Processionary Caterpillars

Processionaries 

Okay - its that time of year again - the Processionary Caterpillar invasion.  Having said that, due to the deluge of rain we experienced last year, many "nests" seem to have been washed away and perhaps because of that - I have not seen a "nest" so far this winter!! GOOD!


For those not familiar with these caterpillars, they are known as processionary caterpillars due to the fact that when they leave their nests in the pine trees, they form a long line nose to tail and joined by a fine thread.


Pine Processionary Caterpillars build a white nest, often described as 'candyfloss-like', on the tip of pine branches in the autumn.  By January they start to emerge and form lengthy processions and this is when they can be hazardous.  Each caterpillar has around 60,000 white hairs containing a toxin which can cause sever rashes, temporary blindness and evn respiratory problems.  


The problems are hugely exacerbated in animals, particularly dogs who can suffer a severe allergic reaction or anaphylactic shock which can result in death as their throat and nasal passages swell causing asphyxiation. 

"Nest" in pine tree!

I suffered very briefly and mildly one windy day when Derek drove out of our drive unknowingly driving over a whole procession.  When challenged the caterpillars releases their toxic hairs and these were caught up in the wind - virtually invisible.  It was only later that morning that a constant stinging and itching on my neck caused me to look in the mirror and all down one side of my neck was red and swollen with small white stripes.  Not very attractive and certainly not very comfortable.  Fortunately it didn't last long so I must have only caught a very few.


Although the general advice is not to walk in the pine forests, not to let your dog off the lead in such areas and to keep a sharp lookout, I have found that lone pine trees can harbour plenty - as was seen in the incident above.  Just keep a sharp eye - if you see fluffy white 'candyfloss' in pine trees now then avoid them for the next two or three months!

Spain Bans Smoking in Public Places ....... again!

From yesterday - 2nd January new and tougher Spanish anti-smoking law means bars and restaurants are no-smoking zones.

In 2006 the first anti-smoking laws came in which prohibited smoking in public places.  When we first came to Spain everyone smoked, everywhere!! You would go into the bank and the teller would have not only a cigarette in the ashtray beside them but that ashtray would be full of cigarette butts.  All public buildings smelt of smoke and it felt really strange after it had been outlawed for so long in the UK.  

While the 2006 anti-smoking law prohibited smoking in the workplace, it came under fire for letting bar and restaurant owners choose whether or not to allow smoking: most permitted it.  There was even a great deal of confusion amongst the bar owners themselves.  Some said it had to do whether or not you served food or allowed children in the bar.  Others said it was to do with how many square metres the bar was.  All in all the confusion settled after about 6 weeks and it seemed that most bars and cafes did allow it.  Restaurants were stricter but it still seemed that it was "business as usual" for the smokers.

2011 and not only are the bars and cafes now smoke free zones but the idea of smoking can not be encouraged.  Smokers will not be allowed to light up on television broadcasts, near hospitals or in school playgrounds.

The bill, proposed by PM Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero and his governing Socialist Party, was passed in the lower house by 189 votes to 154.

Bar and cafe owners fear the law will adversely affect business adding to the drop of 15% in sales since the recession.  

Spain was once famed for its smoke-filled bars, corner cafes and restaurants, but the new law tightens restrictions introduced in 2006 by forbidding smoking in any enclosed public space.    

The vote rejected a Senate amendment to allow casinos to have smoking areas. Moves to allow bars to build sealed cubicles for smokers also failed.

But doctors argue the new legislation will help smokers give up, which correspondents say is vital when 160 Spaniards a day die from smoking-related illnesses, four of them from passive smoking.

Spanish Health Minister Leire Pajin has called on Spaniards to share responsibility for the new law's success.

Personally, I am not sure how much the little village bars and cafes will adhere to the new law although I did hear today that bar owners would be subject to a €3,000 fine if caught by the police allowing customers to smoke.  

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!

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!!!

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!!

All the trappings of Home (with added Sun!)

Before we came to Spain we rushed around buying all the things we didn't think we could get here and having all the medical overhauls we thought we would need in order to survive. How ignorant were we?

We did our homework and discovered that Spain's Medical services are way above the UK's in the league table so what made us, reasonably intelligent people, act as though we were going to live on a desert island?

Its not just us either. Many people we speak to admit to the same misconception and I feel quite embarrassed now to think that we were like that.

For instance one of the things we do every couple of years when back in the UK is have our eyes tested. We then jump through hoops to get the prescription glasses sent to Spain and bite our nails to the elbows until they arrive safely. (99% of all mail arrives safely - its just that one thing that you really want.............)! Anyway like everything else - its all available here and for those who dont find the language so easy, there is Specsavers!!!! Yes - how simple is that! They have branches in Calpe, Fuengirola, Javea and Torrevieja. We used the Fuengirola branch and it was great - both Spanish and English spoken! Derek now has a nice new pair of glasses and can see again!! Really see!

Its always daunting contemplating doing anything official in a foreign country but the most daunting part is the language barrier. We learnt enough Spanish to get by but didn't progress from that and I would urge anyone coming to live in Spain (or any foreign country) to learn the language. Having said that I would wait till you get there as its easier to learn a language when immersed in it daily.

Finally, if you have concerns about your HP sauce and baked beans - you need worry no more! Mercadona one of the main Spanish supermarkets seems to stock more and more English products (obviously in the areas where Brits live). We have cheddar cheese, baked beans and I even found bovril the other day which I wasn't aware that I wanted but when I saw it that was it - had to have it! Obviously they stock loads of other stuff too numerous to mention but you get my drift.

So you see you can have your cake and eat it too!

Until the next time - have a great day!

www.specsavers.es

Sunny (?) Spain??

Well - now I really am going to keep this blog up. Promise.
It came to me last week reading comments on Facebook and other social networks, you can take the folk out of the UK but you cant take the UK out of the folk!! WE STILL TALK ABOUT THE WEATHER! And yes didn't we give it hell. We have lived in Spain for just over five years and I have to say that yes, the weather around Christmas and New Year was the worst we had encountered but it amounted to DAYS of rain not MONTHS.

Yes, we all have different reasons for coming to live in Spain but for most of us, if we are honest, the weather is a major point. And for about 300 days of the year its great but boy oh boy don't we moan when we hit a glitch.

There is a reason for this though. Spain does NOT DO RAIN. It quite simply cant cope. The roads become littered with debris that is washed out of the storm drains (the storm drains that for 2 thirds of the year are rubbish receptacles!). Then there is the mud. I have never seen two dogs conceal so much mud about themselves. They gather it like flowers from a meadow (poetic - yes?) and then hide it surreptitiously beneath their fur only to be shed in lumps (both wet and dry) over furniture, clothes, car - hmmmmm! Special !

But for those of you not yet arrived and those still agonising over the decision - its not all bad. Spain needs its rain. We "apparently" now have enough reserve water for two years if it doesn't rain again in that period. (Hmmm not quite sure who is responsible for that information). Whatever the reserves, we do have lots of water and should be able to enjoy a fine old summer of swimming, watering the vegetables and most importantly showering!

And now we are enjoying lovely warm weather with the odd day not so great but really back to situation normal for a Costa del Sol January. Phew!