Laine's Alcaidesa Newsletter - 01.07.2007

Volvo Masters Golf

This month I thought that I would learn a little about golf and here is some of my new found knowledge for you.
Did you know that this year is the 20th Anniversary of the Volvo Masters. It should be a really great atmosphere as the Valderrama golf club has just found out that they will stage this world class event until at least 2010.
You can watch India’s Jeev Milkha Singh defending his title; yes he has confirmed that he will be here. Who can blame him with over 4 million euros worth of prize money up for grabs. Did you also know, because I do now, that only the top sixty players on the European Tour are eligible to play in this event. Next, that this event not only decides who becomes the Volvo Masters Champion, but also who wins the prestigious Order of Merit.

Has my new found knowledge got you a little interested, thinking about coming to watch this great tournament?
Then why not contact me and I can find you the right accommodation, whether you are coming as a family or a group of golfers, there is something here in Alcaidesa for you.

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New Straits Tunnel between Spain & Morocco.

I have also been reading about the proposed Straits Tunnel between Spain and Morocco. There have been meetings with Spain, Morocco and the European Commission.
If this tunnel goes ahead it will cover a distance of 40 kilometres, running under the sea between Punta Paloma in Tarifa and Malabata in Morocco.

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New Yacht Marina?

There is still talk of a Marina being built along the coastline near Alcaidesa but as yet this is only talk. It has already been ruled out once but maybe this time it could happen.
It would mean a new promenade, restaurants and shops; I will let you know if I hear anymore information on this subject.

Info from Company Costain
Company Costain in joint venture with its Spanish partner ELERCO (a subsidiary of Banesto Bank) is developing residential and leisure complexes in southern Spain.
Its original scheme from which the company takes its name of Alcaidesa is located on the Costa del Sol only a few miles from Gibraltar and where the company has been developing for many years. More recently the company has expanded its operations into the areas of Motril and Salobrena in the Province of Granada.
The company has also reached preferred bidder status to acquire land and water rights to construct an 800 berth yacht marina and associated commercial/retail scheme very close to Gibraltar. It is hoped financial close will be achieved in Spring 2007 with site works to follow on from Summer 2007.

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Work to start on a new La Linea hospital next year.
Source: Costa Del Sol News
by David Eade

The provincial delegate for health, Hipólito García, has promised that the work to construct the new national health SAS hospital in La Línea will start next year. He stated that the regional government has allocated 50 million euros for the project and that it would be finished at the end of 2010 or the start of 2011. He made the announcement at a meeting with the mayor of La Línea, Juan Carlos Juárez, at which he presented the plans for the medical centre that will serve the town as well as San Roque, Castellar and Jimena.
The health authority has also allocated over 500,000 euros to improving the existing hospital in La Línea. Of that total just over 300,000 euros is already being spent on enlarging and refurbishing the emergency centre. The balance will be spent on the breast cancer unit and also on the newborn baby facilities. In addition the SAS has said it will build a new health centre in La Velada as the current medical unit is congested and there is no possibility of enlarging it. Meanwhile, in a survey of hospitals in Cádiz province over 2006, both the Algeciras and La Línea medical centres have scored highly. At the Punta de Europa and La Línea hospitals eight out of ten patients say they were satisfied or very satisfied with the treatment they received. In addition eight out of ten people in Algeciras and seven out of ten in La Línea would recommend their respective hospital to a family member or friend for receiving treatment.

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Storks nesting in Spain.

For the Nature Lovers
I have noticed that when we go for a drive that we come across Storks nesting on top of the pylons. So I thought it might be interesting to find out a bit more about these particular storks. They are enormous with six-foot wingspans and it you think the birds are big, wait until you see their nests. There are around 33,000 breeding pairs in Spain and Andalucia has the third highest stork population in Spain. Storks were once lost because they were electrocuted on the pylons but not anymore, they have made the pylons bird friendly. I have heard that churches actually build platforms, on which these storks can nest, obviously the Spanish love their storks. The strangest thing is that the Spanish have one of the lowest birth-rates in Europe and that cannot be blamed on the shortage of storks!

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To end with I shall tell you that the Spanish love a celebration! The giant cranes at Malaga’s Port have had a Ceremony because they have unloaded Container No. 1,000,000. I just hope they were sober enough to carry on working!!!!!!!!

Elaine

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