Adeje’s Feria del Saldo 2013 will be held on 8 and 9 June between 10am and 9pm in the car park of the Adeje Music School in Las Torres … on the fountain roundabout near Mercadona. This is an annual market for local businesses to offer at sale prices all the stock they wish to liquidate, or ends of lines, and so on. The organizers hope that it will help local commerce, and it will certainly see quite a few bargains for shoppers.

Original post 24 May:  The Guardia Civil arrested an Irish man yesterday for threatening his English neighbours in a residential block of apartments in Las Galletas. The police acted after several residents denounced several instances of angry and intimidating behaviour in the early hours.  On Wednesday night, this is said to have culminated in the English couple being insulted, shouted at, and threatened with death after meeting the man in the lift, an incident that continued throughout the night outside the door to their apartment. On one of these occasions, the man apparently appeared naked, banging and kicking the door and eventually sticking a knife into it. Residents say the whole thing could have turned out very seriously.

As a general rule, anyone who has ended up with a confirmed fine of above €13,800 will have been fined for a different type of infraction – very generally these will be for offences against the “principio de unidad de explotación e intermediación turística”, i.e. sole agent system, or multiple apartment letting. All Alotca clients who fall into the class action category will now have received, or will shortly receive, an invitation to join the class action. As of today, I can confirm the outcome one of these (different) types of cases where the appeal (not via Alotca) was rejected yesterday by the Court and the Government’s fine upheld … and with no possibility of appeal granted.

Update 23 May: Just a quick update about the video. I will have my copy on Monday and once I have that, I will be able to upload it here as soon as I have technical advice on doing so, unless it’s obvious to my technophobic mind …

Update 21 May: There is a recording HERE of my interview with Atlantis FM this morning on this subject. Thank you to Jon Maxfield for the airtime to get the message out there as widely as possible.

Original post 20 May:  The first appeals of fines issued under the Plan Especial went to Court last Thursday. Before the hearing, however, the judge called Alotca lawyer José Escobedo and the Government’s lawyer into a meeting. Also present were a legal assistant from Tenerife Litigation (the office of the two Alotca lawyers, José Escobedo and Santiago Saenz), and the two chief Turismo inspectors.

Before I talk about the meeting I would like to clarify two things that have been the subject of much discussion and rumour. First, the judge confirmed that Canarian law is valid, and applicable, to these cases of fines against individuals for private holiday rentals. Secondly, he confirmed that previous judgments concerning “prior authorization” have no relevance at all to them.

The judge requested the meeting because he had certain things to say in general terms about the specific cases being heard and others like them still to come to hearing. These were that he considered the fine amount to be disproportionate (as I’ve previously posted, proportionality of punishment is written into the Spanish constitution); that Alotca lawyers had prepared a strong and detailed defence; that the Government nonetheless had a case that could be developed during a hearing; that such cases would take a considerable time to hear; and there were so many of them that Court time would be inordinate. As a result, he had consulted with other judges and it had been decided that all cases would be heard by that same judge through the one Court, number 4 in Santa Cruz.

Having made these comments, the judge then asked that a class action be formed for an out of Court settlement which would apply to all the appeals underway at present. Since Alotca has the vast majority of cases to be heard, and was behind the first appeals to be heard, the class action is to be conducted through Alotca, with cases being handled by other lawyers forming part of the Alotca action. The settlement will require a document to be signed by the appellants acknowledging that they had been in error, that this error had resulted in a breach of the law, that they accept a fine as punishment, and, naturally, confirm that there will be no future breaches. The document will stand as a legal judgment so that even with an out of Court settlement, any future fines arising from continued letting would be at the second offence level of up to €30,000.

The Government has been given a month to liaise with José Escobedo and Santiago Saenz to negotiate the settlement, involving the final document to be signed and the level of the fine: the judge said that in his opinion, it would reasonably be in the region of €5,000. The Court provided José Escobedo with a list of all cases involving other lawyers, and any appellant with a non-Alotca lawyer who wishes to join the class action must instruct their lawyer urgently to contact Tenerife Litigation so that their cases can be presented to Court as part of that action. Those who are already with one of the two Alotca lawyers need do nothing.

There is a video recording of Thursday’s meeting which I watched this afternoon. I will have a copy uploaded onto my website as soon as it can be transposed into a file in a format that I can upload. I am dependent on the help of others to do this, so please bear with me.

José and Santiago ask that any enquiries come via me to free them up to get on with this work. Evidently they expect to hear directly from lawyers of those who have been fined and who are to join the class action. In terms of general questions, however, they ask people to email me. If anyone has just received a fine, or does so over the next few weeks, please also contact me urgently to find out what Alotca lawyers will need so that time is not wasted with them answering basic initial questions.

On a wider basis, Alotca is about to start negotiations with the OCU (organización de consumidores y usuarios), the Spanish Consumers Organization, which is preparing to fight the recently announced national proposals to limit tourist letting throughout Spain. The fight is very far from over, but with regard to the fines issued so far, we at last have clarity.

The final debate on the legislation is scheduled to take place this coming Tuesday. This is something that Alotca has lobbied actively for, and continued to negotiate about even though much of the work was carried out in the background. Although we’ll have to wait until at least Tuesday for the final detail, needless to say we are absolutely delighted with this news.

Update 11 April:  The new law is still mired in Parliament. Today we’ve learned that the Canarian Socialist and nationalist groups will be presenting separate amendments to the Bill.  The main reason for posting something of such little immediate import is to show the two main issues that are causing problems right now … and neither is concerned with the matters that would concern most readers here, I imagine. The first is the nature of the role of Cabildos and Ayuntamientos in modernisation plans, and the other is that of the categories permitted in newly created tourist establishments. There is also dispute over whether to include 4* establishments in the moratorium. There is still no sign of when this will be translated into law.

Update 7 February 2013: The moratorium will be, as I posted below last September, enshrined in law and “indefinite” once the new law comes into force. The legislation passed its first parliamentary process yesterday, with the total rejection of all opposition amendments. The opposition, and amendments, had argued that the new legislation was interventionist, and ignored completely island cabildos and local Ayuntamientos. All such arguments were dismissed. Environment and Regional Policy Minister Domingo Berriel said that this was going to be a permanent law to regulate the growth of the tourism sector, and that any problems in its imposition would, as was the case with any law, be dealt with in the normal  course of events and in the normal manner. “Call this interventionist if you like”, said Sr Berriel, “but this strategic activity must be regulated”. Sr Berriel confirmed that the new law will act to correct residentialism, something that had been very negative for tourist areas. The word  he uses is “reconducir”. I’ve translated “act to correct”, but could equally have used “redirect”. Once again it is far from clear what the government has in mind in this respect, which is of such great interest to those who own property of any type in tourist areas. I’ve posted previously on other measures in the bill, so won’t repeat them here, but it’s worth mentioning that Sr Berriel insisted that no more land would be classified for tourist use, “because there is enough available”. The bill now continues its way through Parliament, with the first hurdle cleared.

