Nativity Scene in Blanes

Today I went down to Blanes to do a bit of shopping in the outdoor market. At this time of year they usually have a large Nativity Scene set out at the end of the road where the fruit stalls are which always attracts a lot of interest from the passers by. Today though there wasn't as many people about so I decided to have a walk over to have a look.

Expecting to see the exact same set up as last year, I was pleasantly surprised ! It is completely different and also seems to be larger. The scene takes up all the end of the narrow road and is placed on raised platform as you can see from the photos. Many of the plants and trees are real with all the surrounding grass also being real. Making a very nice attraction, which a lot of thought and hard work has gone into.

The scene not only shows the Nativity, but also farmers working in the fields along side cows and sheep. There is also a small water feature with a waterfall. Its even worth a trip to Blanes to just see this !

New Hotels for Lloret?

Because of the lack of demand for the new apartments being built in Lloret de Mar, the construction industry has more or less come to a standstill. So new plans are now coming to light for some of the proposed sites.
Where possible some of the planned residential sites will be converted to hotels!

So what about all the people who have already spent thousands of euros buying their brand new apartment in this area, which should have maybe stood next to another private residential block? Its just possible that they will now end up with a new hotel and all the noise from it next to them.

What's the bets these new hotels will also be All Inclusive, of which there is already far too many of!

Meaning that more bars and restaurants in the town will be going out of business!!

A New Kind of Fag Run !

Some news from Barcelona today...Almost 9 million fake Lambert & Butler were found in a container by Customs and Excise officers. The cigarettes originated from Asia, and were found in a container at a depot in Girona, from where they were to be later transported to the UK.

Apartments in Barcelona to be raffled off !

A Spanish property developer said Tuesday it will hold a raffle to unload 31 apartments near Barcelona which have been difficult to sell amid a collapse in the real estate market.

Tickets for the raffle cost 50 euros (63 dollars) and they will go on sale on Wednesday, a spokesman for developer Grupo de Empresas Rob told AFP.

The company hopes to sell 7,000 raffle tickets for each apartment which will be awarded, meaning it would raise 350,000 euros per dwelling.

If the developer does not sell at least 6,500 tickets for a particular apartment, the raffle will not go ahead for that property and participants will receive a refund.

The raffle, which will be supervised by a notary, will be held in the coming months, the spokesman said.

All of the apartments -- which are between 50 and 90-square metres (970-square feet) -- are all located on the same street in the Barcelona suburb of Santa Coloma de Gramenet.

After a decade-long boom, Spain's property market began to slump last year due to rising interest rates, oversupply and tougher lending conditions introduced in the wake of the global credit crunch.

Property sales declined 28.2 percent during the first nine months of this year compared with the same period of 2007, national statistics institute INE said last week.

The drop in sales has led developers to come up with innovative promotions to try to sell properties.

In October another Spanish developer, Salsa Immobiliaria, offered a one bedroom apartment to anyone who bought one of its four-bedroom townhouses near the beach in Terrazas de Miraflores on the Costa del Sol.

In May a man who could not meet mortgage payments on his apartment near Madrid tried to organise a raffle to unload it but he had to call off the contest because he failed to get the proper authorisation.

Source: Google

Christmas in Lloret de Mar

All the Christmas lights are now on in Lloret and it really does feel that Christmas is not too far away...even the weather is very cold in the evening now. This is the Christmas tree in front of the town hall, not a very good photo as its only from my phone.
I don't know what it is but I just don't like this tree, last years was the same. I much prefer the more traditional one which they used to have, green with red decorations...much better ! (see the photo below, I'm sure you must agree)

Last of the Medieval Festival Photos

These are the last photos of the medieval event, showing the kids enjoying a bit of horse racing and obstacle course. They had to weave their way through the various objects hanging down from ropes without touching them. Many of them just gave up in the end and barge their way through, anything to get to the end and beat their friends!

Birds of Prey in Lloret.

Here we have some photos of the birds of prey which were on show at the Medieval Festival in Lloret de Mar last weekend.

Medieval Times in Lloret.

Just a few more shots from the Medieval event in Lloret. The weather was very good, and rain managed to hold off until late last night.

Above is a stall holder selling medicinal herbs, which you usually mix with hot water, strain and then drink just like you would with tea. These herbs are said to help all kinds of ailments such as arthritis, migraine, and even gout. You may even be able to get a cure for the hangover you get if you drink too much of whatever is 'brewing' in the pot below!

Medieval Time in Lloret

This week-end has been medieval time again in Lloret de Mar. The main shopping streets are filled with all kinds of stalls. The floor is scattered with straw to give the town a medieval look, and thousands of people are trying to fight their way around!
This event always takes place over 2 days at this time of year, and is very popular with the tourist's and locals. Many people arrive by the excursion coaches from other places along the coast.

