there are various ethnicities/cultures that exist in this metropolis. and there are bound to be stereotypes made of each of the cultures that co-exist in such a city. but here in barça, it is uncanny how transparent these stereotypes are. maybe it seems that way because we live in barceloneta, a block from the beach and a couple minutes' walk to the port, a very touristy spot in the summer. it reminds me a lot of venice beach in the sense that mostly locals inhabit the area, but tourists crowd the beach, shops and restaurants.
anyway, the first time i went to the beach, i was lying down on my towel dozing off, and i hear someone walk by and say, "hola, masaje?" i open my eyes and see that it's an asian woman walking around with oil and a towel in a plastic bag. and then i notice that she's asking this to everyone she walks by. after a couple more visits to the beach, i observed that there are about 3 asian women who walk around the same stretch of sand, soliciting massages. the competitive price is 4-5 euros, and depending on how many
guardia urbana (the recent addition to the police department that concentrates on busting street hustlers) are surveying the area at any given time, this price could be for a full-body massage. on sunday i saw two masseuses get busted by the cops. they received warning from a couple of senior citizens (regular clients of theirs) who saw the cops scanning the beach, so they both stopped. one of them lied down as if she were just another sunbather, and the other one bent down really low as if she were searching for something in the sand. but i suppose the po-pos were clever to this as they walked up to them, confiscated their plastic bags, and escorted them off the beach into the police station on the boardwalk. ten minutes later though, these same women were back on the sand hustling 5-euro massages.
then there's the port where african, indian, pakistani or asian men set up makeshift "shops" on the sidewalks of bootleg versions of designer handbags and sunglasses. this consists of sheets laid out on the sidewalk with their product for display. but as soon as there is any danger of getting busted by the cops, they can swoop up their sheets with a drawstring which then becomes a sack they throw over their shoulder and walk away. on the way home today, a van of
guardia urbana came out on the sidewalk itching to bust the bootleg bag hustlers. one hustler was running as a cop was close behind. the scene was so intense that all the pedestrians stopped to watch what was happening. homie was running across the street, dodging cars and shit, but cop was still chasing him. then he ran back to the sidewalk, and this time cop takes out his baton. homie started booking it for real, and ended up being fast enough to get away. that, or this particular cop had a soft spot for the guy and wasn't chasing him as hard as he could've.
and don't forget the pilipinos. or moreso, pilipinas, as they are usually nurses, caretakers in retirement homes, housekeepers, or nannies here (or in every major city for that matter). i didn't see a lot of them until last weekend. by chance, i discovered filmanila, "home of the sizzling plate" pilipino restaurant online as i was researching local mexican restaurants. mackenzie and i decided to try it, and as soon as we walked on the block where the restaurant is located, boom: pilipinos everywhere. anyway, we get to the restaurant and sit next to a table of 5 pilipinas. i couldn't help but overhear their conversations as i was excited to hear tagalog. one woman was talking about how things were going at the household she worked for. not only is she the housekeeper, she is also the children's nanny. she was talking about how hard her job was getting as her boss was asking her to start a couple of hours earlier in the morning for more responsibilites. she mentioned that if she accepted, she would have to arrive at 4am every day and still clock out at about 9 or 10pm. i didn't hear a lot more, but it made me think about a lot of things.
needless to say, many of these thoughts involve: my parents doing what they had to do (while raising a family) to fulfill their american dreams, so much so that i'm not in a state where i'm watching my back for the police while i try to make a living; mackenzie hustling a handful of different jobs so that i am fortunate enough to take my time, learn spanish, and then find a job to contribute to our living; cultural issues; all kinds of deep, introspective, familial, gnarly, immigration, who-am-i, who-am-i-becoming, and remember-who-i-am type shit.
the fashion addict herself, originally uploaded by mjane.