Original post 22 September 2012: The Canarian Government has sent the draft new tourism law, the Ley de Renovación y Modernización Turística de Canarias, to the Consultative Committee for consultation. I haven’t seen the full draft yet myself, but the Government has asked for a speedy response: as we know, the new law must be on the statute books in December at the latest because the touristic moratorium was extended in May only until the end of the year. What the Government has formally announced at this point, though, is that the law has as a primary objective the renovation and modernization of touristic urbanizations, areas and products; the diversification of its touristic offer; and authorizations in 2013 and 2014 for 5* hotels in Tenerife, Gran Canaria, Fuerteventura and Lanzarote.  Once this period is over, new licences will be considered for establishments under 5* as long as they provide luxury places tied to renovation projects or replace obsolete beds. Construction team employment must significantly favour those who are registered as unemployed. Existing restrictions outside of these criteria are to be maintained indefinitely. Recognizing the criticism of this stance in some quarters, the Government says that whether people agree with this or not, this is the Government’s model and decision, and that the new law does away with the need to keep renewing the existing touristic moratorium which can now be considered to be enshrined in law. The fundamental objects of the legislation are:

• to manage and organize the growth of the touristic offer, tying this to quality improvement both in terms of renovation and new build
• to increase quality levels and the category of touristic establishments
• to avoid, and if appropriate, redirect the residentialisation of touristic areas
• to provide the Government with effective juridical mechanisms to incentivise and, as appropriate, ensure compliance with conservation, renovation and effective use requirements
• to restore the image of touristic areas

The new law envisages the possibility of touristic licences being awarded in Tenerife, Gran Canaria, Fuerteventura and Lanzarote only for:

• the renovation of existing touristic establishments
• the implementation of touristic places based on rights deriving from renovation projects
• hotels on approved urban non-touristic land (suelo urbano consolidado) and rural hotels
• hotels of a minimum 5* category
• non-hotel accommodation where planning rules expressly permit, or do not prohibit, it, with a minimum 5* category in respect of apartments
• specialist accommodation establishments

The new plans will complement, and in some cases replace, existing urban designations in order to make urban renovation more viable. They will also include new formats in touristic organization such as the condominium – based on the American model – and touristic villas, the latter being at least 500 metres from the coast, of a density of between 10 and 40 units per hectare depending on overall plot size, and which do not exceed 20% of the surface area concerned. In addition, a procedure is envisaged to regularize and authorize accommodation establishments which have existing licences from before Ley 19/2003, and which comply with all requirements necessary to be considered touristic establishments. With regard to incentives for renovation, the law includes measures for financial incentives and additional places – up to 50% for hotels and 25% for apartments, except where:

• the category will be lower than 3*
• the conversion is from a hotel to a non-hotel establishment
• when the conversion is from a non-hotel to a hotel establishment that does not convert the regimen of horizontal property to one of ordinary ownership or co-ownership

All that apart, and however sad it is, they pose a threat to us. As I’ve already posted, there has been an incident in the last few days of someone who went beserk on the Playa de las Vistas promenade, and who tried to rob a car hire place, and then attacked five women. The local Canarian/Spanish press and interested parties say that because of cuts and local authority indifference, the promenades, particularly in Arona but also in Adeje to a certain extent, have become no-go areas after mid-late afternoon, abandoned to these people, with tourists blissfully unaware of the risks they’re running. Never mind what sort of “thinking” is behind this official “policy”, there is a problem.

Sadly, it is necessary to warn everyone, resident and tourist alike, that we have to look out for ourselves and, regretfully, avoid or take extreme care in these areas after 5pm or so when the police presence is to all intents and purposes non-existent. I really wish I didn’t have to make this post.

The Canarian Government has announced its programme for the public holiday on 30 May for Día de Canarias. The programme is above, with the full size version HERE.

There is also a programme of events in San Miguel town church plaza. The programme is below, with full size version HERE.

Tenerife’s Alejandro Arango, a first year student at the Conservatorio Superior de Música de Canarias has won Spain’s fourth national music competition held in Marbella on 18 May and will now go on to represent Spain in the International European Contest which will take place in Istanbul in October. His piano teacher at the Conservatory, Francisco Martínez Ramos, is delighted and understandably proud of his pupil prodigy, whose interpretation of works by Beethoven, Chopin and Schubert was said by judges to be brilliant, and a virtuoso performance. Alejandro was also awarded a grant to attend a fortnight’s musical workshop in Vienna. Congratulations to him, and the very best of luck in Istanbul!

El Médano and La Jaquita in Granadilla de Abona; Troya I-II, El Duque and Fañabé in Adeje; Playa La Arena, Playa de Los Guíos and the Los Gigantes sports harbour in Santiago del Teide; El Arenisco in La Laguna; El Socorro in Los Realejos; San Telmo and Complejo Playa Jardín in Puerto de la Cruz; La Arena (Mesa del Mar) in Tacoronte; and Playa San Juan in Guía de Isora.

This means that Arona has lost its blue flags from 2012 for Las Vistas, Los Cristianos and El Camisón, but Playa La Arena’s award makes it the 26th consecutive year that the beach has won a blue flag.

Original post 22 May: In an incident appallingly reminiscent of Deyan Deyanov’s murder of Jennifer Mills-Westley, a 47-year-old La Palma man, originally from Barcelona and identified as Enrique V.L., tried to hold up an Orocar local in the Playa de las Vistas area on Monday afternoon. Failing in the attempt, he then tried to attack five women on the promenade, holding a knife to the throat of some of them. Their screams alerted an off-duty local policeman from Santa Cruz, who chased the man, and with the help of a couple of Arona local police officers managed to subdue him. He is now being processed by the authorities, accused of attempted robbery with violence and intimidation, death threats, and wounding.

The Gran Canarian authorities say that this is a pioneering initiative in the Canaries and is aimed at improving the coexistence of pets and residents. The space available for dogs is some 6,000 square metres of beach chosen because its natural environment allows an automatic cleansing of the area – though manual cleaning will take place as well, and owners are required to pick up any mess left by their own pets, for which three receptacles are provided. The beach was opened today by the Councillor for Care of the Sea, Mimi González; the president of the Las Palmas Vets College, Manuel Morales; the director of the island animal refuge, Rosa González; and representatives of various collectives and animal protection associations.

The beach is now added to the six other areas of the Gran Canaria capital which are already animal friendly, namely Parque Alonso Quesada, Plaza de Canarias, Parque de Las Rehoyas, Parque Juan Pablo II, Parque San Telmo and Parque Manolo Millares. In all of these, use is dedicated to dogs that are correctly vaccinated and identified, treated for parasites, and in the company of an adult in control of them: those classified as potentially dangerous must be kept on a lead and be muzzled.

Regardless of where this confusion has arisen, the situation is now perfectly simple: no-one has to renew their Certificado de Registro. The only legislative change in the last year or so has been for new applicants who, since March last year, have to prove they can afford to live in Spain and have cover for healthcare. Existing Certificados de Registro, however, are permanent once an EU-national holder has been in Spain for five years. Those certificates which have an expiry date will have been issued to applicants who had not been in Spain for five years at the point of application: these may be exchanged for ones that state they are permanent if the holder wishes, hence the police being prepared to issue renewals, but no-one is required to do so because EU nationals are allowed permanent residence in another member state once they have legally resided there for five years.

I have been discussing the matter with investigative journalist Karl McLoughlin, who has recently been seeking formal clarification from the department of the Interior Ministry responsible for every extranjeria in Spain. Madrid confirms not only that there is no requirement to renew, but that no instruction or communication in this respect has been sent to any comisaría in the country. Karl has now written an article for Island Connections (see pp2-3 of THIS edn), and tells me that the queries were addressed to the Ministry of the Interior, with the reply from the Comisaría General de Extranjería y Fronteras, i.e. the highest authority of the police stations that have Extranjería sections for issuing residence cards, registration certificates etc.

He has given me the original of the official response he has translated for the Island Connections article. It is HERE so if you would like Madrid’s confirmation in writing that you do not need to renew your Registro, please click to download and print it off to carry with your Registro. The only document that needs to be renewed every five years is a resident card of a non-EU national spouse of an EU-national resident, a status that very few British expats need to be concerned about. For the rest, whether your Registro says it is permanent or not, it does not need to be renewed.

Anyone at a loose end this weekend might welcome the news that the Museo de la Ciencia y el Cosmos, part of the Museos de Tenerife network, is offering free entry to the planetarium on Saturday, 18 May, between 10am and 7pm, to commemorate International Museum Day. Entry to the films being shown there is also free for the day. There is more information by phone on 922 315 265.

