A reader has said he looks forward to both Scotland and Catalunia having a seat at the United Nations. Well, maybe it’s because I have a MacDonald for a grandmother, but, while I can see a case for Scotland being independent again, I can’t see why Catalunia has any greater claim than, say, Yorkshire. Or the Isle of Man, for that matter. Can I really look forward to ending my days as the Foreign Minister for the nation of Merseyside? Actually, the Scotland/Catalunia comparison does point up the anomaly that I’ve recently discussed with Spanish friends, viz. that, whilst Scotland and Wales are [to my mind] real nations, they have less autonomy than the Spanish Communities/regions. But this does rather endorse the point that you don’t have to be a member of the United Nations to have control over your affairs.

On this same issue, Jesus has taken me to task [ I think] for equating Spain’s Communities with British counties. Some of them, he stresses, have different languages and features. Maybe so. But this doesn’t make them countries or nations, as the terms are universally used. Are the Swiss cantons to be countries along the French, German, Italian divide? Is the UK county of Cornwall to be a country because they used to speak a Gaelic language [Cornish] totally unrelated to English? Ditto the Isle of Man because they still do [Manx]. Is Brittany in France to be a country because it was settled [hence the name] from Britain and they still speak Breton there? Is Quebec to be a country because the people are ‘different’ from the Anglo Canadians and speak French? Is Texas to be a country because of its Mexican history? Will California become a country when the majority speak Spanish? And so on and so on. My point in raising these questions is not to prove I’m right and Jesus [or anyone else] is wrong but to show how difficult it is to prove a place is a country on the basis of historical and current ‘differences’. What Basque, Catalunian and Galician nationalists seem to gloss over is that Scotland and Wales were independent countries/nations for hundreds of years before they became part of the UK. More to the point, they still are. A quick glance at any atlas will show you this. In the UK, the historical origins and differences are dealt with via honorific titles. So, Wales is a Principality as well as a country and Prince Charles’ title is The Prince of Wales. Similarly, Cornwall is a Duchy [Guess who’s the Duke]. Here in Spain, the heir to the throne is The Prince of Asturias, his wife is the Princess and their new baby, I guess, is the Princesita. It seems to keep the Asturians happy. Maybe there’s a lesson here. Sure as eggs is eggs, giving every place which wants it the name and status of nation isn’t going to solve any underlying problems. Not unless you think the world would be improved by having 3,000 nations participating in an everlasting committee in New York.

To be more positive – or at least less controversial – I drove to Vigo today in glorious sunshine. In this weather, this short trip along the bays and the ria must be one of the prettiest in the world. Of course, it’s a different matter when the Atlantic decides to rise up and drop in on us, especially crossing the Rande suspension bridge. But I can live with that. From time to time.

Finally, given my regular criticisms of Spanish driving, I must record the first incidence [as far as I can recall] of a considerate driver behind me slowing down because he realised a truck coming down a slip road was about to force me into his lane. And, yes, it was a male driver. Probably Fernando Alonso. He doesn’t need to prove what a great driver he is.

By the way, this blog is early tonight as I'm going out to celebrate being 29 for the 30th time.

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