Police keep close watch on Ballarat as bikies visit

 POLICE hit Ballarat’s streets in force on Saturday night for a high-visibility public order operation, coinciding with a visit from the Finks Outlaw Motorcycle Club. While Victoria Police would not confirm the gathering was a prelude to any increased bikie presence in Ballarat, they said they would continue to maintain increased vigilance over any potential illegal activities. As part of the operation, a Victoria Police marked camera van was parked for extended periods in the northbound...

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El Hierro prepares for a possible volcanic eruption

 Canary Island of El Hierro is preparing for a possible volcanic eruption as the Canaries have lifted the alert level to yellow for the first time in the recent history of the archipelago following a group of ever-stronger earthquakes. Saturday night saw a 3.4 quake among a total of 48 seen over the weekend. The fear is that there could be a possible volcanic eruption on the island of El Hierro, but the Councillor for Security, María del Carmen Morales, called for calm. ‘These seismic movements are normal given that we are on a yellow alert and we have never seen a similar crisis’. She...

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Canadian gold diggers look to Coruña

 Canadian company, Edgewater Exploration, are to reopen an old gold mine in Coruña and say they will employ 100 people in Cabanas de Bergantiños in the efforts to extract a million ounces of the metal. An ounce of gold is currently 1,800 € on the market. The Las Médulas mines have a long and distinguished past, and were responsible for ten percent of the Roman empire, as 96,000 kilos of gold was taken over 250 years as the Romans used thousands of slaves to find the metal. The new gold fever is the first in the area for 2,000 years. Despite their advanced plans the company is still waiting...

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Spain 'a Top Choice' For Those Thinking Of Moving Abroad

 Spain has been named among the top five destinations that people would consider moving to if they were going to leave the UK, new research has found. A survey conducted by Post Office International Payments revealed that the European nation, which was the fourth most popular location named in the poll, was a possible choice for ten per cent of those questioned. The firm also pointed out that it was the highest-placed nation where English is not the first language. One of the top reasons...

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Germans don't like the British, and the British are the majority in Benidorm

 A spokesman said part of the problem was that the Germans don't like the British, and the British are the majority in Benidorm hotelsPhoto EFE Air Berlin has cancelled five direct flights from El Altet airport as the company puts a tough cost cutting scheme into operation with the goal of saving 200 million €. The plan will leave 18 planes on the ground, and Alicante is reportedly hard hit because of the high seasonality of traffic at El Altet. In addition numbers show a marked fall in German traffic using the airport this August compared to last, down 22% with 78,988 German tourists....

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Spanish jail-house film shows without on-the-run actor

 A Spanish prison screened a short film made by inmates Friday with one missing ingredient -- a key actor in the jail-house drama is on the run. Inmates spent months making "Guilty", about a murderer haunted by his victim, to show in an annual festival behind bars in Leon, northern Spain, a prison official and media here said. "Among the inmates taking part, there was one in the final stages of his sentence who was allowed out regularly with leave, but who did not come back from one of those leaves," said a prison service spokeswoman. Prisoners completed the film without the missing actor...

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Costa del Sol’s oldest magazine shuts its doors

 The Costa del Sol’s oldest magazine is reported to have closed down after running its final edition on Friday. The Friday-Ad – which continues to run a UK operation boasting over 1 million readers a week – had produced a Costa del Sol edition out of its Gibraltar offices since 1975. The reason behind the decision to close remains unclear. When the Olive Press attempted to contact the publication’s office, the number failed to connect. However, a member of staff in the UK office confirmed that it was their understanding that the Costa del Sol edition had closed. “As far as I am aware that...

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Barcelona's last bullfight marks end of an era in Spain

 When Spanish bullfighter Serafin Marin plunges his sword into the back of a bull's neck in Barcelona on Sunday, he will be marking the end of an era. The bull will not only be the last of six killed in the bullfight, but the last-ever to be killed in Barcelona's Monumental bullring, which is nearly a century old. The closure of the Monumental - in keeping with a bullfighting ban in the north-eastern region of Catalonia - reflects the decline of bullfighting in Spain, though fans of the country's...