Update 16 May: Just a reminder that this arts and crafts fair is this weekend.

Update 16 April 2013: It’s that time again! The popular annual Adeje Arts and Crafts Fair will take place on 18 and 19 May in the prize-winning Plaza de España between the Ayuntamiento and the church at the top of Calle Grande.

Update 23 April 2012: It’s the time of year for the annual Adeje Arts and Crafts Fair, and 2012′s will take place on the 19th and 20th May between 10am and 8pm in the Plaza de España between the Ayuntamiento and the church at the top of Calle Grande.

Original post 3 May 2011:  It’s an annual event now, and a big and popular one too … the Adeje Crafts Fair will be held again in Calle Grande on Saturday 14 and Sunday 15 May, between 10am and 8pm. There will be loads of local arts and crafts, and foods, on display and for purchase, and there’ll be workshops too. These are always great fun, so definitely one not to be missed. More HERE

Original post 15 May: Many will by now have noticed that new road signs have been appearing, particularly around motorway junctions. The new signs are large squares of around three metres with large photos showing the attraction most associated with the place name – e.g. cliffs on the signs saying Los Gigantes. Others in different parts show the auditorium, pilot whales, the Drago tree, or Teide itself.

These new signs are part of the Tenerife Cabildo’s Plan E, a response, says the Cabildo, to demands from tourists and businesses for better information provision and directions for visitors, and transforming Tenerife into the first Spanish destination with such tourist-related roadsigns. Well, yes, that was indeed needed, but some will be appalled that the signs, some 650 or so for 300 tourist attractions, will cost around €1,000,000.

The final cost for the project, indeed, will be nearer €1,500,000, to be funded equally by the Cabildo and the Canarian Government, and many will surely ask whether there wasn’t a better use for such a huge sum of money. Education, health, infrastructure are all being hit by cut after cut, public sector workers are being laid off by the thousand, and yet we have gone from inadequate signage to huge pictorial imagery, from one extreme to the other. Do tourists really need to see the image of the place they are already heading for?

Some will be equally appalled that this plan is also being devolved onto the municipalities, Ayuntamientos are already in receipt of a manual containing instructions on how to match the official installation and design. The first local authorities to proceed with the project are Arona, Adeje, Puerto de la Cruz, Santiago del Teide and San Miguel de Abona. Where the money is to come from is anyone’s guess, and I would have thought Arona, at least, would be better employed spending that money in complying with the recent Court judgment to pay the lifeguards to make its beaches safe, rather than putting up signs to beaches where no lifeguards are in place.

Utter madness.

Consejería de Empleo, Industria y Comercio. Dirección General de Industria y Energía
C/ León y Castillo, 200; Edificio Servicios Múltiples III , Planta 4ª; 35071 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria
Tel: 928-899-400 ; www.gobcan.es

THIS appears to be the full list of those qualified to issue these certificates in the province of Santa Cruz de Tenerife.

Update 13 April: Real Decreto 235/2013  has now been approved and published in the Boletín Oficial del Estado nº 89 (13/04/2013). These certificates will continue to be voluntary until 1 June 2013, but from that date, they will be a requirement for anyone selling or renting a property.

Original post 1 April:  I’ve now had a few emails and contact requests for information about a new requirement for all properties being sold or rented out to have an energy certificate. I was actually holding off from posting it because it is not yet approved by the Spanish Government. The system should have started in January, with a new law in place as a result of EU directives (please see HERE), but it was only in January that the draft legislation was in place. It has recently been sent to Industria and as far as I know, the new law will be approved by the end of this month. When approved, it will come into force in June assuming there aren’t any changes to the draft legislation.

The bottom line is that from June (we assume), no-one will be able legally to sell or rent out a property without a certificate showing how energy efficient that property is. I will have to confirm later how the certificates can be obtained, but I can at least say that as far as cost is concerned, fees will be determined by market forces: it’s expected, though, to be around 250 to 300 Euros. I myself think it’s barmy to apply this across the EU without regard for the great differences in energy use and systems, and cannot really see what purpose it will serve here, but it is something that is coming in the near future. I’ll update when I have more information.

edit: given the date, it occurs to me to say that this is not an April Fool’s Day joke. I might join in with the Spanish Día de los Santos Inocentes, but there are no jokes on 1 April.

Adeje Ayuntamiento is to hold a basic Russian for receptionists course to help the employment prospects of those in the municipality given the increasing number of Russian visitors to Tenerife. The course costs €75, a price which includes all teaching materials, and will be held in the Costa Adeje Tourism offices (CDTCA) in C. Las Jarcias, El Galeón; the exact dates are to be confirmed but will be in June-July. Those wishing to register for the course should complete THIS form and take it to the CDTCA or send it by email to formacion@adeje.es before 31 May. There is more information available by phone on 922 050 150 or by email to adejeimpulsa@adeje.es.

Just two days before the deadline for signing up for this, which could have been advertised much earlier, but it’s worth the mention I think. Arona Ayuntamiento has announced the first Ruta de Senderos Temáticos de fotografía: Estrellas y Paisajes nocturnos, a 6 hour photography walk focusing (ha!) on the night sky and landscape of Las Cañadas. Walkers will meet at the Los Cristianos Cultural Centre at 6pm on Saturday, 1 June, and are requested to bring a coat, torch, and food and water, together with photography equipment. Inscription costs €12, and those wishing to take part should fill out THIS form and hand it into the SAC in the Los Cristianos Cultural Centre either tomorrow or Wednesday together with €12 and a copy of their passport or NIE. There are further explanatory notes HERE, or more information can be obtained by ringing 010 if inside Arona, or 922 761 600 if outside the municipality.

Everyone is familiar with the agricultural markets, where small producers often sell fruit and veg – and much more – that is fresher and cheaper than that offered by the supermarkets. Now, there will be street markets as well, organized by the agricultural market. They will be held in the church square in Los Abrigos on Tuesdays between 5 and 9pm, in Plaza de Galicia in El Médano on Wednesdays between 8am and 2pm, and in Plaza de la Recova in Granadilla on Thursdays, again between 8am and 2pm.

The beautiful Buenavista del Norte golf course is in north west Tenerife, and was designed by Severiano Ballesteros. It has received several awards and distinctions including the Madera Verde Prize for Environmental Responsibility awarded by the Royal Spanish Golf Federation, while specialist magazine Golf Journal called it the second best course in Europe in 2011.

Original post 29 February 2012: Granadilla Ayuntamiento yesterday unanimously approved considerably tougher sanctions against careless animal owners. Mayor Jaime González Cejas said that he wanted to eradicate the uncivil behaviour of domestic animal owners, and the tough stance now bans animals from all the beaches, children’s parks and garden areas in Granadilla, and imposes fines of up to €15,000 for breaking the municipality’s rules.

These include a complete ban on any animals being kept without being registered and identified, being walked off a lead or without a bag to collect their business. Dogs classified as “potentially dangerous” must also be muzzled. The ordenance even contemplates the confiscation of animals “where it is deemed appropiate”. Some lesser fines might be commuted to community service orders. Environment councillor Juan Rodríguez Bello said that the Ayuntamiento was not just aiming to correct the behaviour of animal owners, but also to clean up the municipality.

I’ve just updated the Literary Tenerife page HERE because Nobody’s Poodle is now available to buy from Amazon, and I’ve put a direct link through to the Amazon page. Here’s the press release that accompanies the launch of the book: I hope it does very well for its authors, and of course for Gizmo himself!
 

Nobody’s Poodle is a wooftastic ‘tail’ about a loveable ex-pat pooch uprooted from his home in cold, damp, muddy old England to start a new life in Tenerife.
 
He writes, from a canine point of view of course, about settling down in a new country, coping with the cultural differences, and learning the language (although woof-speak is universal, mas o menos, there are still some differences which need to be understood, otherwise a dog can have muchos problemas with his furry Latin amigos).
 
