I fell asleep. She waited 40 minutes in the lobby. We'd never even met in person before — that part still surprises me.
I’d just landed in Medellin. First time in Colombia, no Spanish, no clue where Parque Lleras was. We’d been texting back and forth and I’d offered : let’s meet at your place, then we go together. She said okay. We picked a time around six.
About half an hour before, she texted to confirm. I didn’t answer. Not because I was busy — because I’d taken a “quick nap” and the nap had quietly turned into a real one.
Waking up to the angry smiley face
When I finally opened my eyes, there was a wall of texts on my phone. I can’t believe you’re doing this. Are you actually ghosting me? And then an angry smiley face. I remember just staring at it.
She’d already taken a cab to my building. She was waiting downstairs.
I jumped in the shower for maybe not even five minutes. Got dressed, put on some perfume. Went down. There she was, standing in the lobby, with a face that was very much not happy. The first thing I did was hug her and say sorry sorry sorry sorry sorry. And sorry. And then again sorry.
Maybe two minutes later she kind of forgave me. I still don’t know why. I’m just glad she did.
Parque Lleras in the rain
Parque Lleras was loud. Bars on three sides, music spilling out, people standing around with beers — and it was raining, which somehow made it better. I remember just standing there for a minute taking it in. The colors, the music, the people. It felt magic, kind of, in a way I don’t know how to put properly.
My phone was almost dead. I’m one of those people whose phone is always at 1, 2, 3, 5 percent — never full. Don’t ask why. She just took it from my hand and said let me ask the bartender if they have a charger. They did. We left it there while we ate.
That’s something I would never do in Canada. I know that’s not exactly true, but you know what I mean — it just doesn’t happen. Here, it felt fine.
What I wish I’d known
A few things, in no particular order :
Colombian time is real. People run later than you’d expect from Canada. So when I was rushing because I was 40 minutes late — she was already maybe 20 minutes late herself. We’d both moved the meeting in our heads. (I still don’t know if that’s “Colombian time” specifically or just her.)
A nap before going out is not a 30-minute thing. I learned that. I now set three alarms.
And : some people forgive you faster than you deserve. That’s the part I keep thinking about.