In Spanish culture, people live life to the fullest. But not in a hurry. Instead, Spaniards tend to take their time, deliberately, to appreciate the world and the people around them. In Spain, people savor long meals of various courses and wander through lively villages and charming cities.
Spain is a very social country. Emphasis is placed on spending quality time with friends and family. Eating away from home is cheap and is an integral part of many people's lives. Fluency is far from expected, but the misconception that English is an alternative language accepted in Spain must be dispelled.
Spain loves to rejoice in its past, but it also embraces constant evolution and is using its deep-rooted past creativity to develop a leading role on the world cultural stage into the future. The day in Spain is structured differently from most other Western countries and late lunch and late dinner are facilitated with a series of light meals. Spain has a rich artistic heritage with painters such as El Greco, Bartolomé Esteban Murillo and Francisco Goya from the Spanish Golden Age and Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dalí and Joan Miró in the 20th century. Spain is often portrayed as the number one lifestyle destination in the world, and it's not hard to understand why.
Spain is now the healthiest nation in the world, according to a recent study, An outdoor lifestyle, award-winning cuisine, stunning architecture and a sense of community are just some of the reasons that contribute to a lifestyle coveted by many. Moving to Spain is attractive to many from other Western societies, as the culture shock is far from seismic. The extensive Blue Flag certification underlines Spain's position at the forefront of beach quality and safety, with 569 beaches (20% of the total) officially authorized to exhibit this prestigious standard of excellence. When you work for a company in Spain, you probably have at least three weeks of vacation during the year.
Daily life in Spain at the beginning of the 21st century is a little different from that of other industrialized countries in the West. Spain has 8,000 km of continental and insular coastline, including some of the most beautiful beaches in the world. Spain was also recently cited as the healthiest country in the world, according to a study conducted by Bloomberg in 169 nations. In Spain, for smaller ailments, you can skip the step of going to the doctor or clinic, and go directly to the pharmacy (the pharmacy).
There are many things that I have learned to love about Spanish culture, and I think that the rest of the world can also learn from Spain. Spain has a much lower cost of living than many other first world countries and has one of the cheapest lifestyles in Western Europe. Most medium and large cities in Spain have access to national retail chains such as Desigual, Kiabi, Zara and Pull & Bear.
