Mercadona checkout

Since when did checkout ladies become sales assistants? That’s what seems to be happening lately at my local Mercadona, and at probably everyone else’s, I suppose.

I’ve been offered shrink-wrapped half-melons, two loaves for the price of one, a fold-up makeup bag for the beach – that was before the young girl looked up as saw I was a chap with a skin that was well past moisturiser and lip seal, although one little darling insisted on outlining the benefits of a new skin softening and anti-aging soap that was on offer. I’m sixty years old with a face like a washboard. I admired her persistence, but I didn’t think I’d be a perfect test case. I saw her a couple of weeks later and said I’d bought a bar and did she think it had made any difference?

I’ve just got back from the milk and bread run, and the checkout offers seem to have been continuing in personal care and hygiene mode. Dora, or so her name tag called her, asked me if I’d like some shower gel for only one euro, and opened the cap for me to appreciate the delectable aroma. I lost my sense of smell about five years ago, and besides, I prefer a bar of soap, so that did no good. Then she asked if I’d like some shampoo for the same bargain price, but even she had to laugh, along with everyone else in the queue, when I just simply pointed at my head. I’m bald as a coot, with only a fine stubble protecting my shiny skull from the suns rays.

©2009 Derek Workman

We’re all going on a lemming’s holiday

Everyone likes to squeeze the last moments out of their summer holiday, but no-one moreso than the Spanish. The ‘Salida’, the mass exodus from city to beach that takes place on Friday afternoon, the weekend nearest the 1st August, and the ‘Entrada’ the return on the Sunday of the last weekend of the month, are the times when you shouldn’t be seen dead on Spanish roads or that is what you might actually be seen – dead.
No-one seems prepared to leave a day later or earlier to avoid the record pile-ups or massive tail-backs, and each year the government and national police launch ‘Operación Salida’ (and ‘Entrada’) in an attempt to lessen the traffic blow – and invariably fail. The May holiday weekend is seen as a barometer of the August rush (a contradiction in terms if ever there was one) and this year’s indicates that is going to be a busy time for the emergency services.
The Costa Blanca has been historically known as la playa de Madrid - Madrid’s beach, and hordes of escaping masrileños descend on the beaches and resorts of the region. Last year traffic jams covered almost 170 kilometres of motorway during the salida, almost half the distance from the Capital to Valencia city, and a trip that usually takes a comfortable four hours was taking up to twenty. On their return, the tens of thousands who fought their way to the coast fought their way home again, this time, according to pleased police sources, they only had to endure tailbacks of 90 kms trying to enter the capital city. It was also a good weekend as far as deaths were concerned, a mere 39 people died in 37 accidents, while in 35 accidents in which no mortality occurred a paltry 16 were considered serious.
After a month of wall-to-wall people on Valencia’s beaches last year, fighting for a restaurant table and facing the worst traffic jams for years, the madrileños and Spanish from all corners of the country will have forgotten all about them in their lemming-like rush to the sea for the August holiday. Only one question remains to be answered – why?

@2009 Derek Workman

JAMES TAYLOR STEAMROLLERED AT VIVEROS

JT on his Guitar
Signing Autographs in the interval
JT and the Band

When I told my Spanish friends I was going to see James Taylor perform live in the city they seemed unimpressed. But I wasn't fooled, I know this deadpan expression well; they didn't know who the hell I was talking about. I was a bit worried however. If they didn't know who JT was, did this mean I would be sitting with 3,000 Brits and the odd tourist? This lack of knowledge about one of the most influential musicians of the 20/21st century (JT has collaborated and performed with Paul McCartney, Paul Simon, Joni Mitchell, who used to be one of his backing singers, Mark Knopfler, George Harrison, Neil Young, Carole King - who is also back on tour - et al), is staggering. He's been around forever and, despite the ups and downs of earlier years, this current European 'Down Home' Tour could be straight from the 60's. When he walked quietly onto the stage to thunderous applause (mostly Spanish, I was relieved to see), he seemed vaguely surprised to see us. His band, Steve Gadd, Larry Goldings, Jimmy Johnson, Michael Landau, Kate Markowitz and Arnold McCuller were all dressed in the 60's uniform of jeans and T-shirt. All except the remarkable Andrea Zonn, the sweet-voiced fiddle player, who wore a shapeless black dress and sandals. They looked as though they'd come to play at a small town benefit.

