Stop Press - The Recession is Over

Today was the day we woke up to the news that the recession is over! Hmmmm - it conjures up many bizarre visuals: people rushing around telling each other, shouting it from the rooftops, queuing to get in the shops and spend, spend, spend. In reality will there be any change - no, I am sure not; certainly not in the short term.

Now dont get worried I am not about to go into financial analyst speak or political mode I just wonder about these things sometimes.

When we arrived in Spain in 2004 my research had been sketchy to say the least. I had presumed a few months off and then the nice little part time job that paid all the bills (after all they were not going to be substantial were they - its Spain - cheap to live). I wasn't even fussy - I was happy to work 2-3 full days a week or every morning for 3 or 4 hours. It was such a cosy little notion and I spent many months before coming to Spain daydreaming about it.

Lucky really that I hadn't a clue about the reality here in Andalucia. I think the reality is that this part of Spain has been suffering a bit of a recession for many years. Unemployment is high and I found that when I did go on a Spanish on-line job site that there were literally hundreds of applicants for each job no matter what the job was.

So the world recession only served to make a hard life harder for the Spanish in the south of the country. For instance our many Spanish neighbours. One pair of brothers have a lorry each (one lives nearly opposite and the other lives just down the track) and they delivered fruit and veg. I used to groan when at 5am the one lorry used to grind up the track past us and the big metal gates of the one opposite opened up with a loud rumble. Now I feel sad for them because there is no 5am noise or rarely as the two men have no work (although I don't miss the wake up call). They both have families and I wonder how they manage. Another family have the husband out of work for nearly a year and his wife works 3 jobs and looks after her parents one of whom has cancer and runs our water community (a thankless task if ever there was one).

So for the UK Recession has meant loss of jobs through downsizing or companies folding but they have had the good times and the good times will come back. I wonder how much things will change here when the recession is over in Spain!

That's it - sorry if it got a bit political!

If you are still wanting to work here in Spain but wanting to enjoy the lifestyle too don't forget to visit my website for information on a Home Based Business. www.asimplesecret.com

Inspirational and Motivational Conference in Prague

Well - this weekend is going to be something else!! Our Network Marketing Business is is holding the last of its "round the world" Kick-off events (training days) and Foundation Live Event this Saturday and Sunday (30th and 31st January 2010). This is the first Foundation Live (one day event) and the line up is fabulous. All this happening in the beautiful and historic city of Prague.

"Foundation Live is an inspiring 1 day motivational workshop with presentations on how to succeed in life, in relationships and in business.
For many, this event is the first time they meet the people they have learned from and worked with on their Beyond Freedom Evolution(tm).
Come and join the members of this community as we embark on this journey together…" (Beyond Freedom Evolution is the home study course that is putting me and life to rights!!)

One of the speakers is Scott Burrows. Scott has an incredible life story. A nationally ranked young athlete, he stepped into the passenger side of a friend’s car and awoke hours later in the emergency room, diagnosed a quadriplegic. Rather than accept his fate he channelled all the skills he had learnt as an athlete into his recuperation. You can see more about Scott on his website www.scottburrows.com

Scott will be joined by other inspirational speakers including our founder and leader Shane Krider.

For more information on this event or if you are interested in working for yourself, from home, in your own time at your own pace then please contact me or visit my website www.asimplesecret.com

The Winter Beach

One of the things we love whether we are in the UK or here in Spain is walking the dogs on the beach in the winter. The beach is a great place out of season. Its not manicured, there is flotsam and jetsam and, here in Spain, a whole different set of people. Add some rather unruly dogs to the mix and you have an interesting walk to say the least!
Take last Sunday for instance. We packed the dogs into the car and drove 20 minutes to Torremolinos Beach. Torremolinos is great because it goes on and on - seemingly for miles. You expect it to be empty. Wrong!!! Admittedly there aren't many sunbathers although last Sunday was a lovely day and so there were some British holiday makers who were baring more body than the rest of us.
A walk on the beach with two dogs on extending leads (imagine the nightmare if I let them off!)is fraught with danger. The first hazard is the fishermen. A neat row of rods in holders in the sand - no need to paint the picture of dogs one side and us the other. How to wipe out half a dozen rods in one fell swoop!
Then we have a lot of very small people, with the wobbly, undirected gait that strikes fear in the heart of someone precariously in charge of a mad Spanish Water Dog on the end of an extended lead. Similar action to the fisherman, I spend a lot of time reeling him in and letting him out again. Then you get the joggers - plugged into their IPOD's - determinedly running off last night’s excesses. Running people always make dogs think that they are doing it expressly for them – exciting – depends on your point of view I suppose!
There are the meditators (not sure that is a word – the spell checker certainly wasn’t helpful!) sitting cross legged gazing out to sea. These tend to cause us a little anxiety as meditation and salty, sandy exuberant dogs don’t exactly mix - I know, I have tried it. So leads get shortened as we pass those communicating on different level.
A lot of the cafes are also open on the beach during the winter so – provided they have tables outside which most do, and that unruly dogs have at least worn themselves out a little, we can enjoy a welcome cuppa before walking up onto the promenade for the last stretch back to the car. The promenade is similarly hazardous but our dogs are not the only hazard thankfully. Skateboard and rollerbladers, bicycles, pushchairs and tricycles all add to the chaos so that by the time we reach the sanctuary of the car and from there home again, both humans and canines are ready to veg out for Sunday afternoon.

