ISSUE No. 2 AUGUST 2008 Editorial Not just a few bad apples

2 sun, sea and sutures Málaga, Marbella, Ciempozuelos, Telde, Andratx and now Estepona. The corruption scandals roll on, always the cosmetic surgery boom much the same story: the mayor and his or her minions on the take from property developers, with a whisk of 8 their signature converting once worthless land into a repentance and red wine speculator’s el Dorado. Sometimes it seems that, if you want an impenitent tour of rioja to talk to your mayor, you’re more likely to find them in the local nick than in their office at the ayuntamiento. 88 14 mallorcan étude Spain is corrupt, there is no doubt about it. Two years ago, chopin’s holiday from hell when Russia’s President Putin was asked at a European summit what he planned to do about corruption in Russia, he hit back, saying, effectively: “What’s Spain going to do 18 in the zone about theirs?” That hurt, and was a further spur to action as spain kicks the losing habit the high-profile arrests over the past two or three years show. Furthermore, the police are not just going for scapegoats, but rounding up everyone who they believe is in the loop. 24 the coolhunter The clean-up is clearly going to take some time. In 2007, Transparency International, a well respected organisation mango’s fashion tracker that reports on corruption worldwide, ranked Spain 25th 1414 in a table of 170 of the most corrupt nations, below every 28 western European country except Greece and Portugal. photo essay (And by the way, whatever Hamlet thought on the matter, iberian creatures in peril Denmark was ranked the least rotten, Somalia the most.) Although bad news for many on a personal level, the housing 30 beyond the 18th hole slump may be the best thing that could happen to Spain fiestas, festivals, concerts and exhibitions right now. The housing boom of the past five years has been fuelled by drug money, the Russian mafia and the millions made from prostitution. Up until now, the sort of sweeteners 38 la vinoteca these people could offer a modestly-paid local official have more than a wine bar been almost impossible to resist. But the slump has changed all that. The worthless piece of land is still, for the time 24 being, worthless, even with planning permission and maybe 39 rioja renaissance now the dirty money will have to launder itself elsewhere. And Spain, which has been destroying its landscape in a not resting on its laurels greed-driven frenzy of construction, now has a moment to consider just what sort of a country it wants to become. 41 garlic is good for you Stephen Burgen [email protected] enjoy a bite-free summer

Publishing Director: Matthew Ager 44 property Editor: Stephen Burgen 3030 a good time to rent out Copy Editor: Michael Bunn Art Director: Georgina Rosquelles 47 Layout and Design: 9 letras news in brief Contributors: Michael Bunn, Ben Curtis, Marina Diez, spanish news round-up Sara Gibbings, José María Sánchez, Joanna Styles, Marta Wendlinger. Photography: Craig Hastings. Cartoon: Oriol Garcia i Quera. Advertising enquiries: [email protected] 51 really spanish Tel.: +34 609 305 155. ten ways of losing your rag Published by: The Times en España c.b. Depósito Legal: SE-3653-2008 Printed by: Gráficas L’Arte s.l. 52 brief encounter Distributor: Iberpress 3838 your legal questions answered

Inside Spain 1 Sun, sea and sutures

Package holidays to Spain have taken on a new meaning as increasingly tourists go home not just with a tan but with a changed face or new breasts. Sara Gibbings finds out why it’s boom time for boob jobs

2 Inside Spain ot so long ago, Brits would return The field of plastic surgery encompasses home from their holidays in both reconstructive and cosmetic procedures Spain with a tan and a smile after and should be carried out by a qualified a week sipping beers by the pool specialist. Common reconstructive plastic andN be told by their friends that they looked surgery includes breast reconstruction brilliant. That doesn’t seem to be enough after a mastectomy, skin grafts to aid burns anymore. These days they are likely to come victims, the correction of bone fractures back with a gastric band, a neater nose or a such as a broken nose or jaw after an pair of shiny new breasts. Medical tourism in accident or the improvement of congenital the Iberian peninsula has taken off in a big deformities such as cleft lip. Cosmetic way and, surprisingly, the British, who used surgeries are considered non-essential to be known for their bad teeth and sagging medical procedures and are, for the most tummies, are among the best customers. part, sought solely for aesthetic reasons.

“Medical tourism is when the patient needs Spain has always been a body-conscious or wants to travel abroad for, usually, lower nation but it is only relatively recently that cost and immediate treatment,” says Cristina cosmetic surgery has lost its taboo status Madeira, spokeswoman for Fly 2 Doc, a new and is no longer considered the domain of medical service provider offering personalised desperate housewives and eccentric aristocrats. treatment plans for cosmetic and non- Wearing diamonds as an outward display cosmetic surgeries in Spain and Portugal. of wealth has become passé; these days the Of their 400 annual cosmetic procedures, petit bourgeoisie, with their hybrid cars, fair 70% of their clients are British. “The most trade coffee and children adopted from the popular [operations] are tummy tucks, developing world, sport new cheekbones and breast enlargements and facelifts,” notes gravity-defying boobs as status symbols. While Madeira, “and I have seen a huge increase, gaggles of forty-something wives are unable especially since the beginning of this year.” to produce a frown between them, their

Inside Spain 3 husbands are going for full body depilation is set to multiply rapidly. Eileen Knight, it boils down to self-esteem. “I think the (fondly known as back-sack-and-crack) and spokeswoman for Mills & Mills, one of draw of plastic surgery quite often is that if swapping their Kojak cue balls, in favour of the most successful international cosmetic we don’t feel good about ourselves and we flowing locks would make Bon Jovi envious. surgery providers based in Marbella, says the esteem ourselves externally, and if we haven’t Proof of this was at a recent Family Day at company has seen a 50% rise in the number done that through our jobs or success or an upmarket Barcelona school where the of procedures and a four-fold rise in profits status, then we do it by compliments and top prize in the raffle was a free cosmetic in the past two years. Approximately 60% of approval of others.” he says. ourselves.” surgery procedure. Far from thinking this the 70 operations they perform each month “gift” was odd, nobody batted an eyelid. are on British patients. In addition to the Celebrity endorsement of a medical tourism But then again, they probably couldn’t. standard plastic surgeries, Mills & Mills facility is rare as they usually like to keep offer dental procedures and something called quiet about it, but Chelsee Healey is an “Extreme Makeover” (after the TV show) exception. The star of the BBC drama series “Southern Europeans and where you not only get your bits fixed, but get Waterloo Road flew into Mills & Mills last a new wardrobe, hair and make-up to boot. December to get a breast augmentation. Latin Americans tend to In an article in Now! Magazine, the 19- be more flirty and vain, so So why are so many British patients coming year-old proudly displayed her new body to Spain for surgery? On a practical level, and said her low self-esteem and body these kinds of operations it is obvious: plastic surgery treatments confidence issues were now resolved. are rarely covered by either the NHS or are more common, which private health insurance policies so the In general, we have also become lazier. leads to lower prices” choice to pay less, recover in luxurious and Rather than suffering the cabbage soup diet sunny surroundings and avoid the prying and pounding the treadmill at the gym, eyes of friends and family is appealing. we want to look good now. Raúl González With an estimated 400,000 plastic surgeries But what about the underlying reasons, why (not his real name), a Colombian doctor annually, Spain ranks fourth in the world, is a nation that used to pride itself on its living in Spain recently had liposuction. after the USA, Brazil and Argentina. With a intellectual prowess suddenly focused on the “I had a few extra kilos,” he explains, “It’s steadily increasing influx of medical tourists, size of its collective bum? Jonathan Hooker, not a weight-loss procedure but does allow mainly from northern Europe, this number a British therapist based in Barcelona thinks you to get rid of some of the extra fat; it’s

4 Inside Spain a way of moulding the body. I’m relatively during operations, patients may react badly to An unsuccessful surgery does not have to have disciplined when it comes to what I eat but anaesthesia and there is always the possibility such a drastic result. Patients may be unhappy not as regards exercise so it’s a quick solution of human error. One of the most high profile with their new look and feel worse than before. to the problem, even though it’s a painful incidents occurred in Puerto Banús in October Celebrities who have undergone cosmetic operation.” González found it tough going. 2005 when Stella Obasanjo, wife of the then procedures with unfortunate consequences “The entire first week was sore, so much so President of Nigeria, died after a surgical have to deal with the tabloids, such as that I questioned why I had done it. And you procedure at the Molding Clinic, the most British actress Leslie Ash who was labelled don’t see the results straight away because established clinic on the Costa del Sol. “trout pout” after a botched lip operation. the body is swollen.” Now, however, he is delighted with the results and while he will Before taking the decision to have plastic try to maintain his flat tummy, he admits: “While gaggles of forty- surgery it is important to do thorough “Of course I would do it again! I admit it is research. Most reputable medical tourism a quick way to get the figure you want.” something wives are operators in Spain conduct free consultations unable to produce a in the UK, so you can speak to surgeons González offers his take on the popularity who will explain the procedure and outline of medical tourism in Spain. “Southern frown between them, potential risks. They should also carry out Europeans and Latin Americans tend to standard pre-operative tests to ensure you be more flirty and vain, so these kinds their husbands are going are in good health and able to withstand of operations are more common. This for full body depilation the surgery. Don’t be afraid to ask to see leads to a lowering of prices. People come the doctor’s qualifications - the good ones from abroad to take advantage of these (fondly known as back- will be only too happy to show off their prices and because there are competent hard-earned diplomas. Read through the professionals with a lot of experience.” sack-and-crack) small print in the contract and make sure you fully understand your rights should But even under the best of circumstances, There were conflicting stories in the press something go wrong. And most importantly, with highly qualified and experienced doctors, at the time and the results of the inquest talk to your friends and family and be things can go wrong. Plastic surgery carries the were kept secret. The Molding Clinic completely sure about your decision because same risks as other surgeries; existing health did not accept Inside Spain’s invitation once you go under the knife, at least part conditions may cause unforeseen problems to be interviewed for this article. of you will never be the same again.

· Liposuction: Removal of fat from different parts of body. Not weight loss but fat modelling. Approximate cost €1500.

