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

Here’s Spain’s 2024 national public holidays, to be augmented by those of your region. For example, Galician Literature Day.

I guess I should be pleased – or at least impressed – that CNN includes Galicia in its list of the 24 places in the world you should visit before you pop your clogs. As ever, I’m not entirely convinced that the writer of the article has ever set foot in the region.

I the light of this news, I do hope my jab proves effective,

The UK

The NHS asks patients to choose from 12 genders, 10 sexual preferences and 159 religions. It’s hardly surprising, then, that: Some patients registering with the online portal before they attend appointments have said the questions are bizarre, confusing and intrusive. More here.

France

Wokeism goes too far by far?

The USA

In the late 70s, 15% of Americans were obese. By 2023, that number was nearly 43%. And people were writing books like the one reviewed here, which demands that the world changes to accommodate obese folk. Not vice versa. Because they are victims, of course.

The Way of the World

Effie Deans here weighs into the debate about the sacking of the Harvard President, Claudine Gay. The problem, she says, is not plagiarism. . . The problem is much worse than that. It is that we have essentially destroyed education. In the Anglosphere at least. And possibly also in France.

On that theme . . . When I graduated in Law, only about 1% of students got a First Class degree. Our year was considered exceptional in having 3%. These days in some UK universities ‘grade creep’ means the percentage is above 50%. For UK academia as a whole, the average number of Firsts has risen to way beyond 1%. Even in my old college. Trying to find out what the exact number was last year, I came across this statement: Law has the lowest number of First Class degrees awarded in the UK, according to the the Higher Education Statistics Agency. Only 13%[!!] of students graduated with a First, which is about 10%* lower than the total average of 23% for all non-clinical subject areas.

* They mean 10 percentage points.

Of course, if one got a First back in my day, one feels more aggrieved at this trend than others. I suppose. For your achievement has been soundly devalued.

Quote of the Day

The saga of Claudine Gay has become a news story hall of mirrors, in which everyone sees in it exactly what they want.

Finally . . .

I drove through one of the tunnels under the River Mersey today – the one between Birkenhead and Liverpool that I suspect I last travelled through with my father many moons ago.

Which reminds me . . . My satnav/GPS has automatically switched to miles. Which is OK but, when nearing a turn, it often switches not to yards but to feet. Why? How many people – even Brits – know how far 1,000 feet is? Why not 300 yards? At least, they’re close to metres.

But it was nice to pass the spot where my grandparents’ pub once stood, near the Birkenhead entrance/exit to the tunnel. The scene of many wonderful childhood memories. See Chapter 4 of my autobiography, which should be ready for publication by 2035. And which will never be read by my daughters. Or not before I’m dead, at least. Dragon’s teeth, etc.

The Usual Links . . .

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.