Those funny Spaniards 2; Cash pipes; & A footnote.

Here are few more generalisations which have just fallen off the top of my head about those those funny Spaniards. Not in any order whatsoever:-

• They bury their dead within 2-3 days.
• They are very informal, except when they are very formal.
• They lack antennae and bump into you a lot, if you don't get out of the way.
• They apologise beautifully, possibly because they get a lot of practice.
• They have a daily schedule 2 hours behind everyone else's
• They eat their main meal in the middle of the day, as in pre-industrial Britain.
• They regard the 'middle of the day' as 2-3pm. Or when they eat.
• Their shopping hours are, roughly, 9.30-1.30 and 4.30-8.30
• They don't all have a siesta during 'the dead hour', by any means.
• They move like sheep to and from the beach, always at the same times of the summer day.
• They hate to be alone in public, preferring to aggregate - in restaurants, on the beach, on the train, etc.
• They love talking and are very good at it.
• They don't read many books. And never alone in public ("He must be friendless").
• They don't trust anyone except members of their family and very old friends.
• They believe in the 'personal factor'. It compensates for the absence of trust.
• They prefer to do business face-to-face.
• They don't have much of a problem with nepotism and croneyism, at least when it works in their own favour.
• They don't regard exam cheating or making false insurance claims as much of a sin.
• They favour tribal politics and are very forgiving of their politicians. "The others are even worse".
• They look down on the Portuguese
• They feel looked down on, by the French in particular.
• They tend not to move far from their place of birth/upbringing.
• They have a high quality of life.
• They have a great pride in everything local.
• They are very independent.
• And proud.
• They have a lot of fiestas and are very, very good at organising them. If they employed this attitude to everything else, they would - as they once did - rule the world.
• They have closer family units than in other societies.
• They leave the parental home later than in other societies.
• They are considered 'young' between 18 and 35.
• They believe they demonstrate more 'solidarity' than other nations.
• They have a commendable live-and-let-live attitude.
• They are a lot better drivers than they used to be.
• They are lax about parking, even on zebra crossings.
• They take a lot of cocaine. Second only to the Brits.
• They are getting fatter.
• They are members of a young society but one which is getting older. Because:
• They have a very low birth rate. And:
• They live longer than anyone else in Europe.
• They are good looking, by and large.
• They are not as Catholic as they are thought to be, with only c. 20% practising this religion.
• Despite this, very many of them tick a box on their tax return which permits some of their money to go to the Church.
• They put broom on their houses and cars on May 1.
• They don't all enjoy Flamenco.

I hope you weren't looking for consistency and logic.

Finally . . . I was going to say that one thing my daughters would never see - except in a museum - was a 'pneumatic cash carrier' like the wonderful one at our local Co-op. But, astonishingly, they're still in use, in hospitals, for example. Like this one. Now I come to think about it, this may be how the stuff arrives at the counter of the pharmacy I use.

P. S. It seems I have to admit I was joking when I said there's no word in Spanish for 'whisper'. As in, 'They've removed the word gullible from the dictionary. Check it out.'