When a GPS gets lost and quits: Part 1

It is not exactly good news to hear that your best navigator, in the middle of nowhere, suddenly decides to quit.

Some people would say, “Nah! Lucca, are you kidding me? A GPS never quits. At worst, it gets a sore throat from repeating itself for hours.”

Well… no. Things happen.

All kinds of things.

I’m writing these notes while I wait for my turn at Loli’s hairdresser salon – which is, by the way, just as entertaining (if not more) than a reality TV show.

Loli’s Hair Salon is famous. Together with her sister Ester, she manages to keep everyone looking presentable. Which, if you think about it, is already an achievement.

Every now and then, the door opens, someone walks in, stops, and goes – “wow!” – as if they’ve discovered a live performance instead of a salon. That’s when I wake up from my half-nap and remember where I am.

And then – bang. A metallic crash.

Loli has dropped something again. A reminder that things fall. Tools, plans… GPS systems.

So, let’s go back to my case with the GPS.

As my most incredulous friend would say every time I tell him a story of my road trips gone wrong – usually thanks to Siri or the GPS – he insists that GPSs don’t fail. Perfect satellite technology.

“But then again,” I say to him, “why does it always fail on me?”

Anyway, I’ll tell you one of my stories.

I remember once I set it up for a trip from Segovia to Seville. I was ready to go – coffee in the cup holder, snacks for the next 15 minutes, backrest repositioned, sunglasses, gloves, a playlist… ready to hit the road, Jack.

So there I was, listening to instructions: left, right, another left, two rights… “Everybody in the car – shhhh, please! I can’t hear. What did it say? Left? Right?” – while a queue of cars behind me started honking, some even communicating through very creative finger signals.

After about 30 minutes on the road, I noticed something strange on the GPS. Seville was inexplicably moving further south on the map.

“Hmmm,” I said, “how can my destination be farther than it was 30 minutes ago?”

Another red flag appeared as the landscape turned greener – unusual, since driving south normally gets drier and flatter.

Something was off. I pulled over to check the map again. To my surprise, the GPS showed we were farther from Seville than when we had started in the Segovia area.

So what happened? Did Seville move further south? Unlikely.

It turns out that I had typed “Sevilla,” and it had helpfully selected Sevilla la Nueva – a town in the north of the Community of Madrid.

Yes, technically right… and completely wrong at the same time.

Sevilla la Nueva is a 16th-century town, and I even considered visiting it. Who knows – maybe a Castilian version of La Giralda.

…TO BE CONTINUED. Or not? Getting lost in the Algarve is a story for another day.