Tomorrow I head off to the(hopefully) sunny Costa del Sol. As I did in summer, I will be staying in Fuengirola and next week will be back studying at Colegio Maravillas . Just a one week intensive course (20 hours) from 19th until 23rd December - if it anything like summer then it should be very enjoyable.
I will update this thread as the week progresses.
Regards
Robbieroy

Saturday 17th December
Well, two days in to my holiday adn the weather has been great. The 18 degrees centigrade temperature bodes well for those heading to Andalucia for a winter break. However, rain is expected early next week.
Andalucia has had a shortage of rain like many other parts of Spain and reports say that there are enough water reserves for 10 months. The will put measures into place when the supply reaches 6 months. In the interim, sporting installations and schools are prohibited from using water between 8.00 pm and 8.00 am.
Went through to Benalmádena yesterday to sign up for my Spanish classes next week. It was nice to see the administration and teaching staff again. Everything was ready to be signed etc.
Benalmádena looks pretty with some nice floral arches bearing poncetia (that red Chritmas flower).
As I walked through the streets at 10.00 in the morning, flamenco music was being piped through loudspeakers and by 12.00 it had changed to villancicos (traditional Christmas music). ALl this gave the place a nice "feel"
Robbieroy

Monday 19th Dec
The weather continues to be very good. At the weekend I played quite a lot of tennis and on Saturday night we went to a Christams party at the tennis club. Last night I took a walk around Fuengirola looking at the Xmas lights. I will post a new thread on this with pictures when I return to Scotland.

At the school, I have been placed in the Superior class. There are five of us in the class - 2 Russians, 1 Hungarian, 1 Japonese and myself.
In the grammar clas were did some work from the DELE (Intermediate). The DELE is the Spanish exam for foreigners to obtain a qualification in Spainish.
In the converstion class were were also using DELE materials and had to talk about situation, presented as cartoons. This is a feature of the oral part of the exam.
The weather was less good today, quite cold and cloudy.
The activities for the week include a Xmas Party on Tuesday where everybody brings a plate of something typical of their own counry, I wonder if I should take some haggis? - Might be difficult to buy it here!
Also, the is a film night - Goya is been screened, there is tennis on Thursday and a drinks reception on Friday.

Tuesday 20th Dec
Party night tonight!
In the grammar class this morning we continued working through expressions, grammar and vocabulary from the DELE Intermediate Exam. It was mostly straightforward.
In the conversation class, whe had to choose between two given themes, were given ten minutes ten minutes to prepare an outline and then TALK NON-STOP IN SPANISH on our chosen topic - FOR TEN MINUTES. This was nerve-wraking, but we all more or less got through.
The weather continues to be cloudy and quite cold (8 degrees Celciau) during the day. What a change to the brilliant weather of last week.
For the party, I have decided to bring smoked salmon, shortbread and a bottle of Scotch - I can´t think of anything more Scottish than that!

Rob

Sounds like you are having a great time in Spain as always. The classes sound difficult but interesting. The activities sound like a lot of fun. Haggis would have been a bit too much.

The lights and decorations in Malaga, Benalmadena and Fuengirola are always very colorful. I can't wait to get to Fuengirola on Tuesday. My friends arrived there on Sunday and are having a great time. I will give you a call on the morning of the 29th to see when we can meet up.

Good luck with the classes and the tennis tournament.

Feliz Navidad....

Art

Hi Art
The good news for you is that the weather has pick up and we have nice blue skies this morning. I have been taking photos of the Xmas lights, but my camera seems to be going on the blink ' I thing that there is a problem with the memory card.
You might do me a favour when you are in Malaga nad get some photos of the lights there.
Look forward to the mini Madridman get together on the 29th. Have a great Xmas and a safe journey.
------------------------------------------------
On the tennis side, I have managed to play every day since I arrived, although yeaterday was a bit windy. During the night, it was stong enough to blow the umbrella in the patio into the small pool.

