What I Think About the Culture

The culture here in Spain is so different and crazy from America. The ways things operate around here are just confusing and amazing at the same time. The language barrier is pretty intense from what originally expected. I thought everyone speaks English as well as their native language but I was completely wrong about that from when I first step in this country. I honestly seen the change right off the plane in Zurich but it wasn’t as shocking as fully getting to Valencia. The way to speak it is like holding your tongue or pressing it against the bottom of your teeth while speaking.  It’s so hard to even comprehend majority of the people, in vise versa.  Everyone talks with what sounds like a lisp with every word. The people are very rude and stubborn but there are a handful of people who’s actually very nice and respectful. One time was when the group was waiting from the Metro, we all were conversing when some people walk passed us without caring who’s in front them. None of the people said pardone (excuse me), lo siento(sorry) or anything. They were bumping into me like I wasn’t even standing there and just kept walking. However, there was a time where a man helped us get to the metro station because the train was derailed. He went out his way to help us get to our destination and that’s something I will always remember.  Walking around Valencia I noticed some beautiful building and some old, broken down buildings as well. The city has graffiti almost everywhere you walk but it’s actually very talented art work in my eyes.

Valencia isn’t a bad place to be but like majority of the cities in the U.S. the city also has a bad part of the neighborhood. I experience the “ghetto” part of Valencia walking to work on the first day after a train was derailed and another time eating at this Indian restaurant.  Nonetheless, the culture is very different from mines. The stores open around four or five and close around nine but right after that time the bars and clubs open up all night long. I was very confused the first couple of times noticing this. Also I noticed a lot of people walk or take group
transportation everywhere like buses and trains. There are some people who drive of course but it seems like more rather the train. The most convenient that I would recommend are motorcycle, scooter, or compact car if you want to own a vehicle. It’s the best way to park especially in the small places.  I seen almost everyone with dogs and walk them constantly, like all day every day. The way people wash clothes are the same but drying them is different because dryers don’t exist. To dry clothes we have to do it the old fashion way, clothes wire and clamps or set them on a rack in the sun. Other then that, I don’t think it’s too much different from America just certain things are different from what I’m use too.

The most I like about the culture is the party. This party called the Foreign Language Exchange Event was one of the best times I had so far. I already went twice and each time was just amazing. The first time I didn't know what to expect from that party. We had our nation’s flag on our shirts representing our native language and mingled with others from different countries. Everyone learned more about others countries, speak they native tongue, and talk about each other. The scene was very nice and everyone was dressed nice as well. From that event I meant a few new people and hopefully keep in touch with. A challenge for me is communicating with most people at first but I’m learning more Spanish which helping me get through this. I remember the first time going to the market to get groceries. It was my roommates Abin and Toul and I searching for normal American food. We were in there for about an hour. It was pretty quick find some stuff like cereal, milk, bread, and jelly which took about 20 minutes. The rest of the time we were looking for cheese, peanut butter, and eggs. We asked for assistants but no one could understand what we was looking for and none of us could think of the words in Spanish. Checking out was difficult too for Toul because the lady was saying do you want plastic bags but we thought she meant put the cars away or something in that nature. We didn’t understand what she was saying especially because how fast she was talking. Another challenge is going without WiFi to communicate with people back at home. I didn’t expect it to be this hard to reach back home every now and then. Every place has their WiFi locked so none of the group can obtain it. Literally we have to walk from our flats to McDonald's for free WiFi and that’s like a 40 minute to an hour walk there.

Overall I think it’s not so bad to live here in Valencia. Some people are rude but that shouldn’t anyone after living there for a longer period of time. It’s something to get a custom too but it’s pretty cool and enjoyable.