Life Abroad: Week Four
The Time Has Come
This post title is foreboding, but alas, the time has come: I’ve tested positive for COVID.
We all saw this coming with the amount of travelling and excursions that have happened since I’ve arrived in Madrid, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t surprised. I got tested because I needed one to travel on Friday. The only symptoms I’ve had were a stuffy nose, a slight scratch in my throat, and a small headache (but really, headaches feel so arbitrary when you’re used to an unhealthy college lifestyle). So the trip I had planned this weekend to Lisbon was cancelled, but Casey solo-traveled there this weekend (everyone say yay Casey). I already have separation anxiety from her because living with the people we do, there’s always something to talk about. Good news is that I’m going next weekend! So really, the timing was okay.
My time in the q has been uneventful but relaxing. This week, I finished Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez and read Evvie Drake Starts Over by Linda Holmes. The latter I read in a day, whereas the former took me about 2.5 weeks to finish. I’ve noticed this pattern with myself: if it takes me a while to read one book, I’ll follow it with an easier and quicker read. It’s satisfying to read things quickly but the type of literature you can read that quick is also not the type you want to be reading all the time. I’m now reading The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion but it’s a small book and I’m technically still in quarantine until tomorrow, so I may finish it sooner rather than later. I’m also resuming watching Hometown Cha Cha Cha because my mom finished it without me after break.
Week four means I’ve been in this city for a month! That’s a whole lot of time to have gone by in what has really felt like just a stroll down the street. If we’re talking numbers, 25% of my time abroad is already up. Now that’s a scary thought. But the realization of brevity is much needed because otherwise, I’ll get too comfortable and Casey and I will sit on the couch watching movies every night.
This week was particularly special because dear friends Aryan and Tish have made their way overseas. We marked their arrival by going out on a Monday their first night in Madrid to Teatro Barcelo. We expected it to be less crowded because the typical Monday night spot here (a club called Fuckin Mondays) was sold out, but alas, Madrid is a city known for its nightlife. We stood in line for 25 minutes while Aryan flexed his Spanish and we made friends with the boys next to us. One of them asked us if we liked Taylor Swift, which sparked a great conversation. He really likes reputation, but he understood why my favorite album is 1989. Casey and I got moved up in line (the privilege of being female) and talked to these other two boys; once we got inside the club and started walking away, they said “Oh you don’t want to party with us?” We ran to the bathroom line to avoid them and finally reunited with the boys for a fun dance-filled night. It was circus-themed for some reason also, if you were wondering, so there were people dressed up as jesters dancing at the stage. Really though, one of my favorite things about this place is how friendly people are, even to foreigners. Aryan came over one night and our neighbors across the street ended up waving to us through the window which sparked a nice conversation as we spoke in broken English and Spanish from our balconies. They invited us over for drinks but we told them another night. The kids in my group projects are hilarious, always calling the professor a lunatic and telling us we should drop this class (if I could I would, but I’m already only at 9 credits).
A few weeks ago when we were in Seville, I asked Casey to think of conversation topics we’d spoken about before so we could talk about something new over the gelato we shared. We were both giggly with rose at this point so the game lost its touch, but I try to observe different things in my everyday life anyway so I like to bring them up to her. Indulging on conversation to me is like unwrapping a chocolate bar: greedy in taste of what’s about to be said while savoring the moment of presence, of anticipation. And this week was made up of fruitful and bountiful conversations. Some things we’ve discussed that I’d love to know your answers to, if you’re reading:
How have you changed since being in Madrid? What parts of you do you want to incorporate into your life in the US?
How do you react when you eat something really delicious? Do you say “mmmm”, do you close your eyes, do you start dancing in your seat?
What’s your favorite episode of Black Mirror? (we watched San Junipero this week, if you have thoughts on this one let me know)
What’s the recipe for a good podcast? And why do so many famous people make bad podcasts?
Wednesday this week hit around 68 degrees, which meant that it was skirt weather. It’s funny because people here will wear thick wool coats and full length everything even when it’s sunny and warm outside. My legs felt bare but my heart was full: the sunshine in this city has done wonders for my happiness. Casey and I went to Temple de Debod again to watch the sunset. Sunrises and sunsets are perfect free things to do when you’re travelling. Really, they’re just gifts from the earth that we take for granted because we’re too busy to notice and appreciate them. It’s nice knowing that even if I didn’t accomplosh everything in the day, I can at least go and watch the sun set and just let life be for a couple minutes.
I’ve talked about this with a couple people back home, but I love how much people savor things here. Meals are rarely eaten on the go because they have a greater significance: a means of building communion with others. They actually usually charge extra to make things “to-go”; the extra price you’re paying to eat quickly serves as a nudge, a reminder. Coupled with that, everything here is smaller. Most people live in apartments with no frills. A small washing machine. No dryers, but a drying rack with a balcony instead. Our host mom doesn’t even have a TV in her apartment; instead, she’s decorated with handwritten bible verses on her dresser, by her mirror, in the kitchen. The cups of coffee here are less than half the size of a Starbucks tall, but their bitter flavor quenches the caffeine fix you’d need. People typically take their coffee with just milk, maybe a little sugar. There’s none of the fancy syrups or sweeteners we have in the US that mask the actual flavor of coffee. Here, they don’t overindulge, they just appreciate whatever they have. Making rainbows out of what you have, finding beauty in what already is: the little things are often what mean the most.
Thanks for reading, and happy living to you all.
With love,
Rachel
