Dawn

Dawn

Sunday, July 01, 2012

NOTE: Last night's post was delayed until this morning. If you'd like to read it, please scroll down.

Well, with my peerless ability to predict match results, I thought Italy might just sneak tonight's Euros Final. Fat chance, against the best football most of us have ever seen. I felt some sympathy for Italy, as they surely didn't merit a thrashing. But, then again, Spain deserved at least the four goals they got.

Spending, as I am, quite a bit of time down in Veggie Square, I've re-acquainted myself with Ponte-Wi-Fi. As you may have twigged, this is a free WiFi service, supplied by the town hall. To get it, you have to provide your mobile phone number, to which is sent an access code. In my case, I've connected via three different phone numbers and have got six different codes. This is because the service is idiosyncratic at best, capricious at worst. It will suddenly and for no obvious reason cut off the connection and then refuse to re-connect you via the number you first thought of. Or perhaps via any of them. Cue shrug of shoulders.

El País today carried an article on the number of English words that had made their way into Spanish. It all began, said the author, with football. Specifically, with penálty and orsai. Which may well be offside. If not, I haven't the faintest idea either. The article makes the point that English is used to create an image of modernity. As with the two re-furbished bars I mentioned yesterday.

Talking of English, here are the top five countries as regards fluency in English, ignoring (of course) all the Anglo nations:-
1. Norway 69%
2. Holland 68%
3. Denmark 67%
4. Sweden 66%
5. Finland 61%
Spain comes in at 24th, between Italy and Taiwan.

Talking of countries . . . Which one lays claim to grow the highest per capita number of pineapples per year? Yes, you're right, of course - Iceland. Something to do with the thermals, I guess. Have I already written about this?

Finally . . . Searching for Poio in my sat-nav - and making a typing mistake - I've discovered there's a village called Poo in Asturias. Nothing to add on that. Except to say that the Bienvenido a Poo sign has probably been well snapped. Like the one for Cuntis not far from here.

No comments: