?

First and foremost, I’m just another member of the community, and my door is open to everyone. I want a town hall which involves its residents and which can count on all political parties to work together.

After a few months in office, what do you hope to achieve?

My main aim is to return Manilva to the place it deserves to be. In the past few years our town has moved backwards in terms of infrastructure, services and management. We need to go back to the progress and excitement of before, and to make a town with the best tourist opportunities and quality of life.

What steps need to be taken in order to achieve the type of town you want?

We’re very lucky that Manilva has a lot of potential in terms of tourism, sport and culture. My plan for the future is based on creating new infrastructure projects, maintaining what we already have, and ensuring that Manilva’s economy is based on offering a magnificent service to our residents and visitors.

Any current or future projects you want to highlight?

We’ve already finished the Plaza Ginebra, in Sabinillas, a job that needed urgent attention. Now we’re planning to start the Lidl pathway and the remodelling of Calle Mar, in Manilva. I’m very excited about the new pedestrian footpath – it’s a really important connection between Manilva and Sabinillas. In short, we’re going to improve our infrastructure, which will improve the lives of our residents.

What are you hoping for in the future of Manilva?

Health, security and sanitation are fundamental for making a progressive town. We also need to fight against unemployment and offer our young people opportunities for the future. With these plans, I’m convinced that we can make Manilva the shining light of the Costa del Sol.

FEW people think of Manilva as a snorkelling hotspot but its rocky coastline provides clear water for observing the undersea panorama.

That includes octopus, eels, turtles and even dolphins if you swim out far enough.

Local aficionado James Partington has been snorkelling here for over a decade.

Now 23, he has lived in Manilva since moving here from North Wales when he was five.

He advises first-time

Underwater wonderland snorkelers not to overthink their preparation.

“You just need fins, a mask and a snorkel. It might be a bit chilly in winter but normally you won’t need a wetsuit.”

E q u i p m e n t should be tightfitting but comfortable, and you can get rid of fog on your eye-mask if you spit on it before you put it

on, he adds.

He also advises novice divers not to go out alone.

“Make sure you have a buddy to watch your back, as the currents around Manilva can catch you off your guard.”

You can snorkel from any of the beaches in Manilva, and there are a number of companies such as GoFun Costa del Sol which organise tours and equipment DIVING MAD: James Partington hire.

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February 15th - February 28th 2017

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A fiesta feast Take our calendar tour of Manilva’s festival musts

Carnival, February 24-25 Fun for all the family, this weekend celebration features impressive costumes, music, dancing and chirigotas, satirical Andalucian folk songs.

Easter Week, April 9-16 One of the most important weeks in the Spanish calendar.

This festival celebrates the life, passion and death of Jesus with processions through the local streets.

San Juan’s night June 23 This evolved out of an old pagan ritual marking the summer solstice, which has been united with a christian saint’s day. Bonfires on the beach create a magical atmosphere throughout the night.

Day of the Virgen del Carmen, July 16 The villagers of Castillo de la Duquesa and San Luis de Sabinillas carefully decorate fishing boats with effigies of their patron saint, the Virgen del Carmen, and sail them up and down the coast.

ternative

nd culture, just waiting

EFFIGY: A huge statue set to be burnt on San Juan night

Day of Santa Ana, July 26

Saint Ana is the patron saint of Manilva, and her feast day is celebrated with a parade of floats, music and dancing until the early hours.

Day of San Luis de Sabinillas, August 25 The feast day of the patron saint of San Luis de Sabinillas is honoured with sports competitions, music, laughter and dancing.

The grape harvest, September 2-3 A festival to celebrate the grape harvest, including grape-treading to produce the first wine of the year, which is offered to friends and visitors to taste.

Drink to that

PROUD: Manilva vine yards and (right) Berasategui with Moreno

Wine from a two-hectare Manilva farmyard now proudly carries its own Denominacion de Origin mark/quality seal of approval

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T has found its place on the menu of one of the best restaurants in the world.

Nilva’s dry, fruity wine made a big impression on the eight-Michelin-starred chef, Martin Berasategui, who personally selected it for his list only months after the vineyard opened in 2015.

But that was just the start of the meteoric rise to fame of Manilva’s very own tipple, which now is the proud bearer of of its own Denominacion de Origen mark, which recognises Spain’s finest wine producers.

“A lot has changed in such a short space of time,” said Argimiro Martínez Moreno, the man at the forefront of Manilva’s exciting new project.

“In this initial phase the most important thing has been to create a wine of maximum quality to frame Manilva as a high quality producer.

“We have taken a big step by being added to the DOG of the Sierras de Malaga, which certifies the quality of our wine.

“We are also in the process of being included under the ‘Sabor a Malaga’ umbrella, a project that se-

lects the best quality products in the province.

“We have also won this year’s Luxury Travel Guide’s prize for best culinary experience of 2017.”

The string of enviable achievements is testament to the passion of Martinez, who developed the two hectare Peñoncillo vineyard and town centre wine museum and bodega to re-establish Manilva’s historic wine industry.

Wine connoisseurs now flock to the village to sample the juice of his muscatel grapes at the bodega and take advantage of vineyard tours.

Martinez has many more aims this year for his wine, which is poured into only 2,250 bottles.

“We think we have an advantage due to being the first wine on the market from the Costa del Sol,” said Martinez.

“We are continuing to expand our points of sale and our big aim is to get it into the most prestigious restaurants in the region.”

In Muebles Bernardo Muñoz S.L. you can find a great exhibition of furniture and accessories for your home:.

Furniture of all styles – bedrooms, kitchens, appliances, garden, bathrooms, lighting, lounge, carpets, fabrics etc...

C/Bolivia nº2 Sabinillas – Manilva (Málaga) Tlf. 952 890 204

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Family affair

Make no mistake, Castles is a family run business. Whether you’re from Liverpool, San Roque or Bermuda, you’re made to feel one of the team.

Chris Rowlands Chris (below) has been working at Castles for two decades, and has seen Sabinillas transform from a tiny village into a bustling coastal town.

“It’s crazy how much it has changed here since we launched… in fact the only thing that’s remained the same is the beautiful weather.”

“I love working in a family business, with my stepfather and brother and previously sister and mum but we treat everyone here like a family, it’s how we work together so well, it’s fundamental to what we do.

“I know family businesses aren’t really the fashion right now, but it’s all I’ve known and I think it’s great.”

Claire Halliwell Claire came to Spain from Liverpool 14 years ago with a young family and has enjoyed every minute of raising them in this beautiful area, believing it an idyllic place to raise children. She has been an estate agent specialising in this area for six years, however she is the newest member of the Castles team having joined them only 18 months ago. “I feel completely at home here, I have been welcomed as a member of the family. I have the best job in the world, matching people to property and helping them through the process, and within such a great team, I am very lucky.”

Eva Perez

Fortress to be reckoned with Business profile

JUST OPEN: First week trading in 1986

Castles estate agency has been established for three decades in Manilva, discovers Laurence Dollimore

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HEN Bish Witkowski and his wife Poppy set up Castles three decades ago, Sabinillas was little more than a beach with a few buildings and fishing boats scattered around.

Fast forward 31 years and the area has transformed into a hub for businesses, banks and restaurants, and is counted as home to thousands of expats, most of them British.

Much of this is thanks to Castles, which can count on up to 10,000 clients over the years, who have either bought through the company, or used it for accounting and advice.

Setting up in part as an agent and in part as an asesoria, in 1986, the company was able

Eva, who commutes daily from Estacion de san Roque, has worked at Asesoria Castles for the last 23 years, having graduated in the University of Jerez de la Frontera, in Law and Business studies. She has seen many changes during her time here. She is now the longest standing member of the asesoria side of Castles and her role within the fiscal team is dealing with taxes for resident self-employed people and companies.

Sue Johns Sue came to spain from England 35 years ago and for the last 14 years has been working at Asesoria Castles. Her main job among others, consists of preparing taxes for non-resident property owners. She believes that Castles’ strength and success is due to the fact it is so integrated into the local community, having an equal number of Spanish and English employees. Sue comments with a smile, however, that not everybody is happy with us as no one one enjoys paying taxes!

Natasha Pedro Agent Natasha swapped Bermuda for the Costa del Sol some 15 years ago, “The team here is great. It’s a family environment, but make no mistake, we work!”

“I first worked in sales and marketing in flower shops and animal charities, then settled with the Castles family four years ago.

“We have already had sales in the first months of this year so it’s a very positive outlook at the moment, bring on 2017.”

February 15th - February 28th 2017

HAPPY FAMILY: The Castles team today counts a dozen staff working from the Sabinillas base

to act as a sort of one-stop shop for anyone looking to live or buy in the Manilva area.

“When we first set up there was nobody else around,” explains Bish’s stepson Chris Rowland, who now runs the company on a daily basis alongside his brother Mike.

“The nearest village was Castillo and it would take three hours to get to the airport and there was only basic infrastructure and amenities.

“The name comes from the idea that every man’s home is his castle, and that is what we are selling here; decent good value homes.”

The company’s formula is a successful one, having survived a trio of recessions and growing from a team of just two to more than a dozen.

“Our growth has been steady but strong, and it’s a customer-based business so we ensure to treat people very well,” continues Chris.

“That’s how we have lasted so long, and there is nothing like positive word of mouth when it comes to a business, especially on this coast.”

The company - which handles everything from wills to company formations and from tax returns to home conveyancing - also prides itself on treating its staff like a family.

“It’s very important to us that we build a familial environment and we all get on well with one another,” adds Chris. “It makes the day to day running of the business a heck of alot easier.”

And with a few sales already under the belt this year, the company is looking forward to a strong 2017.

While Brexit made some British buyers more cautious, other nationalities have managed to fill in the void.

“The main client base here has always been the British and it still is,” explains Chris, “And while they have been a little bit cautious since Brexit I am very confident that they will be back in full force once things settle down and some certainty returns.

“Meanwhile we have seen more Germans,

Dutch, Scandinavians and even some more French coming down to the coast, so we have been able to offset the fall in British sales.”

And it’s the company’s overriding ethos of integration that has got them this far.

