A Christmas tree in Puerta del Sol, Madrid
Getting to grips with the sales in Spain
If you like a bargain you might wonder how you can best take advantage of the sales in Spain. In Ábaco’s article we consider what you can expect from the Spanish sales and what your consumer rights are, just in time for the new year: abacoadvisers.com
Would you rent one of these?
Some of us like to be different and some of us like to merge into the background. If you are a ‘different’ kind of person then rather than renting the usual piso or casa you might want to try a tepee instead. Select from these weird and wonderful rental opportunities. Which one would you choose?:
elpais.com
Could you ‘blag it’ like Little Nicolás?
If you ever doubted that confidence is all you should read this article from El País in English about Little Nicolás. This twenty year old managed to worm his way into the inner sanctums of Spain’s royal households and political circles. How did he do it? Read and see: elpais.com
Thinking of buying property in a community?
Many houses and flats in Spain are part of a community of owners. The majority function very successfully. A few don’t. To work out which one your prospective property fits into, try reading Sandra Piddock’s blog. She has some good advice:
eyeonspain.com
The past, present and uncertain future of Corvera airport
We haven’t mentioned it in our newsletter for a while so now it seems like a good time. This is a comprehensive article on the background and current state of play for this ‘will it, won’t it’ airport. murciatoday.com
‘Typically Spanish’ looking good
We haven’t referred to this website for a while. However, it is now revamped and looking good. There’s the usually blend of news but also some regular features including: Spain on this Day – a historical perspective The football league in Spain, Germany, France, Italy and England Video clips of Spain
Well worth another look if you haven’t been there for a while.
typicallyspanish.com
Fun facts about Spain
This is a long and rather random collection of ‘facts’ about Spain. Still good to test yourself against, or even better, test someone else:
donquijote.org
Google captures the war images
They say that a picture is worth a thousand words. These pictures prove it. Superimposed on modern Madrid are images from during the Spanish Civil War:
elpais.com
|
|
It’s Christmas!
We’d like to wish all our readers a very Happy Christmas and New Year and, if you would like to find out a little more about celebrating Christmas in Spain read On The Pulse’s: Guide to the Fiestas in Spain:
onthepulse.es
or our own article about the benefits and opportunities around celebrating Christmas in Spain: abacoadvisers.com
Getting into cultural misunderstandings
It’s quite short, but I rather like this article about finding yourself stuck in the quiet compartment of a train with a cultural mix of people. However, we might ask, is it the culture or personality of those involved that creates this odd mix?: unfoldconflicts.nl
Are you too embarrassed to open your mouth?
It can be difficult to overcome the shyness and embarrassment that can come with trying to speak another language. However, if you are ever going to get past ‘Hola’ then you need to try and not worry too much about the blushes. Babbel offer some encouragement and share an embarrassing mistake:
babbel.com
Want to read Spanish literature?
We know that some of our readers are not only keen to visit or live in Spain but like reading books set in Spain too. Unfortunately translations of modern Spanish literature are few and far between.
However, a small publishing house in Madrid is trying to change this. ‘Hispabooks’ has been established by two English-speaking Spanish editors and has published some translated contemporary works. To read more about them:
elpais.com To visit the site itself: hispabooks.com
Spanish Schindlers
Spain might not have been directly involved in the second world war but some Spanish citizens were. This article from El País identifies some Spanish ambassadors and diplomats who put their lives at risk to help prevent the deportation of Jews from the countries in which they were living.
They deserve to be remembered:
elpais.com
Spend, spend, spend, it’s Christmas!
Consumerism at Christmas is one reason that some people choose to visit Spain during the festive season. From the beginning of October onwards the public are urged to spend, spend, spend. In Spain Christmas is celebrated predominantly as a religious festival and without the same level of hard sell. To underline the consumerist level that Christmas has reached in some European countries, the Spanish art activist group, ‘Luzinterruptus’ visited the UK and last year erected their very own ‘special’ Christmas tree:
huffingtonpost.com The Huffington Post also publicises some other pretty dramatic displays created by the group, usually with a social or conservationist theme:
huffingtonpost.com
Turron or nougat with hazelnuts, artisan pastry
|
