A Recommended
Dosage of Advice to Help Cushion Your Transition from There to Here (Part
I)
Intro: The first
part in a series of short practical articles (very general in scope)
for people who plan on visiting or living in Spain, written with the intention
of pointing out aspects of Spanish life that may be challenging to foreigners.
Body:
So you’ve
recently arrived in Spain and you plan on staying here for a while.
Are you a
student, a business entrepreneur, a retiree looking for a place to relax,
slow down and enjoy life to its fullest? It doesn’t matter; there
are plenty of reasons why you might have decided to come to Spain – what
matters now is that you’re here (welcome!). I think you’ve
made a good decision and will find that life in Spain is somehow easier
to enjoy, that time doesn’t slip through your fingers quite as quickly.
That’s the good news. And there’s no really bad news – but I do think
a few tips from someone who’s been in your shoes could help cushion your
transition from one culture to another. Below I’ve focused on a few
of the topics that first came to mind when thinking about aspects of Spanish
culture that foreigners might find unusual, surprising, or even – although
I hope not – shocking.
Air-conditioning: You’re about
to learn the art of tolerance towards less-than-ideal climactic circumstances.
Sure air-conditioning is used in Spain, but not as you might expect.
In the US, for example, exposure to the summer heat is something that occurs
strictly during short, purposeful darts from the car to the office, office
to car, car to home. Otherwise, meticulously sealed environments
armed with overactive air-conditioning systems offer
continuous
refuge from the intolerable presence of our giant fireball. Not the
case in Spain. Rather than the ceiling vents of built-in air-conditioning
systems, you’ll find small standalone units (usually above doorways
or windows) that aren’t really intended to regulate the overall temperature
but simply to partially alleviate the heat.
There are at
least two reasons why Spaniards aren’t crazy about air-conditioning.
The first is economical: being a commodity that has only recently become
popular, air-conditioning is simply not considered a necessity of life.
Consequently, people here are less likely to tolerate the high electricity
charges it generates. The second objection is health-related: unnaturally
cold air, constantly recycled and thus unclean, can lead (according to
the argument) to illness. I’m not a doctor, but I can see how exposure
to wildly fluctuating temperatures might be unhealthy. So the good
news is you won’t get sick as often and you won’t have to bring a sweater
when dining out. The bad news? You’ll be hot most of the time.
Personal
space and body contact: If you’re
living in a busy city like Madrid or Barcelona, you might have to get used
to sharing small spaces with large crowds. This will happen mostly
on the bus or metro, especially during peak hours before and after work.
You might find yourself in a packed metro with limited or no air-conditioning
on a hot summer day... my advice is never to ride the metro with a hangover.
But don’t worry, Spanish people (especially in large cities) practice
good hygiene; it’s been decades since strong body odour was a normal thing
to encounter.
You’ll also
find that body contact in general is practiced quite often. When
a man greets a woman, or a women greet each other, a kiss on each cheek
is customary. You can also expect pats on the back, arms around shoulders,
a quick tousling of the hair and perhaps even a friendly cheek squeeze
during a regular conversation.
Honesty...
total, unrestrained honesty: Once you make
friends, you may notice that Spaniards can be quite blunt: “What
a terrible haircut you’ve gotten! You’ve gained a lot of weight since the
last time we
met, haven’t
you? No, I don’t like your new shoes; they look ridiculous...”
These all seem like negative comments, but I’m by no means suggesting that
Spaniards focus unnecessarily on the negative. They’re open to the
good and the bad, and will comment equally upon them; it’s just that when
you come from a culture where politeness is taken to an extreme, you might
find this complete honesty a bit offensive. What’s the solution?
Easy. Don’t take yourself too seriously; open yourself to the possibility
that you’ve gotten a bad haircut or gained some weight and learn to laugh
amiably at yourself (it’s a pretty healthy thing to do).
In my experience,
Spanish bluntness has always been a sign of respect. Let me give
you an example: let’s say you walk into a bar with a renegade piece of
lunch hanging tenaciously to the corner of your mouth.
If it’s a
Spanish bar you’re walking into, you can expect the following series of
events to take place within seconds: laughter / revelation / resolution.
Now let’s run the simulation in, let’s say, a bar in the US: stifled amusement
/ prolonged discomfort / mounting tension / bathroom mirror surprise /
eventual, embarrassed, frustrated resolution. Of course, it’s always better
to practice good hygiene, but you see what I mean don’t you? Spanish
bluntness is usually not intended as an insult; it’s actually a product
of respect, trust, and honesty. So keep a light heart and try not
to take offense when you’re exposed to it.
These are just
a few aspects of life in Spain that you might find difficult to deal with
at first. Rest assured that they’ll be eclipsed by many pleasant
surprises and delightful experiences which, so that you may appreciate
them in full, I’ll leave unsaid.
Patrick
Collins lives in Malaga and works for a company that offers information
and free booking of Spanish language courses in public universities and
private language schools throughout Spain.
See www.unispain.com
