Three Kings and Christmas in Spain

Its one of the things about Spain that I really like.  There is no real build up for the festive period as there would be from as early as August in the UK.  The early part of December is taken up with other festivities (CONSTITUTION DAY December 6th  National holiday throughout Spain in commemoration of the 6th December 1978 when the Spanish people voted in a national referendum to approve the draft constitution, thus providing the way forward for the creation of a democratic system in Spain) and (IMMACULATE CONCEPTION December 8th  On the Roman Catholic Church calendar of holy days, today is celebrated as a holy day of obligation, commemorating the Immaculate Conception of Mary.)


So we reach the 25th December in quite a peaceful frame of mind.  The shops are full of goodies but the frenzy is short lived.  Of course the other thing to remember is that the Spanish don't really celebrate 25th December in the same way we do.  For them its a holiday but not a present giving day - although the savvy have managed to include it into their celebratory calendar.  For the Spanish children there might be a small gift on  Christmas Eve (Nochebuena) but the main day for giving presents is 6th January - Epiphany which is when the 3 Kings came bearing gifts.  Doesn't that make much more sense? 


But then why is the birth of Christ considered to be on the 25th December when no date for his birth was ever recorded?  A strong theory suggests that this date was eventually chosen by the church because it aligned closely with a major pagan festival, dies natalis solis invicti (birth of the invincible sun god), therefore allowing the church to claim a new celebration for Christianity.


So in Spain the day for giving presents is 6th January DAY OF THE THREE KINGS  (Los Reyes Magos) twelve days after Christmas Day, with the coming of the Three Kings. Children place their socks outside for the Kings to deliver them presents, but only if they have been good. Naughty children have the fear of finding black coal in their socks instead of presents. On the eve of January 6th, it is tradition for three men to dress as the Kings and ride around the town in a colourful procession, scattering sweets to all the children who eagerly follow.  We have been to this procession in Malaga city and its lovely.  However, its recommended that you dont wear anything on your feet that is not easily cleanable and dont walk back into your house wearing this footwear.  The sweets reach many willing hands but many miss and the resulting sweet, sticky crunch underfoot does not enhance your shoe soles and will certainly transfer itself to your house flooring - trust me I KNOW!!!


I do like the idea of Three Kings but its a bit weird having such a mega holiday in January!! In the UK most schools have gone back by the 6th January and here its party, party.  Funny thing though.  A few years ago we met some friends for dinner at Plaza Mayor - an entertainment centre (shopping, cinema, restaurants and bars) just outside Malaga on 6th January.  Expecting the place to be dead and in fact not entirely sure we were going to find somewhere to eat it was therefore a shock to see it absolutely packed with Spanish people - not eating, no - SHOPPING!!! The power of the Euro eh?


All in all - I definitely like Christmas here - its different and much less frenetic!

UK versus Spain

Well we have just done the annual pilgrimage to Blighty and now we are back to start our diet and catch up on sleep.  I am sure we all experience this.  Himself and I only go back to the UK once a year together and its usually pre-Christmas so that we can get everyone into the festive mood and then quietly disappear.

This year we were a bit concerned about the horror stories of weather and cold and snow etc but to be honest it was absolutely perfect.  Standing on the plane waiting to disembark at Exeter Airport I thought I was going to explode with heat - jumper, gilet, coat, scarf and that was just the top half of me!  Get me off here or I am going to spontaneously combust.  They obliged and I got to the bottom of the steps and wanted to go back.  Boy it was cold.  You cant prepare for it you see.  You know its cold because everyone told you so and you watched the weather forecast obsessively but you cant actually feel it until you feel it - if you get my drift!!

Anyway - the furnace like heat of my mother's house soon removed any last feelings of chill and a fabulous week commenced.  We were out every night to a different place for dinner - whether it be family or restaurant  all were yummy and not once were we offered the "low fat option" !!! Hence a quick pre-Christmas lettuce leaf diet for him and I.

On Saturday night we were taken to a special dinner by Derek's son and daughter-in-law to Little Barwick House in Somerset.  This was to celebrate a big birthday for Derek in October. The food was fantastic and I couldn't recommend it highly enough!  The food, staff, company and ambience were just fantastic. Roll on another big birthday!

The whole week was actually a bit of a revelation as one of the reasons we first thought about moving out of the UK was that everyone was so miserable - especially shop-keepers.  Now I think its the opposite.  All the shop assistants were smiling and helpful - particularly if you smiled at them too!  Whereas here I am not sure half the time if I can be bothered to wait whilst the cashiers in Mercadona finish their conversations with each other.  You tend to feel like you are inconveniencing the staff by wanting to pay for your goods!

Of course in the UK they are suddenly mindful of the fact that they do still have jobs and they need to safeguard them.  Here they have always been mindful of that but its not easy to sack anyone here and I don't think not smiling and/or engaging with the person you are serving comes under the list of sackable offences!

I have to heave a sigh of relief though that we left the UK before this latest onslaught of bad weather.  Our local airport in Devon was closed this morning and flights were severely disrupted.  I don't mind the snow if I don't have to do anything like travel.

Here we are going to get rain soon - according to the weather forecast - and I don't like Spain in the rain.  So its a toss up - rain in Spain which can't cope with it or snow in the UK which can't cope with it.  So would I rather live in Spain or UK - the jury is out on that one - ask me in the Spring!

Hmmmm! Well its a good advert for a work at home business anyway - there is always a silver lining!!

Home Based Business Online from your home in Spain!

Imagine how many people moved to Spain with the idea of retiring!  Every year you hear of more and more people leaving the UK and moving not just to Spain but to various European Countries to "get out of the rat race".  But one wonders if its out of the frying pan and into the fire!

At the moment many people who rushed out to Spain over the last 10-15 years with the intention of kicking back, doing a little part-time work and living the dream, are now rushing in the opposite direction because they can't make ends meet here in Spain.

We also moved out here with rose coloured glasses firmly perched on our noses, although it was never my intention to retire but I was intending to find the nice little part-time job to keep me off the streets and stop me from going doolally from boredom.  Some research into the economy of Andalucia would probably have been beneficial as we discovered very soon that Andalucia has a huge unemployment problem and that part-time jobs are fought for and usually won by those speaking Spanish and some by those speaking both Spanish and English.

This is why you find so many of the expat community doing the markets (see previous blog).  There are so many non-Spanish markets out here now selling everything from handmade goods to UK food products and Marks and Spencer clothing!  Some people do the markets to themselves out of the house, meet people and make a bit of pocket money.  But for some this is their only means of support and as the competition for the punters' money is fierce there are more and more people feeling the pinch.

