Once again it’s time to blow the dust off those dancing shoes and get down to some real fiestering at the Puerto Santiago Fiesta which starts tomorrow and runs until 16th July. The famous firework display is Sat 11th July.

Click this link for full programme of events http://www.losgigantes.com/evenings.htm

The 14th annual swimming race from Playa De La Arena beach to Puerto de Santiago beach takes place on July 12th at 10am. The distance is aprox 950 mts.

If you would like to participate then call 922 868108 or 922 868041 between 08:00 to 15:00 hours, for more information.

Workers from Santiago del Teide council have completed the work on the pavements and roads of the small village of La Caldera.

The budget was €16,917.67 and the work took a month to complete.

This work has enhanced the visual impact of the village and made it easier for many of the residents to access their homes and garages.

On the 11th of June, Eduar Pommer from Cologne, Germany beat the record as the eldest person to ride the terrifying Tower of Power.

Eduard Pommer, an 88 year old man went down the incredible 28m high and 76m long slide. Riders can reach up to 50 km/h down the Tower of power giving you a 0 gravity sensation before you pass through the giant aquarium with tropical fishes and piranhas, ending in the reception pool within seconds.

Whoever dares to beat this record or is just after an adrenaline rush, the Tower of Power is this summer´s choice.

The new park in Puerto de Santiago was officially opened on Wed 3rd June. It was built by the company Edustro SA, and is situated very close to the recently opened Hotel Costa Los Gigantes.

Present at the opening ceremony were the Mayor, Juan Damián Gorrín Ramos, manager of the company Edustro SA, Juan Vázquez, several councillors and locals of the area.

The new park, which is gardens, walkways and a children’s playground, covers a total of 12,000 square meters, which is the largest green area of the municipality.

The plot adjacent to the park, which has a total area of 5,000 square meters, is the site which is planned for the future cultural center of Puerto de Santiago.

Helen Dickson Pryde, from Los Gigantes, (pic left at Burn’s night in the Bamboo Bar) is through to the finals in this year’s “Tenerif’s Got Talent “competition.

Helen together with the other hopeful winners, Alexander McRae, Becky Mallone, Jason, Hollie Bourne, The Glitter Show and Jordana will be battling it out on Sunday 14th June at 1 pm at the THE THEATRE BAR in San Eugenio.

Three winners from the show will go through to the grand finale with other finalists on July 26th at the Anthelia Hotel in Fañabe.

The overall winner walks away with a Blackpool contract from HRH entertainments.
Good luck Helen from the losgigantes.com team

More info on http://www.tenerifesgottalent.com/1.html

The carnival commission of Los Gigantes would like to thank all those who attended the Canarian Day Dinner Dance in the plaza on Friday 29th May.

A great night was had by all and the commission, with your help, raised over €1800 towards next year’s 30th anniversary of Los Gigantes Carnival.

Los Gigantes Carnival dates are Feb 26th – March 1st 2010 the theme of the carnival will be announced soon.

Playa Arena beach will receive its twenty-second consecutive year of ‘Blue Flag Beach “by the Association of Environmental and Consumer Education (ADEAC).

The campaign of 2009 Blue Flag beaches and ports is a recognized symbol that requires compliance with stringent health and environmental levels, the presence of adequate sanitation and waste, as well as rescue services, first aid and lifeguard supervision.

Playa Arena beach is currently 175 meters long and is between 50 and 75 meters wide, has public toilets and showers, good access for people with reduced movement, as well as shops, banks and restaurants very close by.

A dinner dance is being organised by the Los Gigantes Carnival Commission to celebrate “Dia de Canarias”
in the Plaza Los Gigantes, Friday 29th May 9pm - 2am

Canarian 3 course meal with local wine

Canarian folk music followed by dancing to live band

Tickets €20 adults €12 children

Tickets on sale at bar Segria (next to green Corner). losgigantes.com office and Offshore 44 on the marina and Megatone in El Varadero.

Tickets will also be on sale in the plaza on the evening.

Seven year-old Lucy Cook, who lives in San Juan, faces life with a series of disabilities. At the age of two, her parents realised that she had a problem with walking.

Later on, Lucy severed a finger without showing any sign of pain or distress. Various medical tests confirmed that she suffered from a disorder known as Sensory Ataxic Neuropathy which means that the gene which affects her nerves and coordination is missing. The sense which should tell her where parts of our body are without having to look simply isn’t there and she suffers a loss of sensation in parts of her body. Lucy cannot walk without thinking, for her it is a conscious effort as she has to use her eyes. Her legs eventually become tired and give way beneath her.