The ex-pat / travel genre has been popularised by some very successful books, but until now man’s-best-friends’ take on it has been little explored. We’re familiar with “Driving over Lemons”, but there hasn’t been a ”Bouncing over Bones”. Most of Tenerife’s ex-pat Brits know and love Joe Cawley’s “More Ketchup than Salsa”, but we’ve all been waiting for ”More Saliva than Salsa”.
 
Nobody’s Poodle is much more than an ex-pat diary though. It’s a gripping story, with a plot that is the mutt’s nuts. Our intrepid hero: Gizmo may be more street Doodle than swanky Poodle, but he’s very much his own dog. He’s all about standing up for the underdog, and it gets him into a fair few scrapes on the mean streets of Costa del Scorchio.
 
He’s also something of a canine philosopher, and along the way you’ll be learning a lot about their universe …
 
For instance, not many people know that dogs invented the idea of sharing information via a network (their ‘SmellNet’ predates our internet by several millennia), along with on-line messaging (‘SmellMail’), social networking (‘SmellBook’), and wi-fi (‘Wiffy’).
 
Dogs realised a long time ago that time was more like a small round thing rather than a long thin thing. More like a dog chasing it’s own tail, rather than an endless piece of string, or an infinitely long ladder, or whatever else humans think it’s like.
 
Gizmo explains that dogs are like Zen Buddhist monks. They live in a present tense universe, they’re dogged, and they’re stoic. They accept what life throws at them, which is just as well considering some of the smelly stuff that gets thrown his way and just misses the fan.
 
Full of twists and turns, with a cast of wonderful woofers, and some beautiful illustrations, it will make you laugh and it will make you cry. It’s a book for dog lovers of all ages, an insight into the canine universe, and a celebration of their Zen-like stoicism in the face of human stupidity, indifference, and cruelty.
 
Quite simply it’s the dog’s danglies of a book.
 
Nobody’s Poodle was inspired by Nikki’s educational and promotional work with the animal rescue shelters in Tenerife and she is hoping to donate some of the profits to help them, so make sure that you order your copy and tell all your friends.

Update 18 August 2012: Granadilla Ayuntamiento has now closed down the Atogo refuge, which was run by Live Arico, and removed the dogs to a refuge in Fasnia. The Ayuntamiento says that some 10,000 kilos of rubbish has been removed from the Atogo site, and confirmed that Live Arico collaborated with Cabildo staff in the transfer of the animals. The Fasnia refuge will be run by the Federación Canaria de Asociaciones de Protectoras de animales y Plantas (Fecapap). Proceedings against Live Arico have now been started by Granadilla which the Ayuntamiento said should be resolved in the next few months.

Original post 17 July:  Granadilla Ayuntamiento has decided unanimously to act against an animal refuge in Atogo because of its “unwholesome conditions” and for lacking the relevant administrative authorizations  to operate. Mayor Jaime González Cejas said that the refuge, which does not have a licence, has become a dog shelter “of worrying proportions, cramming in some 400 dogs”.

Deputy mayor Esteban González said that the situation is creating a health risk both for humans and animals and that the Ayuntamiento had no alternative but to initiate proceedings, both in terms of a fine (expected to be somewhere between €150 and 1,500) and for the transfer of all the animals to the Finca La Valeria de Fasnia, which has been adapted by the Cabildo and equipped for such numbers of dogs. The Ayuntamiento said it would now be notifying the refuge of the municipal decision and that it trusted it would comply with the ruling to avoid further harm to the animals.

The Culture Department of Granadilla Ayuntamiento would like to invite everyone to the 5th Día de las Tradiciones in the main plaza on 26 May at 10am. There will be displays of traditional games and sports, cattle driving, food, and music, among other events.

Original post 6 May: Spain’s education system will come to a complete halt on Thursday, 9 May. The strike is to demonstrate total rejection of the cuts in education funding, and to demand consensus and participation in the so-called “Educational Quality Improvement Law”, though this is still only in draft form at present, and is not expected to become legislation until 2014-15. All educational establishments from nurseries to universities will close on Thursday. Unions say that they have the complete support of parents and students from all political persuasions. In the Canaries, protests are planned in addition to the strike: the demonstration in Tenerife will take in Plaza de Weyler in Santa Cruz at 7pm.

The second Trail Run Almendros y Volcanes de Santiago del Teide will be held on 15 June at 4pm. The mountain race counts towards the Circuito Trangoworld and is organized by Santiago del Teide’s Sports Department with collaboration from a range of organizations and businesses including Naviera Armas, Physiorelax, Fuente Alta, Base Deportes Salud, Guardería Enanitos, Gesport Canarias, Fisiosalud Puerto Santiago, Vigilia Park and Cooperativa Agrícola de Tamaimo.

It was all the rage in the UK in the 70s and 80s, and is still a highly regarded craft in many areas, not least the Canaries, where traditional pottery commands respect and good prices. And now there’s a Canarian pottery workshop, for beginners, in the Adeje Cultural Centre, between 13 and 16 May, and 20 to 23 May, between 5 and 7pm. Inscription is free, but requires prior registration on the course: to do this, ring 922 756 246.

Update 6 May: The Ayuntamiento has congratulated all the establishments for making Tapeando Isora 2013 a great success, and has announced the winners of the participants. Winner of the best traditional tapa was Los 5 Sentidos in Calle de Arriba in Guía de Isora itself, for its barquito de pulpo con aromas del monte, and for the most creative tapa, El Rincón de la Barriga in Calle Carero/Los Suspiros (opposite the Melía hotel) in Alcalá, for its Carpaccio de Pulpo! 

Original post 22 March:  Guía de Isora is holding  its third tapas route, Tapeando Isora, with tapas and wine, beer or water for just €2.50. There are also prizes on offer for those who get ten stamps from the establishments taking part: the stamps are to be put on cards available from participating establishments, or in the Tourist Information Offices in Guía de Isora, Playa San Juan and Alcalá .

Tapeando Isora is being held between 28 March and 21 April, and is intended to promote the hospitality sector, and bring Isoran cuisine to a wider audience. There are 27 establishments taking part: for a complete list, and for further information about the event, please see HERE.

Also up is the figure of those who are beyond the end of their help and in receipt of no income whatsoever. There are now a further 4,350 people in that situation, a total of 130,314 – that’s 130,314 people on no assistance at all. Nearly half – 44.68% – of the registered unemployed in the islands are without any income. How are these people supposed to live? It is worth noting, too, that Spain’s next budget has reduced the amount needed for unemployment benefit: the Government knows that there will be fewer people receiving paro as they fall off the end of their entitlement. The problem is that they’re not falling into a job.

Nationally, only the Canaries, the  Comunidad Valenciana, and the Ceuta and Melilla enclaves in north Africa, saw rises. Throughout Spain, it fell ever so slightly, less than 1% on average, but at least a fall, and brings the national figure back under the psychological 5 million barrier … only just, though, at 4,989,193.

Update 25 April: On the day when Spain’s unemployment statistics nationwide were officially announced to have hit a new record high of 27.2%, equating to six million people out of work, Canarian figures themselves were released showing 17,200 more unemployed in the islands during the first quarter of 2013, leading to an awful rate of 34.27% here, a total of 385,600 people out of work. Only Andalusia with 36.87 % and Extremadura with 35.56 % have worse figures throughout Spain.

Between the two Canarian provinces, Las Palmas has 209,100 unemployed, a rate of 35.24%, and Santa Cruz de Tenerife has 176,500, 33.18%. The regional statistics also show that two out of every three people out of work are now officially long-term unemployed: all 243,300 of these have been seeking work for more than a year. They also show that 118,000 households, 15% of the total, now have every single member out of work.

