Can you believe we're leaving later this week? I'm so excited! I wanted to share really quick with you guys my experiences in Spain por la noche. The nightlife in Spain is of course incredible, but like I wrote about meal times, their schedule is a bit different. Photos are all mine.
Since dinner or la cena is typically around 9pm or later, the entire schedule is shifted forward a few hours. Here in Athens people are downtown by 11 or midnight, but in Spain that's not always the case. Sure it makes sense to be out partying around midnight if you know all the local bars are going to close at 2am. However, what if your favorite places didn't even open until 3am?
3 in the morning?
Shouldn't we be going home about then?
Think again. 3am is the magic hour in Spain. The hour when all the discotecas (clubs) open. I know it sounds crazy, maybe beyond your functioning capacity, but stay with me. Let me provide some context.
Ok, so we'll back up to dinner time. We just had a wonderful, light meal of tapas, and we're finishing our glasses of wine as we sit in an open aired plaza. Sure, it's past 10, but what catches our eye is how lively the city is! No one is on their way home, if anything there are couples and groups of friends just taking a seat.
At this hour, people are still hopping from bar to bar, tasting and sampling small dishes as well as the house wines. This process honestly continues well into the night and early morning until magic hour comes around and we can finally go dance.
Sure, that sounds lovely and magical. Straight out of a movie. But isn't that expensive? What do the students do?
Glad you asked. Students in Spain are broke, and I'm sure most of our readers can relate. Thankfully, a general lack of funds hardly serves to damper the mood. If anything it just forces the Spanish youth to be more creative.
Their solution to passing the hours of the night before magic hour? A botellón. Picture a picnic. We're in a park, right? Or some public, scenic space. But, it's nighttime, and we're all dressed in club attire. Also, there's no food, just booze. Preferably in makeshift containers that fit discretely into a handbag. That's a botellón.
(10 points if you can spot me in this photo. My hair was a lot different last year. Hint: I'm wearing black :P)
Once magic hour arrives, everyone migrates to a favored club and doesn't stop dancing until the music stops. As you leave and make your way to the metro, make sure to take a moment to breathe in the fresh morning air and watch the sun rise! Kudos if you go get breakfast on your way home.
See you all in rehearsal!
-Lauren
As always, if you want to see more photos of my travels in Spain, check out my Flickr.
1 comment:
Lauren, you are so awesome!
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