U. Cronin's Blog, page 15
August 9, 2015
Water, Water
It’s always wonderful to go on holiday, as we will be next week. All the usual worries and stresses will be parked for three weeks while our little nuclear family kicks back and mingles with extended family, in- and out-laws. … Continue reading →
August 2, 2015
August
The exodus has begun! Now that August is upon us, anyone who can is abandoning Madrid, leaving only a skeleton crew to look after the place in their absence (and roast and sweat, and sweat and roast). I have no … Continue reading →
July 26, 2015
That Phone Call
Last Saturday week I got that phone call that everyone living abroad dreads. It was my brother telling me my mother had taken a fall and had broken her leg. She had been rushed to hospital in the small hours … Continue reading →
July 11, 2015
Hot, Hot, Hot
They say that during a heatwave such as the one we’re “enjoying” at the moment you shouldn’t look at a thermometer or check the weather forecast — it just makes things worse. Your body already knows that it’s forty degrees … Continue reading →
July 5, 2015
What’s in a Name?
One of the many things I loved about studying history as a teenager was the exoticism, especially the linguistic exoticism. As well as that great cliché’s ringing truth that the past is a foreign country, we also got a double …
June 28, 2015
Mistrust
Mistrust abounds in Spanish society. In my last post, I went into how Spanish supermarkets regard their customers not as roaming assets, living embodiments of goodwill who must be cherished and pampered so as to maintain their loyalty and repeat … Continue reading →
June 21, 2015
Shoplifters of the World Unite and Take Over
Spanish supermarkets treat their customers like dirt. I realise very well that supermarkets are not supposed to be our friends, that they are there to grow fat off the sweat of our brows, and that the more often we can … Continue reading →
June 14, 2015
Leafleteers
The amount of leafleting that goes on here was something that struck me very soon after moving to Spain. The practice always seems old fashioned to me, of the 1960s or earlier, something we learned about in commerce class in … Continue reading →
June 8, 2015
Bush Drinking in Spain
My memories of bush drinking as a youth in Ireland are of furtive sessions in patches of waste ground, huddling under trees or shrubs to escape the rain or wind (hence the term), and keeping the noise down in case … Continue reading →
May 31, 2015
Dog Walkers
The Parque del Norte is full of dog walkers most mornings, except for days where there is a wind, or a chill in the air, or clouds, or — God forbid — a drop of rain. (Madrileños like their weather … Continue reading →
