David Meca has just completed a 110 kilometre, 25 hour swim from Javea in the province of Alicante to San Antonio in Ibiza. The 25 kilometre open water world champion arrived with mild hypothermia, exhaustion, and a dislocated shoulder. The worst moments came during the 14 hour night, when he suffered jellyfish stings, an extreme drop in temperatures, and the spotlight on his support boat failed.
Author: Ben
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Well I was just walking along the lake in Madrid’s Retiro Park, and decided that it might be nice to record and comment on some of the ambient sounds on a typical, bright weekday afternoon: from fortune tellers to crisp sellers, accordion players (I remembered the name of the instrument now) and police horses….
Technorati Tags: spain, podcast, sound seeing
That was then, this is now: 2005 and 2006 in perspective – an interesting look at the last and the next twelve months in Spain, by Expatica. I never knew Glastonbury was coming over here…
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Having settled in Valencia with his Flamenco dancer wife, Jason Webster sets out on a treasure hunt – to discover the legacy of the Moors in Spain. With his Moroccan friend Zine (who he apparently finds working as a modern day slave in Almeria), Webster criss-crosses Spain picking up fascinating evidence of what survives of a magnificent civilisation that was kicked out of Spain around six centuries ago. Meanwhile, his companion, Zine, picks up other things of interest, that land both of them in an STD clinic in Seville… An entertaining and informative take on all things Moorish. Don’t miss out on his other book, Duende, as well. Pick up a copy at: Amazon.co.uk (Europe)  Amazon.com (USA)  |
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Happy New Year! In this edition we talk about the New Podcast – Notes in Spanish – and go on to discuss New Years Eve in Spain, our New Year’s Resolutions (what are Yours? Tell us in the comments below!), and Marina’s Christmas Hamper.
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The Straights of Rand, in Galicia’s Ria de Vigo.
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Feliz Christmas!!!!
Ben and Marina would like to wish you a very Happy Christmas and New Year. Thanks to all of you who have listened to the podcasts this year, written to us with ideas and feedback, and sponsored my upcoming India trip.
There will be lots of new podcasts coming in the New Year and hopefully one, or more, from here in the Uk before we leave. We’ve got one week in England now with my lot before we head back for New Year’s Mahem in Spain (now there’s a podcast waiting to happen…) Así que Felices Fiestas pa’ todos (Marina dice que ‘pa’ es muy paleto, pero bueno, todos tenemos algo de ‘paleto‘, verdad?!)
Happy Christmas!!!
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NFS Frappr map hits 100!
Our Frappr map has hit the 100 mark! Fantastic! One of the things Marina and I enjoy most about the podcasts is to find out where people are tuning in from. South Africa, Japan, Argentina, New Zealand, Denmark and much of Europe and the US of course. Check it out, and if you haven’t already, then please add yourself to the map – we’re especially grateful to all of you that have added a photo and/or a comment as well. Thanks!
They say that there are more lawyers in Madrid than in the whole of France (which seems unlikely), and that you can’t throw a stone in the capital without hitting a law student. The brutal kidnap of a lawyer in Castellon (near Valencia), and a number of recent lawyer shootings, including one just round the corner from us earlier this year, may soon put pay to the Spaniards’ love for the (legal) bar…
Over in the right-hand column there is a pointer to my book Errant in Iberia. At least one person has noticed that it used to say ‘Coming soon in Audio Format’ underneath. Well, I’ve kind of taken that project off the to-do list. I tried recording a couple of chapters but just wasn’t happy with the results, so I’m afraid that it shall, for the immediate future at least, stay in that antiquated ‘book’ format, the old-school paper and ink kind. Ideal for getting to sleep at night. Or reading on the beach, so you don’t get sand in your iPod.
Speaking of to-do lists, I am revolutionizing my life (I think) with the ‘Getting Things Done’ system, GTD to me. It really seems to work – empty inbox, empty in-tray, loads of clear ideas about what needs to be done next in every aspect of life. Wow. Read all about it here. Why not give it a try?
Notes from Spain by Ben Curtis 