We walk to museums, to look at buildings of particular interest, to lunch or dinner. I can not help but look at the people. Ukraine was part of Russia for hundreds of years but the area has been inhabited for over 30,000 years. Who are they? The ethnic group called ‘Ukrainian’ is Slavic, as are Russians, Poles and parts of the old Yugoslavia. They do not seem in general to be quite as blond with super light skin tones as I noticed in Russia, but close enough.
In a bar in Cabañal having tapas with Ximo and Andea. They are great company. We tried an array of unusual tapas, thanks to Ximo’s excellent suggestions. Superb local wine. I had a great time with them in May, sometimes in bar and sometimes at Ximo’s place.
Cabañal is on the edge of Valencia, Spain at the beach. The narrow streets reflect the age of the place, which is full of many two story traditional Spanish townhouses. This is a small water color painting.
We move in on the eye, it’s shimmering reflections, fluidity, how it conveys awareness.
This is after Van Gogh’s “Wheat Field with a Lark.” Starring my wife Peg and my friend Vincent.
I have long been an admirer of Lech Walesa. He was the head of Solidarity, having come to that position by way of his willingness to speak up for his fellow workers and take the jail time, periods of unemployment and other consequences. He was a father and a husband, so his actions were not easy for him nor for his wife and family. They helped develop Solidarity into a political movement with 9.5 million members at its peak, after having become the first non-government controlled trade union in the Soviet bloc. Solidarity helped bring down not only the Polish communist regime but helped bring about the fall of the Soviet Union. Lech maintains an office at the Solidarity Museum and at 72 still comes to work there.
