A Portuguese trawler had been impounded in the nearby port of Marín, accused of illegal fishing. I have to confess I needed to read this story twice to ensure I hadn’t got it the wrong way round. After all, we’re only 25 kilometres from Vigo, widely regarded as Europe’s capital of illegal fishing. And in Spain.

Talking of Portugal, a reader has asked why it is the adjacent Iberian cultures are so vastly different. I honestly don’t know. The Spanish usually put it down to British influence, which is a sort of back-handed insult to both countries since, to them, the Portuguese are ineffably dull. All I can say is that, whereas I ultimately chose Spain over Portugal as a place in which to spend the last quarter of my life, I very much enjoy visiting a country where people do seem to be aware of others, where my eardrums are not at constant risk of destruction and where I can dine without the accompaniment of unruly children. I exaggerate, of course.

A Spanish reader claims it can’t be true someone was given the answer ‘No fucking idea’ in a branch of the Corte Inglés department store. He may be right so I’m checking the source and will report back, hopefully with name and number. Meanwhile, though, it’s surely significant that, true or not, Brits with experience of this chain store have no difficulty believing the claim. This is not a reputation any shop would want in the Anglo Saxon world, unlike the ludicrously expensive London restaurants which pride themselves on insulting the clients stupid enough to dine there. I can only assume the place trades successfully on its snob value. As in “Oh, yes. I got this Burberry coat/scarf/tie/belt in El Corte Inglés”. But I have to admit I patronise the supermarket of its Vigo store; it’s the only place I can get the spices I need for Asian cooking.

Galicia Facts

The regional government [the Xunta] has decreed all teachers in Galicia must present their plan for 2007 in Gallego or risk suspension. I know quite a lot of teachers here and they are all, without exception, against this development, even those who speak Gallego at home. And the measure will not have popular support in the region as a whole. But this is what happens when you bring a nationalist [i. e. regionalist] party into a coalition in order to consolidate power. The reality is they have no other policies beyond language extension. And they have to be bought off somehow.