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Why nobody wants to be a trucker anymore

Antonio Jimenez Barca Barca,Samuel Sánchez — Wed, 27 Oct 2021 06:21:34 GMT

The lack of international truck drivers is one of the causes behind the bottleneck in international trade. In Europe, demand will be around 400,000 over the next few years. In Spain, the required figure is over 15,000. Trucking is a hard and extremely lonely job, involving days away from home and nights at unwelcoming service areas or lay-bys. Despite the money that can be made, the younger generations are not tempted. EL PAÍS rode with a veteran Spanish truck driver for four days through France and the UK and found that driving a truck is not only unromantic, it can also be very depressing.

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Why vaccines, paella and ‘tortilla’ trend on Spanish Twitter

Jaime Rubio — Thu, 21 Oct 2021 14:35:56 GMT

The content that gets shared the most on social media is not always an indignant message or an ingenious insult. Sometimes, it can even be pleasant to be on Twitter. This past weekend, the German television network Deutsche Welle published an English-language video special about Spain’s successful Covid-19 vaccination campaign. This video has been shared by Twitter users more than a thousand times in messages that expressed pride and included the hashtag #marcaEspaña (or, Brand Spain).

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Eight nature destinations for a fall getaway in Spain

Jordi Pastor — Fri, 08 Oct 2021 15:49:06 GMT

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Why nudists are being pushed out of Spain’s beaches

Nacho Sánchez — Mon, 30 Aug 2021 07:42:03 GMT

To the west of Ibiza, in the municipality of Sant Josep de sa Talaia, a town of 27,413 inhabitants, there is a tiny beach that lies at the foot of a cliff, officially known as Es racó d’en Xic. Unofficially, it is called Cala Escondida, which is the name of the beach bar that opened there seven years ago. An ecological establishment, the bar has just a handful of dishes on its menu as well as exquisite passionfruit cocktails, and allows patrons to dine naked at its clutch of tables. Nudism is popular on this idyllic sandy beach in Spain’s Balearic Islands. “Everyone goes as they please,” says Tess Harmsen, who runs the bar and who has noted that the practice of nudism is on the wane. “Before it was common to see people without clothes at the tables, but now they are the exception. It’s the same on the beach.” Originally from the Netherlands, Harmsen is not the only one to notice naturism’s downturn; the situation is the same along most of the Spanish coast, according to various naturist associations consulted by EL PAÍS. The crowds of tourists, pressure from real estate developments and the omnipresence of cellphone cameras are some of the main factors behind the decline.

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The Spanish village that wants outdoor chats to be granted World Heritage status

Jesús A. Cañas — Mon, 09 Aug 2021 13:11:34 GMT

It has been two weeks since residents of the southern Spanish village of Algar won €20,000 in a lottery, a subject that was examined in detail by locals during their evening chats on the town’s sidewalks. “It was a juicy piece of news,” says Antonia Aguilera, sitting out in a circle of chairs with six of her neighbors. “The baker won as well as a lot of people who needed it.”

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Benidorm gets a little closer to the sky

José Luis Aranda — Fri, 16 Jul 2021 09:44:10 GMT

The New York of the Mediterranean is also a city that never sleeps. Benidorm, in Spain’s Alicante province, is now ready to unveil its latest attraction: the biggest residential skyscraper in Europe. The Intempo building is 198 meters high, and home to 256 apartments – but it was a project that nearly ended in disaster, due to the bursting of Spain’s real estate bubble in the early 2000s and the effects of the coronavirus pandemic. Now, however, the two-towered structure topped with a cone is about to receive its certificate of completion, and EL PAÍS is the first news organization to be invited to tour the building now that the work is done.

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PHOTO GALLERY | Intempo, the tallest residential skyscraper in Europe (captions in Spanish)

Spain’s Civil Guard searching for black panther near small village

Javier Arroyo — Tue, 15 Sep 2020 09:51:13 GMT

A Civil Guard helicopter, several ground patrols and multiple volunteers from Spain’s Civil Protection agency are searching for a black panther in Ventas de Huelma, a small village in the southern province of Granada in Andalusia that is home to 600 people.