· Rhinoplasty: Nose reshaping in order to improve function and/or form. Approximate cost €2500.

· Otoplasty: Alteration to external appearance of ears by pinning back, reshaping, moving or resizing. Approximate cost €1300- €3000.

· Mammoplasty: Augmentation of breasts by way of insertion of implants made of saline or silicone. Also reduction of breasts to reduce back and shoulder pain. Approximate cost €3500- €6000.

· Blepharoplasty: Reshaping of upper or lower eyelid by removal or repositioning of excess tissue and skin. Approximate cost €1500- €3000.

· Rhytidectomy: Commonly known as a facelift. Procedure to diminish loose skin folds in face and neck. Approximate cost €4000- €6000.

· Abdominoplasty: Removal of skin and fat in middle and lower abdomen. Often requested after pregnancy or massive weight loss. Approximate cost €3500- €5500.

· Mentoplasty: Surgery of the chin by means of enhancement with implants, excess fat reduction, or reshaping the bone. Approximate cost €1200- €4800.

· Labiaplasty: Controversial surgery to alter the appearance of the labia of the vagina. Approximate cost €2000-€4000.

· Phalloplasty: Lengthening or girth enhancement of the penis by surgical means. Effectiveness of procedures greatly debated. Approximate cost €5000.

Inside Spain 5 6 Inside Spain Inside Spain 7 RReeppeenntatanncece aanndd redred wiwinnee

The Romans developed the wine industry along the Ebro from Cantabria to Tarragona, and then came the pilgrims, walking west along the Camino de Santiago. These historic paths cross in la Rioja, home to Spain’s best known wine. An impenitent Stephen Burgen reports

8 Inside Spain od and wine made la Rioja. Though regarded as somewhat off the beaten track these days, it once stood at one of the most important crossroads in Europe. The ancient pilgrim way, the Camino de Santiago, passes through, with Logroño and Santo DomingoG de la Calzada both being important stopovers on the way to Santiago de Compostella. It is bisected by the north-south route that, following the Ebro, brought the Phoenicians, Iberians, Romans and Arabs. It has been fought over by the usual parties: Christians and Arabs, Aragón and Navarra, but since 1982 it has been one of Spain’s 17 autonomous communities.

Wine-making in la Rioja dates back to 1100BC and was later developed by the Romans. As traffic built up in the Middle Ages along the Camino de Santiago, the demands of thirsty pilgrims helped the industry to flourish. The industry also benefited from the phylloxera epidemic which devastated French vineyards in the 19th century and opened up markets for Rioja and other Spanish wines. Some French winemakers moved their businesses down to the region. Phylloxera in due course hit Rioja too, but by then the technique of grafting vines on to American rootstock meant it was easy to replant with healthy vines. In the 16th century Rioja began exporting wine via the port of Bilbao and since then it has been the best known (in some cases the only known) Spanish wine internationally.

The countryside ranges from the rugged, dry hills in the east, home to much of the best wine, through the lush green Ebro valley to the flat farmland around Santo Domingo de la Calzada behind which rise the Sierra de la Demanda. While not politically part of the Basque Country, many place names are Basque while others – Elciego (the blind) and Cenicero (the ashtray) – are very evocative, The capital, Logroño, is a pleasant market town on the banks of the Ebro, with colonnaded streets lined with cafés. The twin- towered Concatedral de la Redonda dominates the Plaza del Mercado while the town also boasts the gothic Iglesia de Palacio. (As it is on the pilgrim way, there is no shortage of churches in la Rioja). There is also good food to be had in Logroño, and lamb, red peppers and tripe feature strongly in the local cuisine. However, the city is famous throughout Spain for its pinchos, tapas served on slices of bread. An evening bar-hopping along the Calle del Laurel, sampling pinchos of ham, anchovies, cojonudo (a mix of chorizo, pimiento piquillo and quail’s eggs) or embuchados (don’t ask what they are until you’ve tried them), all washed down with Rioja, is an evening well spent.

Further along the Ebro lies Haro, which styles itself “the capital of Rioja”, by which they mean the wine, not the region. The focus of the town is a pretty sloping square with bar terraces on two sides. Many of the houses have glazed balconies of the type more commonly seen in Galicia and Portugal, presumably because the wind can get up at a moment’s notice. There are some very good wine shops in the town, offering a huge range of local wines at surprisingly reasonable prices. On June 29 the town holds a “wine battle” in celebration of San Pedro, during which the townspeople squirt some 20,000 litres of red wine at each other.

It is a short drive from Haro to Santo Domingo de la Calzada (Domingo the paver, so called because the town’s founder, Domingo García, built a bridge and a hospital to help the pilgrims on their way), a quiet, pretty town on the banks of the rio Oja. There is always a live hen and cock in the cathedral to commemorate the “cock miracle”, in which a roast bird emerged from the oven still crowing. The cobbled streets are worn smooth by the clump of pilgrims’ boots, who gather in the little squares chatting in whatever common language they can rustle up between them.

Just below the ancient hilltop village of Briones, itself well worth a visit, sit the spanking new buildings of Bodegas Dinastía Vivanco, among them the splendid and fascinating wine museum financed by the Vivanco family and filled with artefacts from their extraordinary collection. The Museo de la

Inside Spain 9 Cultura del Vino examines every aspect of wine, from Just outside Logroño, on the edge of an unpromising its production to its role in religious and other rituals industrial estate at Agoncillo (on the N232 as you to its influence on artists from the ancient Greeks to approach Logroño from the east), is the Museo Würth Picasso. The museum, custom-built for the purpose, is La Rioja, a modern architectural gem filled with the well laid out and all the items are excellently displayed. work of modern Spanish and other international artists. There is even a section where you can sample all The museum is adjacent to the Spanish headquarters Where to stay: the possible tastes – from liquorice to mango – that of Würth, the German engineering company (Spanish occur in a wine’s bouquet, before going on to detect football fans will have noticed the Würth logo on the Logroño them in an actual wine tasting. The collection itself la liga referees’ sleeves in recent seasons). The museum Gran Hotel AC La Rioja**** is extraordinary, and has been displayed with unusual was opened in 2007 and is dedicated to art of the www.ac-hotels.com imagination. There are not just the items you expect 20th and 21st centuries, which is selected from among to find in this type of cultural museum – old tools, the 10,000 works in the private Würth Collection. Murrieta*** vast wooden wine presses and variously shaped www.pretur.es bottles – but works of art, a Roman sarcophagus As well as mounting exhibitions (currently they are depicting the ritual of Bacchus, with Zeus disguised running a major retrospective of the Portuguese Haro as a sheep, detailed but easy to understand accounts artist José de Guimarães), the permanent collection Los Agustinos**** of how wine is made, drinking vessels from ancient includes works by Miquel de Barceló, Antony www.hotellosagustinos.com Greece to modern times, and an oddly entertaining Gormley, Richard Deacon, Markus Redl (above) and display of 5,000 different types of corkscrews. There Jaume Plensa, some of whose works are featured in Santo Domingo de la Calzada is also a shop, restaurant and a tasting room. the sculpture park in which the museum is set. Parador de Santo Domingo de la Calzada**** The museum is on the N232, close to The museum is open every day and www.parador.es Haro. www.dinastiavivanco.com admission is free. www.museowurth.es

10 Inside Spain City of wine The brilliance of Frank Gehry’s bodega-hotel at the Marqués de Riscal vineyard is that it is an avant-garde structure that is completely in harmony with the landscape and architecture of an area that has been inhabited since Neolithic times. Stephen Burgen reports n recent years, some of the biggest Rioja bodegas have The building’s primary function is underground, the new cellar, started competing not just over who makes the best wine although the original cellar built in 1858 is still in use, but the but also who has the most modern and stylish bodega. In a Ciudad de Vino is also a pleasure palace and the perfect setting for bid to outdo each other they have called on the services of a luxury weekend. The hotel, managed by the Luxury Collection, architectsI of international renown such as Santiago Calatrava, Zaha offers a variety of rooms with views of either the architecture or Hadid and Iñaki Aspiazu. But the prize has to go to the Canadian the countryside. Whether a room or a suite, all are beautifully Frank Gehry for la Ciudad de Vino, the bodega-cum-hotel-cum- designed, spacious and light. You can slip into the Italian bed spa he designed for Rioja’s oldest bodega, Marqués de Riscal. sheets and choose from ten models on the pillow menu and watch TV or listen to music on the Bang & Olufsen equipment. Gehry’s original sketches hang in one of the bars at the Riscal winery in Elciego. Now that the building exists, you can makes sense of the If this isn’t relaxing enough you can pop down to the spa for some drawings, but without the building as a reference they look like little vinotherapy. The spa is run by the French company Caudalíe which more than top-class scribble. All credit then to Riscal that, with only offers a range of treatments, all of which involve wine. There is hydro- this and Gehry’s reputation (cemented by his Guggenheim Museum massage in the barrel bath, with a glass of orujo (grape skin brandy) in Bilbao) to go on, they gave him the commission. The new does not thrown in, or red wine extracts to help circulation. Then there are often sit comfortably with the old, especially when the old is Elciego, various exfoliating treatments, including a crushed cabernet or a merlot one of those ochre Spanish villages that seem to have hauled themselves friction scrub, which involve blends of grape seeds, oil and brown sugar. up from the earth a century at a time. The greatness of this building is that it not only harmonises with the old, the two enhance each other. Then, for those old fashioned types who prefer to take their wine When you come down the hill from nearby Laguardia and you get orally, there’s the restaurant, or rather, two restaurants, the Bistro 1860 the first glimpse of the rippling silver, pink and gold titanium roof, it and the Marqués de Riscal Restaurant. Both are overseen by Francis makes you catch your breath. “It is a beautiful building,” one local man Paniego, the first Riojan chef to be awarded a Michelin star for his commented, “and just like wine, I think it will get better with age.” restaurant Echaurren. José Ramón Piñeiro, formerly Paniego’s right- hand man at Echaurren, is in charge of the kitchen, which produces Architects like to claim that their buildings echo the local landscape a mix of traditional Riojan cuisine with vanguardista touches. The or embody some key feature of the culture, when what the layman menu de degustación is outstanding. The wine list is international sees is an ugly box that clashes with everything around it. But the and impressive, but given that you are sitting in Rioja’s longest- shape of the roof of the Ciudad de Vino really does echo the lines established vineyard, you could start by asking for the house wine. you find in any bodega, of row upon row of barrels and racks of bottles. The colours – pink, silver and gold – also represent Riscal Hotel room prices: wine in particular: pink for the wine, silver for the capsula (lead Grand Deluxe room €325-875 top) and gold for the distinctive maia, the gold net that encloses Executive suite €450-1,220 the bottle and which was devised to prevent 19th-century fraudsters Gehry suite €675-1,550 from passing off inferior wine in Marqués de Riscal bottles. [email protected]

