comparing
Before I left for Spain, I had so many conversations about Spain compared to America. Would it look very similar? Would I even be able to tell if I am in Spain or in the US?
For the most part, I think Spain is much more similar to the US than I thought it would be. I pass countless historic landmarks just on my way to school, and Spanish is pretty much the only language I hear. However, there are 3 Starbucks within a 5 minute walking distance from my school; they’re actually all basically across the street from each other about 1 block apart! But I can’t use my Starbucks app here which stinks because I saved my birthday drink and my last gold card reward too. I actually had a conversation with a barista today about the app, and he gave me the “thumbs down” sign because he wishes they used it! There are 2 McDonald’s between my apartment and school, and I’ve seen several Burger King restaurants. I’ve seen Dunkin Donuts, and there is a new Costco in Seville that everyone is talking about. H&M is one of the most popular clothing stores.
The apartment buildings look very similar to what we have in US cities, but just a little more dated inside and out. Instead of tall buildings being brick or all black with tinted glass, they’re generally all white with some color on the trim. The streets are the biggest difference. The roads that cars drive on are just like ours- oh and they drive on the right (I assumed they drove on the left)! However most of the back streets around the city center and in neighborhoods are brick and stone, so they’re very rough and hard to walk on. However, most of the women still wear heels no matter where they’re going!
I hardly notice a difference in cars here. There are so many mopeds/motorcycles/Vespas here! It’s unbelievable, but these are actually allowed on some of the streets where cars can’t drive, and it’s obviously a lot easier to park a little moped than a car. There really aren’t any trucks or SUVs. Most of the cars are little Hondas like everyone in the US makes fun of. The police cars and taxis are Prius, which makes so much more sense than big cars!
Some of the things that we eat are very, very different, while other things taste just like in the US. Almost everything we eat is made in the microwave. The oven is just used to store things, like in The Middle :) So far, the most interesting lunch I have had was a whole potato- peeled- but cold. Just a plain, whole potato without skin. With that potato, we had a hard boiled egg and a piece of bread. There hasn’t been anything that I have absolutely hated, and I’m never hungry or anything, but I haven’t absolutely loved any food except for the tortilla! Spanish tortilla is so so so good! It’s not like a tortilla at a Mexican restaurant. Spanish tortilla is fried potatoes with eggs and oil, so it ends up being kind of like a quiche. Marta taught me how to make it too, so I will have to try back at home, although we don’t have a deep fat fryer. They fry something at almost every meal!
The TV is ALWAYS on! It’s interesting because the Spanish are so conservative with water and electricity (we have to turn the light off in the bedroom if we just step across the hall to the bathroom) but the TV runs nonstop, even if no one is watching! There are at least 3 TV’s in this apartment, plus phones, tablets, computers, etc. Juanjo has Snapchat and Twitter and Instagram- the social media and technology aspect is basically the same at the US. A lot of the most popular movies, TV shows, and books in the US are extremely popular here too, like The Hunger Games. I think the Spanish listen to more American music than Spanish music. It’s hilarious though, because the news will be on and a Beyonce song will come on that makes absolutely no sense with what the context of the news feature is because they don’t understand the songs.
Really I could have packed anything to wear and I would have blended in just fine. For the most part, all of the clothes that the Spanish wear are just like what we wear when we want to look nice. I never see anyone in sweat pants or work out clothes unless they are working out in that moment. But the women all wear jeans and flats with cardigans and button downs or other nice tops. The men look the most noticeably different because I’m used to seeing guys in cargo shorts and t-shirts all the time. Guys usually wear shorts, but they’re the flat front colored shorts that actually look nice. A lot of people wear boat shoes (like Sperry’s). The kids, however, are almost always decked out. They dress really “preppy,” like button downs with cardigans tied around their shoulders, pastel shorts, and tall socks with loafers or ruffly dresses. The siblings almost always appear to be matching with their other siblings.
I expected more Spanish people to speak English, but actually most don’t speak any. Juanjo is learning Spanish at school, but he doesn’t want to talk in English in front of us which is understandable. I assume most people who work in business and government jobs can speak more of other languages, but for the most part it seems like there are about as many Spanish people who speak English as there are Americans who speak Spanish.
For the most part, I would say Seville is still pretty similar to home. There have definitely been a few times (like at the bullfight) where I've felt like I was literally in a different world or at an amusement park or something, but overall Seville feels kind of like a cool college town. After just a week in Seville, I am so comfortable here. I have definitely made a 360 degree transformation since this time last week when I first arrived in Seville, and praise the Lord for that!