As Taylor began to sing, his voice was a bit shaky. He's been on the road since April; was he already fatigued? But it didn't last and he gave us what we wanted: 'Sweet baby James', 'Fire and Rain', 'You Got a Friend'; the familiar numbers came streaming over the warm, appreciative Valencian audience.

Live, he's amazing. His band unfailingly excellent, the vocal harmonies lump-in-the throat wonderful. He was relaxed and amusing, joking with audience when they yelled for him to sing their favourite songs, picking up the list from his feet and telling them where it was on the schedule - and when a heavily-accented Spaniard yelled 'I love you James', he paused and volleyed with 'Gracias,Señor'. Even during the 20 minute interlude he stayed put signing autographs and T-shirts, smiling that gentle JT smile.

The highlight of the evening was his rendition of 'Steamroller Blues'. First written in 1970, where it appeared on the album 'Sweet Baby James', this current arrangement was astounding, bringing the entire audience to its feet. Now he allowed us to hear just how extraordinary his vocal range is and, of course, we knew all the words. In fact, the first time Elvis heard 'Steamroller Blues' he put it straight into his repertoire and sang it time after time until his death in 1977.

We came running to see him again .... but was it just a little too understated ... a little too 'warm and folksy'? I, for one, would have liked a few more new songs but I suspect I'd have been outnumbered. The audience wanted familiarity and this he gave – in spades. A truly memorable experience.
Barbara O'Neill

Yann Tiersen Live in Viveros Gardens

On a sticky night in Viveros multi-instrumentally-talented Yann Tiersen, showed he’s not just a one-trick pony. Despite repeated bellows from the audience of “Amelie, Amelie”, the film for which he wrote and performed the soundtrack, and which made his name, Tiersen didn’t play one single track from the movie. Instead he played a totally new set that, funnily enough, was in some ways better because it perfectly suited the style of the audience, which was mainly 20-30 year-olds of a wide range of nationalities. It was a shame not to hear his wonderfully atmospheric accordion playing, but the stunning way he handled a pair of guitars, violin and keyboard show just how brilliant a musician he is.

From the moment Tiersen stepped on stage he had us all in his hands. It was the first time we’ve been to concert at Viveros and didn’t know what to expect, which meant that we could be surprised by anything. And we were! The ambience swayed between mellow and electric, which showed its effect on the audience, where pockets of people spent the whole ninety minutes lost in their own dancing world.

Viveros is fantastic place to have chosen to show Tiersen’s talents, because it’s not a formal venue, and walking through the gardens toward the stage built up the anticipation of a great concert to come – and we weren’t let down!

Jemma and Sophie Prendergast

Let's clear up a few things about Fib Benicassim

A longer summary is on its way but we would like to clear up a few facts about last weekends events at Benicassim. There was no hurricane. The festival was not cancelled. On Friday night there were horrific winds. There was a fire in a field across from the festival site but it was under control and put out within half an hour. The winds were so strong that the site was evacuated for the safety of everyone attending. The organisation did all they could to get everything in order for the next day, and things ran pretty smoothly the rest of the weekend, considering the fact that the kind of weather that hit Benicassim on day 2 of the festival was completely unprecedented.
Perhaps the only thing that could have been bettered was the information given out by the organisation, as it was unclear when the bands from Friday would be playing if they could reschedule them at all, but general feedback is that everyone had a pretty good time considering! There are several reports flying around the internet that it was all a disaster, mainly fuelled by Oasis' technical problems onstage on the Thursday, but by all accounts this has been happening during their whole tour. We also have heard reports of hundreds and hundreds of passports being stolen, but the British Consulate Press office in Madrid have confirmed directly to us that they have issued around 160 emergency passports around that weekend - from Barcelona down to Alicante, so could be anything from 1 to 160 in Benicassim only.
....And we can only begin to wonder what Bianca Gascoigne got up to between Friday and yesterday - if you're one of the boys she hitched to Calais with we would love to hear from you!

