Help!!!! Stuck in Spain

[Salty seadog]

Are you catching a rowing boat home with the Salty Seadog?

Of course.

But you mustn't be jealous.

And besides I'm making him do most of the rowing..

While I'm busy posting photos, View attachment 490274

Of beach babes.

I wouldn't fancy the bay of Biscay in a rowing boat. It gets rough out there. 3 different water systems meeting in one place.

 

[C R]

It reminds me of Devon in many ways...

View attachment 490286

Yes, the north of Spain is much more like England than what people in England think Spain is supposed to be like.

I even went to a (quality) folk night, held at the ruined monesterio mear Monfero, named for the local grelos turnip.. How 'country stylee' is that ??

View attachment 490290

And I got the t-shirt

I think a few folks have done a double take, and assumed some other kind of 'erbal leaf

Wonderful things grelos. As a bit of trivia, the leaves are called "nabizas", the grelos are the flower buds. Great with salted ham hock and chourizos.

 

[Joey Shabadoo]

Yes, the north of Spain is much more like England than what people in England think Spain is supposed to be like.

We're just back from a road trip around Spain and there's almost a line in La Mancha where the land changes. It's as if all the farmers north of the line know about irrigation and all those south of it are too proud to ask.

 

[mudsticks]

I wouldn't fancy the bay of Biscay in a rowing boat. It gets rough out there. 3 different water systems meeting in one place.

Quit with your mithering man, and get on with the rowing..

It's not that rough.. Tis nobbut a bit of swell..

 

[mudsticks]

Yes, the north of Spain is much more like England than what people in England think Spain is supposed to be like.

Wonderful things grelos. As a bit of trivia, the leaves are called "nabizas", the grelos are the flower buds. Great with salted ham hock and chourizos.

Part of me wonders if the natives of Northern Spain, having seen how some of our compatriots behave in the South of Spain, would rather that we just didn't know of its existence at all ??

(it does rain a fair amount tho. But that's why its green... You can't have it all)

Yes the people I was staying with, in Galicia were growing, and eating grelos.

Tis a wondrous thing to see a vegetable worshipped so

 

[mudsticks]

We're just back from a road trip around Spain and there's almost a line in La Mancha where the land changes. It's as if all the farmers north of the line know about irrigation and all those south of it are too proud to ask.

I'm sorry @Diogenes but I can't like a post where you've made play upon the supposed h'ignorance of farmers...

I've had much interest from observing land use along the way.

Surprised though, to see so many dairy beasts housed, rather than out grazing, both small scale like this, and larger herds..

Apparently that's changing slowly now.

Seems like a lot of extra work to have to cut the forage, cart it to the cows, then cart the muck back out again, but I'm sure there was good reasoning behind it once upon a time.

Maybe it was to do with farmers owning small patches of land here and there, not all connected up like our holdings tend to be.

Good electric fencing will make all the difference I think.

 

[Globalti]

It's interesting that there are strong musical links between Ireland, Cornwall, Brittany and Galicia and thence on to Chile where a lot of Galician miners went to find work. Galician Carlos Núñez recorded a CD called Brotherhood of Stars, which is about this if anybody is interested.

Para Vigo me voy: (I'm off to Vigo):

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JfDqhQgTGEA

 

[Joey Shabadoo]

I'm sorry @Diogenes but I can't like a post where you've made play upon the supposed h'ignorance of farmers...

I've had much interest from observing land use along the way.

Surprised though, to see so many dairy beasts housed, rather than out grazing, both small scale like this, and larger herds..

Apparently that's changing slowly now.

Seems like a lot of extra work to have to cut the forage, cart it to the cows, then cart the muck back out again, but I'm sure there was good reasoning behind it once upon a time.

Maybe it was to do with farmers owning small patches of land here and there, not all connected up like our holdings tend to be.

View attachment 490300

Good electric fencing will make all the difference I think.

