So, I survived my intense Spanish course and intensive it was. I am now pretty confident at ordering an Uber and a Cappuccino in Spanish, but not much else. I did, however, make some lovely friends. I tagged along with a group of ladies from Denmark, Switzerland, Sweden and Germany. They very kindly spoke in perfect English to me for the whole two weeks. Unfortunately, they all moaned at the end that their English had improved a lot more than their Spanish. Well, at least I provided a language service and helped post Brexit international relations.
The one thing I really don’t understand is the Spanish obsession with tapas. To me, it is a very poor excuse for a meal. One evening a crowd of us went to a tapas restaurant and were presented with plate after plate of miniature appetisers. I realised quickly that if you don’t like cheese or tomatoes, you are finished. One plate was just sliced tomatoes in olive oil. Whilst everyone else was saying how ‘delicioso’ it was, I couldn’t help feeling that it was a total waste of some decent olive oil. Then courses of raw Manchego cheese and cheese stuffed fritters arrived, all of which I found quite disgusting. Finally some yummy hot fried chorizo appeared and my eyes lit up. Sadly by the time everyone had politely ‘passed the plate’ there was none left for me. I left the restaurant hungry and depressed. Miraculously I spotted a McDonalds in the distance. I made my excuses and rushed into the Golden Arches for a Quarter Pounder with Cheese. Fortunately one afternoon we had a cookery class and made a gigantic paella filled with chicken, squid, prawns and saffron. Now that was my idea of food. There is so much to love about Spain, just not their mini meals.
Proper foodWould I return to Malaga? Yes, in a flash. It is the most beautiful city with perfect weather, lovely people, loads of culture and a fabulous beach. What’s not to love? Would I continue learning Spanish? Well, the answer to that one is, I have signed up to do my Spanish IGSE is June. Help!
