Life on Plaza Mayor

We took it easy in Caceres today (visited the old town, and then a short bike ride, then catching up on email).

We are having dinner on Plaza Mayor, watching what seems to be mostly locals (it still isn't a high tourist season) walk by, and from our vantage point, we observed the following:

Our vantage point

1. Spaniards love to eat in restaurants, at 5 or 6 pm, then again at 10 - plenty of tapas, plenty of wine, lots of animated conversation.

2. Spaniards love small dogs, really small dogs, multiple small dogs - and small Spanish dogs bark in the same annoying way that small North American dogs do (funny though, they don't seem to be barking in Spanish).

3. Many people look like their dogs the way they do in North America, and look like their spouses too.

4. There is very little difference between Spanish teenagers and those at home - they dress the same, act the same, mill about the same, text and talk and walk the same, and make a lot of noise the same.

5. There are a lot of swallows and storks in Spain (or at least at Plaza Mayor around sunset).

6. Spaniards are very courteous - I think, because most of the time we don't understand what they are saying.

7. Spaniards walk a lot, and when you ask for directions, they will sometimes even walk you there - of course the nice weather helps.

8. Jewish people in Spain, at least yours truly, love the ham.