“That’s how it all started,” explains Sue Johns, who has worked on the company’s taxes for 14 years.

“Bish had lived here for a number of years and spoke good Spanish so he would help expats who couldn’t speak Spanish to deal with the town halls and all other businesses, including other agents.

“He had become well integrated into the community after living in Ibiza for years and running a bar in Duquesa so it was logical for him to become a middleman between British buyers and Spanish agents, hence he decided to make a business out of it.”

Now some thirty years later, Castles is the longest running estate agents in Sabinillas, and one of the longest running on the coast.

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PORT OF HOPE: Early days in Sabinillas, and (middle) Bish with wife Poppy

Doing business since the mid-1970s Profile

by Jon Clarke

H

IS background couldn’t be more different to the majority of expats on the Costa del Sol. For starters he speaks fluent Spanish, not to mention went to art school, before travelling off around the world to see India, Nepal and even Afghanistan.

And then there is the creative, innovative side of Bish Witkowski that first saw him start an art gallery in Ibiza, design and sell for a local magazine and even mend vintage cars.

Now, the owner of Castles, in Sabinillas, the 69-yearold entrepreneur is happily settled into local life, enjoying the culture of Manilva, the nearby countryside and playing the occasional round of golf.

“It’s a charmed life and great to have all my family DAY OUT: Bish and family on a day trip to Ronda around nearby,” he explains in his top floor office at Castles, surrounded by thousands of files from current complete mix of people turning up and it was a lot of and previous clients. fun,” he recalls.

“I know so many people and very much But he had other ideas and realised enjoy my job. On top of that we love that more than anything the rapidly to get away for trips to Portugal in our growing expat population of the area camper van or up to Jerez for a spot of Every time I went needed a company to help them in golf and culture.” their needs and sort out their probHe first fell in love with Spain when he out on my boat it was a lems. and wife Poppy visited Ibiza for holi“I was thinking more of an asesoria, days in the 1970s and moved to the disaster so these days than an estate agency, as so many celebrated ‘white island’ in December I buy and sell classic people needed my help with things.

1975.

“But we combined the two with my wife “We had to do a bit of everything to surcars as a hobby and stepson handling the sales side vive in Ibiza,” he explains. “The tourist and me doing the paperwork side.” season then was only two months so in He continues: “It grew very quickly and the winter I did a bit of everything from we have had probably nearly 10,000 repairing cars, selling advertising space for a magaclients over the years. zine and running my own art gallery.”

“We have hundreds of clients at any time and we While there he put his art degree from Birkenhead do literally hundreds of tax returns every year.” college to good use and painted portraits and even These days, when not sorting out a myriad of isset up a potter’s wheel, making pots and ash trays sues for his clients, he likes to fix up a range for tourists. classic cars, having given up on boats.

“Anything to bring in a bit of money,” recalls “Every time I went out on my boat it was a Bish, who lives in nearby Valle Romano. disaster so these days I buy and sell clasBut eventually after six years of trying, they sic cars as a hobby.” decided it was too hard and they moved to In total, he has had dozens, including Rolls the Costa del Sol in 1982, via a short six Royces, Bentleys, Jaguars and Mercedes. month stint in Portugal.

And he also has a faithful camper van “It was a lot less closed off here and that frequently takes he and his wife my brother had an old school friend on weekends to Jerez or Ronda, or furin Duquesa so we decided this ther afield to the Algarve for holidays. would be our area,” he continues.

“It is a lovely area to be based in.

They soon identified that the reSo near to so many amazing spots cently finished port had few good and with the most perfect climate,” places to eat so they opened the he concludes.

Ibiza Steak Bar, which became As they say, an Englishman’s home one of the key social hubs of the is his castle… well Sabinillas is well port within months. “We had a and truly Bish’s home.

Feel free to contact us for more information on sales@castlesestateagency.com or call us on +34 952 891221

ARTY FARTY: Bish began life in Spain, in Ibiza, working as a potter in his own art studio, while (above left) one of his paintings and (left) on a journey to India in his turban, while (below) in his office today

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2017

Blossoming PRIMROSE R E A L E S TAT E

“Wij spreken Uw taal” - Nederlands, Spaans, Engels “We speak your language” - Dutch, Spanish, English “Hablamos tu idioma” - Holandés, Español, Inglés Primrose Real Estate - run by Lynn Van Wilderode based in Manilva (Málaga), operating on the Costa del Sol, covering Marbella to Gibraltar.

Turning your dreams into your home

Manilva’s newest property company is on the up 3 Bedroom Apt - Duquesa

P

AMAZING PROPERTY!

CTRA. COMARCAL DE MANILVA A SABINILLAS

3 Bedroom Apt - Duquesa

Under Construction - Doña Julia

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A stunning apartment in the exclusive A fantastic first floor apartment located Private villa with infinity pool, sea and Beautifully refurbished townhouse Marina del Castillo Resort. Fantastic in a well kept and popular resort.

Over golf views set in lush, private gardens. with views from the roof terrace, The Duquesa-based real estate views and superb quality finish inside. one level, this 3 bed apartment is well Located 5km from the A-7 and the Cosy interior, fully modernised and Communal pool plus Sauna, 24h presented and sold inclusive of all beach, this one level villa boasts a walking distance from the beach, company has grown from strength to security, underground parking plus furniture. The property enjoys a double open plan kitchen, large floor to ceiling supermarkets, shops, bars, restaurants storage and close to Marina Duquesa.

BARGAINS: Primrose Estates helps customers find the best deals aspectjust with two terraces. windows, a terrace and private parking. along the promenade of Sabinillas. strength since opening a Bedrooms: 3 M2 Built: 147 m2 Bedrooms: 3 M2 Built: 145 m2 ago.

Bedrooms: 3 M2 Built: 123 m2 Bedrooms: 3 M2 Built: 212 m2 little over two years a few3 more French.” extensively in the property business in Bathrooms: 2 Plot: 54 m2 Bathrooms: 3 Terrace: 98 m2 Bathrooms: 3 Terrace: 20 m2 Bathrooms: Plot size: 1260 m2 Managing director Lynn Belgium-born Lynn, who speaks Belgium and Europe.

Van Wilderode (right) is English, Dutch, French and Spanish, “It’s definitely in the blood,” she says, now looking to789 expand and tel: (+34) 661 193 info@primrose-realestate.com www.primrose-realestate.com prides her company on offering the “I grew up in the property market and will be hiring new staff by best bargains between Estepona have worked in the business along the the summer. and Duquesa.

Costa del Sol since I was 19, it’s the “Last year was a cra“Although we are seeing only thing I’ve known!” zy year,” says Lynn, healthy price rises in terms Following a strong 2016, the compa“Spring was espeof sales, we have still got ny has invested into its holiday rentcially successful, some great bargains on als and main websites to make them and although there our site.” more user-friendly. was British hesita“With a growing business we needed tion post-Brexit, to make things a lot easier for our cliBlood the slack was ents, the new website lets them book picked up by Lynn puts the success rentals online a lot more efficiently, the Scandinaof Primrose down to her and it’s a lot easier to navigate than vians as well as genes; her father worked before.”

3 Bedroom Apartment, Duquesa

PRIMROSE R E A L E S TAT E Turning your dreams into your home 2 Bed Penthouse - Guadalupe

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Set within a small urbanization with great sea views, it is very quiet whilst still being at a short drive from supermarkets, schools, shops and the towns of Sabinillas and Duquesa.

This stunning 2 bed, 2.5 bath duplex apartment has been renovated with 2 new bathrooms, new kitchen and many other improvements in and out of this comfortable home or holiday flat.

Bedrooms: 2 Bathrooms: 2

Bedrooms: 2 Bathrooms: 2.5

M2 Built: 77 m2 Terrace: 23 m2

M2 Built: 116 m2 Terrace: 10 m2

Beach front apartment with sea views and sunny terrace in Puerto de la Duquesa, Manilva, Malaga, Costa del Sol. Come and see this fantastic apartment in the luxurious resort of Marina del Castillo in Duquesa. It is a spacious 3 bed on the 4th floor, south facing and sold fully equipped and furnished along with extra storage and parking space in the secure underground parking.

The resort is well know for its quality finish throughout, its facilities which include 24h security onsite, communal pool and sauna and its ideal location; only a short stroll along the promenade into the Marina of la Duquesa or the fishing village of Castillo.

Bedrooms: 3 Bathrooms: 2

M2 Built: 165 m2 Terrace: 51 m2

Call us today to arrange a viewing!

“Wij spreken Uw taal” - Nederlands, Spaans, Engels • “We speak your language” - Dutch, Spanish, English • “Hablamos tu idioma” - Holandés, Español, Inglés

tel: (+34) 661 193 789 info@primrose-realestate.com www.primrose-realestate.com

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Place to be

Manilva’s Castillo is home to one of Andalucia’s top fencing clubs

Sword of MANILVA CASTLE: A fitting location

T

honour

HEY have fenced with Hollywood star Viggo Through Cerrada’s expert leadership and dedicaMortensen (above). tion the team has racked up an impressive cache It is just one of the many accolades that sits of medals and now counts world class members in the trophy case of Club Internacional de among its ranks.

Esgrima Andaluzia, Manilva’s very own fencing club. “We train four times a week at the castillo and in Established 10 years ago, the swashbuckling group Estepona and every year we get to be champions or must have one of the most fitting practice rooms in runners-up of Spain in lower categories,” said the country, in the belly of the historic 18th cenCerrada. tury Castillo de Duquesa.

“At Andalusian level It was built at the height of Europe’s love afboth individual and team we have more than fair with the sport, whose modern form has 100 medals with champions at the level of chilits origins in Spain. dren and adults.

Now, thanks to the club it is also home “Jan Bade, who is Finnish, is one of our latest signings to Spain’s only Museum of Fencing. and came fifth in the world championships “We try to preserve and maintain the “Our youngest member is four years old and we heritage of this beautiful and thrillhave almost as many women as men, because ing sport, which is a true part in fencing you can compete in mixed bouts. of our culture explained Alberto “My latest achievement has been becoming Cerrada Fernandez, the club’s the Spanish champion of historic fencing The title-winning founder. (different to modern in style and technique), team has an A doctor, he set it up when he a title I won last November. moved to the area from Madrid “But our main aim is not to win medals: It impresive to work in a health centre. has always been to create a group of friends “My passion has always been who enjoy and love this art and to care for cache of fencing and when I moved here the development of each of our members in medals I wanted to continue practising a personalized way. it.

