DogsWhen you travel, you undoubtedly expect the people around you to be different, as is the main point of traveling and experiencing the world's cultures. However, what I never would have expected is for dogs to be so different here in Spain.
Don't get me wrong, they're still dogs who do plenty of dog things, like barking endlessly at 6am right outside my window. However, pups here are insanely well-behaved compared to most dogs I've ever known back in the states. Dogs here really are all good-boys and good-girls. They hardly ever tug on their leashes, instead walking right alongside their owners. Oftentimes, dogs here aren't even on a leash. I've seen multiple dogs off-leash waiting patiently to cross the street with their owner when the signal turns green. Most children can't even do that. Spanish dogs are rarely distracted by what they encounter on the street-- including an overly-excited me who wishes she could hug each and every one of them. All of this is especially impressive, considering that city life is hectic and full of new sights and scents on the daily. Bottom line, dogs here just seem to have a heightened sense of maturity, loyalty, and respect for their owners as compared to American pups. It's hard to know the reasoning behind this observation, as it could be a result of many things. Do the Spanish have some great method of training their dogs? Is there something in the water? Are Spanish dogs just that awesome? (Also, do they think in Spanish? Do American dogs think in English? So many unanswered questions here). There you have it, dogs in Spain. The Elderly |
TaxisFor the most part, taxis in Valencia are great. While public transportation here is also reliable gets you where you need to go, taxis are great for certain quick trips and late night excursions. It amazes me just how well these drivers know the city, as there are a couple billion (don't quote me on that) tucked away side streets that I wouldn't even be able to find with GPS. Most here don't even need to map out where they're headed, which is impressive in itself. Yes, life existed before GPS !!!
In our month here (holy sh*t where has the time gone !!), we've had plenty of interesting, hilarious, and educational taxi rides around the city, the majority of which occurred 1am or later...earlier? Still not sure about that technicality. We've learned many things at the hands of Valencian taxi drivers, such as the correct pronunciation of Spanish words (most notably 'paella') and an enthusiastic lesson on the whole gamut of Spanish slang and curse words. One genial taxi driver even remained silent the entire ride, only to shout one of those lovely words at us as he sped away, for reasons unbeknownst to us. What a nice guy. While Valencian taxi drivers are generally great (with the exception of that last one), I owe a shoutout to taxi drivers in Barcelona. More than a few times during our weekend there, we were lucky enough to get rides from the nicest men, who genuinely helped us practice our Spanish and even gave us a history of the city while en route to our destination. Here we see a prime example of a late night taxi ride here in Valencia (s/o to Dan for the great pic). I feel like it perfectly encapsulates the Spanish taxi experience, complete with totally-not-drunk Americans and a slightly-annoyed taxi driver who knows it's about to be a long ride.
Undoubtedly, there will plenty more taxi stories to come, so stay tuned. Update 6/27/2016: Taxi driver let us play Earth, Wind, & Fire's 'September' for our ride home...this may or may not top my list of all time best cab rides. There you have it, taxis in Spain. |
TechnologyTechnology in Spain is a funny one.
There are a number of aspects of technology here that could use a facelift. The most prominent things that come to mind are the lack of drying machines, dishwashers, and air-conditioning, the latter being the most missed. I've never given much thought to the luxury of having a dryer. Here, air-drying is the norm, and to be quite honest, is not as bad as I thought it would be at the outset of this trip. While you aren't able to have clean, soft, and dry clothes within an hour and a half here like at home, there's something nice about the authenticity of hanging your skivvies out the window and living like most locals do. In regards to the lack of a dishwasher, this is much harder for me. Hand-washing dishes is among the top three chores I hate the most, up there with vacuuming without music and making my bed (I'm just gonna lay in it again like a couple hours later ??) It doesn't help that most sinks here are about half the size they are in the states. Dear Spain, please get bigger sinks thank you, Libby. For the most part, AC isn't a thing here, nor in most of the rest of Europe. While most shops and offices utilize it, having air-conditioning in one's home is seen as a dispensable luxury. And I'll be honest, in this summer heat, I miss air-conditioning so much. Not much more to be said about that one. Alas, Spain does has some pretty awesome technology that deserves some credit and constantly makes me wonder "why didn't I think of this??" For example, dumpsters have a little foot lever at the bottom that you step on to open them. Brilliant !! Sanitary ! Also, in the market, there's an orange juice machine filled with fresh Valencia oranges. You push a little lever to start the juicing process, where it slices the oranges in half and juices them, funneling it into a bottle for you to take home. This probably exists elsewhere, but for the sake of my excitement I will ignore this fact. There you have it, technology in Spain. Fashion |