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Candiel, the alcoholic drink once given to children in southern Spain

Carlos Doncel-Moriano Valencia — Thu, 23 Jul 2020 06:44:12 GMT

Candiel or candié was a “fortifying” drink given to many children in Spain’s southern Cádiz province in the mid-20th century. There was only one little problem with it: the ingredients included alcohol.

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Coronavirus concerns fuel motorhome boom in Spain

Ferran Bono Ara — Thu, 16 Jul 2020 06:42:35 GMT

Celia had her motorhome parked at El Saler beach in Valencia last week. Like many others, she started out by pitching tents at campsites, then graduated to towing a caravan, and now owns a fully integrated home on wheels with the kitchen, bathroom and bedroom at hand. “You don’t have to have any contact with anyone if you don’t want to,” she says. “That’s why I think it’s the safer option right now, although we’ve been keen on it for a long time.”

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How to survive summer in Spain: Air conditioning or fans?

Carla Nieto Martñinez,Sonia Faura — Mon, 06 Jul 2020 06:39:23 GMT

Fans or air conditioning, that is the question – one that resurfaces every summer in Spain when thermometers soar and we can’t get away from the stifling heat.

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Tricking the fan

A fan helps sweat to evaporate on the skin, a natural process that cools the body down. To improve the fan’s effectiveness, you can spray your body with water and put the fan in swing mode. “These are ways to fool the body,” says Arboledas.

Changing filters

To maintain an air conditioning unit in a good condition, a professional should check the machines every few months – there is a risk that non-professionals could inhale germs or allergens. The frequency depends on the power of the appliance: those with 12 kW or less are checked every four years; those between 12kW and 70 kW, every two years; and those over 70 kW, every month.

Spain’s Conguitos candy pushed to rebrand ‘racist’ imagery

Almudena Ortuño Serrano — Thu, 02 Jul 2020 07:02:23 GMT

A few months ago it was ColaCao, the chocolate drink brand, that ditched its decades-old song about the negrito – a patronizing term for a black man – and replaced it with another jingle devoid of racist overtones. Now, it should be time for Conguitos, a popular Spanish chocolate candy, to follow suit and get rid of its “adorable” mascot as the Black Lives Matter movement gains momentum in the wake of the George Floyd killing in Minnesota. That’s what a petition on the Change.org platform is saying about Lacasa, the company that produces the candy. With almost 5,000 signatures, the initiative has caused a stir on social media, where the disproportionately large red lips of the Conguito caricatures have been remarked upon, as well as the fact that it has taken the death of George Floyd to make us aware in Spain that racism can begin with a bag of sweets.

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A Spanish bar becomes popular with African workers, and the locals walk away

Valentina Rojo Squadroni — Fri, 26 Jun 2020 16:04:38 GMT

El Racó de la Vero does not feature in any gastronomy guides, but its reputation has reached as far as Guinea-Conakry, Senegal and Mali. Located in the village of Alcarràs, barely 11 kilometers from the Catalan city of Lleida, it opens before dawn, in time to serve breakfast to dozens of seasonal workers.

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Four members of ‘The Wolf Pack’ given fresh prison terms for abusing an unconscious woman

Eva Saiz Escolano — Thu, 04 Jun 2020 15:18:40 GMT

Four members of “La Manada,” a group of Spanish friends who were convicted in a 2016 gang rape case that made global headlines, have been found guilty of sexual abuse against another woman.

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Daily coronavirus fatalities in Spain come in under 100 for third day in a row

EL PAÍS — Tue, 19 May 2020 17:01:08 GMT

The daily coronavirus death toll in Spain came in at 83 on Tuesday, up from 59 on Monday but under 100 for the third day in a row, according to figures released by the Spanish Health Ministry this afternoon.

