costablog.com

Hard to believe? Read on.

Nope, this isn’t a clever marketing ploy involving coupons or “advantage” points to get you to consume more – it’s actually true.

Well, that’s according to a recent study carried out in June this year by the Organisation of Consumers and Users (OCU) The study showed that shoppers buying usual household goods and foods can save more than 1,300 euros a year, just by changing their shopping outlet. However, that’s not all – in some major cities the possible savings are even greater (such as in Madrid) where the price gap between the cheapest and most expensive stores is so wide and quite shocking that shoppers in these areas could pay 3,200 euros less by buying at the bargain outlets! Read more »

Great news for frequent flyers coming to and from Malaga Airport. The new train stations that have been inaugurated are geared entirely toward the new Terminal 3 at Malaga airport – dubbed the “gateway to the Costa del Sol” – and aim to increase accessibility to the terminal and comfort to the users of the airport.

Trains on the C-1 Malaga-Fuengirola Cercanías line now stop at the new underground station just 30 metres from the new Terminal 3. Which saves a long walk with heavy suitcases! The plans for the second runway at the airport heralded the creation of two new underground stations, one at Terminal 3 and another in the Guadalhorce industrial estate. Read more »

In August this year The Traffic Department (DGT) in Spain launched a new system to ensure that foreign drivers caught by fixed radar devices are forced to pay on the spot, therefore these foreign drivers caught speeding on Spanish roads will no longer be able to escape paying the fine just because they live outside the country or are difficult for authorities to track down.

The new system involves radar equipment that can recognise foreign licence plates and automatically notify the nearest Guardia Civil patrol car, including a photograph of the speeding vehicle. The officers can then pull over the vehicle and fine the driver – fines which could go up to as much £500! (€600) The unlucky ones who cannot come up with the payment instantly could face having their vehicle immobilised. Read more »

Here’s cause for a little celebration during these hard times. The Parque Miramar Shopping Centre in Fuengirola is holding a British Festival Weekend today and tomorrow (24^th and 25^th of September) from 4pm.

On the agenda for Friday kicks off with a “Fawlty Towers” screening at 4 -7pm (brilliantly funny English t.v show!) A “spot of afternoon tea” will be served meanwhile from 4.30pm until 7pm all completely free and then afterwards there will be an International Welsh singer, Laura Elen singing from 8.30pm until 8.45pm.

On Saturday, the screening will continue in the same way, this time with “Black Adder” – (another of my personal favourite British television shows!) which will be shown from 4 -7pm. There will be free face painting and t-shirt painting offered around the same time. Afterwards there will be a “Stagecoach” performance, when children from the famous theatre school will perform some Brit pop classics. A folk music session is on the agenda from 7-8pm, with a free cider bar and food tasting from 8.30-9pm. Read more »

A gastronomic festival will be held in San Roque until 30^th September, and will include more than 60 bars, cafes and restaurants. For more information, go to www.san-roque.com/turismo.

A local artist in Estepona will be showing his latest exhibition entitled “Is everything relative?” Sr. Ireneo Ruiz is a surrealist painter and will be holding the exhibition at 12pm Tuesdays and Sundays at the Cafe oriente, C/Manuel Navarro Mollor until the 30th September. All paintings on show will be for sale.

The exhibition “Eleazars Tour”- consisting of paintings from the artist “Eleazar” will take place at the Casa Fuerte Bezmiliana in Rincón de la Victoria and will continue until the 22^nd October. The opening times are Tuesday to Saturday 11am- 1.30pm and 6.30pm -10pm. Sundays will be free entrance from 11am – 2pm. For a look at the art, go to www.eleazar.es Read more »