What did you like and or miss about Spain?
 

Today I was thinking about Spain again and missing it. I know everyone has different perspecives & preferences.
Art, food, whatever. "Dif'rent strokes"

So I thought I'd start a thread to see exactly what you liked, big thngs and even the little insignificant things like.....

Older couples strolling arm in arm

Tortilla de patata anytime of the day

Cokes in glass bottles...

next?

I love your choices...


Tapas bars

Going to dinner after 9PM

People of all ages in the plazas until late at night....

The museums in Madrid

The architecture and the sardana in Barcelona

Tapas in San Sebastian

The hills of Galicia

The boitefumiero swinging across the Cathedral in Santiago

The Roman bridge in Rondo, the Roman amphitheatre in Merida and the Acqueduct in Segovia

Kings piled one on top of each other in El Escorial

Walking the walls of Avila

Dining while looking over the Genralife

Dining over the gorge in Cuenca

Making friollas with an eledely cousin over a stone heated from wood.

The loving way I observed young Spanish mothers speak to their
todlers.."mi cielo"

Sensational rice pudding

Meticulously dressed retired gentlemen in Madrid

Sorry, but I forgot:

Churros con chocolate!

Matute ladies dressed in very good quality leather shoes...

oops, I mean "mature" ladies dressed in very good quality leather shoes.

The people!! I have always found them incredibly generous and welcoming. And a lot of fun, too.

And of course the tapas bars, the sunshine, the music, the architecture..

The seafood.

Wonderful coffee everywhere.

Art, art, art.

The cheap, good wine

The beautiful, elegant, seriously-jeweled older ladies.

Tapas

The vibrant social life in the late evening.

Cocido Madrileño, Fabada Asturiana and Caldo Gallego...

TAPAS!

Women and Men that dress Great, and are so well grommed.

The Spanish People, who are warm and wonderful.

The mosaics in Barcelona

Elegeant couples "strolling in the evenings" in Madrid.

I hope to return to Spain again soon!

Wow, so much to look forward to! Great thread, amsdon.

1. The people.... the way (some? many? most?) Spanish people relate with children and make them part of their everyday lives

2. Food: Specially seafood

3. Music: Flamenco or otherwise

4. Well dressed women

And many other things such as art etc

Hi all.

BTW Confy's trip report is jam packed with all sorts of observations
like these...

for instance..the special gestures unique to the Spanish people. The way they emphasize certain points.

The town of Cuenca

Gosh, has anyone mentioned tapas yet?

Relaxing at a sidewalk table in some friendly plaza with some tasty tapas and glass of local tinto...that's sounding pretty good to me.

me too!

of course, the tapas!!

The most unforgettable experience we had was visiting the Basilica outside
Segovia in the Valle de los Caidos. The Basilica is carved into the mountain, and there is a view of the giant cross dominating the sky. The church music emanating from the mountain was haunting and when we walked inside a wedding was taking place. It was incredible.
Also loved the all the art, the people and the tapas.

Children lovely dressed.

Families strolling everyday in the Plaza Mayor de Salamanca.

The humor. " la sal " of the Spaniards people

Good manners. ( Many times at least, not always...)

The way the Spanish people greet each other with genuine joy.

The way, people bring their babies out in their buggies at night for a stroll in the evening warmth.

The way the older ladies dress to impress and stroll.

The lovely scent of flowers in the evening.

The men with the gorgeous brown eyes;)

God...I miss Spain so much.

Andalucia and everything about it!!!!!!

Sunshine and warmth in February, people wandering around in the evening enjoying the street life.

I miss roast suckling pig... *droooool*

Gracias, Ana :)

Green olives

Small children playing with actual toys and dolls

White tablecloths in everyday restaurants

The deli at El Corte Ingles

The fact that ladies and girls, mothers and daughters, sisters and girlfriends also walk arm in arm too, not just couples!

OK how about the locals too? Have you ever left your home city/country and if so what did you miss most?????

amsdon, I am so glad that you mentioned that you like
the fact that people walk arm in arm, no need to be a couple, no one thinks any thing special about it.
Because my heritage is in a great part Spanish
I love to do exactly that, as well as other expressions of sincere friendship or care for children etc., I miss in this great country , so great for so many things, that unfortunately people often restrain themselves of any expression of sincere love to a third party .....It is a pity...

When I go to London (I'm going in 10 days again ! ) I miss terribly my coffee !!! All coffees I've tried in London (even starbucks) are...some kind of poison to me :)

I don't stay abroad time enough to miss anything more, really (I usually travel for 4 or 5 days) . But if I did, I sure would miss my home made food :) My tortilla de patatas with a bit of onion on it , my Paella for lunch on Sunday...

Graziella I agree. The Spanish have such an affectionate manner. For instance here in the USA we do not see young brothers and sisters being affectionate like in Spain. They are more likely to play around in a joking, teasing, or even antagonistic way. Not that the Spanish children never tease each other, but I have seen them be quite loving. But a boy hugging his sister... well that really ususual here in US. Too bad I think it is wonderful. I agree with you the Spanish are less restained in that sense.

Kend: Coffee in Spain is the BEST!
And having a cup of coffee is meant to be savoured, not just rushed through. We have drive through Starbucks where I live you don't ever have to get out of the car! YUK!

OK I know I monopolizing this, but here are some things common in my area that fortunately Spain does NOT seem to have.... YET:

1. Anything "supersized"
That includes supersized fast food,
clothes, tires on cars/trucks/SUVS
and women's chests!

2. 42 or 64 oz big gulp drinks with
extra fat plastic straws

3. In restaurants : The practice in
having the wait staff introduce
themselves by name, writing their
names on a paper table cloth and
offering their favorite menu
choices (and the check )without
being asked

4. Men wearing baseball caps in
restaurants

5. People walking out of restarants
with toothpicks hanging from their
mouths

6. Thongs peeking out from everyone's
jeans

7. An abundance of tatoos on both men
& women's necks



Whew! I'm so glad I got that off my chest ..now back to our wonderful Espana. ...

