Mind Your Language

It's probably not widely known that there are actually four official languages spoken in Spain; Castillian Spanish, Catalan, Basque and Galician. In the Benidorm area, which is part of the Comunidad de Valencia, a dialect of Catalan known as Valencian is spoken along with Spanish.

When dealing in official business the good citizens of the area can choose which language they want their affairs conducted in. This worked well for one resident of Alfaz de Pi when he was issued a fine for illegal parking in Vila Joiosa. Under the 'Llei d’ús i Ensenyament del Valencià' (a little bit of Valencian there), he claimed his right to have the fine re-issued in Valencian, and with not enough staff competent in the language the town hall was unable to comply.

So, six months down the line, the lucky parker got away without paying the fine proving that red tape can be good sometimes. Luckily for us we don't have to write all our articles in Valencian - we wouldn't have a clue!

24 May 2005 Stephen White.

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