Music:
1. "We No Speak Americano" by Yolanda Be Cool - During our 1st month here, Nicole kept telling me, "I hate that Moroccan-sounding song they always play here!" I would ask her, "Which song?" wondering how she could identify the song as Moroccan. Did it sound Arabic? She'd reply, "I dunno. The one they always play at the clubs. It's annoying and makes the same high-pitched noise over and over." I would laugh at her then because I doubted the song was specifically Moroccan (sorry, Nicole). I assumed it was techno. I ended up being correct because, several days later, Nicole shouted to me in a bar, "This is the song!" I laughed again while nodding my head to the absurdly-catchy techno tune. This song was played all autumn, an Australian techno remake of a 1950s Italian song. Check it out here:
2. What's on the radio in America - I didn't realize when I left the States that the same music would be waiting for me here. I don't need to look at my iTunes Store Charts to know what's the Top 10 in the States because it's what is popular here, too!
3. Kiss FM (pronounced Kees Eh-feh Eh-meh)- I listen to this radio station - based out of Madrid - every Wednesday and Thursday during my car ride to my school in the country. This station plays a 50/50 mix of music in Spanish and English, which I appreciate. Their song selection, though, must consist of about 50 songs because at the same time every week, I usually hear the same group of songs. Songs like "Unwritten" by Natasha Bedingfield, "New York" by Alicia Keys, lots of Shakira and "Viva La Vida" by Coldplay. I like these songs, but, come on! Let's invest in some new tracks!
Clothes:
1. Boots - For girls here, boots are a necessity. Whether they are knee-high, Ugg knock-offs or ankle boots with skinny jeans tucked inside, you can bet 90% of the women around you are wearing boots. The only clothing item I've purchased in Spain are my fabulous black boots. Very smart buy.
2. Neutrals - Blah, Spain. BLAH. Couldn't you branch out a little? Try some color? Neutral scarves, coats, shoes, pants...everything, from top to bottom, lacks color! And you mix your neutrals, too! Forget the words of wisdom from mothers in the American South. Apparently, it's perfectly fine to wear brown, black, gray and navy together. A few "mix your neutrals" days are fine by me, every now and then. Really. It's quite fashionable. But everyday with every neutral in your outfit, to me, is just lazy. My 1st few weeks in Madrid, I thought, "European = tacky." Now, I'm less harsh on Spanish fashion, but I still can't get used to being the only colored M&M in the metro car's pack of brown. (Side note: Sometimes, people don't wear neutrals. They may have a Purple Day instead, and every article of clothing on their body is some shade of purple. Lord, help us.)
3. Coats - Women, stop with the long 'n puffy coats. After you've had a baby in Spain, you will be the only people with any body fat because the rest of the population smokes or hasn't had a kid or both. Even though you may have picked smoking back up, you shouldn't have bought that coat just yet...
4. Scarves - Also fashionable with the middle school skater kids in the States, everyone here wears the scarves that are more like a handkerchief. You make a triangle in front of your neck, take the two ends behind your neck, cross them and let them hang down in the front, like this:
I caved in and bought Savannah one for Christmas. But hers was purdy!
Hair:
1. Girls - You must have, in the words of my fellow auxiliary, Jeanette, "The straight-across, china doll, four-year old bangs." Most girls keep their hair a gorgeous, natural, espresso brown, but some venture into the dangerous bleaching zone. I always stand out with my long, naturally light-colored, no-bangs (or fringe, for my British friends) hair.
2. Guys - Dudes, just because Ronaldo (Pause: If you, Dear Reader, don't know who he is, just Google "soccer." He's who you'll see.) has a gelled mo-hawk, that doesn't mean you should, too. Not everyone can pull off metro-sexual. From my 1st graders to guys in their 30s, they're spiking up their hair in the middle of their head, and it ends up looking more greasy than attractive. Or, the males choose the classic rattail. Lovely. Even better is when they decide to make that rattail one big dreadlock. Perfect, chicos. Exactly what I had hoped for in a Spanish man. *sigh of disappointment*
3. Old women - Purple hair. Wine-colored hair. Red hair. All signs that you should stop buying a box at the grocery store and go to a salon. Or just go au naturale, please. Gray is better than Easter-egg lavender anytime.
Transportation:
1. Vehicles - Europe = tiny cars. Like Smart cars. Nicole, with her F150 sitting in her driveway at home in Maryland, squeals every time she sees a dinky pickup truck here. They're that rare.
2. The Metro - The best way to get around Madrid. I love the Metro! It's clean, reliable, easy to figure out, and ideal for people-watching. There are also taxis in the city, usually utilized after the metro closes around 1:45a. If you find yourself out 'n about like a typical Madrileño on the weekends, these are always around...or, you could just do what they do and wait for the 1st morning metro at 6. Whew.
and, finally,
Food: I had high hopes for Spain's gastronomy when I arrived. I had read the week before my departure in Newsweek that Spain was ranked #1 in the WORLD for food. Wow! Then I got here and started to buy what I could afford, meaning cereal, veggies, sandwich makings, and soup. The few times I go out to eat, the most I'll pay for a meal is 20€, but normally I stick to 10€. Here, though, is the food you´ll find everywhere you go:
1. Bread - It's a white, French loaf. Gets old reeeally quickly, especially when you prefer whole grain. Dang, I'm such a picky American!
2. Paella - Eh. Find it at a good restaurant and not at a chain.
3. Bready, cakey things - Spain loves these things, whether it's a plain cupcake muffin thingy with no icing, a croissant (with or without chocolate chips), donuts or Little Debbie-like foods. There's an entire grocery store aisle devoted to these, as well as digestive biscuits (*gag gag¨*) and tostadas.
4. Churros con chocolate - Right on, Spain.
5. Meat - It's everywhere!
a) Ham - Entire pig legs hang from hooks in many store and restaurant fronts. It's awesome...if you're a ham lover.
b) Weird stuff - The reason why I eat mostly soups, fresh fruit and veggies when I bring my lunch to school. I don't particularly enjoy Spain's wide meat selection like its people does. Blood sausage on toast? Calamari in its own ink? That durn ham leg? I've tried it all, liked most of it, but wouldn't eat it most meals like some people do here.
That's about it for now. I hope you're as amused by some of these bits of Spanish culture as I am! Ciao xoxoxo
Love the list! The puffy coats are getting popular here in DC too. Very unfortunate.
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