“We also want to spread the important val“I had to travel very far because there were no local ues of fencing, such as education, temperance, reclubs so it occurred to me: Why not create one of spect and work in a warm and friendly environment.” my own?”

Esgrima Andaluzia has also proved its movie star The club’s first base was in Estepona, where its con- credentials. tinued success helped convince Manilva authorities “We’ve participated as masters of arms in films, teleto allow it to host both practices and contests in the vision, theatre and musicals in Spain and beyond,” castle. said Cerrada. “We have had the honor of working, with Manuel Bandera in the Zorro, with Vigo Mortensen in Alatriste and 2017 Goya winner Carlos Santos in Los Mosqueteros who was our Hamlet in the work that we present in the Castle of La Duquesa some years.” Cerrada’s love affair with fencing led him to set up Spain’s only museum dedicated to the past-time. “Because I am a collector of objects related to fencing, Manilva Council offered me the possibility of establishing it.

“We decided to put it in the castle and it has become one of Manilva’s main tourist attractions.”

Cerrada hopes the club and museum encourage more people to take up swords. “I love it because of the strategy, strength, speed, concentration and spirit.

“Long may it live on.”

For more information on the club, call Cerrada on 639359972 or visit the website at www.esgrimandaluzia.com

It’s the perfect time to buy in Manilva.

According to Brian Berney of Coast to Coast properties, there’s no need to look any further for your holiday home.

“Having been in the property business now for 8 years, it has made me appreciate the local area and the improvements that have been made,” he said.

“I think this in particular is the reasoning why we now have so many northern European buyers who are attracted to the area.

“Puerto de la Duquesa, in my opinion, is the nicest marina on the Costa del Sol is and probably always will be the main draw to the area.

“Saying that, Manilva, Sabinillas and Casares have so much to offer particularly with the culture, the cuisine, the beaches and the wildlife and countryside.”

He added: “We have seen prices in properties drop drastically over the past few years but now we are seeing a steady recovery, all the more reason to buy your home in the sun in Manilva.”

For advice on how to buy, sell or rent contact sales@ c2cproperty.com or call 952 892 517

BUY with BUY BUY with BUY with with us and us us and we usand and we we PAY your PAY PAY your PAYyour your legal fees legal legal fees legal fees fees Well established company Well Well established established company Well establishedcompany company Spanish, English, Italian, Spanish, Spanish, English, English, Italian, Spanish, English,Italian, Italian, German and French spoken German German and and French spoken German andFrench Frenchspoken spoken Over 20,000 properties Over Over 20,000 20,000 properties Over 20,000properties properties In-house lawyer In-house In-house lawyer In-houselawyer lawyer Insurance facility available Insurance Insurance facility facility available Insurance facilityavailable available Rental and Rental Rental and Rentaland and Management agency Management Management agency Managementagency agency

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BUSINESS PROFILE

Customer service is king!

Jon Clarke meets the entrepreneur behind the eight-restaurant Bar and Cafe Group

OPEN MONDAY TO SATURDAY BREAKFAST, LUNCH & COFFEE FREE WIFI AVAILABLE

Avda. de España. Edif Manisabi, Local 7 Sabinillas

8:00-22:30

Mob. 651488601

The Penguin Bar is a real local traditional Pub where locals and holidaymakers meet for a chat and a drink in a very friendly atmosphere with a great terrace and There are TV screens showing different events or matches.

· Opening Hours · Mon-Sun: 12:00 - 12:00 Plaza Chanquette, Puerto de la Duquesa Tel 0034 608 49 97 30 find us on facebook

IT is a round trip of around 90kms taking in eight restaurants and dozens of staff.

But Zac Hauswirth still has time to serve, sometimes, hundreds of clients in a day… and always with a smile.

The entrepreneur behind the Bar and Cafe Group, that set up 12 years ago, insists that it is this friendly, open demeanour that has been the key to his success.

“I’m a customer service fanatic and everything must be perfect for the clients,” he explains over lunch at his flagship The Cafe American Bistro, in Duquesa port. “I hope I lead by example.”

Having set up 10 restaurants since launching the company in Spain with his wife Anita (with him above) in 2004, he knows the staff are the key to his business.

“I can tell in five minutes if someone will be a good barman or waitress,” he explains. “It doesn’t matter if they know nothing, I can train them up.

Above all, they must be friendly.”

The talented businessman, 43, currently employs 55 staff and this number normally rises to over 80 in the summer.

It is one of Manilva’s biggest businesses and he is certainly not standing still, having opened two new restaurants last year, in Puerto Banus ZAC: With manager and Sabinillas, with more planned for Alex in Duquesa port this year. “I often do 14 hours a day for six days of the week,” explains the father-of-one, “I have two great managers under me, but I still love working.”

He honed his trade in the London restaurant scene, where he became a regional manager of the Restaurant Group (Chiquito, Garfunkel’s, Frankie & Benny’s) covering over a dozen restaurants.

But he was certainly not born with a silver spoon in his mouth.

Brought up in a small apartment in Casablanca with six brothers and sisters, he studied hard and eventually made it to university in Cape Town, where he studied economics.

From there he moved to London, where he met his Austrian wife Anita, who is a major influence on the kitchen and undertakes each restaurant’s interior design.

Together for 17 years, they fell in love with Spain on frequent visits to see friends in Marbella. But their business empire was to begin in Manilva and, in particular, Duquesa Port where they opened their first restaurant, the Mexican Grill and Bar, in 2004.

This followed with a Moroccan restaurant, Casablanca, the Ocean Cafe and Bar and the Cafe, American Bistro, which can now also be found in Sabinillas, Marbella and Estepona. A new restaurant Passion Bistro opened last year in Puerto Banus.

2017

Coast with the most

Manilva has a great mix of places to eat, writes Dining Secrets of Andalucia editor Jon Clarke

W

ITH such a wild and wonderful coastline it is fitting that Manilva has such a great range of restaurants.

Starting in Duquesa port you have a warren of great places to eat including Parapiros, one of the longestrunning Italian restaurants on the coast.

Set up in 1985, it has a fantastic range of pastas and pizzas, as well as one of the best veal chops, stuffed with ham and parmigiano, while a beef carpaccio starter was delicious loaded with fresh mushrooms and celery.

Also in the port, look out for the excellent Casablanca and its neighbouring joint, the Mexican Grill and Bar, which is authentic to the extreme.

Meanwhile the Ocean Cafe and Cafe, American Bistro are among the most popular places to eat for tourists and expats alike.

For fish and chips though, you’ll have to seek out Tim, a Devon boy, who knows a thing or two about fish and has been keeping the port punters happy for years.

Meanwhile, the Penguin Bar is a splendid traditional pub, which shows all the big football games and is a great meeting spot.

Another great place for fish and chips is nearby institution Marlows, on the main road, which first plied its trade in Gibraltar in the 1960s.

A true institution, owner Steve Marlow, has run restaurants around the world and is a classically trained chef, with a good knowledge of the business, having learnt everything from his father.

Punters drive for often over an hour - from Ronda, for TOP TUCKER: At Tim’s example - to sample the amazing cod and chips.

Up the coast in Sabinillas, the beach is lined with restaurants, but one of the best is Miel, run by friendly Dutch boss Kaat.

An institution with high standards for breakfast, lunch and dinner, it is hardly surprising it is usually full.

Haddock • Icelandic Cod • Goujons • Fishcakes • King Prawns Scampi • Chicken • Sausages • Saveloy • Pies and much more!

Now serving Beef & Chicken Burgers Open every evening from 6pm

672 660 655

Home delivery available Top Level, Rambla del Mediterraneo, Puerto de la Duquesa, Manilva www.timsfishandchips.es

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FABULOUS FISH: A tasty tapa at Marengo and (right) at Sal y Sol

Another fine place to eat is early morning, tapas for Marengo, just two years old, lunch and bar snacks into but with a distinctly differ- the evening. And don’t forent feel to its get to ask for nearby rivals.

Ana’s special, Run by Isawhich changIt was here that es by the day. bel, from Madrid, and with Keith Floyd spent And don’t amazing artforget Pollo some of the last Pronto, which work on the walls from her a long time few weeks of his is partner, it has institution life a great range for take away of tapas and roast chicken dishes to and chips share. on the main Another emblematic place N340 drag. is Café Nenit, where Jose Finally, the most exciting and his team serve break- launch of the year so far fasts and pastries from has been Floria Rustico, which is where Peter and Karen are now plying their trade, with fantastic fresh fish and the best ‘pil pil’ prawns on the coast.

PS… it would be impossible to write about Manilva without mentioning the amazing Roman Oasis, just inland on the road to the Roman Oasis, of course.

Over three decades old, it was here that legendary UK chef Keith Floyd came to spend some of the last few weeks of his life.

WELCOME: At Miel A massive fan of the eclecWHEN a flood of biblical proportions destroyed his celebrated chiringuito, many might have expected Peter Nette to run to the hills.

And that is exactly what he did when popular Floria was ripped in half by a raging torrent after heavy rain in December (see below).But not to the hills to hide out and nurse his sorrows, but to a FLOODY new rural venue, HELL with wife Karen, where he has come out fighting with a fabulous new project.

Called Floria RusSALE tico, it has been born out of the success of the faOUT WITH THE mous beach restaurant, that has OLD: Floria fed and watered thousands - including many rich and famous - for over a decade in Manilva.

Based in the former home of Armstrong's and Taste by Dirk - on the road to the Roman Oasis - this charming, chilled-out spot counts on a wonderful leafy garden and a similar menu to its former sister Tele: 00 350 200 51020 Mob: 00 350 565 23000 info@century21gibraltar.co m

FREE

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December 7th - December

Awarded by Diageo & The Irish Tel: 951 517 015 www.healymacs-e Times stepona.com

SAVED: Dawson with

son

Up to his neck!

