A few days ago, after a very windy night, an il
luminous green dust covered everything in the area. This green dust didn't worry me or grab my attention too much which is an indicator of the amount of things rattling around in my mind.
'Did you see that six legged giant frog walk past Hannah?'
'What?'
The dust did worry my father though as his vintage car had lost its sparkle somewhat.
'What's this? Is this normal? Does it happen a lot? Is this wind normal? Is it often windy?' He asked with looks of woe and disbelief.
I told him I had assumed it was just sand blown about and that the wind was not normal. My mother had put six g-strings (I know...at her age the dirty trollop!) out to dry on the kitchen windowsill and found them in the morning in a cactus plant! Now that someone had mentioned the dust, I had a good look at it and decided that green sand was a bit strange and made a mental note to ask Peter when I saw him in the shop. Peter told me it was pine pollen which had been
wafted off the trees by the strong winds.
I told my parents what it was and heard a sigh of relief....pollen....once a year...phew!
The next day, at my parents' house, my mother told me she had spent hours vacuuming up the pollen with her one good arm, only to discover on the net it had medicinal qualities, according to the Chinese.
Pine Pollen Research and Development Centre writes...Pine pollen of
Pinus masoniana, namely
masson pine, has been traditionally used as food and medicine since ancient time in China.
PPRDC is the first one to carry out detailed and systemic studies on the nutrients, toxicology,
pharmacodynamics and processing techniques of
masson pine pollen. Results of studies in collaboration with authorized institutions such as Shanghai Institute for Medicine Examination and the Chinese Academy of Medical Science, has proven that
masson pine pollen is high value of nutrition.
Particularly it is significantly effective in:
improving the regeneration ability of liver
delaying the organism feebleness through increasing SOD level in heart, liver and brain
improving blood circulation through reducing cholesterol and blood-fat
My mother was none too pleased at having sucked up a rather valuable mass of super-dust when she could have licked it up and improved her health at the same time. Never mind Mummy...there's always next year. You can come and lick my car clean next March if you are a good girl. It will be ready for a wash by then.
I think my parents are in the 'getting to know you stage' in which nothing is familiar and everything needs to be questioned. I can remember being like that.
'Is this weather normal?'
'Is it usually this cold/warm?'
'Is it usually this damp?'
'Are baked beans always this expensive?'
'Why does everyone indicate right when they are over-taking to the left?'
'Do people normally drive this fast?'
'Are there usually so many
Guardia Civil guards checking cars?'
'Are shop assistants normally that
unfriendly?'
'Is this normal for a Saturday night?'
'Are men always this forward?'
The list goes on...
I think it took me a good two and a half years to stop questioning things and finally settle into my new environment, but I remember how difficult it was when everything seemed so alien.
Talking of aliens, I and my family are the real aliens in Ibiza. We will always be English in the eyes of the
Ibicencos who are, in the main, rather nationalistic and patriotic. This is not a bad thing at all and I respect their pride.
My mother and father, however, experienced more than a dash of patriotism during a visit to the hospital the other day. My mother didn't know when her arm needed to be looked at and decided to find out. She had never been given a report on leaving the hospital the day after her operation but the doctor on duty informed her, and all the waiting patients, that she was a
liar. The doctor then made my parents wait for three and a half hours, despite the task of answering my mother's question taking only five minutes in the end. The doctor continued to be rude to my mother who, understandably cannot speak much Spanish yet. The doctor, who spoke excellent English, was clearly antagonised at my mother's inability to speak 'my country's language'.
I have experienced racism a few times and still feel like an outsider to a degree. This is also something I have come to accept and overlook. I am an English woman living in a very traditional
Ibicencan area who cannot yet speak fluent Spanish. How can I possibly expect the locals to treat me without a hint of suspicion, intrigue or special attention? I came along and bought a shop bang smack in the middle of this historic village and they are probably thinking 'Who is she? How can she afford to buy a shop? What will she be selling? Who is the Daddy of that little baby she carries around? Does she not go to church?'
Usually, when I go into the local shop or bar, the chatter stops and people turn to look. I get some smiles, some '
hola's and some blank expressions. The smiles and greetings come from those who know me and the blank expressions come from those who don't. This is normal of course but it is
exaggerated when you are an immigrant and new to the area. I don't mind it because I understand it. I will continue to be polite to the people of San Carlos, open my shop, improve my Spanish and wait for people to eventually see me as just another face, albeit an
English one.
I have learnt, since living in Ibiza, that it is perfectly normal to be different around different people and that it is the duty of the different to earn the trust and acceptance of their hosts and not the other way around. The doctor was clearly a nasty woman who upset my mother and father. I hope my parents will not let that unpleasant experience change their view of emigration and immigration, and continue to understand it from the hosts'
perspective.Maybe the doctor was just bitter at not having a bottom for g-strings.
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