Sofia is situated on a plane set between hills and mountains, including ski areas within thirty minutes. This can make for a swinging descent all the way to the runway. This caused the young, brightly lipsticked English fluent Bulgarian woman seated between us to do the Bulgarian-Orthodox double cross as if this were her last, yet she does this trip frequently.
We were told clearly by a retired Bulgarian couple living in Valencia that this was not the best time of year to visit Sofia, nor was Sofia the best place to visit in Bulgaria. Plovdiv, they said, is much more beautiful. Take a bus tour, they said in their very good albeit Boris accented English. Of course we’d already laid the plans and were leaving the next day. It’s a young city architecturally, they explained, and little to brag about from a tourist perspective, though worth three days. I breathed a sigh of relief, as we have only five, take off one for the bus tour and we probably won’t die of boredom. As we flew in we could see it’s large collection of what we call Communist Blocks: apartment towers in all the grayness of concrete. Fortunately there are some sites of interest in Sofia.
We saw some after we meandered (being somewhat lost) to our roomy warm flat in the center, located in a turn of the century behemoth with an ugly entrance hall and an ancient elevator with no inner door and barely room for the three of us, as our landlord took us in to show us around. A tiny bit later we walked past the 6th century all brick Church of Saint Sofia on the way to the Patriarchal Cathedral of St. Alexander Nevsky, a magnificent structure not far from chez nous (our place). It has those beautiful if gaudy golden domes common to Orthodox architecture. As we came upon it the disharmonious bells rang out, perhaps to announce the solemn procession of the long bearded priests soon to begin. Check it out:
Inside are the huge portraits of venerated men on the tall walls, along with Mary and Joseph in the iconic Byzantine style. There are several icons to which the Orthodox pay their respects, bowing and kissing of the item. There is one icon in the very middle of the main aisle. After stopping there many were visiting another of the icons, then greeting other priests and the occasional lay visitor. It all looked very chummy, friendly, happy looking bunch.
Shortly a large procession of all male priests began, following what was clearly the head priest, who diverted into a throned canopy to receive ring kisses, preceded by his sign of the cross blessing posted at breakneck speed. The priests then walked into the area behind the huge screen. You can see through its entrance but much remains invisible from the audience area.
It was dark and getting colder, on its way to -3c/25f overnight, so we started home. We came upon an outdoor market, festively lighted and wafting aromas of sausage and baked goods and emoting enough good cheer to get you through the long cold winter nights.
Sausages galore. Some lovely baked yummies. Wine, which according to our air travel companion is the favorite beverage over beer. For dinner we ordered a white made by the restaurant we chose for dinner, which turned out to be a rather odd tasting Sauvigon Blanc. Hoping for better. The salad, which the Bulgarians consume in great variety, was not, on the other hand, a disappointment.
Friends report the presence of many volunteers in their communities, including some from Madrid and Barcelona. There are many heartwarming stories of efforts to provide on site assistance, food, clothing, shelters for pets and pet food.
Oscar Puente, head of Transportation, says that lines C1 and C2 of “Cercanías” (regional trains) will be reopened before Christmas, perhaps C5 and C6 as well. Line C3,the one going south, suffered the most damage. A reopening date has not been estimated. He went on to say that the main highways should be more fully operational in the near future. Secondary and smaller roads are going to take months. On the A7 they are building a bypass for military and emergency access. The A3 to the south was closed due to a collapsed bridge, but they are paving an alternative route. The 330 should be open by now. Source La Sexta
Mazon, the President of the Generalitat (Valencia province) apologized for the much delayed warning. Some 130,000 showed up at the Ayuntamiento (City Hall) in downtown Valencia to protest. There was another protest at the Borja Palace.
On November 11, 2024, La Dirección General de Tráfico says there were more than 22 kilometers backed up. Various important roads in the effected areas are still closed to traffic: the A-7 between Quart de Poblet and Torrent, the CV-33 in Torrent, the CV-36 from Picanya to the A-7, the CV-50 in Chiva. There are 31 smaller routes that are not usable at all.