EXCLUSIVE

By Rob Horgan

A BRITISH expat was pulled from a flooded lift in a dramatic two-hour rescue effort.

Bet365 worker Dan Dawson told the Olive Press he feels ‘lucky to be alive’ after he himself up to his neck found water while stuck in a in flood ing Sunday’s storms. lift durThe nightmare happened Dawson, 46, attempted when his five-year-old son to save Kaled’s Christmas presents from their basement in Duquesa.

“It was absolutely horrific,” Dawson said. “I honestly thought that was going to be it for me.”

WROUGHT in two and owners in the impostilting on its side, wreckage of one of the sible task of sorting the through the wreckage.

Costa del Sol’s most emblematic beach bars Many towns were deis a chilling reminder clared a ‘disaster zone’ of 48 hours of relent- and left underwater less rain which claimed with roads cut off and two lives and left thou- houses evacuated.

The heaviest rainfall sands more homeless. fell in Estepona, where The worst flooding 25 years saw a new for a 26-year-old woman riv- tragically perished er literally carve its way in through the middle a basement brothel, of Floria, in Manilva, while an electrician also leaving the chiringuito drowned in La Linea. nilva and Politicians a complete write off rallied where land, Casares ting up shop for most sea and of the weekend a matter of minutes. in round, along with the air rescue and With the toilet ripped King of Spain who of- deployed teams were residents resigned to out and the contents fered condolences, as stranded. to help those their homes, it is only now, that the true of its kitchen strewn the cost of the clear up School exon the sand, the own- is estimated at tens of in all was cancelled tent of the storms is five towns millions of euros. ers have joined Monday, while on beginning to be rethe The worst on alised. thousands of desolated affected Tuesday the big clear home and business areas were Mijas, Es- up continued. tepona, Cartama, See When the heavMa- With businesses shut- ens opened - Page 6

Rescue

He added: “I stupidly didn’t check how bad the weather outside before going downwas in the lift.

“As I got closer to the basement water started flowing from everywhere and I couldn’t “Within a minute it wasstop it. up to my chest and I was panicking.”

Luckily, neighbours came rescue when Dawson’s to his partner Sylina heard his screams.

However they were unable to lift the roof of the lift and only when he managed it was to get it to rise by half a storey tinually hitting the up by conbutton that he had a bit of breathing space.

Police were soon on the and prized open the lift scene crowbar, pulling Dawson,with a from Derby, to safety.

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Property

Don’t miss February 15th - February 28thRoll2017 on Special report by Iona Napier

BOSSES: Cox and Wells

IN COME THE BIG BUCKS! A HUGE US property fund is splashing €45 million on three new Costa del Sol developments.

The American bosses behind Real Capital Solutions have snapped up sizeable plots in Estepona, Mijas and Benahavis and continue to look at further opportunities along the coast.

The company, based in Marbella since 2013, already has five other developments, including The Retreat, in Elviria.

“We have spent around €86 million here so far and have a fund of €100 million to spend,” explained Managing Partner Peter Wells, based in Colorado.

“We are one of the largest developers on the Costa del Sol and our emphasis is on distressed properties.”

He added: “Also we do things transparently and always try and deliver on price and quality.”

The company - which made hundreds of millions buying and selling distressed properties in the US - has 16 staff working out of its office at Centro Plaza.

Local boss Taylor Cox, added: “The coast is really starting to come alive and it’s a pleasure to live in such a beautiful part of the world.”

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Booming July predicted following ‘pause’ in run-up to EU referendum

ESTATE agents in Spain and Gibraltar are lining themselves up for the busiest July on record.

It comes as some British buyers put purchases on hold due to the forthcoming EU referendum on June 23.

Most agents the Olive Press spoke to confirmed they had various sales currently ‘paused’ awaiting the result, despite the British market remaining strong.

The majority believe that the expected result - to stay in Europe - will lead to the pound strengthening with a red hot summer of sales to follow.

Ben Bateman, at Holmes Sotogrande, described the referendum lead up as a ‘pause for thought for British buyers’ due to concerns over the weak pound.

“After a remain vote however, we expect to see a strong finish to the year - and a sudden wave of bids from British buyers,” he told the Olive Press.

One agent in Gibraltar has gone one step further actually employing extra staff for July. Savills director Sammy Cruz-Armstrong said: “Everything is on hold due to Brexit, but I am convinced we will stay in Europe and am taking on extra staff in July to deal with the expected deluge of business.”

Benahavis agent Scott Marshall of Proper-

Remain

tieSpain, meanwhile, described the pause as ‘very psychological’.

He said: “It’s a combination of the uncertainty of the vote and the exchange rate right now.”

While many agents have a couple of sales currently on hold, some have seen more.

“We have up to ten sales currently on hold until after the referendum,” said Victor Witkowski, boss of Castles, in Manilva.

“Buyers are not necessarily pulling out, but they are biding their time to see what happens.”

Fellow Manilva agent, Shani Hamilton, also confirmed a slowdown, but added: “We are predicting a huge influx of business as soon as a decision is made.”

Where is Gillian buying?

PAGE 19

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Where are the coolest Airbnbs?

PAGE 24

Deals

Spanish property sales by nationality and quarter

www.spanishpropertyinsight.com Source: Registradores Q1 2013 Q2 2013 Q3 2013 Q4 2013 Q1 2014 Q2 2014 Q3 2014 Q4 2014 Q1 2015 Q2 2015 Q3 2015 Q4 2015 Q1 2016

Either way, official statistics out this month confirm the British market remains strong and tens of thousands continue to look for their dream home.

Respected analyst Mark Stucklin insists that foreign demand for Spanish property was up 16% in the first quarter with Brits the biggest group of foreign buyers at 22% of the market share.

“The British still dominate the foreign market for property and there is no evidence of a noticeable decline in demand as yet,” he said.

And certainly not everyone is suffering.

One agent, Graham Govier of Inland Andalucia has seen ‘no negative impact’ at all during the referendum lead-up.

“In fact it is the opposite. Prices are extremely cheap right now and we are selling two times as many properties as we were last year,” he said.

He added: “My salesman Paul - already a bit of a local celebrity - has just completed his seventh consecutive sale and people are buying because they can see that the incredible deals won’t wait around for them forever,” he added.

Paul made headlines in the Olive Press last year when he sold an impressive nine properties in a row.

How to reclaim floor clause fees

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Rent control called for in major cities

TIME is running out to snap POLITICIANS are calling for rent conup a luxury apartment in a trols in Barcelona and Madrid. large British-built developCity administrations have called on ment on the Costa del Sol. the national government to amend the The last 40 homes, costing rental law as rising prices have begun €265,000, have gone on sale pricing out locals. in Taylor Wimpey’s Acqua Cushman & Wakefield forecast that Download app now and development inour San Pedro.

Locatedbegin between the enjoying the bestseaSpanish front and oldgo.quarter of newsthe on the the town, the two and threebedroom scheme is the latest project by the property magnate in Andalucia.

Each property comes with air conditioning and a private parking space, alongside access to a communal swimming pool and gardens.

Taylor The WimpeyOlive is currently Press constructing more homes on its Los Arqueros Golf resort, forcompletion news in Spain! which TOP is set for

by THE number of British owners selling their 2020.

Spanish homes has skyrocketed since Brexit.

Malaga province has seen a 16.5% increase is Brits selling up since June 23, with most sales occurring on the Costa del Sol. The data was collated from estate agents by the Colegio de Administradores de Fincas de Malaga y Melilla, a government owned corporation that represents property professionals.

It said that fears over a devaluation in the pound and over the medium and long term consequences of Brexit were to blame.

“The uncertainty of the UK's economic future is pushing many Britons to pose a situation unthinkable until months ago:

Brits selling Malaga homes in record numbers since Brexit

average residential rental prices will increase by 10% this year in Madrid, and 5% in Barcelona, whilst new figures from the Spanish property portal Idealista.com show that rental yields are also rising, implying that rents are rising faster than house prices.

Bubble burst

selling their home in Malaga" said Fernando Pastor, the organisation’s president.

"We have found that both UK citizens who live here and those who have their second home in our province have changed their perception of real estate investment and prefer to sell property now before the economic context changes further."

Pastor said that most of the homes being sold were in residential complexes between Marbella and Malaga.

He added that, according to the organisation’s findings, most of those who were selling were ‘solvent people who prefer to insure their investment against the risk of the new political and economic situation’.

MORTGAGE THINK TANK

January 18th - January 31st

by mortgage broker Tancrede de Pola

Ready, steady, mortgage

M

Top 10 must-do’s before applying for your mortgage in Spain

UCH like its economy, Spain’s property market is on the up, and it has become the best time to buy

in years.

But before approaching lenders or banks to finance your Spanish dream, read Finance Bureau’s Tancrede de Pola’s top ten must-do’s.

1. Hire a broker - Much better deals are to be had with someone who knows the business inside out fighting your corner.

2. Keep a low profile - Don’t apply for new credit around the time you are trying to get a mortgage, you may be considered a greater credit risk if you do.

3. Have your finances in order – When applying for a mortgage it is imperative that you can clearly demonstrate that you have the funds (typically 30% + closing costs) available for completion.

4. Be prepared - Make sure you have all the relevant documents you need, bank statements, NIE, proofs of income, credit report, the works, the Spanish love their documents.

5. Look the part - Start running your bank account as if you al-

ready have a mortgage at least three months before you apply - Avoid excessive spending, cut out subscriptions and memberships that aren’t essential and don’t splash the cash on betting or gambling.

6. Lawyer up - You need a good team behind you to avoid being cheated, this includes a good estate agent and a lawyer.

7. Reputation - Try to improve your credit score before applying, one tip: put all expenditures on a credit card and pay it off in full each month, ensure you are on the electoral roll.

8. Best product – Have in mind the type of mortgage you want.

Your broker will advise as to the most suitable, given your circumstances.

9. Know your limits - Determine how long you want your mortgage term to be. You will pay less each month the longer it is, but bear in mind you will be paying more interest.

10. Be ready - Get a copy of your credit report to make sure it is correct and correct any errors, and to make sure you are not unpleasantly surprised if it’s bad news.