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Spain fears pain as Ratón the killer bull prepares to enter ring for last time

Ratón the bull at a festival in Sueca, Spain. Photograph: Alberto Saiz/APIt is the end of a long career, deemed venerable by those who admire Spanish fighting bulls.In the early hours of Sunday morning, the half-tonne 11-year-old killer bull known as Ratón, or Mouse, will feel a bullring's sand under his hooves and sniff the scent of commingled human adrenaline and fear for the last time.Those who pay their €2.50 (£2.20) in Canals, eastern Spain, will witness the final chapter of a life spent...

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Spain’s central bank reported this week that things were getting worse for that country’s banks

 Spain’s central bank reported this week that things were getting worse for that country’s banks — but not because they held a lot of Greek debt or bonds issued by other troubled European economies. The problem, instead, is the same old one. With Spain’s economy weak and home prices falling, bad loans are growing. And the central bank thinks things are getting worse. In a surprisingly frank presentation to investors in London on Tuesday, José María Roldán, the Bank of Spain’s director general of banking regulation, said that Spanish land prices had fallen about 30 percent from the 2007...

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Spanish consumers have appetite for grass-fed lamb

 Spanish consumers have rated English Quality Standard grass-fed lamb highly in blind taste tests carried out by Eblex. Consumers at three different Spanish locations with a tradition of high lamb consumption rated English lamb equally to Spanish lamb, with no clear preference between the two. It is hoped the research, carried out with 476 people in Catalunia, Aragon and Extremadura, will encourage more Spanish buyers to consider fast-growing breeds of lamb reared on rain-fed pastures, which they have traditionally shunned out of a perception that it has too strong a taste compared to their...

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Spanish schools hit by strike over staffing cuts

 Thousands of public school teachers went on strike Tuesday in Madrid to protest staff cuts as anger over government austerity measures spread to Spain's education system. The work stoppage in some 300 schools is to last at least two days and perhaps three, and teachers elsewhere in the country also plan strikes or protests this month against budget cuts. Teachers say education should be spared as Spain tightens its belt to resurrect its economy, allay fears it might need an international bailout and reinvent itself for the future with a modern, educated workforce after the collapse of an...

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66 year-old Daniel Healy was found by police to have 100kg of cannabis resin, said to be worth £500,000, hidden in the water tank of the campervan he was driving

 66 year-old Daniel Healy – or ‘Mad Danny’ as he is known in Ardfern in Mid Argyll – was arrested last week, as he went to drive across the border between Morocco and Ceuta, a Spanish owned city enclave. Healy was travelling under the false name of John McLeish and was found by police to have 100kg of cannabis resin, said to be worth £500,000, hidden in the water tank of the campervan he was driving, protected in metal containers. Since his arrest he has been held in the Moroccan prison of Tetouan, said to be worse than Guantana...

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Roche threatens to stop supplying Spanish hospitals

 multinational pharmaceutical company, Roche, has warned Spain that it may stop supplying its products to Spanish hospitals and clinics. It comes as the company has stopped supplying medicines to Greek hospitals because of the debt they are owed, and that say that what they are owed by some regional administrations in Spain is ‘at the limit’. CEO of the company, Severin Schwan, made the revelation to the New York Times, and El País then asked Roche España for comments. The response was ‘As is happening in other countries, the crisis situation and the debt in Spain is significant and some...

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Mijas Fire NOT arson Bonfire

 BONFIRE not been properly extinguished near a stream in Entrerrios, Mijas, was the cause of the wildfire which started on Sunday (12th September) night destroying a vast stretch of land. This was the conclusion reached by the regional government’s fire investigation unit, Brigada de Investigacion de Incendios Forestales, on Monday (12th September). Remedios Martel, from the Junta de Andalucia, dismissed rumours suggesting the fire was an act of arson. Five homes were damaged, two of which were completely destroyed by the fire. But witnesses say minor damage has affected several other...

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Torremolinos shooter pushed wife off Eiffel Tower

 THE man, 79, accused of killing another in Torremolinos town centre served time for pushing his wife off the Eiffel Tower in 1963, according to a Spanish daily. He was 31 at the time, she was 28, and they had emigrated to France and were working in a factory on the outskirts of Paris. Although he denied the accusations, he was sentenced to five years in prison. Last week he was arrested for shooting a man of the same age outside the Entreplazas office building in Torremolinos and has since remanded to prison without bail. Apparently some years ago the victim wanted to sell an apartment...

