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/Galicia

What’s going on with tourism in Spain? One answer here.

Here’s property expert Mark Stücklin on this development.

I’m fond of wolves, so enjoyed this article on the Iberian variety.

A shout-out for the Portuguese restaurant in Pv city, which might have to close, if business doesn’t pick up. This is a review I’ve posted on both Google and Treep today: My sister and I yesterday enjoyed another great meal at the only Portuguese restaurant in Pv city – Impar in Rúa Princesa, just down from Praza/Praca de Teucro. To an already impressive choice, Carlos has added a starter dish which I associate with Aragón and Navarra, not Galicia. The is torreznos, which are strips of crispy pork. Very tender and delicious. And Impar is almost certainly the only place in the city where you can get Portuguese Albarinho and Vino Verde. Highly recommended.

Talking of my sister . . . She can’t understand why I was so relaxed about whether a Spanish friend would turn up for the pool and for dinner last night and about how many people will actually turn up for a diner reservation I’ve made for tonight. She would never survive life here.

Which reminds me . . . I took her yesterday to the picturesque local fishing port of Combarro. At one restaurant we were told that today there would be free sardines plus accompaniment from Galician gaiteros (bagpipe players). The owner had the decency to laugh when I asked if there was a table were there wouldn’t be any of these.

The UK

Another (right-of-centre) voice on the (moribund)state of the long-standing 2-party system. The writer predicts radical change to the current system but I hae me doots.

Which reminds me . . . The Romans built Hadrian’s wall because they realised they’d never conquer the Picts. As it was, the ratio of Roman soldiers to (uppity) Celtic locals was already the highest in their vast empire. So proud.

The CEO of a polling company says that religion is a “significant factor” in how people vote. “It’s not the biggest factor” he says” but there is a measurable correlation between someone’s religion and the way they vote.”. Richard North feels this doesn’t go far enough: While that is undoubtedly true, it really isn’t the point. The real issue is that attempts are being made to organise the Muslim vote, specifically to attack Labour for its stance on Gaza. Which is new to British politics. And not to be welcomed.  An executive director of the Henry Jackson Society points to the Muslim Vote organisation and notes that its activities could hail the beginning of a dangerous sectarianism in British politics. Let’s hope not. Things are bad enough already.

The Way of the World

A knowledgeable chap is suing Facebook over what he gets in his account. It’ll be good if he succeeds

There’s no accounting for this evil.

English

• To swither: Either Old English, or Scottish – or both. Broadly, it means to be uncertain or perplexed about what to do or choose; doubt; hesitate; dither.
• An unfloor safe: An underfloor safe? A typing error?

Did you know?

This is the ultimate con.

Finally . .

I dropped my sister off near the (baroque)church of San Bartolomeu last evening. For reasons related to roaming on her phone, she didn’t get my message telling her I was sitting about 50m from the church. So, the Mass over, she wandered the streets, eventually stopping to ask people, in English, where the church was, so she could go back to it. She was able to show the church on the map but 3 people told her they didn’t recognise the streets around it. This was hardly surprising, as she’d taken a map of Salamanca from my house, instead of the Pv city one I’d given her . . . How we laughed.

Finally, Finally . . . Pseuds’ Corner

From the web page of the University of Kingston Centre for Research in Modern European Philosophy. Like all emergency measures, deadlines are coercive rituals that distribute privilege unevenly, limits are announced, extensions are granted, penalties are imposed, time runs out faster for the disenfranchised. The deadline (like death itself) is a real abstraction: it universalizes itself in a palpably discordant fashion

The Usual Links . . .

• You can get my posts by email as soon as they’re published. With the added bonus that they’ll contain the typos I’ll discover later. I believe there’s a box for this at the bottom of each post. I guess it’s logical that this doesn’t appear on the version given to me . . .
• 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.
• 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. And this is something on the so-called Beckham Rule, which is beneficial – tax-wise – for folk who want to work here. Finally, some advice on getting a mortgage.