Spanish views from a small town

Normally Spanish movies aren't worth the money of the ticket you buy to see them. They're predictable, sometimes badly acted, and have stumbling story lines. But this year there's one that sounds interesting. It's called El Olivo (The Olive Tree) and is directed by Icíar Bollaín. It's the story of a young woman who is very attached to her grandfather. But the man stopped talking twelve years earlier and now has stopped eating. The granddaughter is certain it is all caused by the sale of an ancient olive tree from their family olive grove twelve years earlier. Together with some friends, she sets out on a trip through Europe to find it and bring it back, to help her grandfather heal. I imagine the underlying theme is that Spain has sold her soul to Europe for a little cash. True. What's also true is that we sell or destroy our heritage very easily for a fistful of euros. We tend to knock down old houses because they're "too small." Then we sell t...

Spain is a country rich in cultural heritage. You can find a piece of the past down almost every byway and road you take. From the internationally famous and well-preserved relics, such as the walls of Ávila, the aqueduct of Segovia, and the Roman walls of Lugo to crumbling and ignored ruins, such as the Torre de Sandiás in Ourense, or the hundreds of disappearing, abandoned monasteries and fortresses, such as the one atop the hill at Mota del Marqués in Castilla-Leon, next to the modern A-6 speeding from A Coruña to Madrid. One would think that with all the rich history behind us, as a nation we would want to preserve the vestiges that remain. Well, the law says we must; our individualism says, "what's in it for me?" If it turns out that the recognition and preservation of a piece of history will make it more difficult for the neighbors to go about their daily lives, some are not above destroying or hiding a ruin. Near here a dolmen has been "discovered...