Costa Women Blogs

Pretty Patios & the Palacio de Viana on Piccavey.com   My second post about my busy weekend in Cordoba, Spain.   Read full post here:  http://www.piccavey.com/cordoba-patios-palacio-viana/   Saludos y buen fin de semana Molly

The Many Faces of Leadership! With the advent of Social Media many quiet and unknown leaders have come to the surface to influence our thinking, behavior, and guide us through very challenging times. The phenomenon is not so much on the platform, but in the opportunities social media has created for many known and unknown leaders to show their true character and abilities. And many of those leaders come with curves, lipstick and high heels. I am happy to see how many women have come forward to take charge of situations, and not only lead by example, but to enroll others in achieving a communal goal, create global visions with definitive outcomes, while they undergo their own personal challenges and growth. We’ve seen it with Marissa Mayer, CEO of Yahoo, which in less than 8 months, helped raise Yahoo’s shares by 3.7% since October 2012. And then there’s co-founder and CEO of Facebook, Sheryl Sandberg, who introduced the idea of Facebook ADS on mobile devices, thus increasing revenues by leaps and bounds. And those are the ones in the news today. How about the so many that we know in many different parts of the world, that though not in the news, they are making an amazing difference no matter where they are, no matter where they go, no matter who they are. How about the shy-ones who have found their voice and they’re speaking loud and clear now more than ever. And then there were those who thought only natural-born leaders could be leaders and then they found out that leaders can be born, they can also be made. And those through perseverance, trust and courage got out of their comfort zone to help those in need going far and beyond their own call of duty. Are those the unsung heroes? I would say they are. I know there are many that you know, including the one smiling back at you in the mirror. What makes a Leader? ·A sense of high integrity! Best of values at its core. A deep sense of curiosity. Great passion for what they do. Unafraid to make mistakes. Even if in fear, they’d do it anyway. Innovative, creative, resourceful. Focused on Goals with the team in mind. Influential, laborious, light-hearted. Highly enthusiastic, this is also highly contagious and good for the team. They understand the power of having a global vision. They know “they don’t know it all.” – This is huge! They look to others for fresh ideas, and encourage them to think big! They have a sense to be in the service of others. They get comfortable with being uncomfortable. Moms are great at doing this. They know the importance of transparency and authenticity. They know that results are an Inside Job; therefore they strive for Personal and Professional development at all levels. They know this will always be on-going. They understand change, progress, excellence and evolution. Leaders strive for mastery of self. They know what they think, feel, and believe is all part of amazing results (or not.) Yes, the many faces of leadership come in different shapes and forms. From a wallflower to a rock star, from a mountain hermit to a shinning prodigy. One thing in common: They all answer the call to lead; and they always recognize it when they hear it. Eventually, they all get to know themselves, up-close and personal, which turns them into strong and awesome leaders. Every leader is a champion and every champion is a hero. Every leader knows that they have been called to serve and it is in serving, that you fulfill your own destiny. Above all, they deeply understand the importance of being Grateful! #ABG ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ If this article speaks to you, print it out and display it where you and your team can see it. Use it for inspiration, as a reminder, or motivation to change things even when it doesn’t look like a good time to do so. Spread the love, sharing is caring. You have been call to lead, and lead you shall. Always have a Vision, a vision for Success! Much love, Ali R. Rodriguez International Business coach Passionista Leader Intuitive Activist (386) 676-6706 http://AliRodriguez.com