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THE seventh edition of the Marbella Classic poker series was won last weekend by a visitor from the beautiful Emerald Isle, Mr Thomas O’Shea.

 THE seventh edition of the Marbella Classic poker series was won last weekend by a visitor from the beautiful Emerald Isle, Mr Thomas O’Shea. A highly delighted Thomas picked up a very handy €11,500 for his troubles after beating some of the local poker pros into submission, including last year’s series winner Julian Galan, Miguel Cortijo, Marco Palazon and the very charismatic Pedro ‘El grande’, Spain’s answer to super Mario. Congratulations must also go out to former Marbella Mob Poker founder member Sir Nigel Goldman. In his first European Poker Tour event two weeks ago in Barcelona,...

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Des O'Connor is in Marbella topping up his tan.

Des O'Connor is in Marbella topping up his tan. He’s only been here two days, but already he’s an improbable shade of mahogany. ‘Look at this,’ he says, flashing a generous glimpse of sun-burnished chest.‘I only have to look at a travel brochure and I go brown. My neighbours see me and say: “Here he comes, the Singing Tan”.’ 'My wife has mentioned having another baby. But it would be a bit selfish of me at my age, even though I'm in reasonably good nick,' said Des O'ConnorHere we have...

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APPLE MEGASTORE IN MARBELLA

Tourists come to know Marbella as one of the most sought after holiday destinations not only in Spain but throughout the European continent; now Apple choose the charming mediterranean town with the highest Millionaires concentration to host its most ambitious project in the Iberian Peninsula.A series of rumors speak of the future opening of an Apple store in Marbella, something which has been discussed for months, but now with an added extra, since it would be the largest Apple...

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Polo Experience at Tres Rosas Polo

 Tres Rosas Polo offered the chance to try some horse riding as well as the opportunity to play a very popular sport called Polo. Polo is a team sport played on horseback and the players score by driving a small white plastic or wooden ball into the opposing team's goal using a long-handled mallet. The traditional sport of polo is played at speed on a large grass field up to 300 yards in length, and each polo team consists of four riders and their mounts.    Personally, I must admit I was a bit intimidated by the whole thing, since my only(and very brief) experience with horses...

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Another shipment of cocaine inside plastic bananas seized in Spain

 National Police have seized almost half a ton of cocaine which had been smuggled into Spain hidden inside plastic bananas transported in a normal cargo of the fruit. It’s a method which has been used by drug smugglers before, leading to four arrests after 162 kilos of cocaine were seized at Algeciras Port this January. The Interior Ministry said in a press release on Thursday that the drugs were imported from Ecuador in containers of bananas by an import company which was set up for that purpose in San Roque, Cádiz province. The group is understood to have sent over a number of containers...

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Saudi Arabia: Pretty Maids From Morocco Seen as Threat

 Back in early September, the recruitment committee of the Council of Saudi Chambers of Commerce and Industry announced that recruitment companies would be established and will be licensed to bring in housemaids from Morocco, East Asia and South Africa. The move has caused outrage in unusual places. The reason for this recruitment move, according to a Saudi chamber official, was that they were turning to Morocco and other countries to get its domestic workers following a dispute with the Philippines...

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Málaga singer picks up three nominations in the Latin Grammys

 Málaga Singer, Pablo Alborán, who had a surprise number one album in Spain this year has been nominated in three categories of the Latin Grammys, including best new comer and song of the year for ‘Solamente tu’. When he heard the news the Málaga singer wrote on Twitter – ‘Family, I don’t know what to say. This is a dream, I love you!’. Shakira, Ricky Martin and Maná also have three nominations this year. Grand favourites at the Latin Grammys this year are Calle 13, a due from Puerto Rico...

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Why some Harley Davidson bikes are 'too American' for Spain

 The Spanish traffic authorities have impounded hundreds of second hand Harley Davidson motorbikes which had been imported from the United States as they are ‘too American’. Hundreds of Spanish owners of the bikes are angry that they cannot remove them from the Guardia Civil barracks where they are being stored as it has been determined that the bikes do meet the Spanish official approval level. Only the Harleys which are sold via official dealers in Spain are being considered to meet the homologación official. An association has been formed by those affected says most of the bikes have...

