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16 August 2008

Government to Act on Crisis

The Spanish government has met this week to come up with measures to alleviate the present economic crisis. With the economy hovering around 1.6% growth this year, unemployment at a high level and inflation at 5.3% Prime Minister Zapatero has interrupted his holiday to call his government together for action. The action plan will be announced early next week.

American Airlines Joins BA and Iberia

Following the recently reported link between British Airways and Iberia, American Airlines have now joined the agreement with them to form a transatlantic trade pact. There have been protests from other airlines suggesting that a monopoly has been created but BA bosses intend to press for approval of the arrangement by American and European authorities during this year. The three airlines will cooperate commercially on flights between the US, Mexico and Canada and Europe, Switzerland and Norway, creating a route network serving 443 destinations in 106 countries.

Ryanair Cancellation Plans on Hold

Demands for “transparency” from the EU to Ryanair over their threat to cancel tickets bought through third party websites seem to have resulted in doubts that the action will take place. Having started court action against a Spanish site, Atrapalo, Ryanair have stated that no date has been set for any cancellations.

Roman Ruins Discovered

The remains of a Roman sewer, road and lateral canals have been discovered under a government owned property in Lugo, Galicia. Lugo is the area in Spain that already contains more Roman remains than any other place in the country, so improvements to the property are to be modified to protect the ruins and make them available for public viewing.

Food Prices Rise As Fuel Prices Fall

As food prices continue to rise with increases of almost 65% year-on-year on some items consumers are seeing some relief in fuel prices as petrol and diesel have dropped about 5% from a July high.

Honest Illegal Immigrant Hands in Wallet

A 44 year old Nigerian illegal immigrant working as a street trader in Sevilla has been rewarded by the owner of a wallet he found in the street. The man, who sells tissues at traffic lights in the city, received 50 euros from the owner after risking his stay in Spain by stopping a police car and handing in the wallet containing 2700 euros.

Lunar Eclipse

Tonight, Saturday August 16th, an almost total eclipse of the moon will take place. This spectacular event begins at 9.30, and should culminate in a 90% eclipse with the moon turning blood red at 11.10, provided skies stay clear.

Organic Products Cheaper in Guadalhorce Valley

A study carried out by the rural development agency for the Guadalhorce valley has found that it is cheaper to buy organic foods in the area than buying non organic foods in the supermarkets. Although there were some exceptions over the duration of the study, they have concluded that generally it is cheaper to buy from the organic street markets which regularly operate in the valley.

Library on the Beach

Biblioplayas (beach libraries) continue to operate on the beaches of Burriana and La Torrecilla in Nerja this summer. The initiative, introduced by the Nerja Association of Culture, began seven years ago, and has again managed to gather enough funding to continue this year.

Bypass for Arriate

A budget of 5.3 million euros has been allocated to create a bypass to the east of Arriate. The town has a lot of heavy through traffic that is considered a danger and causes damage on its narrow streets. The new road will quicken the journey between Ronda, Setenil and Ardales by linking the MA-7403 and A-367. The works are expected to take around 18 months to complete.

Antequera Council to Increase Parking Spaces

Antequera's council is putting in place plans to provide an extra 1,600 parking places in the coming months. There will be 185 at the Education Complex, 300 at the bus station, 180 at the second health centre (currently under construction), 250 at the Palacio de Ferias (under construction), 200 in Calle Picadero and 233 at the sports arena at El Mauli.

Retired Brit Bullfighter to Return to Ring

The retired British bullfighter Frank Evans is to return to the ring after three years of retirement. The 65 year old, known as El Ingles, has spent more than 40 years in the game and suffered a long list of injuries. After knee replacement surgery and a heart by-pass operation, he is to return against younger bulls at Villanueva de la Concepcion on Sunday August 16th.

First King Penguin Born in Spain

The first King Penguin to be born in Spain saw the light of day at Selwo Marina, Benalmadena at the end of June. The chick, which weighed in at 3.2kg, was born after a 56 day incubation at temperatures of no more than 3 degrees C.

180,000 Attend Concert

The first big event of the Malaga Feria took place last night Friday August 14th, a beach concert starring David Bisbal at La Malagueta. Some 180,000 people attended. The feria continues for the next week until Sunday August 24th.

Free Fruit on the Beach

An initiative by the Ministry of the Environment this summer will see free fruit distributed on the beaches of Malaga, Alicante, A Coruna and Ibiza. The intention is to increase the proportion of fruit consumed in Spain from the current 17.4% and thus promote healthy eating among the people of the country.

Ferias

Campillos and Almogia are among the towns and villages celebrating their annual ferias this weekend. Also Antequera’s feria takes place from August 20th until August 22nd.

Dutch University Study

A group of students from the University of Wageningen in the Netherlands has been studying agriculture in the Guadalhorce valley while staying in Alora. The findings of the study, which covered cereal and olive growing, irrigation and water supply, were presented at a meeting at the Convento. The presentation covered a wide range of findings and suggestions to improve practices in the area.

Malaga Win Cup

After a series of unconvincing results, Malaga’s new season team played their first game at the home ground, La Rosaleda, where they beat Real Betis of Sevilla to win the Costa del Sol Trophy.

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