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Andalucía Day (Día de Andalucía) marks the anniversary of a referendum held on 28 February, 1980 when a large majority of voters supported the referendum for Andalucía to become one of the 17 autonomous communities in Spain, following Spain’s democratisation after nearly forty years of the Franco dictatorship. Franco died in November 1975.

The weather in the whole of Spain has been atrocious in 2026, with snow, hail, torrential rain, high winds, black ice and widespread flooding. There were yellow and orange warnings for most of the country. To blame were 11 named storms which hit the Iberian Peninsula (and other countries of western Europe) from the West and North between October 2025 and mid-February 2026.

After a winter of chasing around trying to find a bar open in the evenings for a pre-prandial drink or two, and often failing, things are looking up! ​The traumas caused by nine named violent storms, heavy rainfall, high winds, flooding and lots of damage to homes, outbuildings, crops and livestock, evacuations and several deaths have been immense. As we approach Spring, three grand openings have taken place.

Who are they? Or what are they? Three names sound English, two Scandinavian, two Italian, one German and one Spanish. ​They are, in fact, the names given to the borrascas (storms) we've suffered in Malaga province this hydrological year (2025/26). NINE named storms since October! And that's not counting several other unnamed bad weather events.

These towns in the Serrania de Ronda and the Sierra de Grazalema have hit the headlines! Blanket coverage on national TV, online and in the national Press. For all the wrong reasons! ​Because of the extreme weather coming in from the West, principally Storm Leonardo, red and orange alerts have been issued for Cadiz, Extremadura and parts of Andalucia.

Anis, Coñac, Miura, Orujo, Patxaran ..... What on earth are they? These are some of the words that are bandied about at early morning coffee time in Spain. Inveterate insomniacs or manual labourers and office workers who participate in this early morning coffee ritual, will be familiar with all this. ​Others, especially most "guiris", may not be. Read on to find out more.

What a good title for this short piece! ​"Pons" is the Latin for "bridge", in Spanish"puente". ​And two nights ago, on Monday January 20th, was the last night of Venta El Puente ..... ​..... not for ever, of course. The family that runs "The Bridge" is taking a well-earned break. Two weeks.

I'm a collector junkie - elephants, seahorses, geckoes - and I recently wrote a piece on the subject of interesting quotes and sayings, advice and jokes which appear on fridge magnets, beermats, diaries and greetings cards. I thought it would be fun to write about my "Baker's Dozen" (13).

What's going on? Everybody's retiring! They may not be leavin' on Peter, Paul and Mary's jet plane*, but they're off! ​Since the turn of the year we learn that Peter Jones, the birdman, is hanging up his binoculars; Karl Smallman, doyen of photographic journalism and website building is stepping down; and Paul Whitelock, "Jack of all trades" is slowing down. All three are "hanging up their boots".

Since the start of the year, 1st January 2026, there are some significant changes to the Spanish equivalent of The Highway Code. The two most important adjustments are: everybody travelling in a vehicle must wear a seatbelt; in the event of an emergency, warning triangles are OUT and V16 beacons are IN. But, the rules for beacons have been changed at the eleventh hour.

This post is not about the song made famous by Topol from the musical "Fiddler on the Roof". ​Nor is it about the fabulous sunrises and sunsets we get down here in Andalucia. ​These celestial delights are just the starting point for an article about the continuing popularity of the area among northern Europeans.

In the last 50 years two things happened that changed Spain - for ever and, in this writer's opinion, for the good. First of all, 50 years ago last November 20th, Franco finally left us when he died aged 95. Then, the second thing that changed Spain for the better was her accession to the European Economic Community (now the European Union). That was 40 years ago, on January 1st 1986.