Spain: My Favourite European Country

If you've been following along on my Instagram (@JRTVoyage) or this blog, you'll have noticed that Jo and I spent a lot of time in Spain. We had initially decided to hit Spain on the front end and then head to Eastern Europe, but that changed when Jo convinced me to go back to follow a torero around. We ended up spending 48 of our 90 days in Europe in Spain. We went to the Basque Country (the greater Basque region, not the autonomous community, for the Spanish political sticklers out there) to see San Sebastian and attend San Fermin in Pamplona, Catalonia to see Barcelona, Madrid twice to visit both the capital and experience patron saint festivities in two cities outside of the city, Sevilla twice to visit both the city and bullfights outside of the city, and Valencia and Malaga for southern ocean experiences.

While I love France for a lot of reasons, from national pride to the language to history to the food, Spain finally moved France to my second favourite country in Europe. Spain, quite simply, just has an irresistible allure that has drawn me (and Jo) into its orbit.

The Food: Tapas y Paella

The food in Spain, to me, is second to none. Don't get me wrong, Europe is chocked full of good food, from pasta in Italy to svickova in the Czech Republic, you will not go wrong with European country cuisine, but Spain wins it for me. It's not so much the culinary artistry or uniqueness that does it for me. It is its simplicity and universality. Now, Spaniards won't necessarily agree on every point here (just ask a Valencian and a Catalonian whether or not seafood goes in paella), but, in general, I think they would.

Tapas are, of course, famously Spanish. Some love that drinks in some tapas bars come with a free tapa. Others, like me, love the fact that you can get a full meal of a variety of tapas rather than a single dish for the same price. My favourite thing about tapas, though, is the portion size. For the most part, they are smaller dishes at lower price. In the United States (and in Germany and the Czech Republic), our portion sizes tend to be somewhere between big and massive, with prices to match. In Spain, you can get a full ration of a specific dish at an appropriate price, but most places offer half rations or tapa-sized versions of most of their dishes as well. My favourite meal in Spain would is definitely a set of two or three different tapa-sized dishes (croquettas and flamenqin are two of my favourites) with a cana of beer (or, as Jo calls them, Jack-sized beer, because they are small). These, of course, are not necessarily universal, as you will find regional tapa dishes as well, from Calamari sandwiches along the south and Navarre-style chorizo in the north.

Paella is another favourite. Spaniards are adamant that paella is only for lunch, and, culturally, they are correct. Only tourists eat paella for dinner (and often pay tourist prices to do so). Regardless, it is an excellent dish made of rice, meat or seafood (depending on the region you are in), and, most importantly, saffron. It can be made in a pan for as few as two people or as large a pan for 20 or more. It is flavourful, traditional, and delicious, and is certainly my go-to full-sized ration if it is available.

Bullfighting: A Cultural and Artistic Phenomenon

By far my favourite aspect of Spain is bullfighting. Yes, I am aware it is controversial, and I am aware of the ethical arguments both for an against the art (I recommend reading "The Spanish Bull" by Mark Colenutt; it has an excellent chapter devoted to the ethical dimensions of bullfighting, both for and against). I come out on the for side.

For one, it is almost uniquely Spanish. Not many countries can claim an artform or sport that is uniquely theirs, especially not one that has survived attempts by various conquerors to stamp it out. It is difficult for non-Spaniards to understand the bullfight, both practically and culturally, even after seeing one or two. It took me three or four to really start understanding it.

For me, there are few other true tests of a man's courage, honour, and skill than standing in the ring with a bull with the understanding that only one of you will walk out alive. Most of the time, it is the matador that is victorious, but I have seen a few get carried out of the ring because of an injury from the bull. Sometimes the bull wins. When you have an especially good matador, it only heightens the experience. I don't mean technically good, there are plenty of those, but what I would call spiritually good. Those who have their whole heart in the ring and are dedicated not just to killing the bull, but showcasing and celebrating its role in the art.

The crowds are also a reason for my love of the art of bullfighting. They are intimately involved in the spectacle before them. They applaud the bull's bravery, and protest a matador if he performs poorly or induces undue or prolonged suffering. If a matador or a member of his team loses the crowd, it is a long, hard road to win them back. On top of this, they were some of the most welcoming people I have met. Jo and I were regularly thanked for giving this Spanish cultural tradition a try, despite our being Americans. There is just this unifying aspect that is hard to explain. This was even applicable to the torero we were following around, who reached out to thank us for coming to so many of his corridas.

Vibrancy: The Infectious Atmosphere

"I hate to compare everything to Spain, but..." I regularly said this sentence after we left for the second time. When you travel, you find people who love different aspects of different countries. Some are café-goers, some history buffs, and some who are all about the nightlife. I'm not into the nightlife, and I'd rather spend my time walking aimlessly around a city, seeing the sights, going to museums, and enjoying local eateries and cafes while people watching. There is no place better, in my opinion, to do this than in Spain. I stumbled into markets, thousand year old churches, festivals, and more just by following the beautiful streets and locals heading to mid-afternoon lunch. Outdoor cafes and bars are everywhere, and the evening paseo is full of locals enjoying each others' company in the city streets. The architecture is stunning in each region, and only serves to amplify the vibrant buzz in the air.

