After nearly thirty years representing Canada in seven different countries (Canada as well as, in order, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, US, Afghanistan (Ingrid only) and, from 2009-12, Sri Lanka, where Bruce was High Commissioner and Ingrid was Country Director for World University Services of Canada), the prospect of a return to offices in Ottawa was enough to make us agree that it might be a go
od time to try something, as they say, completely different. We had always thought that the best part of our respective jobs over the years was meeting a constant stream of new people; the worst part was the sometimes quite overwhelming "stuffed shirt" character of international diplomacy. The challenge then was to find an activity that would allow us to continue to cross paths with the widest swath of interesting people but in the most informal of settings. From that basic premise, it was a small leap to the idea of a Bed and Breakfast. The name, El Diplomatico Feo, (The Ugly Diplomat) is a gentle joke on ourselves. To those who ask, "why Spain", our simple answer is, "why not?" It is a fabulous country with a hugely colourful history and a people who seem, to these experienced travellers anyway, amongst the most naturally friendly we have ever met. Add to that the fact that it is one of the world's leading tourist destinations and, finally, that we found our particular paradise in Cadiz Province, one kilometre from a town that boasts of 330 days of sunshine per year and, well, is any further explanation necessary?
