Letsgoloolala with Lily Anne
Ladies at noon
I realised early on that Vicente my house swapper is very aware of his roots and has a strong allegiance to his local village. His Mam and Dad Vicente and Paqui collected me on that first day when I arrived from Alicante to Estació Joaquín Sorolla, Valencia. There is an entrance to Aldaia with trees lining both sides of a busy road and allotments very much in view as the fields stretch right and left in the distance. Vicente Senior spoke of his love of the land not so much as a young boy when work was expected as now when it’s a labour of love.
Paqui has been the link to the ‘village’ community. It’s a good feeling to know that any day of the week I can meet the ladies at noon. Usually Paqui is in the middle of activity and always beckons me with a smile. There are also two little beauties Claudia, a first cousin to Mila and Oscar and Leo grandson of Marie-Carmen. They are not related but are compatible playmates. I noticed both eating a slice of lemon without wrinkling up their eyes or mouths on account of the bitterness of the fruit. Maybe the lemons in Spain are sweeter.
Since the ladies at noon generally speak in a Valencian dialect known as Català, I rely even more than usual on Paqui for translation. Some have a good grasp of English and enjoy looking up their smart phones to check when in doubt. Coffee seems to be more popular cold, cortados are much more popular than Americanos and sugar is almost always added so maybe the lemons are sweeter and the coffee is more bitter than in Ireland
I make a special effort to remember the ladies individually– their names for the most part seem to belong to Queens or Saints – a distinct absence of Commoners or newfangled celebrity names. They include one other Paqui, her sister Yolanda, Marie Fer (happy Maria), Isabelle,Toñi, Ana with the whatsapp profile ‘Feliz como oso,’ Tina and Marie Carmen. They are pleasant company and always up for a laugh.
The plaza is called Plaça Constitució and our table is near to the Co Council Offices which are the location for many civic events. Towards the end of my stay in Spain elections were about to take place. I got into conversation with a busy young woman called Teresa who was President of elections. Mrs Sarah of the Cambridge school was first to purchase my book and Teresa was last. It was a joy to meet and do business with both impressive ladies and another feather in my cap.