Another Excellent Times Article

I have reproduced this one in full but if you want to see it in its original form go here.

So what's the story. Well not many Brits are getting too drunk on their holidays in Spain. Maybe they are getting to respect the place. Interesting use of stats here.

Article Starts Here.
Spain's Costa lager louts sober up
by Tom Chesshyre

British tourists visiting Spain are shaking off the image of drunken lager louts on the Costa del Sol and are better behaved than ever, according to the British Ambassador to the country.

Embassy figures show that the number of detentions for alcohol-related offences and admissions to hospital were “minuscule” last year. Altogether 1,931 Britons were held by the Spanish police, which works out at 0.001 per cent of the 17 million annual visitors from the UK. There were 748 people admitted to hospital, 0.0004 per cent of all visitors.

Denise Holt, who has been the British ambassador in Spain for 18 months, said that there were parts of Spain, such as San Antonio in Ibiza and Magaluf in Majorca, that still had trouble from drunken British visitors. She told Times Travel: “This is usually the starter market of holidaymakers: 17-year-olds on a rite of passage. It's their first trip away from Mum or Dad and sometimes they take it too far.”

But she believes that extensive reporting of incidents at these resorts has affected the image of the country: “People love to hear the stories of over-indulgence - they love to thrill their imaginations. The same stories happen every year.” Holt, who is the former British Ambassador in Mexico, added that there were probably more people detained in Southampton on a Saturday night than Britons in the whole of Spain.

“When you look at the figures, it's amazing how many British people come to Spain and how little trouble there is,” she said. “With 17 million visitors to Spain each year, that's like the entire population going every four years. About one in every four aircraft from Heathrow flies to Spain.”

Many of these are filled with expat travellers rather than tourists. There are one million British expats living in Spain, making Britain the fourth-biggest group of migrants to the country after Ecuadorians, Romanians and Moroccans.

Tourists from the UK going to Ibiza for nightclubbing holidays probably do more damage to the reputation of Spain than any other group. “People come on cheap holidays,” Holt said. “They don't have proper accommodation. They try to propel themselves through the weekend listening to music and popping pills.”

She recently went on a trip in a police car with the Ibiza officers: “They know who the dealers are, and they are making sure it does not get out of hand. They will pick them up if they start dealing on the street corner.

There is a slightly different attitude towards drugs in Ibiza: if you get stopped at the airport and it is personal consumption, the police will simply take the drugs.”

One continuing problem is lost or stolen passports: consulates and embassies issued more than 6,000 emergency documents last year. Many visitors are also neglecting to buy travel insurance. But Stephen Jones, the British Consul for the Canary Islands, said: “I think our image abroad has changed. The numbers getting in trouble are tiny.”

ONCE Ticket Seller Shows Total Honesty

A story has just appeared in Spain which warms the cockles of my aging heart.
The story comes from a friend of mine who is currently down in Andalucia.

"I walked down the street and saw a Spansh tapas bar and walked in. I ordered agua con gas - which predictably they had and picked up the local rag as I waited for my tapas. This is what I saw!!

What an amazing story and one which made me so proud to even be in their country even if I can't add Spanish to my passport.

A one-legged Once salesman kept a winning ticket of 35,000 euros safely for a regular customer who had been away a few days so had not paid for it. Obviously the salesman could have kept it, cashed it and nobody would have known. What an amazing story. As the waiter came over, I asked whether he had read it and he said, yes, and he knew the guy. He'd been selling in town for many years. Wow, I said, "What a gent!". The waiter nodded and smiled. I guessed he felt that a fellow Fuengirola citizen had brought honour to the town,.....and in some ways it rubbed off on him. As I was leaving, he said, "By the way, take the paper if you like, we're closing in 10 minutes."
He asks the following after being here for many years.
When did you realise that you were more Spanish than whatever it says on your passport?

The link is here in Spanish.

Great Story About Black Money in Spain

Has a country ever been so benevolent with lawbreakers as Spain is right now? The government has come up with a plan to allow people to deposit their Bin Ladens (500 Euro notes usually gained during the property boom years and hidden under the bed or in safes at home so called because everybody knew they existed but nobody had actually ever seen one) to be taken into banks and deposited no questions asked and without any responsibility on behalf of the person who puts them in. The reason is simple, to restore liquidity in the banking sector and rescue the economy. It is being presented as the huge advantage that Spain has over the rest of Europe in this respect.

So there it is, you give an amnesty to money laundering and illegality in real estate transactions to save your contry's backside in hard economic times. A totally novel and exciting way of making sure that the wheels keep turning and Spain can regain its preeminence in shady financial practices from Nigerian scammers.

Another Spanish Success Story. Health

You of course knew that Spain has one of the highest life expectancies in the World and it is regarded by the WHO as one of the best places to live on the planet. What you may not have known is that it has a health care system to envy, with very short waiting lists for operations and excellent pre and post op treatment. Here is an article in Expat Focus that tells you more about what to expect. It is reproduced below for those who do not wish to click away from this page.


Spain's Healthcare Service


by Ciara Carruthers

A relaxed, carefree person may move to Spain and begin to enjoy the laid-back way of life immediately; the tapas, the music, the amazing people and the fantastic weather. Life in Spain is wonderful and there is no need to worry about anything, everything is going great. Until they run into a health problem. Yes, life in Spain truly is wonderful, but it doesn´t hurt to find out a little bit about the health care system before you move over, to ensure that if anything does happen with regards to your health you´ll be able to go straight to your doctor and get it sorted out. So, here is a run down of what you need to know about the Spanish health care service.

The health care system in Spain has improved considerably in the last few years and is currently something which the Spaniards have every right to be proud of. Health care centres are widely and frequently distributed throughout the country and finding the centre closest to you is as simple as going to the government health website (http://www.msc.es/ciudadanos/prestaciones/centrosServiciosSNS/home.htm), though it is in Spanish so you may need help from a friend. The health centres offer all the services which people need on a day to day basis; GP, midwives, paediatrics and physiotherapists. The centres are positioned and distributed in such a way as to be, theoretically, within fifteen minutes’ reach of all residents. It´s simply a case of finding out which one is most convenient to you.

People coming from EU countries have the right to free medical care. However, you will need a card known as the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) which replaces the old E111 that used to be the necessary documentation. It is advisable to get this before coming to Spain. In England, you can get an application form for the card from your local post office. This card is actually really for tourists, but for people moving to Spain, it will cover any emergencies for the first three months whilst you secure your official Spanish medical card, known as the Tarjeta SS. This you can get from your local Social Security Office and it too entitles you to free medical care. Getting the tarjeta SS is generally no bother and shouldn´t take long. You´ll simply need to show some official documentation such as your passport, residence card and EHIC card, and fill out some forms (which will be in Spanish).

When visiting a doctor, you are entitled to bring with you a person whom you trust. This person doesn´t need to be a family member, just anybody who you would like to be there. Given that most doctors and nurses won´t speak a sufficiently high level of English, a Spanish speaking friend is really going to help you out in this circumstance if you are not fluent, or at least competent, yourself. You are also entitled to choose your own doctor, or change doctors if you are not happy with the one which you have been assigned. In my experience, doctors prove to be friendly and caring, with plenty of time to listen to your problems. However, as with all things in Spain, it helps to be a little bit patient, you may be assigned an appointment time only to find five people ahead of you, also waiting, when you arrive. It you have a real emergency and need to be dealt with right away you can go directly to the nearest public hospital.



Ciara Carruthers works as a freelance content writer for oppSpain (www.oppspain.com), a company that is specialised in selling new developments and off plan properties all over Spain.