Only a few years ago, on a weekend, literally hundreds of young Spaniards would gather in my town on the main beach road for a Botellon.  To other Europeans this conjures up fears of mass vandalism, damage to property and of course a fair few punch ups.  Not at all, this was a very polite affair where the hatches of your Ford Fiestas, VW Golf etc were opened to reveal a full bar facility including ice bucket and glasses.  The youngsters would gather on mass, play some music, nothing rowdy just enough to let the girls have a dance round their handbags on the pavement,  and open up their boot bar.  On several occasions while out for a walk or at a nearby bar I have been offered a drink by a friendly, very sober young Spaniard just keen to share his night out.  My friend a local tapas bar owner would happily sell them cigarettes and when asked, which was infrequent,  let the ladies use his loo to touch up their make and make themselves more confortable,  but thanks to the new laws the Botellon no longer exists.  Anyone caught trying to bring back those happy nights will be fined 600€ and if the kids don’t pay, the parents will be held responsible.  Party poopers I hear you say.

Likewise, you cannot get up at a public meeting, whether it be a speech, sports event or religious ceremony and prevaricate.  What would a town council planning meeting be without the obligatory agitator? During how many speeches is there no verbal response at all from the public, and how many cricket matches have been cheered up by a bare backside running across the pitch only to be rugby tackled by a police officer,  who then uses his helmet to cover up the naughty bits. Well all that witty banter has been resigned to the dungeon in Spain, as  you now stand to be fined between 600€ and 30,000€ for disrupting a public event.

As for making your unhappiness with the new law known,  forget it, the fine for organising or taking part in an unauthorised protest can result in a fine of 30,000€ – 600,000€.  Likewise,  using Twitter, Facebook or any other form of social media to insight people to protest will also be punishable by a fine. 

Where these new laws become worrying is how they relate to the police.  You can now be fined for taking an unauthorised photograph of a police officer and more worryingly  “showing a lack of respect” to those in uniform or failing to assist security forces in the prevention of a public disturbance.  These misdeneanours,  could result in a fine of 500€ to 30,000€.

Quite how you quantify disrespecting a person in uniform I am not sure.  For instance, will the Chipendales still be allowed to wear police and firemen uniforms on stage when touring Spain?  Sorry ladies, I don’t know,  but I was always taught that you have to earn respect, it is not a god given right but perhaps my parents were wrong on that.  While I joke about this point, it is the fundamental flaw in these new laws.  It is what the legal eagles call “undefined legal concepts”.  These are concepts which require a subjective assessment or non objective measurement. This affects crimes where a decision has to be taken on whether “reasonable” force was applied or whether an act or spoken words constituted “an affront to national dignity”.  What affronts you, may not affront me.  Likewise, what I consider to be reasonable force may not be what you consider reasonable.  These concepts need to exist in law because it is not always possible to quantify or specify everything in a detailed way but they are intended to be used with considerable caution when applied to the rights and liberties of the general public.

More worryingly,  these concepts often have to be assessed in difficult situations, on the spur of the moment, when faced with a particular event.  Is the layman qualified to make judgement as to whether something said by a protester, is an affront to national dignity, or a legitimate expression of his freedom of speech? The fear is that these laws facilitate abuses of power and open up legal loopholes. 

Another problem with this law relates to the creation of new administrative infractions which often carry disproportionate fines.  A fine of up to 30,000€ for an individual, may be seen as disproportionate when levied against a person spontaneously protesting about their eviction from their home for instance. A bit of angst woud be expected by most reasonable people at a time like this, when someone is losing everything, possibly thorugh no fault of their own.

The government brought in these reforms despite the disapproval of all 14 opposition parties.  They brought them in by using their majority and claim to be doing this based on the criteria established by criminal law experts who advise that their discipline be used as a final answer to social problems often called the “principle of last resort” but we all know that when you have reasoned with the child, talked to the child, shouted at the child and finally smacked the child, you have in fact lost the battle.   Many people feel that the Spanish government has twisted this principle and is following it in a slightly warped way.  The most fundamental flaw is,  that these administrative fractions are meant to be imposed by a judge in a court.  A person who has years of legal experience and has built up a sense of judgement from that experience.  To use the same system where they will be applied by lay people, by administrators or police officers, leaves the accused with few means to defend himself.  The individual is therefore left with the choice of paying the fine more or less “on the spot” or having to go to court and risk the cost of the whole process.

