Southern Spain is famous for its warm weather. East from the Strait of Gibraltar, along the Mediterranean coast, is known as the Costa del Sol. To the west, along the Atlantic coast, is known as the Costa de la Luz. (Sun + Light = Sunlight!) There have been a couple cloudy days, but even in autumn the sun is radiant. Here are some pix & clips on that theme, and of course the ocean that surrounds us…

The first clip, a time lapse of sunset on a modern suspension bridge, shows the brand new Puente de la Pepa, now the longest bridge in Spain, and the roundabout known as the Cadiz Stirrup. It was completed only a couple months ago, and we’ve crossed it twice!

On November 20th we went to hear the Cadiz Saxophone Quartet in Conservatorio Profesional de Musica Manuel de Falla, and on the 21st we heard Granada City Orchestra doing Centenary de ‘El amor burro’ in the Gran Teatro Falla (box seats!). Two venues (and some selections) honoring Cadiz’s most celebrated musician, Manuel de Falla.

When we were at Pemsey Farm in England, we met John Townsend, a friend of the Nyssens, who owns a company that sells anti-graffiti paint (other paints washes off of it easily). I didn’t realise at the time how much graffiti and tagging is all over European cities, but there’s a lot. (Thus does he drive some very nice cars!) Some of it is artistic, much of it is just vandalism, but it’s not the kind of thing one photographs when visiting cultural/historical/architectural sites. Now that we’ve seen the tourist sites, we can look a little closer, perhaps beyond, perhaps at other things like graffiti. So here are some pix around Cadiz, but it’s stuff I found compelling. (Much of it is just ugly tagging that I haven’t bothered to memorialise.)

Settling into any town includes getting a library card, and now I’ve got mine for la Biblioteca publica de Cadiz. I’m still avoiding Netflix by checking out movies, and I found “The Black Swan” by Nassim Nicholas Taleb which is great. In addition, we’ve made it a family affair in the afternoon when school finishes. The kids do their homework and we use the free wifi to research our continuing adventures. It’s a clean, well-lighted place, well appointed, and best of all, quiet!

This is the title of a really great Stephen King book about a time portal, but which unfortunately depicts Lee Harvey Oswald as the lone assassin of JFK. I guess it supports another by Manson prosecutor Vincent Bugliosi who researched the assassination extensively and validates the findings of the Warren Commission, and what has been the official story in schoolbooks for 52 years, that Oswald shot the President from behind in a window of the 6th floor of the Texas Schoolbook Depository. I don’t see it that way.

Oliver Stone did a service and a disservice to the truth of the assassination in his excellent film JFK. The historical revisionism (disservice) is explained in his annotated screenplay, and bringing to light the work of Jim Garrison (service) in revealing the Zapruder film and other information to the public as evidence in case against Clay Shaw is compelling. “Back and to the left” is almost a meme, but it has not changed the official story.

While there is ample evidence of a conspiracy, the kill shot in the Zapruder film should be proof enough that Oswald was not the assassin, he was a “patsy.” The initial shot to Kennedy’s neck, the impact of the next bullet to his head (“back and to the left”), and the fragment of his head that Jackie crawls out on to the trunk of the limo to retrieve, are all proof that the shooter was likely positioned at the infamous “grassy knoll.”

On this very same day 52 years ago in Santa Monica another great man died, Aldous Huxley, author of “Brave New World” and many other books and essays of clarity, import, and insight. A number of those were about sight, seeing, and perception, since Huxley spent his life overcoming near blindness (The Art of Seeing, etc.), and I’d love to know what he would have to say about what we see in the Zapruder film. When does seeing become truth, and when does truth become the official story? Is it merely belief?

It is still important 52 years later because the course of history, deposited so often myopically in schoolbooks, is still being manipulated by a power elite (Eisenhower’s Military Industrial Complex?) so often nefariously and we the people should not allow it. No truth, no freedom. JFK does not RIP.

Now that we have settled in a bit, enrolled the kids at school, and done some snooping about hither and thither, it’s starting to feel like home. Here are some random pix (Charlie in a big old tree, Veronica getting her hair cut, going to school, laundry on the roof, Plaza de Flores, etc.)…

And of course there is a lovely central market, and on Fridays especially, it is filled with good stuff. In the middle of the market, since Cadiz is of course surrounded by the ocean, there is a lot of seafood. Fish fish!

Another serendipitously delightful experience has been the 13th annual Cadiz Music Festival which started last week and continues through Charlie’s birthday on November 29th. We’ve been to two concerts so far, both in majestic churches, and will go to another tomorrow night at the Casa Del Arte. Here are some clips…

After a week in Sevilla, we have now spent a week and a half in Cadiz – and we’re going to stay longer! Cadiz is not just a beautiful beach town with quaint narrow streets, lively plazas, and an important history, it’s a great size. Small, but deep; walkable, bikable, and knowable in the several weeks that we’ll be here. We are enjoying the Cadiz Music Festival that began last weekend and will run until Charlie’s birthday on November 29th. And while we are deep in to autumn, the radiant sun has only been mitigated by the cool breezes, and we anticipate being here until just before the winter solstice, so we’ll see if it gets chilly. Here are some pics of our first days, and a clip going up one of the cathedral bell towers…

As mentioned, we’ve moved on to Cadiz, but here are a few more images of Sevilla. In addition to some nice buildings, here’s my favourite clip of street musicians so far (put an accordion with a sax and guitar, add some beats and a funky bass, oh yeah). And we had a chance to have dinner with some great folks, Batur & Pepa and their children (deja vu of our friends Mehmet & Delma in La Honda, except two girls instead of two boys). Batur is Mehmet’s cousin and they grew up together in Turkey. Like Mehmet, he married a Spanish woman (equally formidable). Both are professors, Batur in music, Pepa in physics, and we couldn’t stop talking about everything. They are truly lovely people (their charming daughters were off playing & chatting with our similarly aged kids), and we really hope they will come visit us in Cadiz and California!

Seville is a beautiful city with fabulous features. The Alcazar, the Cathedral, the University, the Archive, the Parasol, and of course the many charming streets and cafes are just part of its allure. However, our apartment on the outskirts lacked some allure. No wifi, 6th floor, sketchy neighbourhood, and a longish bus ride into the center of town indicated to us that we would not be staying for the month we’d signed up for.  So we just stayed there for a week and our host kindly worked out a deal and gave us a refund. During the week, we did experience the city, but also took a couple trips outside. First to Cadiz where we decided to move (and a side trip to the white town of Jerez de la Frontera, then to Tavira, Portugal for a day at the beach. So here are some pix & clips from our trips…