At first, I was thrown off by this directness that I was not used to back in Nebraska. Spaniards say what they mean with love and care, but often in a very direct way. For example, I wasn’t feeling very good one day at school, and a co-worker came up to me and said, “You don’t look very good today”. I wasn’t used to that kind of interaction in the United States, and it threw me off at first. However, my colleague wasn’t meaning to be mean; she was just trying to express concern that I looked sick! A couple of friends have visited me and have noticed Spanish directness, too. Another example is when ordering coffee, people might not make conversation and be very short and direct with their responses. They might seem like they are annoyed. This might also be a bigger city thing, but I have noticed with Spaniards that they are, in general, very straight to the point people. In the midwest I am used to random conversations with strangers or waiters, but Spaniards like to get a job done efficiently without much small talk. But I have also noticed that once you start the conversation, they will open up and be very friendly to talk to, althougn they usually just don’t initiate the interaction. I have met many friendly and kind people in Madrid, but their directness is just one thing I have noticed throughout my time here.
Another thing I have noticed is how affection is shown here and how Spaniards are much more affectionate physically than I’m used to. This might be confusing with what I was saying in the previous paragraph, but once you get to know someone here, they are very affectionate with you. The first time you meet someone they will hug you and give you a kiss on each cheek. I had never done this before, so that threw me off the first time.
