By: Jeanne Reidy

Before arriving in Spain, I had heard that the Spanish culture is much more formal than the American.  I heard that little old ladies put on nylons and heels just to go to the supermarket and that no one dare wear gym shoes on the street. Very quickly after arriving, I learned that the track at the park near my apartment wasn’t for running but for old men in top hats and cigars and women in long fur coats to take a pre-dinner stroll. The strange looks I got during that experience taught me that Madrileños don’t commonly wear sweatpants and t-shirts in public either.  With all the characteristics of a formal culture in mind, I’ve been surprised by, in fact, how informal Spaniards are in many other aspects of their life.

First, the language. For a culture in which its people present themselves so formally, they speak to each other like they’ve known each other forever. For example, ever since I’ve been taught to conjugate a Spanish verb, I’ve been told that I will need to perfect the “usted” form, as I am to use it with anyone older than me, and that I will never need to know the “vosotros” form. Now, in American schools, this makes sense as they think the only Spanish speaker we will ever talk to will be from Mexico, where these rules apply. However, I hear nothing but “vosotros” forms of verbs and informal speaking in Spain. In fact, since being here, I’ve learned that Spaniards would only use the “usted” form of a verb to talk to the president or someone much older or important. It can be offensive to use “usted” with a Spaniard as it implies they are very old. Whoops…       

I’ve been surprised by some of the informal conversation I’ve heard between Spaniards. At a formal school function, I overheard my program director and a university professor meet and say “Hombre, ¿que tal? ” or the equivalent to “Dude, what´s up? ” Where else would you hear to grown women speak to each other like that at a formal event?

Not just the language, but the culture, too, has surprised me. I recently started tutoring a family of two kids in English. On my first day, I arrived at their door step, only having ever exchanged emails, only for the mom to scoop me right up and jump into conversation about the kids’ school work. I was expecting at least a few minutes of “So, where are you from? How do you like Madrid? ” But no- it was like I was a friend of the family that she had known for years. It was more of a “Oh good you’re here, let’s jump right into this”. I experienced the same thing when moving into my señora’s house. I was expecting a one-on-one session to go over house rules and guidelines. There was nothing of the sort. She showed me my room and bathroom and went on about her day, unalarmed, as if I’d been living there for months.  

Regardless of how different it is from the American culture I’m used to- one where a family would have interviewed and background checked me before inviting me into their home- it is refreshing. It is so nice to feel like everyone knows each other and are there to help each other out. Being part of the Spanish culture has given me the feeling that we’re all human, on the same world, with the same problems and goals, so why treat each other any other way?   

by Isaure Cointreau

- I am a Bobo.

- A what?

- … a BOBO!

- What the hell does that mean?

Not everybody knows what it stands for but I believe everybody knows one. So where do they hide? Who are they? What do they eat? Just like you and I they are normal people who live in this completely dysfunctional world. However they can be distinguished by their extravagant lifestyle. Bobo is a label given by David Brooke to those who appear to lead their life through two opposite concepts such as the Bourgeoisie and the Boheme. Even so, this could to some not shed any more light to the term as it relates to very frenchy connotations. In simple words a Bobo is a mix between a hippy and a yuppie.

Are they somewhat of a specific bread of human? More of a group of snob idealists who can also be compared to eco-capitalists with strong roots in traditional values, though thinking ahead to the future and embracing modernity. In a nutshell, they are somewhat of a multi- contradictory grasp of ideas and ideals.

These urban inhabitants claim their wild wish to live in the countryside though they are intrinsically linked to the city. Working in a suit during the day, outside the office they change into the cool musician, bio-cook, anti-globalization supporter and so on. However, if one thinks they are cheap well let him think twice. Although they will only buy for the sake of setting an example, including values and ethics on every purchase, they won’t hesitate to look into their wallets. Purchasing the bio-toothpaste for the sake of the planet rather than its (disgusting) taste, they put a smile on Oxfam’s people rather than their banker, if only he knew. However as said before they are linked to the city, working in serious outfits by day, looking like any other entrepreneur, so money is not an issue. They just won’t spend it on a shopping stroll on the high end streets like the C/ Serrano. The Bobo is an anti-consumerist. One might find out that his new scarf had been traded at a barter market, his carrots and tomatoes grown in his backyard, his bookcase found on the street rather than bought. And in fact why not? It seems more of an inspiration, or aspiration than anything else.