Other attractions we saw were, stilt walkers, a marching band and a several birds of prey were on show. The stalls holders are making and selling their hand made crafts, such as jewelery, wall rugs, bags and all kinds of food stuffs and drinks can be bought.
(More photos tomorrow!)

Girona Flights

Since the beginning of October Ryanair have been operating flights to Madrid from Girona airport. At present three flights a day are going to the capital.

The first one leaves Girona at 06.35 and arrives at 07.55 and the last return flight to Girona takes off at 22.05 arriving back in Girona at 23.25.

As I looked through their website for the prices they do vary quite a lot just now. The cheapest I found was free, with just charges for taxes etc. The dearest one I came across was €49 plus taxes. So if you fancy a 'day trip' to Madrid to do a bit of shopping it is now very easy and with careful planning can cost you very little!

APART FROM WHAT YOU SPEND IN THE SHOPS OF COURSE!

Costa Brava Rally

The last few pictures from last weekends Rally, these cars were just exhibited near the Town Hall. Above is the very flashy 'Lotus', then next to it is the just as flashy 'Astin Martin'.

Above is the classic E Type Jag along with what looks like a classic racing car and various other cars.

Costa Brava 'mini' Rally !

During this weekends Rally, we were just in time to see the children taking part in their own 'mini rally'

Each one had their own little car which they drove up and down the sea front road, I'm sure the spectators enjoyed it at much as the kids!

Costa Brava Rally 2008

Yesterday evening we had a walk over to Lloret just to have a walk round the Rally cars parked up near the museum. They had all returned from their race round the Costa Brava roads, and

made a good photo all placed in line on the road.

It was a nice evening and plenty of people were out strolling around the stalls and cars.

 

Costa Brava Rally

This week end on Lloret de Mar sea front in front of the Town Hall you will be able to see all the cars taking part in the 56th Costa Brava Rally. Preparations are now taking place down there now for the race taking place this weekend. Hopefully I'll be showing photos of the cars on the blog during this event, providing the weather stays fine!

Lloret de Mar countryside?

Looking at this photo of a waterfall from Lloret you would think it was taken out in the country, miles from anywhere. The truth is, it's in the busiest part of Lloret de Mar behind the Caprabo supermarket, right next to the main road opposite the petrol station!

Lloret de Mar, October Weather

These photos were taken today on the seafront in Lloret de Mar, plenty of people were out and about making the most of the very good weather. Its been another beautiful day with temps again in the 20s.

The beach bars were also kept very busy with the thirsty holidaymakers!

Summer is still here ....

.... for now at least !

Yesterday it was 29º C in the shade, very hot for the time of year in Lloret. The few holiday makers that are still here are still venturing into the sea and making the most of the sun. It is supposed to rain this week end, so they say, but they have been saying that for quite a while now.

Further down the coast in the Valencia region they have had very heavy rain which has caused flooding in many parts, so far we have had very little since the heavy down pours last August.

Lloret de Mar - Where to eat.

I am often asked by readers of the blog about the best places to eat in Lloret de Mar. Here I will give you a brief guide of what I consider to be not only good food but also good value for money - which is what people are wanting on holiday these days. Menus of the day are always at a set price so are the best value, evening meals are priced individually from the menus.

Starting in Lloret only 2 mins from the church is ''La Fusta'' not only do they have an excellent evening menu, but for just a little more than €8 you can have a menu of the day. All menus of the day at any restaurant comes with choice of 3 courses of food, along with bread and wine, so these are always the best value.
''Can Sabata'' just at the back of town up on the main road near the turn off for Girona is another good restaurant, whether it be for an evening meal or daily menu. Its a very rustic looking place, once inside you would think you were out in the country ... miles from anywhere!
If you like Chinese food the Chinese Buffet on the sea front (opposite end to the castle) is excellent value with an excellent choice of food. Here you can help your self to as much as you can eat from the self service buffet. The cost here is again only about €8 each (day or night)


Over in the Fenals area you have a very good choice of restaurants. In my opinion the best place here is the ''International'' on the sea front, the steaks here are the biggest and the best around. With the outdoor terrace overlooking the sea makes this a very popular place to eat (weather permitting)
Just about 2 yrs ago the ''America Restaurant'' on Av D America in Fenals was totally refurbished and is now one of the most modern looking places in town. Here is a large varied menu with food ranging from burgers, paellas to fillet steaks which they advertise as the best in town ! Owing to the vast menu here it could be a good option for families with children.