The cooling ashes

August was much slower as everyone headed to the beach to bask in the sun and cool off by dipping their feet in the icy waters of the Atlantic or out to the countryside to relax in the shade.

Unfortunately, this year also saw a large number of deliberately lit bushfires destroy thousands of hectares of forest. Was it coincidental that these fires were concentrated in the most populated regions rather than the wilder parts? Rumours and conspiracy theories abound as to who is behind the fires: is it organised crime, property developers or just a random mix of the deranged and disgruntled? Some signage in prominent locations to warn people of the danger levels, fire bans and penalties certainly wouldn´t go astray.

On our own travels to the beach it has been surpising to see how little relationship the locals have with the sea despite their maritime heritage and ravenous desire to eat anything that sports fins or grows on a wet rock. The beaches are often awash with rubbish, particularly from the fishing industry.

The local lifesavers also regularly drag in exhausted waterlogged swimmers after they are caught in currents and rips, deceived by the apparently calmer water in these parts of the beach. A little education on where to swim at the beach, the introduction of flagged swimming zones on surf beaches and some warning signs would make life a lot safer and easier for all involved. Some rescue boards might not go astray too.

Moitas patacas

So now we´ve been here in Spain for a few weeks. Has been good to catch up with la familia and we’ve spent time on the farm which is looking great in summer with leaves on the trees and good weather to work outdoors (first time I’ve seen it like that).

It’s been producing huge quantities of vegetables and fruit, most of it the result of lots of traditional know-how and work by la abuela.


Got sick as a dog from oysters again and almost missed the local festival, Laro’s Romeria de la Tortilla (the grand festival of Spanish omlette). All the towns have a themed festival this time of year and Laro went all out with not one but two ‘orchestras’ (big bands singing a mix of Latin pop and paso dobles) going head to head, specifically ‘Paris de Noia’ and ‘Gran Parada’. Paris de Noia won hands down with singers descending from the roof of the stage, fireworks and an electric fiddle player moving through the crowd a la David Lee Roth. We also went up to the little old local iglesia for the special mass complete with firecrackers, gaiteros (bagpipes) and a quick tour around the village by the patron saint’s statue. C got out her new dress for Sunday best...

We’ve spent a week on the (European style, i.e. no waves) beach at San Xenxo, probably the most popular beach resort in the north of Spain. The water is cold at 16 to 19 degrees and it’s amazing how many people will squeeze onto the beach and walk up and down but few go for a swim. They had a bit of a party for the official opening of the apartments Catalina’s parents have bought into and we had a few drinks and twisted by the pool with C’s padres leading by example.


We’ve toured the beaches a little and found waves twice (A Lanzada at top below and Pantin below) but generally it’s been flat and despite swimming my arms felt like jelly within about 15 minutes.


Santiago is quiet and full of tourists for summer but the old part is beautiful as always and it has been good to catch up with Romina, Maria Eugenia, Ches, Belen, Carlos and others for a few beers. Some of these guys are now living in Madrid for work so we haven’t gotten to see them too much.

As usual, things have a different rhythm here. Lunch is at 3pm, which means dinner is 11pm, which means bed or going out is 2am, which means getting up the next day is 11am, which means getting much done before everything shuts at 1.30pm is nigh on impossible. As well as enjoying all of the above the past four weeks has been a regular battle with bureaucracy, poor service, inefficiency and the impossibility of doing anything quickly or efficiently. For C to get her bank accounts and ID sorted out after five years in Oz and to buy and insure a car has been one hassle after another. We take for granted how easy it is to deal with banks, the RTA and get insurance over the phone in Oz. Now we’re finally set for our tour of Europe to visit Dave in our VW Passat station wagon.

The food has been great, with lots of fresh veges from the farm, fresh fish and the usual delicacias espanolas like chorizo and jamon. We’ve eaten a lot and eaten well, so much so that we’d kill for a good Burgerman burger, some Arthur’s pizza and some Daniel’s thai.

Of course, most of all we miss all you guys back in Oz. Hope all is well and spring will soon be in the air. Will try to update this a bit more regularly now that we are starting to travel a bit further afield and should have something more to tell.