I feel strange leaving Toledo. It’s not like I’m actually leaving, more like I’m leaving home to go on a voyage around Europe. I keep thinking I’ll just be gone for a few months.
If you want more pretty photos of the river, go back to the entry from the other day, which has been edited to include the photos of the things I talk about there.
Oh, and I officially think I’m allowed to complain about the heat again. Apparently, in nearby Sevilla, it was 56 degrees at 5.30pm on Friday.
Friday night I told a few people I’d be at El Ambigú for farewell drinks. Had a great night. Click for photos of: Antonio, bartender extraordinaire; the gang (l‑r: Carol’s boyfriend; Carol, Antonio’s cousin; Antonio; Antonio’s sister; Antonio’s girlfriend Angeles; Maria, the daughter of Elena; Elena, Antonio’s other sister; Luis, her son); my new and fabulous friend, Xohana; Xohana and me; me and the utterly delicious Alvar (just a friend, unfortunately); and finally, one of the reasons we love El Ambigú: Transmet on the walls in Spanish.
Xohana is an amazing, political, vibrant bod. She works as a translator of literature (English to Spanish) and also works for an NGO doing stuff in the middle east. She was part of the intellectuals against the war movement here. She’s 6 months pregnant with a boy who will be called Lucas. I’ve now been to her place for dinner twice (she makes a mean gazpacho) and I hope we’ll be friends for a long time.
Alvar is a student and a traveller. He’s working on his Masters in anthropology, asking why gypsies become Pentecostal Christians, and what’s going on there with questions of cultural identity. Needless to say, we had some great discussions.
Afterwards, a few of us went to a club called Piccarro, and then Alvar walked me home and we sat on that low wall from one of my first photos until 4.30 in the morning and talked about love and discovery and the search for knowledge and whether happiness is the purpose of life or not.
And then, mostly to make hawk_eye and nuwishas_tail drool, the pointy things:
The one I want, only 200 euros:
(Click here for a close-up of that gorgeous basket hilt.)
And the one I think nuwishas_tail will want:
