I am down in Estremadura and had only been here 5 minutes before someone asked me if he could have one of Ryan's puppies. Since he is the human equivalent of 91 and, more importantly, lacking the relevant equipment, this upset Ryan terribly. I had hoped he wouldn't understand the execrable Estremaduran accent but had forgotten he's a border collie. He will now make my day a misery.

The drive here took us through some lovely parts of Portugal, on empty roads. Which is just as well as Portuguese drivers can be even more aggressive than their Spanish neighbours. On motorways, at least, when you can find them in your back seat if you don't overtake sufficiently quickly for their liking.

As ever, it was a treat to eat in a Portuguese café. It must come as a great shock to Spaniards to realise it's possibe to have a conversation without the entire room being forced to hear it. On second thoughts, it wouldn't as the necessary antennae wouldn't be active. I suspect they'd just find the Portuguese dull. Lifeless, even.

A 14 year-old bullfighter from Caceres has been gored through the lung in Mexico, where it's not illegal to employ kids in this dangerous cultural pursuit. This is reported in the local papers to have sparked a controversy and a fierce debate among taurean experts. Well, it would wouldn't it.

Another controversy in today's press surrounds the proposal of the Minister of Education that first year Baccalaureate students be allowed to progress to the second year even if they fail 50% of the subjects. This, she suggests, will motivate them to stay on and not leave school prematurely. So bugger educational standards, perhaps.