This is an adapted version of a post which first appeared on Scribbler in Seville.     Captain Haddock’s outbursts are a lot less colourful than some Spanish expressions.   In this post I’m looking at Spanish expressions which have caught my attention over the years. As a writer, translator, sometime English teacher and language graduate, I am always fascinated by the use of castellano – I think stretching that part of my brain was one of the main reasons I moved abroad in the first place.   From embarrassing mistakes, to unusual words, I am constantly intrigued by how my my bilingual kids mix their languages; pondering, quizzing, driving my semi-literate husband mad – “What does this word mean? How is its meaning different from that one? Which of them is stronger/ruder/more typically Andaluz?”   After living here in Spain for nearly ten years, and in Spanish-speaking countries for a year longer than that, I’m increasingly aware of subtleties and subtexts in what those around me are saying. I wouldn’t call myself an expert by any stretch, but I’m slowly adding to my stock of colloquial phrases that I might tentatively try out for the first time, to be greeted by peals of laughter from friends and family, and delighted, gently piss-taking cries of “Que andaluza estas hecha, Feeee-onn-a!” So here goes, with my five chosen Spanish expressions, which reveal telling points about Spanish society and culture. When I’ve blogged about such topics before, it’s drawn quite a response, so I await with interest to see what people make of this list. 1) “Me cago en la leche/en dios/en tu puta madre/en la madre que te pario/en todos tus muertos” (I shit on the milk/on god/on your whore of a mother/on the mother who bore you/on all your ancestors) Palabrotas (swear words; literally, big ugly words – thanks to my linguistic consultant Mary for that one!) are used freely and without conscience by both sexes and all ages here in Spain. I remember a friend being horrified to hear her boyfriend’s sweet, lovable old granny swearing like a brickie at lunch one Sunday. Similarly, it’s shocking when such oaths come out of little kids’ mouths (not my own, I hasten to add – that would almost be enough to justify mild corporal punishment. Almost). Especially with the graphic nature of the language used.   Remember that Spain is still a Catholic country, where mothers are held sacred – both the Virgin, and one’s own. The force of the third oath in my list, and the contradiction with this hallowed matriarchal status, is illogical and deeply disturbing. Yes, yes, I know these expressions have lost all their force now, or at least it’s been massively diluted, through over-use. Noone actually thinks about what they’re saying when the words come out of their mouths. But I still wince when I hear it – especially in the years since I myself have “pario“. What an old prude, eh? Blue skies mean the heat is on.   2) “Que calor!/Que frio!” (It’s so hot! It’s so cold!) Spain is a land of extremes – that’s one of the things I love about it. Everything is black or white – the opposing emotions of grief and joy, as expressed in that most Andalucian of art forms, flamenco. The full-on all-night partying at the Feria, in the midst of the worst financial situation Spain has ever experienced. As the saying goes(can you tell I love sayings?), they don’t do things by halves.   The same is true for the weather – in November, as soon as the temperature drops below 10 degrees, it’s all “Ay! Que frio!”, and on with the Boots. Andaluces, I have two words for you: British winter. I am usually colder inside my house than out, so my discomfort stems more from substandard Spanish building (our “old” house is 30 years young), than from sub-zero exterior temperatures. In April, as the skies clear to their gorgeous rich blue, the sun regains its full force, and you bare your arms for the first time in months (yes, non-Spain dwellers, we do wear more than one layer for part of the year), people cry in anguish, wiping their brows, “Pero que calor hace!” as if they’ve just arrived from Siberia and are totally unaccustomed to sweating at 9.30 in the morning. Not as if they’re Andaluces who have lived here all their lives, as most have. Noone (except me) ever says “Que buena temperatura!” – what a lovely temperature! God, I’m so English, aren’t I? Gazpacho andaluz – as made to perfection by everyone’s mother. Photo: JaviRecetas.com   3) “Mi madre hace el mejor gazpacho del mundo” (My mother makes the world’s best gazpacho) If I had a euro for every time I’d heard this, it would be me bailing Sr Rajoy out, instead of Sra Merkel. Gazpacho is a mainstay in the summer months, with every Spanish señora worth her garlic keeping a container of the red stuff in her fridge at all times during the hot summer months, ready to provide her extended family (ie, me) with a refreshing shot of cold liquidized veggies (Andaluzes generally drink gazpacho from a glass, rather than a bowl.) This chilled soup of tomatoes, cucumber, onion, pepper, garlic, bread, and that essential, ubiquitous Andalucian product, olive oil, is as andaluz as its gets – all typical seasonal ingredients which everyone grows in their huerta. In the mid-20th century, many Andalucians lived off the land as they had no other option, so it’s a classic subsistence dish. It’s so easy, even a lazy and reluctant cook like me can make it. There are various camps – (sherry) vinegar or not, bread makes it salmorejo (no – salmorejo only has tomatoes, not the rest of the salad box). But whatever her recipe, each person’s mum has the superlative blend. “I’ve only had two beers.” Yeah, right, and I’m Cindy Crawford.   4) “Solo he tomado dos o tres cervezas/No he bebido nada” (I’ve only had two or three beers/I haven’t drunk anything) There are two issues here: first, in Andalucia, beer is not considered alcohol. It’s a soft drink. It does not affect your ability to drive in any way at all, and you can put away as much as you like before getting behind the wheel of your car and driving your merry way home. So not drinking alcohol (“no he bebido nada”) does not equal not drinking beer, if you’ll excuse the double negative. The second is the Andaluz tendency to either under- or over-exaggurate. As agreed with friends also married to Spanish men, “I’ve only had two beers”, the customary protest as your nappy-sensitized nose detects a whiff of cerveza on your mysteriously-late-arriving-home-husband, actually means about five or six. Under intense questioning, they admit to four, which pushes the genuine tally up to eight; and six – well, that’s a full-on drinking sesion. (Caveat: I’m not saying that all Andalucian men do this, obviously. But there are plenty who do.) Who the f*** put jamon in my salmorejo?   5) “Pero jamon no es carne” (But jamon isn’t meat) As any vegetarian who has been presented with a salad delicately sprinkled with little chunks of cured pig will know, jamon iberico is not considered within the earthly realms of meat in Spain (and even less so here, where we’re pig-snuffling distance from the Sierra de Huelva), and therefore is not described as such. Its provenance is more celestial, and it cannot be qualified or categorized alongside mere mortal iberico (prime pork) products such as salchichon or chorizo. It is, quite simply, on a higher plane, and an unquestionably essential element of life. And, it seems, of salads, soups, and other dishes described on menus as being “vegetarian”. The fact that we might not want it doesn’t seem to occur to them – why on earth wouldn’t we?   (My carnivorous friends wax lyrical about its tender texture and sweet, nutty flavour, plus its super-healthy oleic acid content.)   When you tell Spanish people you’re a vegetarian, you have to spell it out, very carefully and precisely, that this means you don’t eat chicken or jamon either. “WHAT?” they exclaim. “You don’t eat JAMON? You mean you’ve never even TRIED it?” The outrage is palpable – you’re clearly causing offence by disrespecting their hallowed ham. It’s like telling an English person you don’t like football, or the Queen. The look of bemused astonishment, the head scratching. How can this be possible? Yes, sir, I do not eat ham. I do not like it (Sam I am). The moral of the story is: vegetarians, if you don’t want jamon – on any of your dishes – be sure to tell your waiter firmly: “sin jamon, por favor”.   So there you have it – another over-generalised view from a foreigner who calls Spain their home. It’s a frustrating country in many ways, but I wouldn’t live anywhere else. Please remember, before you tap out an outraged reply, that I AM ENGLISH and my tongue is firmly IN MY CHEEK. If you don’t know what that means, look it up.  