To contact Tancrede for all your mortgaging needs call: 666 709 743 or for insurance queries call: 951 203 540 Email: tdp@thefinanacebureau.com The Finance Bureau Centro Commercial Guadalmina, 2nOffice No. 7 Guadalmina, 29670

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Viewing is highly recommended

34

www.theolivepress.es

Professional Ethics and Conscience

Property 13 11+

February 15th - February 28th 2017 February 15th - February 28th 2017

years experience in

ALL PROPERTY MATTERS

BY CAMPBELL FERGUSON

RICS BUILDING SURVEYORS & VALUERS

For peace of mind follow these property buying rules

Why taking advice when purchasing a home is Find Your Property always a good idea

A

FTER many years of carrying out property matches that paperwork and also in the buildexpert witness valuations for inter- point out any significant defects Instruct Instruct national courts, I’ve applied to be ing structure and condition.

Building Surveyor Lawyer appointed to the President of RICS’s Their fee can be saved many times over by presenting their report to the seller for a repanel of Expert Witnesses.

The training involves a new section, entitled duction in the price equivalent to the cost of with physically Knowledge both ‘Professional Ethics for RICS Members’. It making the property good, Buy & Confidence and in the permissions required for any alwas a thought provoking course.

“Professional ethics, that should be a dod- terations that have not been licensed or regdle as I’ve been dealing with such decisions istered. +34 a 952number 923 520 We’ve ‘saved the life’ of of soliciall my working life,” I thought to myself. admin@surveyspain.com the property However, after the online training, in my first tors who would have approved surveyspain.com question-and-answer test, I didn’t achieve for their client if we hadn’t pointed out that the paperwork was not accurately describthe required 75% pass rate! ing the property that we inSo, I went through the quesspected. tions again and studied the But how does one find these ideal answers, which were all The biggest paragons of virtue? to do with conflicts of interest and respect for RICS and the problems buyers Referrals from a trusted person are the best and someclient above myself and my will encounter times, yes, the selling agent firm. may know an independent I read through the course will be their own lawyer who knows that his/ again and sat a different test, her duty of care is 100% to being delighted with the pass arrogance their client. now that I knew the type of But most times, it’s safer to answers expected. appoint a lawyer not involved I don’t necessarily agree that these answers are practical for real life, but with the seller or the selling agent. Probably someone from a different town, but practisit’s certainly made me think.

When somebody comes to Spain wanting to ing within the same province or certainly buy a property for the first time, or in an area autonomous community so they are familiar where they haven’t built a social support with the local laws, which can differ throughsystem, how do they select the profession- out Spain.

A RICS surveyor knows what ethics are and als they need to work with?

The sensible person chooses a reliable and that they have a very consumer orientated, knowledgeable estate agent local to the international organisation regulating them and Professional Indemnity Insurance. area in which they wish to purchase.

A lawyer too, who can speak your language, You should always check that all the profesis independent of the estate agent, property sionals have PII as that indicates that they owner and bank and has the professional have their client’s interest at heart. conscience to find answers to questions that The biggest problems that buyers will encounter will be their own arrogance with you do not know to ask.

While the lawyer will ensure that the pa- regard to the laws and regulations of Spain perwork is correct, an independent build- and overconfidence that they ‘know it all’. ing surveyor is essential to ensure, through Take advice as there are always questions measurements and description, that the that need answers.

Connect with us!

Contact Campbell and the team on +34 952 923 520 or email info@surveyspain.com

Simply the best

First-time buyers in Europe fare the best in Spain

SPAIN has been ranked the second-best country in the world for first-time buyers, and the best in Europe.

A report by UK relocation service MoveHub analysed 33 countries by comparing property prices for 2016 with average salaries to determine the best countries for first-time buyers.

The United Arab Emirates topped the list thanks to an almost 8% drop in property prices last year.

Spain saw a 2.2% increase in salaries against a 5.75% drop in property prices, putting it in second place, followed by Greece, Singapore and

Switzerland.

“Countries with the highest salary growth enjoyed more affordable property prices or even prices in decline, making them the best places for first-time buyers,” said MoveHub in a statement.

“It's a good time to buy from the market cycle angel, as the Spanish housing market is in the early stages of recovery after a grinding 8-year depression though some hotspots like Barcelona and Ibiza have recovered so fast they are no longer looking like bargains,” Mark Stucklin from Spanish Property Insight added.

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BUSINESS round-up

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Fuel shocker +TheolivepressEs

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Malaga has pricier petrol than Madrid and Barcelona

MARBELLA has the high- eas with higher purchasing app now and est fuelDownload prices our in Spain. power offer lower prices, Data from the Ministry of including Granada (1.124), begin enjoying the best Spanish Energynews and Tourism has Bilbao (1.126) and Zaragoon the go. revealed that refueling za (1.127). your diesel car will cost Neighbouring Estepona you more in Marbella than and Mijas are far lower in any municipality on the than Marbella, with averCosta del Sol, and more age prices of €1.138 and than all major Spanish cit- €1.141 per litre respecies. tively.

The average price at Mar- Marbella is said to have bella stations is €1.163Press per more gas stations that are The Olive litre, higher than Barce- linked to large exclusive oil lona’s €1.155 and astonish- companies, driving up the for news in Spain! ingly, TOP higher than Madrid’s average price. €1.119.

When refueling your car Malaga’s average is €1.147 with 50 litres, the differwhile Sevilla’s is €1.146. ence in price could be as The statistics show that ar- much as six euros.

CAPTION:

Bedwear ban A MALAGA cafe has sparked controversy by banning pyjamas.

Los Monaguillos has prohibited customers from entering in pyjamas or dressing gowns, for ‘hygiene reasons’.

While a summer ban on entering in swimwear is usually well-accepted, this recent decree has received a mixed reaction.

Some customers have stopped coming to the bar, saying that they should not be judged or barred from entry on the grounds of their clothing.

It has become common for locals to be seen wearing pyjamas, dressing gowns or slippers on the streets in the area.

Staff at Los Monaguillos said that several tourists had assumed there was a hospital close by, to account for the unusual number of customers wearing pyjamas.

Time for change?

ALMOST 90% of Spanish workers want to start and leave work earlier.

Spain could be moving to favour a more compact British 9 to 5 working day, according to a new study by sociological organisation Ulises.

Results showed 86% of full time employees wanted the change.

A further three out of four believed the working day should end at 6pm, while 64% signalled that

they would like to turn the clocks back one hour to British GMT. Another 67.5% of the 10,303 adult respondents showed willingness to have a lunch break of less than one hour in return for leaving earlier But a resolute 40% told researchers that they would not be willing to bring their lunchtime forward to avoid disturbing mediterranean meal time norms.

February 15th - February 28th 2017

3535

February 15th - February 28th 2017

Crude to be kind IRAN is close to a deal to begin building oil refineries in Spain.

The Persian state is currently in the final stages of negotiations, according to managing director of National Iranian Oil Refining and Distribution Company, Abbas Kazemi.

“The international affairs office of National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) is in charge of these projects and we are conducting feasibility studies,” Kazemi said.

The NIOC plans to build several oil refineries abroad to expand the country’s oil market, including in Brazil.

Spain’s Ta

36 36

BUSINESS

www.theolivepress.es

February 15th - February 28th 2017 February 15th - February 28th 2017

Frequently labelled the most corrupt country in Europe, Spain has had more than its fair share of money-grubbing mayors and perfidious politicians.

From a shady short list of hundreds the Olive Press has narrowed down their nefarious numbers to an unmagnificent ten

inted 10

Jesús Gil

Luis Bárcenas As treasurer of the People’s Party, Barcenas was accused of hiding up to €50 million in secret Swiss bank accounts. Documents released in 2013 suggested that he had run a parallel bookkeeping system for 18 years, recording illegal cash donations to the party and using them to pay bonuses to senior party members.

Former Mayor of the Valencian town of Xativa, Rus was arrested in 2016. He was thought to have been part of a corrupt network which charged commissions in exchange for granting public contracts, and was forced to resign after recordings were released in which he could be heard counting out wads of money.

Juan Sanchez

María Victoria Pinalla

José Antonio Griñán

Alfonso Rus

In 1991 Gil set up the Grupo Independiente Liberal (um, GIL) and was elected Mayor of Marbella. He was forced to resign and briefly imprisoned in 2002, as €390 million had been left unaccounted for. He stood accused of embezzling over €30 million of municipal funds. He has been compared by the Spanish media to Donald Trump, because of parallels in their lives and character, oops. He died in 2004.

The former Mayor of Casares on the Costa del Sol, Sanchez was arrested in 2012. He was accused of illegal enrichment through urban developments in the town, and linked to an Eastern European mafia organisation. The anti-corruption prosecution has requested an 18-year jail sentence and a €1.2 million fine.

€

Carlos Fabra

DOES YOURS DO THE SAME?

Jaume Matas

Julian Muñoz

Twice regional premier of the Balearic Islands, Matas was sentenced to six years in prison for fraud in 2012. He was convicted of paying almost half a million euros in bribes to a journalist, and also accused of misdirecting funds for a race track, increasing its budget from €43 million to €110 million.

Muñoz took over as Marbella mayor after Gil’s resignation (see above left).

He was arrested in 2006 and again in 2013. He was convicted of over 50 offences, mostly of bribery, embezzle-**When a policy claim is made. ment and breach of trust, and sentenced to 45 years in prison.

Editorial

F I N D

O U T

O N

Moving your car to Spain: A five-step guide 902 123 282 REGISTERING a non-Spanish vehicle in Spain is a complex and potentially costly procedure.

However, you may be exempt from Spanish registration tax by getting Spanish number plates within one month of entering the country. But to do this, you need to become a resident. Linea Directa has been insuring expat drivers in Spain for over a decade and understands all the steps involved. Below we outline this process.

STEP 1: OBTAINING A CERTIFICATE OF CONFORMITY This is a statement by the car’s manufacturer that it conforms to EU regulations. You will need the car’s chassis number to complete this straightforward process online at www.

How to best registering your vehicle in Spain

eurococ.eu/en/certificate_of_conformity.

The charges for this service will vary according to type of vehicle, make and country of first registration.

