Barrio Party 2024
About 3 million people live in Madrid, so we split ourselves up into tiny barrios or neighborhoods. This weekend our barrio is hosting our once a year block party and its’ been really cool to check it out. We stopped by the first night long enough to see what was around and chat with some of our neighbors. Yesterday we went back to join in the party, at least as long as our energy lasted.
At the end of the 8 minute walk from our front door, we found food and beer/soda tents and a respectable stage for concerts. There was a T-shirt booth hosting our bario’s name and a booth of information connected to our massive local green area. A young guy was beatboxing for the final performance of an open mic.
Our family got some salchipapas (french fries with thin hot dog slices added) and I made sure mine had salsa brava. You can figure out what that is by experience when you visit us. We got some drinks and sat on the steps where I take my guitar lessons. The patio where I had bought my tomato plant was next to the concert stage. I felt so much belonging. At the same time, there were hundreds of people at the celebration that I didn’t know. And I only saw two I did know. Jeni had reminded me the night before that every apartment in our barrio can holdt35 families inside. It’s shocking to think about.
The weekend party is a mini version of our everyday life here in Spain. We feel like we belong with our neighbors. We love our neighborhood, and we enjoy it every day. But we will always be different than the people who grew up in the barrio. There will always be many connections we don’t have. I experienced the two sides symbolically at the party. A grumpy vendor wouldn’t sell me the t-shirt size I needed and I ended up buying one a little too big out of a desire to be neighborly. They didn’t know me and I think my foreign accent made them doubt that I should be there. It bothered me as I sat on the steps with my family. But later that night I saw the president of the neighborhood association sweating in his work in the food stands. He gave me a surprised shout of recognition and a smile when he saw that I was there enjoying the party. We’ve only met once and he reminded me of the ways I do belong. It’s a beautiful tension. And my family embraces it every day.
