The lifestyle of the Spaniard on average is different from that of
those from the other countries and continents. For instance at 7:00am in the
morning, most of the Spaniard mothers are awake because they have to prepare
breakfast for their family. This meal she prepares is known as "el
desayuno". About 30 minutes or an hour later, she helps the children to
get out of bed and get ready for school. After breakfast is done, she gives
them kisses and walks them to the bus stop or takes them to school herself that’s
if she has a car to take them.
Upon arrival to the house, she dresses up and either gets ready to
go to work, but if she is a housewife , she can go to the town square or centre
or mall to do some shopping. On the other hand, she can stay at home and do the
laundry or chat with her neighbours on the staircase. This can take about an
hour or more, and it gets even worse if she gets interested in the
conversation. It is said that it is difficult to hear them from this point
onwards because it doesn't seem like they are talking any longer. It is
referred to as “chiller” not “hablar” hence the common saying that you can’t
take the noise away from the Spaniard but you can take the Spaniard away from
the noise.
At about 10:00 am or between this hour and two hours more, the Spaniards
then prepare or have an in-between meal which is referred to as a snack. This
is called “el almuerzo”. Though it seems impossible for everyone to go home to
get this snack, their mothers pack them up before leaving home with it and
during this period, most of them are on a break either in school or at work. So
all they do is to walk to a bar (the most common thing to find in Spain) to
have a hot cup of coffee or an espresso. ¡que aproveche! They say!
A few hours later, something i consider a little strange to me
happens in Spain. Everybody tries to find their way home between 1:30 -2:30 pm,
because it’s time for the main meal of the day, lunch, which is called "la
comida". All schools, banks, shops owned by nationals, libraries,
bookshops and bakeries close or go on a break because it’s time to have lunch.
The only odd ones are the bars. During this break that lasts for about three
hours, the Spaniards prepare a variety of dishes ranging from salads, roast chicken,
paella, shrimps all the way to their favourite ham. Upon having entered a Spanish
home and you are being invited to dine, please never reject it because it’s
going to be a three or four course meal that you will not want to miss
.
The most boring part of the day is observed after this because it
is time for siesta for the Spaniards. The towns are as quiet as the pathways
leading to cemeteries but there is a bit of noise in the streets due to the
moving cars.
When siesta is over about 5pm in the evening, our dear Spaniard
mother has a lot of work to do in the kitchen again because she has to prepare
another meal or preferably a snack called "la merienda". This also
involves pastries or savories with a juice or coffee. The Spaniard children
enjoy this a lot because they get pampered by their parents
The cities and towns become very busy again for the next three
hours until 8:00pm or 9:00 pm. Then comes the last meal of the day called
"la cena" which is taken about 10:00 pm or a bit later than that.
This meal involves very light food such as a salad or a few drinks. They then
spend time to chat with their friends or loved ones till they get to bed which
to them is called "acostar" and when you finally sleep, that is
called "dormir"
How interesting the life of the Spaniard, right?
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