STEP 2: CURRENT LOG BOOK The vehicle’s original log book showing your name as the owner, the vehicle's age and a valid UK address. You will also need the bill of sale for the car.

STEP 3: RESIDENCY IN SPAIN The Spanish residency certificate (Certi-

6

he failed to declare to tax authorities.

The sum is suspected to run into the hundreds of millions.

The former president of the Popular Party in Castellón, Fabra was responsible for the province’s €150 million ‘ghost airport’. His claims that he won the lottery seven times in 10 years were not enough to account for €3.2 million in unexplained earnings, as well as the failure to pay €1 million in tax. In 2013 he was sentenced to four years in prison.

As Mayor of of La Muela in Zaragoza, Pinalla became known for her development of wind farms.

That is, until her arrest in 2009.

She was found guilty of 14 counts of corruption, including embezzlement, passive bribery, money laundering and obstruction of justice. She was sentenced to 17 years in prison, a €10 million fine and a 78-year disqualification from holding public office.

President of Junta de Andalucia from 2009-2013, Griñán among others stands accused of misdirecting public funds. Infamously known as the ERE Case, up to €855 million in subsidies intended to help struggling companies pay redundancy or early retirement packages were fraudulently doled out. The prosecution is asking to put him behind bars for six years.

CAR INSUR

OUR CAR INSURANCE * HAS EVERYTHING. Jordi Pujol IT EVEN COMES WITH Pujol, a leader of the Catalan independence movement and regional LEGAL DEFENCE CASHBA premier for decades, publicly admitted in 2014 to hiding money in an acAS STANDARD count in Andorra for 30 years, which

TM

ficado de Empadronamiento) is your official booking. If the centre is busy, especially proof of residency in Spain. Your local a lot O Ntown pre-summer, this can save O Nof time. hall can provide you with this document. You The cost can vary but generally is around will need to take*When your and 40€ foronly. petrol-engine carsoneand 56€ dieyou passport contract 2 policies.

Validproof for new of car or bike policies Existing customers require additional car for or bike policy. Offer ends 28/02 Spanish address (rental contract, contract to sel-engine cars. purchase or property deeds).

STEP 5: OBTAINING A SPANISH EQUIVASTEP 4: OBTAINING A SPANISH MOT CER- LENT OF A TAX DISC The Spanish Tax Agency can provide your veTIFICATE All vehicles over 4 years old must be road- hicle with a valid “tax disc” for Spain, which worthy and clearly display a valid ITV stick- must be carried in the car when in use. You er. The ITV (Vehicle Technical Inspection) will need to complete the relevant form onmust be tested at an authorised centre, line and pay the amount according to your just as for an MOT test. You can find out car’s tax band. the location of your nearest ITV centre on You can carry out all these procedures yourDGT website (equivalent to the DVLA). You self or you can seek the assistance of an accan also call your local centre to make a countant to do this for you.

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BUSINESS

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Barcelona rejects Airbnb truce

BARCELONA authorities have rebuffed Airbnb’s attempt to broker a truce after months of tensions over short-term rentals.

Letting giant Airbnb was fined in November for failing to comply with local tourism laws.

“We don’t want Barcelona turning into a theme park where neighbours are priced out of their homes and local businesses come under pressure” said Ja-

February 15th - February 28th 2017

No deal TOP DESTINATION: Barcelona

net Sanz, deputy mayor in charge of planning issues.

Earlier this month Airbnb pledged to limit home rentals to one property in the central district of Ciutat Vella per non-professional user.

The company also prom-

ised to force professional landlords to provide business information on the site, in order to facilitate the collection of tourist tax.

But city officials rejected this offer. A spokesman said: “This is a joke. It’s not clear [whether Airbnb] agrees to comply with the law and stop advertising illegal apartments.”

Airbnb’s listings in Barcelona have risen to 20,000, making it the company’s fourth biggest city for rentals in Europe, and ninth biggest in the world.

UK disability benefits post-referendum

T

he result of the referendum in the UK of June 2016 has created confusion and uncertainty for everyone and no less so for those living in Spain. What will happen to our healthcare, what will happen to our right to live and work here and also what will happen to our pensions are just some of the questions on people’s lips. There are also many people living in Spain who rely on the UK disability and sickness benefits they are paid to help them cover the additional costs of living with illness or disability.

Since a CJEU decision in July 2011, firsttime claims for Attendance Allowance, Disability Living Allowance (DLA) care component, Carer’s Allowance and now also the daily living component of Personal Independence Payment (PIP) can be made by people living outside the UK in another EEA member state.

There will doubtless be people who are thinking that their entitlement to these

benefits may cease sooner or later and others who think that is not therefore worth making a claim. But, as with so much to do with Brexit, nothing is set in stone and it is not certain what will change or when.

Even assuming article 50 is triggered in March, the UK remains part of the EU for at least a further two years and is therefore still bound by EU law which means that the rules currently in place remain for that period and guarantee the rights and entitlement to UK benefits for those living in Spain and other EEA member states. If the UK does then end up leaving the EU it is still not known how much of EU law will be incorporated into UK law and so nothing is yet known about how entitlement to benefits may change.

At this point there is no reason not to make a claim and lose out on money you may need and which could be the difference between staying here and returning

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to the UK. The difficulty in accessing support from social services in Spain means that people often have to fund their own help with domestic chores and personal care. Many who do not make claims for benefits end up having to return to the UK as they simply do not have the money needed to pay for these services.

There are of course other reasons why people do not claim the benefits they are entitled to. A lack of knowledge of what is available or the rules of entitlement and failure to challenge negative DWP decisions means people miss out on what is rightfully theirs. Difficulty accessing forms, finding the nature of them overwhelming and wanting to avoid intrusive questions deter many even further. That coupled with feelings of pride and wanting to preserve their independence or not wanting to be a burden on the state often put others off. If you or someone you know is suffering from illness or disability

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We can take you through how you make a first-time claim, ask for a review of an award and prepare you for and represent you at appeals tribunal. For more details on all the above please find contact details below.

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CEO: Federico Gonzalez

New boss

La Sala has announced ambitious expansion plans under its new CEO Federico Gonzalez.

New beach clubs and an alliance with a global hospitality group are said to be in the works.

Spanish-born Gonzalez, who holds a law and economics degree from Bilbao’s Deusto University and an MBA from INSEAD business school in France, took on the new role on February 6.

“I’m honoured to have been chosen for this very exciting opportunity,” said Gonzalez, “This is a group that has achieved unparalleled success since its foundation. To be offered the chance to lead our 300 employees to greater success is a challenge I am greatly looking forward to.”

The Sala Group has six locations worldwide, including in Gibraltar, and has several projects planned for 2018.

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Beer battle

Spain’s vegetable crisis cost UK retailers €9 million in January alone THE UK salad shortage

Download our app now and caused by bad weather begin enjoying the best Spanish in Spain has hit retailers hard, according to new news on the go.

Spanish farmers Trumped

figures from the market research company IRI. UK sales of bagged spinach were down a whopping €6.5 million in January, a drop of 47% on last year. Courgette sales were also down by €2.3 milAVOCADO growers are lion for the month, a fall Olive Pressof nearly 40%. This puts fearingThe for their businesses due to Donald Trump’s the impact of the crisis at plan TOP to make Mexicans for news in Spain! €9 million, and that’s not pay for a border wall. taking the shortage of letFarmers in Malaga worry tuce into account. they may struggle to sell Worse still, Fepex, the their own crops if the US largest Spanish growers’ President slaps a 20% im- association, has warned port tax on Mexicans, the that the shortage will last world’s largest avocado at least until April. producers.

A triple-whammy of drought, floods and hard Worry frost has decimated the They believe this could Spanish crops of lettuce, cause Mexican farmers to spinach, courgettes and try to break into the Euro- other vegetables. pean market, where most This has resulted in a Spanish avocados are cur- shortage in the UK, which imports about 65% of its rently sold.

Currently Mexico sends fresh fruit and vegetables only 10% of its avocados from the rest of the EU, to Europe, as it sells up to with Spain the biggest single source.

900,000 in the US alone.

Malaga produces 50,000 British supermarkets have tonnes of avocados a year, begun to ration lettuces most of which are export- while many shelves stand ed to other parts of Eu- empty altogether.

A black market has sprung rope.

Salad crunch

EMPTY: Salad shelves at UK supermarkets have become bare

up, trading the green stuff for up to four times its normal value.

There have been reports of broccoli on sale for £5 a kilo, and iceberg lettuce being flogged for £4 a pop.

Supermarket sweep MERCADONA dominated Spain’s supermarket industry last year, new figures have revealed.

It continued to be the largest grocery chain in the country with a market share of 22.9%.

Figures from Kantar Worldpanel also showed that German discounter Lidl took 0.5% more of the market to gain a 4.1% share, a ‘highly impressive’ feat given that it only has 600 stores nationwide compared to Mercadonna’s 1,600 plus.

Referring to the ‘Lidl phenomenon’, Kantar said six out of 10 Spanish households bought produce there last year.

Dia and Carrefour both came in second with an 8.5% market share but neither showed significant growth.

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Tortilla fail DESPITE witnessing the fury after Jamie Oliver famously put chorizo in his paella, Buzzfeed decided to go rogue on another Spanish classic.

A video showing ‘how to make Spanish tortilla’ was posted on Twitter by @BuzzfeedTastyy, which included red peppers, onions, garlic and the mother of all no-no’s… chorizo.

The clip soon went viral as Spaniards were yet again less than impressed.

Buzzfeed España had to point out that the tweet or post had nothing to do with them, and that they only eat traditional tortilla.

BEER tax in the UK is still more than 10 times higher than in Spain.

The Campaign for Real Ale (Camra) is now calling on Britain’s chancellor Philip Hammond to take another penny off beer duty in next month’s budget.

They hope it will safeguard investment in the industry, as it has done in Spain and Germany.

Every pint in the UK is taxed 52.2p, compared with just 5p in Germany and Spain.

Colin Valentine, chairman of Camra, said: “It is clear that previous cuts to beer duty have benefited beer drinkers and supported significant growth in the brewing industry.

