The world of Spanish property development is a bewildering one. A case in point is that of a massive residential/commercial project in Vigo which – after several years of legal process – has just been confirmed as illegal by the Supreme Court. This will apparently add 2,000 flats to the existing mountain of those which are, in theory, due for demolition. As it happens, though, none of these judgments have resulted in any de-construction. In fact, it’s hard to discern whether they’ve resulted in anything at all. It must make sense to someone. Apart from the lawyers, of course.

I sometimes get the impression the Spanish word Marbella simply means corruption. The entire council from down there is currently on trial for a long list of offences and some of them might actually end up in prison. Meanwhile, it’s reported today the ex-mayoress had her plastic surgery financed by a developer in return for a building licence. A very Spanish deal.

I doubt there’s any country in the world that can match Spain when it comes to an obsession with celebrity and related trivia. Zapping through the TV channels yesterday, I hit on a gossip program entirely devoted to a discussion of the wedding cake of some diva or other. There are a lot of these here. For one man’s highly entertaining version of the Top 10 Celebs in Spain, click here. I recommend you start from the bottom.

Hidden in the detail of Spain’s low crime rate is the not-so-good statistic of an 8% increase in domestic violence. But, as with all such numbers, there are entirely different interpretations of this. The government would naturally have us believe it’s all a reflection of both a greater willingness to report violent partners, plus a higher conviction rate. And it may well be right.

Galicia Facts

Sparks are said to be flying between the governing socialist party and its minority nationalist partner over a planned law aimed at increasing the knowledge and use of Gallego in primary schools. This, of course, is the Holy Grail of those worried about the language being overwhelmed by Spanish. Apparently, the draft has been diluted from the initial objective of ensuring all kids are ‘fluent in both speech and writing’ by the time they're 6, in favour of ‘linguistic competence’ in both languages. Plus there’s been a reduction from 56 to 50 in the percentage of lessons which must be in Gallego. If I’ve got this wrong, I suspect it won’t be too long before I’m corrected . . . Meanwhile, I won’t report my Castrapo-speaking cleaner’s comments about her daughters being compelled to study Natural Sciences in Gallego as I don’t want to bring forward my assassination.

Even less seriously – On Good Friday it’s the custom in Galicia to set fire to a large, colourful effigy after a mock funeral procession ending up in the town square. Along the coast, and reflecting our maritime tradition, the creature most commonly burned is a sardine, though some favour Sir Francis Drake in view of his local depredations. But in Pontevedra it’s a parrot, called Ravachol. I don’t know what’s normally incinerated in Vigo but I’m told this year the effigy will be of our bare-breasted heroine, Ana María Ríos. Which is an excellent example of Spanish anarchistic humour.


House for Sale

Some friends of mine are selling a property in a lovely rural spot 10km outside Pontevedra. Here’s a brief description. Anyone interested can email me at colindavies@terra.es
Plot of 4,700m2.
House of 323m2, with 7 bedrooms and 5 bathrooms.
Perfect for a B&B business.
Price: around 460,000 euros.