I know I’m not a big city kid. I grew up in the suburbs where the car was king. The thing I like about a big city is the ability to walk out the door and find everything you need close at hand. No driving the car, finding a place to park, etc.
Right next door to where I live is a small Japanese store with prepared food to go. It’s called Tofu Catálan. It’s not a restaurant or a fast food joint. They have sushi and prepared meals ready to go into the microwave. The Japanese lady there always gives me a slight bow as I enter. I like the way she has two little trays at the cash register. She places my €50 bill in one tray and then places my change in the other. So civilized and polite.
The supermarket is right around the corner. In the entrance to the market, I see all these cubby hole lockers with keys and chains. Will I be tortured if I misbehave? Is this carryover from the days of Torquemada? I watch carefully as an elderly woman approaches pulling her own little cart. She’s already been shopping else where. She places a few coins in a slot, runs a chain through the handle of her cart and continues into the store to finish her grocery shopping.
There’s no joy in Barcelona tonight as the home team Barça lost the Spanish league championship. They lost to Atlético Madrid. No rioting or hooliganism, just disappointment.
There are a few T-shirts around reading “pit i collons” which in Catalan is loosely translated as “Breast and balls” meaning to use strength and bravery to face a difficult situation.
Barcelona’s Camp Nou stadium was filled with 99,000 screaming fans.
Now you're beginning to "get down" in the culture. As one who has never lived in a big city, either, I'm always interested in reading about the big-city-neighborhoods. If it's not too difficult, I'd enjoy reading your posts in a larger font size.
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