That television series was not a figment of some scriptwriters' imagination. He always suspected that it was based on real events and devoted time and effort to find out. He interviewed experts, consulted documents and finally set out to explore some of the subway labyrinths that intertwine in the Madrid of the Austrias.
-Rediós...! -he said with deep surprise. He let out such a rude expression when he discovered that his search was over. Although he could only see a narrow passageway and some steps going upwards, he knew, as soon as he opened it, that this was the door. And when he crossed it to find himself in front of the wines stored there, he entered a new dimension.
He was in the cellar of a venerable establishment. Possibly the oldest restaurant in the world. He confirmed the impression when he recognized a pendulum clock and knew what was happening when he saw an unmistakable customer sitting at the table he had occupied a hundred years before. He was sharing it with Lady Brett Ashley, the protagonist of the novel Fiesta. In it Hemingway would write that his companion "did not drink much" and that they opened three bottles of La Rioja Alta. The same amount he used to drink in Pamplona when he enjoyed lunch at the end of the running of the bulls.
This new time traveler began to retrace the steps he had taken, thinking of successive returns. In this way he would get to know many of the protagonists of the literary, political, artistic and social life of the last centuries. However, none of this would be necessary. As he crossed paths in his hasty flight with a character he could not quite identify, he thought he heard the last revelation:
-You only have to come back one more time -he told him-. We will all meet when Casa Botín turns three hundred years old.
