Rain Rain Go Away

Readers, you have brought up very good questions such as "Do you know Spanish" and "Has anything happened?" The answers to both these questions are kind of but not really. It has not stopped raining since I arrived in Spain, for which my roommates blame me entirely. I am also horribly jetlagged and still on West Coast time. Wednesday, I was awake between 5:30am and 12pm and fell asleep on top of the covers, convinced that I would only take a little siesta if I didn't physically get in bed. I woke up at 10:30pm.

I walked around for a bit but my neighborhood, Sant Gervasi, used to be a separate city before incorporation and is quieter. At midnight, it's mainly people going home or walking their dogs. So I puttered around but didn't fall asleep until 7 or 8am. It's actually nice being awake while everyone sleeps. It's interesting to listen to the rhythms of a new city and building. It is practically dead quiet until 6 or 7am when I hear the clinking of dishes as people start breakfast. I can hear everything from my room whether it is an alarm that rings to a Sousa march, the plumbing after a random person pees in the middle of the night, or the hum of the ubiquitous motorbikes that line the tiny alleys here.

I woke up at 6 tonight so I got to walk amongst civilization on Av. Diagonal. I went a department store, El Corte Ingles, where I swear a security guard followed me on the escaltors. I don't blame him since I stand out so much. Aside from the Filipino nannies during the day and one of my roommates, I am the only Asian here. It is the little things that make you feel ridiculously stupid or triumphant. For example, I made dinner wherein I microwaved scrambled eggs because I couldn't figure out how to work the stove (you have to light it first). But, today, I found a place that sells soy milk even if it's overpriced. So, I promise that the next post will be more exciting.