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

Pre-election politics – a dirty business:-

• Said the VdG yesterday: The electoral clock continues to tick, with The Post Office assuring us that the 300,000 electoral envelopes that still to be delivered as of Monday will arrive on time at their destination, or – if appropriate – a notification of attempted delivery. The trade unions are less optimistic. According to them, today [Wednesday] there’ll be 47,000 undistributed envelopes on the last day available for the delivery of documentation and with only one day left, tomorrow, to deposit the vote at the post offices. Tick tock.
• Given the Catholic Church’s support of Franco, it’s no great surprise that an archbishop (of Oviedo) has instructed his flock to vote for Vox – ‘The real fire-fighters, not the mendacious arsonists’.
• Here’s The Times on The Opening of Old wounds. I didn’t know that Valladolid’s old nickname was Fachadolid. . .
• And here’s a timely article on the links with Galician narcos of the leader of the about-to-govern PP party. Needless to say, everyone here in Galicia has long known of these. And very few care, if they’re on the Right. As most Galicians are. And were in the Civil War.
• Talking of right-wing politics . . . HT to Lenox Napier of Business Over Tapas for this comment: All those things that Franco did for Spain . . . A number of ‘bulos’ [‘unfounded rumours’/lies] have been circulating about the many things Franco did for his countrymen. Most of these are false, says elDiario.es here. This begins: ‘Franco didn’t create the Social Security system. Nor did he decide to establish paid vacations. And he was never in charge of creating the public pension system. He didn’t get Spain into the UN. Nor did he forgive the payment of taxes.’.

One does wonder what Vox has on Feijoo . .

Blimey, this riposte to the Minister of Transport was quick: The Galician government [A Xunta)] doubts Avril trains will be operating by November. The Xunta president expressed his discomfort with the “surprising lack of institutional respect” in respect of the requests made from Galicia for the arrival of the high-speed S-106 in the region. “We need certainty around when that will be” , he added.

Said Minister of Transport is also in trouble for announcing that all our autovias(motorways) will be autopistas(tolls roads) from next year, in accordance with an order from Brussels. The official Spanish government and EU view is that this will certainly happen but not quite next year. Mañana, then. Though things might soon change under a PP government in need of cash to finance tax reductions for its richer voters.

August approaches and, with it, the good news that we will have a better-than-ever international Jazz and Blues concert here in Pv city. Make a note if you’re going ot be in the area. And, if coming, bring a plastic mac, por si acaso. It is very occasionally rained on.

María writes on Normal Times in Galicia here. And on FB here.

A apt warning in line with María’s . . .

See and hear that dreadful fascist anthem/dirge, Cara al Sol, here. Goebbels would have been very proud of it the video.

The UK

Admittedly The Times has reported that, thanks to significant investment in the ‘Border Pass’ digital system, ‘goods are now crossing from the EU to the UK at the same speed as they were before Brexit’ but I bet this development gets far less coverage in the media than the initial problem. It might never even make the BBC News site. (A search just now under “border pass” threw up nothing.)

The EU

Money, money, money . . . The headline to this article: The EU says slavery inflicted ‘untold suffering’ and hints at reparations. The British king seems to be in favour of these but I wonder just how much of his own (questionably acquired) wealth he’s prepared to give away. As opposed to that of his subjects.

Worrying numbers. ‘Core inflation’ (without food and energy) is back on the rise and ‘services inflation’ just keeps on rising. Details here

English

I quoted the word ‘queer’ yesterday with its original meaning. Today it’s the turn of ‘gay. Which you can hear here and here, in a song I learned in primary school a few years ago. Its title varies between Poor Old Joe, Poor Black Joe and Old Black Joe. In this version, it even sounds like Old Blind Joe, though the singer says not. I guess only the first of these is OK these days. Assuming the song is performable, of course.

Finally . . .

A Jazz group I hope to get here for next year’s Jazz & Blues Festival.

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 – updated a bit in early July 2023.