The party last night was good. There were about 30 people made up of students and staff. Lots of beer and sangria of course and a great selection Russian, Danish, Swedish and Scottish food.
It started at 8pm and I left about 11pm to catch the train through to Fuengirola.

In the afternoon, I took a trip to Marbell and walked around the casco antiguo (the old part of the town). Here are some images:

Here are some more photos taken in the old part of Marbella:










Well yesterday was one of the WORST days ever. I did not go to classes yesterday because....
After breakfast I went for a smoke in the kitchen. I did not go outside because it was very windy and things were being blown around. I did open the interior doors of the kitchen - these lead onto the patio.
I went upstairs to get changed and to leave for classes. When I came down, I noticed that the exterior doors between kitchen and patio were open...... I thought that this was strange...
I wen back inside and to my horror found that some items were missing from their usual position on the steps leading to the bedrooms.
What was missing...
my wallet with credit cards, bank cards and money (lots of it). Also my bumbag, and my digital camera and my mobile phone. Can you imaging the feeling in my stomach?
Well it transpired that during the ten minutes that I was upstairs, someone have forced the ourside doors (wreakers), had come in through the kitchen and stolen the items. J&der!

Well, the rest of the day was taken up cancelling my bank cards and mobile, telephoning the police to make a report and then going down to the comisaria to sign the report. All this took me until 4.00pm.
So right now, I am really p%ssed off!.

On the plus side, my Scottish bank was able to transfer some money for me to keep me going.
To be continued.....

Rob

So sorry to hear about the burglary. I just read in today's Sur in English an article about the robbing of houses on the Coast with their owners inside. Only objects of value that could be easily transported were stolen... money, wallets, jewels, camaras etc.

I hope the rest of your holiday goes well and that you do well in the tennis tournament. I got your message and I will meet you on Thursday morning.

Have a very Merry Christmas.....

Art

Saturday 24th December
Thanks Arturo. All this has really been a pain in the neck, and whats more, the rain arrived this morning!!!
I went back to school on Friday morning and we spent a lot of time in the grammer class doing grammer, vocabulary and expression questions from the DELE Superior exam. I found this fairly straight forward. In the conversation class we had again to talk unprepared for 5 minutes each on a choice of two topics - pretty nerve-wracking stuff, but great for your confidence. We also listened to some Spanish Xmas Carols or Villancicos. We finished early and the put on a Xmas party with a great selection of jamon, chorrizo, cheese, bread, black pudding (morcilla, bread and so own. The most outstanding thing was some home made olove oil which one of the teachers brought in -OUTSTANDING.
Well, tomorrow is a big day and four of us are off to the MArbella Club for lunch (not cheap) - fortunately this was paid for before the events of Thursday.
RR

Tuesday 27th Dec
The Marbella Club was outstanding for Xmas lunch. We arrived at 1.30 for a 2.00pm start and were presented with free glasses of champagne in the bar.
The lunch menu was great:
Consommé Escoffier with 1866 Cognac
Urta (fish)with tomato and basil and lobster ravioli
Traditional Turkey stuffed with Chateau potatoes and served with Parsnips and other vegetables
Christmas Pudding with hot brandy butter and
Coffee with christmas sweets and nougats.
The wine was of course free and there was plenty of it:
White wine - Jean Leon Petit Chardonnay - Penedés
Red wine - López Cristobál Crianza Ribera del Duero
There were opera singers who wandered around the dining room sining both Spanish and English Christmas Carols.
All very enjoyable and we left about 4.30 pm.

Yesterday, we had our first doubles match in the Club del Sol tournament and won quite easily against two Germans.
No match today.

I am in San Pedro de Alcántera at the moment as I have taken a freind through for an appointment. The small streets in the old part of the town are quite pretty.

