Vol 4 Edition 06
Costa Blanca Netguide Newsletter
http://www.costablanca-netguide.com
This newsletter is only sent to subscribers
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CONTENTS:
1) Editorial
2) Suzanna's Article
3) Exclusive Villa Sale
4) Furniture from Abroad
5) New Businesses on the Guide
6) Neighbourhoood Watch Press Release
7) Spanish Resources
8) Sticker/Screensaver Information
9) Subscribe/Unsubscribe Information
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1) Editorial
Hola ,
Hope this finds everyone well and ready for the summer. We
affectionately call it the "silly season" when the driving
skills of both the residents and tourists seem to melt in
the sun. Parking spaces are like gold dust and supermarkets
are full of quite an amazing crowd of people. Something that
still amuses me even after 15 years here that some people
find it quite reasonable to go and do their supermarket
shopping in their swimming attire?! I wonder if they do this
in their home town when the temperatures soar in the summer
or whether they keep this little delicacy for the bewildered
locals over here.
So what´s been happening in our neck of the woods? Since the
last time I wrote we have had a Royal wedding and a
sparkling affair that was. I must admit to buying "Hola"
magazine the Spanish equivalent to "Hello" magazine just to
see all the frocks. According to the Spanish television news
they couldn´t get enough magazines to the newspaper stands
that week and I did notice the following weeks edition was
covered with the Royal couple´s honeymoon tour around Spain.
This months newsletter brings you an article about "La
Cuitat" a fantastic place up in Valencia that my son´s
school visited recently. Also we have a press release from a
new neighbourhood watch group. There is an article about the
Medieval Market our village hosted. If you are over on the
Costa Blanca and see any posters or leaflets for one of
these markets do try and go along as they are great fun. If
you are moving over soon you will be interested in the
article featuring furniture either to buy or to transport
from England.
We have a press release from a new
neighbourhood watch group. Also an article about the
Medieval Market our village hosted last weekend. If you are
over on the Costa Blanca and see any posters or leaflets for
one of these markets do try and go along as they are great
fun. If you are moving over soon you will be interested in
the article featuring furniture either to buy or to
transport from England.
So hasta la proxima......... until next month, Suzanna.
Suzanna Editor - Costa Blanca Netguide.
editor@costablanca-netguide.com
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Direct Car Hire on the Costa Blanca, Costa del Sol
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2) Suzanna's Article
La Cuitat (The City)
At the end of May my son´s class went on their last school
trip of the academic year. It was decided to go to "La Cuitat"
in Valencia and I can´t tell you how much both the children
and adults alike enjoyed the day......but I´ll try! It is
located close to the port of Valencia with the train and bus
stations close by too. We arrived by coach and were
dropped right outside, but there is parking within the
centre. When I say centre it covers a huge area with in
fact five different theme centres. These are the
Oceanogràfic - An inpressive water space of marine life
where you can submerge yourself and discover the beauty and
secrets of our planet´s primary seas and oceans and gain a
more complete understanding of the importance of preserving
these delicate ecosystems. Nine thematic underwater habitats
featuring awe-inspiring design, the latest technology, 42
million litres of water and 45000 specimens of 500 different
species! It is the largest marine park in Europe. The Museu
de les Ciencies Principe Felipe (The Prince Felipe Science
Museum) where touching is permitted! It takes on a new
concept of museum where one can take part and experiment
with present day and future science and technology. The
L´Hemisfèric - A breathtaking building taking the form of
the human eye where you can enjoy three audio-visual
presentations on one giant screen : Planetarium, Imax Dome
and Laserium. The programmes shown include T-Rex, El Cielo
de Estrella (The Starry Sky), Ritmo (Rhythm), La Conquista
de Saturno (The Conquest of Saturn), Gran Cañón: Secretos
Ocultos (The Grand Canyon: Sectret Cults) and Mar Viviente
(The Living Sea). L´Umbracle - a spectacular garden
promenade with views of the entire complex with a large car
park beneath. Finally, the Palau de Les Artes, which is under
construction but promises to be an innovative centre for the
performing arts and will soon present the finest dance,
opera and theatre.
For this particular day trip we managed to take in the
Hemisfèric and the Oceanogràfic. We watched Starry Sky first
at the Hemisfèric which included the film followed with a talk
by a very knowledgable lady. The children were asked
questions about what they had seen. The film showed them the
solar system, constellations and a short cartoon film. They
had a quiz and finally were presented with a colourful
poster of the Hemisfèric with activities to do on it. Before
you enter there is a souvenir shop and cafeteria all
immaculatly clean, something we noticed throughout La Cuitat.