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Are pistachios the new ‘green gold’ in Spain?

FRANCISCO SERRATO — Fri, 13 Mar 2020 12:02:08 GMT

Álvaro Díez is not a typical young Spaniard. While most of his generation has left their hometowns in the countryside to look for work in the city, he decided to go down the opposite path. The 28-year-old left his job at a prestigious law firm in Madrid and moved to Colmenar de Oreja, a town with 7,500 inhabitants that sits 50 kilometers from the Spanish capital, to start an agriculture business: Pistachios of Madrid. On his farm, located on a terraced field of the Tagus River, very close to Aranjuez, there is an endless sea of pistachio trees. The still flimsy trunks of the tree, which originated in the Middle East, can be seen as far as the horizon. The plantation has more than 25 hectares of pistachio trees, a crop that has increased by 30% in the last five years in the Madrid region, thanks to its high profitability. Every hectare can yield up to €6,000.

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The history of Spain’s ‘Insured for Fire’ building signs

Marta Villena — Thu, 12 Mar 2020 08:04:05 GMT

You’ve probably seen plaques with the message “Asegurada de Incendios” (Insured for Fire) on many buildings in Spain. Maybe you wondered why they were there, and what purpose they served. Most of them can be found in the historical center of cities, because they date back to the 19th century. These plaques do not just indicate, as you might guess, that the buildings were insured for fire (today a sign is not needed to show that a place is insured), but also shed light on the origin of insurance companies and professional firefighters in Spain.

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Madrid’s tiniest bar is also a temple of flamenco

Juan Diego Quesada — Thu, 05 Mar 2020 07:44:37 GMT

A bit like Fight Club, the first rule of San Román is: you don’t talk about San Román. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” says the filmmaker Jonás Trueba. “The what?” asks the cultural reporter César Suárez, pretending to be clueless. “No idea,” states the actress Lola Dueñas. The San Román, a bar so tiny that the Christmas tree hangs upside down from the ceiling, is one of the best-kept secrets of the Madrid night scene.

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Spanish government prepares measures to ease the country’s farming crisis

Carlos E Cué ,Hugo Gutiérrez — Tue, 25 Feb 2020 11:10:00 GMT

The crisis in Spain’s agricultural sector has become one of the biggest political headaches for the Spanish government. Madrid is concerned that ongoing protests by farmers could spawn something similar to France’s gilets jaunes or yellow vests – a movement in support of economic justice that has been staging mass demonstrations in the country’s northern neighbor since late 2018.

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CAP vs Cohesion

Bernardo de Miguel / Claudi Pérez, Brussels

At a European summit held last weekend, Spain fought against a slated 14% cut to the funds it receives from the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). European leaders were there to negotiate the EU’s 2021-2027 budget, but walked away on Friday without a consensus.

Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez arrived in Brussels on Thursday ready to sacrifice some of the regional subsidies that Spain receives through the Cohesion Fund, in exchange for leaving agricultural subsidies intact, according to European sources consulted by EL PAÍS.

But any cuts to the cohesion funds could create significant strain between Madrid and the regional governments, which sustained most of the budget cuts during the protracted economic crisis.

The private life of Spain’s King Felipe

Mábel Galaz — Tue, 04 Feb 2020 07:39:57 GMT

The 21st-century monarchs of Europe have made a point of establishing a new set of rules regarding royal protocol, particularly when it comes to drawing a line between their public duties and private life. No longer do they appear to follow the model established by Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II, a sovereign who is keenly aware of how she spends her free time – even her birthday celebrations are conditioned by her role as queen and take place in June, rather than April when she was born, because the weather is better.

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Country gentleman and sportsman

Since he got married, King Felipe no longer goes hunting, but he does likes to walk in the countryside and take trips with Queen Letizia and their daughters to towns close to Madrid.

He continues to ski, but when he goes on a family trip he chooses a resort outside of Spain to avoid attracting attention. However, he does take to the Spanish slopes with friends once a year.