So what other options are there when you are an expat wanting to make a living?  Well there are several MLM opportunities out there such as the Aloe Vera products, Herbal Life and Bioflow - which immediately spring to mind.  However, all of these options also require the franchise owner to "do" the markets to sell their products and market their opportunity.  From my point of view I prefer the "no stocking of products" option available in the Internet Marketing Opportunities.  Mind you I had a couple of go's before I found the opportunity that really got me going.

I am now with an opportunity that not only puts money in my pocket but supports Environmental and Humanitarian projects worldwide.  For me the mission was very important but realistically I had to be able to earn good money too!

So what exactly is Network Marketing?  The simplest explanation is that it is a method of marketing that utilises independent representatives to reach potential customers that a company otherwise would not reach with traditional marketing methods.

Network marketing is definitely an option for people living abroad and needing an income.  There is plenty of money to be made, even in a recession and there is no requirement to learn another language (although I would always advocate learning the language of the country in which you live).

If Network Marketing is route you choose make sure that it fits your requirements, ticks all the boxes and delivers in every way.

If you are interested in more information on the Opportunity that I am with then please contact me!

Christmas Markets in the Sun

From now till Christmas you could shop till you dropped and never enter a shop!!

Its a legacy of living in this part of Spain (cant speak for other areas) that for those who cant find work but need an income settle on becoming a marketeer!! I have done it myself in the past and still do attend the odd one as I cant stop painting T Shirts and so they have to go somewhere.

It can be a lot of fun.  You get to know people from different areas some travelling the length of the Costa del Sol from Nerja down to Gibralter and many miles inland too.  Most people are really friendly and sometimes end up being your best customers depending on what you sell.

On a quiet or cold day the most popular marketeers tend to be those selling food - things like sausage rolls,  Cornish pasties and quiche are really alluring when you are bored and/or cold.  Then there are the scones, buns and chocolate fudge cakes  mmmmmm!!  When I did the markets regularly I had to be strict and take my fruit and rice cakes with me or I would have ended up eating all day.

However, as I rarely do markets now, since I have been running my Network Marketing Business, it was a treat last Saturday to indulge in a little snacking.  The heavens opened for a little market in the Benhavista Country Club.  When I say the heavens opened I mean they really opened.  I went with Michelle from Designs of Asia and we couldn't find the place.  Then we couldn't park anywhere near so we were running with heavy boxes of her candles and massive bags of cushions through torrential rain.  Not fun.  When the rain cleared from my eyes I noticed we were next to the cake and pasty stall - disaster!!!  The rain continued unabated for most of the day and the clientèle stayed exactly where I wished I was - namely home by the fire.  I had taken soup but the sausage rolls and mince pies waved at me each time I looked.  We succumbed big style - but it made the day go easier although it was a relief to leave and an even bigger relief to arrive home to a warm, dry house.

AmandArt at Swans Schools

Those kinds of days though are fairly extreme.  Yesterday for instance was at the other end of the scale.  Again down on the coast this time at Swan's School.  We were early for this one - amazingly enough - which is probably just as well as the hike from car to table was probably 4 times as long as Saturday's.  However, the day could not have been more different.  There was not a cloud in the sky - wall to wall blue with a lovely warm sun.  We were in a huge quadrangle type area surrounded by the school buildings and it was warm enough that after traipsing backwards and forwards to the car a few times (Michelle did manage to commandeer a supermarket trolley and a pupil from somewhere so we had assistance) people were stripping off layers of clothing.

All venues bring a different variety of people and spending doesn't seem to be high at any of them but the amount of people at Swan's School was very encouraging and the buzz was loud and convivial!  I thoroughly enjoyed my day despite spending more than I made!!

Our stall and general view

AmandaArt Handcrafted Christmas Crackers

There are also a number of exhibitions of varying sizes which I have done in the past.  I shared a stand with Posh Pets Spain a couple of years ago at the Over 50's Exhibition in Estepona.  That was a two day exhibition and we had a load of fun.  We took cava and nibbles ensuring that our stand was extremely popular and we did a roaring trade (not just in cava and nibbles either!).

For those of you on the Costa del Sol there is now a Facebook Page for Markets which some enterprising person set up - well done them!! It can be useful if you are a marketeer or if you are looking for one to go to!!  Another great source of local information is In Malaga Today and not just about markets either - its a great resource for all local information and news!

Don't forget you will get unique and handcrafted items at these markets.  Anyone can shop on the High Street or in that mainstay store that originates in Ireland (they can afford to do their own advertising!)  but how much nicer to go and browse - have a snack and quite often a mulled wine or whatever takes your fancy.  Often you can chat with the person who has made the item you are interested in and sometimes place an order so that the gift is completely unique.  For those items that you can buy elsewhere, the markets are normally much cheaper as stallholders only have to pay for their stall on the day not premises for 365 days with all the associated costs of staff, insurance, electricity etc.

Its fun, its cheaper, its individual and its very Costa del Sol!!

Do you miss British Goods in Spain?

Funny subject this.  Initial reaction from me is emphatically NO followed by "I didnt come to Spain to live as a Brit".  However, I don't hanker for cheddar cheese or sausages or marmite but could this be because I can get them all here and more?  Take away the panic and then its easy to be abstemious.  I still dont think I would get overly upset about the lack of too many things but I do believe that having them easily accessible makes them less appealing to me anyway.

Very nutritious actually!!

We are spoilt here because even the basic supermarket Mercadona has things like Cheddar, Baked Beans and Tabasco sauce !!!! (well I do like it but would use a local brand if it wasnt available).  There are also three British type supermarkets within a short driving distance of home.  These supply most of the items that the British seem to want most of which I wouldn't buy in the UK so am not going to start buying them here.  But they also have teabags and orange squash and proper English mustard.  Also the people who sell English Food at the local markets also do a roaring trade.

I went to Gibralter a few weeks ago.  Never been before (not sure I will rush back either) and the person I went down with needed some specific things in Morrisons.  So off we trotted and it was obviously just like being back in England - although this Morrisons was far bigger and grander than the little one that my Mum shops in.  I could have spent 2-300 Euros or 20 euros - I opted for the latter.  It might have been a bit of a different story if I had brought a cool box with me!

But it brought home to me why our shopping doesn't cost that much here.  There isn't the choice.  So you go to Mercadona and buy the basics and make what you want from that - which is fine.  You go into Morrisons (for instance) and there are three aisles of  chilled stuff including take away meals and if you dont like the look of the prepacked take aways Indian or Chinese you can go and select your own from two different deli counters dealing with preprepared food.  In the UK this would be normal but I must have looked a bit like a hick from the sticks.  I am sure my tongue was hanging out.  BUT did I need it all?  No but quite clearly I was in the minority as it was packed with Brits from the mainland piling up their trolleys to take back into Spain.  What amazed me was the things they were buying were basics as well as what I would consider to be treats.  They were buying bread, milk, jams, tins of tuna etc - all the things I would buy in Mercadona and I think that is sad.  Sad that this is how they want to live in Spain and sad for the Spanish economy.



