Today the sun returned to my rooftop terrace. The beach was dry enough to sit. I came across two large-scale figures of the Wise Men (more important in Spain than Santa) that seem to have been erected overnight. I wonder if I’ll come across the third one – or if it will find me. Because I totally came across one of these through some serendipity I had not counted on.
At some point in the late afternoon, the tiny Spanish washing machine in my apartment, a mysterious foreign beast if I’ve ever seen one, decided to throw a tantrum by performing a long cycle that couldn’t be stopped and remaining stubbornly locked with all my delicates in it.
I considered the possibility that it would never open. And so I went shopping. I renewed my entire underwear collection with some very pretty and comfortable Spanish ones. By the time, late into the evening, that the washing machine finally played a little song, made a promising noise, powered off, and allowed me to open its door, I was totally prepared for the possibility that I might never see its contents again. And yes, I came across one of the Magi on my unexpected shopping errand.
I also bought some very interesting incense that will hopefully make one of my three suitcases smell really good. I thought it was a fitting souvenir, along with a few seashells.
I keep wondering how things might have been different, had I come here when there wasn’t a pandemic. Would it be an easy place to make friends? Right now that’s kind of a moot point, as the people I would like to be friends with would not be out socializing at a time like this.
