September 30

Today was 12 hours of cars, buses and trains to get from S’Aguro to San Sebastian. Since there is nothing tripwise to report, I’ll mention a few things I’ve noticed about Spain:



Good Job, Spain!

1. No Smoking - Even though many people here smoke, smoking is allowed almost nowhere. Even most of the beaches I’ve been on prohibit smoking. I have actually seen people on the beach leave the beach to smoke on the street and then come back to the beach.
2. Napkins on the floor – In the tapas bars in the north, it’s customary to throw one’s used napkins on the floor. This initially struck me as odd, but then I realized how brilliant this is because we walk on floors and eat at tables. For example, if you are about to sit at a table that has just been vacated by a family of 6 with three toddlers who just finished a dinner of crab dip, spaghetti with meatballs and vanilla pudding (of course, I have made this example culturally appropriate for Americans), would you rather have their used napkins go on your table or on the floor?
3. Defibrillators – There are public defibrillators everywhere. There have been at least a couple even in the smallest towns I have visited. I don’t know if any of them have ever saved someone’s life, but hey, “A” for effort.

Areas for Improvement

1. Old Clocks – The old towns I have stayed in have (probably centuries-old) clock towers that loudly chime every 15 minutes, 24 hours a day. I realize that there is some historical attachment to this, but (1) every single person I have seen over the last 14 days has a smartphone, so everyone always knows exactly what time it is, and (2) I would imagine that if I can’t sleep at 3:00 am, the last thing I want is to be loudly reminded that I’m still awake at 3:00 (and 3:15, 3:30, 3;45, etc.). So Spain, would you consider limiting the frequency and hours of operation?
2. Unsynchronized Clocks – In Girona, there are two very loud competing old clocks. That are about 25 seconds off from each other. So four times each hour, as soon as I had recovered from the disruption of one clock chiming, the other one went off. Being that this is Spain, I can only imagine that both clock owners would agree that synchronization is a good idea, but that they both think the other clock is the one that should change.
3. Hours of Operation – There is a very strong cultural institution of everything closing down for the afternoon siesta. That means that between 4:00 and 8:00 pm in anywhere but the large cities, it is literally impossible to get something to eat, whether in a small food store, supermarket or restaurant. Given the fact that the entire world is going to shit, Spain doesn’t have a functioning government and all of Catalonia is desperately trying to secede and form its own country, I do not think it would be that disruptive for a shop or two to buck tradition and stay open for a few extra hours. 

But all in all, good job, Spain!