A Boxing Day walk.

It was time to walk off some of those calories taken on board yesterday so we went down to the Via Verde, the old railway track which is now a walking / cycling route, and headed along the Val de Zafán to the old railway station, which is now a 4* hotel and back up the road to return to the village. A 1¾ hour brisk walk.


It was a glorious sunny day, very little wind and not a cloud in the sky - but quite cold.

Margaret felt in an artistic mood along the route.

Above is a view of the 275 metre long viaduct which carried the railway line, now the Via Verde, across the River Matarraña and on towards Alcañiz.

Hopefully, we used up a few of those extra calories.

Winter solstice sunset.

We missed the lunar eclipse as it was cloudy here, (maybe catch it next time it occurs on the winter solstice), and as it was cloudy, we also missed the sunrise this morning.

Click for big image.

The photo above is of the sunset less than an hour ago; still some cloud but with a bit of imagination you can make out where the sun is actually disappearing on the horizon. You can also see the silhouette of the ermita at La Fresneda to the far right of the skyline. Typically, the sky above us is clear!

The village Christmas tree.

It's complicated but this year the task of decorating the village Christmas tree somehow landed with us, so that is what we have been doing this evening with our friends Floyd, Joy and John and Rosi with the help of Antonio and his tractor.

To see any photo full size, click left on it.

One advantage of being in a farming community is that there is always someone with a tractor and lifting equipment on call when you need to put decorations near the top of a tall Christmas tree.

We assembled all our weatherproof baubles and with a few other polystyrene discs covered with aluminium foil and lengths of tinsel managed to make the tree look quite decorative.


Around the base of the tree we put boxes which Margaret had wrapped as presents. They were then tied together on a pallet so they wouldn't blow away and pine branches wired on.

The overall effect was quite pleasing.

Hopefully, our efforts will last for the duration of the holiday season!

¡La ermita con la luna!

The ermita de San Juan at Torre del Compte with the moon - well, actually in the late afternoon with a half-moon in the sky above it.

To see the full photo, click on the image.

OK, so it's a chilly afternoon,
but I just love that blue sky!!

Enrique - a tribute.

Enrique was an outstanding craftsman, builder and stonemason working in the Matarraña area. His first major project was in building our house 30 years ago. Since then he has constructed and developed countless buildings to a very high standard in the various villages.

Enrique era un artesano destacado, constructor, albañil que trabajaba en la zona del Matarraña. Su primer gran proyecto fue la construcción de nuestra casa hace 30 años. Desde entonces ha construido y desarrollado un sinnúmero de edificios a un nivel muy alto en los distintos pueblos.

Click with the left button of the mouse on the image to see the photo full size.
Haz clic con el botón de izquierda del ratón para ver la foto en tamaño grande.

In the photo above he is pictured with his wife Mari Carmen at the official opening and blessing of our friends Reg and Paul's house in Fórnoles in March 2007.

En la foto de arriba aparece con su esposa Mari Carmen en la inauguración oficial y bendición de la casa de nuestros amigos Reg y Paul en Fórnoles, marzo de 2007.

However, the construction trade is fraught with danger and Enrique was the victim of a tragic accident while working on a site in Fuentespalda on Wednesday, 1st December.

His funeral in Valderrobres earlier today was attended by several hundred people. There were a huge number of enormous wreaths and floral tributes.

Sin embargo, la industria de la contrucción está llena de peligros, y Enrique fue victima de un trágico accidente mientras trabajaba en una obra en Fuentespalda el miércoles, 1 de diciembre.

A su funeral hoy en Valderrobres asistieron varios centenares de personas. Había un gran número de coronas de flores enormes y tributos florales.

He was laid to rest in the cemetery of Valderrobres which is situated in a peaceful and picturesque location just outside of the town.

He will always be fondly remembered because everywhere you look there is testimony to his excellent work.

Fue enterrado en el cementerio de Valderrobres, que está situado en una zona tranquila y pintoresca a las afueras de la ciudad.

Siempre será recordado con cariño; por dondequiera que mires hay testimonio de su excelente trabajo.

Enrique Vicente Monserrat Antoli, R.I.P. / D.E.P.

To read the account of the incident in the local paper, "La Comarca", click HERE

Para leer el relato de lo ocurrido en el periódico local, "La Comarca", haga clic AQUÍ

With thanks for help with the Spanish translation to our good friend Carmen.