12 Inside Spain

MaMallorcanllorcan étudeétude

When George Sand took Chopin to Mallorca in 1838 she hoped the soft Mediterranean air might cure her lover of the tuberculosis he had suffered from all his life. Instead, they found themselves in a rainswept monastery, shunned by the locals and saddled with two children begging to go home. Michael Bunn tells the tale of a 19th-century holiday in hell

14 Inside Spain she writes in her account of their stay, A Winter in Mallorca, “Enticed by lovely weather and delightful scenery... the first few days... went by in pleasant walks and rambles”. But then, three weeks into their holiday, the weather broke and the rain poured down with a vengeance. It was then that Sand and Chopin realised that their lovely villa was not as idyllic as they had first thought. Sand’s description brings to mind some of the shoddy tower-block hotels that sprang up on the Mallorcan coast 120 years later: “The walls were so thin that the lime with which our bedrooms had been whitewashed swelled up like a sponge.”

The temperature plummeted, the house became damp and the consumptive Chopin ominously began coughing and took to his bed. The news that one of the visitors was seriously ill was soon relayed to the villa’s owner, who promptly asked Sand and family to leave. Sand writes: “From that moment on, we became an object of horror and fear to the villagers.” The problem was, where could they go? No one would rent out property to someone with an infectious illness. Sand asked around for help and, thanks to the intervention of the French consul, they found alternative accommodation in Valldemossa, some 20km north of Palma, in the Serra de Tramuntana mountains. “The walls were so thin that the lime with which our bedrooms had been whitewashed swelled up like a sponge.” The Real Cartuja de Valldemossa, a Carthusian monastery that had recently fallen into disuse, is an imposing building that stands at the top of a hill a few miles from the north-west coast. Originally it was the palace of King Sancho who, legend has it, decided to build a home here allorca. For many people in Europe’s cold north, the very name of the island conjures up the idea of good times - lazy holidays spent soaking up the sun on golden beaches lapped by the glittering blue Mediterranean.M Every summer, the island’s population increases ten- fold as Brits, Germans and other inhabitants of harsh climates fly in for package holidays that for many represent two weeks in paradise. However, though mass tourism began in earnest in the 1960s, the island began attracting pleasure seekers from the north as far back as the previous century. Some returned home in raptures about their Mediterranean experience, others were less enthusiastic.

Perhaps the most well-documented Mediterranean holiday disaster was when, in the autumn of 1838, the novelist George Sand travelled to Mallorca with her two young children Maurice and Solange and her lover, the composer and pianist Frederick Chopin. Sand had decided to take the delicate, sickly Chopin (who suffered from tuberculosis for most of his life) away from the bitter cold of winter in Paris to a sunny Mediterranean idyll where he would be restored to health and could indulge his creative powers to the full, inspired by the stunning natural landscape that Sand’s friends had described to her. The plan was simple: they would find a charming little country house to rent, Sand would continue work on her latest novel, Chopin would compose to his heart’s content on a custom-made piano which they would ship in from Paris, while the children would play happily in the Mallorcan countryside. It would all be just perfect.

Everything went to plan at first: they arrived at Palma on the ferry from Barcelona, filled with high hopes in spite of the fact that they had had to share the crossing with a cargo of two hundred pigs, which proved a shock to the delicate noses of the French party. In a matter of days, the resourceful Sand had rented a small villa just outside the town. As

Inside Spain 15 in the early 14th century because the mountain air eased his asthma. Pleyel firm of Paris, had still not arrived. Or rather, it had arrived at Sand may have heard this story and thought that it sounded like an Palma, but the port authorities had immediately slapped a 700-Franc ideal spot for her lover’s health problems, but once again the fates were import tax on it - a sum that was almost as much as the instrument against them; despite the altitude, the air in Valldemossa was just as had cost. And so Chopin, when he was not languishing feverishly in damp as it was in Palma, influenced no doubt by the fact that the winter bed, was forced to use the monastery’s tiny piano. It was a wretched of 1838-39 was one of the wettest that Mallorcans could remember. instrument that made a dull, plunking sound, and the spirits of the exquisitely sensitive composer must have plunged to new depths After a perilous journey by horse and coach, Chopin, Sand and her as he attempted to coax melodies from the stubborn keyboard. children arrived at the Cartuja, pursued by powerful gusts of wind and lashing rain. Chopin was spitting up blood by this time, and As for Sand, she was by now heartily sick of the whole venture, and must have begun to fear the worst; when he was 16, he and his 14- confesses that she would have gone straight home if Chopin had year-old sister had been sent to a TB sanatorium. He had recovered, not been so ill and weak. Biographers agree that this holiday was a but she had died, and his mood must have been sombre as he entered turning point in their relationship, changing it from a passionate the vast, echoing building and felt the chill wind whistling down the love affair into one of nurse and chronic invalid. Though they were long, gloomy corridors. Even so, a lifetime of ill-health had helped the to stay together for a further eight years, this was the point where composer develop a sharp line in gallows humour. In a letter to a friend the romance began to wane. Perhaps it was this frustration that in Paris, he complained about the incompetence of the doctors he had she transferred onto the Mallorcan people, whom she referred to seen in Palma: “The first [doctor] said I was going to die; the second as “monkeys”. In her opinion, they were a thieving, dull-witted, said I had breathed my last; and the third said I was already dead.” inhospitable rabble with a particular hatred of foreigners. She complained that every time she bought food she was charged The dysfunctional little family set up home in one of the monks’ cells, prices that would have been outrageous in any market in Paris. though “cell” is an inaccurate word to describe the suite of spacious And it was no use getting angry, since “at the least observation, rooms with large windows that offer a breathtaking panoramic view the peasant would put his onions or potatoes back into the sack, of the valley which runs down to the coast. Spacious they might have and say to us with the air of a Grandee of Spain, ‘Do you not been, but the rooms were just as chilly as their last port of call, so the want them? Then you will not have them’, and he would retire indefatigable Sand commissioned a blacksmith to make her a pot- in a highly dignified fashion”. She also complained that the bellied stove which, once installed, helped to take the chill off the air. servants she hired were constantly stealing from her larder, until Meanwhile, Chopin’s precious piano, specially made for him by the she and her children were forced to take turns standing guard.

16 Inside Spain A Winter in Mallorca bristles with anti-Mallorcan invective, as Sand avenges herself on those who had treated her in such a humiliating manner. Sand had been born into the aristocracy (her real name was Amandine Aurora Dupin, Baroness of Dudevant), and she was not accustomed to such treatment. But with all the arrogance of the blue-blooded, she had failed to comprehend the reasons for the locals’ hostility. Word had spread that the couple were not married, that she was a divorcee and the two children were hers from a previous marriage. Living in sin was bad enough in the eyes of the fervently Catholic Mallorcans, but forcing two young children to share in their evil-doing was unpardonable. But it was Sand herself who most provoked the Mallorcans - a proto-feminist, she made no effort to conform to the contemporary stereotype of the “weaker sex”, and she displayed a self-confidence and a formidable intellect normally only seen in men. That was all very well in the salons of Paris, but not in small-town 19th-century Spain. As if that were not enough, the visitors had outlandish habits: Sand smoked cigars and wore trousers; her daughter also wore boy’s britches, while her son and lover wore their hair long. And, most damningly, they never went to church. Add to this the fact that the gentleman of the party had the pallid skin and cadaverous appearance of a vampire, and it must have seemed to the God-fearing folk of Valldemossa as if Today, Valldemossa is an attractive little town that has succeeded the antichrist and his family had dropped into their village for a visit. in turning Sand and Chopin’s brief stay into a thriving tourist industry. Visitors can wander through the rooms in which Chopin In fact, though he had fallen dangerously ill, Chopin survived the ordeal and Sand lodged (complete with the monastery’s primitive piano and even managed to compose some of his finest preludes at the Cartuja and the Pleyel, brought back from Paris after Chopin’s death), (including the one known as the “Raindrop” prelude, said to be inspired where they can get some idea of how cold and uncomfortable the by the rain that beat implacably against his window as he played). His couple’s stay must have been - even in mid-June there is a distinct Pleyel piano was finally released from customs in early February of chill to the air inside the monolithic building, with its two-metre 1839, but the couple had already decided to go home. They had all had thick walls; God only knows what it must be like in January. enough of Mallorca, and 12-year-old Solange was so desperate to return to her home comforts that she used to dress up as a ghost to terrify “The12-year-old Solange was so the superstitious Chopin into leaving Valdemossa. They set sail from Palma in mid-February of 1839 to travel back to Sand’s manor house desperate to return to her home outside Paris, where she nursed him back to health. His subsequent comforts that she used to dress up six-year stay at Sand’s home proved to be the most productive period in his life in terms of creative output, and he composed most of his as a ghost to terrify the superstitious polonaises, mazurkas and nocturnes there. But Chopin’s health never completely recovered from his arduous Mallorcan holiday, and he died Chopin into leaving Valdemossa” in 1847, at the age of 39, two years after having separated from Sand. During the high season, short piano recitals are offered daily to visitors at the Cartuja’s auditorium, while every August there is the Valldemossa Chopin Festival, at which renowned international pianists give concerts of works by Chopin and his contemporaries. Past festivals have seen performances by such maestros as Alfred Brendel and Shura Cherkassky.

