A Chilean writer named Julio and his wife, Gloria, are beset by worries, constantly bickering about money, their writing, and their son (who may or may not be plying the oldest trade in Marrakesh). When Julio's boyhood best friend lends the couple his luxurious Madrid apartment for the summer, it is an escape for both - in particular for Julio, who fantasizes about the garden next door and the erotic life of the lovely young aristocratic woman who inhabits it.