Chapter 24
Chapter Twenty-Four
VANESSA
Vanessa was charmed by Joey’s enthusiasm for the museum, and while she knew she should be looking down at the view of the city afforded from their position atop Montjuic, she found herself drawn to her tour guide’s passion.
Joey gesticulated with her hands and arms, her muscles flexing, her face more expressive than Vanessa had ever seen it. She listened in silence, relishing the coolness of her ice-cream and the company she was in.
“Now, and this is probably a bit of a basic question, but what is the difference between Catalonia and Spain?” asked Vanessa.
“That’s a difficult one to answer,” said Joey. “I feel like Dani should really take that one, as someone who’s actually from here.”
Dani nodded. “It’s complicated, and there’s lots of history to it.
Basically, Catalonia is a semi-autonomous region of Spain.
It’s got its own parliament, culture, language – Catalan – and identity.
Look, see up there?” She pointed at the flags flying above the building.
“The yellow-and-red striped flags are Catalan flags. Some people believe Catalonia should be independent from Spain. Uncle Sergio has strong views on that!”
“Is that why there’s a mixture of languages in Barcelona? Like the names of the streets? Carrer de Petritxol – in Spanish the word would be ‘chocolate’, right?” Vanessa furrowed her brow.
“Exactly,” said Joey, “which is why you didn’t pick the most straightforward place to learn Spanish.”
“Come on then,” said Dani. “I think we should go in. I’ve been in before, but Joey’s made it sound like a life-changing experience and I feel like I owe Uncle Sergio.” She raised her eyebrows.
Joey paused. “Yeah, sorry, I went off on one there, didn’t I?”
“Don’t be sorry,” said Vanessa, unable to wipe the smile from her own face. “I’ve learnt so much and we haven’t even gone in yet.”
Before long they were situated underneath the beautifully painted main dome of the building.
The three of them had to lean their heads back to view the mural, which was full of religious iconography, tradespeople, ships, biblical scenes, industrial buildings, flags.
It was a riot of ancient and modern, and Vanessa was transfixed.
“Wow,” she said, unable to think of anything more original to say.
“I always notice something new whenever I come here,” said Joey. She put a gentle arm around Vanessa’s shoulder to direct her view. “Look.” She was almost whispering. “There’s a bull and a bullfighter over there by the tree at the edge.”
Vanessa’s heart jumped into her mouth, and she struggled to form the right words.
“Mmhm,” she mumbled. The feeling of Joey’s hand on her shoulder, the feel of her breath on her neck, was very distracting.
She froze, not wanting Joey to move, and not wanting to do the wrong thing or scare Joey away.
It was like she was faced with a wild but fragile animal.
The moment passed, as Dani hurried them through to a gallery where she found what might have been the most frightening set of photos she’d ever seen. “Oh my goodness,” exclaimed Vanessa. “What the hell is this?”
The triptych before her showed skeletons in cloaks standing on rocks along the edge of the sea, while random naked people were laid out here and there.
“It’s quite something,” said Joey, with a raised eyebrow. “The black and white makes it even more atmospheric.”
Vanessa read the tag, which identified the images as a transfer by Joaquim Pla Janini from 1930. “I’d love to tell you what it means, but I don’t know,” said Joey. “But for me, art is all about making your own meanings.”
“I’m not sure where to start with this one,” said Dani. “Hang on, my phone’s vibrating. Sorry.” She excused herself and hurried out of the gallery.
Joey and Vanessa walked on. “How about this one?” Joey asked.
“Now this is more my kind of thing.” Vanessa gazed at the oil painting, which depicted a woman sitting on a log wearing long boots, a white shirt and trousers and a big sombrero. Propped up next to her was a gun, and she had a terrier at her side.
“I wouldn’t pick a fight with her,” said Joey. “She looks pretty stern.”
“It’s from a similar time as the other pictures – 1928,” said Vanessa, who also noted that the artist, Marisa Roesset, was a woman. Its name, translated into English, was ‘Rest’. “Do you think it’s a self-portrait?”
“I don’t know, but I love how the artist has made that shirt look so life-like, and the woman so feminine and yet so strong.” Joey was interrupted by Dani rushing in, her face pale.
“I’m so sorry, my uncle’s had a stroke. I need to go to the hospital at once.” She looked panicked. Vanessa immediately put her arms around Dani.
“Can we do anything for you?” she asked.
Dani pulled away, wiping an errant tear from her cheek. “Thanks. No, I think I just need to get going. I’ll get on the metro now – that’s the quickest way.”
“Oh Dani, I’m so sorry,” said Joey. “Let us know how he is, how you get on, please.” She reached out a hand and rested it on Dani’s shoulder.
“Thanks, guys, yes I will.” Dani gave them a tight smile before hurrying away.
“God, poor Dani,” said Joey, as they watched her retreating figure. “Her family is small, and she’s been caring for her uncle for a while now.”
“Maybe we should go with her?” suggested Vanessa, desperate to help.
“She’ll be fine, but she may need us later or tomorrow,” said Joey. “One thing I’ve learned about Dani is that she asks for what she wants, and she’s pretty forthright. She’ll tell us when she needs us.”
Vanessa was struck how she and Joey seemed to have become an ‘us’. She didn’t hate it. In fact, it made her smile. She also appreciated Joey’s thoughtfulness. She was beginning to learn that while Joey didn’t always say much, what she did say tended to be considered.
She walked through the gallery towards the next painting. This one was a portrait of a woman called Pilar. It was quite angular, and Pilar had her eyes closed. “She looks a bit cross,” said Vanessa.
“Hmm. Maybe she’s just tired?” said Joey.
“Yes,” giggled Vanessa. “Sick and tired of all this shit.”
Joey looked at Vanessa and grinned. “You’re bad,” she said, before walking back towards the main dome. “Come on, wait until you see the view from the roof!”
“The roof?” Vanessa hurried to keep up with Joey’s striding pace.
There were still more steps to climb, but in a few short minutes they were standing on the roof of the palatial building, following a walkway that took them around the dome and afforded incredible views over the city.
“See over there?” Joey pointed at what looked like an old concrete structure. “That was the 1992 Olympic Stadium.” It was difficult to estimate how far away it was from them, but given the ups and the downs of the hills in the area, it was likely a few miles on foot.
They continued to explore until they came to a viewing platform at the front of the building.
“Wow,” said Vanessa. It really was an impressive sight.
They could see down the hill they had climbed to reach the museum, and then on to the fountains and the main road, large buildings and the city unfolding before them for miles.
“See there?” Joey pointed to the right. “That used to be a bullring. It’s been turned into a shopping mall now.”
“Not as romantic. But also perhaps less dangerous,” said Vanessa as she looked down on the circular domed building.