Costa Women Blogs

Hi,   I had to add this post to the page, if we are Costa Women then I have to share my latest post about COSTA tropical. This is Granada´s coastline, maybe not as bling as Marbella or as sandy as Torremolinos, but great for water sports and a little quieter in the busy Summer months. Click here to read my A to Z guide  http://bit.ly/Jiwjjq    Have a great dayMolly

All:   Sorry for the long pause in communicating.  We have been making great strides toward our relocation to BCN and are getting very very excited!  We have our VISA apps filed, house rented, secured a place to stay in el Born for the summer while we look for more permanent digs, and our 15 year old has been accepted to a great international school.  Making progress on Spanish brush up, and even my husband is starting to sound like he knows what he is saying :). Looking forward to connecting in person with some of you. Cheers,   Esther

Proving that the message behind good song lyrics never dies, I’m pleased to announce that I was among the first on the Costa del Sol to hear the good news that the remixed NOSTRADAMUS rock and dance track – sung by UK Eurovision entrant Engelbert Humperdinck, written by Marbella promoter Dario Poli and produced by Roberto Danova at London’s Plaza Records – is topping 180 European radio playlists. Composer Dario’s early morning call revealed his pleasant surprise at receiving Roberto’s email, saying:   “Dear Dario, I am pleased to confirm that the above track is officially released on the Plaza label on the recording NOSTRADAMUS – Engelbert Humperdinck with ZGuitarz. A Europe-wide radio promotion to over 180 stations is underway and your assistance as co-writer of the composition will, of course, be very welcome and valuable. Thank you and kind regards, Roberto Danova – Plaza Records Ltd.” This led to my NOSTRADAMUS sound check over Easter, knowing good dance music when we hear it! Our unbiased opinion? This is a double achievement pleasing rock AND dance fans in one neat tune. Increasingly uptempo Gregorian chants give way to melodic background choruses which hauntingly repeat and reverberate around your head, before the club mix lets out piercing guitar riffs and driving drumlines – great at maximum volume on an open road (driver or not). Dario and famed international record producer and arranger Roberto first collaborated in London during the 90s. Deciding not to release NOSTRADAMUS back then, Dario had almost forgotten about the work created more than a decade before, as it had originally been released titled NOSTRADAMUS 1999 as instrumental music featuring Gregorian type chants. After a fortuitous meeting with Engelbert at his stately home in Leicestershire, minor changes were made on the advice of the star and his superb voice was added in a London studio. Listening to the superstar singing their music was an amazing experience, Dario recalls. They’ve turned Nostradamus’ dire 16th century warnings of terrifying and catastrophic events into a modern-day love song: “Love has the power to forgive…come and listen to him now, the world needs love and understanding and he can show you how…the future of the world is in your hands…” – exactly what environmentalists and neo-Revelationists have been preaching for years. Ears will be pricked and all eyes open to see Engelbert’s rousing performance of ‘Love Will Set You Free’ during the Eurovision Song Contest Grand Final in Baku, Azerbaijan on 26 May. Speaking to me exclusively last week, Dario said: “If Engelbert was presented at Eurovision wearing a Nostradamus cape surrounded by a young backing group, a lead guitarist, playing the Nostradamus song, he could get close to winning the competition as it wouldn’t matter that he’s got a few years on other contestants – this adds to the character of the prophet Nostradamus.” Win or lose that night, Dinck’s showmanship and renewed exposure will ensure a positive spin-off, taking NOSTRADAMUS to the top of international sales charts. The five-track CD ‘NOSTRADAMUS – Engelbert Humperdinck with ZGuitarz Vol 1’ is out now on Plaza Records (www.plazarecords.net) with mp3 downloads also available soon.     This post is also on view at Pro Write and Edit, http://www.prowriteandedit.com/news.php?idn=137.

