One of President Zapatero's headline decisions after his recent re-election was to create a Ministry for Equality. He obviously felt there were things to do and perhaps he had advance notice of an international survey just released, which shows Spain falling seven places - from no. 10 to no. 17. The leading countries are the usual suspects of most of Scandinavia and New Zealand. But I'm a little dubious about the criteria and their sensitivities when Switzerland can soar in just one year from 40 to 14. And France even more impressively, from 51 to 15. Perhaps all males there were castrated.

Galicia

The Galician Ombudsman - possibly one of seventeen in Spain - has this week asked the local political parties to stop turning the issue of the Galician language into a battle. The angry reaction of the Galician Nationalist Party yesterday was to demand he be 'removed from circulation'. I assume this means sacked in Spanish.

Each time I walk into and out of Pontevedra, I negotiate at least 12 zebra crossings. These days, most of the drivers are pretty good about stopping when they see me waiting to cross. Though there is, of course, a minority who don't stop even if I'm actually in the middle of the road. The first challenge I meet is the one shown below and, as it happens, it's the one which receives the least observance from drivers. Mind you, those coming up the hill have something of an excuse, as it's positioned only a few metres after a blind bend. And then - as you can see - there are the drivers who help by parking right on the corner. Albeit on the pavement so as not to make too much of a nuisance of themselves.


Well, I've received confirmation of a 140 euro fine for a speeding offence I may or may not have committed nine months ago north of Santiago. As with the earlier request to confirm my car details, there's no proof offered. Generally, I'm all in favour of the police clampdown on bad driving here and I do actually try to obey the speed limits. But I fear I may be receiving a second fine quite soon, as I've been on the same 50kph dual carriageway at least once in the long period between the first offence and my realisation that the limit isn't 80kph as you come off the autopista. However, I'm being philosophical as I regard these fines as tax revenue and, so far, they represent only a quarter of the scrapped Patrimonio tax which, from this year, I won't have to pay to the Xunta. In other words, I'm still quids in.

Apropos of nothing at all - but following on from my comment the other day - another 20 year old youth died in the early hours of Tuesday morning, when his car hit a lamppost and was riven in two. Here's an article on this theme from a Voz de Galicia columnist, entitled Semana tras Semana. Or Week after Week.