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 España/Galiza

The Spanish PM insists on a major UK podcast that Spain doesn’t have a corruption problem. Hmm. At least it’s impressive that he can do this in fluent English. His definitely corrupt predecessor didn’t speak a word of the global lingua franca.

The Olive Press has a new podcast/video on the Mafia gangs of the Costa del Crime.

Talking of unwanted guests . . . The changing seasons . . . I was in town early yesterday and noted that the annual Camino conveyor belt has been switched on. And, like the first cuckoo of an English spring, the voices at the next table on a terrace last evening were in English. So, I have a short window before I’ll be surrounded – in all my favourite places – by an intrusive language that will interfere with my reading. Presupposing, of course, that I’ve arrived at an un-Spanish hour in order to get a table. Which is just before the bar opens and the hordes descend. And to think that one reason for coming to live in Pv city was that it wasn’t Benidorm, Torremolinos or even Málaga. But, as I’ve admitted, I do know bars which are outside the Caminoer circuit and can take refuge there until the next seasonal change in October. Así son las cosas . . . One must adapt.

Oh, yes. . . . I passed the first guided tour of the year on O Burgo bridge at midday today. A modest group of only 10.

A bit of a shock to find that an underground museum – in what used to be a defensive fosa between 2 walls of huge granite blocks – was closed down a year ago because of high levels of radon. Something that maybe should have been checked before it was opened, given the known risk of granite constructions. Fingers crossed that my 2 visits in 5 years didn’t expose me to it too much.

The US-Iran War

A departing top official undermines Trump’s case for the war. Clearly doesn’t share Trump’s ´feelings’ about Iran’s intentions.

Depressing points from this article:-

• The rejection of Trump’s pleas for help confirm US isolation, as its unprovoked, illegal war against Iran is already set to impose massive costs on the world, even if it were to stop now.
• Even if Trump were to seek a way out (many have seen his recent confused messaging as proof that he is trying to find an off ramp), it’s not clear how he can.
• Iran is working to destroy US bases and deter the Gulf states from letting them be rebuilt later.
• Saudi Arabia has told the US that it is on its own 
• Iran is offering to allow friendly countries to transit the Strait of Hormuz.
• The toll on the Gulf States is escalating rapidly. Bahrain is on its knees, Dubai is on the edge.
• The price of several oil and gas products is expected to soar over the coming months, affecting flight prices.

Quote: The war will will continue, I think, for another couple of weeks and then Trump will be working with the Chinese and the Russians to to find a way that he could declare victory and get a diplomatic off-ramp.

The USA

See my earlier post on the delusional, bellicose president.

How Epstein groomed both underage women and prominent men. Why so many of ‘the Epstein class’ stayed in his orbit even after crimes were widely known. And how a network built on access, status, and mutual advantage created a culture where no one ever seemed to break ranks—even when they knew the crimes Epstein had committed.

• Podcast
• Video

Quote of the Day

Bad situations can get worse.

Russia

The WSJ . . .

Spanish

• Desenfrenadao: Unbridled, rampant. unrestrained, wild, runaway
• Hacer caja: To make money, to profit
• Desamor: Heartbreak. Indifference. Lack of . .

English

• Kabuki capitulation: A theatrical or performative surrender, staged for show rather than reflecting genuine defeat or compromise. The term draws from “kabuki theater,” Japan’s stylized dramatic art form. In politics and geopolitics, it’s used pejoratively to describe negotiations or concessions that are scripted, insincere, or purely for public relations.
• Hopium: Internet slang blending “hope” and “opium.” It describes an addictive, delusional optimism where people cling to unrealistic expectations despite evidence against them, like in crypto trading or politics. Often paired with “copium” (from “cope”), hopium applies before disappointment hits, fueling risky choices through wishful thinking.
• Copium blends “cope” and “opium” into internet slang for a fictional drug people “inhale” to deny reality after loss or failure. It’s used mockingly when someone rationalizes defeat instead of accepting it. Unlike hopium, copium kicks in post-disappointment, like a fan blaming refs after their team loses.

Did you know?

In 1764, a society was formed in London whose members came to include such luminaries of the age as Samuel Johnson, Joshua Reynolds, Edmund Burke, Oliver Goldsmith, David Garrick, Adam Smith, James Boswell and Edward Gibbon. The chat over dinner might well have been scintillating. Or not.

You Have to Laugh

The Rusty Things Section of last Sunday’s flea market in Pv city . .

Finally . . .

Would you want to eat something called the ‘vampire fish’. If so, here’s a recipe for you. You can die of a surfeit, apparently.

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

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. If you do this but don’t read the posts, I will delete your subscription. So perhaps don’t bother if you have other reasons for subscribing . . .

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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.

If you´re thinking of moving to Spain, this link should be useful to you.