Once we left this centre we walked to the Oceanogràfic
passing an enormous ornamental pool. There was some kind of
trade fair being erected at the time, but was unobtrusive to
the visitors. Ice Cream and Horchata sellers were plying their
wares from cubicles. Horchata is a drink that looks like
milk but is made from a nut. Past the Science Museum and
into the Oceanogràfic. The security checks to get in were
thorough with all bags being passed through an x-ray
machine. I´m not sure whether this has been stepped up since
the Madrid bombings but obviously comforting to see the
diligence. Within this centre are plenty of restaurants and
cafeterias serving a variety of food to satisfy every pocket
and taste. Again souvenir shops are located within the main
entrance building. This centre was stunning and so
interesting for us all. The children just loved walking
through the glass tunnels with every type of sealife so
close. The sharks they absolutely loved. It would take me so
long to describe it all and I can only say you have to see
it for yourselves. With "Finding Nemo" still fresh in all
the children´s minds they could really appreciate what they
were seeing and the Disney merchandise was available
alongside the regular products including the video and DVD.
In the Red Sea auditorium we watched the Disney documentary
narrated by Jean Michel Cousteau which is on the Finding
Nemo DVD. Afterwards the screen is removed and behind the
curtains is a huge aquarium with all the Finding Nemo stars
for you to see in real life! The dolphin show is second to
none and lately we seem to have seen a few. The day was soon
at an end although we were actually there for 7 hours. As I
have said we all thoroughly enjoyed it and would recommend
it to anyone, young or old whatever the weather as there is
plenty to see both inside and out. The disabled facilities
seemed very good with ramps and lifts everywhere. I would
advise you to go and visit the website, which has plenty of
information on tariffs, how to get there and explanations of
the exhibits.
www.cac.es
Last weekend our little village played host to a medieval
market, which I believe to be the 2nd year running. It is
immensly popular and gives the local traders and
manufacturers of foods and goods a chance to display their
wares. It takes on the shape of a Medieval Market with all
sorts of stalls exhibiting anything from leather work and
local stone masonry to our very own sausage makers and wine
brewers. The only priviso for presenting your merchandise
at the fair is that everything has to be hand made and
natural. The market is held on a Saturday and Sunday and
attracts hundreds and hundreds of tourists as well as people
from the local villages and valleys. Other than the edible
items there were typical Medieval attractions. We had
exhibitions of wild birds of prey flying over the heads of
the market goers, and frightenly close at times. The
'performing' eagle and a falcon flies from one side of the
square to the other swooping down in the middle of the
square by the fountain to snatch up morsels of food from
it's handler. All very exciting, and very fast. On their
exhibition stall the handlers were showing a giant owl, a
smaller owl and some other large birds of prey, and a pen of
sleeping weasels. This of course thrilled all of the
children present. There was a troup of wandering minstrels
performing appropriate music, and with my husband being a
music teacher I can confirm that all of their selections
were at least 500 years old! There was a jester come juggler
who did do some amazing standing tricks with just an old
straw broom and two sticks. The children found him to be
very amusing as most of the tricks that could possibly go
wrong did go wrong, on purpose of course, so that when he
finally did get them right it he was rewarded with such a
round of applause. The stalls that featured our local
sausage makers had plates of sliced sausages to taste and
try before buying, along with samples of the local red wine.
The local bakers were there in force selling their own
pastries synonimous to our village and the Valencia region.
The hardware side of things was represented by all types of
knitting, leather work in the form of belts, brooches,
bracelets and bangles. Our local stone masons were happily
chipping away at models of tortoises and gnomes, deer and
rabbits. And of course there were attractions for the kids.
There was the usual stick your head through the hole and be
photographed from the other side looking like a knight, or a
princess and there were all sorts of novelties to buy like
swords, sheilds and tiny puppets of walking birds. The
most popular attraction and a great favorite with our son
was a miniature medieval catapult. The object of this game
was to fire the missiles, sand wrapped in leather, at a
wooden castle. You had to break down the walls and knock
open the port cullice to reveal the captured princess. If you
were successful you won a replica medieval coin. This
particular attraction had a queue of kids lined up from 10
in the morning until 10 at night when the market closed. Our
son won three coins this year and I can guarantee you that
he will remember where he has hidden them, along with the
three from last year ready for the return of the Medieval
Market next year.
Researched and Written by Suzanna
info.es@costablanca-netguide.com
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3) Exclusive Villa Sale
We have the opportunity to offer through this newsletter
exclusive details about the sale of a fantastic south facing
villa on Montgo that has just come onto the market.