Now I thought I was a fairly independent woman. I’m not afraid to lift the odd heavy box, I am pretty good at DIY, I’m not afraid to voice my opinion in the strongest of male company and can hold my own. So when this weekend in Cadiz, a 15 year old boy jumped up from the table where I was about to sit and pulled my chair out for me, I stopped before I sat. I have to admit I was skeptical, was he about to whip it away as I sat, some form of practical  joke leaving me sprawling on the floor? Quite the reverse, he took the plate I was carrying and waited until I had sat and was comfortable, before placing it gently before me, turned, resat and carried on with his meal with all the charm of an Edwardian Gentleman. I was left with a huge grin on my face and it felt good! I should explain. I am a youth leader here in Spain and had agreed to take my Girl guides along to Scout camp. A rare treat, but as scouting is now for boys and girls we now take part in a lot of events together. We were joining the male-only American Scouts camping at the American Naval Base in Rota and I had agreed to cook at the event. This is often hard work with lots of heavy pots to carry, a lot of wood smoke and very rural “kitchen” design! The American boys were as rough and loud as any others. They were naughty, cheeky and fun but their manners were a world apart from those taught to our children. Always a “Please Maam” and a “thankyou Maam”. Offers of “How can I help you maam?” were constant and unprovoked. I was impressed and in turn I found I was happy to do the hard work involved in cooking for the 60 kids. It stemmed of course, from the boys parents and their Scout leaders who were all Military families where discipline and manners are just part of life. They thought little of it, but it made such a difference to me! So often volunteers are left unrewarded. Every week we rush from work to run a meeting or give up yet another weekend to attend an event or give the kids another adventurous experience they would never have otherwise. We do it with grace and humour and often the reward is just the smile on the kids faces and the knowledge that you are delivering a safe and rewarding opportunity they will always remember. And actually, I don’t expect more.   But when the child responds with manners as beautiful as those of the young American Scout I have to admit to being flattered and yes it did make my weekend!  So the message of this blog? Parents work hard to teach manners – they really do count. We take so much for granted in today’s society. A polite child is worth all the effort you put in to make them so and can only further their chances in life. In our own lives, how many times as members of a club or society do we take the time to deliver a personal word of thanks to the organiser or the secretary? Yes they do it because they want to, but we all like to be remembered now and again.    As for being called “Maam”.. Well I can take it from a Yank but maybe I’ll let my kids off, you can only take so much of a good thing.

Interview with Alison Meehan, founder of Costa Women This is the first in the series of interviews with the people that inspire me the most in terms of their positivity, determination, confidence and vision that I´ll be sharing with you over the coming weeks and months. These interviews are part of my ongoing research for my Coaching and Training courses on a variety of subjects, such as Confidence, Motivation, Leadership, and Communication Skills.  I´m very grateful to everyone who has contributed their tips, advice and secrets to help me make my workshops, materials and sessions that much more enriched, practical, fun and effective. I´m sure you´ll enjoy this insightful interview as much as I did! Alison, since I´ve moved to Marbella, you´ve been one of my inspirations for many reasons, but I think one of the main ones being your thorough consistency in delivering positive, motivational messages to women all around Spain – be it by weekly newsletter, your brilliant webforum, Tweets, Facebook group and I´m sure many others! Sure, many of us do our best to spread some joy and positivity whenever we get the chance (and don´t get distracted by Facebook, phonecalls, Desperate Housewives etc!). But the consistency, the perseverance, the focus – now that´s a discipline that I believe makes that great difference in succeeding as much as your initiatives do. First of all, Alison, tell us a little about you? Where are you based? How do you “earn your living”, what is your business all about? Well firstly, thank YOU for the kind comments Marina!  As you will have gathered, I am hugely passionate about what I do so that drives the focus and the desire to show up.   Providing a platform for connecting women, promoting businesses and networking is something I love; its great to share the opportunities that are out there.  Originally from the UK, I am now based in Los Boliches, and have lived here on and off since 2002.  We have moved about a bit in the interim (Dubai, Spain, Thailand and then back to Spain) but this is very much home!  My working background is very diverse, but in Dubai I worked for an oil and gas business development consultancy where I learnt many different skill sets; including marketing and branding, sales and customer service, as well as working on a IT start up which was subsequently sold to an international Media House.  Most importantly, I learnt how to build a global community with multinational Clients. In 2011 when we came back to Spain, my husband and I started a social media and ecommerce business with most of our Clients internationally based.  Social media fits so well with what I love; being social, media and networking, that I am one of those fortunate people that loves what they do. And now, pray do tell, how do you manage this enviable consistency in your projects and communications? How do you stay on course, don´t get distracted, don´t get absorbed by life´s everyday chaos and mini-crisis etc? Life does throw up the odd curve ball doesn’t it!  My career started …Read more………. http://marinanitzak.blogspot.com.es/2012/04/ali-meehans-secrets-to-positive-mind.html?spref=fb

