Costa Women Blogs

Despite sitting 5,880 kilometres away in Málaga’s 27°C late summer heat, I can still feel the bone-melting -2°C that hit me as I exited New York´s Central Station on the first of five pre and post 9/11 visits to the City. Spending three weeks over Christmas with friends in Greenwich Village, we headed straight to Macy´s in Manhattan to buy the thickest scarf and fluffiest gloves – my tight layered jacket with white (fake) fur hood obviously weren´t enough. So it´s a relief recent meetings between Marbella Mayor Ángeles Muñoz and top dignitaries in New York were under more favourable climatic and diplomatic conditions. http://www.paradisemarbellarealty.com/blog/marbella-meets-manhattan-a-positive-property-match/

Why do I write this blog “On Meditation”? The reason is that I would like to encourage people to try meditation, to give it a chance and if they like it to have it as a daily routine. I teach meditation and I use meditation as one of the tools for helping people to have a harmonious life. Not to change or improve themselves but to recognize whom they really are. Meditation is simple but not easy. The difficulty lies in our mind wanting to talk all the time. The stream of thoughts is like a spoilt child, it wants our constant attention. During meditation we teach the mind to be quiet when we don’t want its help. Simply we regain control over our own being. The society is built on the idea of superiority of mind. I don’t deny the importance of it. And with the advance use of intelligence the world is far from being fair. Maybe it is time to allow other aspects of human being to speak. Maybe it is time to listen to the neglected and banned members of the family. They may have something interesting to say. How to connect to these aspects? The easiest way to do it is by meditation. The best way to stop our brain from listening to the stream of thoughts is to redirect our attention from these thoughts to something else. And the something else is the present moment. Listening to the present moment can surprise you with answers and solutions your mind would never construct. Maybe it is worth trying. Learn meditation.

Seeking to escape the madding crowd, Estepona was my first choice location on the Costa del Sol. I’d booked a month-long stay on an inland horse farm, soaking in my wonderful new surroundings on weekly trips with the crew to buy feed, straw and hay – even mucking in with the occasional mucking out! After renting a freshly decorated sea-view apartment in the cosy Old Town, aptly addressed Calle Nueva 1 (1 New Street), Costa del Sol News editor Suzan Davenport accepted (and paid favourably for) my first photojournalism proposal – a two-page walking guide to the town’s colourful ceramic street signs depicting some of Spain’s celebrated cities. Following publication, Tourism Councillor at the time, Marta Solís, emailed out of the blue: “Congratulations on the deep knowledge shown in your article promoting our town,” so nine years later it’s good to share this post about an authentic Costa del Sol destination. http://www.paradisemarbellarealty.com/blog/all-eyes-on-estepona/

Meditation is saying hello to your own body, making an acquaintance with this perfect power station that has been supplying you with ready solutions to your everyday life. It works 24/7. It really deserves...

This summer we have had a house full of children and watching them play and jump endlessly in and out of the swimming pool made me reflect on a book I published last year about three children who lose their home, their family, even their country. Their lives could not have been more different from the excited little grandchildren charging around our house. A couple of years ago I came across an article about the children who had been sent to the colonies as migrants, many of them wrongly labelled as orphans and under the delusion that their families were dead. I was amazed, not only that such a thing could happen in Britain but also that it had been kept secret for so many years. If it hadn’t been for a chance circumstance, many of those children, now adults, would never have been reunited with their families. A social worker, Margaret Humphreys, was assigned the case of a woman who claimed that she had been deported from Britain when she was only four years old. That was in 1986; since then Mrs Humphreys has discovered that as many as 150,000 children were sent abroad by the British government to start new lives. The last case being as recently as 1967. Director and founder of the Child Migrants’ Trust Mrs Humphreys has worked tirelessly to help these children find surviving members of their families. Her book EMPTY CRADLES tells of the first seven years of her struggle to bring this knowledge out into the open and to help those involved. The article that I had chanced upon inspired me to read extensively around this subject and in the end to write a book of my own. THE ONLY BLUE DOOR is fiction, a novel based on true occurrences and drawn from the real experiences of those immigrant children. It is the story of the three Smith children from Bethnal Green who, through a series of unfortunate incidents, find themselves on a boat to Australia in 1941. This is not a story of tears and recriminations but rather the story of how each child, in their own way, struggles to make the best of their lives and never gives up the hope of being reunited. THE ONLY BLUE DOOR is available as an ebook and in paperback.http://www.amazon.co.uk/Only-Blue-Door-Joan-Fallon/dp/0957689136/ref=tmm_pap_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1379933327&sr=1-4

Inspired by Spain too… Continuing on from last weeks Blog, Inspired by Spain we wanted to share another wedding palette inspired by the beauty and nature of Spain. So today, it’s all about Lemons! Their fresh citrus scent, their thirst quenching juice and their beautiful bright colourful skin! Lemons are a super special fruit with many health benefits and almost 50 different uses. They were first introduced to Spain by the Arabs hundreds of years ago. With a high sensitivity to the cold lemons grow only in very particular regions, Andalucia being one of them! With two types of Lemons being grown in Spain, the Fino and the Verna, an all year round supply of Lemons is guaranteed for your Lemon inspired Wedding day celebration! Lemony LOVE! Inspired by Spain too… Symbolically Lemons are a great accessory or theme to your wedding day. Symbolising longevity, purification, love and friendship, the perfect elements for a long lasting marriage. If you are planning your wedding during the summer months in Spain and you would like to incorporate a Lemon theme, they will certainly play more than one role on your wedding day. The bright and beautiful fruit is perfect for vibrant decoration, incorporate them into your wedding styling. Using them will add a sense of nature and wholeness to your day. Ask your Stylist to add them to your centerpieces, floral displays, use as name card holders, to decorate your aisle and perhaps burn lemon essence to refresh the air and help to keep insects at bay! Lemonade days! Inspired by Spain, From The French Tangerine! Old fashioned Lemonade makes a great refresher for a hot wedding day! Display in a Vintage dispenser with plenty of ice and keep your guests refreshed, hydrated and also energised throughout your wedding day! And to bring some life to your evening reception, why not serve your guests signature Vodka lemonades! Just a few more Lemon facts for you ! The magical Lemon can be used to scent a room, to keep you hydrated, to keep colds at bay, help keep your skin clear from spots, as a fruit and vegetable wash, to keep guacamole green, to treat high blood pressure, to relieve stress and even depression, to help people with respiratory illnesses such as asthma, as an anti-aging treatment, to keep insects away, to detoxify your blood, to relieve headaches, for general cleaning and freshening around the house, to replace your dry cleaner, to help with stomach health, as a stain remover, to treat dry scalp, to cleanse and exfoliate your face, to keep kidney stones at bay and to treat Arthritis and Rheumatism! For full descriptions and uses go to USES for LEMONS! With so many different uses and health benefits, Lemons really should feature daily in your life, especially to keep you healthy in the run up to your wedding day and of course for creating your stunning lemon inspired Spanish wedding! I love lemons and drink half the juice of a lemon in warm water each morning before I do anything else!! If you have any questions about your wedding design and styling, please CONTACT me on 00 44 7876 752 435 or {lucy@boutiqueweddingsinspain.com}. Lucy x  Image ref: Lemony LOVE: Stylemepretty.com, Pinterest-Via Marja, firstclassweddingsandevents.com, southernweddings.com, style-files.com, everythingfab.tumblr.com, weddingchicks.com, stylemepretty.com Lemonade days!: Thefrenchtangerine.com