1) The pace of life. Back home I often find myself wondering if life ever slows down or if I'll ever be able to take a break and actually be able to enjoy myself without thinking about what still needs to be done. Here, I can do just that. People are so kind and easygoing, and take their time going about life. Everyday from about 2:00-5:00 is siesta time. It's a time to go home to your families, eat lunch together, and take a nap or enjoy a quiet activity. Everything closes during this time, so there is literally nothing to do except leisure activities. It is so refreshing to have that time to do what I want to do and to relax. If I took that time for myself at home, I'd feel guilty and lazy. Here, enjoying yourself is more willingly embraced, and even expected.
2) The way they treat their women. Spain is in the process of moving from a machista (male dominated) society to one with equal rights for women. Men still act like gentlemen, something that I feel often doesn't occur at home, and women are treated with respect rather than as objects of sexual objectification. Yesterday we were watching Tú sí que vales, their version of America's Got Talent, with our host mom. One of the acts was a Columbian salsa dancing group, consisting of two men and one woman. To spice things up during the dance, the men banged on the woman's butt cheeks. They got voted out because the judges considered it to be objectification of the woman, and they let it be known that such behavior was not acceptable, as it was overtly sexist. I hadn't thought twice about it; for me, it's not uncommon that a woman's body is treated like that. And the judges who were most adamently against it? The men. It's encouraging to know that some cultures value women for something outside of their physical beauty and sexual worth.
More on this later, but for now, churros.
3) The food culture. Food is homemade and ingredients are fresh. People take pride in what they put on the table. More than that, food is meant to be enjoyed and is a strong part of social life. When you sit down to eat, you sit to enjoy not only your food, but your friends and family. For this reason, you see very, very few fast food restaurants; thus far, I have seen two in the entire city. Even coffee is something to be enjoyed slowly, sitting down. You don't see people here running around town with coffees in hand; they take the extra few minutes to sit in a cafe and sip their drinks. Maybe that's why everything seems so much more delicious here?
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