Update 4 March: And it has risen again. February’s figures released today show a further 1,957 people out of work in the Canaries, bringing the total unemployed in the islands to 291,474. The province of Santa Cruz de Tenerife (Tenerife, La Gomera, La Palma and El Hierro) suffered more than Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (Gran Canaria, Fuerteventura and Lanzarote): in SCT, 1,163 more people are unemployed than in January, bringing the total to 136,767, whereas in LPGC, the number rose by 794, bringing the eastern province’s unemployed up to 154,707.

Update 4 February 2013: Up and up it goes. According to figures released today by the Ministerio de Empleo y Seguridad Social, the number of unemployed registered in the Canaries has risen again, by 4,602 people out of work in January compared with December, a further rise of 1.6%. This brings the total of the unemployed in these islands to 289,517.

In Spain nationally, unemployment is now at a frightening 4,980,778.

Update 4 December: It seems that October’s fall in unemployment figures was a blip after all. November’s are now released, and show a further 1,212 out of work, leaving 289,032 unemployed in the islands as a whole.  Of those, appallingly, around 124,000 are beyond the end of their unemployment benefit, and indeed beyond the end of any additional help whatsoever. The figures mean that 43.04% of the unemployed are without any income at all. Nearly half. In a civilized first world country. Which is why some are questioning whether Spain deserves those labels.

Update 6 November: October’s figures show that unemployment has gone down in the Canaries by nearly a thousand, the biggest fall nationally. Whilst it’s good news for the moment, the year on year figures show that we had 30,000 more unemployed here this October than last. Let’s hope it continues, and that it’s not just a blip.

Original post 26 October: On the day that unemployment figures announced for the Canaries show that it has gone up yet again, with a further 7,400 out of work – there are now 378,200 unemployed in the islands, a rate of 33.69% – this youtube video has gone viral. Just enjoy!

Click here to view the embedded video.

In addition, the existing limit for space under which a licence is not required, i.e. 300 square metres, is to be increased to 500 square meters. A new subject, “entrepreneurship”, will also be introduced into the school curriculum, to create interest and expertise from a young age. A new format of Sociedad Limitada de Formación Sucesiva (SLFS) will be introduced, with no minimum capital investment requirement, and there is a possibility that the procedures for setting up limited companies will be streamlined, and the introduction of entrepreneurial service points in electronic and physical form where all necessary business arrangements can be conducted in one place.

Various simplified fiscal measures will also be introduced, and I’ll post a link to the new law as soon as it’s on the statute book, expected to be later this month.

Update 3 May:  Although not a Tenerife-wide public holiday, a fiesta today in Los Realejos draws people from around the island and even further afield. The Exaltación de la Santa Cruz (Día de la Cruz) is known for providing the best fireworks display in Tenerife, and indeed, one of the ten best in the whole of Spain.

The fiesta is famous for the participation of the Hermanos Toste in a competition between two streets in Los Realejos for the best firework display, a tradition that started, incredibly, in 1770. The Hermanos Toste themselves date back to 1788 and have a factory in Los Realejos, the only one in the Canaries that makes fireworks. Tonight’s display will be affected by the economic crisis, they say, but will still be a stunning exercise in light, colour and sound … and it was deafening when I went a few years ago! The short video above of 2011′s displays will hopefully give some idea of what to expect.

Update 30 April: Just a reminder that tomorrow is a Canaries-wide public holiday for May Day, the Fiesta del Trabajo. I imagine that almost everything will be shut.

Update 27 February: There are two public holidays this week, tomorrow Thursday 28 and Good Friday 29 March. Don’t forget, either, that the Adeje Passion Play takes place on Friday (see HERE).

Update 9 February: Just a reminder that this coming Tuesday, 12 February, is a local public holiday in many parts of Tenerife for Carnival Tuesday. Many shops and businesses will be closed in the areas which have chosen this day as one of their two public holidays. To check the areas affected, see the full list of  municipalities below.

Update 31 January: Just a reminder that this Saturday, 2 February, is a Tenerife-wide public holiday in honour of the Virgen de la Candelaria. Many shops and businesses will be closed, as La Morenita (the Black Madonna) is the Canary Islands’ patron saint, and she has particular meaning for Tenerife because her apparition is said to have taken place in 1392 in Candelaria, where her basilica is now located.

There is always a televised mass and procession in Candelaria itself on the 2nd, as well as in many towns throughout Tenerife, particularly in the north. There is also a tradition here of pilgrims walking from all over the island to Candelaria, and they are a regular sight walking in groups, even on the motorway, in the days leading up to the fiesta itself, though efforts have been made to stop this in recent years for the walkers’ own safety. There is more information from the Tenerife Cabildo HERE.

Update 3 January: The two days for each municipality’s local fiestas have now been published. I’ve added them below the original post. These are added to the twelve public holidays for the Canaries as a whole.

Original post 6 September:  The Government has today approved  the draft decree for next year’s calendar of public holidays in the Canaries. The following are the official fiestas (bank holidays) for Tenerife in 2013:

1 January, New Year’s Day
7 January, Epiphany (6th is a Sunday so public holiday is on the 7th)
2 February, Virgen de la Candelaria
28 & 29 March, Easter
1 May, Fiesta del Trabajo
30 May, Día de Canarias
15 August, Asunción de la Virgen
12 October, Día de la Hispanidad / Fiesta Nacional de España
1 November, Todos los Santos
6 December, Día de la Constitución
25 December, Christmas Day

The above 12 dates are the 11 fiestas for the Canaries together with the extra day which each island enjoys which, in Tenerife’s case, is 2 February for the island’s patron saint day, the Virgen de la Candelaria.

In addition, each municipality has its own two days, bringing the total number of fiestas for every part of the Canaries to 14. It is the proliferation of these two local days throughout the island that gives the impression that the whole of Tenerife is constantly on holiday. These are the local fiestas in Tenerife for 2013.

ADEJE.

- 12 de febrero: Martes de Carnaval.

- 14 de octubre: Festividad de Santa Úrsula.

ARAFO (VILLA DE ARAFO).

- 12 de febrero: Martes de Carnaval.

- 26 de agosto: Festividad de San Bernardo.

ARICO (VILLA DE ARICO).

- 12 de febrero: Martes de Carnaval.

- 24 de junio: Festividad de San Juan Bautista.

ARONA.

- 12 de febrero: Martes de Carnaval.

- 7 de octubre: Santísimo Cristo de la Salud.

BUENAVISTA DEL NORTE (VILLA DE BUENAVISTA DEL NORTE)

- 24 de Agosto: Festividad de San Bartolomé, Copatrono de la Villa.

- 25 de Octubre: Festividad de Nuestra Señora de los Remedios.

EL ROSARIO.

- 12 de febrero: Martes de Carnaval.

- 5 de agosto: Nuestra Señora de la Esperanza.

EL SAUZAL.

- 12 de febrero: Martes de Carnaval.

- 3 de mayo: Fiesta de la Cruz.

EL TANQUE.

- 31 de agosto: Celebración Festividad de Nuestra Señora de Buen Viaje.

- 21 de octubre: Celebración Festividad del Santísimo Cristo del Calvario.

FASNIA.

- 12 de febrero: Martes de Carnaval.

- 19 de agosto: Fiesta Patronal de San Joaquín.

GARACHICO (VILLA Y PUERTO DE GARACHICO).

- 26 de julio: Festividad de Santa Ana.

- 16 de agosto: Festividad de San Roque.

GRANADILLA DE ABONA.

- 12 de febrero: Martes de Carnaval.

- 13 de junio: Festividad de San Antonio de Padua.

GUÍA DE ISORA.

- 24 de junio: Celebración de San Juan Bautista.

- 16 de septiembre: Santísimo Cristo de la Dulce Muerte.

GÜÍMAR.

