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Easter bonnets, Easter bunnies, Easter chicks, daffodils, Easter eggs, Easter Mass, Easter processions ..... Take your pick! Different countries / cultures have different Easter traditions, although there is a lot of cross-over nowadays. ​Let's take a look at the UK and Spain.

Lenox Napier (above - photo courtesy of La Voz de Almeria) is an experienced journalist and blogger. He started a newspaper called "The Entertainer". He later edited several Spanish newspapers including "El Indalico". Now retired and looking after 30 horses, Lenox still likes to keep his hand in. The following is a piece he wrote recently about "The Electric Company".

After all the rain we've had - nay, suffered - this year, Spring has suddenly come upon us here in Ronda (Malaga) with a vengeance. I took a stroll around my garden last week taking photos of trees, shrubs and bushes which are bursting forth with healthy blossom. There are also plants and vegetables which are thriving after all the rain. Unfortunately there are also weeds everywhere, which I'm gradually getting to grips with.

Sunday 8 March is United Nations International Women's Day, although in many countries, including Spain, events continue to take place long after the day itself. Dia de la mujer was officially inaugurated in 1911, when over one million people took part. The UN did not get involved until as late as 1977. ​The theme for this year, 2026, is "Rights. Justice. Action. For ALL Women and Girls".

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).