Reiki for Animals

A few months after we moved here I decided to retrain as an Holistic Therapist. I love learning. Its a real buzz for me these days - bit of a shame I didn't feel the same when I was at school. (What is it that they do at school to completely put you off learning?) I emerged in the Autumn of 2005 as a qualified Massage Therapist and Reflexologist. The college I attended did other courses one of which was Reiki. Now I was really keen on complementary therapies but Reiki - no I decided that I wasn't up for that - its a bit "wooo-wooo" isn't it.

Actually NO its not. Not only does the recipient not have to believe in it, the practitioner doesn't have to either. And it was because this took the pressure off me that I decided to give it a go. One of my better decisions in life. I took first and second degree Reiki at the end of 2005 and loved every minute of it.

One of the best things about Reiki is that is a "non-return" therapy. I pass on Universal Energy but dont receive anything negative back from the client. Far from feeling drained after a treatment I feel energised and totally at peace with the world.

The most rewarding is the animals I have treated. I have treated dogs recovering from operations, with Leishmaniasis, with hip displasia and more. Every time I treat an animal it reaffirms my conviction that this therapy works. Dont get me wrong I am not saying that its a cure-all. However, the deep relaxation that Reiki brings about in both animals and humans really allows the body to do its work of healing. Animals just soak it up. They have no preconceived ideas - nor do they give out platitudes at the end of a treatment. Therefore the reactions of an animal are true and genuine and all the more valuable.

Reiki is just a harnessing of the Universal Energy that surrounds us. Anyone can practice Reiki, once they have had their channels opened, to receive the energy, by a Reiki Master. Many people just become a Reiki practitioner as part of their development through life. They use it on their families and pets and leave it at that. Reiki can even be sent from a distance and I have done this and received very favourable feedback from it. It also fits in very well with conventional medicine, enhancing the effect.

If you want to know more about how Reiki can help you or your animals then please leave a comment or contact me direct.

Getting Here - 2004

When we decided to move to Spain it wasn't done with a great amount of aforethought or even that much planning. We had both been to Spain ONCE in our lives and not together either!! We didn't know the country at all. "A place in the Sun" has a lot to answer for!!

The idea grew very quickly and we made a trip together in November of 2003 to visit the Costa de la Luz. We had to stay in Portugal as there were few hotels open in Huelva Province - north of Seville. The Costa de la Luz is fabulous. Its quiet, pretty and the light is different. The beaches are wonderful and the very large area of National Park help to keep the construction much more under control. However, we drove "round the corner" and decided that the infrastructure was better for us on the more populated Costa del Sol.

First decision made. After that it was easy. We came back again in February 2004 and stayed in Calahonda in an apartment overlooking the sea and it rained, and it rained and it rained. We started the driving thing again - the only way to decide what you like the look of! We drove to Competa (a lovely picturesque village up a mountain to the east of Malaga) - Competa was running down the hill to meet us - MUD and stones and water like you wouldn't believe. We covered a lot of ground during that week driving from Calahonda to Nerja and then up to Antequera where we got well and truly lost. Every time we tried to get out of Antequera it "threw" us out on a different road. But for all the less than idyllic views we got at that time we sawa plenty to inspire us and more to the point - we still wanted to come here.

And this is the purpose of this blog. As you will have seen from the one I wrote about the rain a couple of days ago. For the most part its beautiful here - a tad warm in July and August - but when it rains it really is not the most beautiful place on earth and it doesn't cope that well with the conditions. Therefore if you are thinking of moving to Spain (or anywhere else for that matter) do try and see it, if not at its worst, at some of its less appealing moments. Then there will be less nasty surprises in store for you when you have already moved.

Thats it for today folks - enough already!!

Good website to visit if you haven't been there already www.andalucia.com

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!