We took the bus to El Perelló, .located on the beach to the south. Just outside Valencia city we drove past huge numbers of damaged vehicles. We saw no damage to property the entire distance to El Perelló other than the expansion of the lake, called the Albufera. Some farmland is underwater on the east and northern sides. The beaches are littered with reeds. These no doubt came from the Albufera and were washed out to sea before being carried back in. We saw about a half dozen Guardia Civil on horseback looking for bodies. Access to the beach is blocked north of the Estany de la Plana in El Perelló.
Debris washed up in El Perelló.
Reports from a friend in Catarroja: One of the first things they did was to clean out the storm sewers, removing mud and debris. Heavy rains this week would have resulted in additional flooding.
The bus information screen informed us that fishing in the Albufera has been suspended until conditions return to normal. The Rambla del Poyo that funneled the flood waters empties into the Albufera, causing the conditions leading to the prohibition. Emergency workers have been combing the reeds looking for bodies carried by the Rambla del Poyo.
The screen provided recommendations to volunteers working in effected areas. Equipment: mask, gloves, rubber boots, long sleeves and trousers (no shorts), head and eye cover. They are telling people not to eat or drink while in those zones, and to not put mobile phones next to your face and ears until you have sanitized all surfaces. Where there is no running water people can not use toilets so may be forced to go outdoors. Sewer lines may be broken, spilling sewage. There may be toxic materials in the mud and standing water.
The death total has reached 212. Five children are confirmed dead in the flood. Two are missing per the latest reports. Policía Nacional y la Guardia Civil have 28 cases of missing persons as of November 12, down from 50 the day before.
No victims were found in the parking lot at the MN4 mall in Alfafar.
Debris and vehicle removal continues but there are mountains to move. The first step is to clear a path for pedestrians and vehicles by piling everything on one side, opening one lane.
Calle Calvario, Torrent
Volunteers by the thousands showing up. This is in Catarroja. Photo by Aubrey Lay.
Day care center in Picanya.
Maribel Alblat, the mayor of Paiporta, probably the most seriously effected community, called the “delegada del Gobierno” Pilar Bernabé García, charged with central government activities in the province, at 7 pm on the day of the flood. “People are dying,” she said. It took an hour before the massive alert was issued. That meant that thousands more were in their vehicles when the flood waters hit.
The Spanish Meteorological Agency (AEMET) had issued orange alerts the day before the floods for heavy rain. The president of Valencia province Carlos Arturo Mazon has been heavily criticized for the lack of timely response. The Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has also been criticized although it appears that the primary initial response must lie with local officials versus those in Madrid.
Mazon, the Partido Popular leader (conservative), voted against a recent proposal to introduce measures that would prevent the risk of floods along the Mediterranean coast. (Alex Dunham and Conor Faulkner – alex.dunham@thelocal.com, 5 Nov, 2024 CET. Updated: Tue 5 Nov 2024 14:30 CE).
Rambla del Poyo in Picanya. You can see the supports for the pedestrian bridge (in yellow)
Volunteer clean up in Picanya
Many people use bottled gas in their homes. Some have to wait in lines for hours for replacement bottles. Water and electricity has returned to at least parts of Catarroja according to a friend of mine with family in the area.
A Spanish Navy vessel landed Monday bringing 104 marines to assist in recovery efforts. There are over 5,000 soldiers already in the area. The ship brought trucks loaded with food, water, support materials, and two SH-60F helicopters. Daily World
Schools in about half of the effected areas are set to reopen on Monday, November 11.
Various fund raising efforts are underway. Last night we attended the tour of the Antiguo Almacen de Dientes. There were more than 50 people in attendance and many more who bought tickets but did not attend.
Source of the above information is the online version of Las Provincias unless otherwise indicated.
Some 1 million were effected by flood waters in 78 municipalities.
Donations to the Spanish Red Cross can be made here Cruzroja.
Spanish television station reporting – Headline reads, “There is still a lot to do.” No kidding.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Io7jgf82fX8 This video is about Picanya, on the Rambla del Poyo. The first speaker indicates the height of the waters where he is standing. The bridge there is destroyed and he says the next five bridges are as well, but there is one remaining so people can cross the Rambla. The second speaker points to his house. The water having reached a height of 5 meters he was forced into the top floor.
