Scoping Around Town

Today in class we watched a really old Spanish movie called "La Colmena" based on the novel by Camilo José Cela. The movie takes place in Madrid 1942 and has a really huge mix of characters all representing various aspect of the Franco regime, while they are experiencing the hardships of post-war first hand. I think I would like to read the book when I get the chance because it was extremely confusing but really interesting. I think it would be entertaining to dissect and learn more about the Spain that was extremely divided and repressed during the Franco years.
After class Claire and I took the metro to Grácia (where her apartment is) to look for cheap bedding at what her landlord described as "Chinese stores". Basically they are stores that carry everything you can think of for really cheap. Although we didn't find what we were looking for, they were interesting to walk through. Here is a picture of one aisle inside:

Then we wandered around the area for a while, and until the last store we didn't even know the word for "comforter", and had to awkwardly demonstrate what we were looking for with our hands. In case any of you run into the same problem....the word is "colcha". Remember it.

Grácia is a popular neighborhood for Mediterranean/Middle Eastern immigrants, and there was no shortage of delicious restaurants. We made it about 3 blocks down one of the main roads packed with open restaurants before we were lured into an attractive little Lebanese cafe. We just parked ourselves for a little break and enjoyed some pita and hummus before continuing to shop around. Here are some pictures from around the neighborhood:

There was a lot of beautiful "graffiti" done by artists that the owners of these shops had commissioned. The often cover the iron gates that are drawn once they close shop for the day, and add some neat variety to the average street scene. (Although I doubt the skull painting was commissioned by anyone...) Also, I wanted to list off some interesting things I have learned or noticed about Spain since I have been here:

• No one on the street smiles. Once they get to know you they are friendly, but you definitely won't get warm welcomes into stores or restaurants, they seem to get straight to business, skip the niceties. 
• You never know what to expect on the metro. I suppose that is the beauty of city public transportation. One day an old, blind gypsy lady came walking through the metro cars with her cane, holding a cup for spare change and singing songs about her woes and troubles. Another day we were riding along extreme Barça fans on their way to a match, all sporting matching jerseys colorful flags and signs. Today, two old men played the accordion and clarinet right in front of us. However, you aren't supposed to watch them or smile or bop along, because they will most certainly expect you to feed their money jar once they make their rounds. 
• Don't expect to get anything done from Friday night-Tuesday afternoon. Everything is closed! Even Starbucks goes by its own agenda here!
• The beach here, Barcelonetta, is man-made with sand brought from Egypt. They have to bring ship loads of sand every summer after the winter and spring rain wipes out the beach again.
• The eating schedule is so confusing. I think mostly because here at the Colegio cafeteria they are mixing country's schedules. They give us breakfast from 7:30-8:30am like in the U.S., no lunch, and then serve dinner from 8:30-9:30pm, which is pretty standard here. I am never hungry that early, but starving by 4! I am happy to have my own kitchen soon where I can go by my own schedule! Or at least stick to a consistent one.
• Dessert isn't a big deal. Don't get me wrong, Spaniards love their sweets, but not at appropriate times. You'll find the most decadent pastries in the world, but all sold as breakfast! After lunch gelato is a popular choice, but I think that's generally as far as they go. I'll have to do more investigative research...

Well I know there are plenty more that are escaping me right now, but i'll write them as I remember them. I know all of these things will become habit soon but it'll be funny to look back and see the things that shocked me the most at the beginning :)
Talk to you all soon! Love, Megs