Furthermore, a registry is to be set up where your sins will be kept in a personal file.   The excuse being that they can follow recidivist acts and that will help them to work out if there is a pattern emerging which might affect the public´s safety.  What a load of wallop, all it will do is give the government the ability to pinpoint members of the public who are not prepared to knuckle down and keep quiet.  In my view, when you start to keep files of this kind  in a democracy, you are only one step away,  from failing to be a democracy.

What we know for sure is that foreign investors are snapping up shares in Spanish companies.  In fact the pundits tell us that 43% of Spanish shares are now under overseas control.  That shows a massive commitment to Spain for the future and it is the highest level of foreign investment since our crisis began in 2007.  The current share holding is double what it was 20 years ago.  Sadly, all this bright news does not stop Sanlucar de Barrameda having the dubios title of the town with the  highest unemployment  in Spain, the current figure standing at 49%.

Investment in Spain´s tourism is racing ahead especially in the hotel sector with high levels of interest from buyers in the Middle East, Asia and US.  These countries investment has reached a record level.  In 2006 1.6 billion was invested in to Spain´s hotels but this year´s figures are set to smash that..

Adam Tan an executive director of the Chinese business group HNA, told The Financial Times “I am focused on deals outside of China because after the financial crisis some companies were hurt and where there is distress you can get something cheap”.  Perhaps not a view to be applauded but they have acquired shares in the NH chain of hotels and the Chinese market has forged alliances with chains such as Melia and Barcelo. HNA first showed interest in the NH group in 2011.  In the past  couple of years, China alone has invested in excess of 870 million euros in Spanish hotel chains.  With HNA investing 420 million euros to become the major share holder in the NH chain.  Originally their investment was 234 million representing a 20% stake but they then picked up the shares owned by Amancio Ortega, the owner of the textile group Inditex who’s umbrella covers the retail outlets Zara and Massimo Dutti.

Dalian Wanda,  based in Hong Kong is China’ s largest property developer and the world’s largest cinema chain owner have purchased the Edificio España in Madrid where they intend to create a residential, retail and luxury hotel complex.  Likewise, Platinum Estates owned by Harry Mohinani has invested in the old Telefonica headquarters in Barcelona for 56 million and the Hotel Asturias in the gran Via, Madrid,  for 35 million both with the intention of developing them in to luxury apartments.  You may be saying about now, “why all the sudden interest” well, don’t forget we have this little gift from the Spanish government called a golden visa.  Buy a property for 500,000 euros and get a residents visa.  That teamed with the revaluation of the Yuan against the euro and the blessing of the Chinese government to go forth and invest in overseas countries.

Perhaps the Chinese business view that you go for long term survival over short term profit fits well with surviving an economic crisis.  Many Chinese companies have done well over the past 8 years in Spain.  It is estimated that Chinese convenience stores alone bring in over 785 million not to mention the Chinese owned fashion chains,  import export businesses, law firms and media groups all now operating in here.

One of the most respected Chinese business men, Mr Meodong Chen who owns the Don Pin group said “the Spaniards looked at us like they looked at the other migrants, like people who do the dirty work. Now when you go to a department store, they have signs in Chinese and staff who speak Chinese.  They know, ´here are people who have money´.

While foreign investment in Spain will help us back on our feet, a fair bit of work has been done at home to help ease the pain everyone who has worked through this crisis has felt.  This year demand and consumption is rising, the property market has turned the corner, both foreign and domestic investment is up and even the beleaguered construction industry is showing signs of recovery. The government intend to create 3 million new jobs over the coming 5 years and our annual growth should be up 2.5 – 3% on previous years.

What else is contributing to the patients recovery?  Well, oil prices have fallen which for a country who imports large amounts of energy, is a definite help and is predicted to add .5% to the Spanish GDP this year which will encourage household spending

I think we can say not only is the patient sitting up in bed but he is sending out for takeaways and DVD´s.  Long may it continue!

In Spain,  the religious element of Christmas officially starts on December 8th – this is the “Puente” a holiday for the Feast of the Immaculate Conception or  Immaculada. A festival celebrated throughout Spain,  and each year in front of the beautiful gothic cathedral of Seville with the Los Sieses ceremony which means the “dance of six”.   Just to confuse you, it is now performed by ten elaborately costumed boys.  The dance is a precise piece and people gather at the Cathedral to watch, while families crowd round the televisions as it is screened across Spain.  Those not glued to the TV are content with a wander round the streets to see the Christmas lights and a coffee here or there with friends.