The 52-year-old monarch is in fact very sporty and keeps himself fit, paying special attention to his back, which gave him problems due to his height when he was younger. His favorite sports to watch are basketball and cycling, which he followed on the radio as a younger man. He is also keen on soccer – the late manager of the Atlético Madrid, Jesús Gil, revealed that he was a fan of the club and he is yet to deny it.

The pioneering Spanish company where staff work a four-day week

Ginés Donaire — Mon, 20 Jan 2020 07:40:42 GMT

A four-day week on the same salary has become a reality in Spain as a company in the southern Spanish city of Jaén, Software Delsol, this month reduced the hours of its 181 employees.

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Spain’s dying railroad towns: Trying to catch a new train to prosperity

Silvia Hernando — Fri, 17 Jan 2020 16:27:11 GMT

A setting sun casts oblique rays over the hamlet of Algodor. In this spur of Madrid territory that bites into Toledo province, a solitary building made in the neo-Mudejar style rises over the reddish-greenish plain. The old train station with its arched windows was erected in 1929 to replace an older, more humble building.

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Barcelona man reclaims art of small talk through free street conversations

Alberto G. Palomo — Thu, 16 Jan 2020 07:48:09 GMT

Raquel Frohlinger, a 26-year-old from New York, was passing through Barcelona on a recent day when she stopped to chat with a complete stranger under one of the Catalan capital’s landmarks, the Arc de Triomf.

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Video: Spanish photographer’s speech on happiness at work goes viral

Emilio Sánchez Hidalgo — Mon, 13 Jan 2020 07:55:36 GMT

Pedro Correa’s life took a dramatic turn the day his father died. “He was 56 years old and I was 29,” he said to engineering students at Belgium’s Catholic University of Leuven during their graduation ceremony. “One day he was as strong as an oak, and the next day he was gone. We all know we are mortal, but it’s one thing to know that we are mortal and another to know we are going to die, and that it can happen from one day to the next.”

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Why tourists are digging deep in Asturian mines

Sergio C. Fanjul — Fri, 10 Jan 2020 14:42:43 GMT

There was never such perfect darkness. The blackness is absolute and the silence is broken only by the breathing of the other visitors in the group. We are hundreds of meters underground, in a small passage that connects two drifts in the Pozo Sotón mine in Spain’s northwestern region of Asturias. There is very little space and it feels as though we are far from everything. The miner Nuria, who insists she is not “a guide,” has told us to turn off our helmet lamps. So we stand in the darkness in silence. The moment lasts just a few seconds, but there is something mystical about the experience, something metaphysical in the blackness and the absence that surrounds us. It is like not existing; like a brief journey to outer space, despite the fact we are actually occupying an inner space, deep within the Earth.

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Mining museums in Spain and Europe

Not all the industrial and mining tourism centers are in Asturias. Spain’s northeastern region of Catalonia also has the Museum of Science and Technology, with its network of 27 centers and heritage sites offering insight into the industrialization of this region.

You can also visit the Ponferrada Energy Museum in León province; the Castile and León Museum of Steel and Mining in Sabero (León); the Escucha Mining Museum in Teruel province; the El Soplao Cave in Cantabria, and the Arditurri mines and Mining Museum Foundation, both in the Basque province of Gipuzkoa.

Meanwhile, Huelva province has the Riotinto Mining Park where you can gaze upon Martian-like landscapes, inhabited by bacteria than can withstand extreme conditions. Add to this list the cinnabar (a form of mercury) mines of Almadén, in Ciudad Real, and the Almería mine where the Pulpí Geode – the largest accessible crystal cave in the world – can be found.

Further afield is the Industrial Route of Silesia, in Poland, where tourists can visit various mines, factories and museums, and the German Ruhr valley, which has been turned into an icon of industrial tourism.

In photos: The Three Kings arrive in Spain

El País — Mon, 06 Jan 2020 10:53:07 GMT