Thoughts from Pontevedra, Galicia, Spain: 17.5.21

 Night’s candles are burnt out, and jocund day stands tiptoe on the misty mountain tops

Spanish life is not always likeable but it is compellingly loveable

- Christopher Howse: 'A Pilgrim in Spain' 

 

NOTE: Info on Galicia and my Guide to Pontevedra city here.  

Covid 

Spain. So now we know . . . The Spanish government blames lack of trustworthy data on its slow response to the pandemic. The National Security Council says that decisions on how to address the crisis were made with “partial or out-of-date information”. More here on this. One wonders how different this was from every other European country, including the UK - in contrast with Asian countries.

Cosas de España and Galiza 

More bad news for Spain . . . Brits' holiday plans are thrown into chaos by Covid variants, as they're urged to stay away from Amber list countries such as Spain, Italy, France and Greece. Because: Swathes of Europe are largely unvaccinated.

This won't help. . . Appeals for calm fell on deaf ears as revellers filled Barcelona’s streets after the Covid curfew ended. Mass street drinking sessions, or 'botellones', erupted over the weekend after the Spanish government lifted a 6-month state of emergency. Crowds hugged, danced and sang on the city’s streets, with the largest groups gathering on the beaches. Many partygoers were not wearing masks despite it remaining mandatory in all public places in Spain, both inside and outdoors. Perhaps Spain needs a new motto to replace Spain is Different. Maybe: Fun can be fatal.

More here on the plans to change the social security payment system for the self-employed(los autonomos).

Europe's only 'true' desert?

María's Level Ground: Days 41-43

Portugal 

Brits (and Germans, I guess) are flooding back as of today.

 

Quote of the Day: Moral superiority is the curse of our times.

Finally  . . 

Today is a holiday in Galicia - Galician Literature Day. So, much/most/all of the text in our 10-15(sic) regional papers will be in Gallego. I might get to read bits of some of them.

Oh, yes. To add to my woes of yesterday, my coffee machine broke this morning. Though, in this case, I did manage to fix it. But both laptops are still malfunctioning - well, Apple products are so cheap, what can you expect? - and today the IT stores here in Galicia are, of course, all closed.