Las Provincias (Valencia based newspaper) reports an urgent need to drain standing water. Cleaning of ground floors and basements have resulted in vast quantities of dirty water creating an unbearable stench (“hedor”). They need every truck in Spain capable of carrying off this water. Some houses were condemned due to structural weakness. Inside buildings there is still much to be discarded but nowhere left to put it given the mountains of debris already there.
Those effected by the floods have two months to request financial assistance. This includes farmers. There are more than 54,000 hectares effected. The main way to request assistance is via the internet. However many do not have the capacity for one reason or the other, and lack the digital certificate needed, so the provincial government (Generalitat) plans to open local facilities, itself a significant challenge under the circumstances.
The two pedestrian walkways and the railway bridge in Paiporta are unusable. The other three infrastructures that crossed the Poyo suffered no structural damage and are operational, per the Levante. Levante also reports that there are still 93 people missing. Levante November 7
Debris and cars, and perhaps cadavers still, effected The Albufera, a fishing and agricultural area south of the city of Valencia. Fishing has been suspended pending further evaluation. Rice, artichokes, oranges and more are cultivated in the area. The Rambla del Poya that carried the devastating flood waters empties into the brackish lake at the heart of the area.
Some statistics: 44000+ vehicles, 21,400+ houses and 2200+ commercial properties destroyed. Endless quantities of perishable goods have been ruined: 800,000 kilos in 32 locations, mostly fresh meat and fish shops as well as restaurants. Authorities have removed almost 3000 farm animal cadavers. Family Cash y MasyMas supermarket chains are donating food, hygiene and cleaning products. Amazon has an aid center at calle Luis García-Berlanga Martí 25 in Valencia for the distribution of food and other primary necessities. Of some 92 schools in the effected zones, 24 can re-open.
The Spanish government has announced direct aid of between 5,000 and 150,000 euros for self-employed workers and businesses, and 75% of guaranteed salary. Pensioners get an immediate 15% increase. Between 20,000 and 60,000 for house repair, 10,3000 for furnishing and appliances, up to 37,000 for residences for the elderly, and 72,000 if incapacitated.
Some 600 building inspectors are now in effected areas to check structures for safety.
The provincial government plans a to create a website to help local governments coordinate with volunteers . Interviews with volunteers suggests that more rather than fewer are needed for the countless smaller scale activities. The transportation department recommends avoiding the V-30. There are huge traffic jams on the AP-7. The beach areas in Pinedo, Arbre de Gos, El Saler, Garrofera, Devesa y Perellonet are closed for cleanup. They are using dogs to find cadavers in these areas.
People with missing relatives are asked to provide DNA samples to aid with identification. The central government intends to ask for aid from the European Solidarity Fund. Various EU countries have offered assistance, however none of the offers have yet to be accepted. The Spanish government is paying for all the costs the municipalities incur in dealing with the floods. A set of measures will be announced.
Donation fraud has raised its ugly head. Authorities advise checking the organization out before donating, For now I am recommending only World Central Kitchen. https://wck.org/
Some miscellaneous updates: The Metro in Valencia is not running. It will be opening line by line in the coming days. The regional trains running north are in service, but not to the south, which is where the flooding occurred. There are efforts underway to take care of cats and dogs. Pet stores are collecting donations. Some 15000 military personnel are in or on the way to effected areas. I can not tell how much heavy equipment has arrived and been put to work, though I saw a long line of farm tractors going into one of the towns . The king, prime minister and president of Valencia Comunitat (the provincial government) were pelted with mud in Paiporta yesterday. Trash service in Valencia is back on so that means they can get to the landfills and recycling centers, other than the organic waste. That container is still full.
Picnaya is divided by the Rambla del Poyo. Four of the five bridges are gone, the one remaining carries vehicles. The town of Torrent, next to Picanya, is nearly impossible to get to because of road damage and blockages. It is the second largest town in the province of Valencia.
World Central Kitchen was serving hot meals in Paiporta yesterday. The founder is a famous Spanish chef. I have donated along with a number of friends. It is a reliable charity. Please consider donating World Central Kitchen
Trucks and cars were thrown around like corks
Car and debris everywhere
Flooding happened on streets with parked cars and traffic
After the center street has been cleared
Farm tractors showing up to go to work
This shows where the Rambla del Poyo is. You can see a number of the effected communities along that gully.