For the most part, I think Spain is much more similar to the US than I thought it would be. I pass countless historic landmarks just on my way to school, and Spanish is pretty much the only language I hear. However, there are 3 Starbucks within a 5 minute walking distance from my school; they’re actually all basically across the street from each other about 1 block apart! But I can’t use my Starbucks app here which stinks because I saved my birthday drink and my last gold card reward too. I actually had a conversation with a barista today about the app, and he gave me the “thumbs down” sign because he wishes they used it! There are 2 McDonald’s between my apartment and school, and I’ve seen several Burger King restaurants. I’ve seen Dunkin Donuts, and there is a new Costco in Seville that everyone is talking about. H&M is one of the most popular clothing stores.
The apartment buildings look very similar to what we have in US cities, but just a little more dated inside and out. Instead of tall buildings being brick or all black with tinted glass, they’re generally all white with some color on the trim. The streets are the biggest difference. The roads that cars drive on are just like ours- oh and they drive on the right (I assumed they drove on the left)! However most of the back streets around the city center and in neighborhoods are brick and stone, so they’re very rough and hard to walk on. However, most of the women still wear heels no matter where they’re going!
I hardly notice a difference in cars here. There are so many mopeds/motorcycles/Vespas here! It’s unbelievable, but these are actually allowed on some of the streets where cars can’t drive, and it’s obviously a lot easier to park a little moped than a car. There really aren’t any trucks or SUVs. Most of the cars are little Hondas like everyone in the US makes fun of. The police cars and taxis are Prius, which makes so much more sense than big cars!
Some of the things that we eat are very, very different, while other things taste just like in the US. Almost everything we eat is made in the microwave. The oven is just used to store things, like in The Middle :) So far, the most interesting lunch I have had was a whole potato- peeled- but cold. Just a plain, whole potato without skin. With that potato, we had a hard boiled egg and a piece of bread. There hasn’t been anything that I have absolutely hated, and I’m never hungry or anything, but I haven’t absolutely loved any food except for the tortilla! Spanish tortilla is so so so good! It’s not like a tortilla at a Mexican restaurant. Spanish tortilla is fried potatoes with eggs and oil, so it ends up being kind of like a quiche. Marta taught me how to make it too, so I will have to try back at home, although we don’t have a deep fat fryer. They fry something at almost every meal!
The TV is ALWAYS on! It’s interesting because the Spanish are so conservative with water and electricity (we have to turn the light off in the bedroom if we just step across the hall to the bathroom) but the TV runs nonstop, even if no one is watching! There are at least 3 TV’s in this apartment, plus phones, tablets, computers, etc. Juanjo has Snapchat and Twitter and Instagram- the social media and technology aspect is basically the same at the US. A lot of the most popular movies, TV shows, and books in the US are extremely popular here too, like The Hunger Games. I think the Spanish listen to more American music than Spanish music. It’s hilarious though, because the news will be on and a Beyonce song will come on that makes absolutely no sense with what the context of the news feature is because they don’t understand the songs.
Really I could have packed anything to wear and I would have blended in just fine. For the most part, all of the clothes that the Spanish wear are just like what we wear when we want to look nice. I never see anyone in sweat pants or work out clothes unless they are working out in that moment. But the women all wear jeans and flats with cardigans and button downs or other nice tops. The men look the most noticeably different because I’m used to seeing guys in cargo shorts and t-shirts all the time. Guys usually wear shorts, but they’re the flat front colored shorts that actually look nice. A lot of people wear boat shoes (like Sperry’s). The kids, however, are almost always decked out. They dress really “preppy,” like button downs with cardigans tied around their shoulders, pastel shorts, and tall socks with loafers or ruffly dresses. The siblings almost always appear to be matching with their other siblings.
I expected more Spanish people to speak English, but actually most don’t speak any. Juanjo is learning Spanish at school, but he doesn’t want to talk in English in front of us which is understandable. I assume most people who work in business and government jobs can speak more of other languages, but for the most part it seems like there are about as many Spanish people who speak English as there are Americans who speak Spanish.
For the most part, I would say Seville is still pretty similar to home. There have definitely been a few times (like at the bullfight) where I've felt like I was literally in a different world or at an amusement park or something, but overall Seville feels kind of like a cool college town. After just a week in Seville, I am so comfortable here. I have definitely made a 360 degree transformation since this time last week when I first arrived in Seville, and praise the Lord for that!
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