April 29th
May Day is approaching! Tomorrow I’ll be here, even though traditionally I’ve been at Punamäki with good people enjoying the workers’ celebration, food, singing, and playing music. This year more than ever, I would have wanted to be there. After all, we’ve lost two significant contributors to socially engaged music. The Chydenius – Korhonen couple managed to accomplish quite a lot. Kaj composed several songs that I could name “the songs of my life.” For over 40 years, those songs have been sung together with friends on April 30th at Punamäki. This year, that won’t happen. That saddens me. But tomorrow is another day!
Today Zaragoza! We arrived here after a brisk drive. We followed our fellow camper for a couple of hours. The British driver put the pedal to the metal, and we sped along in their wake, covering the distance in less time than expected. Eva managed to take some pictures when the driving route (and the driver) was clear and in good condition. Eva had conjured up another fantastic spot for us near the city center, close to the congress center, from a free parking lot. Once we arrived, we grabbed our bikes from the back rack and hopped on them. Following the instructions from a local, we headed towards the city center, admiring the excellent architecture along the riverbank.
There, we had our first lesson in local customs. You don’t just ride bikes anywhere. There are designated bike lanes for that. A determined (and friendly) police officer guided us in this matter.
Our first destination was the Palacio De La Aljafería – an old castle in the city center. Once inside the grand basilica, we bought tickets to all the major Catholic sanctuaries. We climbed the tower (after a warming elevator ride of 100 steps) and then explored the cathedrals inside. There were quite a few of them. I couldn’t help but think about the amount of work some people put into building these. Monuments to the wilds of spiritual life and power. Churches (especially the Pope) have had and still have a considerable amount of power today.
After visiting three cathedrals, we needed some sustenance. We found a restaurant serving tapas. Beers with them tasted just right. Rarely have we had two generous beers and tasty snacks for two for 15 euros in the middle of a big city. But today we did! Excited about it, we also ordered dessert. Ice cream servings, two lattes, and a considerable mugful (I ordered a small whiskey – got a triple) produced a 20€ bill. One could get used to this if staying for a longer time! The journey back to Tellu went smoothly with light pedaling. Perhaps the decent serving of walking gave an extra kick to the cyclists!
So we’ve spent a Catholic church day with tapas and drinks. Let’s see what tomorrow brings! It’s May Day! Long live the century-old tradition of students’ and workers’ celebration!