Spain: Truth Behind the Myth

Spain is a favorite vacation destination for many around the world. It is a nation with a an exotic flair, a vivacious culture, a long rich history and exquisite cuisine. Spain beckons to be experienced. The sights and sounds uniquely blend with the splendid and indescribable charm of the country which has been somewhat of a myth to outsiders for so long. Tourist fall in love with Spain, it is unforgettably enchanting.

The alluring seduction has captivated more than tourists. In recent years, the country has also attracted immigrants. Some come in search of employment, others are fascinated by the style of life.

However, this is not a book about Spain’s charms. I will not be telling you about the best places to visit, the nicest restaurants nor the best lodging. This is not, by any means, a tourist guide. It is about what daily life is truly like in Spain. This is for foreigners who really need to know more about Spain, especially those who are thinking of living there. It is about life based on real events, not on tourist guide fantasy.

Spain is fabulous to visit--actually living there is a different experience. Catching a glimpse of a country on business or pleasure teaches us little about its day to day life, and vacation literature doesn’t cover the mundane. It’s not until you live among a nation’s society that you begin to understand it. There is no delicate way to say that in Spain you need patience to put up with bad service, bureaucracy, rudeness, and discourteous dispositions. Survival depends on your tolerance level for mediocrity and your ability to accept the absurd. It’s time to take a look at the flip side to the happy, carefree lifestyle that appeals to foreigners and show life as it truly is, putting to rest the myths about Spain that most have. It is not my intention to discourage a visit or a move to Spain, but rather to prepare you to deal with its society.

As in any country, Spain has its share of social problems. Yet most Spaniards don’t see what is wrong with the way things have always been done. And if a foreigner protests about the improper handling of an issue, a Spaniard’s response is to dismiss the complaint as trivial.

In the 1960’s Spain, in need of foreign money, launched a campaign to attract tourists. The country was marketed as the land of sun, bullfights and flamenco music. This stereotyped Spain forever but the appeal worked on visitors looking for an alternative to the same old European vacation. As part of this strategy someone came up with the expression which was to become more than an empty slogan: "Spain is different." This saying labeled Spain in more ways than one. As you deal with just about every facet of life in Spain you begin to realize that Spain is more than different--it is surreal.

What follows is a revealing look at Spanish society. Personal experiences along with the comments and experiences of acquaintances are included. These odd and sometimes rather amusing events have reshaped my concept of Spain.

Going through passport control is relatively fast. Passports are checked and stamped by municipal police officers assigned to the task. Traveling with a Spanish citizen does not afford you the luxury of the citizen’s faster line. Officers use a different stamp for non citizen passports and they get confused if you show up in their section. You will have to make a separate line while your partner waits.

Picking up luggage at the baggage claim area is simple. Carts are available, free of charge, to place your baggage and can go within the airport as far as the exit. Going through customs is fast. Depending on where your flight originated from, bags are seldom checked by the Guardia Civil, Spain’s national military style security force. Whether your bags are inspected or not depends on the Guardia Civil’s random decision at the moment they spot you. Once you pass Customs it’s time to get money, which you can do right at the airport.

Taking a taxi from the airport is probably the worst thing you can do, unless you are in the mood for a good rip-off. There is a surcharge added to passengers from the airport which is not shown on the meter. A taxi from the airport to anywhere in the city will be expensive, but more so for foreigners. Taxi drivers will take advantage and overcharge newcomers. They will shrewdly ask you for the best way to get to where you’re going. This shows them how much you know about the city and it gives the driver an opportunity to take you for a ride, in more ways than one. Taxi drivers waiting at the airport sometimes even refuse to take Spanish nationals, favoring the easier foreign prey.

The good news is that taxis are not necessary. Airports in Spain have a bus service to the center of the city for a reasonable price. Madrid’s airport is also served by Metro, the subway system with room for luggage that will take you anywhere within the city, albeit it not as comfortably as riding in a car. Another train line to the airport is being constructed. Taxi drivers are crying foul. They may loose their victims.

Unbearable noise

Madrid is a dirty, noisy concrete jungle with crowded sidewalks which are nearly impossible to walk, heavy traffic on each and every street, dog excrement on the ground. The noise level is loud. At any moment during the day or night, car horns are blaring, either to warn a pedestrian to get out of the way, to chastise other drivers or to let a double-parked car know that its time to move the car so that the trapped vehicle can leave.

Noisy butane gas trucks make their entrance into neighborhoods which still don’t have gas pipes. You can buy the gas tanks by calling ahead or by waiting until the truck arrives in your area and yell out the window for a tank as the workers shake and rattle the tanks loudly to alert customers of their presence. The heavy tanks are then brought up to as many as six flights of stairs since most of these older buildings with no gas lines also do not have elevators.

Traffic

Traffic in Madrid can only be described as organized anarchy and parking is impossible. Cars are parked anywhere, including on the street itself, blocking oncoming traffic and other cars that are legally parked. As you drive you have to swerve to avoid hitting parked cars on the road. Traffic is so congested that it is actually faster to get to certain areas of Madrid by bicycle than by car.

Road signs are so badly placed and misleading that they can cause accidents. Sometimes you don’t see an exit sign until you passed it. Small signs indicating the direction of a city or a road are not visibly seen but rather are placed at the last moment in one of the many traffic circles which generate confusion to the non European driver.