Submitted by Mia Ruggiero on the 2017 winter session program in Spain sponsored by the College of Arts and Sciences…
Some students and I traveled from Zaragoza to Barcelona for a weekend excursion. It is a beautiful city, and I got to see a lot of history and Spanish architecture as well as a famous landmark, Park Guëll. It overlooks the entire city, so many stairs (or an escalator) were involved to get to the top. On the way down, we were reminiscing on the view we had just seen when an elderly woman opened her apartment window and asked us to be quiet because she needs to sleep. This was quite a culture shock for all of us because it was the middle of the day! But in Spain from around 3:00 pm to 5:00 pm the residents partake in siesta. Which literally translates to “nap.” I cannot imagine not being able to speak at all in America in the afternoon for fear of waking people up. It is very different than the loudness of our country. Overall, it was quite an experience!