Lucy also has problems with her eyes which are extremely sensitive to bright light, eczema and asthma which are all controlled by medication. Recently, splints have been made for her to support her ankles, especially when she falls, as her walking is getting worse. Her mother Rachel told Island Connections, “she needs a new pair of splints every year as she grows, and her walker which we brought here from the UK is now three years old. These are all ongoing costs”. Lucy has a manual wheelchair to help her move about, but someone has to push her all the time. To give her some independence, she really needs an electric wheelchair. Rachel says, “the future for Lucy is unknown, she is slowly getting worse and will eventually need to use a wheelchair all the time”.

At the moment Lucy attends a normal school and has a full-time carer. She has lots of friends and is bright and happy. Rachel told us that Lucy is a clever girl and is one of the top children in her class, although like everyone, she has her bad days.

The family moved to Tenerife nearly two years ago because the climate here is a great help with Lucy’s condition. She is under medical supervision, is about to begin physiotherapy and tests are always being undertaken, but her condition will never improve. Her parents have to watch and monitor her, and are trying to make plans for that uncertain future which lies ahead. Even though the Spanish government pays a proportion of her medical bills, there are many other costs involved.

For this reason, the Lions Club International of Santiago del Teide has set up the Sweet Lucy Appeal which is intended to enable Lucy to have some form of independence and to lead, as far as possible, a normal child’s life. Any donations, no matter how big or small, will help her to have an electric wheelchair, new leg splints, a walker, and the medication and treatment that she needs.

If you can help, donations can be paid into the Lions Club International account at Banca March, account number 0061 0215 140119520111.

The very sad news item regarding the escape of Tilly, the cat belonging to Sandy and Jimmy Quigley, in the cargo depot at Tenerife’s southern airport should be a lesson to everyone. Cat travelling boxes, with twist plastic locking devices for the gate are NOT secure. Believe it or not, many cats can push the door out of this type of box, particularly when they are in a panic and have a rush of adrenalin. It is worth spending the extra money buying a box which does not have the plastic twist fasteners for any part of the box.

As an association we regularly send our rescue animals to permanent, caring homes abroad. Cat boxes always have a spring loaded gate and cable ties or screws are used in conjunction with the fasteners used to join the top and bottom of the box. Once the cat has been checked in cable ties are threaded through the air vents and the spring loaded gate and pulled tight.

One UK company, Ladyhaye, who handles the importation of dogs and cats, state quite clearly that they will only accept cats in boxes which have a spring loaded gate. Furthermore they insist that cable ties are used as an added precaution.

I want to start this story with an apology, due to the office move for Los Gigantes.com we have been completely run off our feet, and this great news for our area has been delayed. So I hope it’s better late than never.

Recently the staff of losgigantes.com had the chance to meet with the councilor for tourism Germán Jiménez who explained to us the latest plans for the area. It is important to understand that two years of single handed dedication on the part of Germán have resulted in our area, (Santago del Teide) being accepted to a very prestigious group of three other councils, Puerto de la Cruz, Arona and Adeje, who are entitled to special funding for tourism, many other areas would love to have this help.

It means that during the next 4 years (at present) funding to the tune of 6.6 million Euros has been approved for a number of projects to raise the standard in this area, some of which has already started such as the new pavements, pedestrian crossings, water pipes, drainage, cables, curbs etc in a number of streets in Los Gigantes.

Plans approved include a complete re-paving of the roads for el Marques Las Rosas all around the loop to the hotel Barcelo de Santiago including new sewers, pavements road surface and the planting of over 125 new trees. Other plans include a complete overhaul of Playa de la Arena, which is truly spectacular.

The new Los Gigantes tourist office, opening soon, has just been built on the small plaza by Tamara, as part of the on-going commitment to tourism in the area, other projects worthy of a mention include a complete revamp of the plaza in Los Gigantes and the one in Puerto de Santiago, re-surfacing of a number of roads throughout the area, new street lighting in the area.

The level of investment that this new status will bring to this area over the next few years I believe will truly help to transform the area to one of the most sort after destinations in Tenerife.

Author - The PM

When Jimmy and Sandy Quigley, long time residents of Los Gigantes, and managers of the Outside Inn, Puerto Santiago decided to pack up and move back to the UK they made a decision that their cat Tilly would definitely be part of their plans. Sadly due to quarantine laws Tilly could not go with them for 6 months, so long time friend Sandy became her foster mum until she was given the OK to fly.

