Our first featured highlight today is the second submission from Vernon Lacey. It is a true story adapted from his memoir South to Barcelona. If you haven't read Vernon's book yet then I would highly recommend it.
‘¿Hay té?’ I ask the supermarket assistant. Is there tea?
‘¿Como?’ – Pardon- she says, puzzled.
I’m English. New in Spain. I’m pronouncing té the English way - tea.
‘No entiendo,’ the assistant says. I don’t understand.
I improvise. ‘Los ingleses – lo beben mucho.’ The English – they drink lots of it. It’s clumsy Spanish. I lift an imaginary teacup to my mouth.
Finally the penny drops. ‘¡Ah! Si. Si,’ the assistant says, all smiles. ‘Ven conmigo.’ Come with me.
She leads me to the back of the supermarket. There, to my shame, she points at the alcohol section.
I grew up in Cheshire, UK. I teach Philosophy, Drama, and English in Munich. Before moving to Germany I taught in Barcelona where I met my German wife. We have three children, Hannah, Myriam, and Aódhán.