Walking etiquette in Seville by Anna Gras

It was the first day that I had landed in Seville. I was bursting with emotions; I had not slept in over twenty-four hours, but I was about to officially begin my new life in Spain. I dropped off my bigger-than-me suitcase at my student residence, and immediately set out on the streets of Seville. I felt like I was living in a fairytale, the streets were filled with culture that I would soon learn about, cathedrals that were as old as time, and orange trees waiting to ripen; I then heard a ringing sound coming from behind that I had never heard before, I turned around to find myself almost face to face with a scooter coming at me at what felt like fifty miles per hour. I darted out of the way and let out a small scream, “I almost just died'' I thought to myself.

After living here for nearly three months, I now understand the difference between the walkways and the bike lanes, but it definitely took some getting used to. Walking etiquette in Seville, and in Spain as a whole, is much different than any place I have ever visited. Coming from a Western culture, I would often get annoyed with people stopping in the middle of the street randomly, or even the slow pace that Spainards have strolling in the afternoon. I have always felt some sort of pressure when walking from one place to another, even if I am not under the pressure of time. This idea is most likely derived from the fact that Western cultures have a sort of “rushed” mentality and feel as if they need to get as much done in a day as they possibly can. My cultural bubble has now popped, and I am aware that other places have different ordinariness within the smallest things, even walking. It was fun to be able to teach my family when they visited the different “rules of the road” and see them confused, as I once was about the different walkways and known bike/scooter lanes. 

I think that the walking etiquette back in the states will provide some comfort to me during my return. I am glad I was able to experience how a different culture carries their life out in many different ways, and it provided me with insight on how to open up my mind to these ideas.

 https://www.justlanded.com/english/Spain/Articles/Travel-Leisure/Pedestrian-Road-Rules 

Cervezas y Tinto At This Hour?, by Juan Martínez

In my time studying abroad here in Sevilla, what has stood out to me most has been the difference in drinking culture. One of my first invitations by a Spaniard student was to go out to a bar to get to know each other, which to me was odd. Typically, I wasn’t used to bars as being a place where you would go to relax and talk, however I’ve noticed that alcohol itself is culturally ingrained in a much different way in Sevilla and Spain as a whole. Additionally, I noticed while at this bar that students weren’t drinking hard liquor or mixed drinks either. Instead, students and adults of all ages would go to bars to have a simple cerveza or tinto de verano (my personal favorite) and chat. This was where I started to see a difference in how alcohol was treated culturally. I also saw that alcohol was more common than what I was used to, where I found that cervezas were served at virtually any restaurant or convenience store that had drinks and food. Even fast food restaurants like McDonalds and Burger King would serve cervezas as well! Despite so much casual drinking though, I also realized that alcohol wasn’t used to get drunk at all either. Rarely did I see anyone fully drunk except on large occasions where drinking might’ve accidentally gone too far. This showed me how different alcohol is viewed and used here in my study abroad experience. I would attribute this as a particular practice of Spanish society, where these practices are part of everyday life and make life feel predictable. For me, this was the contrary and I didn’t understand what it meant to go to a bar with someone because culturally bars usually mean hard drinking and alcohol is for the purpose of feeling the alcohol. 

This is also shown in the following article:https://www.expatica.com/es/lifestyle/food-drink/spanish-drinking-culture-473493/. This article highlights that alcohol consumption is a daily part of life. With this in mind, it is very common to find restaurants equipped with bars and glasses for multiple types of wine and beers, like the picture I took of a local restaurant here in Sevilla!

