Don´t Drink the Water!

And why not? Okay, okay. I must admit that I was afraid to drink the water based on all I´d read about my stomach not being used to the bactria over here, stick to bottled water, boil the water, put some kind of tablets in it to purify it, etc. Well, the first night I was here, I did my usual when dining out and ordered agua del grifo (plain ol´ water). I was on my 4th glass before I realized it and panicked. ¨Oh, NO!¨, I thought. I anticipated being up all night with diarrhea. My next thought was ¨I have a strong constitution, so I´ll be aiight.¨ And I was.

This is just one example of the many, many warnings I was given about traveling to Spain. From news reports of derailed trains, expected bouts of diarrhea, and overt racism, it´s a wonder I decided to come. I realize that as Americans, fear is a manufactured part of our daily lives. Just look at the news. Killings, murders, wars, threats of terrorism, etc. are the order of the day. If there is good news reported, it´s about some animal that´s been rescued. Thank goodness for Michael Moore´s movie, Fahrenheit 911, which brought that fact to my attention. In it, he made comparisons to news in Canada, which is remarkably more positive. Yes, the media must inform us of the bad, but there are more good things happening in our communities that could and should be reported.

Well, I am happy to report (come on in) the water´s fine, no one´s called me a nigger, and no one has mistaken me for a woman of the night. Although, on the latter, I did get some leering looks last night. I didn´t take it personally, though. I´d get those in the US if I were walking through downtown at 2 AM. No worries, ya´ll. We were coming back from a game of Scrabble in the park, which was packed. Spaniards seem to really enjoy life and want to remain awake for most of it.

Well, I´m on my way out of Madrid and will update the next time I run into a computer with Internet access. ¡Hasta luego!