¡Cultura española!

I’m not exactly an expert on Spanish culture but I do think I have had a lot of experience with it. I took Spanish in the 2^nd, 3^rd, 4^th, 8^th, and 9^th grades only to NOT be fluent in it in any way. Of course I can count to 39 (weird place to stop), get through the basic “Hola, cómo estás, cómo te llamas, y adios”, but nothing more than that.

 Fortunately, during my senior year of high school I was honored to meet one of my best friends, Lydia!!! When I met her she had only been in the US for about 4 months.  Of course that first thing I noticed was her accent and had to ask “omg, where are you from?!” I was so amazed to learn she was from Cartagena, Spain and that she was so cool. Going to Lydia’s house was where I was exposed to and learned most about Spanish culture. Her mom only speaks Spanish so I would try my hardest to keep up at breakfast time but my little bit of Spanish was NOT cutting it. Just a hint Spaniard’s tend to speak loudly, they aren’t arguing or mad, lol.

It’s also important to note that Spanish and South/Central Americans are TWO different groups of people. I cannot count the amount of times that Lydia has gotten mad because someone said she was from Mexico or even that people think Spain is next Mexico (yes, it’s not uncommon that we hear that. Also, fun fact: a girl from our high school thought Jamaica was next to Africa.)

“In Spain, we don’t sing the national anthem as much as Americans. We don’t sing it at the beginning of HS sporting events. We don’t put our hand on our heart. Even some people believe that overly representing the flag, the way that’s normal to Americans, symbolizes our past dictatorship. It’s not as patriotic as the American flag is.” -Lydia

Food! I love food! We when I first heard that it’s common to get out of school to go have lunch with your family, I was quite jealous. Meals are almost always eaten with your family. It’s a time to get together and enjoy each other’s company. Lunch is usually around 2. Later there is a time for a snack, Merienda, after, of course, your wonderful nap. Then time for dinner around 9! Many popular dishes include:

 Paella

Fabada 

Lentejas

& there is always bread at every meal. It’s not uncommon for your mom to tell you to go down the street and get bread.

Like many cultures, family and friends are very important. Spanish culture is a really face-to-face and highly social culture. Yes, they all have phones but they know how to put them down when it’s time to go out and fun! Many people live in city-like areas so it is normal to walk everywhere and to meet new people along the way. But typically, you’d stick with a group of people and become close with them. Also, it seems that Spanish culture has tons of freedom (no curfew), not only in what they are allowed to do but also in how they think. For example, the legal drinking age in Spain is 18. Here it’s obviously 21. Alcohol isn’t made out to be such an exciting thing because the rules aren’t as strict and also they are more aware about the consequences than the typical American.

The most prominent sport? You guessed it, Fútbol!!!!!!!!!! It’s always entertaining to watch sports and to be accompanied by so many people who share a similar interest with you.

 

Like any culture, Spanish culture has it's little weird and unimaginable things about it, things you and I would never think of being important. For example, PERSIANAS (blinds)!!! Here is a quick, summarized list of neat aspects of Spanish culture. And lastly, a song to check out if you are interested. 

Thanks for reading! :)