"And that's the way it was."

So I don't have the motivation to write about food (it's a pretty big topic), so instead I am writing about the differences between Spain and E.E.U.U.

#1) Swearing in more common. Actually it's more like pretty much everyone does it... parents, little kid, teachers, etc. Everyone is just kind of desensitized to what we would call "bad words." To them they are just strong words. (Not that they won't take offense if you call them something bad.)

#2) Man-jewelry. Most guys have at least one earring and it's not unusual to have 2-3 piercings. Guys wearing bracelets, necklaces (especially one's that have a cross or some other religious medallion), and rings way more here than in Iowa.

#3) They live on a different schedule. Lunch is usually at 2 and supper is usually at 9. They still eat breakfast at 7 though. And they also eat at 11 and 5-6.

#4) There are mountains.

#5) The temperature is about 70 right now and there isn't a cloud in the sky... and this isn't usual weather.

#6) People don't say thank-you as much. When I first got here they were constantly remarking how odd it was that I was constantly thanking them for everything when I wasn't saying thank-you more than I normally do. I was talking to some people who were intercambios TO Iowa last year and they said they were kind of shocked at how much the were expected to thank people. This leads to...

#7) People are much more honest about their feelings. When I first got here I thought everyone was a tad temperamental because they would start yelling at each other over the smallest things, but that's just how they are. When they are mad, they yell. When they are sad, they cry. When they are really truly thankful, they say thank-you.

#8) Bread is awesome. I'm convinced that it is baked daily by God and just dropped down to the bakeries. (They use the chimneys as funnels to catch it.) It's amazing normally, and then I had some that had JUST come out of the oven. But candy ain't got nothing on that.

#9) If you're in school, you study like 1-2 hours everyday. The other American in my class asked somebody if he wanted to do something after school (and this person is probably the least studious in the class) and the reply was "Dude. It's Monday. I have to study!"

#10) There are no penalties in school for skipping of being tardy. However, if you ARE tardy the teacher might just refuse to admit you to class because all the doors have to be opened from the inside.

#11) The teachers also don't really do anything if you talk in class except maybe tell you to leave. So there will be times-especially in lengua castellana-where the whole class is carrying on a conversation.

#12) There aren't really clocks anywhere... you have to either have a watch or a cellphone to know what time it is.

#13) Racism is-at least in my area-much more common. Calling someone a faggot (pardon my French) is trite, but calling someone a Moor is grounds for bloodshed.

#14) Everybody smokes, unless they have a medical condition which prevents them from doing so.

#15) Everybody drinks, no exceptions.

#16) They LOVE tomatoes, vinegar, and olive oil. Everything is cooked with olive oil, usually has tomatoes in some way, and the often pour vinegar on it once it's on their plates.

#17) Clothes cost a ton. It's a big sale if you can get a shirt for 30 Euros.

#18) They don't drink very much water. I find this odd because I drink a ton compared to them, and I am still dehydrated all the time. So maybe I am just lacking the Spanish genes that allow me to retain water. Who knows?

#19) Little kids drink coffee all the time. And their coffee is more akin to espresso than to our coffee.

#20) This one isn't really a difference, but everyone thinks I am Russian. Nobody over here really has freckles... or my color hair (Whatever it is. It's getting redder)... and rarely pasty colored skin (although it's probably more common than in the US). So they all know right away that I am foreign. But people rarely guess than I am American. I have actually had strangers come up to me and ask if I am Russian. It's quite odd.

So that's my list... there are more but I am lazy.