At a large shopping center called Bonaire there is a 1700 car underground parking lot. It filled with water. There was much fear that many victims died in their cars. They have been pumping it out for days and finally they can get in. There are no victims, fortunately.
Elsewhere one man spent 11 hours in a tree before he was rescued. Another was taken in by a truck driver. They waited it out in the cab. One woman left work as usual at 5pm. Before long she was caught between two branches of the flood. She took a video, sent it to her brother, who told her to get out of the car or she would die. She exited the car and was underwater immediately. “”But at that moment, one of those white canisters that are in the countryside hit me in the belly, pushing me to the surface and crashing me into an orange tree. With my right foot, I leaned a little on the nozzle of the canister and gained enough momentum to stay afloat.” (Las Provincias https://www.lasprovincias.es/comunitat/pase-horas-arbol-jose-manuel-socorrio-20241105003020-nt.html )
There are many heart warming reports of rescues, in some cases by people risking their lives to help others. Sonia, Carmen, Eva, Pepa y Fran were rescued. They were in the water when a man came swimming to tell them to follow him to where they could join others in a building. The window was illuminated still and they followed him there.
There was heavy flooding in Barcelona yesterday from the same type of meteorological system, called DANA in Spanish, that caused the devastation in Valencia province on September 29. Roads and airport closed.
Flooding in Barcelona on November 4, video in English
My writing here is ordinarily focused on our travels, be it by air, land or boat. I diverge from these now. I think that these stories have some general interest. Also I write about these matters for my direct heirs and other relatives, that they may know about those who came before them.
The Italian side
We were told that my mother’s family came from Palermo, and that on my father’s side the origin was Irish.
In 2010 I decided to seek Italian citizenship by what the Italians call ‘Jure Sangris,” by blood. Under that law I was able to proceed through my mother, as I was born after 1948, when the law changed, allowing maternal proceedings. My mother was born in the US so I went through her father, Giuseppe he was born in Italy and thus had clearly been a citizen of Italy. We were told he and my grandmother were born in Palermo.
.To obtain Italian citizenship by Jure Sangris requires that you obtain the birth certificate of the person through whom you make the claim. So I would be going to be dealing with Palermo’s bureaucracy. I lived in Rome for a year so spoke some Italian but probably not enough to do this task. I also knew that Palermo suffered bombing damage in WWII so documents might have been destroyed. I would be dealing with underpaid and perhaps harried public servants. I wondered how well Italians would care for and organize documents.
I also had to find out if my grandfather had naturalized (become a US citizen) and if so when. If before my mother’s birth then she was not an Italian citizen so I could not become one. Otherwise she was and so was I by law, as the bloodline had not been interrupted.
The US government keeps records of everyone who has naturalized. If they can not find a record, then they send a document saying so, and the Italian authorities take that as meaning the person in question had not naturalized, so the application can proceed. You get naturalization documents through the Department of Homeland Security at https://www.uscis.gov/records/genealogy. That document states the person’s birth place. When Giuseppe’s arrived I found that he was not born in Palermo, but Partanna, a small town in the province of Trapani. A letter from Kathy Kirkpatrick (no direct relative), whom I had previously employed to find Giuseppe’s birth certificate, brought me a copy of Giuseppe’s birth and marriage certificates from a cooperative and efficient Anagrafe office in Partanna. The marriage certificate in turn led me to grandmother Francesca’s birthplace in Santa Ninfa, 6 kilometers way and over the hills, although in my case nothing about her mattered as I was proceeding only through Giuseppe. Years later I visited both towns in this rural area, neither terribly far from the infamous Corleone.
The paternal side
On my father’s side there were even more surprises. In my immediate family we were told that the family came from Ireland. In 2016 my wife and I were house and cat sitting at a friend’s house in Flackwell Heath, near Oxford, England. There is a library just down the street. I walked over and it was there that I learned that the Kirkpatricks originated in or around the tiny town of Kirkpatrick-Fleming, not in Ireland, but Scotland.
