A line across Spain divides those who put flavoured lard on their breakfast toast from those who prefer olive oil. It is related to the line demarking where orange trees can grow.

A line across Spain divides those who put flavoured lard on their breakfast toast from those who prefer olive oil. It is related to the line demarking where orange trees can grow. The regions where women use fans at Mass are similarly defined.

It was like a butterfly farm in the basilica of Santa Maria in Elche last week. Outside it was 27C. Inside, the air was hotter and still. If a hole were opened in the dome, air would erupt like Vesuvius.
I was grateful to get in there at all, because Spanish churches do not post the times of Mass outside. I’ve mentioned that before. They list the times in the porch, which is locked when Mass is not in the offing.
Why not look online? Because the websites are unreliable. And there was a new complication last week. Summer and winter times differ. But the change to winter at some churches is 1 October, at others on the day the clocks change (tonight).

After Mass, in the square outside, people tucked in to a late breakfast of squashed tomato on toast while the green oranges hung ripening on the tree.

Get Instant Access

Continue Reading

Register for free to read this article in full

REGISTER

Subscribe for unlimited access

SUBSCRIBE NOW

From just £37.50 quarterly

  Print copy of The Tablet delivered directly to your door.
  Complete access to all Tablet website content including all premium content.
  Access to the weekly digital copy of The Tablet.
  Full access to The Tablet’s archive – over 180 years of back issues.

Already a subscriber? Login