Ahhhh, that explains why we saw so few cows. When we did see some, they were the scrawny types roaming over large areas of quite poor land.

 

[mudsticks]

It's interesting that there are strong musical links between Ireland, Cornwall, Brittany and Galicia and thence on to Chile where a lot of Galician miners went to find work. Galician Carlos Núñez recorded a CD called Brotherhood of Stars if anybody is interested.

Para Vigo me voy: (I'm off to Vigo):

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JfDqhQgTGEA

Yes I guess it's that whole wet western seaboard thing, where we were more connected by the ocean than the land.

And our 'folk' folk were pushed out to the rockier marginal land..

The instruments and tunes were very similar to the folk music* I've seen in those other places, and Ireland, and Scotland.

Apart from the absence of fiddle, but maybe that was just the bands I saw.

I had to keep reminding myself I wasn't in Brittany, the landforms, and amount of woodland (and rain) make it look similar.

* ps I'd like to add that I'm not a particular folk music afficianado.. I like it well enough, but there just seems to be a lot of it about in the places I go..

I'll check out your Chilean man, all the same

 

[Globalti]

It's a beautiful CD.

 

[mudsticks]

Ahhhh, that explains why we saw so few cows. When we did see some, they were the scrawny types roaming over large areas of quite poor land.

Possibly.

For the most beautiful, healthy looking cows ranging free, you must go the high Pyrenees.

They have the life

 

[C R]

Yes I guess it's that whole wet western seaboard thing, where we were more connected by the ocean than the land.

And our 'folk' folk were pushed out to the rockier marginal land..

The instruments and tunes were very similar to the folk music* I've seen in those other places, and Ireland, and Scotland.

Apart from the absence of fiddle, but maybe that was just the bands I saw.

I had to keep reminding myself I wasn't in Brittany, the landforms, and amount of woodland (and rain) make it look similar.

* ps I'd like to add that I'm not a particular folk music afficianado.. I like it well enough, but there just seems to be a lot of it about in the places I go..

I'll check out your Chilean man, all the same

Carlos Núñez is galician, not chilean. Galician people emigrated, and still do, every where, so much so that in many south American countries gallego is used to refer to anyone from Spain.

The musical connection with the rest of the Atlantic seaboard is part of a wider cultural shared heritage, which includes other traditions, such as mischief night, Halloween nowadays, common folk tales, and so on.

 

[Globalti]

I changed it to Galician just before you posted!

 

[mudsticks]

Carlos Núñez is galician, not chilean. Galician people emigrated, and still do, every where, so much so that in many south American countries gallego is used to refer to anyone from Spain.

The musical connection with the rest of the Atlantic seaboard is part of a wider cultural shared heritage, which includes other traditions, such as mischief night, Halloween nowadays, common folk tales, and so on.

I stand corrected Galician emigrated to Chile

A bit like the Welsh and Cornish miners who also emigrated to South America, to ply their trades, and seek their fortunes. .

I have to confess that prior to this trip I didn't realise that Galeago (sp?) was a whole separate language.. Not just a dialect.

Based on vulgar Latin by all accounts, and that the schools teach bilingually, as in Wales and Ireland.

I did notice more X's in the place names, and particular words, far more so than in official Spanish.. Like in the Basque country.


Anyhow, sun's out, time to take a spin on the observation deck.. See if I can spot me some whales..

Or at least catch me a game of quoits

 

[C R]

Personally I prefer Xosé Manuel Budiño as a piper. This is a traditional piece from his first album

View: https://youtu.be/A90L8DzQxN8


Susana Seivane is a great piper, with a more traditional style

View: https://youtu.be/tgofY_FH16Y


I don't know why the fiddle didn't make it into Galician folk music until recently. The traditional band is like in the second video, pipes, snare drum and base drum.

There's another style of music, which is women's groups playing tambourine and singing, like Leilía do in here,

View: https://youtu.be/pQ1frf_r0IU