The latest Inspired Beginners podcasts are out at our sister site Notesinspanish.com. First up, cool conversation starters, coming soon, the definitive guide to Ser and Estar!
Find full details and start listening now over at Notes in Spanish!
Photo: Murcia, Drying Up
“The Spanish Environment Ministry estimates that one-third of the county is at risk of turning into desert from a combination of climate change and poor land use. Still, national officials visibly stiffen when asked about the "Africanization" of Spain’s climate – a term now common among scientists.”
The above quote comes from a must-read article in the New York times. It is the first time I have heard the term "Africanization" applied to the future of the country’s climate, and it does not paint an optimistic picture.
Temperatures are rising, but as the article points out, in areas such as Murcia this also has a lot to do with water management, or mis-management perhaps, where the endless new golf courses are concerned. But then grass, when grown for golf courses, is said to be the most profitable crop on the planet, bringing in top tourist dollar (or euros) for local communities.
One thing is for sure, Marina and I often still dream of moving to the coast one day, but whereas we used to think about setting up long-term in Andalusia, we now think very seriously about making that investment in the north, just in case the worst-case "Africanization" scenarios come true in the next 20 to 30 years. After all, who wants to end up living in a desert?
As I am away for a couple of days, I thought I would leave you with a couple of interesting links. I’ve often heard that getting divorced in Spain is not a particularly good idea for men (people complain that the women always get the kids for example, though I have no idea if that is true), but here’s an interesting quote:
“I am a divorced man and according [to] spanish laws I don’t have the right to exist”
Read the rest at Stigma Rest Room (thanks to Charles for sending in the link).
Secondly, I’m probably the last person to mention the cool new ‘A la Carte’ section of the state Televison Española website. You can watch the best (?) programming from the last seven days from TV1 and La 2, uninterupted by ads, whenever you like.
I imagine the ads will creep in later, once they get the metrics in, but in the meantime it meant that Marina got to catch up on the latest episode of 1920’s culebron La señora, and I could get a few minutes fix (all I can take) of the super OTT documentary Comando Actualidad, all whilst sitting beyond the frontiers of Spain. The service is pretty good, and increases my hopes for the future of efficient digital content delivery in Spain.
An important comment left on the blog yesterday:
“The grass is always greener. We moved here when the Real Estate was booming, bought a house, put children into private school, at the time was not an issue. Although as they got older the fees ended up being 1000 euros a month (every month) when some salaries are not even that!! Now daughter gone back to Uk to University, no money left to continue other childs education. Cannot sell house . Over 50 so struggling to get work. Trying to make it online. It’s soul destroying, we came here for a better life and it has ended up in disaster. There is a lot more to sun sea and sangria. We came here to give our children and ourselves a better life. What more can I say. Be very careful before you upsticks and move. We are truly stuck, stressed out with limited funds.”
Read in combination with this video from the BBC, I would say a lot of those previously keen to take their family off to a better life in Spain are now thinking twice.
Meanwhile The Sun warns, “…many home-owners could now find themselves stuck in a stagnant market”, under the headline, “Property bubble bursts in Spain”.
Then we have, “Plunging prices cause pain in Spain and trap desperate Brits abroad”, from the Guardian. Pretty depressing reading.
The message seems pretty clear. Only buy property in Spain if you fall into one of these categories:
1. It is a second home that isn’t necessarily also a key investment.
2. You are retiring to that home and are convinced you don’t want to go back to the UK later.
3. You already have a very settled life here and are 100% sure you want to stay.
Moving here with a family without a hell of a job waiting for you, or trying to make a fast buck on the housing market, seems like a very bad idea these days.
And I can only imagine what the Brits’ declining faith in the Spanish property market will do the country’s already troubled construction industy… especially since most Spaniards have given up on investing in new coastal/second home properties as well.
