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Young adults kiss and grope each other like I had never seen before. PDA is everywhere: on the metro, in parks, on benches. She went for his left cheek the boyfriend went for her right cheek and they shared an unexpected kiss on the lips, much to everyone else’s delight and laughter.īefore I came to Spain, I thought I had already witnessed PDA in excess-that is, until I was exposed to Spanish teenagers. Remember this, if nothing else! I will never forget when my American friend, who was dating an Italian at the time, greeted our friend’s Spanish boyfriend with dos besos. Although Italians kiss the left cheek first, Spaniards kiss the right cheek first. It is essential to know which cheek to kiss first, though. She went for his left cheek the boyfriend went for her right cheek and they shared an unexpected kiss on the lips, much to everyone else’s delight and laughter.
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Most Spanish people have a different concept of personal space than Americans do, and while I found it initially unnerving, this greeting is a sure way to break the ice. In Spanish culture, dos besos, or two kisses, are used for greetings and goodbyes. Like most North Americans, I was accustomed to shaking hands upon meeting someone new and hugging upon greeting a friend. Similarly, they were patient and encouraging when I struggled to express myself in their language. They didn’t have to spend hours helping me find an apartment, invite me out to drinks after work, or comfort me during my first difficult weeks in Spain, but they did so without hesitation. My coworkers at school quickly became a second family. This time, living in Spain without an immediate network of friends pushed me to make an effort in meeting Spanish-speakers, and I was pleasantly surprised at how open, warm, and welcoming they were to guiris, English-speaking tourists like me. Back then, I stayed in my comfort zone among a small group of English-speaking friends while my interactions with locals were limited to my professors, my sassy host mother, and random guys in discotecas (dance clubs).
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My new position was certainly different from studying abroad for a semester in college. When I arrived in Spain to teach English, I wasn’t sure what kind of relationships I would have with the Spaniards. Here are six Spanish customs that ultimately made life so much better: 6 Spanish Customs that Will Make Your Life So Much Better 1. Aside from the obvious challenge of living in a Spanish-speaking country, I learned a lot about Spanish culture that was new to me. After graduation, I arrived in Spain for my first post-college job and expected to feel some culture shock.