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This just arrived! The first passport since I moved to Spain without a photo taken at Enrique Fotografo. After 67 years at the same location in Calle Rioja they closed their doors THE DAY BEFORE I went to get my passport pic. I was desolate when I hobbled over and saw this sign in the window. Back in the day Enrique was the only place in the centre I could get a photo with the specifications required by Canada, and so I just kept going back every five years. It became a kind of ritual, going into a proper studio, first stopping into a small room with a mirror to “arreglarme” and then getting a professional photo taken. No more.

We’ve lost so many long time family businesses like this over the past couple of years and it’s always the same story… building bought for more tourist apartments, the rent skyrockets, the business closes. In this case they have relocated to Tomares, a village outside the city in the Aljarafe. Sadly a bit too far out for me. Oh well, the memories remain. When I left a comment on their Instagram mentioning getting my Canadian passport photos done there for years they wrote back saying…”yes, we remember you!” 🥲