ನಮಸ್ಕಾರ Barcelona!

It’s been a month I came to Barcelona, a far away land from my city. I grew up in Bengalooru. The city which is called the Silicon Valley of India. I had a great childhood, my loved ones stay there in namma Bengalooru. Its been the longest time I have been away from home. There are times I miss my city,my people and most importantly my language I used to speak, kannada.

Barcelona is a part of Catalunya, have a very distinct culture rather a little different from Spain. The identity most of the people are really proud of. Coming to Barcelona I did learn a lot in terms of being independent, not being judgmental and to have hell loads of patience to get the work done.

Barcelona like namma  Bengalooru has its own Kempegowda,Hamilcar Barca. Well everyone had a different story to tell why this city was named so. I still want to draw parallels to my city. So I vote for this .

I remember few months I visited this city for a trip our family friend took us to a place which has a big statue of Columbus and said this is where it all started. Yes he started his voyage to India and then accidentally found America. Well this pretty much sums up my life as well. Accidental discoveries of life lead you to the best place! Well I am here now!

Spanish people are the most passionate people for their language. They do not impose it on you but make you slip into it like the sugar in the coffee. Sometimes I may forget to tell my daily prayer or practicing music but I would probably never forget to revise few words my landlady taught me.

The house I live in is mini India – different faiths,different languages and different food habits. Being the only vegetarian in the house it was difficult for my flatmates to understand what i was eating. Now I can safely say they eat my anna, saaru, pulyogare and avalakki. I have made peace with bread, bocata, paella and cold salads.

This has become my familia in Spain. Everyday as a family we sit for dinner and discuss how good or bad was the day. Fortunately India’s foreign policy is so good that,none of the days I was in an uncomfortable position at the dinner table when discussing the politics of the country. One day I had to explain karma theory, sanathanadharma and yoga to them. My ajji would have been so happy to listen to what I would be preaching 😝.

Music culture is amazing here.Metros to museos to beach to ports, people play music. Interestingly all my classmates are musicians. They play an instrument, sing or do both. I was really shocked at their vidwath. My Indian friends who are self taught musicians give me a complex as to  what did I learn for 15 odd years of classical music and not compose a song , they write play so well.

On a serious note, I see that women are very independent here. I do not see ladies compartment,ladies seat or reservation on any kind here. I still remember an old lady giving snobby look for asking her to sit on my seat in the metro. My landlady herself manages the house,drives her car and works for a living. Her daughter wakes up and makes breakfast,goes to school. Never did I see her asking her mother to make breakfast,pack lunch. It’s all about being independent. The timings, deadlines don’t matter much. But this doesn’t mean people are too well behaved. There are black sheep everywhere. The other day when me and  my friends decked up for a dandiya night, a truck driver made an ugly comment on us for a long time until he saw a police patrol car and disappeared. I wasn’t scared but it just puts your morale down to move freely.

The place I study and work has an amazing way of putting out music to the people. There are musicians, musicologists, engineers to make music, write algorithms, do research on different music cultures. It brings a smile on my face when the professors and PhD researchers  pronounce the Carnatic music technical details, its theory closest to its original pronunciation. What seems great is looking at the department with different nationality and culture, music is the only uniting force.

Few months before I moved to Barcelona, i had serious contemplation on what to do in life. I could really count the number of  people who stood by me and gave ears to all the stuff I spoke about. Oh yes they are my forever. I learnt the lesson to prioritize, not give importance to unnecessary things and mainly you are not everyone’s cup of tea☺.

I teach Kannada on WhatsApp to few people in Bengalooru, I  attend  Skype class for music, write blogs, study, do assignment, work and talk to my most favorite people which gives me peace. Well that’s the best to do isn’t it.

I miss you Bengalooru, my loved ones but hey!  this is nice too. This is all that you built on your credibility ☺

Until next episode: Adios  Amigos

Next episode: Como estas barca 😁