I suppose the one thing I miss here is the ease of getting local produce organically grown.  The Spanish love affair with chemicals has led some of their fruit and vegetables to be banned in Northern Europe and I would like a better choice of such things.  When we first came we grew our own but water is a bigger challenge these days and they do take a lot of water.

So, at the end of all that blurb - am I glad we can get British goods here?   Well it leaves room for other stuff in the suitcase when visiting the UK (tea bags were always the main thing) and Derek does like his cheddar and baked beans (but he wouldn't go into a decline if he couldnt get them) so for the main part I think we could live without!!

Facebook Phenomenon

Is it just me or as Facebook reached a new dimension? It seems that everywhere I look/listen/watch someone somewhere is using facebook whether it be to advertise to encourage to vilify or ................... play games!!!

On the games front I have to say I find them annoying only insofar as I am not interested in whether you build a new barn on your farm, make cakes for your cafe, shoot people in your wars etc so I would prefer that I didnt get the notifications that such momentous events have occurred. Having said that if thats what people want to do and they enjoy thats great. If I started I would probably get hooked and waste all my time planting, cooking and killing .......hmmmm ....... well something like that anyway.

Of course, the original idea of Facebook was for people to keep in contact and have a "chat" no matter where they were in the world - hence "Social Media". And I do use it for that too. As we live in Spain and have family in other parts of Europe particularly the UK and friends all over the world - Facebook is just great for keeping in touch without writing the email which sometimes takes away the spontaneity of the chat.

If you are a private person then perhaps Facebook is not the way forward. You can "private message" people but then you could probably just as easily email them. But if you have a business of any description, then you would be foolish to dismiss the power of FaceBook. In fact it is probably one of the most powerful marketing tools you can use.  It doesnt have to be an online business - I have an online business, a T Shirt Painting business and I am a Holistic Therapist

Just recently a friend and mentor posted a video he had made showing people how to put a Facebook "like" button on their own website. You will notice that I have put one on this blog. Such a simple thing but so powerful. Probably its not Facebook that has taken a step forward but me!!! Finally I am learning how to use these tools and enjoy doing it.

Of course, its not all good. There are a lot of people who feel that their privacy has been invaded and they feel exposed. That is why its such a good marketing tool. There is a movie just released about the Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg - "The Social Network" which I believe premièred yesterday. According to the press, the movie does him no favours although sources for the material of the movie apparently do have an axe to grind so who knows. You are not going to reach the dizzy heights of wealth that this young man has (only 26 years old!!!) without making a few enemies on the way.

The thing is - even if we all decided that he was a terrible person would we ALL leave Facebook?

From Facebook's own statistics page

• More than 500 million active users 
• 50% of our active users log on to Facebook in any given day 
• Average user has 130 friends 
• People spend over 700 billion minutes per month on Facebook 

And if something or someone persuaded all those 500 million users to leave, would we be stepping out of the frying pan and into the fire!!

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Cruelty or just neglect?

One of the things both Derek and I find highly distressing here in Spain is the apparent lack of regard for animals.  Now before you all get up in arms about that statement let me finish the blog and then if you still have objections feel free to comment.

When I say lack of regard for animals this is perhaps only a "lack of regard" in other European eyes but for the local Spanish there is probably no real intention to be cruel so perhaps its a case of neglect.  Its hard though to view it calmly.  For instance, take horses which are quite a status symbol here.  People who really do not have the knowledge, time, space or finances own horses and some are not exactly neglected but one does tend to wonder why they have them.  You drive through the "campo" (countryside)  especially during the summer months and see horses tethered on the side of the road or mountain with no water, no shade, obviously no food as such - just dead weeds and very often the horse have docked tails so there is not even any respite from the flies.  Now that does make me mad!

Just down the road from us in our last house was one such horse and I wanted to take water to him during the day but Derek quite rightly said I would be upsetting the whole system that the horse has grown to accept and if couldn't get to him in the middle of the day or we moved (which we did) then I would have made the whole thing worse by giving and then taking away.

The little Terrier - ready for frankfurters!!

I can feel my soap box sliding under my feet as I do get really wound up by these things.  Another instance where I finally cracked and had to interfere was in the case of a dog.  There is a really sweet tempered little terrier which I pass most days when walking our dogs.  He loves attention and I take treats for him and every 3 months I stick a worming tablet in a piece of frankfurter so that is one thing taken care of.  But I cant actually get to him to do anything else as he is in a fenced and gated property.  However, in the middle of July when the ticks were at their worst he was covered and I mean COVERED.  There would have been over a hundred on his ears alone and if you think I am exaggerating, then think again.  His body was covered too and he was constantly shaking his head as I am sure that the ones inside his ears were driving him mad!

I couldn't stand by and watch this any more so I went to Posh Pets in Alhaurin el Grande and got a bottle of a solution that they use on dogs that are infested with fleas and ticks.  I put this bottle with a note in a bag and left it on the gate.  I felt very nervous going back past the house after that as I knew I had completely overstepped the boundaries bt more importantly I couldn't have borne it if I had gone back and found the dog still in a bad way.  I am pleased to announce that when I went back after two days the dog was virtually tick free and I almost cried with relief. The thing is - I don't think the owner was being really cruel, it just didn't occur to him to do anything about it.

Another problem here is that the Spanish don't believe in spaying or neutering, but quite clearly they don't want to be overrun with dogs either.  So their bitches have a litter of puppies which are very often destroyed at birth apart from one which is left on the mother to take the milk until they are about 6 weeks old.  Then the puppy is taken away and left somewhere or given to neighbours.

Murphy a couple of days after we got him!

Our Spanish Water Dog X, Murphy is probably such a case.  He was found on the side of the main road by a friend.  She saw him in the long grass and stopped to investigate.  She looked everywhere for siblings but he was alone and quite rotund!! She picked him up and donated (!) him to us as it was us she was coming to see at the time.  Its too awful to contemplate his fate had she not come along at precisely that moment as its a really busy road with lots of lorries.

He fell on his feet but he is only one!

The Charities (AID, Chain, SOS) do fantastic work but even they are up against it with the amount that are born stray and those that are dumped and cats as well.  A lot of the time with the strays the best thing that can be done is to spay them and put them back.