James Taylor, Anastacia and Yann Tiersen live in Valencia

Valencia's Feria de Julio rolls on this week with great concerts in Viveros gardens by the Río Túria. Tonight Anastacia, who has sold millions of albums world-wide, takes the stage for what promises to be a powerful performance. Friday, Pianist and the composer of the beautiful soundtrack to the cult movie Amelie, Yann Tiersen plays his haunting music.
Saturday night it's the turn of the legendary James Taylor playing music from throughout his long and illustrious career, this man is always great live!
The Last Sunday in July falls this weekend which means only one thing - the Battle of the flowers - let the marigolds fly! Followed by a Mascletà of colours in the riverbed.
Next week, 27 july the FIlmoteca D'Estiu starts, showing Original version films under the stars in the riverbed in front of the Palau de la Música, The African Queen opens the season at 22.30- but get along early and have a light supper and a drink for just a little extra on your ticket.

fib Benicassim, day 2. what a fibbing disaster!

photos from gtvone photography
fib, day 2. what a fibbing disaster!
Getting here later than we wanted, what with me Lolita, just giving up my job, and Anita doing a long day at the bank, we arrived to catch the beginning of Paul Weller, and were evacuated within the hour.
Quick resumen, as i am trying to catch 5000 concerts at the same time, whilst anita is catching up with twitter friends (we luuuuuuuuurve our twitter! http://twitter.com/thisisfib!) and childhood boyfriends (yes, you read right!); Friday night, was the worst night of our lives. Starting with a fire just outsite the festival site in some old vineyards, that got so big the organisers canceled the concerts on the escenario verde, the sky getting smokier and smokier, the press and vip stands being blocked off, security and organisation people screaming at each other via walkie talkies (how does a walkie talkie make you look sooo big and important?!) the next thing we know, the wind has picked up, the fib grounds are a sandstorm disaster, people are wearing their sunglasses to protect their eyeballs, and within half an hour, the green stage is falling down. 200,000 fibers come to a standstill, security guards have been called in to hold up the walls - no music, no screens, and no news. Apart from god knows who from FIB organisation, coming on every once in a while to tell us they are doing their best to sort everything out and they will be with us soon....
And then we were told to leave the grounds. all those people leaving at the same time, in a hurricane-like wind storm, 70KM/20degrees, which felt like -10 and a not a very happy, slightly tipsy and confused bunch of people. Directed towards benicassim town. All in all, we spent 4 hours trying to get a taxi, eventually getting home at 5am, after waiting 4 hours for someone to pick us up.
Got in to bed.
And now its Saturday. And saturday is brill. No Lily Allen, she has a tummy bug (or a 2 day hangover), no Kings of Leon from yesterday (which is crap as they have tried to re-schedule most bands that didnt play yesterday), but the vibe is AMAZING. It feels like every other year, people have got over the hump from last night, Maximo Park were fabby, Elbow got the crowd moving and us covered in goosebumps, and we are now about to meet up to watch Peaches strut her sexy stuff. More from us tomorrow, after the press Vs. artists football match which has been moved til tomorrow, (do join us for a midday paella and beer, its at 12 at the polideportivo in Benicassim!)
Lots of love kiddys, missing those that aren't here with us.
Lolita (and Anita, if i ever find her!)
Ps. 2manydjs 2 hour set tonight at 2am, i am soooo excited i could cry!

fib Benicassim, day 2. what a fibbing disaster!

