I stepped outside the gate to meet the delivery guy, and greeted our neighbors. They were out pruning their vineyard and I had some questions I wanted to ask them as we tried to figure out how to prune our own vines and trees.

Those questions had to wait because delivery guys don’t wait around. When packages are supposed to arrive at our house we either get one of two phone calls. 

“Send me your exact location. I can’t find where you house is.”

Or,

“Make sure you are there. The doorbell doesn’t work.”

Regarding the first, Google Maps apparently hasn’t made it back to our little part of Spain. It also doesn’t help that we live in a “Lugar” (place) which is part of a “Pueblo” (village) which is part of a “Parroquia” (parish), which is part of a “Municipio” (municipality), which is part of a “Comarca” (maybe a county?), which is part of a “Provincia” (province), which is part of a “Comunidad Autónoma” (Autonomous Community). Also, our address appears in two different languages, depending on who is writing it. It can be in Spanish or it can be in Gallego, different spelling for each.

The second issue for deliveries, that of the doorbell, is a little easier. Our gate has no doorbell. There are just bare wires sticking out of the wall. If someone feels the need to touch those, I suppose that the shock will induce a loud enough noise for their presence to be announced. But barring that, the delivery guy just honks his horn. If no one stirs immediately, he doesn’t wait around.

But as difficult as it might be for some to find our place, deliveries do arrive!