When I was 15, I spent a few months studying in France. There, I learned to both hate and love many French things.
While I never saw a man in his underwear playing a guitar (New York) I did see unusual people with even more unusual hairdos. Many women wore three skirts at the same time --all with different lengths-- and many would not wash their hair for months trying to achieve a Rastafarian look without passing by a hair salon.
For tourists, this can be an attraction. For me, at the time, it was. Growing up in a little town lost in the Middle of Galicia, Spain, I was not used to the variety of people, products and customs a big city offers. I was staying in Rodez, where I attended school.
A main attraction of the country is the language itself. Even for those who do not understand French, the language has a romance added to it. Many even visit the country hoping to find the romance that movies tell us people find there, on the other side of the world.
Something I absolutely dislike about the country is its food. There, they like to eat couscous, which I personally don't like. The worst part is that where I was they ate it without anything, as if it were rice. To me, it looked like bird food. They also like to eat tomatoes as if they were apples. In fact, my "adoptive family" used to put a tomato on my lunch bag for me to eat when I was hungry. I never ate it!
While I was there my main source of food were the many pastries the little bakeries in nearly every corner has to offer. To me, the air smelled like croissant.
But in France like in most European countries there is whole load of things to do. There are museums, monuments, impressive parks and the night life is not bad.
Monday, June 9, 2008
Thursday, June 5, 2008
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
Sunday, June 1, 2008
I would like to now spend a couple of minutes talking about Portugal--my neighboring country, and for some a disappointment.-- To be honest, I have to be included among those who found the country a little boring and even dirty.
It is not for no reason that Portugal is among the most undeveloped countries in Western Europe. You can feel this anywhere you go within the country. I have been both in the northern and southern part. It is not unusual to see dirt on the streets and, in my modest opinion, there is not much to see. There is a huge contrast between Portugal and other European countries. This least developed nation doesn't count with the impressive monuments most other European countries do. There you cannot see that transition from Roman, to Arab, Persian... that I described when talking about my beloved country. Despite the fact that both countries are next to each other, the differences are more than noticeable. Although, not even twenty years ago the level of industrialization of both nations both about the same, Spain in the last decades has seen huge economic growth.
Portugal, however, still has some fun to offer. For those who like the beach Portugal's beaches are quite nice.
My recommendation: Visit the city of O Porto. It is in my opinion, the one that has the most to offer. It has a wide variety of museums, including an exhibition of the first train in the country, cathedrals and restaurants.
Even though, this meal is not typical from the country, I must say that the sweet-bread sandwiches they make on O Porto are the best sandwiches I have ever tasted. I have yet to find out where this delicacy comes from.