Then circa 2020 I used ancestry.com to try to trace my family origins. Starting with the excellent work of Arkansas relatives whose work went back to around the time of the Civil War, I traced the family back to 12th century Scotland. Ireland came into the picture around 1737, when Dumfries Scotland born James Kirkpatrick’s son Francis was born in Ireland, probably Northern Ireland as that’s where the Protestant Scots went rather than the Catholic area of the island. (The Arkansas relatives were told of a joint Scottish and Irish heritage, per one of my 56 first cousins)
They weren’t there for long. His first child, Francis, was born in Ireland but from the records I have found it appears he was the only one of five born there. So we do technically have Irish roots from Ireland but it was more of a stopping off point. For centuries before then and back to the time before people had family names Scotland was our land.
I was quite surprised to learn that the Kirkpatrick family is well known in Scottish history, starting with Roger de Kirkpatrick, a neighbor and close ally of Robert the Bruce (originally Brus or Brux, a town in France). Robert was king of Scotland 1306-29. The Kirkpatrick family motto, “I Mak Sikkr” (I Made Sure) was granted by King Bruce to acknowledge the role Roger played in the slaying of Robert’s chief rival for the throne, Red Cormyn. See my post at https://garyjkirkpatrick.com/i-mak-sikker-roger-de-kirkpatrick-and-robert-the-bruce-king-of-scotland/
I Mak Sikkr, at the Closeburn Parish Church
During the course of this phase of my investigation I learned of the castle built by Ivone de Kirkpatrick starting circa 1132. It is called Closeburn Castle as it is in the town of Closeburn. It is still with us and is the longest continuously inhabited castle tower in the UK. It remains inhabited to this day. I also found out that the Kirkpatrick family holds an United Kingdom baronetcy dating from 1685. No one is qualified to hold the title is alive today. The last one died in 2010. My connection to any of the people mentioned above is quite distant. See my post at https://garyjkirkpatrick.com/journey-to-century-13th-the-family-castle-in-closeburn
My mother’s side came to the US from Sicily as early as 1913 when a Francesca Augello (my grandmother) went through Ellis Island , and again in 1914 (Giuseppe my grandfather) and 1915. Among those on the ship coming from Naples on January 2nd, 1915 was a young man named Matteo Calzanera. As children we called him Uncle Mathew. He was accompanied by his sister Anna Palermo, aka Annette, whom we called Auntie, and their grandmother, Sebastiana Rubino, after whom my mother was named per tradition. As Palermo was my grandfathers family name, why was Matteo’s last name Calzanera? Why did my grandfather Giuseppe refer to Matteo as his wife Francesca’s son and not their son? If Guiseppe was not the father, who was?
In 2018 I requested a copy of Matteo’s birth certificate in an effort to clear up this mystery. I ordered if from Partanna on the presumption that he was born there, and it turned out that he was indeed. These birth certificates normally include the names of the mother and father. In Mathew’s case, neither the father nor the mother’s name is recorded. Until or unless someone sorts this out, this mystery remains unsolved.
On October 29, 2024, Paiporta and Picanya, both in the province of Valencia and on the south edge of the city of Valencia, and 13 other communities on the west and south side of Valencia were heavily damaged by a raging flood causing over 200 deaths and counting. Bodies are still being pulled from the wreckage. This came about as a result of 19″ inches of rain in the hills to the north and west of the city of Valencia, which itself got little rain in addition to a fair amount of wind. This deluge is the equivalent of a year’s worth of rain in a few hours.
This type of storm is called a DANA, Depresión Aislada en Niveles Altos, a High Altitude Isolated Depression The jet stream drops further south than normal, bringing cold air that then collided with the warm moist air over the Med. Once this mass of very moist air hit the hills the temperature dropped. The result was some 19″ of rain that was funneled into a large gully called the Rambla del Poyo, which is normally dry. It is not deep and wide enough for this much water all at once. A raging wall of water overflowed the banks.
Wreckage like this can be found in the effected villages.
This disaster one is worse than that of 1957, when 100 died when the central part of the city was flooded by the Turia River. They are still rescuing people trapped in buildings. They found one person alive in their car after three days. Most houses do not have running water nor electricity, while some still have mobile phone service so we are hearing from them. Volunteers and government workers are bringing water, food and supplies. Over 10,000 volunteers were organized and bussed in today, November 2nd.
