Do you ever wonder how fairy tales survive—or crumble—when they’re dressed in uniform? In my latest Camino a Ítaca column for HOY, I explore exactly that: how the stories we inherit transform when they’re repackaged by institutions, power, or conformity. I reflect on the tension between imagination and order, and trace how even the most…
Curious about how literature, identity, and cultural myths intersect in the most unexpected places? My most recent stop on the Camino a Ítaca takes readers into the heart of Alberta’s book-ban culture—and reflects on the broader implications for societies everywhere, including Spain. Click over to read the English version over on SUR in English or…
In a world that often shouts about what sets us apart, there’s something quietly radical about embracing what brings us together. In this week’s Camino a Ítaca a counterdance against the demagogues threatening to deport an imaginary eight million immigrants. From the rhythms of Castile’s town squares and narrow streets to the rare shared silences of…
On Benches, Boulevards, and the Beauty of Belonging One of the things I’ve always admired about life in Spain is how public public space truly is. A square is not something to pass through—it’s something to dwell in. A bench belongs to whoever needs a rest. A park, a pool, a plaza: these are…
“Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness.” — Mark Twain Samuel Clemens, the master of irony, wrote this during his “Grand Tour” around the Mediterranean in the late 1800s. It’s a truism that doesn’t always stick — not everyone becomes wiser through travel. But even for the most seasoned travelers, the road can still…
God help us. The war drums are beating again. Somewhere between the tortilla and the gazpacho, the far-right guardians of Spanishness are having a collective nosebleed — purity tests for everything from ham to human beings. I couldn’t sit idly by and watch the madness. No, I strapped on my battered typewriter and unleashed a…
In this week’s Camino a Ítaca a look at how mediocrity seems to rise to power here in Spain. This of course happens everywhere, but here in Spain there seems to be a particular subset of people whose sole ability is to play the system and reach the top without having any other discernible skills.…
The Camino a Ítaca is in no way linear, it circles and loops and starts all over again. As spring turns Cáceres into the allergy sufferers nightmare, another event takes places, one that has been going on for more than thirty years. It’s quasi-religious in the way that in some sectors it can’t be questioned for…
Nostalgia, memory, love: all powerful emotions. And what can trigger them? In this case, Pop Rocks exploding in a sensory sugar rush. In Spanish they call them Peta Zetas but it’s a story that could easily be told in German, Russian, Romanian, Albanian or Cambodian. It’s a story that will be told again in Argentina…
“For a moment, it felt like we had won. The bad guys were relics. Fascism was a lesson Spanish schools didn’t teach, and liberal democracy was what all the cool countries were wearing.” The Camino a Ítaca climbs the Statue of Liberty this week for a look around to see what is left of something…