Now that his profile is more or less defined, Madrid strikes me as being the perfect Bobo city. Although, it did require a little hint to make me link them to one another. On a hot Sunday while hanging out at a café plaza Dos de Mayo, I found a propaganda sticker on my chair. It said:

-Yo ya no uso MP3… Y TU?

-TAMPOCO: prefiero sentir el viento a mí alrededor – La poeta

- Tampoco – Sois Bobos.

The message instantly appealed to me and while I was thinking of what it was referring to, it appeared clearly that Madrid was completely suitable to the Bobo spirit. With New York, London and Paris along for the ride, Madrid is another happy habitat for those yuppie-hippies.

I would imagine them living in the center of Madrid, in boroughs such as la Latina or Huertas. These lively districts have a very welcoming vibe with charming little streets filled with restaurants, bars and jazz stages. Though not far from there, bookshops and art galleries flourish only to their delight. On the other hand the Rastro and la Charca de la Rana would be their destination when looking for antique furniture or to exchange goods.

Malasana on the other hand offers a perfect background for the Bobo hunt as it is not impossible to see them shopping in the numerous vintage and small designer shops. The nightlife in this area, although pretty delicious, is not their cup of tea as Bobos would prefer a more chilled ambiance. However, during the day the borough appears to them as a large coffee terrace.

As an individual I would depict the Bobo as an art amateur who enjoys a good museum once in a while. Cultivated and curious, he wants to know everything. Having a foot in the past, the other in the future, he doesn’t know how to define his taste other than defining it as personal, though as he cherishes the old and worships the new, he is the illustration of contradiction. He is a frequent movie goer though preferring the Cine Dore’s classics than any new Hollywood big budget creation. In fact he is also a member of the Circulos de Bellas Artes where he goes painting, sketching, reading or checking out the exhibitions.

Could this be the new rising class?

by Mary Doman

The neverending list of sights to see in Madrid can be quite overwhelming. I find myself tossing history aside too many times for the much easier mindless stroll’. You know, those walks when you and a friend weave up and down random streets in the city, stopping in cafés and shops until you’ve purchased enough souvenirs and cervezas to say you feel like you’ve really experienced Madrid?

Though tapas and tiendas are part of this city, don’t forget to fit in a little history. Like me, you’ve probably strolled by a number of really huge, really old buildings in your walks. Though it’d be almost impossible to visit them all, a few cathedrals are listed below that might help you say, confidently, that you really know Madrid.

After visiting the Palacio Real, you might feel like your appetite for sightseeing has been fulfilled. However, I urge you to save a little room for another gem, tucked right beside the Palacio. It’s called the Almudena Catedral, and it’s not so much “tucked” as much as “towering”.

The cathedral was actually completed in 1993, which makes it a baby compared to all the other cathedrals. The modern Neo-Gothic interior can be refreshing for those who have trudged through the antiquity of some of Madrid’s more senior cathedrals.

Not that Almudena lacks history, of course. The cathedral stands where Madrid’s first mosque was ever built. Phillip II was responsible for creating the first church in place of the mosque, which would eventually become the Almudena. The construction of the current cathedral began in 1883, with a long halt during the Spanish civil war. When it was completed, the pope consecrated it in person.

Address: Calle Bailen 10, Metro: Opera, Hours

San Jeronimo El Real

Perhaps you spotted this one when you went to the Prado museum. The San Jeronimo El Real used to be part of huge monastery, part of which composes the Prado today. After Phillip II acquired the monastery and turned it into a cathedral, he then created the surrounding Parque Del Buen Retiro. Unfortunately Napoleon destroyed much of the park and the cathedral. The church would be restored by Isabel II 40 years later, and, after her, Henry and Mary Repullés Vargas in 1880. The brick square the sits alongside the cathedral was just finished in 2007.

Address: Calle de Moreto 4, Metro: Atocha, Hours

Convent of Las Descalzas Reales, “Monastery of Barefoot Royals”

If you’re walking down the Calle de Arenal and headed towards Sol, I encourage you to postpone your shopping/drinking for a few minutes and take a left on Calle de Bordadores. Here you´ll find an interesting piece of history and religion called the Convent of Descalzas Reales.

