camper van?

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01 Feb 2014 9:30 PM by wencra Star rating in mollina - malaga. 66 posts Send private message

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Hi all

moving over perminantly in the next few weeks, and looking at buying a camper van to go touring with not in a mad rush but within a month or so, we will around 40mins inland from malaga, can anyone give us some names of dealers around the area, new or secondhand

thanks





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02 Feb 2014 10:44 AM by ob123 Star rating in Southern Ireland. 191 posts Send private message

I think buying a camper is the wrong thing to do, I know a couple who were gased while the were asleep in there new state of the art camper costing €80,000 here in Spain, when the woke up they were robbed of all there money and anything worth taking, there dog was also gased and was asleep fot most of the following day, they live here near me in Spain they sold the camper the following Week and were really very upset, so beware the only way really is to travel with other campers together and even then it is not safe.....sorry but this is a true stroy.





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02 Feb 2014 11:32 AM by johnzx Star rating in Spain. 5242 posts Send private message

It most likely that reports of gas being used by thieves are incorrect. 

Over the 16 years I have been a translator with the police in Spain, and 30 years as a detective in UK,  I have never had one case where this has actually happened.  I have had many cases where victims houses have been burgled during the night and they have slept through the event.  To prove subsequently that a gas was used would be very difficult and as the extract below describes, if it happened with anything like the regularity that some would believe, there would have been a lot of dead bodies !

  A quote from the internet:-

                  …………………..There are reasons you don't see 'sleeping gas' outside of fiction. Most substances with the potential of rendering somebody unconscious need to be carefully controlled... too little and no real effect... too much, MAJOR effects. What would work well on a middle aged man would barely affect an athletic teen, and probably kill an elderly, infirm or very young victim.





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02 Feb 2014 12:50 PM by baz1946 Star rating. 2327 posts Send private message

My son and three friends were travelling through Spain to get to the South when they stopped in one of those restaurant stops on the motorway, they parked all four of the Jeeps and caravans close to each other, my son heard a noise in the night and went out to take a look and caught one of the three guys who had pumped gas up the drain pipe from the outside of his mates caravan completely knocking him and his wife out.

The guy my son caught was handed over to the Spanish police, what happened to him after I don't know, no doubt let of.

Another trick is to cut the window rubber surround out with a Stanley knife and remove the clear plastic window.

 


This message was last edited by baz1946 on 02/02/2014.



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02 Feb 2014 1:09 PM by johnzx Star rating in Spain. 5242 posts Send private message

I knew when you saw  'johnzx'  you would automatically disagree.  You did not disappoint me.  Hahahahaha

 


This message was last edited by johnzx on 02/02/2014.



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02 Feb 2014 4:54 PM by elaineG Star rating in Spain . 409 posts Send private message

It's an old urban legend, which has been around for decades. Originally the robbers were supposed to be pumping the gas into sleeping compartments on overnight trains. Then they supposedly moved on to truck drivers sleeping in the cabs of their trucks, and travellers sleeping in camping trailers and caravans at roadside rest stops. Now the rumours claim they have moved on to hotel rooms,  rental apartments, luxury homes, and yachts. And in all this time, no one has discovered one publicised case of the burglars getting caught at it. Nor has anyone identified this miracle gas that mixes so easily with air, never kills anyone (not even the pet canary), does not penetrate gas masks, and dissipates by morning. (Nitrous oxide, the chemical blamed in the Daily Mail story, is a terrible candidate.)

A far easier explanation is that the victims simply slept through the burglary. The victims were sound asleep, and the burglars were good at their jobs                     .enlightened





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02 Feb 2014 5:10 PM by Rossetti Star rating in Oxford and Zurich. 124 posts Send private message

The thing you can say about Baz is he's good for a laugh.

Guess he is really good he know everything about, well everything.

Keep up the postings as most of the characters have long gone from EoS.

 

Roseti





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02 Feb 2014 5:30 PM by scubamike Star rating in Murcia province . 218 posts Send private message

scubamike´s avatar
I have come across this miracle gas that sends you to sleep it's chemical name is Rioja



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02 Feb 2014 6:26 PM by ElviriaDreamer Star rating. 99 posts Send private message

ElviriaDreamer´s avatar

I wouldn't like to say if the gassing stories are true or untrue. The first case of supposed "gassing burglary" I heard of was in Elviria in 2008...I didn't get to know if it was proven true or not, as my daughter and I went to Benalmadena and then home.

