Thoughts from Hamburg, Germany: 28.10.18

Spanish life is not always likeable but it is compellingly loveable. 

                                                                                            - Christopher Howse: A Pilgrim in Spain. 

If you've arrived here because of an interest in Galicia or Pontevedra, see my web page here. Garish but informative.

Matters Hamburg/German

• Another cultural difference . . . Both at a birthday gathering last Wednesday and at a wedding anniversary dinner last night, there was a great deal of handshaking but, until I started it, very little kissing. Even among old friends. Spaniards would have been agog at the formality/'coldness' of it all.
• The dress code for the dinner, by the way, was 'Elegant Sportswear'. I had no idea what this meant but donned my corduroy jacket and decent trousers. It turned out to mean anything from a formal DJ to casual jacket and jeans. But at least the women put in a bit more effort.
• A couple more odd shop names . . . Christ (a jewellers) and Marc O'Polo (clothes from the famous Irish fashionista).
• I went with my friend (and host) to a flea market yesterday. It was much larger and more varied than its Pontevedra equivalent, but very light on heavily rusted farm equipment and tools.
• At the market, I partook of a Portuguese beef stew. It tasted exactly like my mother's Irish stew. Not sure what this tells us.
• Talking of Portugal . . . Someone told me last night that the suicide rate there was very high. I was a tad incredulous but – possibly wrongly – put it down to having to listen to gloomy Fado songs all day long. In fact – see the chart below – there are several developed countries with higher rates. And Portugal's, ironically, is only fractionally worse than Germany's. The UK doesn't appear on this list but its rate in 2016 was 15.00 per 100,000. So, higher than both these 2 countries.
• It's a big day in German politics today – Elections in the Hesse region. Mrs Merkel is expected to take a beating on a scale which would end her coalition. Vamos a ver.

Matters Spanish/Galician

• If you're still a Facebook user, there's something new for you to click, when reading 'news' there.
• The Spanish PM has had his thesis declared valid. Or at least not invlalid. Which is good news for the newish government 
• Here's something from the V of A on happenings in Spain's 'non-colonies' down in North Africa.

Finally . . . 

• Click here for 2 hours of Fado songs. Don't blame me if you feel like hanging yourself at the of it. And don't let the first one mislead you!

