Such is the low level of crime in general and street crime in particular here in Pontevedra, local newspaper reports can make amusing reading to the more world-weary of us. So it was with an account I read yesterday of a ‘tough’ night for the local police when they had to deal with a fight at 3am in the old quarter. In my old town of Congleton, the police would sell their mothers for such a night.

The media have announced that the Galician general election campaign has begun. This came as a surprise to me as I genuinely thought it had kicked off weeks ago. Surveys suggest that, for the first time in 20 years, the ruling conservative party [and its 82 year-old President] may be ousted by a coalition of socialist and nationalist parties. The said President, Mr Fraga, has warned Galicians not to vote for these as ‘they have ideas different from ours about Galicia, Spain, Europe and the world’. Silly me; I thought this was the whole point of opposition parties. As the last relic from the Franco era, I guess it’s hardly surprising that Mr Fraga doesn’t.

I cleaned my car outside the house yesterday and, as usual, got a couple of strange looks from my neighbours. For everyone here pays to clean their cars in what are called ‘boxes’ at the side of the road or attached to petrol stations. I wonder if this has something to do with the alleged distaste of the Spanish for manual work. Or being seen to engage in it, at least.

I’ve been arranging coach trips for a group of young Americans coming here this summer. When I called the lady in the coach company yesterday to finalise things, my opening line was “So, where are we?” “Vigo”, she replied. The perils of transliteration.

Finally, anyone interested can see the latest stage of the Artificial Hill in the Photo Gallery on the home page of my web site – colindavies.net