The American and the girl waited for a train to Madrid in a bar located by the train station. Nearby, there are hills across the valley of the Ebro which were long and white. As the couple was ordering their drinks from the Spanish lady working at the bar, the girl takes notice of the hills that were off in the distance and how they appeared very out of place from its surroundings that were brown and dry. The girl comments that the hills "look like white elephants," to the man to which he responds that he's never seen one before. The girl makes a sassy remark that sets the tone for the rest of their conversation and argument. After finishing the first round of drinks the girl yet again looks at her surroundings and notices that there are the words, "Anis del Toro," painted on the beads at the entrance. The man tells the girl that it is a drink, which the girl decides to try. After tasting the drink the conversation continues to be tense as each take turns making remarks until the man tells the girl to cut it out. The girl defensively tells the man that he was the one who started it and so the man decides it's best to drop it and try to have a good time. Yet again the girl brings up the hills that look like white elephants, only this time she decides that they actually look quite lovely, and nothing like the white elephants from before. After this the conversation takes a different direction when the man brings up an operation that he appears to be trying to convince her to go through. The man explains how simple and even insignificant the operation is. While hearing this, the girl tries to convince herself that he has a point but still she has her doubts about the whole thing. She ends up telling him that she'll do it not because she wants to, but because she doesn't care about herself and will do it for him. Like with their drinking, she ends up telling him to stop talking so that they can avoid this problem that they are facing. It