Here are some photos I took using my PDA:

In the old town of San Pedro:









And here is part of the beach front at San Pedro:


[IMG]

Wed 28th December
I have come through to Colegio Maravillas this morning to hand in my evaluation form. Having arrived at 0930h, nobody was here except the cleaner! Having said "good moring" to her every day last week during my course, she knew me and let me in. So here I am with the school to myself, no teachers and no office staff, just the cleaner and the computers!
Looking back on the couse from last week, I really enjoyed the four days that I studied here. For me the best thing was the time spent in the vocabulary/conversation class. Having to speak on a topic for 5 to 10 minutes without much preparation has given my confidence a boost. In the grammar class is was interesting to do tests from the DELE Intermediate and Superior levels.
All in all, I would give the week a 9/10.

This afternoon we have a doubles match at Club del Sol Tennis Club, so hopefully we can progress futher in the tournament.

Tomorrow, I have arranged to meet up with Madridman Board Member "Arturo" in Fuengirola. This will be a mini-Madridman get-together. If any other board member is in the area, we are meeting at the Estación RENFE in Fuengirola at 0930h, please join us. We intend to head up to the Campo de Tenis Lew Hoad for a coffee.

Yesterday moring, I went through to the Pueblo Blanco of Mijas on a couple of errands. I tok the opportunity to take some pics:








The village looked very pretty in the early morning sun.

Sorry to hear about your robbery Rob. Spanish people tell me that unfortunately crime rates are higher the closer you get to the Med resorts. They do claim at the same time that crime is virtually non-existent in the north. So perhaps it's Asturias for your next jaunt?
You've had a lot of Spanish language spells this last year or so. Do you intend to take the DELE exams?

Hi Filbert - thanks for the support regarding the robbery. I got a phone call from the tennis club this morning to say the the administration office in the area where I am staying contacted them to some that some of my possesions had been found. The will have contacted the tennis club because my membership card was in my wallet. I will go to the administration office tomorrow to see what has been recovered and I will update on this thread. On the positive side, my Spanish bank card arrived yesterday, so at least I can now access funds easily.

Yesterday was a disaster at the tennis. In the doubles match, we won the first set easily by 6 -1 and then my partner totally "lost it" in the second set which we lost. We also lost the deciding tiebreak 10-8.
Now I hear that my partner has flu and may withdraw from the competition!

Today I met with board member Arturo and we took my car and went to the Campo de Tenis Lew Hoad for a coffee then we both headed to Coin. Neither of us had been there before. After another coffee, we found the tourist information office and got ourselves some maps and "did" the sights, all five of them!
Coin was interesting and after that we had some lunch of mixed salad and gambas al pil pil at a venta on the back to Mijas.
Here are some of the photos from Coin:

Plaza de la Villa:


Side Street:


Small Fountains:


Some local girls in fancy dress who went round the town handing hout sweets and singing Xmas carols:


The church of San Juan:


The fountain at the side of the church:


The square inside the Convento:


The exterior of the Convento:

Right now I have been helping an ex-pat fellow Scot sort out his computer.

Here are some more images of the visit to Coin:

The bandstand in one of the Plazas - they were setting up in preparation for New Year's Eve:


The old tower, which has been refurbished:




The Ayuntamiento:


A view from the edge of town:




Other pics:




--------------------------------------------
Saturday 31st December

update on robbery:
i went to the administration office and a security guard had found my wallet. In it were my bank cards and credit cards, alng with a photocopy of my passport and driver´´s licence and EU health card. Still missing are my actual driver´s licence and mobile phone and digital camera. I have givenup hope of recovering these.
I boughy myself a new moble phone last week. It was not tied to any company ("libre") and coast about 54 Euros. It is a Motorola and I am very happy with it.
I had canceled my Spanish SIM card and Vodaphone gave me a free replacement with the same tel number. The best thing about the phone it that it is in Spanish.
Friday was uneventful, with some shopping and chores in the moring and some tennis n the afternoon. It was a beautiful day and today is shaping up to be the same.
The end of year celebrations are almost upon us do a very Feliz Año Nuevo to all board members and guests.
Tonight, then of us are going to a Chinese restaurant (the same on as last year) and then going down to the squate in Fuengirola for the bells at midnight. the food was excellent last year and the price was right!

