Now that I have been here for a month, there are many observations that I have made about Spanish life, but I will try to narrow it down to the important ones:
1) TIME-- Perhaps one of the most important things to know about the culture is that everything is much more laid back here. There's this thing that we like to call "the real time" and "Spanish time"... (if any of you know my mother well, you can kind of compare it to that.. haha). When someone says that they will meet you at 4:00, it does not necessarily mean that they will be there right on time. For example, on Tuesday I was running around so much, freaking out that I was not going to be able to meet up with my cooking professor and classmates to go to visit two museums for class. I had had class until 1pm and went looking for a costume after class with some friends (for El Carnaval in Cadiz this Saturday). I didn't get back to my apartment until a little after 3pm (after walking so fast I was practically running home), put my stuff down, ate a bit of lunch for about 10 minutes and was on the go. It takes 20-30 minutes to get to the university from my apartment, so I didn't want to be freaking out about being on time after eating (therefore, I left in time so that I could walk a bit more leisurely and arrive on time).
Knowing me, I always walk pretty fast... so I still ended being a few minutes early, there were only two other girls there before me, and our professor didn't arrive until 5-10 minutes after 4pm! We didn't end up leaving until 4:18--so, one of the most important things I have noticed while abroad is that we, as Americans, live in a society that is way too rushed. When I had come back to eat lunch that day and even said "Necesito comer muy rapido", my host mom did not like that I was so rushed. When I told her the time that I needed to meet my class, she said "Ooo, necesitas correr?! No hay mucho tiempo.." When I said that I am always running, she laughed because I am sure she has noticed that this is true. One of the things I hope to accomplish by the end of this program is to learn how to RELAX. Being in a constant rush is not only unhealthy, but can cause much unneeded stress!
So, generally speaking, the Spaniards have a relaxed culture; time is more of a guideline to them. For example, if you were to go to a bar or restaurant to have a coffee or eat a meal, the natural reaction of an American would be to eat/drink what you went in for and be on your way. Spaniards, on the other hand, may sit there for a half hour or maybe even more to chat, even after there is nothing left to eat/drink (you will not be stared at or forced to leave immediately after finishing, like many waiters/waitresses would like you to do in the U.S.). Classes don't really begin until at least 5 minutes after the stated time either (sometimes even 15 minutes!).
2) PARTYING/FOOD/SLEEP-- Though I was already warned about the crazy schedule for Spaniards before I arrived, it definitely has taken some time to adjust. As most of you probably know, part of this "crazy schedule" that they have has to do with their late night partying. Now, some of you may think that it's not a big deal, because I'm sure we've all had late nights before...but seriously, when the Spanish like to party, they party. If you recall the blog I wrote after being in Madrid, we were made fun of for leaving a club at 3am. In the U.S, clubs are usually closed by then. But here, the 'norm' of a night on the town would be coming back to your house by 7 or 8 in the morning. Whenever my roommates and I have gone out, Carmen has asked us when we came in the night before. Most of the time we are back by 5am, but to this response she tells us that it's very early. One of the things that many Spaniards do is stay out so late that they can go out for churros con chocolate before heading home... I still haven't had that late of a night, but it is one of my goals! haha.
To make up for these late nights, most Spaniards partake in the "siesta", where virtually the entire city shuts down after lunch time. Most shops close between 1 or 2pm until 5:30pm, I haven't been able to make myself sleep during the siesta yet, but hopefully my body will allow me to sleep soon :( To make a side note on the sleeping comment; although one of the major things I worried about before arriving in Sevilla was sleeping with all the loud noises of the city, it is the least of my concerns. It is pretty quiet at night, plus I have earplugs to wear. But, for some strange reason it is very rare that I get a good night's sleep! There are absolutely no rational reasons... if you have any ideas of something I should experiment with, let me know. I even stopped drinking coffee past 2pm (unless I know I'm going to be out late) to weed out the caffeine intake as the problem source!
To go along with the Spaniards' late nights and napping, their eating patterns may also appear "odd" to us. For example, in Spain, the typical breakfast is very small; a piece of toast or two with olive oil and coffee is the typical breakfast, but you can also have toast with marmalade, or galletas or muffins. The trick is to eat a very small meal, because lunch will be big. Many workers have a "breakfast break" at their job, at about 10 or 11am also--another sign of how relaxed this culture is!
Lunch is normally around 2:30pm but can also be eaten around 4 in some cases. The "killer" to most of us is the huge gap between lunch and dinner because most people do not do any snacking here. Although lunch is served later than the typical lunchtime in the U.S, dinner is typically served between 9 and 10pm! That was the weirdest schedule difference to adjust to probably. I can't lie though, there have been several occasions that I just could not last and had to eat a snack in between!
Random Sidenote:
- last Thursday we also went to ROSS, the orchestra here in Sevilla
Get some sleep!
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