Watch the video to find out where these vendors keep their ingredients for the cocktails.
Video credit: Daily Mail
It’s definitely the picture of a perfect vacation. Just sitting back on a chair at the beach, a cool sea breeze blowing with the warm sun sending soothing rays of heat and the deep blue sea stretching as far as the eye can see. And there’s no better way to top it off than to quench your thirst with a cool, ice cold cocktail.
Unless you’re in Spain, that is. In which case, you may be sipping a pile of sh*t…literally.
This is because reports have come out that in tourist hot spots like Benidorm and Barcelona, illegal vendors are supposedly offering drinks that come from unsanitary sources, such as beer stored in drains and fruits washed in public toilets.
The Sun reports that these unscrupulous vendors serve up drinks such as Pina Coladas and Sex on the Beach to tourists and deceitfully claim that they’re from nearby bars. Some reports even claim that some of these people even wear uniforms.
One holidaymaker posted a picture of one of these sellers on the Facebook page for the Spanish resort of Benidorm, saying: “I see the dodgy cocktail sellers are about today. Yuk, I think I will give it a miss. There were 2 sellers out today with blue shirts. They look so official but yuk. Keep away, everyone.
“I saw this outside my other half’s bar, he was chopping the fruit up on the bin lid, and lifting bottles of spirits up out of the drains.”
Last year, police already started cracking down on these illegal sellers in holiday resorts all over Spain after it was discovered that they were selling drinks that were made with ingredients that were stored in dirty drains.
One video showed officers in Barcelona removing drain covers to reveal towels, straws, bottles of spirits, mixers, glasses, and even ice.
Three men were arrested and charged for selling cocktails that were likely infected with bacteria.
What makes the drinks so attractive is that they are half the price of ones that are sold at legitimate beachfront bars.
Lauren Bate is a travel writer who is based on the Costa Blanca. In her blog, Diary of a Spanglish Girl, she warned tourists about the illegal trade.
She wrote: “Nothing says summer like sipping a cocktail in the sun, kicking back. Relaxation mode on. Do it wrong, you could end up spending the rest of your holiday with your head down the toilet, or hospitalized. Not quite summer goals or summer vibes.
“These street vendors create the cocktails in the most awful of ways. They have been known to wash fruit where you wash your feet on the beach, yes really. Using toilet water as a substitute for water.
“They’ve even been known to chop up the ingredients on cardboard boxes, once lived in by stray cats. Yum.
“They fill their cocktails with fruit that has gone moldy out in the sun. Use old, dirty cutlery. Plus, you guessed it, they don’t wash their hands.”
While it’s no reason to cancel any holiday plans in Spain, just be aware of where you buy your drinks.
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