Never ready to miss an opportunity for making money, budget airline Ryanair will continue to fine passengers who have failed to print off their boarding cards, even though they will be turning the facility off whilst their website undergoes an upgrade.

They have issued the warning on their website, the same website which will be switched off, stating that ryanair.com will be closed for upgrade maintenance between Friday 18th May and Sunday 20th May. They then shift the responsibility for not printing off documentation in time to the user, stating that “Passengers must ensure that they have booked tickets, checked in online and printed their boarding passes etc. prior to the below times”.

Online Check-in – will not be available from 16:00 hrs on Friday 18th May until 12:00 hrs on Sunday 20th May. Bookings cannot be made on Ryanair.com from 22:00 hrs on Friday 18th May until 22:00hrs on Saturday 19th May. Flight Changes cannot be made from 22:00 hrs on Friday 18th May until 22:00hrs on Saturday 19th May.

They also wish to apologise to all passengers who may be affected by our website closure which is unavoidable in order to upgrade the www.ryanair.com website.

Despite the fact that the work is their own doing, the airline will continue its usual policy of charging £60 per person, per flight, or 60€ for those outside the UK, to issue a boarding pass at the airport, even though you might not be able to print the document.

Various consumer associations in Spain are already taking action against Ryanair, to which this will no doubt be added to the growing list of what many consider to be outrageous abuses of the rights of consumers.

The Ibex 35 dropped 2.66% at the close of Monday, taking the index score below the golden 7,000 to just 6,800, but there were also drops across most of Europe. However, the risk premium in Spain has soared to 478 points. This risk factor is thought to be down to Friday´s announcement about the major restructuring of the banking and financial sector in Spain, especially Bankia, which has fallen by 9%.

The credit rating agency Fitch believes that the banking reform being implemented by the Spanish Government will significantly increase the likelihood of more bank mergers, especially as the smaller companies will not be able to meet the demands put on them. The agency believes that banks such as Santander and BBVA should not have difficulty meeting the new requirements later this year, accounting for only 20% and 43% of operating profit, respectively. However, for smaller entities additional reserves account for almost three times their operating profit.

Meanwhile, many of the protestors in Madrid have visited their branches of Bankia, demanding that their accounts are closed down and their money returned, as well as alleging fraud has taken place whilst demanding refunds on interest. On online campaign on Twitter quickly followed, with the hash tag #cierrabankia trending in the country.

Entrepreneur Martin Varsavsky, the founder of mobile telephone Jazztel, and now CEO of FON, has come up with his own business based plan to solve the financial crisis, lowering the risk level even further than Germany, by selling Spanish citizenship to all foreigners who buy 500,000 euro in fixed or variable bonds. The businessman refers to high earners members of society, who are fearful of investing too much in Spain, as their nationality remains their own, irrespective of where their business interests operate from. Of course, the Spanish government would have to vet every applicant, to ensure that members of criminal gangs were excluded from the scheme.

Other members of society are claiming that money could also be obtained in different ways, such as the suspension of the 1979 Patronage Act 49/2002, which states that the Catholic Church is "exempt" from paying property tax. A recent petition from Murcia presented 35,500 signatures supporting charging the church, but the notion lost steam as nobody seemed willing to support the move of asking one of the highest earning associations in the world to contribute to their local communities.

The minister for health in the Valencia community, Luis Rosado, has stated that there will be a slight delay of, “a few days”, in making the next payment to pharmacists across the area, but the government are doing everything they can to keep up with the agreed payment plan. The announcement came whilst the minister was announcing more changes in privatising sections of the health network, having signed a collaboration agreement with the mayor of Castellón, Alfonso Bataller, for the provision of ambulances.

Guardia Civil officers in Granada have arrested a 39 year old man on suspicion of the theft of eleven bee hives, which he then tried to sell back to the rightful owner. The arrest came following a complaint that a member of the public had suffered numerous bee stings and that a hive was seen too close to a road, within the 25 metre required distance. Upon checking the hives, the officers identified them as stolen and returned them to the owner, who then also identified the thief as being a person who had tried to sell him replacement, second hand hives.

GRAFFITI DENOUNCED ON MEDIEVAL WALL

The city of Orihuela is attempting to identify vandals who have painted graffiti on a site of cultural interest, the remains of a medieval wall surrounding the city. Located towards San Miguel, the wall is thought to date back to between the twelfth and fourteenth century and is all that is believed to be left of the castle of Orihuela.