Everything went according to plan, Tilly settled nicely into her foster home and the correct channels were followed to ensure Tilly safely joined her owners in the UK.

Arrangements were made through CPA (an animal protection agency). Regulation cage €57, injections and blood tests €246 and a flight was booked with Thomas Cook €530 (at certain times of the year people can expect to pay over €700)

The day before the flight Tilly was given her certificate of fitness to fly and on Tues 28th April Sandy drove Tilly to the airport checked her in, all was OK – or so she thought.

Before Sandy arrived back in Los Gigantes her mobile was ringing.
“We’ve lost your cat, the cage fell off the luggage transporter and your cat has escaped”.

Sandy immediately went back to the airport. On examining the empty cage there was no damage and a cage falling off a luggage transporter would not have opened two of the 4 twist locks needed to open the cage. Sandy was sure someone must have deliberately opened the cage. A witness did say they had seen the cat running away.

Sandy then informed Jimmy and Sandy of the predicament and within a very short time they were on a flight to Tenerife, all expenses paid by Thomas Cook for the weekend. They were told that the whole airport was on the lookout for their cat, but on arrival when they asked questions no one had any idea of what they were talking about. It was also bank holiday weekend, there was no one to assist them to enter the secured areas of the airport to search for Tilly. After a wasted weekend Thomas Cook then extended their stay to a week in the hope that their cat would be found. It was like looking for a needle in a haystack.

The search was to no avail and Sandie and Jimmy returned to the Uk without their beloved Tilly.

Tilly is chipped but due to airport regulations her collar had to be removed for travel. Now she could be wandering somewhere near the airport with no identification looking like the many of the feral cats that inhabit the area.

If you think you may have seen Tilly please call Sandie on 676890773.

The majority of us carry mobile phones, but in the case of road accidents or arriving at en emergency medical centre unconscious, ambulance men or medical staff have no way of knowing who to contact amongst the long list of telephone numbers in our mobiles.

A new idea had been launched that everyone should list a contact number under the name AA Emercencia, so they know who to call should the worst occur.

This is simple and quick to do, costs nothing and can be of great help to everyone concerned.

If you think this is a good idea, don’t forget to do it and pass the information on to everyone you know.

The Department of Coasts in Madrid have been blamed by local authorities for the never ending delays on the construction of the Lago Santiago complex on the seafront in Puerto Santiago which urgently needs a massive tidy up.

José Manuel Bermúdez the Cabildo vice-president has recently visited the area to view and discuss the progress on infrastructure projects with the town hall.

The bulldozers were sent in to begin the work but then they were stopped after plans were changed. Currently 14 improvement projects are in the planning stages for Puerto Santiago, including resurfacing the roads and laying new pavements.

The proposed southern railway that will link Santa Cruz de Tenerife with Playa de Las Americas, known as ‘Tren del Sur’, will create 1000 additional jobs until its completion in 2017, according to forecasts provided by the Council of Tenerife and Metropolitano de Tenerife in the project they recently presented.

The works are set to commence once the project has received final approval. The Council has already committed €3.3 million to the first phase of the project, which adds to the National Government’s contribution of €5 million. However, construction of this new infrastructure project can only go head if the project receives the €1,803 in funds necessary for its completion.

The building of island’s future rail network will also include a northern link to complement the southern link. Work will be carried out simultaneously, however the estimated completion date for the northern line has been set for 2020, given the difficulties posed by the fact that the planned line runs in close proximity to the TF-5 highway.

These two rail links will not only provide residents with a fast and quality alternative for travel and transportation of goods, but will also help reduce road congestion. Furthermore, the service will improve access to and for businesses located in more remote towns and stimulate the local economy.

The southern rail link will cover 80km in approximately 42 minutes, reaching speeds of 220 km per hour and will run every 15 minutes during peak hours. The train will stop at seven stations and 25% of the journey will be underground. It will take 6 minutes to reach Añaza, the first stop, 14mins to Candelaria, 29mins to San Isidro, 32mins to Tenerife Sur Reina Sofía Airport, 38mins to Los Cristianos and 42mins to Las Américas, where it terminates.

Drafting of the project and approval of the environmental impact declaration will take place in 2009 and 2010, whilst compulsory purchases will be finalised in 2011. Construction work is set to commence in 2010 for completion in 2017, according to the schedule presented by the Council.

