#microstates

When I was a child, I thought every country had ski lockers at the supermarket.

That’s Andorra. Small, yes. But we live vertically — and very much on our own terms.

I was once asked by an American tourist if we use euros “like France does.” I told him we do. Then I told him we’re not France. Or Spain.

We’re both. And neither.

Catalan is our official language. We learn Spanish and French from childhood. Some of us speak Portuguese at home. Our newsstands carry newspapers from Madrid, Toulouse, and sometimes Lisbon.

And yet, we are something else entirely.

When I travel, people ask if I’m Spanish or French. I always hesitate. “I’m Andorran,” I say. Most smile politely. A few ask if that’s in Africa.

It’s okay. We’re used to being overlooked. But the snow knows who we are.

We belong to mountains. And to each other.