In his non-fiction book Death in the Afternoon, Hemingway declared himself an aficionado to label his passion for bullfighting. Death in the Afternoon still is an excellent introduction to this much-criticized venatio (Latin for hunting; a type of entertainment – the killing of animals – exercised in Roman amphitheaters). The poster shown above is a … Read more
For the first time, in august 1991, we went to the USA for a 3-week holiday to California. We traveled in a camper. What impressed us most were the National Parks: Sequoia, Kings Canyon, Yosemite, Lassen Volcanic Park. Coming back from Lassen we followed Route 1 along the Pacific coast and ended up on a … Read more
On our daily walk today we went from Almuñecar past Cotobro, almost to Marina del Este. A fantastic walk. There were several calas (little beaches surrounded by rocks) that were connected by built paths. Not only beautiful but because of the stony beaches also very good exercise for our ankles. The sun is absolutely amazing … Read more
Several times a week we walk to the village. To shop, drink coffee with friends, or – in my case – go to Spanish class. The first part of the road leads us downhill and near the end, we have an overview of a campground. It’s a quiet place. Lots of tanned, elderly people. It … Read more
It’s surprising how colorful January is in such a mild climate as the south of Spain. In cities, public parks are filled with flowers. Which takes quite some maintenance. Many cities have botanic gardens. The one in Valencia is the most beautiful we have visited so far in Spain. But even Almuñécar has a botanic … Read more
The village in the Netherlands where we used to live, really is a village. When you walk around everybody says ‘hello’ or ‘good morning’. That’s the upside. The downside is that people keep a close watch on each other. On the seaside here in Spain, where we now live, nobody says anything if you’re not … Read more
The economy in Spain is recovering. Not as fast as the politicians would like, but the signs are there. For instance, every city or village we visited is alive with building activities. Already years ago we discovered that in Spain there is a specific construction culture. All day, construction workers carry around a drill as … Read more
Some loose ends from the Netherlands are bothering us at the moment. But we found the perfect solution today: our walk was longer than usual. And look what we encountered on our way. Nature as well as walking up and down the hill turned out to be great to unwind. And of course, the sun … Read more
Yesterday the picture showed a fine example of the lengthy walking boulevards there are to be found in many Spanish coastal cities and villages. Friends of us told us that the specific boulevard on yesterday’s picture takes a 4-hour hike, one way! Walking boulevards do not discriminate. Spanish people and those from other countries, handicapped … Read more
Again the weather app was wrong with its prediction, but this time we didn’t mind at all. It should have been 14°, but 20° has been the highest we noticed on the car thermometer. We have discovered a minor disadvantage of staying over here. The Spaniards lunch late and lunch is the main meal of … Read more