Leon lives in a suburb of Barcelona called el Fondo. There are very few tourists here, none in fact. I appear to be a sideshow attraction. I am not wholly unaccustom to this. There are many immigrant families here. Little kids playing soccer in the streets. Old men smoking in door stoops. Women carrying bags of vegetables. This is normal life. I feel lucky to see this part of it all. There is a large draw of tourists to stay in the center of the city. El Fondo is one of the furthest suburbs from the center. Still it is only a 15 minute subway ride to anywhere your heart could desire. There are so many beautiful things to see here I feel I should have stayed in Barcelona longer. As it is I am leaving here the day after tomorrow for Madrid to begin my teaching position.
Last night we went to a bar called the Marmalade and then to another called the Big Bang with a group of CSers (Couch Surfers) from the Barcelona group. There were so many people from so many places all speaking Spanish so very fast. I met a girl from Austria, another from Finland and three others from Australia. One guy was from Belgium, one from Israel, one from France, one from the Dominican Republic. There were some Spaniards, but most of them relocated from other places a long time ago. Barcelona is truly an international city, made up almost entirely of immigrants. Both the bars were beautifully decorated. They reminded me of places I've been in Los Angeles, dark holes in the wall where the hip crowd wastes hours sipping caña and vino. The Big Bang played nickelodeon music. Pictures of silent film stars lined the walls. Towards the end of the night, as the wine settled well into it's vessels a couple of young men began to approach me con los piropos. "Tu eres muy muy guapa chica!" "Ven conmigo y voy a darte el ultimo tiempo de tu vida." "No seas, preocupa. Solo quiero besarte."
"No, gracias. No quiero." I wasn't sure what else to say. Too little sleep, too many people. No I do not want to go with you tonight sr, but thank you for the offer. Hopefully I will learn how to handle this a little better as I imagine it will happen often. I am too nice. "Back the fuck up man, I don't want to sleep with you." This is what I should have said. Honestly, I was a little flattered. Still, what is a girl to say??
Walking home at 2am was amazing. Leon and I danced around in the streets and fumbled with apertures. The graffiti here is everywhere and it is complex and beautiful. Walking down las Ramblas groups of men carry six packs of beer. "Cerveza, hash, coke?" The beer is a cover up. One guy asks if we want beer when he has none in his hands. A poor cover up, Leon points out. We bought a samosa on the street for one euro and hopped on the night bus back home. I almost fell asleep on the bus. This was my favorite part of the night. The town was as active as if it were 2pm and everything felt like a dream. Cheesy I know, but I'm not sure how else to explain it to you. I feel uplifted. Renewed. This is my life and I am finally living it for me.
Today we will go to el Barri Gotic. I really want to go to the beach, but I do not know if we will have time. At 8p I will meet up with Bill W. for about an hour. I will try to keep this updated daily, but I've had some trouble with my european converter and I have to try and find a new one. Until then my laptop is dead. Leon has been kind enough to let me use his computer, but I do not want to expect that this will continue. I'd like to say I miss everyone, but that would be a lie. I never want to leave. I could easily make this my home. Ciao amigos!
Sounds like a fairy tale. Lovely entry.
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