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

Lenox Napier here on festivals and parties.

A propos . . . At midnight last night, we had our 3rd fireworks (fuegos) display in 2 weeks – 1 at the start and end of our annual (Virxe/Virgen) Peregrina festival and 1 for a Catholic feast day. We deliberately didn’t tell my grandkids about them, as getting them to bed before 11pm was difficult enough. Yesterday was the feast day of San Roque(St Roch). This is a widely venerated Christian saint, especially in Spain, France, and Italy, traditionally invoked as a protector against plagues and epidemics. Despite a Catholic education, I’d never heard of him before coming to Spain. And have only just learned those details about him . . . He only merited a procession in Pv city. Possibly because he was useless during the Covid era.

Good to read that some clever Gallegos have invested technology that can accurately determine your shoe size for a foto of your foot.

The UK

Although heavy rains are said to be imminent, the UK has also had record high temperatures, even the 35 we had here in Galicia today. But those who experienced the summer of 1976 insist it was hotter and drier back then, providing fotos of water levels as proof. I certainly recall the months-long brown lawns. And an exceptional end-to-end international football match between teams whose Identity I can’t now be sure of. Czechoslovakia v Germany??

The Middle East War

The latest update from Naked Capitalism.

The United States of Trump America

Trump, who has made made harassing folk with law suits almost an art form, is now accusing the BBC of harassing his family, after it sought to involve them in his action against it for defamation.

Imagine you’re a 53 year old man with a very attractive 28 year old wife who’s made a stellar career around telling lies and you’ve been told that she is having an affair with a younger man. Are you going to believe her denials? Just wondering.

The final pages of Kurt Andersen’s fascinating run through the USA’s history – Fantasyland: How America went haywire. A 500 year history.

Spanish

• Jolgorio: Revelry
• Hotel con encanto: Boutique hotel
• Pala: Bulldozer

English

‘Suicidal empath’: Someone with ‘suicidal empathy: A purported phenomenon in which excessive, misdirected and pathological forms of empathy are destructive for the party that exhibits it. Proponents of the concept claim it happens through prioritising compassion, understanding and empathy over logic and long-term consequences.

Did you know about?

The ‘Great Hedge’ of India

Finally . . .You Have to Laugh

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. And this, on the annual costs of owning property here.