Ironically, the Mallorcans had the last laugh - the book Sand wrote to avenge herself on the island spawned one of Mallorca’s most popular tourist attractions, visited by thousands every year. Lying in the heart of a mountain range that has become a Mecca for hill-walkers, Valldemossa and nearby Deià (the adopted home of English author Robert Graves) are light years away from the island’s stereotypical image of sun, sea, sex and sangría. But do take Chopin’s advice: if you plan on visiting in winter, remember to take your raincoat and umbrella. www.valldemossa.com www.festivalchopin.com

Inside Spain 17 sports In the zone

Self doubt? Inferiority complex? Whatever the reason, in all but a few sports Spain have tended to punch below their weight. Now, with the Euro Championships won in style and Rafa Nadal’s epic Wimbledon triumph, it looks like the gloves are off. Michael Bunn checks the score

18 Inside Spain sports

Federer’s attempt at six Wimbledon titles was frustrated – just as Borg’s was in 1981 – by a 22-year-old upstart; Federer’s nemesis was Nadal, while Borg’s was a mercurial young American by the name of John McEnroe.

One of the most astonishing features of Federer vs. Nadal was the Spaniard’s mental strength – the way he managed to win the fifth set after seeing Federer raise his game, midway through the rain-interrupted afternoon, to level after having been two sets down. Later on, Nadal revealed that after having lost the third and then the fourth set, he sat down at the break and thought to himself: “I’m playing well. I can win this.” It is this staggering self- confidence and ability to focus – together with his remarkable speed and physical strength – that will unquestionably lead him to become one of the greatest tennis players in history, possibly even eclipsing Federer’s record.

“One of the most astonishing features of Federer vs. Nadal was the Spaniard’s mental strength – the way he managed to win the fifth set after seeing Federer raise his game, midway through the rain-interrupted afternoon, to level after having been two sets down”

Thus Nadal is set to take his place in the pantheon of individual Spanish sportsmen and women who have shone brightly on n the eve of the Beijing and Germany. Then, exactly a week later, and the international stage over the past few Olympics, Spanish sports fans in a match that seemed as if it would never decades. The list is a long, impressive one can be excused for feeling end, Spain’s Rafa Nadal overcame his own that would do credit to any nation, and uncharacteristically bullish personal bête noir – Roger Federer – beating includes such names as Tour de France Oabout their country’s chances of a big haul of the Swiss for the first time on grass to become winners Miguel Indurain, Óscar Pereiro and medals in the light of recent sporting events the first Spaniard to win the men’s singles at Pedro Contador, tennis players Conchita that have effectively ripped up the form book Wimbledon since Manuel Santana in 1966. Martínez and Arantxa Sánchez, Formula and scattered the pieces to the four winds. One champion Fernando Alonso, golfers Each victory was remarkable for different Seve Ballesteros and Sergio García, and the It was only a month ago that the first of reasons: Nadal’s because it was the culmination stars of MotoGP, Jorge Lorenzo (left) and two extraordinary things happened: first, of years of struggle against the seemingly Dani Pedrosa. But while these and many the eternal underachievers Spain elegantly effortless perfection of Federer, who was other individual Spaniards have succeeded in and efficiently beat all their opponents to looking to win his sixth straight Wimbledon climbing to the top of the international heap, win the Euro 2008 championships, and not singles title, and thus to surpass Bjorn inexplicably, Spain’s national teams have had only that, they managed to defeat two of the Borg’s record of five wins at the tournament. great difficulty in emulating their success – biggest footballing nations in Europe – Italy But amazingly, history repeated itself and until 2006, that is, when Spain’s basketball

Inside Spain 19 sports

deserted them since the last (and only) time they won a title – in 1964, when they beat Russia to win what was then called the European Nations’ Cup?

Writing in El País before the championship began, the journalist John Carlin predicted that Spain would do well in Europe 2008. He based his argument on the correlation between the enormous importance that the domestic Liga has for Spaniards and the relative lack of importance of Spain’s national efforts. “While the Spanish league is strong,” he wrote, “players will invest almost all their energy, commitment and hunger in their clubs. The national team is seen as something secondary, team won the World Cup in Japan, and consistently and impressively in every match a dessert that you pick at when your stomach then in June, when Spanish football finally (with the possible exception of the game is full.” But this year’s Liga was distinctly overcame its demons to win Euro 2008. against Italy who, typically, defended with humdrum and uninspiring, with Real Madrid nine men for most of the match). How did only emerging as winners because runners- The Spain team’s achievement in this this happen? How did Spain manage to regain up Barça and Villarreal played even more tournament was to deploy all the best features the confidence and winning ways that have haphazardly and apathetically than they did. of Spanish international football – their ability to keep the ball and frustrate opponents, coupled with their lightning counter-attacks – and to eliminate the worst elements, namely the terror that invariably took root in Spanish hearts when they were up against big opponents, causing normally dependable players to make silly, tragic mistakes. Remember when Spain played Nigeria in the 1996 World Cup group phase, and the ever- reliable goalkeeper Zubizarreta inadvertently palmed a soft cross into his own net? And out went Spain. Or Raúl’s missed penalty against France in the dying seconds of the Euro 2000 quarter finals? And out Spain went again. These heartbreaking moments came to define the international footballing history of the team known as “La furia” ─ they began each tournament accompanied by deafening media fanfare and joyous flag-waving, only to exit 10 days or so later, teary-eyed and shell-shocked, leaving Spaniards to wonder, once again, why their team were incapable of emulating the achievements of smaller countries – such as Czechoslovakia, Holland and Greece – that have succeeded in punching above their weight to win the Eurocopa.

However, in this year’s tournament, which saw teams such as Holland, Russia and Germany peaking and troughing almost from game to game, Spain were the only side that performed

20 Inside Spain sports

Inside Spain 21 In hindsight, this may have been a crucial decision; many commentators have highlighted the way in which the Spain squad played as a seamless, solid unit, and interviews and footage from the training ground suggested that a good atmosphere prevailed in the Spanish camp. To all accounts, this was not the case during the 2006 World Cup, when Raúl, not content with being captain of the side, elected himself as a kind of deputy coach, working closely with Aragonés to plan every detail of the squad’s schedule, from their training programmes to their meals to even picking the starting eleven. The bossy Raúl became an overbearing presence in the squad, especially for his younger teammates, while his trenchantly right-wing political views cannot have gone down too well with the Catalan and Basque members of the squad. And, in the same way that the youthful Arsenal squad breathed a collective sigh of relief when the domineering Thierry Henry left the club, one of the reasons for the relaxed confidence of this Spain squad must have been the fact that without the Raúl factor, they could interact as a team of equals, both personally and professionally.

“During the 2006 World Cup, Raúl, not content with being captain of the side, elected himself as a kind of deputy coach, working closely with Aragonés to plan every detail of the squad’s schedule”

There is no doubt that as a sporting nation, Spain’s star is on the rise, and let us hope that the victories at Euro 2008 and Wimbledon will have a knock-on effect for Spaniards competing in the Olympics in Beijing this summer. Over the years many theories have been put forward to explain Spain’s The sports daily Marca published a cartoon Inevitably, Aragonés must be given a large part sporting failure, especially in team sports. after the final in which Spain coach Luis of the credit for his team’s victory, and in the Favourites among them are the notion of Aragonés says at a press conference: “First face of enormous odds, on and off the pitch. a national inferiority complex and the lack of all, I would like to express my deepest When he took over as Spain’s coach in 2004, of a true sense of nationhood. But Nadal thanks to Barcelona Football Club for having the press immediately showered him with a shows no lack of self-belief, while the allowed Puyol, Xavi and Iniesta to spend barrage of criticism, and the deluge continued triumphant national football squad included the whole of last season doing bugger all, steadily, worsening after France knocked Spain five Catalans, a Basque, four players from so that they were fresh and ready for the out of the 2006 World Cup and becoming Madrid, two from Asturias and one from European Championships.” But joking aside, torrential earlier this year when the “Wise Andalucía. Maybe it’s just, as every England and according to Carlin’s theory, the insipid man of Hortaleza” (as Aragonés is known) football fan knows too well, that losing is Liga may well have spurred the Spanish opted to leave the darling of the press – iconic habit-forming. Spain, it seems, have finally players to greater efforts in the Eurocopa. forward Raúl González – out of the squad. kicked the habit and found the will to win.

22 Inside Spain Inside Spain 23 style

Keeping cool

They go to bars, they go to clubs. And festivals, fairs and flea markets. They’re watching you, your gestures, the way you talk and the way you dress. They’re the coolhunters. Marta Wendlinger goes stalking

24 Inside Spain style

the latest trends are interpreted and recreated within the Mango brand.

Tino, who studied at the London College of Fashion and London’s Central St. Martins College of Art, defines how he sees a coolhunter. “It’s a person who’s looking for information or analysing what’s happening in the world or in a specific industry. He or she has a certain type of sensibility or a unique ability to catch something … that something will later become a trend. But then of course that trend must be adapted to the market. It could be anything: an urban tribe, an art exhibit, a restaurant opening, or an up-and-coming band. Companies in all industries need these professionals to be their eyes and ears because it’s so competitive out there and products have to ‘arrive’ at the right time in the market in order to reach the mass consumer.”

Companies carry out coolhunting in different ways. Some use external coolhunting firms which produce reports detailing emerging and declining trends, others keep the work in-house, while some use open-source coolhunting done online. Their specific methods also vary: some favour focus groups, others use undercover coolhunters who are part of the target demographic themselves, or conduct online surveys and enter chat rooms or web groups posing as an individual within the target group to gather crucial information.

