Multicultural Fluency

Becoming a Spaniard

Motives

I'll admit, it wasn't really my idea to study abroad. My mom had always pushed me towards it. It makes sense from her side. She's originally from Argentina and was living in Israel when she met my dad and moved to the US, so she had quite the international background. Through her (and the trips I took to see her family as a child), I grew up more as a child of the world rather than a child of any particular nation like the United States. That's to say that studying abroad wasn't as big a deal for me as it might have been for my peers. Furthermore, it made it so that I had a different reason for studying abroad than my peers. Rather than studying abroad so that I could travel, party, or see cool things, I was going abroad to really become part of a different culture. I wanted to go abroad and become a local. As a result, I decided to make my study abroad experience a full year long rather than just one semester.

The Trip Before the Trip

Studying abroad for a full year meant that I was going to be a permanent resident in Spain, making the application process harder. I had to go to an embassy in Los Angeles twice to get my visa and the process was excruciatingly slow. This was my first real exposure to Spanish culture: their slow bureaucracy. They were lazy and didn't care about their work.

Culture

Remember how I said the Spanish were lazy and didn't care about their work? Well... that was a lie. They don't care about their work, but they aren't lazy.

Instead of caring about work, they care about each other. They care about taking care of their friends and enjoying life. They value the moment more than the future. They make decisions on the fly and if they show up two hours late because they were enjoying getting ready, so be it. The time is there to be spent.

Compare this to the United States. People are in a rush. When somebody asks how their friend is doing, they might respond, "Busy." In the United States. That's an acceptably answer. That's normal. In Spain, that's not normal.

In Spain, living life matters first, then work matters second.

Nowhere is this clearer than in the smells. When I walk down the streets in Madrid, I smelt things. Sometimes it smelt damp like when I was outside of a club. Sometimes I smelt food when I was walking past a bar. Sometimes I smelt hair products when I walked past a barber shot. Sometimes I smelt trash. And that was great. In the US, we don't have smells. We cover up what is underneath by keeping things very clean and trying to impress others. There, they don't care as much. If it makes you feel good and you're enjoying life, you're winning.

Becoming Spanish

I was a Spaniard for seven months. I didn't spend as much time in Spain as I wanted. When COVID hit, I returned home after Spain's strict lockdowns. Now I regret that decision. In my time there, I met Madrileneos while dancing in the streets. I went to bars and met new people. I made a friend who showed me what a real friend was. I had (or have) love interests. I let myself become swallowed by Madrid. It changed my perspective. I changed from trying to win the Great American Rat Race to trying to build the best community around me. I cared for myself and I cared for others. I learned that life is more than just what you can fit on your resume, whether it be my professional or my social one.

Spain taught me what living is really about.

Sticks in a Bundle

Spain taught me a way of life. I learned how to adapt and how to adopt that Spanish lifestyle to make it my own and integrate it into my life. The biggest thing I took from my experience is that life isn't about work. It's about enjoying the people and the life around you. That's why I now prioritize happiness over societal accomplishment by ensuring that I spend time by being with friends and exploring my passions.