This convent was built in the mid 1500s for widows and spinsters. Each lady brought a dowry when she became a nun, and the convent became very wealthy. Unfortunately by the 20th century it was not so rich anymore. The pope came to the rescue, though, with money and a plan. He decided to open it to the publicc as a museum. Today not many nuns actually live there, and it serves more as a tourist attraction than an actual monastery. The richly decorated interior and interesting history of the convent made it the European Council´s “Museum of the Year” in the 1990s.

Address: Plaza de las Descalzas Reales (off Postigo de San Martín and Bordadores), Metro: Callao, Sol, Hours

Church of San Isidro

South of the Plaza Mayor and Almundena sits the church of San Isidro. This was Madrid’s official cathedral until Almundena took the title in 1993. Still, the cathedral holds the name of Madrid’s patron saint. Saint Isidro is said to have raised water from a well and also his own son from the dead. If you visit the church on a Sunday, you can easily walk to the El Rastro Flea Market.

Location: Calle de Toledo 37, Metro: La Latina, Hours

The Church of San Pedro el Viejo

The Church of San Pedro el Viejo is Madrid’s second oldest church, dating back to the 11th century. Most visitors are impressed with is mudejar tower, one of the few left in the city that hasn’t been renovated. (Mudéjar = a Muslim who remained in Spain and didn’t convert to Christianity, a type of Moorish architecture) Most visitors are also confused by the many names this church also goes by, such as San Pedro el Grande, as well as San Pedro el Leal. After visitng, you can walk to the church of San Nicolas de los Servitas, the oldest church in the city.

Address: Pl. de San Pedro s/n, Huesca, Metro: La Latina, Hours

by Mary Doman

The streets of Spain are tread by many, many walks of life. Cats, dogs, babies, students, tourists, and lots of old people. Not old as in “adult”, but old as in, seriously, elderly. But for the most part, these seniors speed along the sidewalks just barely behind everyone else. For me, this was one of the most surprising and intriguing differences that struck me when I moved here.

Every day I pass lots of elderly people (aged around 70+) strolling down the streets. At first, I wondered why they surprised me so much- it wasn’t like I’d never seen an old person before. But then I realized that the only old people I’d seen were in recliner chairs, nursing homes, craft stores, and family photos. And maybe the movie theatre, on the weekdays.

But in Spain, the elderly aren’t hiding indoors or resting their feet. Here, the elderly don’t seem to determine lifestyle by age. I get the feeling that, for the most part, the old people here are going to the same grocery store, taking the same metros, going to the same restaurants they did when they were 35. They might be taking the escalator and ordering softer food, but they’re nowhere near a nursing home or wheelchair.

I’ve taken my feelings and tried to support them with a bit of research comparing Spain and America. After some time on GoogleScholar, my anthropologic inquiries have been, at least partially, answered. Apparently I’m not the only one interested in the lifestyle of the elderly in Spain and America. Though there’s not clear-cut explanation for why old people act younger in Spain, there are some interesting theories and facts that help unravel the mystery.

Universally, the lifestyle of the old depends much on the young. In America, young people move out of the home in their early twenties or late teens. In Spain, it’s not uncommon for daughters and sons to live with their parents well into their twenties and sometimes their 30s. Economics play a large part in this, because housing is a lot more expensive here. But also, Spanish people tend to get married later than Americans. So as parents age, they still have “kids” to look after, for quite a long time. Since the family lives together for so long, the social lives of the elderly are a bit more vibrant here than they might be in America. According to one study, “Spain’s elderly population registers a high percentage of married persons who do not live alone and who see their families frequently…in Spain a family lifestyle characterised by frequent social relationships still prevails.”

In a sample of elderly Spanish people, most reported their most trusted confidants as spouses and daughters. Only 6% of those surveyed listed a non-kin in this position. Clearly, the importance and trust placed in the family is a priority in Spain, and the family unit appears to stay tightly knit (physically and mentally) for life.

Perhaps this is why my 70-year-old roommate (this explanation requires an entire different blog entry) goes out as much as I do? She sees her family at least twice a week, and I doubt the old phone in our apartment has rested for the past 50 years.

