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

Politics: The Guardian reports here on last Sunday’s protest demonstration in Barcelona by right-wing parties. What it doesn’t mention is that the PP leader, conscious of what his dalliance with the far-right Vox party had cost him at the recent general elect ion – asked the participants not to turn up in their party colours. But he didn’t/couldn’t stop the Vox leader taking part.

Last Sunday, my walk into town at midday found me in a sea of green when crossing O Burgo bridge – numerous walkers, all in green T-shirts, raising money for cancer research. Many were accompanied by their dogs, most of which were of the small-to-tiny breeds which do nothing for me, however ‘cute’ they’re said to be. TBH, last week I asked a woman at the next tablet to me if the dog on her lap was her lunch. Which she appreciated was a joke. Sort of.

Despite it being October, Pv city is still teeming with camino ‘pilgrims’. I should know, I dined with 21 of them last night, having given many of them a (free!) tour of the old quarter beforehand. Ordinarily we wouldn’t have opted, as we did last night, to eat outside but temperatures here in the last few days have been close to 30 degrees. Hotter than most summer days here in Galicia. As I might have already said, with September being the new August, October could well be the new September. Especially for those in the hostelry trade. I don’t hear anyone complaining about this, or anyone citing global warming. But, then, we never need air conditioners at night up here.

Another quote from Cees Noteboom’s ‘Roads to Santiago’: [Written in the 1980s] Anyone who concludes that the history of fighting between the Moors and Christians was the result of simple hatred has not understood. There were vested interests, and there was the grand historical élan of what was, in retrospect, commitment to an idea – the expulsion of Islam from Spain. But it took nearly eight centuries, and in that very long period there had been so much intermingling, so much exchange, that each party had in a sense become the other. Each had caused the other to suffer, but alliances had been formed and links established. Conversions, tolerance, mixed marriages, syncretism, all those factors spread out over such a long period had made Spain different from all other countries in Europe – as it remains to this day

The UK

Sadly, very probably true . . . Britain is more tolerant of dogs than small children.

The EU

The EU’s ‘set menu’ membership model is failing. It’s time for an ‘à la carte’ approach, says an Italian bloke* here. EU leaders are pondering the union’s future expansion in the east – and realising that only a radical rethink can make it work. Reform or die, I guess. More here.

* Alberto Alemanno – the Jean Monnet professor of EU law at HEC Paris and Europe Futures Fellow at IWM in Vienna

Israel

Controversial views, I suspect:-

• After the slaughter, the victim-blaming. The idea that Israel is responsible for Hamas’s evil attack is repugnant and racist. . . We can now see the double racism in pseudo-progressive politics.
• Cheerleaders for Hamas : The woke left’s response to the Islamist assault on Israel has exploded their phoney moral superiority for good

Quote of the Day

Diaphobia is the fear of dialogue, or opening yourself to the possibility of someone changing your mind. Social media has created a diaphobia epidemic.

Not to be confused with diaperphobia . . .

Spanish

Un/Una chinche:

• A bed bug. Feared by the ladies in my Pilates class to be on their way from Paris in their millions.
• Would you believe, a thumbtack.

Which reminds me . . . In said Pilates class, I occasionally confuse ‘ankle’ and ‘knee’ – tobillo and rodilla – and, having done so yesterday, tried to tell the ladies about not knowing one’s arse from one’s elbow. Not a success. Conceptually beyond them, apparently.

Finally . . .

I’ve previously mentioned the theory of ‘brain energy’, viz. that all mental disorders share a root cause: metabolic dysfunction, which begins at the cellular level in our mitochondria. In short, words, mental disorders are metabolic disorders of the brain. Here’s a relevant article. And here’s a video of an interview with the main proponent of this theory.

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.

For those thinking of moving to Spain:- This is an extremely comprehensive and accurate guide to the challenge, written by a Brit who lives in both the North and the South and who’s very involved in helping Camino walkers.