Blogs from Spain, Europe - page 1411

The place reminds us not so little of the place in ”From Dusk Till Dawn”. For those of you who didn’t see that movie; it’s a rather large building with no other buildings surrounding it, outside the city. My friend met this Spanish guy who insisted that we come. Not so much out of friendliness towards strangers, more a faint hope of some action with my friend, a very pretty, very blond little girl. It turns out to be a nightclub, a very large one. It’s location, it’s size and it’s equipment would probably make it an excellent rave party spot. But although it’s Friday night there are no people there. Maybe we’re too late. Or too early. A creepy feeling comes crawling upon us. We ask the Spanish guy to take us back to back ... read more

Nou Camp or Camp Nou. Whatever. It's huge. Probably the largest soccer stadium on the European continent. Once able to hold some 120,000 people at soccer games. The night of the game against the Swedish team it's not exactly packed. "Only" in the neighborhood of 70,000 in the crowd, scattered all over the seats. When the Swedes score in the first minute, there is complete silence. Even the 2,000 or so Northerners following their team cannot grasp that the little club from the North Pole would dare to put the ball in the net in the lion's den. Then Barca wakes up. The R-man does his job, and scores a couple. Like usual. For the small clubs from the small countries it's like winning the lottery, being put against a top club from a top league. ... read more

Had the time of my life in Malaga, Spain. Not so much because of the city, but because of the people. We didn’t have much contact with the outside world, so the news that spread concerned each other. True or false, news was spreading with the speed of light. Picked up by all. Contested by few. Towards the end of the first semester, a couple of rather shy Swedish girls come up to me at a party, ask me a strange question: “Have you ever been in a movie?”. “Eh, no, what makes you think that?”. “Well, somebody said so”. The closest I ever came to television was being in a frame for a split second in the crowd at a soccer game. The girls didn’t push it, so I let it go. Until a few ... read more

Cruising through the clouds in an airplane is pretty cool. Doing it by car is even cooler. A visit to the mountain town of Ronda allows you to do this. Going back towards the coast on the mountain roads at dusk, the view with the mountaintops and the clouds below is a magnificent sight. The idea that you have to descend through the white stuff to get to the bottom is quite exciting. But first we have to stop and wait for the sunset, and take the obligatory pictures. The altitude is high, it’s windy, and it’s chilly. But it’s definitely worth a few moments of cold sensation. Watching the sunset from above the clouds, in the reddish mountains of southern Spain is a near magical experience. A true Kodak moment...... read more

Driving a car in southern Europe is indeed an experience in itself, although not recommended the non-aggressive, nervous, or fainthearted driver. The law of the jungle prevails. Demolition derby is a more suitable description than anything related to civilized traffic. Parking the car follows roughly the same principles. Squeeze your car into any spot where it appears fairly out of the way for the surrounding traffic. A dent or two comes with the territory. On those terms the profession of “aparcacoches” was born. “Aparcacoches” (roughly translated “car parkers”) have nothing in common with valet parkers. “Aparcachoces” are not exactly unionized employees, bums rather homeless bums in desperate need of money. But their creativity must be admired. A profession created out of the modern traffic problems. Appears to be a territorial work, where every bum has his ... read more