“However, we as a nation are still paying a notable amount – especially in comparison to our European neighbours.”

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February 15th - February 28th 2017

D

O you know your tangelos from your tangerines? Could you recognise a ponkon?

Aren’t they all just oranges anyway? Not quite. It is thought that all contemporary citrus fruits are descended from three original varieties: the mandarin, the citron (related to lemons) and the pomelo (similar to a grapefruit).

Modern-day oranges are a hybrid of mandarins and pomelos. Most people see mandarins as a type of small orange, but in fact they are a completely different variety. Other fruits such as tangerines, clementines and satsumas are part of the mandarin family.

Mandarins were first cultivated in ancient southeastern China, having evolved from a wild fruit found in India. Fashionable Chinese women used to hold these fruits in their hands so that they would be scented by them. Mandarins were a relatively late arrival to the West - not appearing in England until 1805. From there they spread to Italy, and then Spain and the rest of the Mediterranean. The name comes from the word for a Chinese businessman, which arrived in English from the Sanskrit word mantri, via Malay and Portuguese. Below is a handy guide to telling the difference between the most common types of mandarin.

Mandarins are in season, but what’s the difference between the neverending list of different types?

Elsa Maishman finds out

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The clementine is a seedless variety of mandarin, believed to have been developed in Algeria around the beginning of the 19th century by a French missionary called Marie-Clement Rodier. It’s becoming very popular with farmers, as unlike other species it will not develop seeds even if planted near fruits with seeds in.

It’s also easier to peel than a tangerine - leading to the moniker ‘easy-peelers’.

Satsuma The skin of this fruit is a bit tighter than that of a clementine. It’s another seedless variety, and is very popular as a tinned fruit. It’s a less common fresh variety than clementines or tangerines, as it’s extremely tender and can be prone to shipping damage. It tastes similar to a clementine, although some claim it to be a little sweeter. Like all mandarins, it is of Chinese origin, but it was introduced to the West via the Japanese province of Satsuma in the 16th century.

ZESTY: Clementines are named after a 19th century French missionary

Cherry orange

Also known as a baby mandarin and a tiny tangerine, this fruit has become popular in British supermarkets for its marketing value, as it is novelly small - about the size of a 50c coin. It is almost seedless, and very tender and sweet. Despite its most common name, it is a type of mandarin. For a long time it was not known outside of Asia, as it was a rare fruit cultivated only for Chinese royalty.

Ponkon

Tangelo

A hybrid of a mandarin and a pomelo, ponkons are sweet, vibrant and tangy. They are easily recognised by the raised bumped at the top, and the large gap in the centre of the fruit. They are very popular at the time of Chinese New Year.

A tangelo is a cross between a tangerine and a grapefruit.

It’s especially juicy, and doesn’t have the acidity grapefruits are known for. Its most famous variety is the minneola, recognisable for its distinctive ‘little nose’ or bump at the top of the fruit.

Tangerine Tangerines are distinctive for their dark, reddish skin. The name comes from the Moroccan port of Tangiers, through which these fruits were introduced to Britain from China in the 1800s. The fruit is not as sweet as other varieties, and it has seeds and a slightly tougher skin.

PONKON (right): Very popular during Chinese New Year

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February 15th - February 28th 2017

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44 If the Spanish can’t get their hands on Gibraltar, is this the next best thing?

S

Columnists

February 15th - February 28th 2017 Feb 15th - Feb 28th 2017

An English City in Spain

O two months into the New Year and Brexit still means little more than Brexit. With Article 50 triggering next month, you wouldn’t want to be in Theresa May’s kittenheeled shoes, even if her new pal in the White House thinks it will be a ‘wonderful thing for Britain.’

Meanwhile, everyone who lives in or around Gibraltar tries not to wonder too much what life will be like when the UK leaves the EU, taking the Rock with it.

My pal, a Wonder Woman in Gibraltar’s accountancy world, has no idea whether she, her company and half of financial services will be passported out when Gibraltar finds itself in the surreal position of being exiled from Europe politically but joined to it geographically.

What does ‘Schexit mean?’ is the real question for those of us who cross the border regularly. That’s Schengen Exit, which comes with Brexit. Will getting

BRITISH STAPLES: John Cleese and ‘Manuel’ in Fawlty Towers

a jar of Marmite be more of a hassle after the axe falls? And will it cost five quid more if Foreign Minister Margallo’s replacement likes the old money-grubber’s idea of introducing a frontier fee?

Amidst the speculation, the Spanish are in no doubt at all what Brexit means to them: oportunidades. And one of those is a holiday beach resort nine tenths the size of Disneyland which they plan to build just up the coast from Gibraltar.

English City in La Linea will flaunt two five star hotels, 1,000 rental apartments and ‘views over virgin beaches to the bay’ (That’s the Bay of Algeciras or the Bay of Gibraltar, depending on your political viewpoint.).

“We see very clear future profitability and we have patented the name because we ACK in the boom decades of are going to direct it to the the Nineties and Noughties, English market, taking adas an established member of vantage of the proximity of the freebooting press I used Gibraltar airport,” said the to get showered with all sorts of investors. freebies and goodie bags.

I’ve been trying to get my In those days I was the editor of head around the concept a commercial property magazine, since I first read about it in based just off City Road. our local paper. The cool The buzzword in those days was 'ur€150 million on the table ban regeneration' and bodies such says it’s not such a mad idea as the London Docklands Developalthough, as it requires a ment Corporation had generous PR change to the General Plan, it budgets to spend. won’t be happening soon.

Lavish 'research' trips were laid But why not British City, or will on, most notably to the MIPIM inthe Scots, Welsh and Irish be ternational property exhibition in excluded? And will they want Cannes, where the LDDC laid on a to fly all the way to Spain to marquee on La Croisette to watch stay in a fake version of what England play Wales. they can get back home for We all received LDDC rugby shirts, real? Coals and Newcastle lowered the European Wine Lake by spring to mind. about three metres and ate mounGOODIES: Giftbag from Our Space But what I wonder most is, tains of roast beef sandwiches. how will they make it English?

On my return to Marbella, I was de- Tight for time, I alas forsook my With kiss-me-quick hats and lighted to find that developers were usual opportunity to graze the bufcockney Manuels running equally as lavish whenever they fet – and I can graze a buffet in the around with trays of Pimms way that a herd of ravenous wildeopened a new development. and Twiglets which they’ll Hardly a month went by when I beest graze the Serengeti, trust me. have to buy from Morrisons Instead I had a quick didn't attend a funcand declare through their guided tour of the adtion, and I received so own Checkpoint Charlie? mittedly impressive famany invites that I beHm. The Spanish haven’t yet I can graze a cilities, made my apolgan to grade then on learned to make a decent ogies and left. the standard of press buffet in the English cuppa...

As I trotted off down gift received, with a But have you crossed the borthe stairs, however, way that a herd branded baseball cap der of late? The authorities a smiling PR person rating a five. of ravenous are wasting no time – not genpopped a goodie bag in Then the financial crierally a national trait - in transmy hand. sis loomed and all of wilderbeest forming the old frontier post The rather trendy, camthat came to an abrupt into a Star Wars force field ouflage rucksack conhalt. bristling with retinal scanners tained a press release, So I trudged along to and other biometric sci-fi. the recent opening of the Our Space as well as a rechargeable battery, a The route through customs cork-covered notebook and a brandoffice in Marbella, expecting to realready matches a Grand ceive my modest and now more usu- ed fan perfect for those hot summer Prix circuit for chicanes and deadline days, and I reinstated my al con gas and a canape. hairpin bends. Think of the With acrobats, dancers and a fire ranking system with an impressive queues in summer! nine! breather or two I’m sure I spotted as Then add circa 4,000 extra well, however, this wasn't your usu- Who knows, this could be proof that tourists piling over the border al service office opening but more the green shoots of recovery really every week and beam me up are with us! of a Hollywood red carpet affair.

Scottie!

Rise like a phoenix

Are the boom days of work freebies finally returning?

B The Olive Press Insider’s Guide

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There is a whole new way to discover Andalucia @allaboutandalucia @aboutandalucia @allaboutandalucia All about Andalucia

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Motors

February 15th - February 28th 2017 February 1st - February 14th 2017

45 45

Google mapped FORGET Ferraris and Lamborghinis, the most sought after car in Spain is still a Volkswagen.

According to a study by Quickco, Spaniards haven’t fallen out with the manufacturer following its huge emissions scandal, as it remained the most searched for car last year.

The study analysed which brands were most Googled in 193 countries in 2016.

It revealed that most people in the UK are looking for BMW’s.

Spain’s recovering car industry could be scuppered

by Brexit BRITAIN’S exit from the EU could derail Spain’s recovering car industry, despite a strong 2016.

The country’s production of automobiles rose by 5.6% last year to 2.89 million, a return to pre-crisis levels.

But the Anfac carmaker association has warned that ‘the devaluation of certain currencies and the emergence of protectionist phenomena in various countries that Spain exports to’ negatively impacted production in the last six months.

Exports account for 84% of Spanish production, a figure which rose last year by 7% to 2.43 million units - more than in pre-crisis 2007.

But Anfac said countries like the

Derailed UK showed signs of weariness, especially post-Brexit, as the pound dropped in value.

It added that exports to Britain had been dropping around 16% per month since September.

Spain’s car industry is key to its economy, accounting for 10% of economic output.

Last year the Spanish economy grew by 3.2%, with many analysts saying it has almost returned to pre-crisis levels.

But Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has warned that Brexit could play a destabilising role.

In a press conference at the end of January, the PP leader said Britain’s departure from the EU presented a ‘real threat’ to the country.

Ticket to ride FERRARI Land has begun selling its first tickets as new details about Spain’s first car-themed amusement park have been revealed.

The Barcelona park will feature a vertical accelerator that rockets thrillseekers up over 100 metres in just five seconds.

Other attractions include Ferrari Land Gallery, an interactive exhibit that takes you through the history of the legendary Italian car maker, a racetrack, free fall tower, F1 simulators, pit stop, and speedway for kids. There will also be three different shows.

Sprawling across 70,000 square metres and costing €100 million, Ferrari Land is the younger sister to Ferrari World in Abu Dhabi which opened in 2010.