fib, day 2. what a fibbing disaster!
Getting here later than we wanted, what with me Lolita, just giving up her job, and Anita doing a long day at the bank, we arrived to catch the beguinning of Paul Weller, and being evacuated within the hour. Quick resumen, as i am trying to catch 5000 concerts at the same time, whilst anita is catching up with twitter friends (we luuuuuuuuurve our twitter! thisisfib!) and childhood boyfriends, yes, you read right! Friday night, was the worst night of our lives. Starting with a fire just outsite the festival site in some old vineyards, that got so big that canceled the concerts on the escenario verde, the sky getting smokier and smokier, the press and vip stands being blocked off, security and organisation people screaming at each other via walkie talkies (how does a walkie talkie make you look sooo big and important?!) the next thing we know, the wind has picked up, the fib grounds are a sand disaster, people are wearing their sunglasses to protect their eyeballs, and within half an hour, the green stage is falling down. The whole 200,000 fibers come to a standstill, security guards have been called in to hold up the walls, no music, no screens, and no news. Apart from god knows who from FIB organisation, coming on every once in a while to tell us they are doing their best to sort everything out and they will be with us soon. And then we were told to leave the grounds. 200,000 people leaving at the same time, in a tornado like wind storm, 20degrees, which felt like -10 and not a very happy and slightly tipsy and confused, bunch of people. Being directed towards benicassim town. All in all, we spent 4 hours trying to get a taxi, eventually getting home at 5am, after waiting 4 hours for someone to pick us up. Got in to bed. And now its Saturday. And saturday is brill. No lily allen, she has a tummy bug (or a 2 day hangover), no kings of leon from yesterday (which is crap as they have tried to re-schedule most bands that didnt play yesterday), but the vibe is AMAZING. It feels like every other year, people have got over the hump from last night, Maximo Park were fabby, Elbow got the crowd moving and us covered in goosebumps, and we are now about to meet up to watch Peaches strut her sexy stuff. More from us tomorrow, after the press Vs. artists football match which has been moved til tomorrow, do join us for a midday paella and beer, its at 12 at the polideportivo in Benicassim.
Lots of love kiddys, missing those that arn't here with us.
Lolita (and Anita, if i ever find her!)
Ps. 2manydjs 2 hour set tonight at 2am, i am soooo excited i could cry!

Huge fire and High winds force the lights (and Sound) off at Benicassim Day two

photo Juan Vicent/El Mundo

The Festival Internacional de Benicassim was forced to close early tonight. A large fire (looked like a brush fire) across the road from the site and extremely high winds meant that the fib organisers had to literally pull the plug on the event, plunging the entire site into darkness. The 70km winds have apparently damaged the stages. The Fib Club - a plastic bubble, was closed earlier in the evening.
It is very dark and the extraordinarily high winds are causing a dust storm. It is apparently mayhem and thousands of people are leaving the site, Queues for taxis are huge and the formerly happy crowd are more than a little disgruntled. Tom Tom Club were apparently in the middle of their set when the PA and lighting rigs started to wobble. Paul Weller's set was cut by 10 minutes it was at this point the power went off . There is a rumour that tonight's headliners, Kings of Leon are considering trying to appear tomorrow as they were previously scheduled to have a day off.
More as we get it ...

