4/7/23
Newsletter #300
The Crack of Dawn
When I step out the front door of my hotel the first thing I see is this structure. It’s called Glories and it’s simply an observation tower with several elevators running up and down. Since I don’t like heights I haven’t gone up to the top.
Surrounding this giant phallus is an area of undulating blacktop, dotted with a dozen colorful square concrete blocks that were meant to sit on. The rolling blacktop is for skateboarders, where they can perform all sorts of cool moves and nobody oversees them or cares if they hurt themselves.
Many people smoke cigarettes, and the practice is not shunned at all. There are ashtrays on the tables and nobody minds if you smoke. Since I smoke, I find it very comforting. In America it’s no longer acceptable to ridicule fat people or special needs people, but you can shun, ridicule, and be offensive to smokers. This is a topic for another day.
There are wonderful, strange artworks scattered across the city. Ten of these rusty seated fellows run down the whole block. This is near the university so perhaps it represents sitting and learning. Or maybe it doesn’t represent anything; it’s just cool.
I’m happy to report that the charming old European custom of women and girls walking arm in arm is still alive and well. I find this open display of affection and friendship heartwarming. You also regularly see couples with their arms around each other. And get this, for the most part people are smiling. They seem to take great joy in their well-behaved kids and dogs.
This building is at least 1,000 years old, is right in the middle of everything, and nobody even sees it. In Detroit there are a few churches from the 1700s. We used to have Northland, the very first shopping mall built in the mid-50s, but they tore it down.
This is just an incredibly beautiful building from God knows when. There are literally thousands of them, all over the place.
This is a 2,000-year-old Roman arch and wall located right in a big square in the center of town. I can’t express how much the student of history in me is moved by coming across these incredible ruins.
I’m the world’s worst tour guide. This is a famous, gorgeous old cathedral, located in a big square, neither of which can I remember the name. However, I’m very pleased with my photograph. I like the angle, the lens, the way the sun lined up with the spire, and of course, the jet contrails.
This is another cool angle on an extremely old building.
Right in the middle of the busiest part of town is an archeological dig. They believe this settlement to be 2,500-3,000 years old.
The penile Glories structure in the daytime. If I turned 180 degrees I’d be facing the front door of the SBGlow Hotel.
There are mysterious alleys all over the place.
This nis the Mediterranean Sea with monkeys carved in the sand
And here’s a cool angle, showing old and new
And here’s a picture of my cat Ike and me.
I met an incredible French woman named Celine who was either the manager or the owner of a patio restaurant in sight of the sea called Pez Gordo del Mar. I’m going back today.
And a good day was had by all.