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Spanish police retrieve diamond swallowed by thief

  Spanish police have foiled an attempted robbery from a British woman, after discovering a stolen diamond inside a man's stomach. The woman's handbag - which contained cash and a diamond pendant worth 12,000 euros (£10,500) - was taken as she dined in a restaurant in Marbella. The suspects were caught four hours later with most of the loot. But it took three days to retrieve the most valuable item, the diamond, after one of the men swallowed it. The woman had been sitting in the Marbella...

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Enjoying a romantic overseas getaway, Halle Berry and Olivier Martinez looked ever the happy couple while out with Nahla in Palma de Mallorca,

 The "Dark Tide" co-star couple both dressed casually as they walked hand-in-hand while stopping for coffee in between an afternoon of sight-seeing and shopping.Halle and Olivier's outing comes just as Warner Bros. has released a new featurette for the romantic ensemble film "New Year's Eve" - in which Halle stars.Set to open in theaters nationwide on December 9th, the picture also boasts cast members including Zac Efron, Jessica Biel, Ashton Kutcher, Seth Meyers, among many others.Hollywood...

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Spanish townspeople spear bull to death

 Lance-wielding Spanish townspeople speared a huge fighting bull to the death Tuesday, defying a lone protester who sprayed some of them with an irritant. Hundreds of people, many on horseback, turned out for the combat with a 608-kilogram (1,338-pound) black bull named Afligido — Spanish for Sorrowful — in the centuries-old "Toro de la Vega" festival. The massive beast charged through the fortified town of Tordesillas, central Spain, crossing a bridge over the River Duero and into a plain...

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Expat equity release victims take on banks

 Tempted by the offer of a salary for life and an inheritance tax reduction, organisers of Equity Release Victims Association, Ian Sherdley, 69, and Euan Armstrong, 73, used their Spanish holiday homes as collateral to buy into the equity release schemes. The schemes were sold by independent financial advisors working the expat communities along the Costa del Sol on behalf of Denmark's biggest bank Danske Bank and Nordea Bank SA. They were told that if they took out full mortgages against the value of their Andalucian homes, which were fully paid for, and then gave the money to the bank to...

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Coin, near Malaga in southern Spain, is, like many towns across the crisis-hit nation, on the verge of bankruptcy with an estimated debt of nearly 30 million euros (£26m)

 Coin, near Malaga in southern Spain, is, like many towns across the crisis-hit nation, on the verge of bankruptcy with an estimated debt of nearly 30 million euros (£26m) owed by the town council. For more than a week there has been no lighting in public areas after power company Endesa cut services because of an outstanding bill of 280,000 euros (£240,000). Meanwhile some 500 council employees in the town have not yet been paid their August wages, it was reported. The town of 22,000 residents has been ordered to make an urgent payment of 400,000 euros (£346,000) to the Treasury in monthly...

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Chris Stewart has been voted the most influential expat of the past 200 years in Andalucia

Chris Stewart has been voted the most influential expat of the past 200 years in Andalucia Photo: Andrew Crowley Individuals included on The Olive Press's “Expat 100” list ranged from little-known historical figures such as Amelia Loring, the grandaughter of a former British consul who founded Málaga's botanic gardens in the 1850s, to modern-day celebrities such as Sean Connery, who lived for many years in Marbella.Top of the list was Chris Stewart, ex-drummer of the...

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Protests over the mistreatment Toro de la Vega

 Like every year, the Toro de la Vega has sparked debate about whether it is ethical or not to continue with a festival that is spear to kill a bull. While supporters of keeping the tradition defended at all costs the festivities , increasingly anti-bullfighting group of animal rights groups and even politicians critical of the event. The bullfighting event began at 11.00 and was at 11.27 when Zamorano, a resident of Tordesillas, speared to 'afflicted', of 608 kilos, and killed the bull. As...