Prices: Affordability (Minus Taxes!)

You just cannot beat the food and alcohol prices in Spain (with a few exceptions). While accommodations can get pricey during the peak tourism season, even for hostels, everything else makes up for it. As an American, I'm used to paying 15-20 dollars for a meal for one. If I want a beer, add on 7 more dollars. Bottle of wine? That'll be 30-40 dollars (or more). Not the case in Spain. I can easily get a full meal for under 10 euros (about 11 dollars). By full meal, I mean starter, main, drink, and coffee or dessert. Meeting for a drink in Spain is not a budget breaker like it can be in the United States, Germany, or Australia. Breakfast, my personal favourite meal of the day, routinely cost me less than 5 euros for a croissant mixto and double espresso. Good luck getting those prices at Starbucks.

I say "minus taxes." This is the important catch. As a traveler, Spain is generally cheaper. As a worker, not so much. Spanish income taxes range from 19-45 percent for residents and a "reduced rate" of 24 percent for digital nomads or seasonal workers. To put that into context, in the United States I was paying 22 percent in taxes for a job where I made over 100K dollars a year. I would make nowhere near that as a digital nomad. That said, Spanish healthcare is covered, unlike in the United States, and the lower general cost of living offsets some of the impact from those high taxes.

Relaxed Culture: Beer in the Morning, Siestas in the Afternoon

American hustle culture is something that I am simply used to. At least I was. We're all about climbing that ladder, accumulating wealth for retirement and our posterity, and pouring ourselves into our companies to provide a better product or service for our customers. We have working lunches and are notorious for not taking our paid vacation days.

Spain is totally different. There is still the eight hour work day in many places, but this workday varies substantially from what I am used to. Spaniards work in the morning, usually around 8 or 9 a.m., until lunch at 2 p.m. which lasts until 3 or 4, followed by the siesta, and then they return to work around 5 to finish off between 8 and 9. This is one reason why Spaniards eat famously late (dinner is usually around 10 in the evening!). It is not uncommon to see working Spaniards having a beer at 10 in the morning or having a couple of drinks at lunch. That is unfathomable in the United States, simply from the liability aspect in our litigious culture. If you want to go to the market or restaurant in the mid-afternoon, forget it. That's siesta time (what I call the greatest of Spanish traditions). Everything is shut down. When Jo, Luka, and I ended up in Cazalla de la Sierra, we experienced this firsthand, as the town high in the hills under the August sun was a ghost town in the afternoon with nowhere to seek refuge from the heat.

All in all, it is simply more relaxed in Spain, especially for an American.

Preserved History: The Moors, Christendom, and Basque Heritage

All across the world, you find history. Some of it is preserved (like at Auschwitz), some of it is carefully constructed (like in Berlin), some of it is revisionist (like in the United States). Spain seemed, to me, to embrace its history, good and bad, and makes substantial efforts to preserve it. In Sevilla, the large cathedral in the center of town still has some of its Moorish influences, and there are laws mandating how the historical city center is to be preserved by tenants and businesses. Plaza Mayor in Madrid was reconstructed after the infamous fire to remember the city's history and rise to prominence as the capital. All across Spain, you find Catholic cathedrals packed with tourists, with a great many of these still holding regular mass. Some of my favourite preserved history was in Basque Country (again, the greater Basque region, not the autonomous community), where cultural identity and history is on display everywhere you look.

As an American, especially in today's age, we are more interested in revising our historical memory to focus on the crimes and tragedy of our past, rather than celebrating our national triumphs and unifying cultural ties. It is refreshing to see this on full display in Spain. (Although, to be fair, there are separatist movements in Spain which try to minimize their Spanish ancestry, but they are in the minority).

National Pride: The Ultimate Draw

Spaniards are proud people. Proud of their personal accomplishments, proud of their culture, and proud of their country. Don't mistake this for nationalism as commonly defined in the West today. Spanish pride isn't exclusionary of others; instead, it is welcoming. Spaniards welcome others into their culture with open arms. The Madrilenos, those who live in Madrid, have a saying: "If you are in Madrid, you are from Madrid." Patron saint festivities are everywhere, unique to the cities they are in but alike in their significance in Spain as a whole. The Spanish have resisted effort after effort to stamp our or change their culture, and have even provisions in their constitution for like provinces to form autonomous communities (essentially regional governments) to preserve their region-specific way of life (within national laws and regulations, of course). I have never before or since been in a place where you really felt that people were proud of their country, heritage, and culture.

From Real Madrid vs. Barcelona to local festivals to bullfighting to the paseo and sobremesa, I simply have not found somewhere that makes me feel as I do in Spain.