Only in the past few years have the shops and department stores started to open on the Sundays during December to help the Christmas shopping get underway and life from the 8th through to the next marker in the Christmas calendar, the 22nd December, is filled with much the same routine as in any other Christian country.  Gift shopping, food shopping planning and decorating the house. However, in Spain we are spared the laborious writing of Christmas cards as they are not that common place and are generally handed to people rather than sent by post.  It would be considered very odd to send your auntie a card, and the question would be,  “why didn´t you go to see her rather than posting her a card!?”.
The outdoor Christmas markets open around the second week of December offering sweets, nuts, marzipan, candles and hand made decorations and of course, no winter in Spain is complete without the roasted chestnut stalls with their braziers glowing and the paper cones of chestnuts being consumed as people walk around the markets.

In some áreas, namely Granada and Jaen, there are the Hogueras or bonfires to keep you entertained. These fires are an ancient tradition and relate to the winter solstice and the shortest day of the year.  It is traditional for people to jump the fires as a symbolic protection against illness but no Christmas would be complete without the Belenes or nativities.  These can be small shoebox sized, or full scale productions with people dressed up as each character and live animals.  Most houses have a Belen and certainly all churches and cathedrals run such an event during Christmas.  At home families gather around the Belen to sing while the children dance and especially honoured is the cow, who the Spanish believe breathed its warm breath on the baby Jesus to keep him warm in the stable.  Christmas trees are also popular although they tend to go up later around the second half of December.

Christmas is a time of year for a bit of good luck and the buying and giving of lottery tickets is a major industry especially during the Festive season.  My hairdresser always give me a ticket for La Lotteria de Navidad but to date, my luck has not held.  The main draw is El Gordo or “The Fat One” the draw for which is held on 22 December.  It is called a lottery but not in the sense that you can pick your numbers.  All the tickets come pre-printed with a number like raffle tickets and many can have the same number in which case all the winners share the prize for that ticket.  While that may sound a bit mean, the prize fund tops 3 billion euros and it is common for a whole factory or even a whole village to buy the same numbers and split the winnings. There are three top prizes and thousands of other smaller prizes.

To try to simplify the mechanics of El Gordo,  there are 85,000 ticket numbers between 00001 and 85000.  Each number is given to 180 series and within those series, each is divided in to 10 decimas.  To purchase a decima, you pay 20 euros.
The first prize is 3,000,000 euros per series or 300,000 euros per decima.
Second prize is 1,000,000 euros
3rd prize is 500,000 euros
There are two 4th prizes of 200,000 euros
There are eight 5th prizes of 50,000 euros
And finally 1,774 6th prizes of 1,000 euros
Then there are another 11 lower categories of prize going down to 200 euros

Now, if you have got out the calculator to check I have done my maths correctly, you will be short some 30% of the prize fund.  That is because,  the government takes 30% of the total fund. Party poopers I say!
The lottery was first held in 1812 to raise funds for the San Idelfonso Orphanage in Madrid.  Originally two orphans were chosen to choose and read out the numbers as it was thought that they would be less susceptible to bribes, not having any relatives to influence them.  Nowadays, San Idelfonso is a school and the children still announce the lottery, one singing or chanting the winning number and the other answering with the amount won. As the lottery now takes some hours, several shifts of children are used and when a major amount is won, the children have to sing the winning number and amount several times and show the winning wooden balls to a verification committee for confirmation. It is still common for an El Gordo winner to give money to the school.  If you ever doubt buying the lottery in Spain is worthwhile, in 2011 the town of Grañen in Huesca won 700,000,000 euros making it the richest town in Spain.

The draw is broadcast live  all over Spain via radio and TV.  It is impossible to have a coffee in a bar or visit a friend without the rhythmic chant of the children in the background.  Many commercial premises set up a radio or TV purely for the draw and you see people huddled around somebody with an iphone waiting to see if their ticket has won.   El Gordo  is a major part of Spanish life but lotteries are also run by other organisations such as the Cruz Roja but by far the largest and most popular is El Gordo.