A report has been commissioned by the City Council, who has put the matter to the attention of the Ministry of Culture to try to redress the damage as soon as possible.

DOG FOUND HANGING FROM TREE

A resident of Granja de Rocamora made a gruesome discovery whilst out walking her dogs along a country lane towards the town of Cox. The lady had spotted the corpse of a dog left hanging from a fig tree, with a bag over its jaw so as to render its mouth useless in any kind of defence.

The woman returned home in shock and alerted her husband, who then went to photograph the scene for evidence and report the matter to the authorities. Although it will be difficult to identify the perpetrator of the crime of abuse, locals are assisting the police to try to bring the callous killer to justice.

MOTORCYCLIST SERIOUSLY INJURED IN DOG CRASH

A 33 year old motorcyclist suffered serious injuries on Monday morning, having been in collision with a pack of dogs on the N340 road near Elche.

It is thought that the biker was continuing along the road normally, when the group of dogs invaded the highway and the rider was unable to avoid a collision. Although semi-conscious at the scene, he was taken to the Alicante hospital in a serious condition.

ONE DEAD, ONE INJURED AFTER PLAYA FLAMENCA CRASH

A 63 year old man died and a 74 year old woman was injured on Monday afternoon, in a vehicle crash at Playa Flamenca.

The 63 year old male was transferred by helicopter in a critical condition to the hospital at Manises, near Valencia, but was later confirmed to have died by the Local Police. The 74 year old woman suffered minor injuries and was treated at the scene. The incident is currently being investigated.

PROPERTIES STILL SELLING

According to the latest figures released by the housing department of the regional government, 10,655 properties were sold to foreign buyers last year, despite the financial crisis, which also marks an increase of 42% on the previous year.

Although some of the sales were domestic, with many people choosing to move home, of that figure, around 1,700 were new sales to Russians, who have been snapping up bargain luxury properties being sold at 30% less than previous, as well as families buying property in the region of 55,000 euro. British buyers are still investing in property in the area, along with buyers from Sweden, Norway, France and Belgium, although in a much lower percentage.

Nearly half an hour before the start of the concert, given on Sunday at La Zenia Church, the audience was packed in ... every seat was taken. Chairs were being brought in from all over the church buildings to cater for the queues of people eager to hear the rwo superb choirs taking part.

The children's choir, 'Cantemos!' - with ten new children amongst the 26 who took part - were magnificent. Singing in 3 part harmony, their beautiful sounds in such songs as Bright Eyes, Sound of Silence, Streets of London and many more brought the huge audience of 300 to their feet on several occasions.

Highlight of their performance was a first ever performance in Spain of the song 'Believe' by UK composer Lin Marsh, which left the audience spellbound with its clarity, harmony, and descants.

Then came the long-awaited first performance of the new 26-strong 'Orihuela Costa Male Voice Choir' - resplendent in their new uniforms of burgundy shirts with embroidered yellow logo - who fair took the roof off the church with their wonderful, rich and mature choral sounds. Amongst their programme were Morte Criste, Priests' Chorus from 'Magic Flute', Wanderin' Star, and Stout-Hearted Men from 'New Moon'.

The difference between their soft controlled singing and their full-blooded crescendos was mesmerising, and the audience made their feelings well-known with tumultuous applause after each piece. It was more impressive to learn that the choir was only nine weeks old ... and a bright future is guaranteed to this gallant band of men under the guidance of conductor Nigel Hopkins.

In between these choral delights, we heard solos by three members of Cantemos! 'Hushabye Mountain' sung by Holly Neeson, and 'Hello Young Lovers' by Jesse Walsh were enthusiastically received. Highlight of the whiole evening was the song 'I Dreamed A Dream' from Les Miserables sung by the amazing voice of Janelle Gaskell, a singer who Nigel Hopkins is grooming for a West End career.

The whole concert was brought to a close with both choirs joining forces to sing Nigel Hopkins' own arrangement of the song, 'Let There Be Peace On Earth'. This culminated in the entire audience jumping to its feet in a standing ovation which lasted for several minutes. The concert was in aid of the church building fund, which profited by over 1300 euros from the evening.

Pauline Carter

Cataracts are one of the most common problems affecting dogs´ eyes.

