¡Bienvenido a España! On the walk to school, the sun appears over the brilliant architecture of the city of Sevilla as it wakes up. The smell of sweet, chocolaty freshly-made churros and tortillas de patatas drifts out of the windows of nearby cafés. We step into a nearby café to purchase some of the irresistible churros and a delicious café con leche. Soon, our platter of churros appears from the kitchen and a sense of eagerness fills the air. In Sevilla, many people begin to fill these cafés around nine in the morning and not long after that you cannot find a table–not good ones, at least. As the city awakens, restaurants prepare for the flow of people that will enter and order churros, a café con leche and tortilla de patatas. People sit and leisurely enjoy their breakfast before setting out on their long day of walking around the city–each person will typically walk at least 20,000 steps.
Much later, lunchtime will arrive, with many eating between the hours of 2:00 and 4:00 p.m., and once again people will settle in and enjoy a selection of typical Spanish foods. Many will get a sandwich with jámon–my favorite–while others will enjoy croquetas, and there are, of course, many other culinary options. It is good to try different places for lunch and explore all the cuisines nearby.
After lunch, many head home for siesta time, and many shops and restaurants will close until 6:00 p.m. Some may choose to enjoy a quick snack as dinner is a long way away. The city will come back alive at night, with many people filing into the main part of town for dinner around 8:30-9:30 p.m. and finishing up around 10:30-11:00. Every block has a gelato place, where people wait in line to grab their delicious dessert before heading home to call it a day. Once the day is done, everyone will settle down and prepare to do it all again tomorrow. This routine is an eventful yet fulfilling one. As each day goes by, I appreciate each meal more than the last, and even though the day is exhausting, it is also exhilarating at night wondering what new food I will experience the next day.
