¿Cómo se dice…?

After a good night’s sleep, everything here is still foreign. The lights in our hotel room only turn on when the key card is inserted into a slot by the door. Pedestrians, bicyclists, moped & automobile drivers all share narrow one-way streets. The local bank displays the temperature in Celsius & the hour in military time. Societal standards are different: feet belong in slippers or shoes & on the floor at all times, & full meals are taken at mealtimes whether one is hungry or not. Even seemingly familiar objects have an air of peculiarity about them. Traffic lights are painted green instead of yellow, street signs have similar meanings but different symbols, & our hotel room key looks like a computer punch card from the 1950s.

And what would be a simple task in the U.S. becomes both a challenge & an adventure in Sevilla. To purchase & mail a postcard today required 3 dictionary consultations & 2 requests for help at the front desk. In the end, of course, it still was a simple task, but who knew stamps are sold at a kiosk labeled “tabaco”? Everything here is done a bit differently, & learning new procedures is always a bit trying.

Even in the midst of mounting differences, however, familiarities can always be found. Tonight, mine arrived in the form of theatre. After dinner, our program treated us to a local flamenco show. Just seeing the stage in front of me made me feel comfortable; at least in this instance, I would know the procedures. The performance consisted of a guitarist, a singer & two dancers performing on a simple platform in the plaza of a hotel. The male dancer was particularly entrancing in his intensity; when he stepped from the platform toward us, I heard gasps escape from all sides.

This is our second & final night in the Hotel Becquer, with all its strange procedures. Tomorrow afternoon, I will meet my host family & move into their home. Undoubtedly, the move will be accompanied by all sorts of new procedures, but hopefully there too will be hidden glimpses of familiarity. Nos vemos, Le <3.