Kevin Baitup
Valencia is definitely NOT Beirut, not even close, not even during the mad month of March when locals, fellow Spaniards and foreigners alike enjoy the growing crescendo that descends into a cacophony of fireworks and burning effigies. It’s party time and nobody parties harder than los valencianos, faithful to the historic Las Fallas tradition that brings Spain’s third city to a rocking, cracking climax of noise and controlled chaos on the 19th this year, every year.
I remember March 1989 and trust me, Las Fallas are a wild celebration. The noise,the fireworks get longer and louder as the days ..and nights …pass. If you want a quiet peaceful night, Valencia doing March is not an obvious choice…Just like Beirut, for noise…but not this year. If EuroNews is to be trusted,700,000 people, including 200,000 children had been “displaced” in Lebanon by last Friday, March 13th. I always feel that “displaced” is an understatement a euphemism. After all, what the figures tell us is that more than half a million Lebanese are homeless and running for their lives as real bombs, explosions and missiles land on buildings identified as Hezbollah strongholds or hideouts.
Los valencianos are not to blame. Las Fallas will make not a jot of difference to Netanyahu’s IDF, nor will “la movida”, “la marcha” in the Valencian capital change the dire situation in Tehran. If Reuters is to be believed, over three million Iranians have been “displaced” since February 28th as President Trump flexes his country’s military might over one of the world’s most pernicious and brutal dictatorships. The bombing is precise, apparently, even more precise than the precise bombing of Gulf War 1.0.
Little sleep then in Valencia…but fun, lots of it and anyway with the inexorable decline of the once (nearly great) Valencia Club de Futbol, don’t the locals deserve a holiday as los che battle against relegation..again. Next year the football club is supposedly moving to its new stadium and will be in the land of oranges..all can raise their glasses of agua de Valencia to that.
Except a rather famous fellow countryman of the author of this article. Even though this latest Gulf War conflict seems to have led to around 1500 dead in Iran, about 1000 dead in Lebanon and several thousand injured (take your pick from the multiple agencies attempting to accurately count the fatalities, wounded, etc), Morrissey has checked out of his hotel. He can’t, couldn’t get a decent night’s sleep. The iconic cult singer songwriter from Manchester was feeling miserable ..not in Tehran or Beirut or even Jerusalem but in Valencia. I find it hard to conjure up much sympathy for the former frontman of “The Smiths” who cancelled a concert in Valencia as a result of not getting a wink of sleep. Las Fallas left the composer of “This Charming Man” less than impressed.
Meantime, the bombs, missiles and drones rain down on the Middle East. Morrissey, now a grumpy 66 years old, cancels a concert in Spain. 150 schoolgirls are slaughtered by a less than precise piece of US military hardware.
Sleep well, wherever you are.
