Submitted by Brianna Ramirez on the 2016 fall semester study abroad program in Granada, Spain…
Before venturing off to Spain, I had read a lot about how the Spaniards are very serious about their meal times and they were 100% correct. It has been quite the adjustment because they eat very differently from Americans. First, they place very little importance on breakfast and lunch is their biggest meal of the day, followed by a large dinner. Their day starts at 8:00 am and lunch is at around 2:00 – 3:00 pm. The whole city shuts down then except for tourist sites and everything re-opens at 5:00 pm. Dinner time is also very late, at 10:00 pm and unlike in the United States, they eat a pretty big dinner. Spaniards are also big fans of bread. But not just any bread, they buy freshly baked bread every single day to go along with meals. Moreover, they eat very healthy foods that don’t have excess sodium and sugar. Their idea of a dessert is fruit or yogurt. They’re not big fans of cakes, cookies or pies. They find them excessively sweet.
All of these changes have been very difficult for me, especially the gab between breakfast and lunch, because I’m used to eating a large breakfast that keeps me full until lunchtime. Thankfully, my host mom gives me snacks to take to class, but the Spaniards don’t snack. And they don’t eat while walking or in a classroom. If they don’t have time to sit down and eat a meal, they just go on with their day. Something I’ve come to appreciate is the fact that they take their time to sit down for meals. At school, I would scarf down lunch in 5-10 minutes, here we sit down at the table for over an hour. The Spaniards are never in a rush for anything, and that’s how it should be. We should take time in our day to savor the good things in life.