This rant is directed especially to those expats that have been in Spain 10… 15… or more years….

Have you noticed that this country has become one of nuevos ricos with BMWs, chalets and all sorts of luxuries that they cannot pay for? How could so many people be so foolish, superficial and stupid? I know that there’s an economic crisis all over…. but I see the Spanish as especially nuevo rico. We all know that they tend to judge the book by the cover here much more than other places but I hate that they are SO freakin’ judgmental. (I cannot help but feel that many of those that are suffering the crisis now have gotten themselves into exactly the messes they deserved. I hate to be so mean but these are the same people that looked down their noses at me for years for being rational and humble and sensible. Anyway, that’s a whole different issue.)

OK, and how about the abundance of macarras y horteras? What’s up with that? They’re multiplying like bunnies and it’s hard to find *normal* people in Spain anymore!

The streets are overtaken by tons of men in pandillas wearing pantalones piratas con pendientes y mullets with really stupid, tacky tattoos….. lots of despedidas de soltero (that are really just an excuse to make gilipollas of themselves by wearing humongous plastic penises or tangas on their heads while they berrean like drunken fools).... 12 year old girls dressed like putitas.

This is NOT the country I fell in love with 30 yrs ago, I swear. It’s become something entirely different :(  It makes me sad.

There’s nothing as permanent as change, I know.

I also lament that the US is something very different, too.

*sigh*

Maybe this is a middle age crisis?

Times change, it is not unknown for peeps beyond a certain age to become disillusioned with that change.

Spain always had the peeps you see today, you just didn’t notice you where one of them.

Hmmm. That’s a novel idea. If you can’t beat em, join em.
No sense in being polite. BORING.
I’ll crank the music in my car until it pounds and vibrates the windows of the pisos within a five kilometer radius then I’ll honk and yell obscenities.

Just where in Spain are you? Folks seem normal to me here…

Malaga.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/29280961@N03/4923050021/

Bilbao.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/danimorell/2864853902/

Vitoria.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/gonzalo_arroyo/2764975109/

I must be lucky living out in the campo then.

Never hear much loud music being played from the locals driving around in their tractors. 😉

without sounding like a snob.

as a general rule if you come from a poorer background and come into money it tends to reflect in your background. Your role models tend less to be hard working/honest/respectable parents and more your celebraty chavs.

Or looking at it another way, many people who come from a poorer background tend to have more insecurities regarding their appearance, etc… Maybe they were looked down upon in the past. So now that they have it, or at least can pretend to have it, they want to flaunt it.

gross generalisations I know, but it seems to be a rule of thumb

freeenvio - 07 October 2010 05:43 PM

“Without sounding like a snob” Andrew, I think you would be hard pushed to sound more like one… ! On the other hand is there anything wrong with being a snob?

oh it would be easy to sound more like a snob by refering to culture, education, broken homes and a multitude of others factors.

and i try not to sound like a snob as snobs tend to suffer from many of the same afflictions as chav. They just grew up in different circles.

EDIT: I have know be who could be classified as both

freeenvio: crack me up… ground zero :D

Andrew Belles: I agree with your observations 😊