SPANISH
SOCIETY
Lawyers:
These fine folk have a much lower status here in Spain than in Anglo
countries. As elsewhere in Europe, notaries rule the roost in Spain. So
much so that Spaniards are utterly incredulous that they're unknown
in the UK, for example. It's relatively easy to do a law degree here
and so there's a lot of – not very well-off – lawyers. But it's
not a litigious society. Perhaps because the wheels of justice turn
so slowly here. Back in the UK, an increasingly litigious society,
there are now almost 10 times more lawyers – both barristers and
lawyers – than when I started to study it. Chicken or egg?
Beaches:
Here's The Local's list of their 10 most beautiful beach towns
in Spain. Several are here in Galicia but no. 6 is not really the
island of La Toja/Toxa. It's the beach of La/A Lalanzada.
An Old Wives' Tale?: On the way out of my garden, I mentioned to my neighbour, the lovely Ester, that I was fighting a cold. Then keep your head out of the sun, she advised. This was new to me, even though I've lived in 2 countries much hotter than Spain. So, does it make sense or is it just a myth? I suspect it's the latter.
THE EU
President
Juncker: The EU president has decreed
that EU officials must not engage in Brexit discussions until the
British government has triggered Article 50. A group of British
expats has taken exception to this and has initiated legal action
against the European Commission and its president, on the grounds
that it maximises uncertainty over the lives of the
million-plus Brits living in Europe. Good luck to them.
GALICIAN
STUFF
Superfluity?:
It seems our 3 airports isn't the only example of excess. We have
more Counsellors/Ministers in our regional government - 9 of them –
than all but 2 of the 16 other regions. One wonders why, when our
population is only around 3 million.
Tui: This is Spain's border town, opposite Valença on the other side of the Miño river which forms the frontier with Portugal. It has a charming old quarter and that's where I spent last night, in a delightful boutique hotel, recently converted from a 300 year old mansion. This is A Torre do Xudeo, or The Tower of the Jew, owned and run by the delightful Nieves. It's right on the Camino to Santiago de Compostela and is an excellent alternative for the more well-heeled pilgrims eschewing the albergues and pensiones of the town.
Tui: This is Spain's border town, opposite Valença on the other side of the Miño river which forms the frontier with Portugal. It has a charming old quarter and that's where I spent last night, in a delightful boutique hotel, recently converted from a 300 year old mansion. This is A Torre do Xudeo, or The Tower of the Jew, owned and run by the delightful Nieves. It's right on the Camino to Santiago de Compostela and is an excellent alternative for the more well-heeled pilgrims eschewing the albergues and pensiones of the town.
LOCAL
STUFF
Tourism:
September was another record for Pontevedra. Sad to say.
O Vao:
I mentioned this quarter the other day, as being the site of 2
permanent gypsy settlements. Well, really one cut by a road. For the
last 30 years – yes, 30 years – the local council has been trying
to demolish the illegal shacks and to erect social housing in their
place. This has finally been well and truly kiboshed by the regional government,
apparently on the grounds that this would create a ghetto. I guess
this makes sense to someone in Santiago de Compostela. If not to
those of us who live near the settlement(s).
FINALLY
Lamb in Monçao: Well, no, if I weren't en route to Braga, I wouldn't recommend a trip just to sample this. I got there rather early so sat down on a café terrace for a wine and a re-read of Robinson Crusoe. I then spent 20 minutes or so on a slow internet connection trying to identify which restaurants served the speciality and how to get to them. I then noticed this sign - about the restaurant below the café - located about 20cm from my right leg . . . .
So, I waited an hour or so until it opened at 7.15, only to find out it didn't serve one-person half-portions. So, I went elsewhere. In favour of the meal I eventually had, it was cheap by Spanish standards.
THE
GALLERY
More examples of Finnish/British nightmares:-
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