I know its not for us to come here and criticise but it will be something that drives Derek and I away from Spain eventually.  Just a couple of weeks ago we had a pathetic creature who looked to be German Shepherd crossed with Podenco - possibly.  There was no flesh on him, just bones covered in skin.  He had open sores down his flanks and the top third of his ears was just black in parts an open sores in other parts.  The first thing we needed to do was feed him. He wagged his tail at me when I opened the gate ................. WAGGED HIS TAIL .............. it was heartbreaking.  We fed him twice and gave him water.  Whilst he was wolfing the food down I had a good look at him.  His back legs kept giving out on him and I believe he was probably suffering from fairly advanced Leishmaniasis.  After the food he disappeared and only briefly appeared the next morning whilst I was out.  By the time I got back there was nothing to be seen of him and I have not seen him since.  I could not take him in but I have arranged for the vet to call by when the dog next appears.

There is, only so much we can do.  But I do urge people to support the charities and perhaps not only call them when they have a problem but to help out, attend fund raising functions, donate books, clothes etc to the shops.  It might not sound much but every bit helps.

Fire!!!

Fire - something that plagues all of us in these hot conditions at this time of year.  You only have to hear a distant helicopter and we are sniffing the air and checking the horizon for signs of fire.  Its actually quite a scary thing and something the Spanish dont seem to get too hot under the collar about.

Usually there is a ban on lighting a fire between May and October - although strong rumour has it that it is in fact illegal to light any kind of fire (apart from in the house in a fire place) at any time of year unless you have a "fire" licence.  That seems like a good idea to me but there again, like so many of the laws here, its only the foreigners that adhere to the laws.  The Spanish just light their fires at night - and keep them smoky rather than firey!!

It just occurred to me the other day when I smelt a faint whiff of smoke, that we had not seen any fires around our way all year.  I have hardly heard the helicopters going over either which is good.  I wonder if the extremely wet (and rather elongated) winter that we had has made fire less of a problem!  It doesnt seem likely though does it?  After all its tinder box dry here now - very little green apart from the citrus trees and I am sure that it would only take one cigarette butt carelessly thrown to start everything off.

Last year we had several fires quite close and one very, very close but the bomberos (fire fighters) were with us very quickly.  I actually spoke to the operator in English because its not something you want to get wrong when giving directions!!! She asked me how close the closest house was to the fire - obviously to ascertain if a helicopter was viable.  The house (not ours I hasten to add) was very close indeed so they only sent road vehicles and no air support.

Where we used to live - near Maqueda (closer to Malaga city) we had a fire just down the track from us that lasted all afternoon and night.  The bomberos left at about 9am and were back before lunch because it re-ignited.  It was disgusting because it was paints and paint related chemicals.  It came very close to our house in that instance.  But again the whole thing was dealt with very efficiently.

I think if you live in a country that is plagued by bush/forest fires - they do develop a very clear method of dealing with it.  As I say - this year has been great and I personally have only seen the helicopter once the whole summer!  Amazing.

Eating out!!

Okay - once again long time no blog - I blame the "visitors" of the previous blog.  Too much fun and not enough seriousness!!! Sounds great eh?

Up until the family arrived we had had quite a quiet summer, deeming it too hot and too much effort to go out much but when you have visitors its go, go, go.  So we went!!!

Because there are so many restaurants and cafes available its hard to know sometimes where to go.  We ended up trying three very different places in the evenings and before the family left yesterday I did a "Restaurant Review" with them.  Below is the result (please bear in mind that this is the opinion of six individuals and quite clearly is not an "authentic" review).  These are average scores from all six of us, out of 10.

El Fogon - Alhaurin el Grande - Gerald Brennan Street.

Food - 5.5 (Starters were good - main course was what let the score down)
Ambience - 3 (bear in mind we were sat outside and its a busy street - inside for during the winter looks delightful)
Service - 7.5 (lovely waitress)

Dinner at Max Beach - Calahonda

Max Beach - Calahonda

Food - 8.5 (good international cuisine with some local flavour)

Ambience - 8 (the atmosphere was what we went there for)

Service - 7 (efficient but not exactly friendly)

Finca La Mota - Alhaurin el Grande 

Food - 8 (good international cuisine)

Ambience - 7.5 (Arrived as sun setting then as it got dark lanterns were placed on tables - nice)

Service - 8.5 (nice and efficient)

The general opinion of the the visitors was that Max Beach was the favourite for a party atmosphere but Finca La Mota was a nice place for a quieter meal.  The service was good in all three restaurants which counts for a lot especially at this time of year when all are busy.

As I say - this is just a bit of fun between the 6 of us but we have all eaten in some pretty good places in our time so we tried to make it an "informed" study.

We would eat in all of them again!!

Visitors!!

One thing we can all be sure of when we move to Spain or anywhere where there is sun, and that is visitors from back home!! This week sees the arrival of Derek's family - son Steve, daughter-in-law Ruth and granddaughters Sophie and Lucy.

Overlooking Fuengirola from Mija

Amazingly enough due to such matters as ash clouds and horses, new houses and babies, (none of this ours I hasten to add - just the varying reasons for the non-event of visitors this year!) this will be our first visitors of the year so we are quite excited!! (The excitement has worn a bit thin today however, whilst doing the clean-a-thon - my goodness it doesnt take the dust long does it?)  However, this is the time of year when everyone is having visitors - school holidays make sure of that.

We spend several weeks before hand discussing what we will do, what we will see, where we will eat etc etc.  You see its our excuse for a holiday too!  Ok we live in the sun and to people in our home countries that means we are constantly on holiday ............... HAH!! I wish.  In reality unless you are over here retired then no its not a constant holiday.  In fact its just that little bit harder in a way, than living back "there" and going to the J O B!  So we leap upon visitors with great expectations.

However, all these plans can sometimes go awry as visitors tend to come out here to RELAX - novel concept I know! They tell me that its nice to go to a few places and especially to eat out in the evenings but to actually race around all day seeing this and that is not what they came for.

Steve - hmmm!

I have made this mistake before - planning carefully and chivvying everyone along to be ready to leave until I was asked sooooooooooo politely but very firmly if I could stop organising and just leave everyone to laze by the pool because thats what they came for!!

So now I treat all arrivals with caution waiting to see what the visitors want to do and if they are "up" for things - then so are we.  And if pool and sleeping and reading is what they came for then that's fine too!! Its their holiday after all!

(I still have my list to hand though - Malaga Feria, Marbella, beach, lakes and then plenty of eateries to add to the evenings.)

Watch this space for photos and updates of the "visitors"!!

Have a Heart Foundation

I went to visit our local English Speaking radio Station on Friday, Heart FM to catch up with Pat and learn more about the "Have a Heart Foundation" which she and Lee set up in Alhaurin el Grande last year.

