Day 7: People, Places, & Things
We left the house at around 11:00 and didn’t return until 22:30, and much of that time was spent in the company of friends. It’s starting to really feel like home. Yesterday we:
- ran into people we knew at our local cafe
- added two more transit options to our “done” list
- made reservations
- tried Tinto de Verano
- met friends for drinks & dinner
- visited Russafa, including the Book Lovers bookstore
- bought fans
Saturday morning at “our” cafe was quite full and bustly! Instead of being one of a few people taking up tables (always the same table, until yesterday), we were lucky to find a table at all! “Our” waiter was there and ordered for us, and as we sat planning our day Bill noticed our Airbnb host and her family sitting at the table across from us. You know you’ve picked a good place if the locals go there, right? I got brave and, in Español, asked for the wifi password — AND UNDERSTOOD THE ANSWER. Later, my bravery continued when I asked, in Español, if they were open on Sunday and at what time. I. Was. On. FIRE.
We rented bikes and took a short ride to another station, intending to just rent another set of bikes to finish the journey. I noticed we were getting close to our lunch reservation time (online reservation form = knowing for sure the place was open without having to call — winning!) so we opted to give Cabify a try instead. It’s like Lyft, and it worked like a charm. The drive did solidify our commitment to not driving here, though!
Lunch was delicious and gluten free (for me). The cafe/restaurant was a crunchy delight and we managed in Español until fumbling a bit with our server who then switched to English and asked, “which languages do we speak here?” Humbling, for sure. It turned out that he’s from South America and struggles with Spain Spanish himself. The rest of the interactions over the meal were done in English and that felt ok. The Tinto de Verano exceeded expectations and was just about perfect in the heat of the day.
Our next stop was the English-language bookstore I’ve been following on Facebook since it opened earlier this year. For all that Valencia is big it is full of small-world moments…like the bookstore being on the same block as our lunch stop. Alan, the proprietor of Book Lovers, was sweet and we joked about how much harder it is for us to learn Spanish than for the kids (he has 2 school-aged kids). We left with TWO PHYSICAL BOOKS which brings our current collection of physical books up to 5, I think. One is a mystery set in Valencia and written by a local immigrant (he’s british, I think, and is married to a Spaniard), and another that is short stories in Spanish on the left pages and with their English translation on the right. It felt all together too good to hold them in the store and I’m very much looking forward to the experience of sitting and reading them.
In theory, we were going to wander Russafa for the afternoon until our plans to meet up with another Facebook friend. We had not accounted for the cultural difference between the states and Spain. Saturday afternoon = everything (except for bars and a couple of restaurants) is closed. Graham to the rescue (again) — we met up with him for a beverage and watched the people and dogs parade past. So many dogs, and some of them were kind enough to let us get some pets in. We’re missing Mitzie something fierce so this was deeply needed.
Melissa, the Facebook friend we were scheduled to connect with at 6 pm, and I seem to be linked by some odd sort of gravitational pull. We ended up in town within days of each other, we have the same kind of dog, we both shopped the odd Mag Mile/Woodfield zone on Friday, and, yesterday, she saw us sipping with Graham from her Airbnb window! In true Spanish fashion, she joined us and our 6 pm date turned into an afternoon-into-evening affair. Her sweet daughters joined us when it was time to transition to dinner and we headed around the corner for a Turkish feast.
There is something special about people who will pick up everything and leave for a new country, and I’m starting to understand why/how expats/immigrants find each other. I’m still dedicated to full immersion into this new country of mine, but I’m less hesitant about making friends with the others on this same path. The afternoon and evening was a lovely blend of talking about Spain and what was to come and swapping stories from where we’ve been. The weather was perfect, the company was wonderful, and I don’t know the last time I was so full of delicious food and drink.
Melissa’s girls led us to a novelty shop after dinner and Bill and I were, finally, able to find the most important Spanish accessory — fans! The flies here are…persistent and it turns out one thing that will keep them at bay is a breeze. Mother Nature does her best, but a hand-fan makes a big difference while sitting in all the outdoor establishments. Now we’ll be even more ready for our big day we have planned for today (getting to ride the rails with Lee & Phil…more on that tomorrow).
The evening ended with friendly farewells full of “hasta luego”s and we used the FreeNow app to get home (and experience the second-to-last transit option). Our neighborhood was more awake than me and it wasn’t long before getting back to the Hobbit House that I turned in, exhausted from the day and feeling really content.
We made it to the end of our first week here and it’s definitely feeling like home.
