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’
NB: If there’s a RV in brackets after a (paywalled) link, you might be able to read it via a Reader View extension to your browser, avoiding the paywall. If there is no RV, it will mean that the article is free to view or listen to. If there’s RV2, it means a second click on RV might let you see the article though the first RV click didn’t work.
Travel News
I forgot to say that one of the best things about the drive yesterday was that – apart from the major north-south A3 and A1, all other main roads en route are no longer toll roads. These had featured cameras on overhead gantries which took your licence plate number and docked your pre-registered bank card every few kilometres. I confess that, for several years, I forewent the registration process and eventually had to pay a fine to the Portuguese government.
As for Castelo Branco . . . Perplexity told me the suckling pig place would open at 8 last night but Google said it was permanently closed. So, I did make do with venison stew, at a place called Silver Goat (Prata Cabra). And pretty good it was too.
The boutique hotel I stayed in last night has an art deco facade, which rather stands out in a barrio of traditional Portuguese 2-storey properties mixed with unprepossessing modern flat blocks.
To be honest, said barrio is a tad down-at-heel. But that was nothing compared with the very centre of the old quarter, whose narrow, cobbled streets I walked through on the way back to the hotel after dinner. In a word – lacking the tourism money that permits gentrification – it’s now semi-derelict. The paint peeling off every façade screams a lack of funds for basic preservation, never mind improvement.
This is a shame, as if it were tarted up – it would be delightful. I was reminded of my elder daughter telling me 35 years ago how run-down Lisbon was and how glorious it could be after restoration. That has certainly happened there – as it has in Oporto – but I don’t see it happening in Castelo Branco, which is unlikely to be a major tourism attraction. It certainly didn’t offer much that I wanted to see before setting off eastwards towards Toledo this morning. The cathedral was enough church-visiting for me. Which reminds me , , , I was intrigued to see a sort of opera box on one side of the altar, opposite the pulpit. Presumably for Catholic grandes legumes.
Today saw another pleasant drive of almost 5 hours, on a mixture of roads. Google Maps again did the trick of taking me down a 2km rural track but this one suddenly blossomed into a good tarmac road, as I crossed the frontier into Spain.
Cosas de España
The Train Crash
- Heads don’t often roll in Spain but the Transport yesterday resigned, saying he’d actually taken the decision to do so the day after the disaster. The imminence of general election might well have been a factor in that.
- Lenox Napier writes here on the subject
The United States of (US) America that’s now less Trump.
You surely know that yesterday was the historic day that many in the USA and the world had hoped and even prayed for: The Democrats tore up Trump’s political map on a night that will send shockwaves through US politics for years to come. They will now be able to frustrate Trump’s agenda, and launch investigations into his administration. A historic third impeachment attempt could also be on the cards. Democracy fought back an won, at least for now.
What’s particularly striking is that this revolution took place without a charismatic Democratic leader — or even a resurrection of the party’s still-unpopular brand.
But the question now comes into stark relief – What insanity will a madman with residual powers now inflict on the USA and the world? Bear in mind the inevitable response from him: If I’d been on the ballot, I’d have won in a landslide. Which, impossible as it sounds, he might really believe.
The other big questions: Once they stop partying, how big will the civil war in the Democratic party be and how will it affect the 2028 elections?
Oh and: What will the Republicans do to try to ensure Trump doesn’t destroy their 2028 prospects?
And: What about those necessary changes to an ‘experimental’ system of government that allowed the last decade to happen?
Meanwhile . . .
- I don’t believe this is a defeat for me.
- I have the power of veto
- If I ever become unpopular, I’ll go and become president of Israel, where 99% of people love me.
Relevant Books
- Betrayal: Trump, Putin and the New Age of Conquest
- Wtf America?!: The Way Out of This Hell and Back to Democracy. This is not simply a book about Trump. He is the vessel, not the disease – the product of a system decades in the making, fueled by powerful interests, weakened democratic institutions, and a media ecosystem that too often chose access and complicity over accountability. The book confronts the defining questions of our time: How did we get here? Why did so many institutions fail when they were needed most? And what must we do now to defend democracy before it is too late?
- The final pages of Kurt Andersen’s fascinating run through the USA’s history – Fantasyland: How America went haywire. A 500 year history.
- Profiles in Cowardice, by Jacob Weisberg. Cited in this podcast.
Spanish
Did you know?
Unsung folk who changed history.
Finally . . .
The hotel I’m in tonight has an unusual decor and a huge mirror on the wall next to the bed, as if it was designed by the madame of a brothel. This object rather took me by surprise as I entered the bathroom . . .
My thanks to those readers who take the trouble to Like my posts.
The Usual Links
This – from veteran blogger Lenox Napier – is an excellent weekly newsletter (Business Over Tapas) on all matters Spanish. Indispensable for those who needs insights on how and why things happen here.
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 . . .
I can also be read on X at Thoughts from Galicia. And on Substack here. I no longer post on Facebook.
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.
