Shortage of hire cars in Algarve
A shortage of hire cars in the Algarve in July put added peak-season pressure on a tourism industry already suffering badly as a result of the current worldwide economic crisis.
An Algarve Resident investigation revealed an alarming situation, with some people who had pre-booked receiving emails just before they travelled to say no cars were available and others, who decided to leave hiring a car until they arrive, being told there were none available.
It is estimated that the number of cars available for hire in the region dropped by 18,000, a severe restriction on tourists who had planned their summer holiday.
Taxi companies, however, enjoyed an increase in customers across the Algarve as tourists had to rely on taxis for transport during their holiday and travelling to and from Faro airport.
Inspectors target UK food shops in region
British food stores were targeted by inspectors from Portugal’s food and economic standards agency (ASAE) across the Algarve in July.
Shops in Lagos, Algoz and Albufeira, among others, were inspected, with the main illegality being that items were missing the cooking and preparation instructions translated into Portuguese.
A spokesman from Algoz-based British food store Let the Magic In said: “Two inspectors arrived and spoke a little English. All our products had the ingredients labels in Portuguese but we didn’t have food preparation instructions in Portuguese.”
Michael Jackson’s special fan
A former events manager, who now lives in the Algarve and caused controversy in her native Scotland by publicly supporting Michael Jackson six years ago after he was accused of child abuse, told the Algarve Resident that she regretted never taking her son to meet him.
Gaynor Morgan-Hoole, daughter of former Manchester United football star Willie Morgan, contacted the Algarve Resident after hearing of the pop icon’s death on June 25.
Gaynor said that she regretted not fulfilling her controversial trip and was saddened that her son, now 16, didn’t have the chance to meet him.
“I am saddened deeply by the death of Michael Jackson. He was a great star who was a kind, generous man in all he did for many charities around the world, and his death will be a huge loss to millions of fans of one of the world’s best entertainers,” she said.