I asked Pat what made her decide to set it up and she quite rightly said that we have so many animal charities in the area (which Heart FM support massively) but she felt that humans too needed some support.  Now I have to agree, Derek and I do a lot to support the local animal charities and always have but apart from buying the odd draw ticket etc, we haven't been involved very much with other charities.

Before the charity was even set up Lee and Pat got involved with Alhaurin Auctions to raise 2000 Euros for mentally and physically challenged children in the Alhaurin el Grande area.  Such was the success of that venture that they decided to start the foundation and make sure it was registered and legalised so that contributors knew where their money was going!

Having helped the children they were then approached about a 64 year old gentleman who had fallen behind with his rent.  His fridge had broken and he had no funds to replace it and with that he started to lose his self-respect and fell into a decline.  He was only 6 weeks behind with his rent but his landlady was elderly and so her daughter took over and decided that this was a good time to "get tough".  Its so easy to kick someone when they are down!!  With the help of "Have a Heart" and the radio station a fridge was found, food parcels were made up and delivered, clothing and other necessities have also been donated.  Now a new ground floor apartment has been found for him at a lower rent.  Arthur needs an operation to his eyes and it is uncertain whether or not he will regain full sight so a ground floor apartment is great for him.  Best of all he now has people who visit him and CHAT and care and with that he has regained his self respect and is caring for himself again.

Sometimes charity is not about money.  In fact money is not always appropriate - but caring is!  It also needs people in the right places to just "direct" the flow of goodwill to where its needed.  With Arthur, this is what Pat and Lee have done.  They have this fabulous tool in the form of a radio station and they have used that to get the word out.  Their followers only needed to know and then they rallied round and problem sorted.

So what I say is we all need to "have a heart" sometimes and think about not just what we can give but what we can do!!!  Pat says she gets cans of food dropped off at the radio station for Arthur's food parcels and I know that when I do my weekly shop there will be a couple of things go in the trolley for Arthur from now on.  Together we CAN make a difference - it may sound a bit trite but nevertheless its true.  The purpose of this blog is the way I can get the word out.  Words are my "weapon of choice" so perhaps those of you reading this would pass the blog site address on to others.  Going forward I am sure Pat can always use good ideas and able bodies to help with future projects.  We have offered our services and I am sure there are plenty of you out there who will do the same!

For people not in the area - some of you not even in Spain - there is a "donate" button on the radio station website (link under "interesting links" on the right hand side of this blog).

Pat and Lee are also hoping for a good turn out at the Ska & Reggae Festival at Los Arcos on 28th August and the raised funds will be going to the Have a Heart Foundation.  I will be there and I hope YOU will too!

Last but not least - for those of you who like to be sure that they are donating to and supporting a legitimate charity this is the official number of the Charity G93023513 Have a Heart founded on 22/09/2009.

Obviously if you have questions you can contact Pat Jay directly through the radio station.

Snoozing and reading in the shade is for WIMPS!!

I know, I know – another weather orientated blog but read on because it is and it isn’t – if you get my drift!!

Technicolour Sun - Courtesy of NASA

Now here we all are in Spain trying very hard NOT to moan about the heat. Yes the weather is just as much a topic of conversation here as it is in the UK and probably in most parts of the world. The last couple of days the temperatures have been getting silly with no respite after the sun goes down because there has been no breeze whatsoever.

But isnt it sad that we tend to wish our lives away saying "oh I cant wait for September". I think our biggest problem as expat Brits in a Southern European country in the height of summer is that we try to continue as normal. We are not used to flopping out for the afternoon and keeping cool as possible.

Heavens NO!!!! We must build that wall, prune those trees, wash that car and sweep those terraces – stiff upper lip and all that jazz. Snoozing and reading in the shade is for WIMPS!!! We Brits are not comfortable with that sensible approach to coping with summer in a hot country.

When I was in Abu Dhabi I used to start work in the morning at 7am and finish at 2pm and that was in air-conditioned offices all the year round. It was like having 2 days in one - great. But you see even with air-conditioning people are "conditioned" to that siesta time and we Brits are "conditioned" to that 9-5 work routine - when will we change?

Of course there are many people here who don’t have air-conditioning. We only have AC in the bedrooms for instance (I am not nice if I don’t get a good nights sleep). We don’t really want it in the rest of the house as it would mean keeping the doors closed and we would hate that. (Mind you we wouldn’t have said no to bit of AC during the last couple of days!!)

For me now I have the best of both worlds because I am self-employed and my main occupation is with my internet marketing business, I can start early when its cool and feel that by 2pm I have done enough so its pool and shade for me! And then I am happy to do some more at about 7pm when its slightly cooler. Flexibility is the key!!

I think its maybe a case of allowing ourselves to go with the flow more. We need to get over our mental conditioning (puns are ALWAYS intended by the way!) lighten up and relax!

ITS SUMMER after all and traditionally a holiday time - so chill, relax and Enjoy!!!

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Malaga Feria

Here we are in the height of summer - long hot days (a bit of emphasis on the "hot") and at the summit of "hotness" just over a week of feria madness!!! hmmmm!

A feria (for those of you outside of Spain) is basically a fair. But to call it a fair in the English sense diminishes it too far - a fullblown Spanish feria is nothing like an English Country fair.

Where to start? Well obviously for our region the Malaga feria has to be the best. Many would disagree with me preferring their own local town feria but for me the Malaga feria has all the excitement and style that the others promise but never quite deliver.

Its a game of "two halves". The daytime part is spent in Malaga City centre where bars do a roaring trade and shops shut after the morning trade. Many businesses close for the entire period both in the city and in the surrounding areas. If you want to get something done during Malaga Feria week (!) good luck!!

The daytime part is great fun. How is it that so many Spanish can stand cheek by jowel, drink copious amounts of alcohol and not fight? I am sorry to say that in the UK this would be a nightmare for the police - and for over a week ........aghhhhhh! There are temporary bars set up on the side of pedestrian walkways and stalls selling little tipple cups to hang round your neck just in case you get withdrawal symptoms between one bar and the next! There is food also available on these stalls and everyone is laughing.
Yes thats right L A U G H I N G - a novel concept isnt it? (Thats another thing we tend to forget how to do!)

We walked around the old town area around the Cathedral and Plaza de la Constitucion  and every street you look down is just a sea of heads and you wonder how you going to get down the street but as long as you aren't in too much of a rush - and really who is going to be rushing in this heat - the masses move to accommodate two more trying to reach a bar and you might get you feet trodden on a bit but hey........... its part of the "fun".