- 29 de junio: Fiestas Patronales de San Pedro Apóstol.

- 7 de septiembre: Fiesta en Honor de Nuestra Señora de El Socorro.

ICOD DE LOS VINOS.

- 12 de febrero: Martes de Carnaval.

- 25 de abril: Festividad de San Marcos Evangelista, Patrón de la ciudad.

LA GUANCHA

- 18 de Enero: Nuestra Señora de La Esperanza.

- 19 de Agosto: Lunes de las Fiestas Patronales

LA LAGUNA (SAN CRISTÓBAL DE LA LAGUNA).

- 12 de febrero: Martes de Carnaval.

- 14 de septiembre: Fiesta del Santísimo Cristo de La Laguna.

LA MATANZA (VILLA DE LA MATANZA DE ACENTEJO).

- 12 de febrero: Martes de Carnaval.

- 6 de agosto: Día de El Salvador.

LA OROTAVA (VILLA DE LA OROTAVA).

- 12 de febrero: Martes de Carnaval.

- 6 de junio: Infraoctava del Corpus Christi.

LA VICTORIA (VILLA DE LA VICTORIA DE ACENTEJO).

- 12 de febrero: Martes de Carnaval.

- 2 de septiembre: Fiesta de Nuestra Señora de La Encarnación, Patrona del Municipio.

LOS REALEJOS (VILLA DE LOS REALEJOS).

- 22 de enero: Festividad de San Vicente.

- 3 de mayo: Exaltación de La Santa Cruz.

LOS SILOS (VILLA DE LOS SILOS).

- 12 de febrero: Martes de Carnaval.

- 24 de junio: San Juan.

- 3 de mayo: Fiesta de la Exaltación de la Santa Cruz y Conmemoración de la Fundación de la Ciudad.

- 16 de julio: Conmemoración de la Festividad de la Virgen del Carmen.

SAN JUAN DE LA RAMBLA (VILLA DE SAN JUAN DE LA RAMBLA).

- 24 de junio: Fiestas de San Juan Bautista.

- 9 de septiembre: Fiestas de San José.

SAN MIGUEL DE ABONA.

- 12 de febrero: Martes de Carnaval.

- 30 de septiembre: Fiesta de San Miguel Arcángel.

SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE.

- 12 de febrero: Martes de Carnaval.

- 3 de mayo: Fiesta de la Santa Cruz.

SANTA ÚRSULA.

- 12 de febrero: Martes de Carnaval.

- 21 de octubre: Día de Santa Úrsula, Patrona del Municipio.

SANTIAGO DEL TEIDE (VILLA HISTÓRICA DE SANTIAGO DEL TEIDE).

- 25 de julio: Festividad del Apóstol Santiago.

- 26 de julio: Festividad de Nuestra Señora de Santa Ana.

TACORONTE.

- 12 de febrero: Martes de Carnaval.

- 25 de noviembre: Santa Catalina.

TEGUESTE (VILLA DE TEGUESTE).

- 25 de abril: Festividad de San Marcos Evangelista.

- 9 de septiembre: Festividad de Nuestra Señora de los Remedios.

VILAFLOR.

- 26 de abril: Festividad del Hermano Pedro.

- 2 de septiembre: Festividad de San Roque y San Agustín.

A third family is asking for help in finding another missing man. This time it’s 54-year-old José Hernández, known as Pepe, a resident of Palo Blanco in Los Realejos. Pepe went out on foot around midday on Sunday leaving his car at home, and had none of his belongings with him. Since then he has not been seen, nor heard from, and after four days, his family are desperate for news.

There are two other men missing at present as well. José Manuel Rodríguez disappeared on 10 April in El Tanque (link), and Antonio Muñoz Romero, missing since 16 April in La Laguna (link). If anyone knows anything, please contact the police.

Update 2 May: It was Veronica’s own case that was judged on Tuesday, and that judgment came from the  Juzgado de lo Social #5 itself in Santa Cruz. The Court found that Arona Ayuntamiento is indeed responsible for her salary, and as I said on 30 April, this will almost inevitably apply as well to all her colleagues when their cases come before the Court. The judgment relates to the three months of salary outstanding before the concessionary went out of business, and so there are still six months’ wages to be made good, but for the moment, the council has been sentenced to cough up €2,565.23 for Veronica. And that will be x17, thank you. Oh dear, Arona …

Update 30 April: It looks like very good news for the lifeguards today. I am still to get full details, but can say for the moment that they have won a judgment on one of the lawsuits they had lodged. This was filed only on the 16th, so the judgment has been very rapid. It applies only to one of the 18 lifeguards, but it is understood that it refers “to the same case” as the others, whose lawsuits are yet to be heard. More as soon as I have it.

Update 28 April: The lifeguards have released the following request: I’ve just translated it, otherwise it’s verbatim.

Hello resident, neighbour or visitor of Arona.This is a message in protest and as a request for help and cooperation.

Please call 010, Arona Council’s attention line, and make a complaint: other numbers are 922 761 600 or, from abroad, 0034 922 761 600. The municipal lifeguard service is responsible for security, assistance and lifesaving along the Arona coastline from Playa Troya to Costa del Silencio: Playa Honda, Punta del Cabezo, Playa Camisón, Playa Las Vistas, Los Cristianos Beach, Tarajales Beach, Palm Mar, Las Galletas … to Montaña Amarilla in Costa del Silencio.

The lifeguards in this service have not been paid for 9 months, and have been working to rule providing a minimum service for nearly 6 months. For one month now, they have been providing lifeguard cover only in Playa de las Vistas, and even that without any emergency vehicles or equipment. In this time, they have resuscitated nine people, six during the period of the strike, and two just in this month of April. They have reported the situation to all the relevant public organizations, inspectors, security and emergency, and the Department of Employment, including Arona Ayuntamiento itself, the last which is the only one responsible for this situation. Still there is no solution. There are 18 people working just so that they don’t lose their jobs and their employment rights even though they haven’t been paid for nine months.

WE ASK FOR YOUR HELP. PLEASE! CALL OR GO TO THE CITIZEN ATTENTION OFFICE (SAC) OR LOCAL POLICE STATION WITHIN ARONA AND MAKE A DENUNCIA.

RESCUE THE ARONA RESCUERS!

YOU OR A FAMILY MEMBER MIGHT NEED THEM!

MANY OF THEM HAVE NOW BEEN LIVING FOR 5 MONTHS ON DONATIONS FROM TOURISTS. 8 HOURS A DAY ON THE LAS VISTAS PROMENADE. AND THE POLICE ALLOW IT! It seems to be due to lack of denucias too.

This is prohibited by Arona bylaws!

Moreover, PLEASE ALSO DENOUNCE ARONA’S EVACUATION AND EMERGENCY PLAN – IT IS NOW A LONG TIME SINCE IT WAS UPDATED!

We do not want to have to grieve over any tragedies.

Please pass this on. Call 010 or go to the local police within Arona and make a complaint. If outside Arona, call 922 761 600. If outside Spain, call 0034 922 761 600.

Make a denuncia. Help us. Help yourselves!

Thank you.

Update 18 April: Just a reminder given that there’s a calima heatwave coming today, and lasting over the weekend, that there is no lifeguard provision on any Arona beaches apart from the minimum service provision on Playa de las Vistas.

Update 14 April: Well done Balú and Live Arico-PAWS! As I posted on 2 April, Marjan from Balú bar was arranging for customers to drop off food at the bar to be handed over to the lifeguards, and to Sebastian the Dog. The drop off was yesterday … and the above photo shows the results. Well done to everyone concerned.