A residence for seniors/disabled inundated
One tornado touched town
Provincial authorities are coming under some fire for failing to warn people in time. Alerts were sent out via mobile, but people in the effected villages are saying either that they never received one or that it came within minutes of when the flood waters slammed into their houses and cars. I received a warning at 9:30 pm long after the disaster occurred. If you were not following the news you would have had no idea there was a problem.
There were thousands on the roads and highways when the flood waters prevented further progress. Some of them died, most of them have lost their vehicles to the damages inflicted by water, mud and collisions with other vehicles, houses, trees and the like.
Upon our return to Valencia we were greeted with this parade. It is Valencia Day here, and for the people here any excuse for a party or parade will do. The costumes are fantastic and if there is one thing Valencia is not lacking it’s musicians. Each group of Moros/Cristianos has its own band, and they are sizable too. Check it out!
Germany was not yet a nation in 1870 when war broke out between France and the North German Federation. It resulted in the loss of Alsace and Lorraine. The French built the Canal de l’Est afterwards to replace the transport it had lost. The canal begins just a short distance from Nancy. In 2003 the northern and southern branches were officially renamed Canal de la Meuse and Canal des Vosges. We spent the last days of this season on the Canal de la Meuse.
“I reviewed every whodunit I have ever watched, every story of psychotic serial killers.”
Night sets into the blackness
As you round the corner to enter the Canal de la Meuse there is a small town called Richardménil. We pulled into Its a lovely mooring. There are picnic tables and electricity. The narrowing Moselle runs alongside the canal. There is no bike path on this side of the canal so we were alone, aside from the nearby house hidden by the trees, with a large German Shepherd who greeted some of the occasional passers by heading for the footbridge leading to the paved path on the opposite side. Only one other boat came by while we were here and for the following four days.
The adjacent small town is up a steep hill. I biked there to get a baguette- a ‘tradition’ actually. This is a baguette made as they were made before modern methods turned the baguette into a less desirable product so I always ask for a ‘tradition.’
With very warm temperatures on the way we headed up the canal, climbing towards the source of the Moselle. This means we are entering emptied locks. These locks in particular are very difficult to use. The bollards are three meters or so above our heads. There are no holds for the bow other than the activating mechanism’s flimsy pipes, whereas in many locks there are holds built into the walls. To secure the stern I had to climb on the roof, using the hook to place the line over the bollard. We held on tight as the water gushed in turbulently. You rise quickly, hoping not to lose control.
We spent the next three days in the shade as temperatures climbed to 32c/90f outside the little town of Bayon. We grilled on our tiny charcoal barby and prepped some surfaces for later painting. People biked along the narrow, paved bike path, the small bridge crossing the lock just a few meters away. Up the road is a a roadside burger stand. We stopped there one day as the chef was just arriving. The friendly owner gave us a menu, and invited us back. We returned the next day. The burgers are good but not great despite the 5 stars awarded on Google maps, while costing us $40 for two with fries and a bottle of beer. This isn’t exactly cheap. A hundred meters closer to the canal a fete was forming. On Saturday night there was live music, a typical over the hill rock band, referring to their age. They weren’t half bad, especially considering how deep in the countryside we are.
A few people came walking alone late at night, well after midnight, wearing a headlamp, the light on their forehead bobbing in the pitch black mist. As they passed in silence with just a small door separating us, I reviewed the whodunits I have watched, stories of psychotic serial killers. But these were just people walking in the dark.
Penn Bagdley as the charming, loving, affirming yet psychopathic murderer Joe Goldberg in ‘You.”
The heat wave passed after several days. The important town of Epinal lay some thirty locks ahead. The French water authorities had issued a notice stating that the canal south of Epinal was closed effective several days previously. We called the harbor in Epinal to see if it was closed, which they answered in the affirmative. We could have stopped short of Epinal and taken the bus into town. Since we would then have to turn around to got to our winter harbor, repeating the same 30 locks, we decided to forgo the journey. We headed back north for the winter, ending our boating season by gathering with some of the friendly and interesting people we’d met along the way. This year it’s Australians , with one Brit couple, one Belgium and one French.