Drinks are fun too - hollowed out melons with a lethal fruity alcoholic beverage inside and a ............ straw ...... to add that touch of innocence ... DONT BE FOOLED.  Jugs of margaritas, sangria and beer are also passed around with abandon!!

Early evening - 6-7pm sees the fizzling out of the in town part of the day and a mass exodus occurs.  Buses travel constantly back and forth 24 hours a day from Malaga town centre to the official Feria ground on the outskirts of town.  Here the action starts very slowly and really starts going around midnight.  Literally hundreds of bars have been erected for the week.  Very wide avenues with bars and eateries on either side.  You could go there every day for the duration and not get round half of them.  You could eat Paella 10 times and it would always be a bit different.  And then there is the fair itself with all its rides, candyfloss and noise - thats the bit we do have in the UK!  But from our point of view - fairs are ten a penny, its the party atmosphere that we go for and if anyone can party its the Spanish!

It shouldn't be missed - in fact we'll see you there!!

Dont forget parking in the centre of Malaga is bad at the best of times, during Feria its a nightmare.  We take the bus or train - cheap and easy!  Another point that I have to make - if Bullfighting is your thing then there are bullfights throughout the feria week.  (However, dont expect to see us there!!)

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Sun, Sun, Sun ...... and did I mention SUN!!!

Well my friends - its been forever since I blogged. I kind of got "bogged" down in blogging about rain (too many puns in there to apologise about and all of them intended!)

So I stopped, regrouped, and got "bogged" down in Living My Life NOW! so blogging was well and truly put on the back burner. And now, well now the sun is shining (somewhat fiercely) and the birds are singing - rain is history (although I have it on good authority that this rain thing will happen again this week !!!)and all is well in the happy Vellacott household.

Its strange isn't how we Brits cannot get away from talking about the weather. Unfortunately the weather was so foul last winter that it was a big topic of conversation. Even now people keep commenting about last winter's weather and do I detect a note of longing in some of these comments? Certainly with the soaring temperatures I think people do reflect with a little fondness of winters days of rain and lighting the fire at night.

Do I reflect with fondness? I DO NOT!!! YUK! Spain, in my personal view, does NOT do RAIN. Its ugly, mucky and inconvenient.

Yes it is quite warm at the moment and we have resorted to the Airconditioner at night as I am quite (understatement) grumpy if I have a bad night. But the aircon also has its plus points. The constant hum of the aircon evens out and masks all the other sounds of night time Spain in the campo; such as barking dogs, screaming peacocks, yowling cats and did I mention barking dogs?

But the nights are sooooooo lovely aren't they? A couple of nights back one of our dogs was not on top form and so I got up with her around 4am and she was wondering around eating grass and trying to make herself feel better whilst I sat in a chair on the terrace looking at the sky - aaaaah - it was beautiful - so many stars it was magnificent. Derek came out to join us after a while and it was with reluctance I think that we all went back inside when little Lucky was feeling better.

Spain in the summer, I think takes all the best bits of all your childhoo, teenage and adult foreign holidays and allows you to relive them all whether from your own garden/terrace or at a beach, at a bar or eating at an outside restaurant. The sounds, smells, feeling warm in very light clothing - it just makes you feel young and alive again.

So the days are hot ................ hello!! what did YOU come to Spain for? From my point of view, I came for the Sun and its here and I might get a little overheated when working (and sometimes when sitting) but I still love it!!

What to give for Mother's Day??

Now then I am not one to push an idea but when I was looking earlier today for a Mother's day gift to send to my Mum I thought what lovely things there are available online for the UK!!!! Now thats fine as my Mum is in the UK and so glorious gifts from wherever takes my fancy can rain down upon her (in a virtual world anyway).
But here? No so easy so I thought I would do a bit of marketing for myself and give you a couple of ideas.

Of course you can go the safe route and choose flowers - flowers are always lovely and at this time of year in Spain they would last longer. Wine/bubbly are also good choices, add to the flowers and it now becomes special and dont forget Bubbly is not necessarily very expensive here in Spain - of course it helps if either the recipient or the donor likes bubbly!!!! We then have the dreaded chocolates - my preference is "please dont tempt me - well okay if you insist". But chocolates have never been high on my "must have" list.

No what I would really like if I was receiving a Mother's day or Birthday (anniversary, Christmas etc etc) gift would be to have a pamper day. A day where it was all about ME!! Treatments, light lunch, glass of something with bubbles if desired AND a gift to take home. Now what could be nicer than that?

To me that is luxury and something that Mum's of all ages appreciate. For more information on how to put together a package for Mum on Mothers day or a friend for a Birthday treat, go to www.mybutterflybliss.com and click on "Holistic Treatments". This will take you to the relevant page where you can select your package. It will be presented in voucher form ready for you to collect or I can send by email.

Give your Mum the treat she would LOVE this Mothers day!

Not really going on about the rain ..... but!

Its a funny thing you know! It rains constantly in England - all winter and most of the summer! Spring is usually very good and Autumn can be too. However, predominantly we think of the UK and we think "damp". Its been raining here on and off, since the week before Christmas - about two months and are we fed up with it? You betcha we are!!!

I have said to Derek, if I moan about the heat this coming summer feel free to give me a good slap (virtual of course - a real one might end in me slapping him back). There is nothing like a bit of adversity to make one appreciate what one has!

The other thing we take for granted - the electricity thing - hmmm rain and electricity dont go well together here - in fact the other day we had a rapidly diminishing supply of the one and an increasing supply of the other. As the day wore on the lights got dimmer and dimmer - rallying sometime in the afternoon to plummet again when people started to turn on appliances and lights!

Have YOU tried calling Endesa - there is a possibility that I might commit murder one day. DONT call in the afternoon - I think they might be on skeleton crew. I spent a lot of time on hold - a LOT - the first time I got to speak to someone he spoke Spanish verrrrrrrrrrrry fast and refused to slow down. After a lot of tries I finally made it back to being on hold and on hold and on hold .............. yawn ....oh yes someone to speak to and I lost signal on my mobile. And so on and so on - in the end I was far more frustrated by Endesa/vodaphone than I ever was by the very low power. Next time - I will just wait it out I think!

Finally Endesa/Sevillana came to clamber up the pylon and switch off all the electricity (they waited until it was nearly dark to do this, of course) - mad rush around to light candles etc. The guy went up the pylon with a little TORCH - bless him!! Anyway about an hour later - hey presto - bright lights! (Nothing to do with his torch - this was POWER).

But something occurred to me during all this. We thought that it was bad here in Spain but we have never been more than a few hours without electricity. Yes we have been without due to the anomaly that is our house, at times, but never because of Endesa. Yet we hear on the news of places in the UK being without power for days. So we cant really grumble can we?