Tennis update
Can yo believe this: after our surprising defeat on Wednesday, my tennis partner felt unwell, so without consultaton with me, he scratched from all events and change his ticket an flew homw with his wife yesterday! They were meant to be staying until Monday 2nd January. maybe he should be my ex tennis partner!

Spanish update
I have been using a lot of spoken Spansh, more than ever so I feel that some progression has been made. As usual, the problem is, that wen I get home, the sponken Spansh drops off dramatically.

Well that the last of the blok for 2005.
All the best to everyone for 2006.

RobbieRoy

It was good to meet you on Thursday. I had a great time and enjoyed the trip to Coin. The gambas were very good that day and they are always my favorite in Spain. I am sorry to hear about your tennis partner. Unfortunately, I do not play tennis and can´t fill in for him.

The weather has been just great since I arrived on Tuesday. Yesterday I went to Marbella and today we walked to the castle in Fuengirola. On the way back we stopped for gambas at a chiringuita on the beach.

Tonight for New Year´s Eve we are having dinner at our frieds home in Los Boliches. We will then walk back to Fuengirola for the midnight celebration. We bought our grapes this afternoon. I will look for you in the crowd.

Feliz Año Nueve MadridMan and all of the board members.

Arturo

Here are some more images of Coin:







--------------------------------------------
Sunday 1st Jan 2006

The New Year's Eve festivities were very enjoyable. A group of 8 of us went to a Chineese restaurant in the cnetre of Fuengirola and ordered one of these meals for 8 people. The food just kept arriving at the table! Some of the dishes included:
Selection of rice, noodles, chicken, prawns, duck etcetera. With drinks beforehand and wine during the meal and of course a sweet and coffees, the price was incredible - 15 Euros per person.
Following the meal we went down to the Plaza de la Constitución, the main square in Fuengirola. This is where the town council put on a free party to see in the New Year. There square was crowded, with Spanish families and groups of friends enjoying the live band and the free Cava and Uvas de Suerte. I has organised some grapes and cava for our group to avoid possible queuing and disappointment. These were duely consumed on the strokes of the bells.

Today I did a few things around the house and played a little tennis. The weather was superb.

I also spent a little time getting thinks organised for my return to Scotland on Tuesday 3rd January.

Monday 2nd January
I decided to look at the diary in my PDA to see if I had any work-related appointments later in the week. On looking at the entry for Tuesday 3rd Jan, I noticed that there was no entry giving details of my flight back home (I usually keep the ref no of the booking in my PDA, just in case. However, there was an entry for Wednesday 4th Jan. I quickly checked my printout of the booling to discover that indeed, I was flying back on the 4th and not the 3rd - what a boost - and extra day in the sun!
I took the car to Marbella to visit a friend who was in hospital and then played a little more tennis.
In the evening a group of us went to a very up-market restaurnat - Partick Bausier in the Pueblo Lopez area of Fuengirola. Fantastic food but a price tag to match!

Tuesday 3rd January

I took advantage of this "bonus" day in Spain to go to the Tueday market in the Recinto Ferial in Fuengirola. There is a Tuesday market and a Saturday market. The Tuesday market is the best in terms of quality products at reasonable prices, whereas the Saturday market tends to be second-hand goods.

I bought 3 CDs for 24 Euros - two by El Barrio and one by Cameron de la Isla.

I have been to the Recinto Ferial several times befor but had never noticed the sculptures on the main pathway between the casetas. Here are some photos of them:









In the afternoon, I played more tennis and then collected a frien from hospital in Marbella.

Arturo - how did your trip go to the village near Ronda? I look forward to seeing some of the photos.

Rob

I also was in the market on Tuesday. They closed the market last year for repairs and the statues are new. I also bought 2 CDs of Spanish Guitar music.

Your pictures came out well. I have taken lots of photos and will send some to you when I return home. I have lots of photos of the lights in all of the towns.

Our trip to Campillos, Olvera and Setenil was very good. Setenil is a white village with the houses set into the cliffs. It was very interesting. After ten days of sun, this morning it is raining. My friends return home to NY tomorrow and I leave for Jaen, Ubeda and Baeza. I return home on Wednesday.