MIGUEL BOSÉ WOWS VALENCIA IN VIVEROS

The queue straggled almost all the way around the park.  We walked to the end and then shuffled all the way back to the entrance. Was it hot?  It was.  It was also steamy, close, sticky...  and did I mention hot?  Once inside, our positions taken, everywhere I turned I could see fans (abanicas) flapping furiously while the aficionados (fans) stuffed baguettes into their mouths, followed by copious amounts of beer and water.   
Around 10 o'clock the support band 'The Cabriolets' burst on to the stage fronted by a genderless vision in a black, shiny suit and short, slicked-back hair reminiscent of that asexual pop group from the 80's that no one can remember the name of.  Yet there was a kind of closer familiarity ... something I just couldn't place ... but I let myself be pulled along by their thunderous energy (the base guitar amp was banging against my rib cage so hard I thought I might go into cardiac arrest)hoping some fleeting memory would return. I watched carefully; a great voice, definitely male ... or was it? The jacket came off to reveal a black bra... a-ha so .... then a new song .. a lot of energetic, suggestive dancing... uh-huh .... then, a snap of elastic and gone was the bra.  Mmmm ... man breasts or .... ?  A moment later the trousers disappeared to reveal black briefs.  The crowd shrieked with delight.  Could it be ...? I wasn't sure .... finally, with a theatrical flourish the briefs were discarded to thunderous applause ... and before us stood a being in a beautifully crafted flesh-coloured thong. What the hell was I looking at? So familiar, yet ...
As a warm-up band they were pretty good, although the Valencians, as usual, talked through most of it with the occasional recollection that they'd come to a concert.  Of course, we were only waiting for Miguel Bosé.  The Cabriolets bid us farewell and the stage darkened followed by the usual flurry of shadowy figures silently re-arranging the props for what seemed an age.  Without warning a dazzling light appeared. The crowd roared. He was here.  
Miguel Bosé is an accomplished showman but then he's been around a long time.  He has made countless albums, the last with the likes of Ricky Martin, Michael Stipe and Laura Pausini and he should be a huge international star by now but, just maybe, he doesn't want to be.  His movements are entirely original and we, his fans, would recognise them anywhere; the arms moving from side to side, the expressive hands, the hips, that amazing, wolfish grin.  
He opened with 'Amante Bandido' and like children being given their favourite fairy story we roared our approval.  We knew the words and we sang along, loudly and, surprisingly, melodically. Suddenly, there she was! Who is The Cabriolets frontman?  Bimba Bosé: the androgynous niece of Miguel.  And now, here they were, erupting into 'Como un Lobo'.  We yelled, we air-clapped into the humid night air and we sang along; 'pasa paso' has never been bellowed with such velocity. 
The show came to an end sooner than expected but, of course, we weren't going to let him off so lightly, despite the unmistakeable hum of stale deodorant in the stifling 28º.  He came back for two ‘encores’ and then another.  Bimba returned to lend her weight to an already memorable performance and still we wanted more. 
Now gone midnight I didn't know whether it was sweat or tears running down my face ...but finally it was over and with the peculiar orderliness of Spanish crowds, we made our way back through the park for a final glass of wine in The Alameda; the perfect end to a perfect evening.   Thank you Valencia. For all your faults you certainly know how to stage a great concert.
BARBARA O'NEILL

Our friends at 24/7 Valencia have published Jul issue and we have it here

Open publication - Free publishing - More valencia

Pasarela in Chulilla tonight

Pasarela Joven Chulilla takes place tonight in the beautiful hilltop village of Chulilla. It is the 10th edition of this competition to find the Young Valencian Designer of the Year, and the third time that it has been held in Chulilla
Entry to the event is absolutely free and all are welcome to attend.
The Pasarela Joven Chulilla kicks off at eleven o'clock on tonight, (11th July), and will be followed by a jazz concert, also free.
Love it!

Can we have our paddies in L'Albufera like this please!

As summer progresses, more crops of rice paddy art are beginning to emerge in Japan. The crop art, created by arranging and growing rice plants of different, can be seen in farming communities all over the country. The largest and finest work is grown in the village of Inakadate, which has earned a reputation for its rice artistry. This year the enormous pictures of Napoleon and a Sengoku-period warrior, both on horseback, are visible in a pair of fields close to the town hall-
Come on Valencia! We can do it - I can just see Falleras and Lo Rat Penat - or even Rita in rice!

reblogged from and more of this http://bit.ly/2eM7iK

Montesinos and Men in Skirts

La Nau exhibition, Men in Skirts
More like Sarongs really
One of the Skirts by Montesinos
more sarongs
More traditional skirts from Turkey and Arabia


Talking of Montesinos, starting today there is an exhibition 'hombres en faldas' OR Men in Skirts - it was Montesinos who first dressed Spanish men in skirts. There are several dozen on display in this curious exhibition, I have to say in all my travels the only men I have really ever seen in skirts was at the Westin Hotel in Valencia, worn by the staff and they were also designed by 'Montesinos' and Galliano who introduced the skirt for men some years ago. It is interesting that the centrepiece of the exhibition is a glass cabinet housing a Scottish kilt. Worth a look and the space at La Nau is worth seeing as well, Tuesdays there are free workshops here all through July and the first week in August Maybe after this exhibition, more men will be seen in skirts around town!