© David Colin Davies, Hamburg: 28.10.18

NATIONAL SUICIDE RATES

Sri Lanka	35.3 suicides per 100k	1
Lithuania	32.7 suicides per 100k	2
Guyana	29 suicides per 100k	3
Mongolia	28.3 suicides per 100k	5
South Korea	28.3 suicides per 100k	4
Kazakhstan	27.5 suicides per 100k	6
Suriname	26.6 suicides per 100k	7
Belarus	22.8 suicides per 100k	8
Equatorial Guinea	22.6 suicides per 100k	9
Poland	22.3 suicides per 100k	10
Latvia	21.7 suicides per 100k	11
Hungary	21.6 suicides per 100k	12
Slovenia	21.4 suicides per 100k	13
Belgium	20.5 suicides per 100k	15
Angola	20.5 suicides per 100k	14
Ukraine	20.1 suicides per 100k	17
Russia	20.1 suicides per 100k	16
Japan	19.7 suicides per 100k	18
Estonia	18.9 suicides per 100k	19
Bolivia	18.7 suicides per 100k	20
Croatia	17.5 suicides per 100k	21
Central African Republic	17.4 suicides per 100k	22
Serbia	17 suicides per 100k	24
Uruguay	17 suicides per 100k	23
France	16.9 suicides per 100k	25
Austria	16.4 suicides per 100k	26
Finland	16.3 suicides per 100k	27
Thailand	16 suicides per 100k	28
Bulgaria	15.9 suicides per 100k	29
India	15.7 suicides per 100k	30
Sweden	15.4 suicides per 100k	32
Sierra Leone	15.4 suicides per 100k	31
Switzerland	15.1 suicides per 100k	33
Moldova	14.8 suicides per 100k	34
Swaziland	14.7 suicides per 100k	35
Trinidad And Tobago	14.6 suicides per 100k	36
United States	14.3 suicides per 100k	38
Kiribati	14.3 suicides per 100k	37
Argentina	14.2 suicides per 100k	39
Cuba	14.1 suicides per 100k	40
Portugal	13.7 suicides per 100k	41
Germany	13.4 suicides per 100k	42
Iceland	13.1 suicides per 100k	43
New Zealand	12.6 suicides per 100k	44
Slovakia	12.5 suicides per 100k	45
Denmark	12.3 suicides per 100k	48
Laos	12.3 suicides per 100k	47
Canada	12.3 suicides per 100k	46
Netherlands	11.9 suicides per 100k	51
Cameroon	11.9 suicides per 100k	50
Cambodia	11.9 suicides per 100k	49
Australia	11.8 suicides per 100k	52
Romania	11.7 suicides per 100k	55
Ireland	11.7 suicides per 100k	54
Bhutan	11.7 suicides per 100k	53
Haiti	11.2 suicides per 100k	56
Luxembourg	11.1 suicides per 100k	58
El Salvador	11.1 suicides per 100k	57
Montenegro	11 suicides per 100k	59
Norway	10.9 suicides per 100k	61
Gabon	10.9 suicides per 100k	60
South Africa	10.7 suicides per 100k	62
Zimbabwe	10.5 suicides per 100k	63
Lesotho	10.4 suicides per 100k	64
Papua New Guinea	10.3 suicides per 100k	66
Paraguay	10.3 suicides per 100k	65
Sudan	10.2 suicides per 100k	67
China	10 suicides per 100k	69
Turkmenistan	10 suicides per 100k	68
Chile	9.9 suicides per 100k	72
Nigeria	9.9 suicides per 100k	71
Singapore	9.9 suicides per 100k	70
Dr Congo	9.8 suicides per 100k	73
Botswana	9.7 suicides per 100k	74
Republic Of The Congo	9.6 suicides per 100k	75
Nicaragua	9.5 suicides per 100k	77
Togo	9.5 suicides per 100k	76
Benin	9.4 suicides per 100k	78
Mauritius	9.3 suicides per 100k	81
Seychelles	9.3 suicides per 100k	80
Uzbekistan	9.3 suicides per 100k	79
Burkina Faso	9.2 suicides per 100k	82
Chad	8.8 suicides per 100k	83
Turkey	8.7 suicides per 100k	84
Djibouti	8.6 suicides per 100k	86
Maldives	8.6 suicides per 100k	85
Spain	8.5 suicides per 100k	90
Rwanda	8.5 suicides per 100k	89
Cape Verde	8.5 suicides per 100k	88
Fiji	8.5 suicides per 100k	87
Mozambique	8.4 suicides per 100k	92
Ethiopia	8.4 suicides per 100k	91
Yemen	8.2 suicides per 100k	93
Burundi	8 suicides per 100k	94
Italy	7.9 suicides per 100k	96
Solomon Islands	7.9 suicides per 100k	95
Costa Rica	7.7 suicides per 100k	99
Namibia	7.7 suicides per 100k	98
Guinea	7.7 suicides per 100k	97
Ecuador	7.5 suicides per 100k	100
Kyrgyzstan	7.4 suicides per 100k	103
Comoros	7.4 suicides per 100k	102
Vietnam	7.4 suicides per 100k	101
Belize	7.3 suicides per 100k	104
Uganda	7.2 suicides per 100k	105
Timor Leste	7.1 suicides per 100k	106
Tanzania	7 suicides per 100k	107
Ghana	6.9 suicides per 100k	108
Dominican Republic	6.8 suicides per 100k	110
Saint Lucia	6.8 suicides per 100k	109
Georgia	6.7 suicides per 100k	112
Eritrea	6.7 suicides per 100k	111
Kenya	6.5 suicides per 100k	114
Bahrain	6.5 suicides per 100k	113
Qatar	6.4 suicides per 100k	117
South Sudan	6.4 suicides per 100k	116
Zambia	6.4 suicides per 100k	115
Brazil	6.3 suicides per 100k	120
Guinea Bissau	6.3 suicides per 100k	119
Liberia	6.3 suicides per 100k	118
Gambia	6.2 suicides per 100k	121
Colombia	6.1 suicides per 100k	123
Senegal	6.1 suicides per 100k	122
Bosnia And Herzegovina	6 suicides per 100k	126
Nepal	6 suicides per 100k	125
Malta	6 suicides per 100k	124
Mauritania	5.9 suicides per 100k	127
Vanuatu	5.8 suicides per 100k	130
Malaysia	5.8 suicides per 100k	129
Peru	5.8 suicides per 100k	128
Mali	5.7 suicides per 100k	132
Samoa	5.7 suicides per 100k	131
Oman	5.6 suicides per 100k	133
Israel	5.5 suicides per 100k	140
Afghanistan	5.5 suicides per 100k	139
Libya	5.5 suicides per 100k	138
Bangladesh	5.5 suicides per 100k	137
Malawi	5.5 suicides per 100k	136
Panama	5.5 suicides per 100k	135
Tunisia	5.5 suicides per 100k	134
Armenia	5.4 suicides per 100k	142
Somalia	5.4 suicides per 100k	141
Mexico	5 suicides per 100k	143
Morocco	4.8 suicides per 100k	144
Cyprus	4.7 suicides per 100k	146
Madagascar	4.7 suicides per 100k	145
Myanmar	4.3 suicides per 100k	149
Albania	4.3 suicides per 100k	148
Greece	4.3 suicides per 100k	147
Niger	4.1 suicides per 100k	150
Kuwait	4 suicides per 100k	152
Tajikistan	4 suicides per 100k	151
Iran	3.6 suicides per 100k	154
Honduras	3.6 suicides per 100k	153
Tonga	3.5 suicides per 100k	155
Saudi Arabia	3.4 suicides per 100k	157
Philippines	3.4 suicides per 100k	156
Azerbaijan	3.3 suicides per 100k	158
Jordan	3.2 suicides per 100k	159
Algeria	3.1 suicides per 100k	161
Lebanon	3.1 suicides per 100k	160
Iraq	3 suicides per 100k	163
Venezuela	3 suicides per 100k	162
Indonesia	2.9 suicides per 100k	165
United Arab Emirates	2.9 suicides per 100k	164
Saint Vincent And The Grenadines	2.7 suicides per 100k	167
Syria	2.7 suicides per 100k	166
Egypt	2.6 suicides per 100k	168
Guatemala	2.5 suicides per 100k	169
Pakistan	2.1 suicides per 100k	170
Sao Tome And Principe	2 suicides per 100k	171
Bahamas	1.8 suicides per 100k	172
Jamaica	1.4 suicides per 100k	173
Brunei	1.3 suicides per 100k	174
Grenada	0.5 suicides per 100k	175
Barbados	0.4 suicides per 100k	176
Antigua And Barbuda	0 suicides per 100k	177