The northern and southern lines will be linked by a Y-shaped design, so that trains running directly from La Laguna to Añaza are also directly linked to Santa Cruz. The stops initially proposed for the northern link are Santa Cruz, La Laguna, Aeropuerto Los Rodeos Tenerife Norte, Tacoronte, La Victoria-La Matanza, Puerto de la Cruz and Los Realejos.

As from the 30th of March Siam Park will be open from 10:00 to 18:00 daily. With the arrival of spring you can now enjoy an extra hour of sunshine and therefore Siam Park is offering all their customers more time to have fun in the best water attractions in the World or relax on the white sandy beach. This way the company continues to offer its best service to all its visitors.

Siam Park has reached its sixth month of being open. During this time the park has received many visitors and journalist from all over the world that have helped to promote Tenerife as the number one leisure destination in Europe offering world class attractions with Loro Parque, Teide and the newly opened Siam Park. The company is immersed in the summer activity program that will bring oriental magic, emotions, adrenaline and love for nature to all.

More information at Siam Park

The Department for Work and Pensions has extended its successful benefit cheats hotline to the Costa del Sol and Canary Islands following its launch in Alicante in September 2008.

Residents in these popular ex-pat areas can report suspected British benefit thieves to a local number and their concerns will be passed on by the operator of the hotline to a team of investigators in the UK.

Employment and Welfare Reform Minister Tony McNulty said:
“We are absolutely determined to stop benefit thieves stealing from the British taxpayer. Our commitment extends beyond the borders of the UK. Even in sunny Spain, we’re closing in on benefit fraud.”

A publicity campaign, ‘We’re closing in’, in the local ex-pat media is raising awareness of the hotline as well as a dedicated web site where suspected British benefit thieves living abroad can be reported on-line.

The total cost of benefit fraud committed by UK benefit recipients living in or travelling to countries abroad is an estimated £63 million a year. It involves a range of scams such as people on means-tested benefits going abroad but failing to declare their absence, and individuals working while claiming sickness benefits.

This initiative is part of a growing relationship between Spain and the UK on social security issues that already includes agreements to data-match and share death notifications.

The Spanish benefit fraud hotline number is 900 554 440. It is free and confidential and operates from 8am to 4pm, Monday to Friday.

The hotline is run and funded by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), working with the Foreign & Commonwealth Office.

The dedicated web site address is www.dwp.gov.uk/benefit-thieves-spain and provides more detail on what constitutes benefit fraud along with an on line reporting form.

As well as a new three storey Tourist and Cultural centre with a large urban park next to it, see news report 29.1.90, Santiago del Teide council have approved plans for a new medical centre which will be built in the same area, near the fisher lady roundabout in Puerto Santiago.

There are also plans for sport facilities, extra parking and eventually more housing will be built for locals, 25% of the housing will be subsidised for the less well off families.

There is no date set for the commencement of the work.

The Pancrazio Sports Centre in Playa de la Arena has launched a campaign called “Spring Promotion 2009”.

Any member who brings along a friend to join the gym will be given a 20% discount for their self and their friend for 1 month. The promotion lasts until June 30th 2009.

Santiago del Teide council, is organizing another Spanish course for foreigners starting June 1st to July 31st.

The course, which will be divided into basic, elementary and advanced will be held 2 days a week, lasting 2 hours each day. The price is 116 euros, including all materials.

You can enrol on the course at the Tourist Office in Playa de La Arena or telephone 922 860348 between 08:00 and 15:00.

The public are being warned by Spain’s tax authorities not to respond to e-mails asking them to provide credit card details to obtain their tax rebate.

It has been reported that a spate of e-mails apparently sent out from the Tax Office (Agencia Tributaria or ‘AEAT’) informing recipients that they are a due a rebate and should fill in the attached form to obtain payment.

The e-mail directs people to link to a fake website which is a duplicate of the AEAT site which has been created by phishing fraudsters to extract credit card numbers.

The Tax Office stresses that it never pays rebates through a credit card, only to bank accounts.

On hearing the news that there is still an ongoing row and huge backlogs of vehicles waiting for an ITV at Las Chafiras. I thought I had better get in there quick as our Pick Up is due for test in the next few weeks.

It has been reported that some drivers were queuing as early 2am to make sure of getting their car booked in, and by the 7am opening time, there can be as many as 80 vehicles waiting. Yuk, not good.
Vehicle owners and garages are now not able to pre-book without a registration number, and block-bookings in advance are not taken unless you have the necessary paperwork which means that legal garages can no longer book spaces in advance unless they supply registrations for each vehicle.

We have tried calling several times. The phone is never answered or is engaged. You can book on line! Great, that’s the answer – no chance, you can only book ahead about 3 weeks in advance and every slot was already booked. Last resort we’ll call in next time we pass and book in person, well we might have been able to if we’d had the time to wait in the long queue!

The problem for us now, if our ITV runs out before our allotted test date, when we finally get one, we’ll be driving illegally!!

As from Monday 20th April 2009 our offices losgigantes.com/Custom Built Computers/Canaries Wireless/Pure Water Canaries has moved to a new location.

It´s still in a state of boxes piled high and computer cables everywhere but we will be open for business as usual.

We are now in the local next to Los Gigantes Diving Centre in the Marina Arcade on Los Gigantes Marina (behind Stella Marina - formerly Bella Napoli)

Our telephone number remains the same 922 862713
Opening hours are Mon - Fri 10am – 2PM

We are aware that parking can be difficult so we are offering a pick up and drop off service for computer repairs etc

OK, Dolly Diver has been caught out, you’ve noticed, and people are asking why there isn’t much news at the moment on losgigantes.com. It’s a compliment to know that there are so many of you keeping in touch with what’s going on around here.

Dolly is struggling to keep up with the news at the moment because she has had to blow the dust off her diving instructor cap and dive back into action to take over the running of the Los Gigantes Diving Centre.

The Dive Centre is celebrating its 20th anniversary of being in her family so they’ve some special deals lined up. Those of you who may be interested check out special deals on their web site, www.divingtenerife.co.uk Local divers pop in to see us for a chat as we have some special deals for you as well.

In a bid to beat this awful recession we are preparing to move losgigantes.com/Custom Built Computers/Canaries Wireless to the local next to the Dive Centre in Los Gigantes. It’s a tremendous task and there aren’t enough hours in the day. The new office/shop will be open very soon after the Easter break (the date will be announced on the message board). You will still be able to contact us on 922 862713.

The dive centre and our new office/shop is located on Los Gigantes Marina inside the marina arcade, the entrance is next to restaurant Stella Marina (formerly Bella Napoli).
We are aware that parking can be a problem so we will be offering our clients a collection and drop off service for computer repairs. Canaries wireless will continue to operate as normal, and clients having difficulty signing up on line will be able to get tech support at the new office.

Dolly will still find time to make sure you are all playing nicely on the forum and important items of news will be reported.

Remember you can contribute too; email your news article to enquiries@losgigantes.com

Banks here in the Canary Islands are back on summertime opening hours and are not open Saturday mornings.

Opening hours are Mon – Fri 8.30 – 2pm.

Some banks open again from 5pm – 7pm one day a week.

Anyone seriously ill or injured needing urgent transportation to hospital via helicopter will not get the rapid service they need if the incident occurres after dark, because the heliport in Playa Arena has no lights.

This is a major cause for concern and lives could be saved with better facilities. Santiago del Teide council is being urged to install floodlights and introduce 24-hour operation of the heliport.

Two Spanish men, 26 year old H.F.P. and 33 year old V.D.J.A have been arrested in Alcala for possession of 12 kg of hashish.

During undercover police investigations the two men from El Rosario were transporting large amounts of the hashish to tourist resorts, which were to be re packaged into smaller amount which could be easily sold in bars.

Both men are now in custody waiting a court hearing.

The Santiago del Teide branch of Asociación San Francisco de los Animales would like to thank Allison Barry for organising her second Sponsored Walk for the benefit of stray and abandoned animals within the municipality Santiago del Teide.

Twenty three walkers and six dogs participated in the walk which took place on Sunday, 15 March from Alcalá to Pilgrim’s Bar in Playa de la Arena. Stewart, the owner of Prilgrim’s kindly sponsored a buffet for the walkers. This was much appreciated by all.

One of the dogs on the walk was a Podenco Canario which had recently been picked up by a member. She was skin and bone and brought the plight of many dogs on the island to the attention of the public. Despite her thinness she managed the walk without problems

The branch would like to thank all the people who participated in the walk and lastly but by no means least the sponsors. The event raised 1,110 euros. All monies will be used for the benefit of stray and abandoned animals within the Municipality of Santiago del Teide.