Questions raised in this episode:
1. Is it fair that tax payers in Spain should be forced to decide whether to give a percentage of their tax bill either to the Catholic church or ‘social causes’? Shouldn’t we be given more choices? What does the church do with the money?
2. As people continue to pay good money to visit the place the Virgin Mary last appeared to three shepherds, how religious is Spain?
3. As Turkey also decides on a total smoking ban in public places, how long can Spain hold out? When will they finally ban smoking in bars and restaurants here as well?
On our recent Andalusian wanderings, I came across a poster for a local fiesta, the Fiesta del Toro Embolao.
What is a Toro Embolao, I wondered? I wish I hadn’t asked…
Photo: Cabo de Trafalgar, Caños de Meca
Marina and I have just spent 5 days in Andalusia. Join us via the podcast, and check out the rest of the photos on Flickr.
Travel Notes:
In Carmona we stayed at the extremely clean and pleasant Hotel Alcazar de la Reina, which we got a good deal on via booking.com (always worth checking before phoning hotels directly). It’s worth checking if they have a room at the Carmona Parador though too if you can afford it!
In Cadiz we ate at Cumbres Mayores, the best tapas bar in town, and stayed at the very well placed Cortes de Cadiz (booking directly with the hotel).
Photo: El Palomar de la Breña
On the coast we stayed at the incredible Palomar de la Breña, a stunning 19th century Finca surrounded by rolling pastures, lanes lined with wildflowers, and wooded valleys. Go and see it for yourself (and if your Spanish is up to it, chat to the Spanish owner about the history of the region, he is a mine of really interesting information).
Finally, one of my oldest friends, Tom, has a family house that they rent out in Vejer de la Frontera, in the very middle of this wonderful area. I haven’t visited the house yet (soon!) but it looks fantastic and I do know the town – one of the prettiest white hilltop Andalusian villages I’ve seen, which majestic views across to the coast. I thought it deserved a good plug here too!
The main locations from the trip are marked on this map:
(To really see this photo, check out the large version on Flickr)
Barbate used to have the second biggest fishing fleet in Spain, until the local tuna supply started running out. Now the town isn’t as rich as it used to be (Franco used to holiday nearby, which also helped) and to be honest, some corners of Barbate (map) look a little ragged.
But who cares when you are 9 years old and can play football on the beach? On a beach that stretches for kilometers to the south, and on clear days has a perfect view of the continent of Africa just across the Straits (Africa! So close!)
And what happens when one of the kids boots the ball through the netless goal posts and it runs 200 yards down the beach?
The striker isn’t getting it. The beligerent goaly won’t budge. So they all sigh in exasperation, crash to the ground, and make sand castles for 5 minutes, until the most football crazy of them all can’t bare it for another minute and takes off down the beach, sprinting full pelt with the wind behind him, to fetch the ball.
Their future in Barbate might look a bit edgy, but I don’t think you can beat a childhood like this!
Hello from …. ? We are away for a few days fishing for beautiful places, sites and sounds to post here upon our return, but in the meantime, here is a very little quiz for you…
The above photo (large version) was taken yesterday afternoon on the second stop on our trip, where is it?
The Guardian has this interesting piece on the drastic water situation in Barcelona:
The tanker Sichem Defender arrived at the port of Barcelona yesterday carrying something far more precious than its usual cargo of chemicals. Nearly 23m litres of drinking water – enough for 180,000 people for a day – was the first delivery in an unprecedented emergency plan to help this parched corner of Spain ahead of the holiday season.
Used to carry chemicals, now water? Nice… With two weeks of rain behind us (hopefully), it seems hard to believe there is still a shortage. No doubt a year’s worth of downpours is what is really needed though…
For those that were not already aware, yesterday also bought new sad news from the North:
One policeman was killed and three others were wounded when a powerful bomb exploded outside a police station in northern Spain, officials said today. […] Police immediately blamed the attack on the militant Basque separatist group Eta.
Notes from Spain by Ben Curtis 