Normally the lens of the eye is completely clear and suspended by special tissue fibres, called zonules, just inside the pupil. The function of the lens is to focus an image on the retina at the back of the eye in a process called accommodation. Most cataracts are hereditary and in dogs a common disorder, however, it is very unusual in cats.

When the lens is affected by cataracts by less than 30%, or only one eye is involved, the presence of cataracts will frequently go un-noticed. Vision problems start to occur when the lenses of both eyes are affected by more than 60%. If the entire lens is affected by cataracts then the animal will by completely blind in that eye.

Cataracts are formed by a failure in the sodium–water pump system of the lens. This system keeps the water/protein balance in check and therefore allows the movement of water into and out of the lens. The failure of this system also appears to cause the proteins molecules within the lens, which normally lie parallel to one-another, to cross. These changes result in loss of transparency of the lens and the formation of cataracts. Cataracts are normally an inherited genetic condition but they can also be caused by other factors such as: dietary deficiency; radiation; toxins; uveitis; diabetes mellitus or trauma.

As can be seen many things can cause cataracts but of special note is diabetes mellitus. In this condition glucose levels in the fluids throughout the body are elevated above normal, this includes those fluids contained within the eye. It is the fluid in the anterior chamber of the eye that provides nutrition for the lens. However, the lens can only utilize a specific level of glucose at any one time and any excess glucose that has been absorbed by the lens is transformed into sorbitol. It is this conversion that causes water to be drawn into the lens thereby forming cataracts.

A condition called nuclear sclerosis is responsible for the cloudy appearance in the eyes of older dogs. This is caused by the compaction of the fibres that make up the lens as new fibres are laid down but the lens cannot change shape or grow larger to accommodate them. However, the lens is still clear and the dog can still see through them, these are not cataracts. This condition usually appears in both eyes at the same time and occurs in most dogs over six years old.

Cloudiness on the cornea, the external part in the eye, can be caused by infection or inflammatory processes and may be mistaken for a cataract. It is therefore important that you have a veterinarian examine your pet if you think that it has cataracts. A detailed ophthalmologic examination can determine the presence of cataracts and whether surgical treatment is required or not. The surgical removal of cataracts is performed by a veterinary ophthalmic surgeon using a surgical microscope whilst the animal is under general anaesthetic.

Written by Juan Manuel Fernandez Matilla. Vet.

Unfortunately a large percentage of the population suffer this time of year. A lot of people seem to only develop an allergy after they move here. It seems the orange and olive blossom doesn't agree with us extranjeros.

Which is a shame as most of us are surrounded by these beautiful trees and don't want to move. There are a few things that you can do to help yourself through this difficult time.

Keep windows and doors closed so the pollen can't get in. Splash your face regularly throughout the day to wash the pollen away. Use large close fitting sun glasses and a small amount of Vaseline under your nostrils. Local honey (unrefined) also helps to desensitize you to the offending pollen.

It needs to be local to where you live and also you need to take it daily and probably for at least a year before you will notice a difference. We're lucky in this area to still have local bee keepers who generally have plenty of their beautiful honey for sale. Ask your neighbours I'm sure they will be able to advise you who has honey for sale.

Nettle tea is a natural antihistamine so have at least a cup a day but preferably three. Nettle is a source of Quercetin which is a flavonoid that inhibits the release of histamine. Many of my customers have reported a significant improvement of their symptoms.

If you really don't think you could drink nettle tea you could always try capsules instead. But honestly the tea isn't too bad so give it a go.

Quercetin can also be found in Artichokes, apples, lettuce, onions, peppers, tea, tomatoes, red wine, citrus fruits and cherries so include these in your diet as much as possible.

Bee pollen is a good preventative surprisingly enough but as with honey you will need to take it for quite some time. It's nice stirred into warm milk.

Selenium is an anti-inflammatory and a lot of us are deficient in this mineral as it is sadly lacking in the soil due to modern farming methods. However, if you eat plenty of root vegetables you are at least in with a chance of ingesting this important mineral if not then you could always use a supplement.

Selenium can also be found in brazil nuts and kidneys. If you don't want to cook kidneys you could always look out for them in your nearest Tapas bar the Spanish have a lovely way of cooking them.

Taking a good B vitamin complex can also be beneficial for their ability to protect the nerves.
Hope this helps! Claire, Girasol Health Food Shop and Community Centre, Albox, Almeria