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Smuggler Tosses Passengers Off Jet Ski

 Spanish police say a human smuggler trying to sneak two Moroccans into Spain by crossing the Strait of Gibraltar on a jet ski threw them into the water when detected by coastal authorities and that one drowned. A Civil Guard statement Tuesday said the incident happened Sept. 9 near the Spanish town of Tarifa. The Moroccan driver has been charged with negligent manslaughter. One of the travelers managed to swim ashore after being dumped 500 meters from it, but the other did not survive. ...

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PORTUGUESE AUTHORITIES SEEK TRIAL OF ALLEGED GIBRALTAR DRUGS DEALERS

 An ongoing investigation dating back well over a year continues after a local man aged 73 was arrested last week and remanded on Friday on the strength of a European Arrest Warrant. On Thursday officers of the RGP arrested Angel Vella of No. 7 Maidstone House. The warrant issued by the Portuguese authorities is for alleged offences of conspiracy to import 6000 kilos of cannabis resin into Portugal. Vella appeared before the Magistrates Court on Friday where he was remanded in custody until September 19. Vella, who was granted legal aid and is represented by Carl Rammage, did not agree to...

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Estepona Town Hall debt estimated at 300 million €

 The Socialist ex Mayor of Estepona, David Valadez, has been accused of using 3 million € of grant money to pay the town hall wages for May, the month of the local elections. There are 1,280 employees in the town hall, a situation which has suffocated the town’s finances. Valadez has admitted, according to El País, that he took the decision to use the funding money to pay the wages, knowing full well it would generate new economic problems for the town. He also now faces a judicial complaint for spending some of the reserve funds on wages. Now the Junta de Andalucía is demanding part of...

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Mijas fire stabalised

 The fire, which started at 8,35pm on Sunday night and affected land in Mijas, Ojén and Marbella, is now stabilised. INFOCA removed their level 1 alert at 12,39pm on Monday, noting that the evolution of the fire was favourable and that there was no further danger to inhabited areas. The Councillor for the Environment of the Junta de Andalucía, José Juan Díaz Trillo, said that there were suspicions that the fire had been started deliberately. The Guardia Civil and experts from fire-fighters INFOCA have started a full investigation. The Councillor said that we have to be prudent as to the...

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Parts of Coín without electricity because of Town Hall debt with Endesa

 Monday was the seventh day with no power supply to four public areas of Coín, because of the Town Hall’s failure to pay its debt to the Endesa electricity company. El País gives the amount owed as 280,000 € and said the local Partido Popular Mayor was negotiating with Endesa to re-establish supply. This summer Mayor of Coín, Fernando Fernández, announced a total debt to suppliers of more than 27 million € which had been run up by the previous local government. One of the Town Hall’s largest monthly costs is the municipal workforce, whose wages come to around 1 million € a month. It’s understood...

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Only professional bull dodgers will be allowed to meet Ratón the bull at next appearance in Valencia

 Ratón, the bull who gored a man to death at the local fiestas in Xàtiva, Valencia, this August, appeared in the ring again at the weekend for the first time since then when he performed in the fiestas in Sueca. It was a sold-out event, where the 11 year old half ton bull was greeted by cheers from the 2,700 people who bought tickets to see him in the ring in his home town. Security was tight, and no blood was shed on the night. Ratón has killed two other people during his career on the bull dodging circuit. His next appearance will be at the fiestas in Canals on the 24th of this month,...

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Investigation launched as forest fire destroys four homes on Costa del Sol

 investigation is under way into a forest fire which destroyed four homes and 400 hectares of land on the Costa del Sol. The blaze – which affected parts of Mijas, Marbella and Ojen – saw more than 300 people evacuated from their homes after starting at around 8.30pm on Sunday evening in the Entrerrios area of Mijas. Andalucia’s Councillor for the Environment Jose Juan Diaz Trillo, suggested the fire had been started deliberately, before confirming that nobody had been injured. Around 300 firefighters from across Andalucia were hampered by high winds as they tackled the blaze, which caused...

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Mouse ('Raton') has already killed two people this year at Spanish bull-dodging events

. Photograph: Alberto Saiz/APA half-tonne Spanish bull drew crowds of fans to the eastern town of Sueca on Sunday after building up a reputation as the biggest killer in the popular summer game of bull-dodging.The bull, called Ratón, meaning mouse, was appearing for the first time since goring a man to death in the nearby town of Xátiva on 15 August.Debate has raged in newspapers over the exact number of people killed by Ratón, who is let loose in bullrings where people are encouraged to jump in...

