Mike Eyley was born in Bedford, England. At the age of 6 months his parents moved to Spain. He returned to the UK as a bi-lingual 9 year old to complete his formal education. He went on to study Business Tourism and Marketing at Sheffield University. His career dedicated to the leisure industry where he attained the roles of Chairman of Hotel and Leisure for The Chamber of Commerce and National Manager for one of the largest leisure companies in Europe. Being bilingual Mike has extensive experience of teaching Spanish he worked for the International School of Languages, City College and The Norfolk College of art and technology with both students and private clients. He also has extensive knowledge of Spanish history and culture.

Attaining the higher certificate of wine and spirits he also has an in depth knowledge of Spanish food and wine. At the age of 45 he decided to follow his passion for watches and jewellery which he had studied for many years. Initially as a watch and jewellery dealer. Later setting up his own Auction House. Now an international acquisition agent, consultant and valuer for prestige watches and jewellery with an extensive portfolio which includes private, celebrity and corporate clients.

TALKS AVAILABLE:

- SPANISH CLASSES. ( 65 day cruise 1.21 score. Others 5-5 score by clients)

- SPANISH TALKS ON HISTORY,CULTURE,FOOD,WINES,FIESTAS WITH A NATIVE APPROACH. ALSO INCLUDING THE CANARY ISLANDS.

- JEWELLERY-PRECIOUS METALS-DIAMONDS AND GEMSTONES. WITH SAMPLES of gemstones, diamonds, watches and precious metals.

CAN BE JUST TALKS OR WORKSHOPS WITH TALKS COMBINATION. WORKSHOP TALKS ARE INTERACTIVE WITH CLIENT PARTICIPATION. THE CLIENTS GET TO USE JEWELLER'S TOOLS, HANDLE PRECIOUS STONES AND DIFFERENT JEWELLERY. GET TO SEE AND HANDLE REAL STONES, DIAMONDS, FAKE STONES REAL AND FAKE WATCHES. GET TO USE TESTING EQUIPMENT WITH A VISUAL 30 MINUTE PRESENTATION.

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SPANISH CLASSES

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Bi-lingual teacher of Spanish with many years experience available to teach basic conversational Spanish to cruise guests. This can be as an addition to the guest speaking ON SPANISH AND CANARIAN HISTORY, CULTURE FOOD AND WINE. PRESENTATIONS on SPAIN'S HISTORY FROM IBERIA TO PRESENT DAY, SPANISH CULTURE AND TRADITIONS, INFLUENTIAL PEOPLE IN SPAIN'S HISTORY, SPANISH FOOD AND DRINK RELATED TO EACH PORT OF CALL, SPANISH FIESTAS AND SPANISH WAY OF LIFE: These talks can be combined with the Spanish lessons.

AS AN EXPERT ON PRECIOUS STONES, JEWELLERY AND WATCHES AND A BI-LINGUAL NATIVE ESPAÑOL. I AM ABLE TO PROVIDE AND COMBINE THE FOLLOWING: TALKS:

SPAIN, HISTORY,CULTURE,GEOGRAPHY, CUSTOMS,FIESTAS,FOOD AND WINE.

SPECIALIST TALKS ON JEWELLERY,DIAMONDS, PRECIOUS METALS, WATCHES.

WORKSHOPS/TALK COMBINATION INTERACTIVE CLIENT PARTICIPATION WORKSHOPS. PRECIOUS METALS. DIAMONDS. PRECIOUS STONES. WATCHES.

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SPANISH HISTORY, SPANICH CULTURE, SPANISH WAY OF LIFE, FOOD & WINES & FIESTAS

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Presentations can be specific to individual ports of call. Example talks:

TALK NUMBER 1 - "VIVA ESPAÑA" THE HISTORY AND CULTURE OF THE REAL SPAIN TOLD BY A NATIVE.
SPANISH HISTORY FROM THE EARLY IBERIANS TO PRESENT DAY, COVERING THE ROMANS, MOORS THEIR INFLUENCE AND ARCHITECTURE. THE CATHOLIC MONARCHS. THE RISE AND FALL OF THE SPANISH EMPIRE. THE SPANISH INQUISITION, COLUMBUS, THE CIVIL WAR, FRANCO. THE SPANISH LANGUAGE, ITS DIALECTS AND REGIONS. THE SPANISH CULTURE, FAMOUS SPANISH PEOPLE.

TALK NUMBER 2 - "OLE ESPAÑA" FIESTAS, FLAMENCO AND TAPAS . THE REAL SPAIN NOT THE TOURIST MYTH.
SPANISH WAY OF LIFE, FOOD, WINES AND FIESTAS.
(THESE WILL BE TAILORED TO THE PORTS OF CALL)
THE REAL SPANISH FOOD, THE WINES OF SPAIN AND THE FIESTAS. THE REAL WAY OF LIFE IN SPAIN, HOW OUR DAY IS BROKEN UP, WORK HOME LIFE, OUR MEALS. THE MEDITERRANEAN DIET. MICHELIN RESTAURANTS IN SPAIN. NATIONAL DANCE, FLAMENCO, BAILE CLASICO.

TALK NUMBER 3 - “ISLAS CANARIAS" THE ATLANTIC UTOPIA. HISTORY, GEOGRAPHY, CULTURE DOOM AND BOOM.
RELATES TO THE HISTORY, GEOGRAPHY AND LANGUAGE OF THE REGIONS BEING VISITED. FOR EXAMPLE THE CANARIES OR RELATED TO THE THEME OF THE CRUISE. IT WILL CONSIST OF SPECIFIC REFERENCE TO THE REGION.

TALK NUMBER 4 - "FRANCO" THE GREATEST DICTATOR EVER or NOT?
HIS LIFE,HIS RISE TO POWER,THE SPANISH CIVIL WAR AND HIS LEGACY WHICH STILL DIVIDES SPANISH THOUGHTS.

TALK NUMBER 5 - THE DIVISION OF SPAIN IN TO AUTONOMOUS REGIONS.
THEIR INDIVIDUAL SECRETS AND TRADITIONS. THE SITES TO VISIT AND THE UNIQUE THINGS TO DO.THEIR CHARMS AND DOWNFALLS. THE REGIONS OF AFRICA THAT BELONG TO SPAIN.

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PRESENTATIONS ON JEWELLERY, PRECIOUS METALS, GEMSTONES AND WATCHES

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PRESENTATION 1 - UNDERSTANDING PRECIOUS METALS. DISCOVER WHATS BEHIND THE TERM "PRECIOUS METALS.
How the metals are extracted* What they are used for* History of Hallmarks*How to read Hallmarks * Grading Silver, Gold and Platinum* Value of precious metals.

PRESENTATION 2 - WATCHES AND DETECTING FAKE. IT IS "TIME" TO FIND OUT.
History*Development of the timepiece* Values* Investment watches* Identifying fakes.

PRESENTATION 3 - GEMSTONES, SO PRECIOUS OR ARE THEY? TRADE SECRETS TO ENHANCE THEIR VALUES.
Origin*Grading*Colour and enhancements*Cuts*Fakes and tricks of the trade*Values* Which to buy which to avoid.

PRESENTATION 4 - DIAMONDS. A GIRLS BEST FRIEND OR MANS EXCUSE FOR PROFIT. THE TRUTH. CLASSIFYING THEM AND VALUING.
Formation* How to make a diamond* Where they are found and extracted* Classification and grading* Valuing diamonds.

PRESENTATION 5 - MY JEWELLERY IS WORTH HOW MUCH!!! BOOK ME A SUITE.
Learn how to value your jewellery* Insurance valuations* What it is really worth.*Who not to sell it to* Where to sell it. WORKSHOP OPPORTUNITY TO APPRAISED JEWELLERY AND VALUE IT. Learn how to value precious metals by weight and carat* learn how to use a diamond detector* learn how to use a jewellers loupe* learn how to grade a diamond with the aid of various examples* learn how to Differentiate between a good and a bad gemstone from various examples*Learn to read Hallmarks by using the tools of the trade* what to look for in a fake watch and see various examples.

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WORKSHOP/TALKS COMBINATION

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These are workshops/talks in which the clients are interactive and have the opportunity to use various jeweller’s tools and handle samples. They get to see and handle both real and fake diamonds, precious stones, real and fake watches and various precious metals. Each workshop has a questionnaire/form for clients to record and fill in results related to the specific topic being covered. The format is a 30-minute visual talk immediately followed by a hand on interactive workshop.

Talk/workshop 1 - “PRECIOUS METALS. HOW TO VALUE THEM LIKE AN EXPERT”
Hallmark reading and testing, using jeweller’s tools to value jewellery. Handle and learn to value various items of precious metals. Learn how to use a loupe. “Some surprises”

Talk/workshop 2 - “DIAMOND TESTING AND VALUATIONS, WHAT THEY DON’T TELL YOU”
Learn how to make a diamond. Learn how to value diamonds. Learn how to use a diamond tester. Visual and hand on testing. See a BLUE and YELLOW diamond. See a Tiffany diamond ring. See real and fake diamonds.

Talk/workshop 3 - “FAKES AND ILLUSIONS IN PRECIOUS STONES”
Find out the tricks the trade use to enhance precious stones. How to increase the value of a diamond. See the real stones and synthetic stones. Can you tell which is which? See the testing equipment used by the trade to identify precious stones. See a certified 555 carat Emerald. The biggest you have seen “Probably”

Talk/workshop 4 - “TICK TOCK IS THE WATCH FAKE OR NOT?”
Learn the history and development of the wristwatch. See real and fake watches. Learn how to tell which is which.

These workshop presentations require visual aids. PowerPoint screen and a presentation table. They will last approximately 1 hour.

*PRESENTATIONS CAN BE IN ENGLISH OR SPANISH*

The following recent Cruise History has been recorded for this candidate.