I mentioned yesterday that conversations can go on a bit here. I later realised the locals avoid this risk by muttering ‘See you later’ [Hasta luego] or even ‘Goodbye’ [Adiós] as they approach each other on the street. Perhaps they aren’t so amiable and chatty, after all.

Anywhere in the world it can be a trial having the builders in. But my impression is that here they’re much more likely to be out than in. Driving down the hill this morning, I noticed the Opus Dei house is finally nearing completion, a mere 6 years after the ground was cleared. And its two new neighbours continue to progress in fits and starts, suggesting it will take between one and two years for them to be completed. It contrasts sharply with a chap on one of those house improvement programs on British TV who’d bought a plot and was planning to construct – within 3 months – not just one but two detached houses. But maybe he was exceptional and it usually takes 6.

Our local garden centres are not yet the cornucopias of live produce and artefacts that their UK cousins are. When I bought some seeds this morning and asked for a tray to grow them in, I was told I’d need to go to an agricultural shop for these. At times this sort of thing can be frustrating but then I recall the absence of rampant commercialism is one of the things that makes life in Spain more sane. At least our TV ads are not yet exclusively about bloody Christmas.


For new readers – If you’ve arrived here because of an interest in Galicia or Pontevedra, you might find my non-commercial guides interesting – at colindavies.net