Characters in my life Part II - Mr. Bigua

An important aspect of Uruguayan culture is greeting. It is customary to kiss people on the cheek not only when first introduced but also when you encounter friends around town. Unsurprisingly, this gets confusing in ambiguous situations. When you run into someone for 5 minutes do you kiss hello and goodbye? Should I greet my teachers with a kiss, a nod, or a handshake?

One such ambiguous circumstance arose at the gym. I am a member of Club Bigua, a YMCA-like club that offers everything from Italian classes to body pump. It has a large indoor swimming pool, tennis courts, a basketball court, and a workout room full of rickety gym equipment.

One morning, I was riding a rickety bike with Pink blaring on my iPod contemplating why no one in the gym (except myself) seemed to sweating, when I noticed an elderly gentleman going from treadmill to treadmill greeting and chatting with each gym-goer. He was wearing a blue and white track-suit straight from the 80s with Bigua printed on the back. “Dear Lord,” I thought, “certainly Bigua doesn’t have official greeters like Wal-Mart.” I put on my “serious work-out” face and pedaled on.

Mr. Bigua finished up the treadmills and moved on to the bikes, arriving at mine just as I was reaching the hardest part of my workout. Obviously annoyed at the interruption, I turned Pink down as he said, “Next time, please bring a towel,” and pointed to the sign on the wall listing the requirement. Panting and sweating, I nodded, and he moved on.

At Mr. Bigua’s request, I remembered to take a towel every time I went to the gym after that, except of course every time Mr. Bigua was working. On these occasions without fail, he would end the greeting routine with increasingly brusque reminders “No te olvides la toalla!” (Don’t forget a towel).

Yesterday, I headed to Bigua, towel in hand, and Mr. Bigua was nowhere in sight. About halfway thought my workout I felt a firm pat on the back. I turned, and there was Mr. Bigua. “Hola,” he said with a steady smile. I think we are finally friends.