Briefly the details are
**148 sq mtr villa, all on one level, on 1000 sq mtr plot
**Three double bedrooms, one with bathroom en suite
**separate shower room.**
**Spacious lounge with archway to separate dining room.
**Fully glazed naya providing a second large lounge/dining area.
**Kitchen, utility room and store room.
**Outside staircase to roof terrace.
**Kidney shaped swimming pool 8 x 4 metres
**Carport and large wooden garden shed.
**Gas central heating throughout plus log burning fire.
**Security alarm system. Satellite television.
**Exceptional garden, totally screened and private on all sides,
with large lawn, shrubs, fruit trees, a mature grape vine and
other easy-maintenance plants.
Price 415.000 euros / Approximately 250,000 sterling
If you are interested, we can put you in direct contact
with the vendor. Just call either myself (Suzanna) on 96 6480248
or in the UK you can call Robin on 01273 573826.
details also at
http://www.costablanca-netguide.com/listings/311.html
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4) Furniture from Abroad
We had a few bits of furniture arrive this week from England
handled very expertly by Home to Home Removals. I did joke
with the two fit lads, who had to carry the furniture
through the narrow village streets to our house, that it was
in fact the first time in 15 years that we had actually had
any furniture brought over from England. I was very
impressed with the efficency of Home to Home from getting
the quote to it being delivered very promptly on my
doorstep (well inside the house). Over the years I have heard
many horror stories of removal companies, with loads taking
weeks, even months to arrive to only last week a friend of
mine "losing" her new computer on a removal lorry. Luckily
that turned out OK in the end with the "lost" computer
turning up at the wrong address miles away and a very honest
person owning up to it not being theirs! I must admit I paid
a small insurance for the load I had brought over but still
it would never replace the heirloom I have just inherited!
So, as I said, Home to Home did a wonderful job and the lads
did say that on full loads going into small villages such as
ours they would normally transfer the items to a smaller van
to get close to the property. Removal companies do have
funny stories too and Phil of Home to Home has promised me
that he will send some over for me to share with you. He did
tell me of a dead cat that they were asked to transport back
to England, but I´ll keep you in suspense and let him tell
you the story!
Many people do ask whether it is worth bringing furniture
over and the answer is never really an easy one. Firstly, it
depends on what it is and secondly, will it fit into a
Spanish style house? If its electrical will it work here?
What happens if it breaks down here, is it covered by the
guarantee? Certain things maybe obvious like personal
effects, computers and the such like, but larger items will
cost to bring over and you may have to store them until your
dream home has finished being built or you´ve found
somewhere to rent. If its a property you intend to rent out
that you are buying, nearly new furniture may be the answer.
Wendy of Premier Furniture in Denia has told me that many
people buy the entire contents of their house from them.
Depending where you live they will deliver and will arrange
furniture to be delivered back to England. Their stock is
nearly new but on some items they will be able to offer in
alternative colours, sizes and woods.......just ask! She is
very helpful with advice on how items should be cleaned
ranging from milk to vinegar. Wendy tells me that many
people enjoy haggling for prices but remember its not a
market and she does pride herself on pricing things at a
reasonable rate.
Also many of the cheaper new furniture shops offer "package"
prices. These packages usually consist of a couple of sofas
and a coffee table, a double bedroom suite, a twin bedroom
suite and a dining table and 4 chairs. This way of buying
gives you less choice but can be paid off in installments.
Whatever you decide to do please don´t contact me on whether
you should bring certain items over (just contact Home to
Home) or if Wendy has the ideal piece of furniture (contact
her at Premier Furniture). Both businesses are listed on the
Costa Blanca Net Guide Directory.
Researched and Written by Suzanna
info.es@costablanca-netguide.com
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5) A New Business on the Guide
Saffron Home Management Services
A small company providing a friendly and professional
service for you and your guests. Assuring you that your
home will be in safe hands.
http://www.costablanca-netguide.com/listings/306.html
M Thorman Construction
Our services include:
New Builds, Extensions, Renovations, Under build conversions,
Swimming pools, Terracing, Tiling, Roofing, Alterations, Driveways
and much more. We deal with the permissions and licences
needed for works. We use certified architects for projects and
Spanish registered companies for any legal matters.
http://www.costablanca-netguide.com/listings/307.html
Oliva Computers
Oliva Computers is an English speaking computer shop
in OLIVA (between Denia and Gandia, Valencia, Spain).
We sell computers, new & second-hand with English
operating systems, or other language if required.
