Fallas in Valencia

Our lovely neighbour Juan invited us to go for the weekend to see the Fallas in Valencia. These are massive papier mache sculptures, poking fun at politicians and, of course, the Council!  They are up to 80 feet high and the dearest one cost €200 000 even with the crisis. Tonight - Monday they burn them down after days of gorgeous processions and music. We were amused at one guy who even complained to us that the council didn't help with the cost of the cheeky sculpures! We had a great time however!!

Les goes shopping

 It doesn't happen often but it
happened on Friday - Les went
shopping. He hates shopping Malls particularly but he coped
- even in ZARA the Spanish fashionista's favourite haunt. Many thanks to his home Church he now has a jacket to wear when we go out with our neighbours - picture on next entry we hope.

In case you were wondering he was very nice to the girl at the till who let us take a photo and then he hurried out!

Matanza

 So at last Les gets to attend a Matanza. Given that he grew up in a town he never had the experience of everybody coming to help you butcher your pig. Saturday we were in the English Chat group in El Burgo de Osma finishing almost in time to see the deed done.
Unlike an Orkney butching, this event had music, costumes and bonny bowls for the bowels.
They didn't ask us to stay behind and wash the intestines so instead we went into the Pig Museum which boasts over 7,000 pigs from all over the world - a collection to rival Julie Hagans!

Lost in translation?

   

                

Sometimes we do a double take at things we read.. sometimes triple.

The (not so) Wee Kirkcaldy Centipede

Heading for Church we saw a thing like a long caterpillar, or a centipede in fact more than 2 feet long, whatever it was. Les counted 54 segments marching in line to cross the street. In fact we discovered it was the Pine Processionary Caterpillar which is highly poisonous even if one of it's hairs blows off and touches you. Apparently they leave their wee silky sleeping bags on the pine trees and march off to find soft ground to borrow in. While we watched one got lost and the whole line had to halt and wait for it to come back into line. I was so keen to realign it I was about to poke it back into line - thank goodness I left well alone as the poison can cause death. We came back after 3 hours and they had made it safely across the street - apparently to birds and other animals they appear to be a snake so get left alone, phew!

Hombres de Negro

 Men in Black. I watched  the film for the first time yesterday in preparation for a Fiesta de Desfraces last night. It is carnival time and Spain, including  the Vida Apasionada Church Plant,was having a do. We obviously weren't very scary though as unknown aliens wanted their photos taken with us.










Who was he? We have no idea and records have been destroyed.

It's church Jim, but not as we know it!

 So on the street next to our church is a "Church Shop" it is never open on a Sunday so we haven't been in but guess what - it has all you need to grow Cannabis. (It is legal to grow one plant but not two!!)

However given that is is so near to our church wouldn't it be great if we could organise a "Joint Service"









Les had a wee think before we went in on Sunday and thankfully went in the right door.





Thanks to him getting the solo part for 'God Save the Queen' right (here it is a hymn!) he has been invited to play a gig - the Old Folks Service.