andyrich666

Not just there, recently left Altea and stayed in La Villa Gadea which I would recommend to anyone, My point is they had there a property magazine of top designer properties for Benidorm Altea, Calpe etc in half Spanish half Russian, a lot of the more expensive properties were aimed at the Russians in what I could only assume is traditional Russian interior and **Exterior** design, there was also a big huge bill board sign for a plot of land which had permission to build a hotel all in Russian which was in Benidorm.

The hotel we stayed at also had a lot of Russian Speaking staff, front of house and bar, I thought It was changing they have the money now I guess.

I nearly learned Russian once, it was very difficult, Im past it now but if there are any young people who want to move to Spain, I would imagine that learning Russian could be very beneficial.

andyrich666

I can see where everyone is coming from on this thread and as soon as I saw the undertaker bit, I spat my beer everywhere last night with laughter and missed the football. I thought it has to be a wind up, but in all fairness to Al, I used to start threads like this and they all ended up as this one has, I thought I knew best, probably still do, but if if I did why am I not there ?

Some of these people here will know better but not all of them.

Mercedes

Russian is becoming quite popular now as a second language, most of the business espionage in UK is Russian and Chinese. So they are serious contenders. There is alot of investment also going into some states of Russia, I know one Russian state has an arab company wishing to invest 100 million into it.

Domino

I have seen an advert on BE Spain asking for contact with people wishing to sell their houses
"we have plenty of Russian buyers"

jackytoo

The agents have been saying that for 10 years on the CDS and there are still only a few Russians. In last months stats the Russians didn't even appear on the list of countries who bought.

Countryboy1

Talking of Russian buyers I personally know of two instances in the past year where two couples have sold up and returned to the UK. In each case the buyers were Russian and in BOTH cases they tried the following 'con'.
A price was agreed for the houses and when it came to very near the legal procedure and money transfer, the buyers visited the houses and insisted that the original offer included all the contents, the vast majority of which the buyers intended to take back with them to the UK.
In one of the cases my friends stood their ground and said this was not the case and refused. The Russians became very aggressive and threatening, but my friends would not budge and the original deal went through. It made them VERY scared however.
As for the other case I don't know what the outcome was, but it seems a coincidence that the same thing happened in both cases where the buyers were Russian.
Of course it may be the case that this 'con' is tried often and by many nationalities. I don't really know.

Dick Dasterdly

I imagine the influx of the rich and arrogant breed of Ruskies to certain areas could have a negative influence on prospective buyers and visitors from the rest of Europe.
I recall an article from a German publication stating that they much preferred to mingle with the Brits any day of the week to having the Russians taking over.

HBG

I got to know some Russians when I was in business in Benidorm and found them to be much the same as we are.

With one exception, when they use the word 'peng' it means that someone is going to get shot. It's time to move along when you hear it.

Countryboy1

Much the same as 'us' then eh?
On a more serious note, Russia is still in all but name a dictatorship with a rigid and powerful state enforcement regime, It's rife with corruption from top to bottom, particularly at the the top. There is no free media.
Although I deeply believe that people from wherever in the world are basically the same souls, the environment from which they grow and emerge has a profound effect on their view of the world and its people and importantly governs their attitudes and behaviour.
One of the Russian house buyers I referred to in an post earlier stated he was a high ranking officer in the Moscow police. His deeply threatening and menacing manner to my friends revealed an attitude which I believe reflected his background.

Dick Dasterdly

I think a large percentage of these affluent Russians have made their money via strong Mafia connections and activities.
Putin does little to restrict them but rather encourages them to gain influence wherever they can.

It's his way of regaining some of the ground lost when various Soviet bloc countries were granted independence.
Quite a few of these countries are virtually back in Russian control by way of Mafia activities exercising a large degree of control over their businesses and getting a substantial rake off at the same time.

This Mafia influence or blackmail, call it what you will, is prevalent behind the scenes in many seemingly unlikely places also.
I have come across it quite a bit in Scandinavia where the cops often take a back seat and leave the policing of nightlife to such ppl. resulting in some very unpleasant incidents of rough justice to which the police and other authorities appear to turn a blind eye.

andyrich666

I know a lot of brits have issues with the Ruskies but they (the brits) probably either argue or don't even bother to talk to them.

When I was in Altea the were some Ruskies there and I made a bit of a effort to talk at the pool bar, there English was not excellent but they spoke no Spanish and I helped them order some fruities, the next day at Breakfast, they were opposite us and very friendly. Also did not hog the sunbeds which I believe they do as bad as the Spanish.

But I can only speak about that instance, and once I met a Russian lady in Benidrom that was ever so friendly.

There is good and bad in everyone

TheLostPhotographer

This thread makes me laugh.

Anyone here remember when Costa del Sol was commonly known as Costa del Crime?

Why was that then?

jojojojojo

Cos once upon a time, there wasnt a treaty between Spain and the UK, so criminals in the UK could run to Spain, safe in the knowledge that they couldnt be caught - summat like that
jo xxx

TheLostPhotographer

But, were they good guys just because they weren't Russian?

From where I'm reading there seems to be a lot of hypocrisy here.

TheLostPhotographer

More than hypocrisy.

So, some Russians have new money. The World has moved on. Some have money from ill gain. Some have money from very legitimate means. Most of the Russians I know in Spain don't have money.

However, this is totally irrelevant.

Why are people here being so begrudging and suspicious about other nationalities joining them in enjoying life in a fabulous country?