We also repair PCs.
http://www.costablanca-netguide.com/listings/308.html
S & W Hire Services
Our shop is located in Moraira (next to the Renault
garage) and we supply an extensive range of quality, well
serviced tools for the builder, DIY enthusiast, gardener
and for general home maintenance.
http://www.costablanca-netguide.com/listings/309.html
Business for Sale - Premier Furniture.
Want to escape the rat race?
Easily run family furniture business for sale in Denia
established since 1986. Comprising of two warehouses
covering approximately 800M2 set side by side.
http://www.costablanca-netguide.com/listings/310.html
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6) Press Release
Election of the first sign for neighbourhood watch Thursday
6th May 2004
Vecinos cooperando is an adaptation of the British system of
Neighbourhood Watch
It has been successfully running in the Costa Blanca area
for nearly 4 years with more areas starting the scheme as we
speak. The scheme is run in conjunction with the Policia
Local, The Guardia Civil and the councils for the areas in
which it has been established. It is non-political and run
for the benefit of the communities by unpaid volunteers. A
great number of the volunteers are retired police officers
from England and are vary aware of the assistance that this
scheme gives the police in the ever-increasing world problem
of increasing crime rates. Our coordinators are not only
English people but are from all over the world. This system
works for everyone. At present this scheme looks after over
10000 homes.
In November 2003 at the request of the Ayuntamiento of Pilar
de la Horadada a pilot scheme was started in Pinar de
Campoverde. The difference with this area is that it has
been run in total cooperation with all the organisations
that need to be involved and is financed almost completely
by the town council whereas most other schemes are financed
by private sponsorship.
The scheme here in Pinar de Campoverde has been very
successful and is now regarded as the model for all such
schemes, which reflects the professionalism and commitment
of all involved.
Today we are unveiling the first sign identifying the
neighbourhood watch area. This sign has been adopted by all
members of Vega Baja NW and will be appearing in all areas
where there is an active scheme. The message these signs
send out to the criminals is that, we will not tolerate your
behaviour. We are watching you and we will always report
your activities to the police.
We feel that the council for Pilar de la Horadada and its
Mayor are to be congratulated on their foresight in starting
this Partnership for the community. This scheme goes a long
way towards making our community a safer and better place to
live. As residents we should all work together in this
partnership to combat unacceptable behaviour in our
communities.
Finally, these schemes could not work without the unceasing
help of the coordinators and their committees.
Let’s continue to improve our communities by working
together in this partnership
Researched and Written by Suzanna
info.es@costablanca-netguide.com
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7) Spanish Resources
Books
i) Homage to Catalonia (Penguin Modern Classics)
When George Orwell joined up to fight in the Spanish Civil War,
it seemed like the beginning of "an era of equality and freedom".
In this volume he vividly chronicles his experiences: the
revolutionary euphoria of Barcelona, the courage of the ordinary
Spanish men and women he fought alongside, the terror and
confusion of the front, his near-fatal bullet wound and the cynical
betrayal of his allies. Here he brings to bear all the force of his
humanity, passion and integrity to describe the bright hopes and
desperate disillusionment of a chaotic, brutal war.
http://www.costablanca-netguide.com/bac/books/h2c.html
CD's
i) Sketches of Spain - Miles Davies
Miles Davis's impact on jazz is almost incalculable.
From his early days as a sideman for Charlie Parker, through
his groundbreaking Birth of the Cool sessions, to his stunning
small groups of the 1950s and 1960s, through to his electric
renaissance, the trumpeter, bandleader and composer has left
a deep mark on all who came after. He is one of jazz's true giants.
Sketches of Spain, though one of Davis's most commercially
successful sessions, is also one of his most controversial.
Re-teaming with arranger and composer Gil Evans, who played
such a pivotal role in Davis's 1949 Birth of the Cool recordings,
Davis recorded a series of large group albums beginning in the
late 1950s, including Porgy and Bess, Miles Ahead, and Quiet
Nights. Sketches of Spain, with its emphasis on flamenco, rich
orchestrations and relaxed tempos is certainly one of Davis's
most mellow recordings (he even works out on fluegelhorn), and
proved to have broad appeal.
http://www.costablanca-netguide.com/bac/CDs/sos.html
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8) Sticker Information
We have available our Costa Blanca Netguide car or shop
window stickers that we will send out to you free of charge.
Just email stickers@costablanca-netguide.com with your name
and postal address and how many you require (3 Max) and
we'll post them out to you anywhere in Europe.
Screensaver Information
Version 1 of the Costa Blanca Screensaver can be downloaded
at http://www.costablanca-netguide.com/screensaver.html.
The Free version has a few limitations but gives you a good
idea of what you can expect from the Full version which is
priced at 7 EUROS
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