Semana Santa - or Easter to you and me!!

It suddenly occurred to me the other day that Easter can only be about 4 weeks away and what better place to go for Easter than Andalucia?

Before we came to live here we used to subscribe to all the magazines about living in Spain and saw the pictures and articles about "Semana Santa" but they didn't really mean that much. So we talked to our Spanish teacher about it when we first came in 2004 and as we were just up the road from Malaga, where they "go to town" for Semana Santa; we made sure we went into Malaga to see what its all about.

We were recommended to go on a Thursday night - so as usual we took the bus (saves all the hassle of driving and more importantly - parking - in Malaga where both activities are hazardous to say the least. Thursday is one of the most spectacular nights of the week. In Malaga and Seville the celebrations last all week but in smaller towns and villages it may only be from Thursday to Sunday.

Okay, so bear in mind that we are not religious in any way although religion fascinates and interests me because I like ceremony and history. You don't need to be religious to be moved and entranced by what happens in Semana Santa. The first thing that hits your nostrils is the heavy scent of incense and candle-wax - incense mainly. Your ears are the first thing to experience the heavy beat of the drums but actually you feel the drums all the way from your feet up to your ears. Then there is the haunting sound of the trumpet.

Its all quite eerie really. The processions of thrones and I mean thrones - these things weigh tons and are carried on the shoulders of men who have to apply to be considered and I believe pay as well. All of the men are either dressed in black suits with white shirts or in robes. Some are blind folded and some bare foot. The penitents follow and there are lots of robes (different colours depending on the parish) and pointy hats and masks.

Malaga: One of the most spectacular features of the Holy Week in Malaga is that the floats are simply monumental and can weigh up to six tons. They are made to house velvet and gold drapes which reach up to some nine metres and cover the "dolorasa" (statues). The sheer size of the floats means that they cannot enter through the churches and therefore have to be assembled in the street. More than a hundred young men support each one. The "Virgen de las Penas" (Virgen of Sorrow) is not dressed in the traditional velvet robe but instead clad with natural flowers comprising more than twenty thousand carnations. (This an excerpt from an obscure website www.dismalworld.com .... nothing dismal about this I can tell you)

I would definitely recommend that one sees it all in Malaga or Seville as well as the small villages. Its very nice in the smaller places but lacks the power of the city. The streets are cordoned off and chairs are set out for those who want to pay. Beware though - food and drink increase in price and decrease in quality for that week (or that was our opinion anyway).

If you need B&B you know where to come!!

Facts on Transporting dogs by Ferry Plymouth to Santander

Looking at photos the other day to put with the blog I came across all the photos we took on our journey to Malaga in 2004. So I took a trip down memory lane (a bit emotional as the two Cockers are now no more) and thought you might like to hear about it. If you are thinking of moving to Spain with your animals it will be of especial interest to you.

We had originally intended to fly the dogs to Malaga and we would fly on the same flight. But as the time got closer I got more and more concerned about subjecting two dogs, nearly 10 years old, to the stress of crates, screaming jet engines and possible delays. We had not intended to bring a car across at all. We were going to hire one until we could purchase one. About 2 weeks before leaving the UK we decided to drive. Neither of us could face flying Sham and Rock out here so we decided to drive our English car to Plymouth and take the Pont Aven to Santander in Northern Spain. The Pont Aven was a new ship at that time and had kennels for dogs so no need to leave them in a car.

It was great. Obviously a one hour trip to Plymouth docks at the UK end was easy. We, and anyone else with animals, were put in a different queue and we were parked on the boat near the lift that went straight to the kennels at the top of the boat. As I say, this was a new vessel at the time and so the kennel room and kennels were all very nice. We took blankets and bowls and food. The kennels are all stainless steel and with that knowledge if we were to do it again I would take a rubber mat for the bottom of the cage and a blanket to put on top. Stainless steel drinking bowls were attached to the cage already. We were late booking so were told that they would have to be in separate cages but when we got up there the poor bloke in charge hadn't got a clue what was going on and Derek just told him we needed a large cage to put the two dogs together and thats what we got. For anyone concerned that we did a large dog out of a large cage - there appeared to be plenty for all.

The only time we were not allowed up there was whilst leaving port and whilst docking in Santander - all the rest of the time you could come and go as much as you liked. There was a small deck outside the kennels but below was the helideck and that was empty and so that was where everyone took their dogs for exercise. As you can see from one of the photos Derek launched his career as a Kate Winslet (not lookalike) wannabe and did his Titanic bit!!! Hmmm - okay moving swiftly on!

The journey down to Malaga was long - predictably - but fairly without incident for the dogs anyway. We stopped every couple of hours for a water break and run around for the dogs and stretch legs for us. As we didn't get off the boat until 2.00ish in the afternoon and it was the end of September and in the afternoon we were in Northern Spain this all helped with the heat - so it was a comfortable journey for them. The only time we got it wrong was outside Madrid. We stopped about an hour and a half before Madrid and swapped over for me to drive and after the walk and water took off again. The traffic got heavier and heavier as we approached the city and the amount of lanes on the motorway got more and more. It was lucky that I was driving and Derek was directing as he is so much better at that. We got through okay but had hit Madrid at rush hour and it took us over two hours to get to somewhere where we could stop again. By this time both dogs were very thirsty indeed and we felt terrible. (We only had one divorce and it was after that section with tempers a little frayed ...... marital bliss resumed the next day!!)

That was the only drama for the dogs - we slept in the car that night I think somewhere around Valdepenas - sleep being a loose term used to describe a period during which eyes are closed and no sleep occurred!!! Actually I dont think my eyes closed that much. We parked up on the edge of a lorry park - walked the dogs - ate something and got back in the car. The dogs were great. It was dark and they were in their basket and so they slept. We were sat fairly upright due to carrying far too much in the back of the car and it was FREEZING!!! which we didn't expect. Then a shadowy black figure on a very squeaky old fashioned upright bike cycled past in slow motion almost and about half an later he cycled back again. Bearing in mind we are now talking about 1.00 or 2.00am this completely destroyed any likelihood of me sleeping again that night. Long, long, cold night. Still 6.00am and we gave up any pretence and were on the road again by 6.30. It was still very cold and very dark but we saw a spectacular sunrise and reached our destination around 11.00am. About an hour after our furniture which shouldn't have been arriving until the next day.

I would do it again but:
* Definitely make sure that if you are sleeping in the car that it is comfortable.
* If transporting dogs - a crate with an attached non spill water dish would be the sensible idea.
* A sleeping bag per person also desirable but my recommendation would be to stay in a hotel that take animals.

