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

The New Scientist reports here that the World’s oldest wine has been found in a 2000-year-old Roman tomb in Spain. An urn there contained the cremated remains of a man, a gold ring and about 5 litres of liquid, identified as now-discoloured white wine. No one has volunteered how the stuff tasted.

A second bit of excellent scientific news centres on the discovery bits of the alphabet of a lost Spanish civilisation down South.

Spain’s “Little Napoleon’’ has fallen foul of the law, as he tries to eradicate traces of Franco from his government department’s offices.

Be warned that El Tráfico has increased fines for tipping off other drivers on the presence of roadside patrols. Up to 3,000 euros, I think.

Said El Tráfico has proposed a new law under which e-scooter riders must be 16 and wear a helmet at all times. Additionally, they’ll have to submit their details to a registry before they can legally ride on public roads. But, seeing how little is done in Pv city to stop cyclists and e-cyclists weaving between pedestrians in the ‘humanised’ streets, one one wonders how much this new law will be implemented. Maybe fully in fact, if the officious Guardia Civil officers have the power to fine e-scooter riders.

Here in Galicia, there’ s news today of the 4th or 5th narcosub of recent years, seen and pursued this week along our coast. The crew of Colombians were caught but not before they’d dumped the cargo worth many millions into the Atlantic, and skittled the sub.

Talking of the drug business . . . A well-known local (ex)narcotráficante has won a case against the distributors of the film Fariña(Cocaine Coast) in which there was a sex-scene involving him to which took exception. He was awarded €15,000. Which he probably didn’t need.

My normal water bill is around 25 euros a month. When I was away for 6 months, it was around 22 euros a month, reflecting the high level of standing charges. Very profitable for the supplier. And for families of more than one person, whom single folk like me are effectively subsidising. Especially those families with 2+ kids, as they get a discount on utilities dating back to the Franco era. Spain needs a stronger consumer protection outfit.

The USA

Facing the choice between a Catholic and an inveterate sinner, the US Catholic church is going with the latter. Better the devil you know? And love?? While holding your nose. You can read all about this here, in a thoroughly depressing article for an ex-Catholic humanist like me. Its final paragraph is: Unless they change direction, the bishops along with other ultraconservatives, fuelled by dark money from super-rich donors, may take the US down the perilous road of extremism and autocracy in the coming national elections and beyond. And this in a country for which the Constitution clearly separates government and religion. One can only hope that Paul Weyrich has discovered either that there’s no Heaven or that he’s been consigned to Hell.

The Way of the World

Richard North feels the pre-election debates between UK party leaders aren’t worth watching. I would prefer, he says, that each leader was subject to an hour-long probing interviews of the old-school variety. Adding that: No doubt, this format is deemed as too challenging for modern audiences whose attention spans are reckoned in fractions of a minute.

Spanish

• Chivatazo: Tip-off
• Óbito: Decease (formal): Death. From the Latin obire, to die and obitus, dead. Hence obituary, I guess
• Moho: Mould/Mold

Did you know?

It’s not a good idea to leave your house empty and without ventilation during 5 months of winter in humid Galicia. Especially not in the wettest winter and spring in decades. If you do, you’ll have plenty of mould on at least the north-facing interior walls when you get back.

Finally . .

Pseuds’ Corner . . . . Actually, most pockets are self-satirising as containers: men spill themselves all over the place because of gaping trouser pouches. Is this spilling a conscious territorial claim? Are men particularly keen on pockets because they have vulva envy? A review in The London Review of Books.

BTW . . . I used voice-to-text for that quote and ‘vulva’ came out as ****. What a world, when this is seen as always pornographic . . .

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.