Costa Women Blogs

I used to hate Cynthia Lennon. A lot of us teenage girls were a bit psycho, that way, in the psychedelic Sixties. Pinning Beatles to our bedroom walls like crazed etymologists. Insanely jealous of wives and girlfriends. Fantasising about John/George/Paul/Ringo – take your pick – Eight Days A Week. Cynthia was married to MY John. It was MY hand he wanted to hold. That was Yesterday. The Fab Four dropped to the bottom of my album collection and Cynthia didn’t cross my mind again for the next 40 years. And then, last week, she did. I went to see Julian Lennon’s Beatles Memorabilia Exhibition in Gibraltar (where John married Yoko Ono) and there was his Mum, Cynthia, … looking good (for her age) with a warm smile and thick (bottled) blonde hair, sharing intimate moments of her life with John from a TV screen. Imagine!  As it turned out, not quite as I’d imagined… Being the wife of a Beatle was not such A Taste of Honey … more of A Hard Day’s Night, as you may discover if you visit this extraordinarily personal exhibition and read between Cynthia’s poignant lines. Among the platinum discs and treasured belongings that talk of fame and fortune there’s another story not doing too much struggling to get out about the husband and father known to the world as John Lennon. A bit of a selfish sod, our John, despite his amazing talent! Too much Lucy in the Sky, perhaps… Well, how would you feel? Your kid is involved in a car crash with your ex and his new bird and you hear it from the TV news! Cynthia freaks. No one has bothered to call. Not John, not Yoko. But, hey, Julian’s fine.Let it Be, woman! Like a paper trail, the story unfolds through a timeline of albums and news cuttings, (and a line of white feathers stuck to the floor – but that’s Julian’s story, a child of five when he lost his Dad to divorce, and 17 when he lost him forever). This is Cynthia’s story, told to music. To hear the songs and read the rest of the story see http://belindabeckett.com/cynthia-lennon/

Back in 2002 at the concept of 1230 TWC we were the first businesswomen’s network; now not only are there many more face:to:face networks but we also have social media, that is, on-line networking. So let’s have a look at face:to:face network versus on-line networking. Do we need both, are they in competition? In my opinion and many others, this is a resounding – Yes, followed by No! By the way, run a mile if anyone tells you that they are experts in social media. This market is developing so fast that people can only be “specialists” they cannot possibly be an expert. Face:to:face networking and social media complement each other and are essential to any business growth. Note the word “social”. Let’s just look at Twitter firstly with a couple of tips • Don’t be an egg – people (or in Twitter speak, peeps) are talking to YOU, so your photo needs to be there.• Always thank someone if they have RT (that is ReTweeted, bit like Forwarding an email) something you have posted. Face:to:face networking• Most meetings enable you to give a brief talk (1230 TWC is 1 minute) – give this plenty of thought, success is all in the planning, and whatever you do, don’t run over time – practice in the bathroom!• Dress for success – that is – wear to the networking meetings what you would wear to meet your most important client – because you could be, couldn’t you? Something with pockets makes the storing of your business cards in one pocket and those received in another pocket, very much easier.

Building on cultural and economic links with Spain, EUROAL 2013 International Travel Market for Latin America and Europe saw José Luis Córdoba, Director of Andalucía Lab Tourist Innovation Centre in Marbella, host a conference on “How to become smart destinations and not die in the attempt.” Held at Torremolinos Palacio de Congresos (6-8 June), 11 themes were highlighted:   1. The transformation of destinations explained how travellers are increasingly looking for holidays with different added value elements and stressed the importance of tour operators investing in customised adventures and experiences.   2. Offering enriched experiences satisfies travellers’ interest in documenting and photographing personal experiences ‘on the go’ to share on blogs and social networks, enabling tourism companies to inform clients of where to go, what to buy, special offers, etc.   3. User-driven content demonstrates people’s trust in information provided by their peers rather than from traditional sources such as Tourist Information Centres and Town Halls.   4. The separation between browsing on computer versus mobile devices indicates people’s desire for information on the go. As José Luis explained, “Tourism is one of the most information-intensive industries” and tourist guides are optimizing content to fit mobile and tablet display and keypad functions.    5. Googling “what to see in London” produces 1.85 billion search results. This ‘Big Data’ is an example of travellers’ information demands – opportunities for providers to upload quality content promoting their products and services.   6. As emerging countries become more affluent and destinations become more accessible, we’re seeing a shift in traveller choices – for example, the Chinese have become the highest spending non-European visitors to France.   7. Now more than ever it’s essential to know your market – find out as much as possible about clients’ interests and demands.       8. The luxury travel sector is increasing. On 3 June 2013, management consultants PricewaterhouseCoopers recorded an 8.8% rise in high-end hotel reservations.   9. According to PhoCusWright travel market research, nearly 1 in 3 leisure agencies is hiring with the American Society of Travel Agents reporting a 57% increase in independent agents’ business over 2011.   10. Managing a hotel’s online reputation is important in a market where purchasing decisions are influenced by holiday review sites such as TripAdvisor.   11. As web browsing shifts to mobile devices, Apps are becoming an increasingly important information access point for travellers with the added advantage that online connectivity isn’t needed once the App is downloaded.   Conference attended and translated by Chris Dove, Pro Write and Edit, Málaga, www.prowriteandedit.com

I updated this information yesterday and thought I may be of use for anyone travelling to the area over the Summertime   My practical tips to visit the city of Granada or get your hands on Alhambra tickets!   Full post here: http://www.piccavey.com/blog/granada-andalucia/   Kind regardsMolly  

Having braved a week long trip abroad with a 10 year old and a 5 month old last year, I thought I’d put together a few tips to get you through flying with a baby.  It seemed to do the trick for us and we were left with a baby who slept for both take off and landing, plus the vast majority of the flights and was happy in the airport, which is a bit of a result as I’d been absolutely dreading the flight! Read more

I run two blogs – one for writers and one for readers of crime/thriller fiction. I am currently running weekly interviews on both blogs. If you are a published author and would like to feature on either blog, please let me know. For crime/thriller authors the blog link is: http://francesdiplinoreviews.blogspot.com.es/ For all other genres, the link is: http://thewritersabcchecklist.blogspot.fr/ You can contact me for the interview questions for either blog at: lorraine@lorrainemace.com