Last Updated on July 29, 2019, by eNotes Editorial. Word Count: 148

1. How realistic is the story? What is it like to work in a cafe?

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2. What is it like to live in Spain?

3. Would this story have the same kind of dialogue if it were set in a bigger city? What are some of the differences between a big and a small city, with regard to the people who live there?

4. Would you consider the older waiter and the old patron to be friends? How would you define their relationship?

5. What might the younger waiter's history be? What kind of upbringing did he have, and how might he have come to be living the life he is living at the time of the story?

6. Why do people react so differently to other people's sorrows?

7. How does growing older change your perspective towards life and towards others?

8. What are some of the advantages and disadvantages of using an omniscient narrator?