Update 12 April:  Mystery today surrounds an article in El Día quoting the concejal de Medio Ambiente, Antonio Sosa, as saying that Arona Ayuntamiento will assume responsibility for lifeguard provision on the municipality’s beaches in the interim period until a new contractor is appointed. Sr Sosa also said, it seems, that he is seeking a formula to pay the lifeguards outstanding arrears. The Ayuntamiento, it appears, is simultaneously working towards getting the lifeguards their money, and appointing a new company to take over the whole socorrista service in Arona.

We can only hope that this is, in fact, true, and, if true, that it will bear fruit in the very near future. It seems a shame, however, that no-one thought to keep the lifeguards informed, because Veronica says that she had no knowledge of this at all, and that she was surprised to read it in the paper. The lifeguards’ position is that since the Ayuntamiento emphatically dismissed this option at the last mediation meeting, they are unconvinced by the article, not least because the council has shown by its very actions that they are not prepared to “assume responsibility”. Veronica herself sums the situation up in three points:

1.-Antonio Sosa has been taking the mickey since last summer, and today’s news is nothing more than one more such lie.

2.-The council’s lack of interest in meeting the lifeguards, or even offering basic provisions, shows a lack of respect, and moreover to come up with such a solution – which they could have come up with a year and a half ago  - and then only in the press, shames the council.

3. – Given the objections of the technical, legal and administrative departments of Arona Ayuntamiento we are now suspicious that they have now supposedly come up with this solution. We hope the report is correct, and that we are paid right now what is owing, and that they put our vehicles and supplies in order. We hope that they don’t forget about us and get rid of us – as was implied at the last meeting by the suggestion that the local police might take over the service.

Original post 29 April: Unions have called a general strike in the Canaries protesting at the Canarian Government’s policies which, they argue, have  resulted in the appalling unemployment statistics in the islands. It’s likely that the strike will be on 1 May, but the date is still to be confirmed. Secretario general of the Canarian UGT, Gustavo Santana, said that the blame cannot be laid at Madrid’s door alone because the regions had control over health, education, social protection, and employment policies.

Sr Santana said that the Canarian Government is blind to the social reality in the islands, as demonstrated by their continuation with policies which have been shown to be total failures over the last five years. The Unions involved are the UGT, CCOO, FSOC, STPA Canarias, STEC, COBAS, USO, Sindicato de la Elevación, and the Colectivo Independiente Guaguas, between them representing some 93% of syndicated union membership in the archipelago.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Original post 10 January:  A new series of Euro notes is to be introduced over the next few years starting in May with a new €5. The above video is a very brief visual description of the new security features of the new notes, specifically of the new emerald green €5, and the following video is a much more detailed explanation from the announcement made today by the Central European Bank. Existing Euro notes will apparently remain valid indefinitely.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Another missing person, this time Antonio Muñoz Romero, 32 years old, originally from the south of the mainland but presently in La Laguna doing a Masters Degree in Astrophysics. He has been missing since 16 April. Colleagues at ULL say he has vanished as though the earth had swallowed him. The family, father, mother and a sister who is a doctor of medicine, are all in Tenerife helping with the search. Antonio was recently at home in Cádiz for a family wedding and keeps in regular contact with his family. Moreover, it appears that he had just popped out, with only the door key taken: documents, wallet, personal belongings, and so on are still in his room. His family fears the worst, but police have at least discounted a connection with the body recently found off the Guía de Isora coast. Family and police ask anyone who knows anything to pass on their information as quickly as they can to the numbers in the poster above.

A collaboration between Golf del Sur, CD Chayofa, and Educa RG Multideporte, has resulted in an open invitation to children between 4 and 12 to an event in the Golf del Sur clubhouse this Wednesday between 10am and midday. The event foreshadows the introduction of a series of tennis lessons for young children between 3 and 8 at the club. Wednesday’s event is free for all children and will offer a range of sports, including tennis, and sports demonstrations. 

Update 29 April 2013: 2013′s Corpus Christi in La Orotava is set for 6 June, with Faith as the theme for this year’s carpet display. The end result will be primarily red and white, and use some 1,250 kilos of coloured soil divided into five sections. Two will be primarily floral, and the three main sections of the triptych will illustrate the resurrection, the doubt of St Thomas, and the ascension, as in the drawing above, presented recently by La Orotava Ayuntamiento.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Update 9 June 2012: This year’s carpets display in La Orotava’s Corpus Christi takes place on 14 June, with the sand carpets inspired this year by the theme of faith, symbolized in the central panel by Jesus praying, the depiction framed by a six-pointed star. The left panel shows Moses receiving the ten commandments, and in the right panel Abraham offers his son Isaac for sacrifice. Above is a video off youtube from last year which gives a good flavour of what it’s like.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Update 13 June 2011: It’s that time again, and the creation of 2011′s sand carpets in La Orotava can now be followed on a dedicated blog HERE. It’s in Spanish, German and English. It can also be followed on Facebook HERE, or on twitter … I don’t know how twitter works, but twitter users should recognize #corpusvilla and #corpuslaorotava, and @alfombristas. The list of activities can be seen on the Ayuntamiento website HERE, and the full programme downloaded HERE.

The main carpets this year show scenes from Christ’s passion. The right carpet depicts the Piedad from Annibal Carraci (1600); the left one the Flagellation of Christ from William-Adolphe Bouguereau (1880); and the main central carpet the Crucification of Christ from Diego Velazquez (1632).

Adeje also has a marvellous Corpus Cristi carpet display, and information about this year’s on 25 June is available from the Ayuntamiento website HERE.

The video above is a presentational one, and gives a good idea of what to expect.

Original post 24 May 2010: It’s Corpus Christi time again, and the main carpet for the La Orotava display is already taking shape. Last year’s is pictured above, and as always was absolutely stunning. This year, the display is on 10 June, and as usual will be in the Plaza del Ayuntamiento. A total of 17 alfombristas and 7 students are collaborating on the work, which is designed and directed by González Expósito. On 10 June, 870 of the Plaza’s 950 square metres will be covered in a stunning 41.5 x 21 metre carpet composed of 1,400 kilos of earth of 23 colours, the principal theme of which will be the Last Supper.  El Dia

What does it take … ?

Update 18 April: It seems that the Ayuntamiento is having second thoughts about putting up notices about “exclusive use” of parts of Playa de las Vistas because they are “rather aggressive”. Concejal de Medio Ambiente, Antonio Sosa, said that the council was now seeking alternatives to the notices, but not to the rule itself, because “that is specified in the conditions drawn up by the Ayuntamiento”. While announcing this, Sr Sosa also confirmed that his department had spoken with the Dept of Costas: it was a formal matter, he said, to which a solution is being sought. Why do I get the distinct feeling that Arona has overstepped the mark here, and that it’s more than just an issue about “notices”?

Original post 17 April: Arona Ayuntamiento has reserved a section of Playa de las Vistas for those who want to hire sunbeds and sun umbrellas from the resident concessionary company. The general public will no longer be able to use it without paying for a sunbed, and anyone who just wants to put down a towel will have to use the non-reserved part of the beach. These areas are expected to become rather packed in the height of summer, and criticism of the council’s move is widespread.

Despite such criticism, however, signs in both Spanish and English will soon bear witness to the privileged section reserved for those who are prepared to pay for sunbeds, and expressly prohibit leaving a towel or other belongings on the beach. Arona says the service is profitable, raising 1.3 million Euros a year for the concession less just 110,000 paid to Costas. That’s good for the council, of course, but not so good for the many people who actually want to use the beaches without being charged for the privilege.

Update 27 April: Puerto de la Cruz Ayuntamiento has unanimously given initial approval to a new bylaw to enforce street cleanliness, which will see fines of between €100 and €750 for a range of activities in the street. These activities include using them as a public toilet, throwing cigarette ends, feeding animals, car washing, not picking up animal mess, writing graffiti, placing publicity leaflets, spitting, and shaking carpets or other fabrics. Even watering plants on the outside of buildings is now forbidden unless between midnight and 8am.