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Spain to bring back Patrimonial Tax

 The Spanish Prime Minister, José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, will bring back Patrimonial Tax at next Friday’s cabinet meeting, following a request to do so from the Socialist candidate for the November General Election, Alfredo Pérez-Rubalcaba. A Royal Decree will be used, and no new law will be needed to reactivate the tax, although the new tax will be modified so as not to affect the middle classes. However press reports indicate that Rubalcaba is not entirely happy with the tax which will result, although it is the only option which can be introduced so quickly. The new Socialist manifesto...

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Woman stabbed to death in Marbella

 47 year old woman was found stabbed to death inside a flat in Marbella on Saturday. The woman had Spanish nationality but was of Ecuadorian origin. Reports indicate the victim did not live in the flat in San Pedro de Alcántara where her body was found, but she was a frequent visitor. Police sources say there was a lot of blood at the scene and she had been stabbed more than a dozen times. Some 20 National Police have taken over the investigation of the case, and reports are that they are considering it a crime of passion. Neighbours say the woman worked as a prostitute, inviting her clients...

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British company wants to buy La Manga Club

 British real estate fund asked for a price for La Manga Club in Murcia. La Manga is one of the main tourist and sports complexes in the region and is under bankruptcy protection. The fund which is showing an interest is London and Regional (L&R) Properties. They talks with the owners, MedGroup, are reported to be currently on hold, but La Verdad reports that the workers’ union CGT consider the sale as signed and sealed. The union would welcome the purchase, and notes that L&R already has some 60 hotels including the Hilton chain. Antonio Ros, the General Director of La Manga Club,...

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Three Britons face a total of 27 years in prison for drug trafficking

 Málaga Prosecutors’ Office has asked for a total of 27 years in prison for three British men who are accused of trafficking in cocaine. The three, who also face a 3.6 million € fine each, were found with some 15 kilos of the drugs, and one of them is also accused of document falsification for being found with fake passports. The value of the drugs intervened has been estimated at 900,000 €. Europa Press reports that the provisional conclusions of the prosecutor reveal that one of the men was caught by the National Police in Alsasua, Navarra ‘when he was transporting 15 packets of the drug...

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Spanish police said their criminal assets agency was investigating properties worth millions including a holiday resort in Brazil.

 Dissident republican crime gangs in Dublin have split and are feuding in ways similar to the bloody factionalising of the remnants of the terror group the Irish National Liberation Amy (INLA) in the late Eighties and Nineties. Since former Real IRA man Liam Kenny, 53, was shot dead at his home in Chapelizod, Dublin, in June a series of serious incidents including several attempted murders have taken place. Kenny, a former Provisional IRA member had been a member of the Real IRA in Dublin...

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Marbella Casino board face charges of document falsification

 TWELVE of the Marbella Casino’s 14-strong board face charges of document falsification. The Casino, one of the town’s oldest but with no links to the Casino de Marbella in Nueva Andalucia, has been at the centre of internal conflict for several years. Differences over renting out of part of its La Alameda installation to a restaurant business resulted in the sacking of the Casino’s former president Antonio Ric and ex-secretary Manuel Porras in April 2010. Both started legal proceedings against the remaining board members, claiming that their rights had been violated and they were...

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Puerto Banus Saturday market Marbella shopping

 The Puerto Banus street market in Marbella is on every Saturday from 9am to 2-3pm. It’s next to the Plaza de Toros (bullring), 10 minute walk from the po...

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The STR6 livery as well as the Toro Rosso drivers' suits will carry Cepsa branding for the rest of the season after the team signed a sponsorship deal with the Spanish oil company.

Toro Rosso sign deal with CepsaThe Faenza-based squad confirmed on Tuesday that it has strengthened ties with the Abu Dhabi-backed Cepsa. Abu Dhabi government fund International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC), which also owns stake in Daimler through state-owned subsidiary Aabar Investments, owns Cepsa. Aabar and IPIC in turn own Swiss-based Falcon Private Bank and Canada's Nova Chemicals who are both Toro Rosso sponsors.Although no financial details of the deal were released, the team revealed...

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