My husband and I just spent a couple of days in the south of Spain in the city of Malaga to catch some sun. When we were strolling along the Mediterranean Sea, we suddenly encountered a beautiful promenade called Paseo de los Canadienses, which means “promenade dedicated to the Canadians.”

At the end of this promenade, we discovered a plaque on a rock that explained it. It said: “In memory of the help that the people of Canada provided — through the hand of Norman Bethune — to those citizens of Malaga who were fleeing in February 1937.”

As Gravenhurst cottagers, we know about Norman Bethune and the role he played in China, but until we went to Malaga we did not know that he was also involved in the Spanish Civil War. I must say, when we were standing there reading this, we were quite touched. Historically, there have always been many links between Europe and Canada. Everybody knows this. But in Spain we were really happy to find a direct link to Gravenhurst, and we wanted to let you and your readers know.

Sabine Lange

Berlin, Germany