Churros! by Anastasia Ensminger

Throughout my time in Sevilla, I loved learning about the churros and how interconnected it is to the culture here. Before moving abroad, I spoke with a friend that had lived in Sevilla many years prior. He had told me about specifics that I should look out for in Spain, and churros had been high on his list. It was explained to me that churros are made of dough that is deep fried and normally accompanied by a cup of hot, thick chocolate. He especially applauded churros, and specified that he would do anything to have another one again. For that reason, I was quite excited to try out churros for myself. Not only did I taste churros, but I also created a project in one of my Spanish classes about the history and culture of churros. Therefore, along with tasting the delicious snack, I also learned a fair amount of information on the treat as well. Something that surprised me when conducting research is the fact that churros are not normally consumed as a dessert in Sevilla. Due to the high caloric content in churros, it is most commonly eaten as breakfast or a merienda, an afternoon snack. Additionally, I was enlightened to the fact that churros have been coined as a hangover cure. Again, this is connected to the reasoning that churros are high in calories. As we have learned in class, each community emphasizes culture through different artifacts. In this example, I hone into the food aspect.
https://www.thegourmetjournal.com/english-version/churros-a-spanish-tradition/ 

Who doesn't love a trendy piece of clothing?

Until coming to Spain, I found it very difficult to find a store that catered to my specific fashion needs.
Most recently, in the US, I went back to school shopping and I could not believe my eyes at some of the clothing that they were selling in the stores. What was considered culturally trendy in the US was honestly very unflattering to me at the time. However others in my culture, like my younger brother, loved the clothing.
When I first came to Sevilla, I immediately noticed two brands: Massimo Dutti and Mango Man. These two shops sell what I consider to be my ideal clothing style: casual but refined clothing. Within my first month here, I spent about 500 euros on clothing because I knew I could not get the same type of fashion in the US.
The difference in fashion preference between the US and Spain -- or more generally Europe -- is one that is widely talked about in international circles. In Sevilla specifically, as an American, it is very easy for me to tell who is an American and who is not. Fashion choices can indicate a lot about an individual including their profession, cultural interests, hygiene level and etc.
I believe fashion choices are a direct correspondence of a society's overarching culture. For example, in America, you will frequently see people running errands and even going to work in extremely casual clothing (sweatpants, etc.). This is because in our culture we are extremely individualistic, do not care for others' opinions and we are typically rushing around doing errands all day. In Spain, however, as an American, it seems that everyone is always well dressed. I can attribute this to a more collectivistic, slower-paced society that is focused on enjoyment.

At this link, you can read more on this topic!"

La Feria, by Emma Skoler

Before I came to Sevilla, I had multiple people ask me if I would be there during La Feria. I had heard that it was going to be beautiful, but didn’t know much about it. I also knew that people would be wearing elaborate dresses and had been told that it was more fun if I bought one of my own. Unfortunately, I opted not to because I didn’t want to spend the money when I would only be there for two days. However, before being a part of it in person, I didn’t understand how important the flamenco outfits would be. I live a five minute walk from the fairgrounds in Los Remedios, and I loved people watching during the days of Feria. It was like a constant fashion show. A Spanish girl who I talked to told me after the fact that it was common for girls in Sevilla to have 6 flamenco dresses each, largely because fashion trends grow and change every year. This is so interesting to me, especially considering the price of an entire Feria outfit. Even though the event only occurs once every year, people still spend hundreds of dollars to embrace this week-long cultural experience. I think part of the reason this was so striking to me is that we don’t have anything like it in the United States. Because the cities and regions in the U.S. are so ethnically diverse compared to Andalucia, and specifically Sevilla, an event built on shared tradition like this seems impossible. Every family has their own cultural background, religion, and traditions, contrary to Sevilla. The only similar event I can think of is Mardis Gras in New Orleans, but this feels like a less culturally rich, tradition-based version (though it could be argued they are equivalent).This reminded me of the video we watched in class where men who were refugees from an African country were forced to move to the United States because I remember them mentioning how they live much more communally in their country, and know all of their neighbors. Though this is not entirely true in Sevilla, I think La Feria reflects some of the more collectivist aspects of Spanish society, as there is a microculture of fashion, food, and camaraderie shared only amongst Sevillians. Each caseta is also made up of communities of families and their friends, like a little neighborhood. As an outsider, I did not understand flamenco fashion trends at all, nor did I know what to expect during the week of Feria. However, the people in Sevilla were very welcoming.

Source: https://www.20minutos.es/minuteca/feria-de-abril/