Awake, for morning in the bowl of night has flung the stone that puts
the stars to flight.

And, lo, the hunter of the east 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.

NOTE: This is last evening’s post, which the national blackout prevented me from publishing.

Cosas de España

More than 65% of Spaniards admit to being superstitious, and 50% carry lucky charms (amuletos). Which strikes me as quite high.

Those strange Spanish festivals . . . The local town of Paradela is celebrating the feast day of San Gregorio with a bollo 9(bun/roll?) of 6,000 boiled eggs and quite a few pork ribs.

If you’re thinking about buying or selling property in Spain, or need to understand the market for professional reasons, SPI’s market reports are said here to an essential resource. Mark Stücklin tells us that his property market reports for Spain’s most popular destinations have been fully updated, providing a comprehensive overview of the 2024 market performance and the trends shaping 2025.

As someone who’s not a fan of Picasso’s stuff, I can’t say I was troubled to see him referred to as an ‘insufferable Spaniard’, though I’m sure that many folk will forgive him for all that he did to his several muses, two of whom committed suicide.

Cousas de Galicia

It really is getting rather ridiculous . . . A headline in a local paper today: The way things are going Pontevedra city won’t only be the capital of the Rías Baixas but also the capital of the Camino. At 13.00 today the old quarter was full of caminers trying to find something to eat in places which could offer them nothing because of the nationwide electricity cut. Which ended here in Galicia sometime before 5.30 this morning.

In line with increasing homeless in Pv city, we have a corresponding increase in beggars. But yesterday’s new one was a first – a beggar kitted out like a caminer. Perhaps he really was. His appearance at my table reminded me that it won’t be long before we see the dreadful Rumanian accordionist who plagues my summers.

Europe

Two controversial articles. One negative, the other positive:-

• From an ex UK political party leader: The EU is trapped in terminal decline.
• From a well-known sceptic: No, Europe is not suffering serious impacts from climate change.

LA LA Land

El País’s summary of Trump’s first 100 days: Lots of fear, chaos, and abuse of power. His crusade against immigration, the need for revenge, his authoritarian drift, the erosion of ties with allies and a trade war have marked the start of the Republican’s second term in office. More here

In short . . . Fear abounds in what was hitherto seen as the world’s greatest democracy. An accolade the USA can only hope to get back if and when its people dethrone its would-be emperor. Given how the world sees the USA now, it’s more than ironic that Trump justifies his insane policies on the grounds that they will stop the world laughing at his country.

As for the Ukraine-Russia war . . . Trump is repeating all the mistakes of appeasement, except it’s worse this time. The US president is openly on Putin’s side, refusing to condemn the invasion and instead shifting all the blame onto Ukraine. More/Moore here. Nice cartoon.

Well, of course . . . A Trump golf club is to host a speaker who markets bleach as a health treatment. A prominent peddler of a chlorine dioxide remedy, is to appear at a ‘Truth Seekers Conference’ in Miami.

JD Vance was raised as an Evangelist but is now a zealous Catholic. I thought of him when reading this in Eric Heffer’s ‘The True Believer’: Where mass movements are in violent competition with each other, there are not infrequent instances of converts – even the most zealous – shifting their allegiance from one to the other. A Saul turning into Paul is neither a rarity nor a miracle.

Quotes of the Day

• What is truth? said jesting Pilate, and would not stay for an answer. [He probably wouldn’t bother to ask Trump].
• We now leave navigation to our phones. The result: more of us are getting hopelessly lost. . . . There is a mounting problem about the gap between people’s urge to experience wild and open spaces, and their ability to cope when they actually get there.
• Liverpool is a place of much complexity: sometimes contrary, sometimes confrontational, but always unashamedly authentic, with an abundance of soul. Well worth a visit.

Spanish

Brillar por su ausencia: To be conspicuous by its absence[?]

Did You Know?

Those were the days . . . These are exam questions from the final Classical Honours School at Oxford University, 1899. The general assumption was that a man who had mastered this range of thought and theory could master anything. To have passed through it was the hallmark of a superbly educated man, and its graduates went on to rule the nation and, in that heyday of British imperialism, half the world too:

• Sketch the history of the Syracusan democracy between the fall of Thrasybulus in 466 BC and the accession of Dionysius I in 406 BC.
• Is it a fact that thought begins not with the term but with the judgement?
• Describe the circumstances which led to the Bank Charter Act of 1844.
• What were the leading characteristics of fourth-century tyranny?
• To what extent does history confirm Machiavelli’s views on mercenary armies?
• In what respects has Aristotle’s advance in psychology enabled him to improve on the moral theories of Plato?
• What account can be given of our perception of distance?
• What is the ground of the obligation to veracity?
• Trace the history of the principle of betterment in the English system of local taxation.
• Describe the relations of Rome with Numidia at different periods of history.

I imagine it’s doubtful that Trump could write a single sentence on any of these. Least of all the one on veracity. But, then, neither could I. So, I have the basic qualification for the position of US president.

BTW: Talking about Oxford . . . My great-uncle-in-law who wrote on the Pre-Raphaelites – William Gaunt – also wrote, in 1965, a book on Oxford. A multi-talented bugger, he also painted London scenes, 5 prints of which have come down to me through various hands. I recently got round to putting them on a wall, having left them on the floor for more than a year.

Finally . . .

Does anyone else ever have the experience to their computer typing letters in reverse order, producing words which read backwards? I do and I have no idea how this happens and so how to avoid it.

My thanks to those readers who take the trouble to Like my posts.

The Usual Links . . .

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I can also be read on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/colin.davies.752861 or on Substack at https://doncolin.substack.com/

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. But see here on this. And this article ‘debunks claims re wealth and residency taxes’. Probably only relevant if you’re a HNWI. In which case, you’ll surely know what that stands for.

Getting a mortgage in Spain: Some advice on this challenge.