SUMMIT FOOTLIGHTS »
One of the first things Dr. Jill Biden, did when she landed in Madrid to be with her husband for the NATO Summit was to shop for alpargatas, the typical summer footwear once worn only by peasants. Somehow that endeared her to the Spaniards and she's just about to end up being looked upon as some kind of instant folk hero! The First Lady got off on the right foot, didn't she?
A GUIDEPOST REPRINT: “THE ORIGINAL TOURIST IN SPAIN”, 5 May 1967, Second Installment »
Rich with racy flavour, "Gatherings from Spain" is the earliest comprehensive account of Spanish travels that exists in English, written by Richard Ford, the master of vivid description of the country, Spain, that he loves so deeply, and the singular people who are "scarcely European living on a neutral ground between the hat and the turban". With characteristic zestful perspicacity, Ford would underscore above others the "Orientalness" of the Spaniards.
A GUIDEPOST REPRINT: “THE ORIGINAL TOURIST IN SPAIN”, 5 May 1967, First Installment »
George Borrow: "How the rage for scribbling tempts people to write about lands and nations of which they know nothing! Vaya! It is not from having seen a bullfight at Seville or Madrid, or having spent a handful of ounces at a posada that you are competent to write about such a people as the Spaniards, and to tell the world how they think, how they speak, and how they act." But there was one, an erudite traveler, Englishman Richard Ford, who did justice to the endeavor. Living in southern Spain for three years and traveling across the peninsula on horseback, he wrote "Handbook on Spain" in 1845 and the even more riveting and timeless "Gatherings from Spain" published the following year and proved immensely popular.
GUIDEPOST REPRINT: “SUMMING UP THE SPANIARDS, AN ACCOUNT OF HOW SOME FAMOUS TRAVELLERS HAVE SEEN SPAIN,” 3 OCTOBER 1969 — (4) Barbers, Bandits, Bulllfighters & Beautiful Women »
Brenan sees Spain's waiters one of the most striking and representative of the country. They move with the ballet dancer's precision and operatic air. So are the barbers in their own way. A most favorite subject is the bullfight, said by some to be a barbarous and pagan left-over from the days of the Romans. But not Hemingway who finds it complex and compelling. And there are the women. Dumas: "There so many beautiful women along the Prado that only a plain woman is remarkable." As numerous in the travellers' mind are the bandits, thinking Spain is full of them.
WHAT’S SO STEREOTYPICAL ABOUT SPAIN, HUH? »
Contrary to most of the stereotypes linked with Spain, most countries see the Spaniards as tolerant, reliable, democratic, pacifist, honest, strong, humanitarian and hard-working!
SKATEBOARD HERO RESCUES DISENCHANTED SPANIARDS »
“Something so sad is turning into something so beautiful and great; it is making us love our brother, our friends and our country more.”
THE SPANISH GOVERNMENT’S EUPHORIA OVER “HISTORIC” DROP IN UNEMPLOYMENT »
"The drop in unemployment during themonth of April 2017 is historic; is the second largest global power in tourism"
LOST & FOUND IN MADRID: PART III »
“I’m back in Madrid, the city where I found myself. The city I adore. I’m back for good”
LOST AND FOUND IN MADRID: Part 1 »
"I could talk endlessly about the beauty of Madrid , its architecture and all that it offers. But what struck me the most about the city was its atmosphere"