Further offences, to incur fines of between €751 and €1,500, will include throwing rubbish in any public areas, emptying buckets of water in the street, throwing anything out of a moving vehicle, leaving rubbish outside bins, burying animals’ bodies on private land without prior authorization, or abandoning vehicles. The highest fines, of between €1,501 and €3,000 will be for transporting without adequate protection materials which could scatter on the public highway, the abandonment or spilling of dangerous substances, or burying animals’ bodies in public spaces.

There will now be a month’s public exposition of the regulations before it is finally approved.

Update 11pm: There is some confusion over the La Laguna fines for “out of hours” bathing. Concejal de Servicios Municipales, Javier Abreu, said that the new bylaw concerning beaches and pools will not ban people from using them outside the hours of 10.30am to 8pm, but that these were the hours in which there was a lifeguard service. Sr Abreu said that anyone bathing at other times must do so at their own risk.

The councillor said he was responding to a “biased” interpretation of the new bylaw, in which Si Se Puede and Por Tenerife claimed that fines of up to €1.500 would be levied. One can’t help but wonder how such an interpretation could be arrived at, and with such a specific figure, if it was not actually in the Ayuntamiento’s plans. One can’t help but wonder, either, why a new bylaw was needed merely to state existing lifeguard hours …

Update 10pm: As I posted HERE on 27 February, Puerto de la Cruz intended to introduce new municipal regulations to outlaw plastic terrace furniture in restaurants, hotels and bars, and require the leisure sector across the board to provide furniture made from  aluminium, wrought iron, or wood; toldos and umbrellas were also to be matching in either natural colour or burgundy. The rules officially came into force last November, but the Ayuntamiento gave a period of grace for adaptation until February.

Businesses, which have not been too keen to undertake the expenditure, have been resisting, but have now been told that they have three months to make the changes after which fines will be issued. Businesses face being fined up to €3,000, and could also be refused permission to renew their licence.

Original post 16 April: Quite a few posts lately have beat around the bush of municipal measures that could result in fines, raising some much needed money for local Ayuntamientos. A couple of recent examples include Adeje’s measures on washing lines on street-facing balconies, and San Miguel’s speed control campaign. One in the press today, however, takes the biscuit … at least for the time being!

The minister was speaking at a press conference in which he also announced the introduction of new “green taxes” and the removal of some corporation tax deductions for large companies. He ruled out increases in IVA (equivalent to VAT on the mainland – the Canaries has its own IGIC), but announced rises in “special taxes”: he did not specify which ones would bear the brunt of the increases, but said they would not be oil taxes, nor taxes relating to the hotel and catering industry. That doesn’t leave too many options, and it seems quite possible that we’ll soon be seeing rises in tobacco, alcohol, and electricity. The news came as a surprise after PM Rajoy’s answer to journalists only on Wednesday that there would be no tax rises.

Among the main objectives of the agreement are to generate self-employment and entrepreneurship by promoting equal opportunities for men and women, new residents, people with disabilities, and those who are vulnerable to financial exclusion. At the same time, it aims to finance the establishment, consolidation or expansion of small businesses and the self-employed so as to contribute to production, job creation, and social progress in Adeje.

Sr Lopez explained that the conditions of the loan include the requirement to submit a project in the form of a business plan either for a new self-employed business or for the consolidation or expansion of an existing one. The project will then be subject to a feasibility study carried out by Adeje Ayuntamiento. Evidently, the business will have to be based within the municipality. Once approved, credit of up to €25,000 will be made available to a maximum of 95% of the investment. The amount borrowed will bear interest of 8.25% and will have to be repaid within five years. No guarantee nor security will be required unless the borrower is a company.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Update 15 March: Adeje joins the upmarket video trend, with golf, spas, fine dining, Siam Park, dolphins, nature walks, culture … not a Brit bar in sight. The above Costa Adeje promotional video was unveiled this morning in the Magma Centre.

Update 27 February 2013: The upmarket push continues, with Puerto de la Cruz passing new municipal regulations that will outlaw plastic terrace furniture in restaurants, hotels and bars, and require the leisure sector across the board to provide furniture made from  aluminium, wrought iron, or wood. There is to be a colour branding exercise in the town too, with toldos and umbrellas being required to match – either natural colour or burgundy.

Councillors for Urbanismo y Desarrollo Económico, Sebastián Ledesma (PP) and Lope Afonso (PP), yesterday presented the details of the new bylaw which, they said, would require all establishments with a terrace to seek a new municipal authorization, in the granting of which the technicians will also determine the number of square metres authorized for each terrace. The rules officially came into force last November, but the Ayuntamiento has until now given a period of grace for adaptation.

edit: And within minutes of posting the above, I came across THIS from the Telegraph on hiking in Tenerife. Niche holidays are the way the government wants to go, and the policy seems to be working!

Click here to view the embedded video.

Update 23 October: And now it’s Arona’s turn. Following Guía de Isora’s video below, Arona has released the above film. Once again, watch it with half a mind on what the Government wants to stress; once again we have spas and golf, retirees, special interest holidays, and now nature, walking, diving, culture, upmarket shopping … this is becoming a well and truly established theme now. And not a “full English” or a cheap pint in sight.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Update 25 September: As a clear example of what’s in the minds of the politicians when they talk about “up-market tourism strategy”, have a look at the above video, focusing on Guía de Isora. While you’re watching it, remember what the Government wants to stress: spas and golf, retirees, special interest holidays like golf and cycling, eco-tourism … . This is what they’re after.

Update 3 July:  As evidence of the Government’s mindset on upmarket tourism, it has today released statistics showing that golfers spend  an average of €161.66 daily, 35% more than other types of visitor. Ricardo FPA, viceconsejero de Turismo, released the figures at the opening of the Asociación Internacional de Touroperadores de Golf convention, being held this week in south Gran Canaria, where he stressed that the Canaries is being converted into the international capital for golf.

Original post 12 June:  In a clear statement that Turismo wants the Canaries to go up-market, the new tourism promotion strategy for 2012-2016 that has been unveiled today by the viceconsejero de Turismo del Gobierno canario, Ricardo Fernández de la Puente, will take the islands back to their roots, namely the scientific and irrefutable fact that they have “the best climate in the world”. The central strategic themes of the new plan are to promote culture and a touristic awareness in residents, to improve information and touristic knowledge, to encourage training and increase co-operation in touristic administration.

The strategic plan points out that the Canaries are losing out to the competition but that the causes are not just based in current problems, but are due to the increase in rival destinations, the limitations of air connectivity, and the need for an overhaul of the islands’ image, including becoming increasingly specialized with a particular identity. Sr Fernández said that the Canaries therefore needed to consolidate a recognizable image. This image was based, he said, in the climate, “the best in the world”, and it needed to be linked to and complemented by specialist offers, e.g. marriages and honeymoons, diving, cycling, conventions, cruises, golf, and environmental and thematic offers, among others.

The key markets that this message will be taken to are Germany, Britain, Spain, Norway, Belgium and Ireland, where the intention is to overhaul and upgrade the islands’ image. Other markets where special attention will also be paid are Sweden, Denmark, Poland, Switzerland, Austria, Holland, Finland and the Czech Republic. The message for all will be that the Canaries is a place for families and senior citizens to come for rest, relaxation and awareness.

She was so loved, and we tried and I hope succeeded in giving her the best life a dog could wish for. She was almost human at home, but lived a full free and happy dog’s life in the mountains which her breed is at home in. I don’t know how people can put this poison down, but at least it was quick. Rosie didn’t make it home, but she died in the next best place, with her brother, at her “granddads”. I think if she could have spoken and understood, she would have been pleased that her page drew such interest, and that it brought her wonderful, sensitive, intelligent breed to a new audience. We are distraught, and will miss her beyond words.