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The TIC Newsletter -, Summer, 2016
July 01, 2016

The Magic of Tenerife - issue #41
July 1st, 2016

Hi everybody. Welcome to the summer newsletter of the Tenerife Information Centre - and a specially warm welcome to those who have recently signed up and for whom this is their first one. Well! The UK is going to be leaving the EU. Later in this newsletter, I'll be considering a few of the implications of this. First though, let's deal with happier matters.

Food and Drink Prices

This is one of the most popular pages of my site. Since the last newsletter, I've been for a break on the island and made sure all the prices on that page are up to date. There's not really been much change. It might be a different story now - at least in the short term, with the value of the pound falling against the euro. I'll be on the island again in November, so I'll be checking things out.

Things Happening Over the Summer

Music

For lovers of musicals, there is to be a performance of the Andrew Lloyd Webber-Tim Rice rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar at the Adán Martín Auditorio in Santa Cruz between the dates of the 7th and 10th of July. The performances feature an exclusively Canarian cast and will be in Spanish. Tickets are €20 and can be obtained by either phoning 902 317327, or from the Auditorium's box office, or via the Auditorium's website, here. Fans of Ricky Martin might be interested in a concert he's scheduled to give in Los Cristianos, at the Antonio Domínguez Stadium. This will take place at 8:30 on Saturday, 10th September. Tickets are available via the website https://entrees.es/ and, if you apply, you'll find out the price.

Arts and Craft Fairs

The summer months seem to be a green light for these fairs - there are loads of them, happening all over the island! So, if you like browsing round displays of artisan crafts and products, here's where you can experience them: Garachico 2-3 July; Arona 19-23 July; El Tanque 7 August; Buenavista 21 August; Vilaflor 27 August; La Orotava 2-4 September; Guia de Isora 11 September; Arico 17 September; Tacoronte 25 Sept.

The Perseids Meteor Shower

A dramatic feature of the summer is this meteor shower, occurring August 11-12. It can be viewed from anywhere on the island, but, for best results and the clearest skies, Mount Teide is the place to be.

Britain Leaving the EU!

Yes, on June 23rd, the people of the UK voted, by a narrow margin, to leave the European Union. Apologies to non-UK citizens, but, for any newsletter subscribers who are British citizens, a few things need to be clarified. First and foremost, the UK is still a fully fledged member of the EU until all the leaving process has been carried out - a complicated business that will take at least two years. So, everything remains the same, for the time being. But, over the next two years, two important things need to be done. Firstly, the UK passport currently has, on its front, the words "European Union". These will have to be phased out. Similarly, the UK plastic driving licence has the EU logo and this will have to be replaced.

Regarding the EHIC card, giving holiday makers health insurance, there are conflicting opinions. One is that it will cease to be valid the minute the leaving process has been completed (but, for the moment, you can continue to use it). The other states that the card doesn't rely on EU membership. Switzerland and Iceland, both non-EU members, use it. It is considered to be in the interests of the EU to continue the EHIC arrangement with Britain. We'll have to wait and see.

There is a concept called the "Eurozone", which enables air travel within EU member states, introduced by the EU to encourage fairer open competition on European air routes. The UK is currently a member and, when the leaving process has been completed, it will no longer be. Such budget, "no-frills" airlines, like EasyJet and Ryanair, will have to renegotiate their arrangements - possibly resulting in higher fares.

It's definitely a period of uncertainty, but, for two years at least, I reckon things will carry on as they are.

And Finally

I don't know how many of you will have clicked on the button on my site's nav bar that says "My SBI! Secret", but it leads to a page dealing with the story of how I created the TIC website and the company whose software helped me to do it. I'm referring to this here because the company, SiteSell, is celebrating the imminent American Independence Day with a summer sale on their software. Normally, it is USD299 annually. Now, up to July 5th, it is being offered at a 33% discount. If you're interested in creating your own online business, now is the time to do it. You can get more details here.

Well, that's all for now. I hope you all have a great summer (or winter, if down Australia way) and I'll see you again in October.

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