We have written about bullfighting before, and have come to the conclusion that isn’t something that we would want to support or indeed go to. I was however intrigued to read about the 66 year old UK Matador who has just made a return to the ring:

The Salford grandfather of four performed his comeback fight on the eve of his 66th birthday to stunned aficionados gathered at a bullring in Villanueva de la Concepcion, a pueblo perched on the Andalusian hillside above Malaga.

Yesterday when I was playing beach volleyball we drove past the venue for the Creamfields and Ole! Festivals on the 9th and 15th of August.

It is certainly a bigger lay out than the previous concerts that they have had there!

We have written before about bull fighting and its possible demise and each time we have received comments about how barbaric the activity is.

As such I thought this may bring a smile to a few faces:

One man has died and some 90 people have been injured in the opening hours of Spain’s annual bull-running festival in the northern town of Pamplona. (BBC)

It seems that the recent victory has done more than unite the people watching it in Al-rruz and the rest of Almerimar.

I just read a interesting article that made some great observations:

On and off the pitch, this was a celebration of youth. But two venerable Spanish gentlemen gate-crashed the fiesta.

In the stands, a fist-pumping King Juan Carlos led the travelling support, and later took his turn at clutching the cup in the victors’ dressing room.

More negative press for Almeria Flights!

“Many airlines which presently use Almeria Airport are progressively reducing the number of destinations they have on offer, mainly due to competition from low-cost operators. One example, British Airways, have had to cease flights to London, unable to compete with easyJet’s prices. Other companies which reduced the number of flights to certain destinations during the quieter winter months are now considering whether it is worth their while restarting the routes.

Now that summer is well and truly here it is time to brush up on all those essential summer skills:

• Getting brown but not burnt
• Cooking on the BBQ so the food doesn’t get burnt
• Late night drinking in the music bars - talking 6am here!!!!
• The art of the perfect siesta!!!

Don’t forget your T-shirt!!!! See you there.

We have written many times, and will no doubt write many more times, about the culture and way of life here in Spain, and how attractive we find it in particular.

I recently read this article on the attitude towards death, and in particular funerals that the Spanish have. Now this may be a morbid subject, but it is an inevitable part of life (or not as the case may be), and that was the whole gist of the article.

As ‘reported’ earlier we are in ‘I Cruz de Mayo Almerimar‘ season so it was interesting to see the picture of the cross in Almeria that Sands took when she was there earlier this week - taking my watch to the Breitling store (which she said was very busy), checking out the Food Hall and generally mooching around with Mary.

Come on Almerimar you can beat that!!!!!

There is nothing like trying to explain something to someone to get you researching facts! Again, the discussion last night was around Spain, and at times it felt like I was on Mastermind - specialist subject, Spain. I would not have done very well!

It is embarrassing really how little I know about the country that I now call home, so when I got back from watching Man Utd beat Arsenal (yeah!!!!) I hit the old Internet to develop my knowledge further.

As is usual these days when I am away from home I have been spending a lot of time explaining to people what it is that I like so much about Spain, and in particular Almerimar.

It generally comes down to the culture and sense of tradition that still exists. Sure the weather is great, and the cost of living is highly attractive, but at the end of the day I am not sure that they are reasons to call somewhere ‘home’.

Watched a great program last night where Tommi Miers went into northern Spain to discover why Galicians are ‘fanatical about fish’ and the Cantabrians are ‘passionate about strong cheese’.

This was the last in a three part series on Channel 4 that is well worth catching if you missed it as I am sure they will show it again at some stage.

Eating and drinking is a national pastime in Spain, and you will find it hard to get ‘take away’ food. There is a Mc Donald’s up by Copo’s, but if you after a Starbucks, Chinese, Kebab, Indian etc then you are pretty much out of luck.

There are options if you know where to look, and this list should help you if you don’t have the time or inclination to sit down and enjoy your meal!

Firstly I have to own up to not having studied any Spanish for about 2 months so it is definitely time to re-focus. However a very nice man from Gas Natural turned up unexpectedly this afternoon, and I really impressed myself with my ability to communicate in Spanish. I guess I will only really know IF he turns up at 9am on Monday with the required replacement pipe! I have also checked out another vet option for the strays today with a friend and, although I let her superior Spanish do the talking, I realised that I actually knew most of the words. The key is to keep it simple, have confidence and give it a go, as I find I usually know more than I think!

Ok so this is only telling us what we already knew but it seems a cold white Xmas is not really what lots of people are looking for now. What people seem to want after a busy year and lots of last minute shopping is a couple of weeks of rest and relaxation somewhere warm!

No sadly I’m not announcing a concert close-by! This is more of a lifestyle thing. Whilst we are all loving the weather and our relaxing lives here in Spain, one very famous person in a recent interview was also praising the expat lifestyle.

Veteran rock star Rick Parfitt has told a newspaper about his experience of living in Spain. The Status Quo guitarist told the Evening Post that he and his wife decided to move out to their Spanish villa last year.

Ever been to a Spanish wedding? Well for starters it could be an expensive affair, although you won’t need to worry about wedding lists. It all seems to be very practical; presents are out, and cash (min 100€!) is in. Also there appears no need to track down a lovely little reply card as a phone call will do.

Ok so I know that we girls all miss access to ‘decent’ shopping. I know for certain as, out of the few ‘Have Your Say’ articles that I have posted so far, it has come up twice! AND the only reason I didn´t mention it myself is that I go back to the UK at least twice a year and hit the outlet mall and TK Maxx with my sister among other things. Also I do have a slight soft spot for Mango, Zara and the jeans shop Stradivarius in El Ejido.

“There are some things you miss while living abroad. Voting doesn’t have to be one of them.�

This article in the Daily Telegraph explains how British citizens living abroad who have been registered to vote in the UK at any time within the past 15 years can register as an overseas voter. Those who were too young to register when they left the UK, must have a parent or guardian who has been registered.

I do a lot of blogging, both personally and professionally, and I came across an interesting article earlier today that I posted on my own site, but that I thought I would share with you here as it is somewhat interesting in terms of the difference in culture here in Spain.

The UK has a reputation for ‘binge drinking’ and now it seems it has taken that addiction over to its use of Social Networking sites as it leads Europe in sites visited on a regular basis: