1. Spaniards are never on time.
2. Yogurt and pudding here are much less dense.
3. The city is super safe, even at night (which doesn't mean I'll go walking alone).
4. Air conditioning is super rare...but there are like blackout blinds which keep the sun out during the heat of the day.
5. Families tend to take their kids out to play at the playgrounds here around 10pm when it cools down.
6. Graffiti does not necessarily indicate a bad area.
7. Drinking is the norm here.
8. Milk is not usually consumed cold...and does not have to be kept cold to keep it from spoiling.
9. Water and energy are expensive here.
10. All the American students will want to speak English whenever possible.
11. Don't attempt to use an American power strip!
12. Not all apartments are super small.
13. Dressing up for my host senora was not necessary.
14. Door locks are very different here...you have to turn til it clicks 4 times.
15. Madrid has one of the best metro services in Europe.
16. Coins here are not just pocket change...they actually have a value more than a few cents sometimes.
17. Here they like to eat...a lot...and many courses.
18. Goodbyes take FOREVER!
19. Spaniards generally do not walk around without shoes.
20. School semesters do not begin until September usually.
21. The Spanish government has some interesting policies...not even gonna try to explain.
22. Going to a hair salon here to get a simple haircut or color can be a horrible experience.
23. When shopping, you will see many traditional American brands...but any writing on the bottles or products will be mainly in Spanish, and if there is another language, it will probably be French.
24. In order to purchase a monthly metro pass (where you get unlimited rides for the month for one price), you have to get what is called an abono. It has your picture and a special number on it so that only you can use it. Then, once you have an abono (which never expires), you can purchase the pass for an additional fee.
25. Taxi drivers can easily take advantage of Americans by driving around so that they have to pay more.
26. Money goes fast here, and really you are using more than you think due to the conversion rate.
27. If you are going to go out at night for a drink, it will be much later than one would go out in the states.
28. You can get a job tutoring/teaching English with a family without any work papers or resume. And you can get paid up to 20 euros per hour for this service.
29. People speak much louder here.
30. Outlets have 2 circular holes here, rather than 2 rectangular ones.
...That's all for now, folks. Maybe I will add more later.
Spanish Word of the Day: aprender = to learn :)
**Additions:
31. When you go to the supermercado, you have to weigh your own fruit and veggies...there's a scale (see below) that you put the bag of produce on and then you press the button for the number corresponding to the type of fruit or vegetable you have and it prints out a label...pretty cool!
32. I've learned many new phrases...including this one: Me da pereza (literally, it makes me lazy)!
33. Student desks at school are super tiny!
34. Paper here is usually either blank or graph paper, rather than traditional lined paper. Also, it is longer here than in the states.
35. Pillow cases are open on both sides, or at least the one on my bed is.
36. When you check out at the supermercado, the cashier will ask you if you want a bag or not. This is because you actually have to pay for plastic bags here - no joke! But they only cost a couple cents...but still!
Spanish Words of the Day: pesar = to weigh, pupitre = student desk, papel = paper :)
37. Milk here is much ore watery...it's really hard to explain, but I miss milk!
38. Here you are not expected to have your textbooks for class until after the first class.
39. Spaniards are generally very nice, compared with Americans who are often rude in similar situations. Here if my friends cannot say what they want in Spanish and are trying to indicate it in another way, the Spaniards are happy to help and try to understand as best as possible. In America, if an imigrant did the same thing, Americans would just be rude and unhelpful.
40. There is not always toilet paper in public restrooms. I have not yet encountered this situation, but have been warned.
41. You must always stand on the right on an escalator. If someone is in a hurry and coming up fast, they will use the left side. If you happen to be on the left when someone comes fast, they will not stop to say excuse me, so you had better move your butt!
42. If you go to the center of the city at night, you will receive loads of free drink offers and other bar deals.
43.Americans use a ton of butter as compared with Spaniards. We eat more of it and on more things.
44. Spaniards who know a little English are much more eager to speak it with us than we are to practice our Spanish with them generally.
45. When Spaniards study English in school, there is a huge focus on grammar. As much grammar as I learned in Spanish class, we still spoke more than they do in classes here.
46. There are stores here called Chinos that are like glorified Quick Trips...they all have different names but are classified as chinos because most are owned by Chinese immigrants. Chinos literally have everything and anything...and usually for pretty cheap!
47. Spaniards are obsessed with American pop music...and they play it all the time in English. I seriously think I have yet to hear an actual Spanish song played in a public location.
48. When a Spaniard needs cash, he or she will do anything to get it. What does that mean? Well, for one, there are pick-pockets here. But also, I have seen Spaniards outright begging, even on the metro. Plus, street performers are common everywhere...they will play an instrument near a restaurant, in a metro station, or on the street and then hope someone gives them change. In addition, you will see jugglers at stoplights periodically and other types of performers too - people who dress up as strange characters and hope you pay to take a picture, people who dress up as statues, and even someone who makes weird rooster-like noises. For some of these things, I have no idea why I would pay that person. But for others, I wish I had extra cash to give them because I really enjoy being serenaded while I eat.
49. It is not strange to encounter dog poop in the streets here, even though Spaniards are supposed to pick up after their pets. I have also heard that upon occasion or maybe just in certain areas, Spaniards will actually pee in the street, probably when they are drunk.
50. The Mass in Spanish is in the old format - so when our Mass back home changes during Advent, the wording will still remain the same here.
51. Here they use periods where we use commas and commas where we use periods when dealing with numbers and money. See photo below...
I think it's about time that I started a new what I've learned post...
Peace and Blessings,
Melanie
Spanish Words of the Day: mantequilla = butter, música = music :)
1 comment:
Wow! Thirty fun facts in a single posting (albeit not in a single day). You are learning a lot....and you haven't even begun classes yet!
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