There is always so much more to the culture than what we think and expect.
Spaniards in general are known for being very direct in the way they speak. This feels very different for me, coming from the United States, and from the South in particular. Spaniards will often say things that are not meant to be offensive at all, but if you were to say these things in America, you could offend a lot of people. One example of this comes from my time in Toledo, when I had a conversation with the mother of the host family I lived with. One day during lunch, she looked at me and said out of the blue, "Your hair smells weird," using the Spanish word raro, which literally means odd, uncommon, or weird. I just looked at her, unsure of how to respond. She then explained how she didn't like the smell of my shampoo and suggested that I use her shampoo from then on because it smelled better. My initial reaction in that situation was to feel a little offended. I had to stop and ask myself why I was offended. My host mother was actually just being kind and showing me that she cared about me and how my hair smelled. I had no reason to be offended; her words were just more direct than I was used to.
On just about every block or two in most Spanish cities, you will find stores called alimentaciónes. These stores are like convenience stores and will sell just about anything and everything you can think of for fairly inexpensive prices. However, if you ask a Spaniard where to find the nearest alimentación, they will most likely not know what you are talking about. These stores are commonly referred to as Chinos, which literally means Chinese.
