Sevilla is unbelievably beautiful on a random April evening. 26 degrees at quarter to nine in the evening, the sun is just setting and along the river a band of youth is practicing for Semana Santa. Kids in their teens and early 20s, a guy does a beautiful trumpet solo and the drums do their weird thing that does fit a known time signature but has tempo rubato... alright sorry for the nerding out on music. Plaza Salvador is full, like an enormous outdoor party, as are all the plazas all over the city. Buildings in this light are all colourful but in pastels. It's too hot to wear jeans and a t-shirt riding a bike on an evening like this. In the middle of the day, it's already necessary to seek shade. I started getting a tan about a month ago. There's been some rain in between but enough sun on my face every few days to keep up the tan. In Vancouver I almost never attempt to be in the shade even in mid-summer. But this is different.
You would eat one or two oranges every day too if they were this good. Extremely juicy and sweet - I've maybe had oranges this good a couple times at home. Every bar serves fresh squeezed orange juice. Some days I've had two oranges and a glass of fresh juice - actually I did today.

I had a terrible cold on the weekend, and then my feet were horrible so I could hardly walk. It's not been easy psychologically. I doubt everything I'm doing and where I am, and fear everything. But today they are way better - almost well, it seems. I walked all over and rode all over - made myself get out, sit in a bar, talk to someone. I decided this would be the day I finally took my receipt to Senovilla and got refunded for my shoes that they kept trying to make and failed. Wouldn't you know it but Miguel himself was there, and took care of me. Assured me that he could make them honest-to-goodness to measure. I knew since last May before I got on the plane that I needed to talk to the actual shoemaker himself and should have gone to his workshop in the industrial area north of Madrid. So I chose a different colour this time and went for it: turquoise with striking brown trim and visible wood heel. He's going to shape the toe differently for my odd feet, and make the reinforcement softer for my sensitive toes.

Some phrases that sum up the problem with learning Spanish, as a native English speaker: some nearby signage for a play says, "Triangulo de amor bizarro". What English speaking person can't understand this!? But how to work it into everyday conversation is not as obvious as, "Dame una tostada con prínga, cuándo puede" or "Dime, ¿como puedo ayudarte?" I'd guess that unless you've studied Spanish you wouldn't have any idea what those mean; I didn't until last summer!!?
It's easy to deceive yourself, as I have, that I'm so great at this language. Newspapers discuss "el ex-ministro del exterior (del Gobierno)" and "un grave perjuico al interés público." I'd guess the gist of these is understandable to you all. But I really wonder what I sound like to them when I talk!

Okay, dinner at ten to ten and then going to try to catch a flamenco show. Casual this time, at my studio.