Awake, for morning in the bowl of night has flung the stone that puts the stars to flight.

And, lo, has caught the sultan’s turret in a noose of light!

Spanish life is not always likeable but it is compellingly loveable

Christopher Howse: ‘A Pilgrim in Spain’

Cosas de España

The Guardian here reviews the events of the last 5 years which have brought the far-right Vox party to the brink of national power. One of the factors being the Left parties doing what they do best – fighting among themselves.

And the Times here highlights where the right-wing PP party has moved towards Vox over recent years. The final paragraph makes an interesting point: While the PP is expected to win the general election, it will probably need a coalition deal with Vox to form a government. A recent poll for El País suggested that the two groups could still fall short of a majority, opening the door to a repeat of a minority Socialist-led coalition supported by smaller parties. What Sanchez is betting on, I guess. And he’s successfully forced his allies to suspend (most of) their infighting.

Something to visit down in Extremadura.

The Galician tourism industry is worried . . . Numbers are up but per capita spend is down. And now there’s a general election to reduce volumes. On top of all that is the now ‘endemic’ problem of not enough South Americans and East Europeans to do the work Spaniards don’t want to do – possibly fed up of being cheated by employers around their hours and their social security taxes.

The 2nd in a series of 3 . . . Below are fotos taken outside the Colonía de la Prensa, in a streeet on its southern edge. Some houses might be from the 1920s or 1930s but some clearly aren’t, although they bow towards the idiom of the former. If you missed the 1st in the series, go to yesterday’s post.

This foto gallery features (shell)fisherfolk I walk past regularly. The factory in the background of the last one – ´La Celulosa’ – converts eucalyptus logs to cellulose and used to emit a smell that Pv city was famous for. But I’ve not detected it for years. Our (left wing)mayor has been trying to get rid of the factory – the city’s only majoy employer – for more than 20 years and has just lost a Supreme Court case. This being Spain, the issue might now go to the Constitutional court.

Portugal

This is a nice Washington Post article on the recovery of a sailing ship built in Spain in the mid-15th century. It’s here because the ‘brave’ crew is thought to have been Portuguese. Taster: The 3-masted ship was designed to ferry heavy casks of new wine from Iberia to England. It sailed in the opening chapters of the age of discovery, of colonialism, of global trade, as the Middle Ages leaned into the Renaissance.

The UK

More nice comments on Boris Johnson here, from a man who sacked him decades ago for lying and who claims to be the first person to say what a disastrous PM he’d be. His statement on Friday reflected almost deranged narcissism. Another good final para.

Others write:-

• What is certain is that he won’t go quietly. Plans for more journalism and a TV show are in the works and he will continue to make millions from paid speeches. A memoir is already well advanced. Those who have seen what he has written say it will be a blockbuster book. “The man can turn a phrase,” a publishing source said.
• Boris Johnson’s latest protestations of foul play, calumny and dastardly scheming are all of a piece with his actions throughout his life. All are the product of his deep character flaws. Politicians, aides and officials attest to the fact that he was quite incapable of telling truth from falsehood: that “he lied morning, noon and night” was a regular lament. . . The damage that Johnson has done to the country is beyond measure. 

I once had a relationship with a very lovely, very bright woman who turned out to be not dissimilar. She lied so much and so naturally that her own son said to me once: “The problem with my Mum is that she believes her own lies.” As with Johnson, it was a waste of time assessing whether she lied or not. People like this can always say, absolutely truthfully, “I wasn’t lying. I totally believed what I said at the time.” Which is why they’re so outraged when challenged. As Johnson was. So, we got: “I did not lie and I believe that in their hearts the committee know it.” as if. By the way, in my experience, these people usually ooze charm. Quite possibly a natural characteristic, not one developed to assist in deceiving others. But, at some point, they’ve realised how useful it can be to get what you want. For a time.

Quote of The Day

The demonisation of J K Rowling is one of the strangest developments of our times.

(A)GW/Energy

At least one expert thinks the UK’s ‘world-leading’ drive to Net Zero has created potentially disastrous risks. Will a new/New Labour government change direction? Review the muclear option, for example? Probably not.

And the FT here warns that gridlock due to a lack of power lines will delay the age of renewables.

The Way of the World

Working from home was supposed to create happier, more creative workers. It would dramatically improve productivity. It would make the economy more efficient, create a more diverse workforce and finally get us back on track for faster growth. . . Over the 3 three years, a whole series of human resources and management experts kept lecturing us on how great the working-from-home revolution would be for the [British] economy. They have turned out to be completely wrong.  . . It is surely time to admit that it has been a catastrophe. More here.

Covid

The Times here tells us what really went on in that Wuhan lab in China. Frightening.

Spanish

(Re)learnt this morning . . . Mucha mierda! The equivalent, among artists, of Break a leg! At least as regards, debuts/premieres/estrenos. Its origins stem from people attending performances on horseback.

Finally/Do you know?

At a concert recently, I heard an audience member shout Brava! for a female performer. So, I researched the correct terms, which these days might well be:-

• Bravo – man, natural or trans
• Brava – woman, natural or trans
• Bravi – 2 or more of any of those, even though it’s the masculine plural

But what do we now exclaim for non-binary persons, to avoid upsetting anyone? Bravox, Bravax and Bravix?

Welcome to new subscriber: Elena. Who might well be a bit of a romantic. And a poetess. Can certainly make pretty fotos.

For new readers:- If you’ve landed here looking for info on Galicia or Pontevedra, try here. If you’re passing through Pontevedra on the Camino, you’ll find a guide to the city there.

FOTOS TAKEN OUTSIDE – SORT OF – THE COLONÍA DE LA PRENSA

This is what I thought was a cute-looking restaurant called El Capricho (The Whim). Turned out to be a shop selling corsetería and lencería.

Not every building was attractive, unless compared with some other flat blocks in Iberia.

Back in the main avenue connecting Carabanchel Bajo and Carabanchel Alto is this modern building, which is sort of sympathetic to the neo-Mudéjar style. Opposite the entrance to the colony, it houses the local Health Centre:-