 How to get from A to B in your personal development. Today is the day for change! What you have in your mind at the start of the day is the beginning of that change. Changing a pattern of old behaviour is either a challenge or a delight depending on how you think about it.  Whatever happened yesterday let it go, this thinking is the key to everything. Start each new day with a positive affirmation and an attitude of gratitude for all that will happen today. Our thinking comes from our beliefs about everything and anything, what we believe frames all our thinking. So it’s our beliefs we have to concentrate on to start with. There are some keys questions we have to ask ourselves. What do you believe about yourself? What do you believe about your life? What do you believe you deserve? What do you believe your life is about? Dig deep and really examine what you truly believe about yourself. Where you are up to with yourself? Are things going in the direction you desire? Your world around you gives you the clue, your relationships, your surroundings, your work etc. Are you happy with how it’s all panning out? What needs to change, what do you need to change? And probably the most important question is ‘what are you prepared to do to change the things you’re not happy about’? Most of us tend to ‘buy into our story’ and get stuck there. This is the ‘ how it is’ syndrome which blocks us moving forward.   Where any of us are at any given time is because we’ve created it that way. How? Well somewhere there’s the belief that’s determining that chain of thought. We don’t do it consciously; those beliefs are hidden under decades of conditioning in our culture. Recognising this pattern is your first step to change. Becoming aware of how you are thinking, and then consciously exchanging the negative to the positive. Warning, there’s a lot of energy in our patterns that don’t want to change. Inertia is a real energy, those patterns have been conditioned into us from the day we were born and most of our beliefs are ingrained by our parents and educators. I would hazard a guess that most of us don’t even know why we believe the things we do! So time to re think.   What is the most important thing you want to achieve in your life? Usually the answer is the same for all of us, happiness, peace of mind, great relationships and financial independence or freedom. So now get crystal clear about each of those answers. What is happiness to you? What’s peace of mind, how do you feel when you think about the sensation of peace of mind? What is a great relationship to you? What does financial freedom feel like to you? Whatever the most important things to you are, be as clear as you can in framing them. Get into the real feel of those feelings, imagine youself already being there.  Write them down. It’s amazing how many people just don’t do this. You need to be as specific and possible, this is your life you’re designing! It’s like building a house, you need a plan to work from, you put in the foundations and then start building. Without a plan your house won’t stand for long! Congratulate yourself on each new achievement no matter how small, build on each positive. If you find yourself slipping, just start again. It’s a new adventure. A baby learning to walk never beats itself up for falling over it just starts again. Enjoy the process, after all isn’t that what life is about! What is your way of preparing yourself for change? I’d love to hear what works for you Have a Great Day !!   

What do you do when you move to a new country and don’t know anyone?  The first item on your list needs to be networking.   Read more via my interview with nancy todd of The Spain Scoop: http://www.thespainscoop.com/expert-travel-advice-spain-scoop/#sthash.3dTNry2q.dpuf

10 different places in Spain to sip a Summer Mojito Now were are getting into the Summer holiday´sI thought I´d do a more fun post on my blog Read full article here: http://www.piccavey.com/mojito-in-spain/ Cheers   Enjoy your Summer!Molly