“At Mango we do a lot of different things,” Tino says. “We look at the most important fashion trend forecasting webs such as WGSN [a global service providing online research, trend analysis and news to the fashion, design, and style industries] and SHOWstudio [an online fashion broadcasting company that is pioneering live ry this out for dinner table related to technology, music, architecture fashion media] as well as fashion prediction conversation. “So, what do and gastronomy, and basically anything books. But what’s fundamental is our you do for a living?” “Me, I’m related to lifestyle and pop culture. The travelling. Most design teams visit the main a coolhunter.” The term first information gathered is then used by fashion capitals of the world (London, New appearedT in 1997 in a New Yorker article companies to keep them on the cutting edge York, and Paris) once every two months, entitled, “The Coolhunt” by Malcolm of the market and ahead of the competition. constantly searching for new trends at flea Gladwell who coined it to describe what markets and design exhibitions. Teams travel a friend did for a living. He was talking Celestino Garcia, better known as Tino, has to different areas depending on the product about DeeDee Gordon, the co-founder been a coolhunter and design coordinator line that they’re developing. For example, if of Look Look, a Los Angeles-based for the clothing chain Mango since 2003. one team is working on new styles for jeans, company which leads the market in trend He is based El Hanger Design Centre, they’d go to the West Coast of the United research for the global youth culture. in Palau-solità i Plegamans, a 35-minute States, but if a team is working on a new drive from Barcelona, where Mango has accessory line, they’d probably go to New The job of the coolhunter is to make its headquarters. It’s a beautiful, enormous York and check out everything having to do observations and predictions in changes of space, surrounded by fabulous art work with vintage. But once a collection is put new or existing cultural trends, above all and modern designs, where the entire together, all of the product lines are analysed in the realm of street fashion and designs creative department works and where so that there’s coherence between them.”

Inside Spain 25 fabrics, and the colours, mixed in with images from a specific era (since we have a wonderful archive) and develop the design idea for the entire collection. Then we do the sketches and the prototypes, and finally coordinate it all into the correct silhouette. That’s the most important part. The whole process takes from four to six months and approximately 50 people are involved. “My interests as a person develop into a clothing line which ultimately can change how a person sees and feels about themselves” “If something catches your eye, you always have to give it a twist while keeping in mind your end customer and the commercial side of the process. Once we have the prototypes, it’s filtered by the product selection team which decides on the number of products each store should receive and the entire collection is overseen by the design director and the art director.”

So where are the current “hot spots”, or rather, cool spots? For Tino, it’s Hoxton and Brick Lane in east London. “Since I’ve lived in London for over 11 years, it holds a special place in my heart and I’ve always felt that people in London express themselves through what they wear; they can be eccentric… mixing a classic look with a personal touch. Plus, in these areas, there’s a fabulous mix of cultures, a growing art and music community, amazing clubs and restaurants, and of course brilliant flea markets to choose from. It sort of reminds me of New York’s SoHo area 20 years ago, or the energy of Barcelona’s el Raval area.”

Trend-spotting is not an exact science and often fashions persist much longer than expected. Tino says: “What’s surprised me the most is that the 1980s are still here. “What threw me the All this information costs money, but trends to what we want to communicate then Mango has 1,133 shops in 90 to the public while absorbing what’s most was about three countries and had a turnover in 2007 happening around us. We have our own years ago when leg of €1.3 billion. It has an annual growth handwriting,” says Tino, adding that a trend rate of 10% and this year will invest “can come from anything: an idea, a film, warmers returned” €100m in development. Coolhunting is an art exhibit … Then the design team a small fraction of the general overhead. gets together and decides whether it could Every season we see something: square inspire and generate interest in others. For shapes, kimono-type sleeves, an emphasis “What distinguishes us from other brands example, from a vintage bag that we bought on the waist, large shoulder pads. But what is that we have our own style; we adapt the in New York, we decide on the prints, the threw me the most was about three years ago

26 Inside Spain style with the return of leg warmers! I didn’t expect that it would be such a big trend. Fortunately we reacted quickly and put products in the market at the right time. More recently I’ve been surprised at how leggings have become a massive trend. I know friends who had always said, ‘Oh… I’d never wear that!’ But then a style requires you to wear it, so it becomes a must-have item.”

What attributes make a good coolhunter? “One of the most important things is having lived in different countries and absorbing the experience from other cultures,” Tino says. “If you’re too French, too Spanish, too Chinese, or too American… it’s just not going to work. You have to be sensitive enough, appreciate different things and analyse things from different perspectives. Of course another thing that helps is a background in design and fine arts and some commercial sense.”

He, at least, is happy in his work. “Working in trend research for Mango is a wonderful experience,” he says. “My interests as a person develop into a clothing line which ultimately can change how a person sees and feels about themselves. Clothing can be very deep, you know… My position here allows my creativity to become a product in itself, something that will arrive in the shops at the right time. It’s a constant challenge but I love it.”

Inside Spain 27 Iberian wildlife in peril The Iberian lynx is the world’s most endangered cat. Once it was found all over Spain but has now been reduced to two locations in Andalucía, Doñana National Park and the Sierra de Andújar. The total number is thought to be as low as 100. While there is now a fairly healthy population of 1,500 breeding pairs of Golden Eagles in Spain, the brown bear has been driven into two remote and widely separated regions in western Asturias, where there may be as many as 100, and Cantabria, where it appears that no more than 20-30 survive. Photographs: Carlos Sanz

beyond the 18th hole

de Burgos, the soprano Eva Mei and the Asami Maki Ballet company from Tokyo. The pick of the festivals, Santander, until September 1 concerts and exhibitions www.festivalsantander.com across Spain this month

Cante de las Minas

The Festival of Cante de las Minas is one of the most important dates in the flamenco calendar, with singers, musicians and dancers performing at the old Public Market. The festival ends with a public competitions between vocalists and dancers. The bill includes Sara Baras, Enrique Morente (above), Esperanza Fernández and Julián Estrada.

La Unión (Murcia), August 2-12 www.cantedelasminas.org

Ola Festival

Star attractions at the one-day festival include Björk (below), Massive Attack and Goldfrapp, plus many more.

Playa de Guardias Viejas, El Ejido (Murcia) August 15 www.olafestival.es

Fiestas at each other (above). This is the culmination of a week of festivities, including a paella Fiesta de Albariño cooking competition. The tomatoes start to fly at 10am – don’t wear your best clothes. One of the biggest wine festivals in Spain and a major event in the Galician calendar is Buñol, (Valencia), August 29 celebrated over five days with music, theatre, www.latomatina.es fireworks and, of course, eating and drinking in the town of Cambados, near Pontevedra. Music Festivals Cambados (Galicia), from August 3 www.galiciagastronomica.com Santander International Festival

La Tomatina The classical music festival celebrates its 57th year with tributes to Olivier Messiaen, As many as 40,000 people gather in this small Puccini and Rimsky-Korsakov. Performers town to throw some 100,000kg of tomatoes include the conductor Rafael Frühbeck

30 Inside Spain Inside Spain 31

beyond the 18th hole

Munilla Jazz Festival Camino trio, Miroslav Vitous, Anna Maria Zaragoza, 14 June – 14 September Jopek (bottom left) and Ray Gelato. www.expozaragoza2008.es Mulata Groove, Ulrico Calvo and the Spring Onions are among the local talent Barcelona, until August 31 Festival Castell de Peralada at this festival, now in its fourth year. www.masimas.com The annual festival held in the castle Munilla (La Rioja), August 17-19 grounds includes a recital of Bach’s cello www.larioja.com Concerts suites by Fernando Arias, Judith Jáuregui playing Chopin’s preludes, a performance of Jazz Sa Pobla Bettye Lavette Puccini’s La Bohème, flamenco from Dulce Pontes and Estrella Morente, a musical Featuring John Zorn’s Acoustic Masada setting of Lorca’s Romancero Gitano plus this and the Big Yuhu Hot Band. summer’s ubiquitous acts, Diana Krall and Chucho Valdés, along with many more. Sa Pobla, Mallorca August 6-26 www.ajsapobla.net/jazz Castell de Peralada, Girona, July 17 – Aug 17 www.festivalperalada.com XII International Guitar Festival Cap Roig Festival The festival, held close to the mediaeval city of Cáceres, combines concerts with A very mixed bill of pop, jazz and Latin courses in guitar playing and competitions. includes Pink Martini, Kool and the Gang, Performers include Manolo Sanlúcar, Eduardo Omara Portuondo, Chick Corea and Joaquín Isaac. Carles Trepat and Ricardo Gallén Cortés and winds up with a performance of Beethoven’s Ninth conducted by Lorin Maazel. Coria, (Extremadura), August 4-11 www.guitarracoria.com Cap Roig, Girona, July 11 – August 24 www.caproig.cat

Pollença Festival

Classical music festival held in the north of Mallorca includes performances of Verdi’s Requiem Mass, a recital by the soprano Maria Guleghina and a performance by Veteran soul singer still has the voice (above). the Academy of St Martin in the Fields. Plaza Mayor, Gijon (Asturias) August 13 Pollença, Mallorca July 4 – August 30 Schubertiada www.festivalpollenca

Annual Schubert festival in the Romanesque church of Vilabertran in northern Catalunya features concerts by the Casals Quartet (right, © Luis Montesdeoca Domínguez), the baritone Matthias Goerne, the mezzo-soprano Angelika Kirchschlager and pianist Iván Martín. Masimas Festival Vilabertran, (Catalunya)

This year’s line-up incluyes Dee Dee August 17 – September 6 Bridgewater (above), Tania Maria, Michel www.schubertiadavilabertran.cat

Expo Zaragoza 2008

Billed as the biggest water festival on earth, Expo stages a series of events from concerts to conferences, themed around the ever-more pressing issue of water supply. The Expo site will also host concerts through the summer. Acts include Gilberto Gil, Antony and the Johnsons, Paul Weller and Patti Smith.

