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.

Cosas de Galiza

This is a house with a fine facade that was for sale when I came to live here in 2000.

It’s still unoccupied but has just been sold to the city, for conversion – naturally – into tourist flats. I’ve just discovered that it used to be the rectory of the Old San Bartolomé church which once stood on the opposite side of the narrow street, where, in the 6th century, there’d been a Visigoth church and where now stands a private club – the Liceo Casino. This is the entrance to what was the orchard of the rectory, which has been a feral cat sanctuary for at least 25 years.

This aerial foto reveals the orchard behind it that I never knew existed.

Talking of Pv city’s history . . . There was a large Jewish community here until 1492 and, naturally a Jewish quarter. However, there’s no evidence of this is the city and most residents are unaware of this bit of the city’s history, with some of them even denying it. This contrasts with the celebration of a Jewish legacy in Ribadavia, up in the hills, where there’s a Centre of Jewish History and where there’s an annual Festa da Istoria. As in Pv city, Ribadavia’s Jewish community thrived from the 11th century in the wine trade and in finance until the 1492 expulsion and then Inquisition persecutions, leading to self exile to North Africa and the Levant. Where ‘Sephardic’ ‘Jews still speak a sort of Spanish called Ladino.

The UK

For the government the tariffs represent a significant blow to the Prime Minister’s seemingly limitless efforts to accommodate an obstreperous and untrustworthy US leader.

Europe

• Europe threatens to strike back against Trump over Greenland tariffs. Brussels readies €93bn in retaliatory levies against US exports.
• Trump is not new or different. Europe must wean itself off the USA.

Iran

How the Islamic Republic terrorised Iran – and the world. The ayatollahs have crushed their people at home and inspired Islamofascists abroad.

Palestine

Trump’s Board of Peace comprises, inter alia. property developer Steve Witkoff, Marco Rubio, Trump’s son-in-law, a Cypriot property billionaire, Argentinean president Javier Milei, a Fox News producer, a restaurateur who donated $1m to Trump’ campaign, Turkish leader Recep Erdogan and Tony Blair. Says one columnist: It looks like a Frankenstein final of The Apprentice

The USA

A decidedly odd country at times . . .

JD Vance has claimed that ICE officers have absolute immunity when performing their duties. An echo . . . After Hitler came to (absolute) power in 1933. his SA(Brownshirts) were responsible for enormous levels of violence, which they committed with almost total impunity. There was no single law or decree that stated SA/Brownshirts were immune from prosecution but the combination of political interference, biased judges and the Nazi regime’s control over law enforcement meant that many crimes by Brownshirts – including murders – went unpunished, creating a practical impunity without formal legal immunity. Sound familiar?

And another echo . . . That gift to Trump from the leader of the Venezuelan opposition . . . In 1943, novelist Knut Hamsun gave his Nobel Prize for Literature to Josef Goebbels, Hitler’s Minister of Propaganda. In 1945, Hamsun wrote a eulogy for Hitler, saying: “He was a warrior for mankind and a prophet of the gospel of justice for all nations”. We don’t know what Vance thinks about Hitler.

Talking of ICE, I noted they display POLICE on their jackets. An AI engine advises: ICE personnel use these markings to signal their law enforcement authority, which aligns with federal standards allowing federal agents to display “POLICE” for public recognition during operations. Critics argue that the practice causes public confusion and erodes trust in local police, leading to repeated calls and bills to prohibit this, though none has passed.

After I wrote the above paras, I read that Trump yesterday sent this letter to the Norwegian PM. I had to check it wasn’t a spoof . . .

Dear Jonas:

Considering your Country decided not to give me the Nobel Peace Prize for having stopped 8 Wars PLUS, I no longer feel an obligation to think purely of Peace, although it will always be predominant, but I can now think about what is good and proper for the United States of America.

Denmark cannot protect that land from Russia or China, and why do they have a ‘right of ownership’ anyway?… There are no written documents, it’s only that a boat landed there hundreds of years ago, but we had boats landing there, also.

I have done more for NATO than any other person since its founding, and now, NATO should do something for the United States.

The World is not secure unless we have Complete and Total Control of Greenland.

Thank you!

President DJT

A response from Occupy Democrats began with the question: Where to start with such insanity?

Quotes of the Day

As we know . . .

• Trump’s threats reveal the extent to which he views tariffs as the main weapon in his presidential arsenal. For him, the imposition of duties is not connected only to trade and economic policy. Tariffs lie at the heart of his national security strategy. Cross him over Greenland or anything else, and he’ll impose them. Throw blandishments in his direction and things might, temporarily, go your way. [What a way to (mis)run the world’s largest economy! It’s impossible to believe the Commerce Secretary, Howard Lutnik agrees with this approach. There’s a superb description of it here].
• Tariffs – not targeted diplomatic sanctions – are Trump’s blunderbuss of choice, despite the fact that when he imposes them, the scattershot hits the American people in their own pockets. 

Spanish

• Extrañeza: Surprise. But . . .
• Me extrañezaste?: Did you miss me?
• Pifia: Blunder, goof, gaffe, miscue, etc.

Did you know?

It was Spanish professors who invented the Gregorian calendar.

Finally . . .

There was another horrendous train crash in Spain today, this time in the South. The awful toll is 39 dead, so far. It’s alleged that the the cause was a broken track – only a few months after huge expenditure on renovation. It’ll be a long time before anyone accepts responsibility. If ever.

A very sad day.

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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 link should be useful to you.