Dodging Deliveries

Feeling overwhelmed and scared of the Amazon couriers

For at least a couple of months after we arrived in Spain, I refused to order anything online and have it delivered to our apartment. I was terrified of not being able to communicate with the courier.

So I turtled.

Anything we ordered from Amazon was sent to a locker. For everything else, I just didn’t answer the buzzer to our apartment. When there was no answer, the courier would leave the packages with the doorman in the lobby of our building.

That worked fine for a while, but I realized this wasn’t a sustainable way to handle packages.

At some point, I posted about my terror on an Instagram story, and some of my Instagram friends sent me messages of encouragement. One person said, “Most of the time, they only ask for your NIE, so you can write that on a notecard and have it ready for them to see.” Another said, “You didn’t move all the way to Spain to not speak the language. You have to rip off the Band-Aid and do it.”

Of course, they were right. We moved to Spain to experience the culture, learn the language, and discover a new way of life. Hiding from something as simple as a package delivery would only hinder my progress.

Taking the advice I’d received to heart, I made a note in my phone with my NIE that I could quickly show to any courier who came to our door. (An NIE is the identification number you receive when you become a Spanish resident.) I also started practicing saying the number out loud in Spanish, just in case.

Photo by ANIRUDH on Unsplash

I was a nervous wreck the first time a delivery arrived at our door. It sounds silly now, but something so simple in my native language was downright daunting in the one I’ve been diligently trying to learn. I felt like I was getting on one of the big coasters we rode at Universal Orlando for the first time, facing my fears and hoping I didn’t screw it up.

In retrospect, what’s funniest about this scenario is that I had no fear of moving to Spain. I was willing to make every adjustment needed, learn a new language, navigate bureaucracy, and so on. But getting a package delivered? Ha! That’s too hard! The thing is, it all comes back to feeling overwhelmed. Honestly, I think my brain was ready to shut down for a while after so many changes in such a short period of time.

Today, five months later, it’s no big deal to receive a package. We’re either home and can get it ourselves or pick it up from the desk once we arrive home. I’m no longer afraid to speak Spanish and know precisely what to expect. Like anything in life, experience is the best teacher.