Closely following on is Christmas Eve or Nochebuena The Spanish say “esta noche es Nochebuena, y no es noche de dormer” it basically means, this is Christmas Eve and not a night for sleeping!  Chistmas Eve is the most important night of the Christmas calendar when families meet to eat and celebrate together.  Bars and restaurants generally close and everyone is home from work by mid afternoon.  They play games, sing carols, watch TV, sometimes exchange small gifts and generally enjoy themselves.  The giving of gifts,  or more to the point, the timing for the giving of gifts, has changed in recent years. At one time, gifts were given to the children on Three Kings which is 6  January in memory of the wisemen who brought gifts to Jesus but now some families give the gifts on Christmas Eve, some on Christmas Day and others on Three Kings.  This is due to the more modern acceptance of Papa Noel or the Father Christmas version of events.  My friends tend to split their gifts so the children get something on Christmas Eve and the balance on Three Kings.

The celebratory meal is eaten in the evening and I have often been asked what Spanish people eat for Christmas. The answer is “not much different to anyone else”.  They like prawns, seafood and smoked salmon,  some like turkey with stuffing, other like lamb and some choose a large fish shared between all the family.  All washed down with some bubbly, a nice wine and of course, some after dinner liqueurs, plus turron and polverones,  those little sweets in wrappers seen all over Spain at Christmas.    Probably only able to waddle by now, many families make their way to the local church or cathedral for La Misa del Gallo or The Mass of the Rooster.  So named, because the Spanish believe that the rooster crowed the night Jesus was born.  The service consists of carols accompanied by the traditional seasonal drum the zambomba, tambourines and of course guitars.  After the service, people make their way through the streets, sometimes in candle lit procession playing guitars and banging the zambomba, and a generally very happy time is had by all.  Some of the Masses are televised and broadcast to the nation and few are in bed before three or four in the morning.
Chrtistmas Day is a day for relaxation and many families go to church or for a walk in the countryside or along the beach, some meet with friends for a drink or coffee,  and some visit family.  Some take advantage of the swings set up specially for the Spanish custom of “swinging” at Christmas.  Before you hit delete thinking we are off down a totally unconnected and potentially offensive route,  we do mean swinging on swings.  It is an old tradition and many Townhalls put up swings specially for the use of the public. Then everyone heads home for a buffet style lunch and more fun.

Next on the Christmas calendar is 28 December, the Feast of the Holy Innocents when young boys from towns and villages light bonfires and one of them acts as the mayor, ordering the towns people to perform civic chores such as sweeping the streets, tidying up litter, removing graffiti etc.  Refusal to comply with instructions results in a fine, the money being chanelled back in to the festivities. This day is not dissimilar to April Fools day and people play jokes on each other and the media carry made up nonsense stories to amuse.
Closely following on Is New Year´s Eve or Nochevieja.  Again, the family gather for a meal, chat and laugh, just prior to midnight everyone receives 12 grapes, these must be eaten for luck, one on each strike of the clock heralding the new year.  Generally they are washed down by Cava.  The young then head off to their parties and festivities and the older family sit around chatting and watching TV.

New Year´s day is a quiet day again spent with family or friends, not surprising, they probably need to recover!

Next on the calendar is 5 January, this day has one reason to exist and that is to provide the public with a chance to go to their favourite bakery or cake shop and buy a Roscon de Reyes.  A doughnut shaped cake decorated with crystalised fruits and often eaten for breakfast on the biggest day of the Spanish year -  6 January or Epiphany.  This day is all about the children with parades in many of the cities and towns.  The main characters in the parades  are the Three Kings, or Los Tres Reyes.  We have Melchior who has long white hair and a beard, he wears a gold cloak and is the King of Arabia, he brought gold, a gift for a king.  Then there is Gaspar.   He is easily recognised by his brown hair and beard, he wears a green cloak and gold crown inlaid with green jewels, he represents the King of Sheba who brought Frankincense, a gift for a priest,  and finally, there is Balthazar who has black skin, a black beard and wears a purple cloak.  He is the King of Trase and Egypt.  Balthazar brought Myrrh, a gift for someone who was going to die.  The connection being that it was commonly used during the embalming process.

You may well  be doubtful about the existence of the Three Kings but Marco Polo claimed in the 1270´s, to have visited Saba in Persia and to have seen the tombs of The Three Kings.  Whether they did ever exist, I would not like to venture, but they are an intrinsic part of the Spanish festivites.

