Spot the Differences

Before I arrived in Spain, I expected it to be stuck in the 19th century (Europeans planted it in my head and I was gullible). This expectation quickly disappeared when I tried to turn on the TV and failed. I didn't have a problem with the language, I had a problem with the technology because it was the same digital cable trash that we have in the US. There was an extra user-unfriendly remote control and a million channels of non-sense. At this moment of frustration and helplessness, I heard modern Spain laughing at me and my learning experience began. Our worlds aren't as different as I had thought it would be.

Who's hot and who's not

Hollywood stars and fashionistas predict what the trends in the US, which eventually trickles down to the rest of the world. In Spain, soccer/football players dictate men's hairstyles. Rather, the football players' hairstylists dictate the country's hairstyle. These athletes have hairstylists (and probably pocket mirrors).

Take note of the 2010 World Cup winners and how they have perfectly-styled, spiky hair. Whoever introduced hair gel to Spain must be disgustingly rich now because even after a game, one can have pretty hair.

Mr. USA is less popular than Miss USA, but let's not compare that to Spain--Mr. Espana is very important.

Sanitation

In the US, we have dumpsters and separate receptacles for recycling. In some instances, if you don't recycle and are caught, you are given a fine and made to feel guilty.

I was floored when I saw that Spanish dumpsters have foot levers so that you don't have to lift heavy lids or anything. Incredible. You've seen small garbage cans with foot levels, but this is much larger. My friend explained that his people (Spanish people) are lazy and will use anything to make their lives easier. In Requena, a small town outside the city, there were trash cans that lead to a deep, underground collection receptacle for trucks to get to. Oh, technology! I was also surprised that they (more or less) recycle there. (NOTE: The photo above is not mine and I stole it. Apparently someone else found the dumpster amazing, too).

Stupid Movies

American movies, the good and the bad, are shown almost everywhere. People usually remember the stupid ones and create stereotypes based on that. Thank you, American Pie and EuroTrip-type movies for making it that much harder to explain what we're really like.

This was by far the worst movie I've ever seen. Ever ever ever. This is the Spanish equivalent of our stupid movie and it is just as bad. Yeah, I didn't catch some cultural jokes, but I understood the rest of the nonsense. I laughed so hard because it was such a terrible movie. I am not complaining that we spent 3.90 euros to see it or that I wasted some life watching it--I found the worst movie in the world.

SAME

It's just as silly there as it is in the US. No one is going to drive differently if they know there is a baby in the car. A bad driver is a bad driver (equally, a good driver is a good driver).