How about the wonderful Caldo Gallego Marigross mentioned, yum!

I think if I would have to rush that way to have a coffee...I would take it only at home !! :)
In Portugal and Italy it is also great :) But in the UK, I stick to tea !!
The kids here tease each other as much any other kids , this is very international and intercultural, I think :) One of the "nightmares" of a spanish kid is the "old people" kissing them, everybody remembers this when get to adulthood, they really don't like it ..but surely they get used LOL

The laid back atmosphere.

People of all ages enjoying food and drinks at a sidewalk cafe in the middle of the day.

Dinner after 9 p.m. and sleeping in the next morning.

Tapas and sangria!

I miss the festivals in our little white village and the sweet people the most.

The beautiful sunshine and weather all winter long.

Watching my 6yo daughter walk to the local school.

Hearing the sounds of Spanish all around me ..and especially from my daughter in her perfect accented Spanish.

Everyday small village life...talking to the storekeepers, fresh bread, buying in the market or the nearby farmers with a bag, watching the people etc etc.

Beautiful ocean views from my terrace.

Walking around the warren of narrow cobbled streets and enjoying the breathtaking views. I never tire of it.

The food ...from my village, to Barcelona, Madrid, Seville and Cordoba.

Our friends in Spain

I am in Greece now ( having just left 3 weeks in Turkey) on our 7 months European tour away from our winter home in Spain. It is the med too so not so different in some ways, still I miss our winter home sometimes and will be glad to see it again in November!

It is funny, but I think I miss it more than our real home in California ( and we have been away longer from there). Still I love that "home" too.

WT:

Where in Spain which village?
And where in CA if I amy ask?

Great descrption BTW.

You will find the answers and our story on our blog:

http://www.soultravelers3.com/

I do not say the name of our village just for protection from stalkers for our daughter ( since we live a pretty public life now with the blog).

If you know Spain well, you will recognise it, just don't say it in this thread, ok?

Our last home was in Santa Cruz, Ca..a very cool place. ;)

The way the warm night summer air has the faint taste and scent of oranges...

The seductive howl of the nightly creatures that prowl the mountain passes...

That thrill of near-terror as your vehicle winds around bends on dirt tracks thousantds of feet over a ravine...

Buying cheap icecream of every flavour imaginable...

The delightful farmsfolk! There was one time when I was staying at a friends farm when all the nearby neighbours came over with baskets of fruit and vegetables, accompanied by a greetings hug!

Hondarribia on week-end nights, when the main street is closed to traffic so that the people spill out of cafes and bars to the sidewalks and the children can play in the middle of the street while the parents socialize nearby.
It's amazing how many of us are writing about the socializing in the streets, the walks arm in arm, the warm greetings you witness in the streets. I tell my husband that people in Spain do not stay home in the evenings, they are all out for a walk, especially week-end nights. In so many towns, we have witnessed and loved watching this custom and wished we had it in our city.

yes, whilst in towns in spain it doesn't feel odd to greet total strangers as though you've known them for years, to the contrary, I was somewhat overwhelmed by the friendliness of the townsfolk...

You never see that in the UK!

This thread gets me missing Spain. Last night I watched last years xmas celebration ( 3 kings and the kids concert, my daughter dancing Flamenco) with my daughter on our laptop ( under podcast on the blog) and it made me smile and grateful we have had this chance to know this life.

I loved them singing xmas carols late at night at our door with a special tamborine with lots of strings.

I even grew fond of all the fire works ...that freaked me out a little at first as the safety regs are nothing like the States.

All the orange trees in Seville...we used them this Easter instead of eggs for our Easter hunt during Holy Week.

Yes, kids playing in the street without cars to bother them ( as most of our streets are barely big enuf for a donkey.

The little old ladies in black...simple,elegant and proud. They remind me of my husband's aunts as they once came from this country.

I love all the sweeping, washing, mopping,white washing. Such hardworking industrious people who take pride in thier homes and village.

( NOW I know where my husband gets that sweeping gene as I had never met anyone who loves to sweep like he does until I came to Spain).

The little ol men who sit on the benches and talk.

I admire all the crippled and disabled people who make their way in old age up and down the hills of our village. One guy with a walker never misses a parade and another with a cane manages to take care of his grand daughter in a carriage.

How much work they put into their festivals. Where do they get the money for all these elaborate costumes??

Flamenco,Flamenco, Flamenco. I can never get enough of it. I am thrilled that my daughter is growing up with it as it suits her passionate nature.


The simplicity of village life and the fact that we can walk everywhere for what we need. And where ever we go we see our friends and there is always time for a little chat and smile.

Gaudi and the beaches in Barcelona

Art in Madrid

Dali Museum

Eating at the beach with friends.

Gorgeous sunsets from our terrace.

Snow on the nearby moutains at xmas while enjoying the day in sunshine and shirt sleeves. My idea of a nice white xmas.

The music and songs.

The horses..beautiful, elegant Andalucian horses and riding in the country side or at the beach.

The donkeys or horses clip clopping along thru town.

Opening the shutters in the morning letting the sun and warmth into our ancient village house and closing them at sunset.

Picking avocados off the trees.

The biggest grapevines I have ever seen in my life that make wonderful terrace shade tops like the one next door and the one at our fav restaurant.

The Moorish influence and being close to Morocco.

The beauty and joy of Andalucia!

Ann, plenty of thongs showing and men with toothpicks hanging here in Spain ... I don´t know how you missed them ;)

Rgds, Cova