I feel terribly sad and lost. First day of my new life as an independent woman, I don't feel able to start this new adventure. My parents left Madrid few minutes ago and I stay here, standing motionless on the sidewalk, not really far from what is supposed to become my new house. I cry soundlessly, my tears wetting my face and the look staring at the empty street. It's 3 o’clock in the afternoon, and in Spain is the hour of the nap. Suddenly, an old but in shape woman, stops her walking next to me. She doesn't look at me, but she stares at the same point of the street as me and starts to talk. I understand a few words of her fast and energetic Spanish speaking and I realize that she assisted to the tearjaker  scene of the goodbye with my parents. ,"Cariño" she tells me, “what do you think about helping me with my shopping around the city in exchange of a nice moment of experience sharing?” Surprised of her assurance and nonchalance, I nod with my head and she gives me a tissue parfumed of orange blossom. We start to walk together along the narrow streets of the city, discovering numerous hidden corners and astonishing colors of the "azulejos" which decorate the old buildings. "When you walk around Madrid, you always have to keep your look up. You never know what the city can reveal to you in this particular moment.” I thoughtfully listen to the stories and the memories of the old woman, trying to follow the fascinating intonation of her speaking. When I don't understand, she just shows me some other treasures of the city. Walking side by side, I observe the behaviour of the people around me, trying to learn as must as I can about the Spanish lightheartedness. "No era siempre asi," she tells me, noticing my curiosity. "When Franco governed the country, Spanish people couldn't do anything. We have just discovered what liberty means." She brings me to the oldest coffee of the city, "El maravilloso San Gines" as she calls it, and orders for us two hot chocolates with some appetizing churros: "Nada es mejor que eso, cariño. When you feel sad or melancholic, nothing is better than a hot and crispy churros soaked in a dark and dense chocolate." The waiter starts to talk with us about the day, in a fast, talkative Spanish, making me feel suddenly as a part of the "landscape". He shows me the pictures on the wall, pointing some of the most famous authors and actors that came in the coffee for its churros. "Guapita, esta ciudad te va a encantar! Give you few days, and you will fall in love with Madrid." We continue our tour, and I feel the smile coming back on my face. I start to "take pictures” with my eyes of every wonderful detail of the city: the succession of a multiplicity of different architectures; the balconies and the verandas covered by flowers and plants; the sound of loud laughter and of the conversations between the people; the mix of generations and cultures walking together; the presence of many street artists playing on the sidewalks and on the squares, acclaimed by the walkers around... "Que me dices cariño, te sientes mejor ahora?" The old woman smiles realising how she made me feel better. Coming back to my street, she tells me about her family - how she misses her husband, who died during the dictatorship, and how she's proud of her daughters, who travel around the world to discover other cultures and other mentalities. "You know, your home will be always where your heart is. Give Madrid a chance and you may be suprised". We arrive in front of the sidewalk where I said goodbye to my parents just several hours before. Unavoidably, I feel again the sadness and the homesickness invading my body and my mind. But my thoughts are completely different now. I stare at the street some minutes more, telling to the old woman how grateful I am to her. "No te preocupes carino, aqui ninguno te deja sola." I glance to my side, but she has disappeared. I discover a few moments later, that she lives just in front of my flat and that her name is Carmela. 

That was the first moment I spent alone in Madrid. Since this day, this city is one of the most beautiful things that I keep in my heart.