"El Mundo es un Pañuelo"

Location:
La Palma, Canary Islands, Spain
Latitude/Longitude:
28.713382800000, -17.905781300000
Journal Entry:

As I integrate into my new community, I hear the phrase "el mundo es un pañuelo" more and more. This phrase means “the world is a handkerchief” and is the same as our English expression "it's a small world.". The world does feel smaller on this island. 

I would never have guessed that I was only few “friends of friends” away from someone in La Palma, but coincidentally, some friends of my grandparents know someone from the Canary Islands. He talked to me about the Canaries and connected me to his friend Juani, who lives here on La Palma. 

Juani has become like my guardian angel here. She asked around and found a great place for me to live, met me at the airport, introduced me to her friends and family, and made me feel welcomed and supported. I was overwhelmed by her kindness. Her niece Isa has also become a good friend. Coincidentally, Isa used to teach at my school, and her friends know my landlady, Quina! She taught me the phrase "el mundo es un pañuelo." 

Juani could not have found me a better place to live! I live with a woman named Quina who rents rooms in her apartment to me and two other girls, who are also teachers. The apartment feels like a home.

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