June 14, 2019 - Spain

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Phones

Another layer to the technology use that I mentioned before is the way it excludes people. Last night at dinner, every person at the table was on their phones except for me. It made me upset because we only have a few days left with each other and I wanted to interact with my new friends more. The other table was chatting with each other and I was jealous that my group was on their phones. I became frustrated and joined the other table to talk until the food came. Culture Smart talks about how Spaniards have “a zest for life...living for every moment” and I wish our group was the same way (Meaney & Viguer, 2016).



English

Being in a city that speaks more English than the other places we have been both relieves and frustrates me. While it is easier to communicate my needs, I would rather be practicing my Spanish. At one shop, I tried to speak to the cashier in Spanish, and he kept responding to me in English. I was frustrated because I was trying to practice my Spanish, but he knew I spoke English. It continues to amaze me how much English is spoken and how much they cater to us, like the option to pay in US dollars when using your card.



Police

Throughout all the cities, I have seen police everywhere in all forms: police cars, police horses, police motorcycles, etc. Police officers roam the cities to stand guard with their fully automated weapons, and the people just walk by without batting an eye. In America, there is a lot of uneasiness and hatred when it comes to police officers. As a child of a police officer, this issue is close to my heart and it encourages me to see people not hating the police here. It makes me wonder what the difference is between Spain and America to have such different outlooks on law enforcement. It may be due to Spain’s high tolerance that Culture Smart mentions (Meaney & Viguer, 2016).





Word Count: 340

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