Barcelona was another imagined world—after several visits, I fell in love with the city and its history. Later, I moved to the Raval neighborhood, District V, also known as Chinatown. After reading The Thief’s Journal by playwright Jean Genet, I was drawn to explore the alleys of Raval and meet the people who lived there. The many stories of Barcelona, particularly of this neighborhood, captivated me. I spent time searching for the house where Ramón Mercader, Trotsky’s assassin, once lived on Cadena Street, which has since disappeared. I was enchanted by the stories I heard at Casa Leopoldo restaurant, the tales of writer Vázquez Montalbán, the love affairs of the transsexuals at La Concha bar, the nights of discussions and drinking at El Fidel bar, and countless other unfinished stories.
