Over chocolate and churros,

I watch Patricia roll a cigarette.

Later, it is my responsibility to drink this beverage. It’s a Belgian beer called Kwak, because of the sound it makes when you get down to the narrow portion of the glass.

Jorge, who was born in Mexico, now lives in Madrid, and once lived in Belgium, tells me that each Belgian beer is served in its own particular kind of glass. This tasty Tripel Karmeliet, for example, has this lovely fleur-de-lis glass.

I’m working very hard in Madrid.