Few airplanes cross over our valley. In the height of summer we may hear the whirr of a fire helicopter carrying water in its belly to a distant fire, the whirr that always makes our hearts beat faster as we scan the horizon for smoke. Probably once a year a light airplane passes overhead. We used to see, once a week, a high trail of a big airliner, a fine line heading due north from South Africa we presumed; haven’t seen that for a while so perhaps the airline’s route has changed. Rarely, airforce jets. 
We do not dislike the passing traffic which travels high, so high we cannot hear the engines, because they leave behind a special gift. Con trails, short for condensation trails, are the long thin artificial clouds which form behind aircraft. Most often triggered by the water vapour in the exhaust of the aircraft’s engines, or by changes in air over the wings, they are made of billions of liquid droplets or ice crystals suspended in the air. 
To us, they mean glorious sunsets. 
At their purest, the con trails transform into pink lines which look as if they were drawn by a watercolour artist. Often there is a window of only 15-20 minutes when the con trails and the position of the sun combine to beautiful effect. 
5 to remember
el avión – airplane
poco/a – few
el helicóptero – helicopter
el vientre – belly
el runrún – whirr
Notes on a Spanish Valley
Award-winning blog – Living in rural Andalucia
Wonderful description that paints your spanish valley in very calm colours in my mind’s eye!
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Thanks so much, it is so calming to sit and watch the colours unfold. SD
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Cool stuff, Sandra.
AnElephant loves sunsets.
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Thanks! SD
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I thought they were Atlas’ footprints stamped across the sky – oh well, gorgeous still.
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Why Atlas’s footprints? That conjures up a wonderful image. SD
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A Canon G11 compact digital, nothing complicated. I’ve borrowed my husband’s Canon SLR but can’t get on with it, so stick to my G11. SD
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I did finally grow up and learn about contrails and all other science facts that put my babyish musings to the ground. Found I do love science but the romance of all those warring – loving – unpredictable gods – they could leave pink blazes across the sky, couldn’t they? I mean, as they go off to do ordinary things, like wash their togas in the clouds?
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Wonderful timing, contrails at sunset, like a cosmic being has taken a highlighter pen to the sky to underscore what is important.
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Absolutely. Great of the airlines to time their schedules exactly right for our valley, isn’t it? SD
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Beautiful otherworldly looking sky. I always love it when that happens.
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The other great thing is that it’s always a nice surprise at the end of the day, impossible to plan. Except perhaps at Bryce Canyon, my all-time favourite place for sunsets! SD
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