Third Entry -- Food and People Watching

Seems appropriate to combine two of my favorite subjects. Also given that (so far) I'm by myself when I eat out, I pass the time by watching all the various activity. Besides, sampling food and observing people is a great way to learn a culture. Honestly, I'm usually more interested in the people watching than I am touring museums and such. Just seems a lot more fun! Plus…if you know me, you know how much I LOVE food, so it makes sense that this is how I choose to learn and blend in. 

So far, most of the food has been really good -- fattening, but decent. Right away I jumped into the fresh bread, cheese, salami and wine. Good stuff! Glad I'm gonna be walking everywhere. Truthfully though, dining out has had some challenges. The first night I went out for tapas was pretty intimidating. "Tapas" is a very typical Spanish tradition. It's basically a small serving of food -- like an appetizer. Most restaurants and bars have an extensive tapas menu. Some serve mostly tapas (as opposed to a "racione" which is a normal entrée serving). Granada is well known for tapas and has several signposts designating where the Tapas Routes are so tourists can locate multiple bars in certain areas. On one signpost I read that Tapas originated when bartenders would put a small plate over a patron's glass to keep the flies out of the drink…practical, but….eeewww! That led to including a small serving of food on the plate, which eventually became the custom of automatically giving away a tapa (one small serving) with every drink purchase. My treasure hunt has been discovering which bars and cafes automatically give out a free tapa with every drink (some do, some don't). I like the ones that do :-)

Free "tapa" with every drink order -- sometimes.

So I go out and find a lively spot to practice one of my phrases: "esta esta mesa libre?" (Is this table free?). It was. I sat down and flung out the next phrase: "quiero un vaso sangria, por favor" (I'd like a glass of sangria, please.) Now, don't be impressed here. These words did NOT come out smoothly. And I'm certain I didn't pronounce them correctly (in fact, another night I got corrected, but that's a different story). We've all seen and heard the poor foreigner trying to speak English, right? "Jez, eye wood li-king - uh, uh - uh glazza - uh de wine-a - uh, eff dju so pleeze-a - tank u" … yeah, well, that was me. sigh. Which prompted the sweet, young server to hand me a menu in English. geez, thanks! I really didn't want to resort to that yet, but I admit, it was helpful. Glancing over the menu, I realized this place didn't serve tapas. Crap! How'd that happen?! But I was committed now, so I ordered a racione instead…something I recognized (a plate of tempura shrimp and veggies). However, when the sangria comes, so does a small tapa. YAY! It's a wee bowl of olives and a golf ball-sized, fried melted cheese ball…YUM! (Which I later learn is a common tapa called a "croqueta" and can be filled with many different meats, cheeses and such.) 

As yummy as the fried cheese ball, fried shrimp, fried potatoes and carrots (which constituted the "tempura veggies") and sangria was, the next day my body was not so happy with all the grease and breading and the custom of eating so late at night. Did I mention that this tapas-happy-country eats dinner at roughly 22:00?! Yeah, that's 10:00 at night…EVERY night! Yikes! So indeed, I'm gonna have to scale back and ease into this tapas thing gently. Maybe I can find a way  to venture out for tapas two or three times a week (and stick to UNA tapa!).    

Constant activity in Granada -- open air art exhibit.

During my daily meanderings, I see a lot of city life. Typical urban activity…people going to and from work; shop keepers sweeping their front walks; delivery drivers squeezing their trucks into tight spots, mopeds whizzing by. I LOVE being in the thick of it! It's cool seeing how people go about their day, how they dress, how they interact with others. A lot of behaviors are different from ours. But of course, many things are also universal. What stands out most to me is their open expressiveness. Men and women -- young and old walk hand in hand or arm in arm. I see many couples kissing and embracing on the sidewalk. Older women gather and walk together holding hands. Same with men…a younger, maybe middle-aged man often has an elderly man on his arm. Families with small children roam about. And there are lots of dads out pushing strollers. It's also no surprise seeing how well dressed people are (I remember that from living in Sweden)! No plastic crocs and fleece jackets in this part of the world! Women wear short skirts or fashionable dresses or pants. Sandals are popular right now, but I see lots of high-heeled shoes too (I don't how they do it on those cobblestones!) So many older men wear suits (that's not so different), but younger men in their "casual wear" are often sporting colored, tight pants, a stylish shirt, and fancy shoes. Always the shoes! I've decided that's the best and easiest way to tell the Europeans apart from the Americans…look at their shoes. Ok, ok. I know I'm generalizing and rambling on a bit too. Sorry. But I'm really taken by this stuff. It fascinates me how simple public behavior and clothing can differentiate a culture. I think it says something about people and their values.

