Meanwhile,
the most cynical comment I've yet heard is that Spain will still be
awarded the 13bn euro contract for installation of a high-speed train
network in Brazil but will have to pay above-normal levels of
'commission'.
Spain
and Risk 1: A teenage boy died in a bull-running fiesta in
Albacete, outside Madrid on Saturday last.
Spain
and Risk 2: On the building site below my house, some of the 3-4
men working there wear hard hats and some don't. Even when the crane
is moving backwards and forwards above them.
Spain
and Risk 3: Under the new legislation I mentioned
yesterday, pedestrians will be breathalysed if they break (undefined) road rules. And cyclists under 18 will be fined for not wearing
helmets in town. Above that age, you can do what you like, it seems.
Spain
and Risk 4: You are allowed to drive a sin carnet here
without any training or testing whatsoever, though they may not be
allowed on the autovías and autopistas. I wonder where else in the EU this
happens. Other than Portugal. They are, of course, a bloody nuisance on Galicia's many
hills. But live and let live, I say.
Spain
and Risk 5: The government has said it's doubling the fine for
driving above the (low) limit from 500 to 1000 euros. In this area,
Spain has gone from laxity to extreme stringency in the last decade.
But it's hard to argue against this, even if the main impetus really is
revenue generation
Spanish
Language: Tocayo/a means namesake. Apparently it's used when
greeting someone with the same name as you - Hola, tocayo/a.
This happens a lot more in Spain than elsewhere, of course, given the
small pool of (saints') names which has traditionally been
available. Compulsory, even. This has its upside; I call all women I
meet Maria. Especially those whose name I've forgotten.
British Manners: I
was amused to read this tale of a Spaniard who lives in the UK but
regularly comes back home:- Puccio
realised she had adopted her new home’s attitudes when she found
herself getting frustrated by a group of tourists who had stopped in
the middle of the footpath and made it difficult for others to get
past. “I thought ‘How selfish’, when in Spain I would've been
more laid back’.” She has also learnt new ways of dealing with
conflict: instead of losing her temper and making a scene, she has
developed the British ability to convey irritation in the politest
possible manner. Puccio
relies on regular trips home to hold on to her Spanish-ness, though
she admitted she sometimes finds her Britishness coming to the fore
when she sees people riding scooters on the footpath, for example. “I
have to remind myself I don’t have to worry about things, that I
can just chill out.”
I may get there myself one day.
I may get there myself one day.
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