This is one of the earlier stories http://www.theolivepress.es/spain-news/2009/08/14/nerja-sleeping-gas-robbery/ 
One from Think Spain http://www.thinkspain.com/news-spain/19946/sleeping-gas-burglaries-terrify-residents
The Metro http://metro.co.uk/2011/08/12/brazen-thieves-use-sleeping-gas-to-sedate-victims-in-luxury-spain-homes-111590/

It's possibly even happening in India http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/sleeping-gas-in-resort-robbery/article2415686.ece

A possible burglar deterrent for homeowners/caravan owners http://www.eyeonspain.com/forums/ForumReply.aspx?thread=19222&dev=FB18 

I think a bigger concern at the minute, would be arriving at an ATM machine and finding you couldn't draw any money out to buy your camper van http://i-marbella.com/News/news/Costa-del-Sol-Events/marbella/a-specialist-gang-of-thieves-using-gas-explosions-to-open-cash-machines-in-the-costa-del-sol :)

Enjoy your move and touring. Bad things happen all over the world...you can't put your plans on hold to stop them happening. Sorry I cannot advise on the name of tourer dealers as I don't know any.  






 





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02 Feb 2014 7:51 PM by wencra Star rating in mollina - malaga. 66 posts Send private message

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Thanks for your replys, have heard about the 'gas roberies' and seen as many stories saying it has happened as has said its myth, hey ho so still no answer on that one..

but back to  the original question about motorhome dealers know there is 1 near malga airport but not visited it yet any one know of any others?

ElviriaDreamer thanks for your reply





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02 Feb 2014 7:53 PM by wencra Star rating in mollina - malaga. 66 posts Send private message

wencra´s avatar

Thanks for your replys, have heard about the 'gas roberies' and seen as many stories saying it has happened as has said its myth, hey ho so still no answer on that one..

but back to  the original question about motorhome dealers know there is 1 near malga airport but not visited it yet any one know of any others?

ElviriaDreamer thanks for your reply





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02 Feb 2014 8:34 PM by baz1946 Star rating. 2327 posts Send private message

I knew when you saw  'johnzx'  you would automatically disagree.  You did not disappoint me.  Hahahahaha

Don't flatter yourself John, I didn't disagree with you,  only told it how it happened, so did the Spanish cops, so did the Spanish medics that attended the two, so did the Spanish hospital they went into.

Shame the truth offends you so much,  you must find it unbearable when people don't agree with you.

 





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02 Feb 2014 8:50 PM by baz1946 Star rating. 2327 posts Send private message

 

The thing you can say about Baz is he's good for a laugh.

Guess he is really good he know everything about, well everything.

Keep up the postings as most of the characters have long gone from EoS

 

That I am afraid is all down to getting of my butt and going out into the big wide world,  mixing with people that have wisdom and intelligence,  which is....A shame much of it didn't rub of on me, as opposed to worrying about where the new Astra whatever is,  still at least I make you laugh which has to be a good thing.

And if you really do want to know why most of the characters have gone...Well that you just answered yourself.

 





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02 Feb 2014 10:54 PM by wencra Star rating in mollina - malaga. 66 posts Send private message

wencra´s avatar

sorry for the extra replys, site seemed to have a hickup and came up with an error page when I tried to post, when in fact it had posted my message

 


This message was last edited by wencra on 03/02/2014.


This message was last edited by wencra on 03/02/2014.



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03 Feb 2014 8:41 AM by elaineG Star rating in Spain . 409 posts Send private message

Newspaper stories, yes stories to sell newspapers, are very often fictional to appeal to gullible readers who do not want to face facts.   

It’s a myth.  

From:    http://www.motorhomefun.co.uk/magazine/articles/motorhome-gas-attacks/

There cannot be many people who have not heard the stories of motorhomes being gassed at French and Spanish motorway service stations. Stories spread rapidly, with more or less the same story being re-told. Often just the people and places changing.

We recall and spread these stories because they frighten us. The thought of being asleep in a motorhome at the mercy of an intruder while they rob us, would fill anyone with dread. Waking up to discover that you have been robbed, and that the robber had to be right there in the motorhome with you, just defies all logic. How do you explain it? How was it possible to have been robbed without waking? However, we have heard that some people have been gassed and then robbed so this is the only logical explanation; we were gassed! Except it is not logical at all, how did the robbers get the gas into the motorhome? How did they know how much to put in? How did they ensure that all the occupants, no matter their differing body-weights, got just the right dose so as not to kill them? If this substance is easy to administer and leaves no after effects then why is it not used in medicine? Why do the crooks that possess this ‘wonder gas’ restrict its use to a few British holiday makers and the odd lorry driver?

I think that people assume gas when there is no clear evidence. Maybe this is the right assumption to make, but in my professional opinion, based on the evidence I have seen to date, I think the gas explanation is used too quickly and without thinking it through. Thousands of people wake at home to find that they have been robbed, I have not heard it suggested that gas is used. Maybe it has.

The fact is, we often do wake up, and there are hundreds of cases where motor homers are woken by the sound of a thief trying to get in to their motorhome. It’s when we do not wake, that we start to suspect gas might have been used as some way of explanation. I have been a security professional most of my adult life, but I was once robbed in a hotel room while I slept. I am sure I wasn’t gassed, I had drunk just a couple of glasses of wine, but that is the only defence I have. I had the mickey taken out of me for years by my team mates, how I wish the gas excuse was around then, I am sure I would have clung to it to save my blushes. Maybe the police do the same; “Why didn’t they wake? Maybe they were gassed!” It’s an easy explanation, case closed, crime number issued. As a security consultant in London I have known of countless hotels where whole corridors of rooms have been robbed without the occupants waking. The odd one or two that were woken or who weren’t asleep accepted a mumbled, “sorry wrong room.” On investigations no one thought gas was used, but it may as well have been, as tired or tipsy travellers once asleep will sleep through most things! The thing is, I suspect that we all sleep a little sounder than we think. We have all been asked, did you hear that thunder-storm last night? And we didn’t hear a thing. I have slept through the screams of my kids nightmares.

I remember when in the Army (a long time ago)  I once took a rifle from a young sleeping soldier, he wasn’t gassed, he was just very tired and sleeping soundly. Many of you, like me I am sure, can get into bed with our partner without waking them, or they can sneak out of bed without waking you. The thief isn’t getting in bed with us, he is probably in the motorhome for less that 45 seconds and taking the wallet from the bedside table and your camera from the dinette. I think it is sad that people are put off travelling on the continent because of the fear of being gassed. The press and police are guilty of hyping the stories further by suggesting gassing without a shred of evidence to support the theory other than “if they didn’t wake they must of been gassed” In September 2007 The Royal College of Anaesthetists released the a statement on their website, debunking the gassing stories. They are also of the opinion that this is a myth. However, you might be of the opinion that the Anaesthetists “would say that” How embarrassing for them if some OK with a can of “damp Start” can do what they trained years to learn! I personally think that the gassing stories are an urban myth. If any readers here are worried about the gassing then please do buy a detector if it makes you feel better, but be warned, if you are parked in a public place, where there is a good chance of being robbed, the comfort you derive from your detector might make you sleep a little too soundly, and then who knows what might happen.

Motorhome Gas Attacks – A Professional Opinion Their statement by The Royal College of Anaesthetists is shown below. Have a read and judge for yourself.

A statement from The Royal College of Anaesthetists about Motorhome owners being gassed then robbed.

Despite the increasing numbers of reports of people being gassed in motor-homes or commercial trucks in France, and the warning put out by the Foreign Office for travellers to be aware of this danger, this College remains of the view that this is a myth. It is the view of the College that it would not be possible to render someone unconscious by blowing ether, chloroform or any of the currently used volatile anaesthetic agents, through the window of a motor-home without their knowledge, even if they were sleeping at the time. Ether is an extremely pungent agent and a relatively weak anaesthetic by modern standards and has a very irritant affect on the air passages, causing coughing and sometimes vomiting. It takes some time to reach unconsciousness, even if given by direct application to the face on a cloth, and the concentration needed by some sort of spray administered directly into a room would be enormous. The smell hangs around for days and would be obvious to anyone the next day. Even the more powerful modern volatile agents would need to be delivered in tanker loads of carrier gas or by a large compressor. Potential agents, such as the one used by the Russians in the Moscow siege are few in number and difficult to obtain. Moreover, these drugs would be too expensive for the average thief to use. The other important point to remember is that general anaesthetics are potentially very dangerous, which is why they are only administered in the UK by doctors who have undergone many years of postgraduate training in the subject and who remain with the unconscious patient throughout the anaesthetic. Unsupervised patients are likely to die from obstruction of the airway by their tongues falling back. In the Moscow siege approximately 20% of the people died, many probably from airway obstruction directly related to the agent used. If there was a totally safe, odourless, potent, cheap anaesthetic agent available to thieves for this purpose it is likely the medical profession would know about it and be investigating its use in anaesthetic practice.

 

 


This message was last edited by elaineG on 03/02/2014.



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03 Feb 2014 9:15 AM by Team GB Star rating. 1245 posts Send private message

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Wencra

These people are near Malaga Airport, opposite side of the main road from Ikea.

They always seem to have a good selection when you drive passed.

http://www.karavan.es/



_______________________

 

 




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03 Feb 2014 11:31 AM by wencra Star rating in mollina - malaga. 66 posts Send private message

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Team GB thanks, thats the one I have seen not been in yet but had loads in there when I drove past





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03 Feb 2014 3:57 PM by Rossetti Star rating in Oxford and Zurich. 124 posts Send private message

Wencra, hope you find the right van for you and enjoy seeing as much of Spain and prehaps further afield.

We spent a year in Spain as a sabbatial year and found the North fantastic, the South interesting and really enjoyed Portugal (which we discovered a bit late in our 12-months to do it justice),

On our travels, albeit in hotels, we visited so many different places and have a lot of memories and met a lot of very helpful local people.

(hope thispost works out OK as still trying to get used to a new iPhone5, that seems to be smarter than me,)

 

Rossetti





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03 Feb 2014 6:46 PM by ob123 Star rating in Southern Ireland. 191 posts Send private message

You really got a great responce to your camper query, but take my advice DON'T put yourself in danger it would destroy your Spanish dream, the couple that live next door to me here in Spain are still very upset to loose all there money and there own personal belongings, they said it destroyed there lives.....





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