Rafael Amargo's 'La difícil sencillez'

Rafael , seated with child talks to his musicians,
Francis Montesinos, the famous Valencian dress designer
Francis Montesinos, Talks to Canal Nou about the designs for the show
Armago is hot from all that dancing.
Some of Montesinos costumes
Friday night we had the privilege of attending the dress rehearsal of the world premiere of Rafael Amargo's 'La difícil sencillez' at La Nau in Puerto de Sagunto as he polished his dancers, singers and guitarists for two spectacular nights from tonight
He came across as a dedicated performer who obviously lives for his art and work his work and it overflows to his company, the pure energy of his singers, dancers and musicians was wonderful; such passion, such energy, and for us such enjoyment.
This new show is an eclectic mix of traditional and modern dance both flamenco and ballet. It is quite stunning, his choreography makes for an amazing experience.

Francis Montesinos, the famous Valencian dress designer has designed the costumes for this spectacular- but this being a rehearsal we only saw a handful of the costumes and only one of Armago's. Some gorgeous red traditional style Sevillano dresses,(though from where we sat they appeared to have just a little bit too much Weight/fabric for all that leg kicking and dress swirling which flamenco dancers endure) and a wonderful creation of feathers worn by a solo dancer. You can be absolutely sure that tonight all the costumes on stage will be spectacular.

This is the first of many shows that are part of the Festival D'Estiu, Sagunto en Escena which opens tonight and continues at La Nau in the Port of Sagunto and at the Roman Theatre in Sagunto itself. full program by clicking the headline

Chambao live in Valencia review

Idylic is what you could call Chambao's live concert at the excellent feria de julio in the Jardines Real (Viveros) last night. A lightly lit pathway up to the stage, a bar with tables and chairs and a huge stage with a comfy poof for la mari, and her band surrounding her. Despite the light shower of rain that we were served, the weather was perfect, warm with a light breeze, and the setting was perfect. Full of their adoring fans, a mix of bohemian and hippy life loving Spanish and morrocans, the indie/arabic/rap/flamencan band gave their all for a full 2 hours. The feria de julio is always beautifully organised, and this year they really have hit the spot with an amazing line up and patient and understanding staff. We really are looking forward to the rest of july. Our highlight of the night was watching a beautiful new mummy with the tiniest baby, breastfeeding as she sung along to la maris famous song Poquito a poquito, it just shows, in Valencia, you can do anything...

Chambao Play at Feria de Julio tonight

Chillout supremos play in Jardines Real (Viveros) tonight, Just one of the great concerts and events in a packed Feria de Julio Schedule. The line up over the next weeks includes Miguel Bosé, Serrat, Jan Tiersen and James Taylor.

Frommer's Valencia Day by Day

Timothy Birch, editor of this blog and thisisivalencia.com has written a brand new guide to Valencia for Frommer's. This excellent pocket sized guide contains everything you want to know about the city, with one , two and three day walking tours of the city with accompanying maps, where to eat and drink, where to shop and where is best on a day trip. There's also a handy guide to the fiestas, including Las Fallas and La Tomatina. It's a family affair as most of the photos in the book are by Diana, Tim's wife
To order your copy of this invaluable guide, click on the headline - you can even read some pages before you buy!

Pasarela Joven Chulilla

Pasarela Joven Chulilla takes place this weekend in the beautiful hilltop village of Chulilla. It is the 10th edition of this competition to find the Young Valencian Designer of the Year, and the third time that it has been held in Chulilla
Entry to the event is absolutely free and all are welcome to attend
The Pasarela Joven Chulilla kicks off at eleven o·clock on Saturday night, (11th July), and will be followed by a jazz concert, also free.
If you haven't visited Chulilla, make a day of it, it is a lovely village and there is great dining to be had in its many attractive restaurants. You could even try and get a room at the excellent Casa Rural Serena web and make a weekend of it!