This lady is probably chatting with my elderly roommate.

However, her gossip and weekly outings make my roommate more than just popular- according to Harvard professor Lisa Berkman, “Social participation and integration have profound effects on health and well being of people during their lifetimes…We know from previous studies that people with many social ties have lower mortality rates.”

A reason you won’t find Spain’s elderly in nursing homes is quite practical: there aren’t many. In 2002 there averaged only 2.5 (public and private) nursing home beds for every 100 people older than 65 years. According to my calculations, America (with 36.8 million people aged 65+ in the year 2005, and 1.7 million nursing home beds counted in 2004) averages 4.62 beds per 100 people. So Spain has a little over half the number of nursing home beds available than America.  In the US, 1 out of 5 elderly people spends time in nursing facility, and some believe that “responsibility and caring for the aged…has been a social problem that will not likely be diffused.” This author thinks that the American aged themselves are the ¨problem¨, not the caregivers.

The small space for nursing home beds in Spain reflects the fact (or rather, my observation) that Spain, compared to the US, doesn’t have much space for a lot of things. Of course I haven’t visited every town so maybe I’m wrong. But a possible reason the elderly surprise me so much in Madrid is because the geography is much different here. Instead of a sprawling college campus and town designed mainly for students and professors, Madrid packs everyone right next to each other in its small streets and shops, so I’m much more likely to cross an old person in Madrid than an old person on my American college campus. My Madrid university, my office, my house, is smashed right beside the elderlys’ doctors’ offices, grocery stores, hangouts. The zapateria across the street has an equal selection of orthopaedic loafers and pumps.

The old people in Madrid sure have a lot of reasons for being young. I suppose my research has taken some mystery out of the elderly in Madrid, but I still have a lot of questions. Next I want to figure out how they can smoke so much, yet live so long…

by Isaure Cointreau

The first time I met Douglas it was at a little Moroccan style bar on Calle Colereros. I was just looking forward to have the best mojitos in Madrid, though that night there was a concert and I ended up having the best of times. With his guitar, Brazilian accent, suave and energetic songs, one would define his style as “world music”. However it’s much more than that, mixing popular themes and modern rhythms, Douglas Aguiar has a real talent to transmit to his listeners a southing and thrilling vibe.

Since then I bought his CD, went to a couple of his other concerts, had a few charlas and eventually he became a friend. I could say I’m somewhat of a fan, though I believe that all the people that have been able to be acquainted with his music have become so as well.

The Brazilian musician has been living in Spain for almost ten years now, and although he will never forget where he’s from, going back and forth at least twice a year, he doesn’t plan on leaving anytime soon. As the guitarist’s first motivation for coming to the Iberian soil was his high interest in the flamenco style, it did not stop at that. Madrid, as it does for most of those who inhabit it, grew on him and now embodies his first years into adulthood. Starting a new life, making new friends and having his first career experiences, Madrid became part of him.

In 2007, mixing the different universes he had experienced, the project of launching an album succeeded.  Produced in Sao Paolo, the CD is the result of a mix between Spanish and Brazilian culture. As a result his work is an overall delightful warm fusion Brazilian “root music”. On the twelve different compositions, eight are in Portuguese and the other four in Spanish. These are not the only tokens of variety one would find as the different rhythms and climates go from soft to more upbeat, and this all for the very pleasure of its listener.

The album goes by “Boca a boca”, and seems to be referring to multiple meanings the intelligent lyrics keep on illustrating.  Based on a double metaphor, two concepts are being winked at. La boca as in “the mouth” is referred to as a communicative instrument and symbol of desire. As it appears the artist seems to take at heart the manipulation of rhetoric and globalization led by the hand of mass media. However, although “Boca a Boca” has a language of its own, it invites the public to interpret the songs as they please.

Although Spain is now his main musical stage the artist plans to travel throughout Europe. He has already performed in Toulouse for a while, and in October, Paris seems to be his next destination. So we might see more of this musician, singer and composer in the future and around the world.  Until then, I would encourage anyone to log on to his myspace to check out his talent and next performances. 

http://www.myspace.com/douglasaguiar