Well, that is Chtistmas in Spain.  In essence, a time to show your love for your fellow man, spend time with your family and friends and forget about the daily grind of life, which is just what Christmas should be.  Merry Christmas!

They say that an army marches on its stomach and any NAAFI manager will tell you that if the HP sauce runs out there will be war. At its height the Roman army numbered around 30 legions each made up of 5,000 men plus engineers, doctors, civilian administrators, craftsmen as well as private entrepreneurs who followed and supplied the great army, this group of people included retailers and artesans, musicians and entertainers and of course, the obligatory ladies of the night.  In essence, a  lot of people to keep happy and there were two things which made the most important members of this group, the  Roman soldiers, very happy indeed.  One was the aforementioned ladies of the night and the second was a strange little product called garum.

Garum was a fish sauce, used by the Romans much like we use HP sauce.  It was not invented by the Romans, the Greeks got there first, but it certainly made its mark on history during the Roman period.  It was a pungent sauce, also sometimes called liguamen, made by macerating oily fish and fish guts with salt, which stopped the decaying process.  Any kind of fish could be used such as anchovy, mackerel, tuna, sardines or sprats.  Sometimes herbs were added such as fennel, coriander, mint,  oregano or  dill. The mix was then fermented in the dry warm air for one to three months,  in stone vats.   As the fermentation progressed, a close texture woven basked was placed on the mixture, as the fish disintegrated, the liquid which came out of the mash would flow in to the basket and could then be taken off.  The sauce was high in protein and amino acids.  A whole garum industry grew up making this concoction and shipping it to the four corners of the Roman Empire.  The best garum was considered to come from Southern Spain and was called garum sociorum or “garum of the allies”.  The smell this fermentation process created was pretty bad and garum factories were relegated to the outskirts of most Roman towns.

Like soya sauce, garum was used as a umami flavouring but its uses were not only limited to food.  It was also recommended for all sorts of ailments from freckles to dysentery.  The sauce came in several grades to fit all social classes and purses.  For instance, once the garum had been removed, the pulp called allec was used by the poor to flavour their porridge or farinata.  According to Diocletian, the best quality fish sauce was liquamen primum, then coming in second was liquamen secundum and of course, garum could always be substituted by salt in a recipe. That said, garum appears in several of the recipes featured in the Roman cookbook Apicius and not only in the savoury dishes but also in some of the sweet ones.  The Romans recommended that when mixed with  wine, oenogarum (a popular Byzantine sauce), vinegar, black pepper, and oil, garum enhances the flavour of a wide variety of dishes, including boiled veal and steamed mussels.   You must try that next time you are stuck for a meal idea!!
One of the main garum production sites was at Claudia Baleo, lying along the beach at Bolonia, just north of Tarifa in the Costa de la Luz.  This incredibly well preserved site lies just off the N340/E5.   On leaving the main road, you wend your way uphill to begin with then come round a corner to be confronted by the most fabulous view of the valley falling away downhill to the seashore, slightly to the right, you can just pick out the incredibly well preserved remains of Claudia Baleo and as you get closer, many are apt to ask what those funny dug out stone things are right on the shore line – of course, they were the fermentation vats at the garum factory.  The site has a museum but to be honest, it does not do the place justice and you would probably be better to hot foot it through the museum and out to the site which will not disappoint.

Claudio Baleo was occupied from around the end of 200BC and was particularly prosperous during the time of the Emperor Claudius, 41 – 45AD, indeed it was doing so well that he gave it the title of municipium,  but by the 6th century the city was abandoned.

Why would the Romans abandon such a beautiful site which housed a large number of people and supplied one of life´s staple foods?  It would appear that the decline coincided with seismic activity in the area and while the area is not particularly known for such activity, it has now been established, following 6 field surveys, that two earthquakes did take place.  The use of extensive ground penetrating radar, amongst the ruins to detect archeoseismologic damage, indicate that there were two earthquakes within the Roman period.  The first in 40 – 60AD and the second in 260 – 280AD, although this latter date differs to previous studies which put the second earthquake around 350 – 395AD.  The damage they caused  is evident when you look at the Isis Temple for instance and the data indicates a SW/NE directed compression due to ground shaking. The survey also concentrated on landslide and liquefaction processes, both common to earthquakes and evident in the area of the city.  It is thought that the earthquakes were the result of a local event rather than a knock on effect of remote seismic activity.

