Santiago
de Compostela Cathedral,
Galicia
Imserso
- on hold
We've
been waiting in anticipation for news about the Imserso
Spanish holiday programme. By now they should be
issuing the annual confirmation letters for all registered
pensioners. However, the website still hasn't opened
up for the 2012-13 season and, in spite of our frequent
phone calls, no news is forthcoming from Imserso staff.
We are taking comfort from the assumption that no news
is good news. However, if you have already been to our
offices to register for 2012/13 there is no immediate
likelihood of hearing anything soon. We will let you
know as soon as we do.
Fancy
a gamble?
Just
as some of the proposed projects might come to fruition,
they introduce more!
The latest speculation is around a potential Las Vegas
Madrid and not to be beaten, Barcelona World.
Madrid's Eurovegas would be a mega-gaming resort. The
potential competition for this scheme is the proposed
Barcelona World which would comprise of 6 theme parks
linking up with the existing Port Aventura.
Not surprisingly there are a number of sceptics who
cannot see that either project will be successful. In
this article it's argued that theme parks (with the
odd exception) have never been successful outside of
America. The reason? Europe's cities provide
enough distraction and amusement of their own:
presseurop.eu
Independence
for Cataluńa
Every
country has its regional differences and perhaps
wishes that they could be distinct from their neighbours.
In England there have always been intense rivalries
around Lancashire and Yorkshire, for example.
Although it might have been suggested at different times,
no one took seriously the idea of independence (I don't
think). However, regional differences and autonomy are
perhaps nowhere stronger than in Spain. The Basque
country is well known for its claims to independence
and now Cataluńa is wanting to break free from the national
debt:
presseurop.eu
expatica.com
We invite your
comments,
feedback and
suggestions.
Please e-mail us at...
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Ábaco
update
You
might be aware that recently IVA (VAT) rates
have gone up. Depending upon which category of VAT it
is, this tax on goods and services has risen from 8
to 10% and from 18 to 21%. However, Ábaco have made
the decision that they are not going to pass on this
increase to their customers. Our fees will stay the
same for the rest of 2012.
The
new shopping centre has arrived!
There
have been three large projects we've been watching carefully
in the Costa Blanca region. The airport (see below),
the proposed Paramount theme park (a bit quiet at the
moment) and the new Zenia Boulevard in Orihuela
Costa (Alicante). One at least appears to have come
to fruition. Zenia Boulevard opened on the 26th September.
To find out what the verdict is from the forums:
torreviejaforums.com
torrevieja.co.uk
torrevieja.co.uk/forum
To see what's there:
zeniaboulevard.es
It seems the main impressions are positive ones, except
when it comes to congestion on neighbouring roads.
Corvera
again
The
latest from Murcia Today is that the obstacles
that have been in the way of the airport opening have
eventually been overcome and it will open in April 2013.
The information has come from the newspaper 'La Verdad'
and reading between the lines not everything is yet
signed and sealed:
murciatoday.com
Enjoy
your cars?
If
you do and want to meet with likeminded people you could
try one of these clubs:
'Phoenix Car Club' (Costa Blanca):
phoenixcarclub.com
Club Torrevieja Classics and Specialists Cars:
clubtorrevieja.com
More
book suggestions
Well,
I asked for more books title suggestions and I haven't
been disappointed. The only problem is I simply don't
have time to read them all.
These are books that were written in Spanish and translated
into other languages. They provide not only some
thought-provoking and interesting stories but a fascinating
view of Spain through Spanish eyes.
Suggestions include:
* The Carpenter's Pencil' by Manuel Rivas
* Cathedral of the Sea' by Ildelfonso Falcones
* the psychological thriller trilogy 'Your Face Tomorrow'
by Javier Marias
If you want to try some poetry then where better
to start than translations of Federico García
Lorca: poemhunter.com
It looks as though we're not the only ones exploring
the local libraries. In this Expatica article
Rick Steves makes his own set of recommendations: expatica.com
I do mean it when I say, keep the titles coming…
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