Feliz Dia de Los Reyes to all....

Arturo

Hi Rob,
Thanks for the diary and the photos, very enjoyable. El Barrio is in concert in Madrid the first weekend in April, I'm going, can't wait.

Arturo - enjoy the rest of your trip and hopefully we can read about it on the forum. I look forward to seeing the photos and also reading a review about your accommodation in those new locations.

Sallyanne - enjoy the concert and let us know how it went.

The pictures are great and I love the mural!!!
That is awesome!! Thanks for the pictures they are great!!!

I have been home now for 10 days and things have finally gotten back to normal. I have caught up at work and am over the jet lag. I have started editing my photos and will try to post some of the photos from Coin. I have to figure out how to post the photos.

Hi Arturo
Glad things are back to normal for you - same here and I am now thinking about my trips to Spain this year.
October in Madrid is a definite. I have booked the same appartment I was in last October in el Barrio del Palacio. Ultra central and quiet! I still have to book the flight though.
Easter I think with be Fuengirola and classes in Benalmadena. I need to think about summer because some circumstances have changed.
Regarding your photos:
1. Does you ISP provide you with free webspace? If so, upload you photos to you free webspace and then link to them from you posting.
For example, the image above of the "hat on chair" is stored in my free webspace. The image has the URL http://www.aszx02.dsl.pipex.com/images/xmas05/Market_07.jpg
so in my posting, I click on the IMAGE button and paste in the URL when prompted.
If possible, reduce the resolution of your photos. The ones above are only 640 x 480!
2. If your ISP does not give you free webspace then use putfile.com They provide you with free space. For example, if you go to www.putfile.com/robbieroy then you can see some media that I put there. The downside is that you have to upload the images one at a time.
Hope this helps.
RR

I think I've got it. Thanks...

RobbieRoy in Coin

Happy ending
This is an update for those of you who followed this tread and particularly the events surrounding the robbery that happened.
The outcome of the insurance claim was, fortunately, succcessful.
I ended up claiming through my Household insurance, since this allowed me to claim more than through my travel insurance. The net result was....
Mobile/cell phone: I received a replacement, but a newer model, since the one I had was fairly old. Currently it is still in its box and I am using the 50 Euro one I bought in Spain.
Digital camera: I had a fairly new Olympus C120, which I think was an "end of line". this was replaced by a newer model with x10 optical zoom and a larger CSD display. I am well pleased with it.
Money: the sums of money that were stolen (sterling and euros) were replaced in full. This despite not have the receipts for currency exchange. However, I was able to provide evidence (via bank statements) of withdrawals to purchase.
Wallet, bum bag and driving licence: I was reimbursed with the cas equivalent.

So, what advice would I offer fellow travellers to ease an insurance claim.
1. Keep all currency excahnge receipts at home so that you have clear evidence of purchase.
2. If you are taking a camera, mobile/cell phone or any other piece of ewuipment such as a laptop, make sure that you have kept some proof of purchase, including serial numbers etc.
Keep a photocopy of you passport and driving licence.
3. Only take the credit cards that you intend using and make sure that you have the telephine number for rapid cancellation.
4. If you do suffer from theft, them make sure that you report it to the police and complete and get a copy of your report.
It might help to have a list of the items that you ahve with you on holiday made out (with make, model, serial number and cash value). This will help the reporting process.
5. Whilst on holiday, try not to keep all your documentation, money, credit cards etc in the same place (unless it is in a safe). I was fortunate in that my passport was not with the items that were stolen.

Finally - theft of you posessions whilst on holiday does leave a sour taste in you mouth. However, take precautions before you go and while you are on holiday.
Don't panic if it happens to you. Know what you should do in terms of cancelling card and reporting to the police.
Instigate the insurance claim on your return. If you have all the necessary documentation and evidence, then this should go smoothly.
As the Spanish say: "A lo hecho pecho, seguimos adelante".
Robbieroy