The park will officially open April 7 and adult ticket prices start at €60.

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NEW car sales rose by 10.7% year-on-year in January.

It comes after some 84,515 brand new vehicles were sold in the first month of 2017.

The figures suggest Spain’s economy is on the mend as confidence in the market returns.

New car sales in December 2016 rose by 9.3%.

ALONSO: Reveals his Hollywood crush

Just a little crush

FERNANDO ALONSO has revealed the woman he would most like to date is Hollywood starlet Charlize Theron.

He confessed to his crush during a quick-fire questionnaire with F1 magazine, where the questions all started with, ‘If you could pick just one…’.

When asked which meal he’d pick to eat for the rest of his life he said pizza, with the one topping being jamon.

Fifa was his one video game choice, a book by Andre Agassi his one read, and if given just one sport to play he would not choose motor racing. Instead it would be basketball.

46 46

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On the rise SPANIARD Jon Rahm is now among the top 50 golfers in the world after securing his first PGA Tour win.

Rahm, 22, capped his maiden triumph at Torrey Pines, San Diego, in late January with a thrilling eagle at the last.

The Basque Country golfer will now have the freedom to pick and choose his tournaments on both sides of the Atlantic.

With his PGA Tour card secure, Rahm is on schedule to be free to accept European Tour membership in time for next year’s Ryder Cup. “I’ve thought about the Ryder Cup a lot,” he said during the 2016 World Cup. “I so want to play in the matches.”

Golf

February 15th - February 28th 2017 February 15th - February 28th 2017

46

Pay-back at last Golf tourists in taxi horror crash finally win damages

AN Irish tourist got the shaft of a golf club em- Moroney told the court: “The bruising around bedded in the back of his head after a horror my left eye was so bad that I looked like somecrash at La Manga Golf Resort. thing out of The Elephant Man movie.

John Moroney, 53, said he looked like ‘some- “Even today I suffer pain in my left knee espething out of the Elephant Man cially during the onset of cold movie’ after the taxi he was in weather. span out of control and somer“I strap it up and take painkillers saulted into a deep ravine. if necessary when playing golf.”

Moroney and his golfing pals, Moroney was knocked unconMark Lawless, 55 and Michael scious and only woke up when he Lynch, 59, will now share €52,000 arrived strapped in a wheelchair in damages following a lengthy leat Santa Maria hospital, where gal battle over the 2010 incident. a surgeon had removed part of a The civil court heard how the golf club shaft from the back of his Spanish taxi driver had taken off MORONEY: With pal head. very quickly from La Manga, near He was left with a permanent Murcia, and continued to drive at an alarming three-inch scar at the base of his scalp and sigspeed until he hit a crash barrier as he tried to nificant soft tissue injuries to his face, arms, overtake another car in the middle of the road. shoulder, shins, ribs and chest.

CRASH: Outside La Manga Golf Resort

Sporting chance A NEW initiative has been launched to promote Andalucia as Spain’s sporting south.

Andalucia, gateway to sport was announced by Minister for Tourism and Sport Francisco Javier Fernandez.

Golf will play a key role in the programme, which includes a dozen major national and international competitions to be held in Andalucia this year.

These include the Andalucia component of the European Tour, the Ladies European Tour and the Challenge Tour.

Fernandez said that he wants to attract visitors to Andalucia, as the region offers ‘a perfect combination of tourism and sport’.

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A BRITISH expat’s new app will allow tee times across Spain to be booked from anywhere in the world.

EuroGolf, created by James Ivory, will see golfers paying green fees through a secure platform.

It is the first app in Spain to use Applepay, where a thumbprint is required to authorise payment.

There are more than 100 Spanish courses to choose from, with more expected to be added in the near future.

A loyalty scheme is also being introduced where each booking will gain points, which can be shared with others in a group and can be used to receive a discount on future bookings.

MINISTER: Fernandez

Ladies on pga tour

ANDALUCIA will host the Ladies European Tour this year.

Some of the best female golfers in the world will tee off at the Andalucia Costa del Sol Open of Spain from September 21 to 24 - although the exact course has yet to be chosen.

In total there will be 11 tournaments with winnings of at least €500,000.

Ivan Khodabakhsh, executive director of LET,

said: “2017 promises to be a great year for the Ladies European Tour and we are very excited about our season.

“Our calendar includes a minimum of four new or returning events with more to be confirmed shortly. “With 18 live televised events, there will be more exposure than ever this year and our players will have the opportunity to compete for record money in prizes.”

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February 15th - February 28th 2017

February 1st - February 14th 2017

Final eight

Alarm bells for la liga THE lack of drug-testing in La Liga has been labelled as ‘alarming’ by industry bosses.

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has blasted the league for failing to carry out a single drug test so far this season.

It comes after WADA declared Spain’s antidoping agency (ARPSAD) as non-compliant last March.

WADA had hoped FIFA or UEFA would

take over the country’s drug testing while ARPSAD was brought back into compliance, but no agreement was struck.

“It will do little to instill confidence in clean sport at a time when it is needed most,” said a WADA statement.

“The lack of testing in a country with one of the leading football leagues worldwide for a period of almost 12 months is alarming.”

Fullback-ing

Scores of fans turn out to support embattled Costa del Sol rugby club

GO EAST: Marin

Next serve: India A SPANISH badminton ace may be opening an academy in India.

World number one Carolina Marin from Huelva is rumoured to be in talks with the chief minister of Nagaland about helping to create a centre in the north eastern part of the country.

The Nagaland Post reported that she and her coach Fernando Rivas want to help develop the sport in the impoverished region but that the state’s government has yet to respond.

Marin, 23, currently plays for the Hyderabad Hunters in the main badminton league in India, where badminton continues to gain in popularity.

4747

GREAT Britain and Spain have made it to the final eight of this year’s Davis Cup. Team GB came through in awkward circumstances after Brit Kyle Edmund was two sets to love up and leading 2-1 in the decider when his 17-yearold Canadian opponent Denis Shapovalov blasted a ball into the stands in a fit of rage.

However the ball hit umpire Arnaud Gabas straight in his eye.

He was unable to continue and he disqualified Shapovalov.

Spain qualified by winning both their singles rubbers in Croatia.

Roberto Bautista beat Franko Skugor in four sets before Pablo Carreno Busta defeated Nikola Mektic 7-6(4) 6-1 6-4.

Australia, France, the United States and Serbia all also qualified.

I

SUPPORT: Coast gets behind Marbella Rugby Club HUNDREDS have come out to support Trocadero Marbella Rugby Club amid a tax dispute which may force it to fold.

There was a festival atmosphere at the home match against Almeria earlier this month as swarms of fans watched Marbella win 31-21.

It came after the much-loved club had its bank account frozen due to a disputed property tax debt.

The uncertain future led the club to make the game free to attend so that fans could show their support.

Supporters donated via collection tins, and through buying merchandise and drinks in the clubhouse.

Fans held up signs stating ‘we are with Marbella Rugby Club’ and waved the club’s flags.

As well as its first team, the club has over 250 youngsters of all nationalities training every weekend.

Rugby clubs across the country have voiced their support, as well as international kit supplier Canterbury.

Marbella’s water polo and basketball team, who have also faced difficulties due to the lack of facilities in Marbella, also voiced their support.

Refs fear assault FOOTBALL referees in Andalucia have revealed they fear being assaulted by fans or players.

A Facebook page has been set up by an informal union of referees to document the violence they suffer on the pitch.

Sevillano referee Felipe Gutierrez said that fear of violence is discouraging young people from joining the profession.

Juan Antonio Alvarez, a referee from Cadiz, said many are ‘afraid’ of refereeing matches in which they may be injured by players or fans.

A state commission set up to investigate abuse and intolerance in the sport reported 115 attacks on referees over the 2015-2016 season.

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FINAL WORDS

A tourist in Ibiza got more than he bargained for when trying to take a photo of an octopus, which grabbed his selfie stick and held on while the man struggled in vain to reclaim his camera.

advice

Lights out The cause of a series of repeated power cuts in the tiny Catalan village of Sant Miquel de Fluvia has been discovered: An intensive marijuanagrowing operation spread across several homes.

Spain second Spain is the latest country to produce a satirical video asking Donald Trump if it can be ‘second’ after Trump declared in a speech that he would make sure it was ‘America first.’

Vol. 11 Issue 258 www.theolivepress.es February 1st - February 14th 2017

British lawyers in battle over arm rest on flight to Malaga TWO British lawyers got into an explosive argument over an armrest during a flight to Malaga.

The man and the woman both exclaimed that they were lawyers and made threats to each other before having to be torn apart by cabin crew.

Up in arms

Giggling

Other passengers on the Monarch flight can be heard giggling in a clip that was filmed by a holidaymaker.

The man tells air hostesses: “We are arguing over an armrest. Relocate her.

I’m not going anywhere, I paid for this seat. This woman is obnoxious and rude.”

The woman began yelling

ROW: Lawyers battle

that she was a lawyer and knew her rights.

He bit back: “I’m a lawyer

Tranquilo,

HATS OFF: WWII hero’s helmet found on Costa

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too, you stupid woman.”

The woman retorted: “I’m going to report this to the airline if you guys don’t do anything.”

“He just punched me,” she then claims, “I’m a lawyer and I will sue you guys if you don’t do anything. He just hit me with his elbow and everyone has seen it.”

“Everyone’s a lawyer today,” one passenger jokes.

After much protest, the unnamed man was eventually moved to the back of the plane.

A COLLECTOR has found the helmet of the UK’s most decorated wartime pilot in a Costa del Sol flea market.

Jose Fernandez Molina found the flight helmet of John Randall Daniel Braham amid piles of junk and old utensils.

The hat of the World War II pilot ‘shined like the dawning sun’, at the Benalmadena flea market.

Even better it was in excellent condition and for sale for just €15.

Nearly 80-years-old, it came with its own oxygen mask and audio connections.

He later discovered original documents inside, showing the helmet to be the property of Braham, who joined the RAF in 1937.

Braham shot down a total of 30 enemy aircraft until he was captured in 1944 and spent the rest of the war as a German prisoner of war.

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