Not only was the city beset by natural disaster, it was attacked by pirates both Celtic and Barbary.  Piracy is not something you generally consider during the Roman period but it was a very real risk and Julius Caesar was personally a victim, having been kidnapped by Cilician pirates in 75BC and held for 38 days.  They demanded 20 talents of gold but this was raised to 50 talents when Caesar became insulted and complained at  the mediocre sum being asked for his safe return.   The fine was paid and he was released but his sense of humour obviously failed him,  as he then hunted down the pirates and crucified them.

In general, barring the earthquakes and pirates, life in Claudia Baleo was good, the city had 3 aqueducts supplying it with fresh water, a sewerage system, a circular protective wall with main gate, an industrial area, administrative buildings, stores, a market, Roman baths, a theatre, and various temples dedicated to Isis, Minerva, Juno and Jupiter.

You may be able to blame some of the dearth of buyers on the new markets opening up.   Like Cape Verde, that archipelago of 10 volcanic islands situated some 570 kilometres off the coast of West Africa near to Senegal and The Gambia and of course, Croatia, or the Republic of Croatia as we should really call it in the Baltic States.  Then there was  Montenegro, formerly part of Yugoslavia who made a guest part appearance on the “options” list and of course the slightly more whacky Albania,  that little known country you can just pick out through the mist,  when you look over from Corfu.

Why were we deserted for these younger, leaner and more exotic locations, well, I think when times get tough, people look for alternatives and are perhaps more prepared to try something new.  These new destinations certainly ticked the box on price.  The press were keen to pick up on how deep and how fast Spain was going down and who wants to buy in to a disaster?  Nobody knew where the decline would end or what the Spanish government could,  or would do,  to arrest the crash.  Then of course, there is that old word – image.  Spain´s image had been getting knocked around for a couple of years before the big bang.  People were getting a tad fed up with the stories or people being ripped off, of pensioners living in their garages because their house had been demolished due to a Townhall mishap regards planning and I think to some degree we were punished for our sins.

However, having been grounded for our transgressions, we have now been handed back the Xbox and Spain is back on the up and up.   Not only is the property market perking up faster  than expected and prices are starting to rise in some areas but foreign investors are keen to pick up shares in Spanish companies, in fact, 43% of Spanish shares are now under overseas control.  The highest level of this type of investment since 2007.  Likewise, Spanish tourism is on the up and up with the hotel sector attracting investors from the Middle East, Asia and the USA.  This particular type of investment has hit an all time high. Over the coming 5 years, the Spanish government intends to create 3 million new jobs, no mean feat,  and annual growth will be up 2.5% – 3% on previous years.

All these things show that we are, as Micky Flannigan would say, “back in the game”.  The good thing about being grounded is that some people have learned their lessons, like the developers who are taking things a bit more slowly and making sure they have the right project, in the right place with the right financial backing instead of running at it like a bull at a barn door and throwing up project after project, many of which now lie empty and unsold.    Our old friends the banks are likewise, taking things more steadily and somewhat novelly,  making sure that clients can actually support and repay a mortgage before giving them one.  That can only help Spain financially and our Townhalls are taking the subject of urbanisation more seriously.   Most now provide an open service to anyone who wishes to make an enquiry although some charge for this like Puerto Real and some of our estate agents are making sure that they inform clients of any possible problems before they buy.

A fair bit of mopping up is still required though with the Spanish government talking about the possible demolition of property, built during the boom times, which still remains unsold .  While the banks have done some work on selling this backlog to get them off their books, they are not estate agents and some 650,000 still remain unsold.  This creates large tracts of skeletal property which neither enhances the local area or encourages investors to open new projects.  The banks are finding the upkeep of these repossessions more costly than the loss of them so perhaps a very large bulldozer would clear the land and the market place.   The land could go back to planning for new projects  to be developed,  giving employment to architects and in turn builders, carpenters, plasterers, plumbers etc.  Is this perhaps where the government are going to find 3 million news jobs  in the next 5 years?  If they can do it, I take my hat off to them, people in work buy houses and when they do, they invest in all our futures.

I think it is fair to say that a good swift kick in the pants has done the Spanish property industry no end of good,  and we go forward stronger and better than we were before.