Former Huddersfield gymnast and pub landlord Brian Hayhurst and his wife Elaine are ex-pats who have lived just outside Fuengirola on the Costa del Sol for 20 years. He writes every week for Huddersfield Hub.
I have mentioned previously about the workload that police have to deal with, especially the new laws and rules the government seem eager to impose on residents and tourists alike.
Here are just a few of the latest (condensed down). See what you make of them.
* In an attempt to cut back on plastic bottle use, now restaurants must offer tap water to drink with a meal – free of charge. Makes sense I think. We’ll see if there are any repercussions as there can be quite a profit margin on certain bottles being offered.
* And traffico here state – ‘When overtaking cyclists you must occupy the adjacent lane on a dual carriageway, always maintaining 1.5 metre distance.’
My question is – can we law break and cross the solid white line whilst overtaking? Loads do it.
* Pedestrians have right of way over all vehicles on zebra crossings. And there is no need now for drivers to carry a driving licence whilst out. Of course, you will need to produce it if so required at the local cop shop!
Using radar jammers, throwing objects out of windows and holding mobile phones – even for sat nav directions – big fines and points. What about the large screen sat navs fitted in many vehicles now?
- This week ‘no masks required’ was announced by the government bringing a sense of relief to most, but there are still lots of circumstances where they must still be worn eg public transport, hospitals/clinics, town halls and many supermarkets may still require them on. Much confusion reigns as the guidelines are indeed vague.
But there is much to look forward here on the sunshine coast, known by some as Costa del Golf. There are some massive outdoor concerts and shows planned – the biggest is the Starlite Festival which takes place annually in a quarry near Marbella.
Its calendar has been extended and will present top artists as well as up and coming international performers this summer.
And according to the Tourism Minister Juan Marin “tourism is recovering rapidly and is almost back to pre-pandemic levels.”
Further up the coast in Costa Blanca there is much anger by holidaymakers having to pay the new ‘tourist tax.’ But some authorities will not apply it.
If implemented, it could add a further £50+ to a family holiday, at around €2 per person nightly. We have not seen any evidence of the tax being imposed on the Costa del Sol – yet!
READ MORE: Brian writes every week for Huddersfield Hub – catch up HERE
Also this week the police, supported by a drone unit, swooped on street vendors – the so-called Looky Looky Men – and confiscated thousands of fake items like designer bags, trainers, sunglasses and much more.
This is a crackdown on the sale of counterfeit goods which is harming local businesses who work legitimately to create jobs and generate wealth.
All the men arrested have previously been detained for similar crimes. It has often been said that they are in cahoots with the Mafia.
Finally, tennis fans are delighted to learn that Malaga has been selected to host the prestigious stages this year of the Davis Cup for two years from September and the quarters, semis and final to be held in November. Djokovic and Nadal are likely to be here.
