Culture Shock Before Even Setting Foot in Spain

The other day I was emailing the director of the school I’m going to be working at in Spain this year, and was feeling frustrated because he wanted to meet up in a nearby town to discuss my first visit to the school. I agreed and tried to nail down a time and place to meet but got no reply. This was starting to annoy me because I’d really like to hit the ground running once I arrive, but can’t, because I don’t know where to go or when.

Culture shock graffiti
Culture Shock by heyrocc on Flickr

Then it hit me—CULTURE SHOCK. My school director wasn’t being noncommittal, rude, or shifty at all. He was just exhibiting Hispanic culture, a culture in which being more laid-back is the norm and strictly holding to a schedule is simply unheard-of. I couldn’t believe it when I realized I was already experiencing culture shock; I haven’t even left the States yet!

So basically, I just need to chill out and not worry about not knowing everything. I think there’s a phrase in Spain for this: no pasa nada.

Ten days are all I’ve got left at home. I can’t believe everything for this program actually came together in the end.

What others are reading:

Is St. James Really Buried in Santiago de Compostela, Spain?

Image
As you head down a curve of the busy San Pedro street, you catch your first view of the twin bell towers of the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela—and you catch your breath. Petite hatchbacks rattle across the cobblestone as your feet seem drawn farther down the path, although that might just be gravity pulling you downhill toward the old zone. You cinch up your backpack’s sternum strap for the final approach of this multiple-night pilgrimage. For not the first time on your Camino, you lose your sense of direction as you enter Santiago’s old town: granite flagstones at your feet, stone-and-graying-plaster houses on either side, and overcast skies above disorient you—yet your eyes eventually lock on to a spray-painted yellow arrow on the side of a building. Once you’re back on autopilot, you start to reflect on why you started this crazy, 70-mile-plus hike in the first place. Rúa de San Pedro, Santiago de Compostela Maybe you hiked from Sarria farther inland as a cheap and hea
keep reading...

Mont-Saint-Michel, France: An Island Fortress in the English Channel

Image
After Paris and the Bayeux Tapestry , the third thing I wanted to see while traveling in France was Mont-Saint-Michel , a towering monastery built on top of a mountainous island off the coast of Normandy. Before visiting, I really didn’t know much at all about the Mount except that it was only accessible when the tides were out…and that it looked just plain cool. During the visit, I ended up learning a bit about French history and why the Mount is such a big deal for the French people. Mont-Saint-Michel It was by sheer luck, though, that I was able to visit Mont-Saint-Michel at all (pronounced “mohn san mee-shehl” [mɔ̃ sɛ̃ mi.ʃɛl]). The very day I had chosen to visit Mont-Saint-Michel was the first day in weeks  that the tourist bus was running between Saint-Malo (where my hostel was) and the Mount, with maybe one or two other runs more for December. I paid 20€ for the round-trip service but didn’t complain because this really freaky coincidence made the whole visit possible.
keep reading...

Mass Tourism Is Destroying Spain—Here’s Where You Should Travel

Image
One of the best decisions I’ve made on Twitter recently was following Humans of Late Tourism , who shares images and stories that show how absurd and destructive modern mass tourism has become in Europe and beyond. Browse their feed for a few minutes and you’ll see a photo of the hordes that make appreciating the Mona Lisa  all but impossible at the Louvre, a news article from Mallorca about the latest death due to balconing , or a lamppost flyer in Porto accusing Airbnb apartments with causing massive increases in rent. This (presumably) Catalan user’s account has reminded me of the phenomenon I was slowly growing aware of while I lived in Spain—and even participated in on my weekend jaunts from Úbeda and Santiago de Compostela . In short, mass tourism is destroying what we love most about Spain and turning the country’s biggest cities like Barcelona, Madrid, or Granada into theme parks for tourists. “Tourism kills the city” sticker in Reus I first learned about the negati
keep reading...