Gotta also give a nod to the universal bond between animal lovers. Granada is a dog-friendly town. Lots of people out every day walking their dogs. And just like at home, people will stop to chat and pet the dogs out with their owners. Unfortunately, also like at home, some people pick up after their dogs and some don't. ugh! And it saddens me to see how many strays roam about. I don't know what the laws are or what kind of organizations they have like our Humane Societies, but as an animal lover, it's tough watching all these little mutts wandering the streets.

Tapas, tapas, tapas...

My second tapas experience went a little better. I found a small table inside a bar with a perfect view of the nightlife outside. The server brings me my glass of sangria and a free tapa -- YAY! -- which is a plate of french fries (nothing fancy, just ordinary frozen fries), but topped with incredibly tender chunks of meat in a sauce. Now this could be oxtail or some other crazy weird carne, but it's likely pork. Whatever it is, it's damn good! When I order another drink, I get ANOTHER free tapa, which I wasn't expecting and wished later that I hadn't actually ordered food. But, again, I'm learning here. The tapa this time was a stew of sorts. Same mysterious, tender oxtail/pork meat in a thick soup with potatoes and peas and such. Again, yum! So duly noted…add this bar to the "come back here" list. I also learn that evening about 'tinto de verano.' Translated: summer red wine. Basically, cheap red wine mixed with sparkling lemon soda. Very popular and very tasty. It becomes my standard order for awhile…in addition to, 'una copa de vino blanco' :-)

On yet another night, I go outside about 23:00 (11:00) for some fresh air and to continue exploring the late night culture that's so typical of the Spanish way of life. I'm not hungry, so I'm not looking for tapas this time, but it'd be cool to find some live music or other form of entertainment (NO chance of a karaoke bar I'm pretty certain!). But oddly, as I stroll around, follow the crowds, peek inside the cafes and bars, I don't find a single club or band. Several places have televised sports and one, very touristy-looking joint outside of a large hotel, is advertising Flamenco Dancing (yeah, I'll probably go there later). Other than that, nothing besides food and drink. hhhmmm. Later I learn from talking with a server at one of the tapas bars that Granada has very strict laws about live music. From what I could understand, because there are so many small bars, cafes and restaurants stacked together in close proximity, the city restricts live music (and thus controlling the noise) to only one or two or the larger, more prominent establishments. The server went so far as to call the local leaders 'fascists' -- also interesting! With a better internet connection and command of the language, I would research this more.

A locals tapas bar scene in my neighborhood.

Anyway, eventually I find myself sitting on a concrete bench out in a large, open plaza. I'm beneath the lamp posts, surrounded by several very old buildings where a small crowd has gathered to hear a Flamenco guitarist playing in the center of the plaza. His guitar is connected to a small, portable amplifier and his fingers are flying in that traditional Spanish music style. I can't help thinking the scene is a bit of a Hollywood movie cliche, but there it is and here I am taking it in. Hundreds of people are out strolling. Again, men and women, young and old, walking arm in arm, holding hands, smiling, laughing, talking, gesturing. It's such a lively, social atmosphere! THIS is the culture I read so much about. This is their life. And it's mesmerizing! I wonder…where are they going? Who do they see? What are they doing? And how do they manage this every, single night? (Siesta in the afternoon is key I think!) This late-night strolling they do is such a simple activity, really, and quite enriching to their lives, I'm sure. Yet to me it seems strange and foreign. Back home I might go out once or twice a week -- usually to go DO something; listen to music, have dinner with friends, catch a movie. But to simply gather and stroll and socialize…interesting. I sat there, listening to the guitar, feeling the warm, late-night breeze, admiring the soft amber glow the lights were casting against the old stone buildings, and I thought…what in the world would these people think about our late night lifestyle? And what in the hell would they think about our 'All You Can Eat Buffets'?? sheesh!!