Inside Spain 33 beyond the 18th hole

Theatre Festivals Madrid La Rioja

San Javier Festival of Theatre and Dance Museo del Prado Musep Würth

The Renaissance Portrait (bottom “Mundos, Cuerpo y Alma” is a journey, a left). From Pisandello to Rubens. glimpse, a window to other worlds created June 3 – September 7 by the hand of this Portuguese artist, José de Guimarães (below). Cy Twombly – the Lepanto series June 28 – September 28 www.museodelprado.es

Museo Thyssen Bornemisza

Avigdor Arikha. Until September 7 The line-up of the month-long festival, now in its 39th year, includes major companies Miró: Earth – A retrospective from such as Els Joglars (above), La Abadía, 1918 until his death in 1983. La Cuadra, La Fura dels Baus, Ur Teatro, Until September 14 Dagoll Dagom and Els Comediants. www.museothyssen.org

San Javier, (Murcia), until August 22 Bilbao www.murcia.com/sanjavier Guggenheim Museum Merida Classical Theatre Festival Surreal Things – includes Dalí’s Mae Performances include Euripides’ The West’s Lips sofa and Lobster Telephone and Trojans, Sophocles’ Oedipus Rex and Oppenheim’s Table with Bird’s Legs. Shakespeare’s Timon of Athens. March 4 – September 7 Merida, June 21 – August 30 www.guggenheim.org May 1 – November 2 www.festivaldemerida.es www.museowurth.es Valencia Barcelona Exhibitions Ivam Institut Valencià d’Art Modern Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya The IVAM retrospective exhibition dedicated to Alberto Corazón (below) is Duchamp. Man Ray. Francis Picabia (top next the most important to date in this country. page, L’ull càmera. c. 1919 © Francis Picabia, Conceptual works of painting and sculpture. VEGAP, Barcelona, 2008) – brings together 1968-2008. some 300 works by the Dadaist artists.

June 19 – September 14 June 26 – September 21 www.ivam.es www.mnac.es

34 Inside Spain Inside Spain 35 beyond the 18th hole

how cinema has influenced photography with members of the famous Magnum agency paying homage to directors such as Rossellini, Tarkovsky and Kieslowski. JG Ballard (bottom left) “autòpsia del nou mil·leni” An exhibition dedicated to the English author of stories and novels who is considered to be among the most essential and intelligent voices of contemporary fiction.

July 22 – November 2 www.cccb.org

Museu d’Art Contemporani de Barcelona Fundació Miró Barcelona

Nancy Spero (above, The Acrobat © Nancy Spero, 2008) – pioneer of feminist art and leading figure in the New York protest movement of the 1960s and 1970s.

July 4 – September 24 www.macba.es Museu Picasso de Barcelona

Forgetting Velázquez: Las Meninas (below). In 1968 Picasso donated 58 works he produced in his interpretation of Velázquez’s Las Meninas.

Until September 28 www.museupicasso.bcn.es Olafur Eliasson, “La naturalesa de les coses” (above) © Olafur Eliasson VEGAP 2008. All rights reserved.

June 20- September 28 Centre de Cultura Contemporània www.fundaciomiro-bcn.org de Barcelona Palma de Mallorca Mágnum (above). 10 Sequences – Cinema and the Photographic Imagination looks at Museu d’Art espanyol contemporani (fundación Juan March)

Exhibition of Joan Hernández Pijuan (above), “La distancia del dibujo” a comprehensive retrospective of works on paper by this artist who made space the absolute protagonist of his work. His reflection on nature turns to landscape.

June 5 - October 18 www.march.es

36 Inside Spain Inside Spain 37 food & drink

denominación was belittled by the epithet “table wine”, by coming up with “branded” wines such as Sangre de Toro and Viña Sol. The latter is the best-selling white wine in the UK. However, Torres is an international firm with vineyards in Chile, California, Priorat and Ribera del Duero, as well as producing top class wine such as Mas la Plana at their home base in Penedès. The Vinoteca serves as a shop window where, unusually, they sell even their best wine by the glass, enabling customers to sample the range without having to commit themselves to spending €40-50 for a bottle.

When you enter the Vinoteca you are confronted by floor-to-ceiling racks of the 50 or so wines Torres produces. You then enter the dimly-lit bar and restaurant area, designed to evoke a wine cellar, with oak bars and tables and magnified topographical maps of Penedès showing the location of the various vineyards. The food is traditional Spanish and Catalan cuisine, supervised by the chef Manel Jiménez Pardo, whose CV takes in some of the best kitchens in Catalunya. La Vinoteca: more You can order snacks or a full meal, with the freedom to order a different glass of wine than just a wine bar with each course. The kitchens close at 1am but the Vinoteca stays open until 2am. ine tourism is not nearly as well developed in Spain as it Passeig de Gràcia 78. Tel. 93 272 6625 is in France or New World www.lavinotecatorres.com

countries such as Australia Tours of Bodegas TORRES andW New Zealand. Perhaps because Spaniards Monday to Friday, 09:00 to 17:00 are not geared up to buy their wine direct from Saturday, 09:00 to 18:00 Sundays and holidays, 09:00 to 13:00 the vineyard, or because the bodegas in general Closed: 25 and 26 December and 1 and 6 January. haven’t seen the marketing potential in opening Entrance fee: Adults €5 (tour includes tasting and commentary). to the public, offering tastings and so forth, the “rutas del vino” that have been established in la Rioja, Penedès and elsewhere are often quite disappointing. The more savvy growers have opened shop fronts where their wines and other local products are on sale, but just as often the bodega will be shut or there is no one there whose job it is to deal with the public.

Torres, already an exception to this rule, having run for some years tours of their bodega near Vilafranca del Penedès, have taken this a step further by taking their wares to the public via a restaurant-cum-bar-cum-bodega concept that they call the Vinoteca. In addition to the Vinoteca at La Roca del Valles north of Barcelona, and another close to the Cistercian monastery of Poblet in Tarragona, they have opened a new establishment on Barcelona’s most prestigious street, the Passeig de Gràcia.

Torres was one of the first winemaker to get round the restrictions of the denominación system, whereby anything without a

38 Inside Spain food & drink RiojaRioja renaissancerenaissance

aving produced its 1970 the right to as it was growing cabernet before Reserva: Wines that have been aged in “miracle vintage” it appears that the restrictions came into force. Purists insist American oak for a minimum of one year Rioja wines, rather like those that Cabernet Sauvignon is from outside and in the bottle for two years. In practice of Bordeaux, started to rest on the tradition, although so-called traditional a large number of houses age their wines theirH laurels, charging high prices for average Rioja was developed by the French in the in oak for two years. Many Reservas are wine during the 1980s. The growing taste for 19th century. Tempranillo is the grape at the ideal for drinking when 5-7 years of age, full-bodied, reasonably-priced wines from heart of Rioja, but on its own Tempranillo is but in the best vintages they will improve. Australia and Argentina served as a wake-up limited, which is why it is generally blended call and by the 1990s the industry began to with one or more of the others, although Gran Reserva: Wines that have been aged modernise its techniques and its marketing, usually in small percentages. Garnacha in American oak for a minimum of two especially as Rioja also faced increasing raises the alcohol level and enhances the years and in the bottle for three years. Gran competition from inside Spain, in particular flavour, Mazuelo adds tannin and Graciano Reservas are often excellent from 7-12 years from Ribera del Duero and Penedès, though improves the bouquet. Nevertheless, some but some will age for 20 years or more. neither have come near Rioja in terms of of the top Riojas are 100% tempranillo. sales. Even in Catalunya, well supplied with The wine may also be a blend of several In recent times by far the best vintages Penedès reds, Rioja remains the best seller. vineyards because most of the grapes come were 1994 and 1995, but these are already from small farms, often of less than an acre. expensive. Both 2001 and 2004 are classed In a bid to protect its name or, you might As a result there is little estate bottled wine. as excellent years and Reservas from the say, its brand value, Rioja wine production former are now on the market. There are has come under various restrictions since the While Rioja joven (young Rioja) is increasing hundreds of Rioja bodegas, the largest of start of the 20th century, although it has only in popularity, the traditional grading of which produce millions of litres of wine had a Denominación de Origen Calificada Crianza, Reserva and Gran Reserva has proved every year, and in these quantities quality since 1991. The wine must be made from a useful marketing tool and a guide to buyers is bound to be inconsistent. But over the a blend of five grape varieties: Tempranillo, to what they can expect for their money. past ten years or so the price:quality ratio Garnacha, Graciano, Mazuelo and Viura, The significance of the grades is as follows: has improved considerably and there are a white wine grape (Malvasía and white good Reservas to be had at little more than Garnacha are also permitted for white Rioja). Crianza: Ready for drinking but €10 a bottle. No Spanish wines featured Cabernet Sauvignon is not used, although must be not less than two years old, in Wine Spectator’s top ten for 2007, but a Marqués de Riscal, the oldest bodega, has including one year in the barrel. Rioja, Bodegas Muga 2004, came eleventh.

