Costa Brava means “wild coast”. And it is considered wild due to the rockiness of the coast. (See picture below.)

I traveled with a group of random humans and one handsome tour guide up this coast today. “Catalonia”, I learned, means land of castles. Apparently Catalonia has an unusual number of castles, and according to our tour guide, Xavier, one season of Game of Thrones was filmed here. Further rounding out my knowledge of Catalonia is that it was an independent country for 700 years! I believe from the 9th century to 1714. That significantly explains today’s demands for independence! And this makes me think of Scotland.

I had music for dessert! Meaning, my dessert was a word in Catalon that sounds exactly like “music” in English: it was made of mixed nuts and very sweet wine. These two things came separately. It was pleasant.

Yesterday I had intriguing conversations with Singaporeans about their country and geopolitics and today I had entertaining conversations with the tour guide on his efforts to divert (and end!) political conversations in his tour groups. The current American political scene is diverting to people from other countries, but does not always lead to the vibe that a tour guide may want. Ha! I watched in concern yesterday as one American sat looking down, very still and silent, around the lunch table, as other Americans and many other nationalities voiced loud disapproval of the previous American president. I changed the topic. (I was sitting across from five Texans. Apparently they did not all share the same views!)

Over dinner tonight I researched the Moors and Franco. I was not able to validate the claims of yesterday’s tour guide that the Moors generally valued freedom of conscience or that they were largely welcomed by the Iberians. I was able to confirm that Franco did force Catholicism on his people. Amazingly, one historian claims Franco’s power over his own people far exceeded the height of power that Hitler or Stalin ever had over their own people.

I sincerely want to know: what governments have valued freedom of conscience and why? This dovetails with the question of how church and state should relate. From the little I’ve gathered, for most of history these two entities (church and state) have been an indivisible unit and suggesting that they should be separate would be illogical to the peoples of that time. I know Queen Elizabeth I valued freedom of conscience at a time when this was not particularly common. I like to think the Moors did but can’t yet validate this claim. It’s not natural for someone to give away power, and for a government to say “believe what you like about the most important things” is a massive giving-away of power. I think this is going to rattle around my brain for a while longer…

I wish to close with an important culinary formula I learned today: rucula = rocket = arugula. Just how many words get applied to the same plant?! I need some reason in the universe… perhaps I ask too late?