My Sauerkraut craving… No, I’m not pregnant! My body has the habit of very kindly letting me know when I need a specific food. Every time I walked past the sauerkraut in the supermarket, I just got this fancy for it, but couldn’t think of a way to eat it. I even got as far as buying it, but it just sat there in the store cupboard. You would have thought that having Polish parents I could have just knocked up a bigos, our most famous traditional dish, but unfortunately the cooking gene inherited by my sister and brothers seems to have passed me by! It was only when I read Dr Mercola’s article on probiotics (see link below) that I worked out why my body was asking for the sauerkraut and was galvanised into action. It was quite an experience – my body was so delighted that I had finally got the message, it was doing little skips of pleasure every time I ate it! So what is it that makes sauerkraut so special? Sauerkraut or indeed any of the fermented foods (see list below) help to ensure that our gut is populated by beneficial bacteria. And as 80% of our immune system resides in our gut, it’s important that it remain healthy! It might not look particularly appetising, but it’s got a great pickled flavour that goes brilliantly with lots of different foods, particularly meat and oily fish, and it’s so good for you 🙂 We always have both beneficial and harmful bacteria present in the gut and it is only when the balance is compromised that our health suffers. Our excessive consumption of refined sugars which feed the harmful bacteria is one of the primary culprits. Another is taking antibiotics which indiscriminately kill both harmful and beneficial bacteria. Chlorinated water, birth control pills and stress can also jeopardise the balance. (While it may be necessary to take antibiotics on occasion, if this is followed by a diet that includes fermented food you will be able to repopulate your gut with the good bacteria.) Probiotic supplements are notoriously expensive and some may not provide a good range of bacteria. I always prefer to get my vitamins and minerals from food wherever possible because they provide them in a natural and balanced way. The best way to ensure optimal gut flora is to regularly consume traditionally fermented foods and most cultures have their own versions: Pickled fermentations of cabbage (sauerkraut), turnips, eggplant, cucumbers, onions, squash, and carrots Fermented raw milk such as kefir or yogurt (but NOT commercial versions, which typically do not have live cultures and are loaded with sugars that feed the harmful bacteria)     Lassi – an Indian yogurt drink, traditionally enjoyed before dinner Tempeh and Natto made from fermented soy     Kim chee When buying fermented foods it’s important that you check the labels carefully. Unfortunately our desire to exterminate all germs at any cost has led to many of the traditional fermented foods’ health benefits being compromised by pasteurisation. (Cooking will also destroy many of the beneficial bacteria, so consume raw to get the benefit). I haven’t yet been able to find unpasteurised sauerkraut here in Spain so we are now making our own – I’ll keep you posted on progress. The first batch should be ready soon! Now I just need to find the perfect Polish sausage to go with it, mmmm!    I’d love to hear from you. So if you have any questions or would like to share your experience of fermented foods, just post a comment below. Or email me at info@GetEnergised.com. ‘One of The Most Important Supplements You Can Take’ by Dr Mercola