Inside Spain 39

health

hat has been daily dose of garlic cut cholesterol by 12% known for five over a period of only four weeks. Because it millennia in can also prevent blood clots from forming the East, is now it can reduce the risk of heart disease by as Waccepted medical fact in the West: much as 25% and stroke by up to 40%. garlic is good for you. Whether this is partly why Spaniards enjoy such Historically it has been used to treat longevity, despite their increasingly hypertension and snakebite, as well as its bad diet and obesity problems, is widespread use as an antiseptic, and now, in not clear, but solid research shows addition to the above-mentioned benefits, that garlic can help to ward off a it has been found to have lipid-lowering range of nasty conditions, even if it properties and, in the case of thrombosis, can’t protect you from evil spirits. can affect platelet activity. There is also evidence that it may reduce the risk of The plant’s anti-bacterial powers stomach and bowel cancer, though this is were recognised in the mid-19th less well documented. It appears not to century by Louis Pasteur and have any damaging interaction with other before the advent of penicillin medication. However, as it can prolong field surgeons used the juice bleeding times, it should be used with from crushed garlic to prevent caution by patients on anti-coagulants. septicaemia in wounded soldiers. The active ingredient is allicin Dosage is not well-established, but the which confers protection against consensus seems to be that one or two cloves strokes and heart disease, in a day is beneficial. Garlic loses many of its particular because it helps to medicinal properties when cooked, but if reduce cholesterol. Recent you dislike the test or fear “garlic breath” it is research showed that taking a widely available in tablet form or as a powder.

the blood-sucking females away, have been dismissed by many researchers, A Which? Once bitten, twice shy magazine study was unimpressed by the machines. Some lucky people naturally give off a scent that repels mosquitoes One of the downsides of summer, aside from maximum) are recommended for infants. but as yet scientists have been unable to the flies, are the mosquitoes, and the late The bugs don’t like the smell of vitamin B1 synthesise this into a commercial product. spring rains mean there’s more water about either, although to us it is odourless. The The best approach, it seems, is to cover for them to breed in, so prepare to be bitten. vitamin is excreted in sweat and, although yourself up, put insect repellent on exposed In the natural order of things, it isn’t clear the jury is still out on its effectiveness, some skin and make sure there is no standing what useful function is served by mosquitoes, studies suggest that even drinking beer, which water – even in buckets – in the vicinity. but over time they have developed sensory contains B1, acts as a repellent. equipment beside which even the smartest of Citronella oil, which can be burned modern weapons technology looks primitive. directly or in candles, is a natural They have chemical sensors that can sense product that is effective in warding off carbon dioxide and lactic acid – which we give mosquitoes and it appears that lemon off just by breathing – at a distance of over 30 eucalyptus and, to a lesser extent, metres. They are also attracted to chemicals peppermint oil also work. One study in sweat and sweaty people seem to get bitten claims that products containing 40% more. They also have heat sensors and as lemon eucalyptus are as effective as black absorbs more heat than white, wearing those with high concentrations of dark clothing can also make you a target. DEET. Neem oil also appears to be an So what can you do to protect yourself, effective repellent. Those green repellent short of wearing a burkha all summer long? coils that burn like sticks of incense also Insect repellent is the answer, and above work, but they contain insecticide and all those that contain at least 30% Deet should not be used indoors. The little (N-diethylmetatoluamide), which disorientates bottles of repellent that you plug into the mosquito’s complex radar system. Studies the wall are effective and less noxious. suggest that Deet-based repellents, which Claims that high frequency machines have been around for more than 50 years, that replicate the sound of the male are safe, though weaker solutions (20% mosquito’s wing beats, and thus drive

Inside Spain 41

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NUMBER 1. JULY 2008 It’s a wrap The Hollywood ISSUEISSUE No.No. 22 AUGUSTAUGUST 20082008 conquistadors Up the creek Frank Gehry’s ISSUE No. 3 SEPTEMBER 2008 Spain’s water crisis city of wine The correfoc Brief Plastic Devil dancing encounter fantastic Your legal The cosmetic queries surgery boom answered For sale signs: Buy, sell or Mallorcan the best sit tight? étudeGet out more- Chopinof summerin Valldemossa fiestas and festivals Heroes and zeroes Earth,Earth, windwindSporting andand Spaniards firefire TheThe realreal powerpower strugglestruggle

The fall of the house of Barça

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high property prices mean that many Agency will pay for all repairs. The Agency Home to let young people are unable to afford their also offers a mediation service and legal own accommodation and so stay at home, assistance for problems with tenants. The often until they get married. Well aware downside to putting your property on the New government grants of this problem, the Spanish government Agency’s books is that you have to commit has created a series of incentives for both yourself to a let of at least five years, but and incentives make tenants and landlords in an attempt to this may not be a hardship if, in return, you renting out your property boost the rental market and encourage are guaranteed a monthly rental income. young people to become independent. an attractive proposition. Tenants aged between 22 and 30 can make Landlords also qualify for generous tax the most of a range of financial benefits. Not breaks. If your tenant is under 35, you Joanna Styles only does the government pay €210 a month pay no income tax on your rental earnings towards the rent, but also contributes €120 meaning that in effect, your rental income to the cost of a bank guarantee and there’s an is tax-free. If your tenant is older, you pay or years, foreign homeowners interest-free loan of €600 towards the deposit. income tax on half your rental earnings in Spain have shied away from Not surprisingly, the authorities have been and also benefit from deductions from letting. Expat lore is full of stories overwhelmed by the response with applications your final tax bill for expenses such as of landlords fighting for years to from some 130,000 young Spaniards anxious repairs, insurance and mortgage interest. evictF non-paying tenants and of properties to shake off the shackles of their papás. gutted by vandal renters. With Spanish These new measures make letting a home law traditionally favouring the tenant However, it’s potential landlords who are long-term in Spain very appealing and, rather than the luckless landlord, property set to receive the biggest benefits and the given the current slowness of the housing owners have not surprisingly preferred to let Government Rental Agency (Sociedad market, releasing a property onto the rental short-term to holidaymakers or leave their Pública de Alquiler) is going out of its way market may be a worthwhile alternative home empty and forego rental income. to make letting a property less traumatic. for homeowners unable to sell. The new The extensive list of incentives includes incentives also add to the attractions of Spain has one of Europe’s highest percentages grants of up to €6,000 for renovation work a buy-to-let investment. Buying now, of empty properties and also one of the or for essential repairs and a guarantee that letting for five years and then selling on continent’s largest proportions of under the property will be returned in its original when the market improves is suddenly 30s yet to fly the nest. Low salaries and state at the end of the let – and if it isn’t, the an interesting investment proposition.

44 Inside Spain property

particularly if you’re making a big profit and landing a large bill for capital gains tax.

In a buoyant property market, high buying and selling fees are usually absorbed by rapidly increasing house prices. This was certainly the case during the boom years – for example, in 2004 prices rose by 26.7% in Murcia so the profit from a purchase bought in 2003 and sold in 2004 more than compensated for high costs. However, when prices are increasing at around the rate of inflation (4 or 5%), it can take several years to recoup costs, let alone make a profit. Buying a property in today’s market is therefore a medium to long- term investment, rather than a means of making a fast euro. but some provinces increased by a healthy 3.9% (Huelva), 3.4% (Valencia) or 1.5% Choosing your timing is also important Wise buys (Málaga). So the first lesson in investment in and if you have the funds, many experts today’s market is to be cautious and before recommend buying during late 2008 and you commit yourself, take all the talk of early 2009, since this is when they predict Prices are falling but buyers bargains and recession with a pinch of sal. that prices will be at their lowest as desperate house-owners drop asking prices. However, should factor in the high Once you’ve located a genuine bargain, don’t before you reach for your cheque book, buying and selling costs forget to factor in buying and selling costs. remind yourself that the golden rule in These are both high in Spain – buying costs property investment is to only buy a property if they want to recoup are at least 10% of the purchase price (higher if you can afford to pay for the upkeep for as if you’re buying off plan) and selling costs long as it takes to sell it on. And in today’s their investment. can rise to double-figure percentages too, property market that could be a long time. Joanna Styles Ground Rules Your exit strategy is vital since an investment in bricks and mortar only bears its fruit hile the current Spanish when you sell. With this in mind, it’s best to invest in... property market may be bad Frontline beach and golf homes – eternal favourites with holidaymakers and second news for the seller, falling homeowners and these properties never lose their value. prices and predictions that houseW increases won’t rise above inflation for Under-priced properties – easy to find in the present market place, but make sure the next two years are music to the investor’s the property was not over-valued in the first place. ears. And with over two million properties currently on the market, Spain is literally Homes in need of some TLC – easy enough to find, but watch you don’t underesti- your oyster. However, there’s far more to mate renovation costs. successful investment than just being spoilt Properties in up-and-coming areas – houses near new AVE high-speed train connections, for choice on what to spend your money on. for example.

With the talk of bottom fishing in the Spanish Homes in an area hosting a major world-class event – for instance, the America’s Cup in market and the doom and gloom painted Valencia 2009. by daily media hype, you might be forgiven On the other hand, you should avoid like the plague... for thinking that half of Spain is for sale at bargain prices. Yet according to Ministry Over-priced properties – there are plenty of these, particularly two-bedroom apartments of Housing’s figures for the first quarter of bought off plan in 2004/5 at the height of the property boom. 2008, house prices actually rose in Spain. Studios or one-bedroom apartments – these are unattractive as homes and difficult to rent. The national average might be a mere 0.8%,

Inside Spain 45

news

Euro 2008 football championship. Alfredo Pérez Rubalcaba, Spain’s interior minister, also backed the idea, saying it was important for visitors to “have the possibility of using their own language to resolve a problem”.

Wages fall further

As though they weren’t low enough already, a significant increase in unskilled labour brought in to service the construction boom has reduced the average Spanish salary by 0.7 percent, according to the latest figures published by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). The report, which analysed the world’s 30 biggest economies in 2006, shows Spain ranking second after Portugal in terms of greatest drop in real salaries - after factoring in inflation. After losing ground for a decade, in 2006 gross average salaries fell further to €8,369 a year, according to the OECD.

Work begins on AVE tunnel

Work has begun at Bac de Roda in the north of Barcelona to dig an enormous hole from which the tunneling equipment will be introduced to bore the AVE tunnel under the city. The Madrid-Barcelona high-speed link opened in February and the tunnel will take the train from Sants, in the south, under the city so that it can continue on its way to the French border. Plans for the tunnel have been dogged by controversy and there is fierce opposition to the planned route as it passes under thousands of homes in the Eixample district and also within Lights out Governor of the Bank of Spain, has said a few metres of the city’s most famous that the crisis is likely to last longer than landmark, Gaudí’s Sagrada Familia temple. The Spanish parliament has voted to outlaw was indicated by earlier predictions. the traditional light bulb and replace it with low consumption bulbs within Police for tourists three years. The bulb, little changed since Thomas Edison came up with the idea in European interior ministers are planning to set 1879, uses up 90% of the energy it needs up temporary joint police stations in tourist simply in lighting up. Parliament was told areas and at major sporting events. Michele that there are 350 million light bulbs in Alliot-Marie, the French interior minister, said Spain, around 25 per household, and that that a pilot station would be set up in Lourdes replacing then with more efficient bulbs that for the Pope’s visit in mid-September. Her consume 3% less electricity amounted to a Italian counterpart, Roberto Maroni, said reduction of 6.5 tonnes of carbon dioxide that Franco-Italian stations would be in released into the atmosphere per annum. place as soon as August in French cities most visited by Italians - Paris, Versailles One million empty homes and Nice. The stations would allow for EU citizens visiting other member states to have A million new homes built in Spain are access to police from their home countries now expected to remain empty for at least who speak their language. The stations could a year. Latest data indicates the price of be set up for three months, for example, new housing fell by 2.5% during June. around tourist seasons, or one month for Miguel Ángel Fernández Ordóñez, the a large sporting event, such as the recent

Inside Spain 47 news

TVE wins football rights

Television Española, the national broadcaster, has won the contract to broadcast the Champions League football matches from 2009 to 2012, with permission to screen 18 matches on the open TV1 channel. Mediapro, major shareholder in la Sexta, has also won the right to broadcast some of the matches on pay-per-view.

