Newstime
As many of you know who follow Winstone's World we have had on and off problems throughout the year meaning that updates, news and reviews have been sporadic and what appears to be old months news running for periods. We are now delighted to be able to say that these problems have now been sorted out and you can look forward to 2010 and regular updates on whats happening not just around the island but any legislation that may be brought into force affecting you personally or your business.
We would like to thank you for being so patient with the problems we have been having.
And as we are so late into December it just remains to be said have a wonderful Christmas and a Happy and Prosperous New year.
So enjoy what remains of 2009 !!
Hasta Enero 2010..
Stanleigh Winstone
Winstone's World
Unless you had your head in a bucket it is unlikely that anyone will have escaped the news of the bombs which went off in August killing two policemen in Palma Nova. For this part of newstime I've put away my satirical hat as we would like to express our condolences not only to their families but our thoughts like the majority of you out there are also with all the families around the world who have suffered a loss like this.
Food Glorious Food!
Restaurant Review
The first time I ever set foot in Le P'tit Bistro in Palma Nova was around twelve years ago. Now I'm not saying that I haven't been there since but it has been a while; however, thanks to a very well known Chinese restaurant who advertised that they opened for lunch and clearly don't, neither do they answer their telephone I and my lunch companions had the good fortune to find ourselves voting unanimously on Le P'tit Bistro.
Whilst one could hardly say time had stood still, virtually everything was still the same. The atmosphere was as relaxing and languid as it had ever been the service was attentive but not intrusive and the menu offered an excellent choice as it always had done.
Our starters were camembert (I know this may be a bit old hat but theirs and the accompanying salad is exquisite), escargot with garlic butter and scallops gratin served in their shells.
I chose the rack of lamb with herbs, which was cooked absolutely superbly and the accompanying vegetables complimented the dish perfectly. My companions partook in slow roasted lamb with a gravy/sauce to die for and duck a l'orange. Over the years I have found that this classic duck dish has been destroyed to such an extent that the orange sauce could have come out of a marmalade jar. Not this one, my faith in duck a l'orange has been restored.
Our desserts were as enjoyable as our other two courses and we washed the whole meal down with a lovely french rosé. We chose to eat a la carte but interestingly Le P'tit Bistro do a fixed menu at a very good price and certainly worth trying. The day we were there, their customers included Spanish, English and Dutch.
There is no doubt that all these years on Le P'tit Bistro, its chef and mine host are continuing to weave their magic charm.
You will find Le P'tit Bistro on the seafront in Palma Nova at Paseo del Mar number 20.
Business Watch
Oh dear, oh dear, hacienda have been having a field day and at the moment the concentration seems to be on personal tax declarations. Several people have commented that their tax returns as far back as 2006 have been looked at and discrepancies found.
Now for those of you out there that don't believe that hacienda will wave its big stick at us lesser mortals, think again one person was found to have had a discrepancy in their tax return of 7.15 euros, yes that is correct. One would thought it cost more than this to actually send the paperwork out. Now you can appeal, but and there is always a but you should have received a notification of the discrepancy showing how they arrived at their calculation; however, it seems that many are not receiving this only the final demand giving a set number of days to pay. Hacienda are in the business of collecting money and they are exercising their right, right across the board.
If you have a business here then don't forget hacienda has any number of years to check you or or company's tax returns, the general rule of thumb is four years however, recently seven and ten years have been bandied around.
Soapbox
I'm not kidding you two strides past an A-board I had to go back and take another look, if I really wanted it I could have a pint of vodka with an energy drink (no guessing what that is) for four euros! Now I'm no puritan but it's not rocket science to work out that perhaps selling concoctions such as this and particularly at rock bottom prices is going to produce all sorts of problems.
Personally speaking I'm not quite sure why anyone would want to drink a pint of spirits laced with an energy drink unless of course they want to by pass the "merry" stage going straight for plastered in one easy step. As for the morning after I wonder how many livers are screaming "let me out"
As the person who sent this in said "are we really surprised that a certain element of Brits abroad have got such a bad name"
Sun Sea & Sangria
What a lovely time of year we are into, the humidity has all but gone, the burning heat has turned to warm sunshine and folk who have been beavering away since the start of the season are getting together again and joy of joys fuel prices which always seem to go up in the summer are steadily falling again!
I am being serious, I think someone should take the use of the resident status further so that we get discounts on stuff that actually affects us seasonally as well!!
Would you look at that, Sir Cliff Richard and The Shadows are going on tour for the first time in 20 years and Sir Cliff is hoping to have a number one with "Singing the Blues" which is taken from their new album "Reunited". Now I know there are gonna be kids out there that say Cliff who but you've got to give it to those slightly senior movers and shakers......good luck and hope the tour goes well!
What is the world coming to? And how can that mother justify being prepared to pay 50,000 quid for her son to have no end of cosmetic surgery. Doesn't she think this is reckless? I'm pretty sure there isn't something most of us could do with having a lift here or a tuck there but c'mon he's a young man and surely if this is down to vanity then shouldn't he fund it himself? And worse if he is not well then shouldn't the money be more appropriately spent?
So...yet another postal strike is set to bring more chaos to a country which is having its fair share one way and another. And with contingency plans being put in place to hopefully ensure people receive their benefits and pensions by sending them out to thousands of post offices what of the people who are elderly, disabled or who are simply housebound or those who do not have transport. Surely more thought should have gone into many of the willy-nilly PO closures and the devastation to local communities these have caused.
Surely to goodness not every single one of them was a white elephant and possibly it might have been worthwhile to look at them from a practical and business point of view rather than a cutback money saving exercise which at the end of the day has served no real purpose either to the PO and definitely not to local communities.