Dog Training Classes for you and your Pooch

Yes its that time again when Rachel and I pool our resources to help you and your pooch improve your relationship.

When Derek and I got our two cocker spaniels, Shammy and Rocky back in 1995 - WE WERE CLUELESS. I had grown up with dogs - and even had my own but they were farm dogs. All our dogs and cats lived outside. Puppies were allowed to live in the kitchen for a couple of weeks and the odd lamb that was orphaned but apart from that the animals were outside. Because they lived outside training was not a huge issue. Dad did have a properly trained sheepdog but that was after I left home so dogs and training did not really come into my sphere of knowledge.

So having these two gorgeous cocker spaniels with yards of pedigree we thought we needed to "train 'em up". Fly on the wall fell off laughing so many times I dont think it could tell the story. Basically the woman who ran the classes just shook her head - lots and said it was us that needed training. Hmmm she definitely had a point there. I don't think we made a great job of training Sham and Rock but they were fairly amenable characters and any misbehaving that they did was usually down to us.

So, I can hear you asking, what qualifies me for dog training now? Time, darling, time is a great healer!! And Rachel of course - a much better trainer than the one we had back in Taunton. Rachel is the proprietor of Posh Pets Spain for those of you wondering!

She started the dog training courses at her establishment in Alhaurin el Grande about 3 years ago. She invited myself and another lady, Claire a dog behaviourist, to join in to give a complete service (my input was with the animal reiki - see blog from 23 January this year). That first group was very big so we all learnt a lot from that. We have done 3 or 4 courses during the period and now are ready to embark again into the "Sit, stay, stand on your head (oh no - that last bit is me - sorry!!) of a new course.

The Basic course consists of:

• Walking politely on a lead: the informal heel.
• Recall.
• Dog Manners.
• Walking in Traffic.
• Socialization & interaction with dogs & people.

We have loads of fun so if you have a dog that could do with a nudge in the right direction or if you need that nudge then contact Rachel at Posh Pets Spain on 952597035. The new course will start on Saturday, 13th February - Class at 11.00 am registration at 10.45am.

Only dogs and owners please - no spectators - you will have to get your laughs somewhere else!!

Aroma Stone (Hot Stone) Massage

After all the linking and reading and what have you yesterday to try and get ACE back to his owners I think a little gentle massage is in order for today!

Aroma Stone or Hot Stone Massage is probably one of the most relaxing and luxurious massages anyone could have. I call it a "melting" massage and vaguely remember that it feels fabulous (vaguely because I haven't had one since I trained on it four years ago).

The stones used are two varieties -
We have the igneous basalt which erupts from the centre of the volcano and flows as lava. Rock is formed when the lava cools in the air or sea. Erosion and weather breaks down the rock into particles and these are transported by glaciers, rivers and the wind and deposited as sedimentary layers in lakes, rivers and sea bed where heat and pressure (by movement) change sedimentary and igneous rocks to metamorphic rocks.
Examples of metamorphic rocks are Slate, Marble, Shale.

What we use in the massage are the basalt (hot stones) and marble (cold stones).

As a contemporary therapy, stone massage was introduced to the world of Spa treatments by Mary Nelson in 1993. The therapeutic use of stones and rocks has, however, been employed for thousands of years in various forms.

Today we are familiar with spas, although they are nothing new. They were originally used to improve health and well being. Spas were about getting better, the hot pools, cold dips, plunge pools, saunas and steam rooms were designed to balance the body so it could heal. The same principles apply in stone therapy - using alternating temperatures to heal. The term geothermotherapy is used because the Earth (geo) is used to deliver the temperature through the stones.

Ezine Articles writes:
....there is actually a lot of history behind the technique, especially in ancient Native American culture. With them, hot rock massages were used during sweat lodge ceremonies. Basically, as the people were sweating out their physical and spiritual impurities, hot rocks were used for added relaxation. They worked so effectively, they became known as "grandfather stones."

Many ancient cultures used stones in some form or another and nearly always there was a spiritual meaning as well as the physical. The basalt stone has been imbued with energetic and healing attributes and marble is used for protection which is why altars are often made of marble.

For the actual massage - the stones are preheated in a receptacle that looks alot like a slow cooker. They are heated to around 50 degrees C and to start with the heat is transferred from the stones via the therapists hands to the clients body. When the stones have lost their heat then fresh ones are retrieved from the heater. The cold stones are used briefly - a balanced use of "hote" and "cold" renews, invigorates and soothes the body.

Amazingly enough a hot stone massage is very tiring. The heat induces detoxing which the body needs but it uses a lot of energy. Therefore choose your day for a hot stone with the idea that when you finish you will NOT be going to run a marathon. A calm day with lots of water, light diet and preferably no alcohol are a great follow on to the massage.

If you want to know more please visit our website: mybutterflybliss.com or call me on 636105863 (spain) or 202 3239 4830 (UK).

An Appeal for Help to Re-unite Ace with his Owners

Here's a tale to tug at the heart strings - I am sure we all still have a heart don't we?

ACE is a beautiful dog whose owners have had to go back to the UK. You know how it is - work is scarce out here in Spain and money is scarcer!! Its not the usual story of no paperwork done and the owners leaving the dog behind for 7 months whilst all the jabs and paperwork take effect - no these are responsible owners. The dog is ready to travel, they have even paid the deposit to Posh Pets Spain and then things ground to a halt.

Ace's owners are having problems finding work back in the UK as well. Its a bad time for everyone and we feel for them. HOWEVER, having to find a new home for a very much loved pet is a hardship and emotional strain that they shouldn't have to face. They are such responsible owners and believe me I have seen many who are not. Through my association with Posh Pets I have seen animals dumped with them, have witnessed tears and tantrums when leaving and then never hearing from the owners again. Rachel at Posh Pets has had to put out appeals to re-home countless animals. So its sad when everything was being done correctly that the owners just cant quite make the final payment.

We all have responsibilities and many uses for our money so I am not telling you how to spend yours but if you felt you have a few (3 or 4) pounds/Euros or dollars to spare perhaps you could help ACE get home. He is featured on the home page of ACE FM radio station here in the Guadalhorce Valley (no relation other than they have championed his cause!). Just scroll down a very little and you will find his picture (aaah) and his story and a PayPal button.

If you are living in our area you can just pop into Posh Pets and donate 2 or 3 Euros (or more of course if the mood takes you!) - they are also taking a collection.

I dont usually get involved but I have seen too many abandoned animals here and it breaks my heart especially when I pass at least one or two dead cats and dogs per day on the roads. If anything drives me out of this country it will be this.

If you can help ACE go home it will be one less for ME to worry about.

There is a Facebook page for you to look at as well!! Click on the word Facebook.