Capital gains claims

Hundreds of Britons who sold a property in Spain between June 2004 and December 2006 have begun the fight to reclaim their money from the Spanish government, which overcharged them Capital Gains Tax by 20%. Over the past three months hundreds of Brits have registered average reclaims of more than £19,000 each – totalling more Air pollution condemned of madrileños by two to three years. The than an estimated £86m that British people environmental group said air pollution was have been overcharged. Non-residents were A report by the environmental Group the cause of an estimated 370,000 deaths in charged 35%, compared to a rate of 15% Ecologists in Action claims that 53% of Europe each year, including 16,000 in Spain. paid by Spanish nationals, a distinction Spaniards are exposed to air with dangerously They said that Catalunya was the only region that contravenes European Union rules on high levels of pollutants while 80% of that has taken effective steps to counter the discrimination. British people applying for a the Madrid population is subjected to adverse effects of air pollution, by lowering refund are also set to add on missing interest contaminated air. The group claims that poor speed limits and monitoring how many of at a rate of 6% (compound) to their reclaims, air quality is reducing the life expectancy its inhabitants are exposed to air pollution. meaning payouts could be even bigger.

12 Crossword 3 45 Across 6 3. Theme park near Tarragona · 6. Motorcycle champion 7. Edible crocus stamens · 8. Valencia festival 9. Dish made from breadcrumbs · 12. Gin from Menorca 7 13. Southern port · 18. Salt cod salad · 19. Strait sailor 8 22. Dublin Bay prawn · 23. Royal palace 25. City in Extremadura · 26. Spain’s second biggest river 910 27. Super judge 11 Down 12 1. Capital of Aragon · 2. Best-selling Spanish author 4. Smallest autonomous community · 5. Deeds to the house 13 14 10. Patron saint of Catalunya · 11. Madrid’s symbolic animal 14. Mock flamenco dancing · 15. Oscar-winning actor 16. Barcelona fashion chain · 17. Mallorcan shoemaker 15 16 17 18

20. Basque name for San Sebastian · 21. Little fish 19 20 21

22. Spain’s minister of defence · 24. Explosive rice 22

20. Donostia - 21. Boqueron - 22. Chacon - 24. Bomba 24. - Chacon 22. - Boqueron 21. - Donostia 20. 23 24

11. Bear - 14. Sevillana - 15. Bardem - 16. Desigual - 17. Camper 17. - Desigual 16. - Bardem 15. - Sevillana 14. - Bear 11. 25

1. Zaragoza - 2. Ruiz Zafon - 4. Melilla - 5. Escritura - 10. Sant Jordi Sant 10. - Escritura 5. - Melilla 4. - Zafon Ruiz 2. - Zaragoza 1. own:

D 26

23. Escorial - 25. Badajoz - 26 Tajo - 27. Garzon Garzon 27. - Tajo 26 - Badajoz 25. - Escorial 23. 12. Xoriguer - 13. Algeciras - 18. Esqueixada - 19. Magellan - 22. Cigala 22. - Magellan 19. - Esqueixada 18. - Algeciras 13. - Xoriguer 12.

27 3. Port Aventura - 6. Pedrosa - 7. Saffron - 8. Las Fallas - 9. Migas 9. - Fallas Las 8. - Saffron 7. - Pedrosa 6. - Aventura Port 3. cross: A

48 Inside Spain

ISSUE No. 3 SEPTEMBER 2008 The correfoc Devil dancing

Earth,Earth, windwind andand firefire TheThe realreal powerpower strugglestruggle

September Issue really spanish

the picture, run if you hear this one! meaning “I can’t believe you”, or Alucino con el precio de la fruta, meaning “I can’t believe the Talk the talk 6. ¡Tienes más cara que espalda! – price of fruit.” You’re so cheeky! / You’ve got such a (¡De verdad!) nerve! 9. ¡Qué fuerte! - No way! Cara (face) is often used to denote Perfect when you hear someone has been Part 2 cheekiness, so if your cara is bigger than unfaithful, or has passed an exam without your espalda (back), things must be bad! doing a stroke of work all year, or has received an amazing 50% salary rise. These amazing Ben Curtis and Marina Diez continue 7. No me tomes el pelo - Stop (in a good or bad sense) and somewhat their series on “real Spanish” with the Top winding me up/pulling my leg unbelievable situations are always worth a 10 Phrases for Sounding Really Pissed Off quick ¡Qué fuerte! in Spanish. After all, there’s nothing better Remember that in Spain they pull the hair, than being able to moan like the locals do! pelo, rather than the leg! 10. Montar un pollo – To have a go at someone The Magic 10 8. ¡Yo alucino! - I can’t believe it! For example, when a shop refused to 1. ¡Ya no puedo más! – I’ve had Literally, “I am hallucinating”, the Spanish exchange a camera I’d bought recently, enough! use this informal phrase whenever they are even though I was within the guarantee presented with an outrageous situation. Price period, tenía que montar un pollo enorme This is the instant, catch-all phrase to scream of bread gone up 200%? Yo Alucino... Your (I had to mount a big chicken!) before they in frustration when you just can’t take friend tells you they are going on holiday for would agree to give me my money back. something any more! It’s usually shouted when the tenth time this year? Yo Alucino... You storming out of the room! will often also hear Alucino used alone, or in For more cool Spanish from Ben and Marina, check out the conjunction with con, e.g. Alucino contigo, free Spanish audio and more at: www.notesinspanish.com 2. Eres un petardo – You’re a pain/a real bore

For example, ¡Eres un petardo! ¡Te pasas el día hablando de fútbol!, meaning, “You are a pain, you spend all day talking about football!” Also pretty handy is the similar ¡Eres un pesado!

3. Es un tostón / ¡Qué tostón! – It’s really really (really) boring!

Tostón literally means “big toast”, but in reality it’s used for the most insufferably dull things you can imagine. e.g. Esta película es un tostón, this film is really dull. It is also commonly used at events and gatherings, for example when you are bored in a class, ¡Qué tostón de clase!, or at a conference, esta conferencia ha sido un tostón, meaning, “this conference has been really dull”.

4. ¡Déjame en paz! - Leave me in peace!

Always delivered like the crack of a whip, this phrase means “get lost, now! I’ve had as much as I can take!” Ideal for when someone is going on and on at you, and you feel like you are about to explode!

5. ¡Te voy a dar! – You’re going to get it!

Homer to Bart Simpson... father to moody kid... girl to impossible boyfriend... You get Cartoon: Oriol Garcia i Quera

Inside Spain 51 brief encounter your legal questions answered

José Mª Sánchez is head partner at Andalusian Lawyers, specialists Andalusian Lawyers: (00 34) 952 479 268, in conveyancing, inheritance law [email protected] and all non-resident matters. www.andalusianlawyers.com

: We’re buying a townhouse off plan in Roquetas del Mar Q (right). The developer wants us to sign the title deeds and pay the outstanding amount on the property, but the council hasn’t issued the First Occupation Licence. Other buyers on the complex have already completed and say it’s not a problem, but we would like some professional advice on this before we sign on the dotted line.

Mr and Mrs P. Richards, Weston Super Mare.

: The first thing to remember about the First Occupation A Licence (Licencia de Primera Ocupación) is that if a property doesn’t have this, you cannot get utility supplies (electricity, water, gas and telephone) to the property. It’s therefore very important not to sign the title deeds or pay the final amount without this document. You should refuse to sign until the document is issued by the council. If the developer is putting pressure on you to sign without : I would advise you not to sign money, so we’re reluctant to go along with it (as many do), the best thing to do is to go or pay anything unless the bank the estate agent. What do you advise? to the notary’s office and sign a document A guarantee is available when you are stating that you are willing to sign the final due to sign. If the developer has provided Mr and Mrs C. Hyde, Denia, Alicante. title deeds when the First Occupation Licence a guarantee, your lawyer should check that is issued. This means you will not lose your all the details are correct. An additional down payments and still have the legal right point is that you should not be obliged to : You’re very right to be cautious and to buy. In any case, I would recommend pay any charges for the guarantee – the one of the golden rules of buying you consult your lawyer on this point. developer should be paid for these. A off plan is never to pay or sign anything unless the building licence has been issued. Never take the estate agent’s word in : We have seen an apartment we : We are keen to buy an apartment a case like this, but you should find out (or would like to buy in Marbella and in a new complex near Murcia. ask your lawyer to) if the licence has been Q next month we are due to sign the Q At the moment, the complex issued. This is easy to do – the Planning contract and pay €45,000. We understand that hasn’t got a building licence, but the estate Department (Departamento de Urbanismo) a bank guarantee should be provided when we agent assures us that this will be issued in at the council will be able to provide a copy. sign the contract, but the developer says the the near future and says we should sign If there is a licence, make sure it’s the same as bank guarantee will not be ready and he will the reservation contract and pay €3,000. the complex offered by the developer. If there give it to us afterwards. What should we do? However, we have heard stories about people isn’t a licence, wait until one is issued and paying deposits on properties without then commit yourselves. Or look elsewhere – H. Tucker and A. Brown, Edinburgh planning permission and then losing their there’s plenty to choose from at the moment.

52 Inside Spain