Agua

My close friends and family know about my addiction. To water. I drink on average a gallon of water a day. It semi drives my mom crazy because we are constantly shuttling back and forth to gristedes to satisfy my cravings, but I think there are worse addictions out there. To me water is a universal cure-all liquid. You know how the father in My Big Fat Greek Wedding thinks windex can cure/fix anything? Well that is how I feel about water. Drinking it, swimming in it, splashing it around, freezing it, boiling it, it all works. And don't even get me started on carbonated water. When people ask me why my skin is so unbelievable soft, my response is always that I drink a lot of water. Hungry but dinner isn’t for an hour? Drink water. On a diet? Drink water. Feeling hungover? Go jump in a pool or dunk your head in a bucket of ice. Hair greasy and not feeling so hot? Take a shower. Sore throat? Hot water with lemon.

Anywho I generally admire the customs, traditions, culture and idiosyncrasies of the Spanish. For example, the siesta, sangria, staying out late, emphasis on the family, outdoor cafes and how they dress (sweatpants do not exist, everyone always looks put together). However there is one MAJOR problem I have come across the past two days I have been here and that is the lack of importance placed on water. In the mornings when we go to the hotel lobby for breakfast they always have tons of organge juice and coffee on display but never water! When they finally do put water out there is practically a stampede to get to it first. I mean I know everyone here drinks tons of coffee and always has vino or cerveza with dinner, but I just don’t understand why they don’t love water! Why aren't the Spanish women guzzling water to stay thin? Also when I have gone to buy water here in Sevilla I have paid 1,30 euro for barely a liter of water! At home I can get a gallon of water for less than $2.00. However I did find a little bodega near the university today which was only ,80 euro for a big water. I thought she said 8 euros because I did not think there was anyway they would only charge ,80 euro cents for water so I tried to give her 8 and she laughed at me. This is how desperate I was, I was going to pay around $13.00 for a big water. The brand of water I have been drinking is "Bezoya" the slogan is "purifica tu organismo desde el interior" (me gusta). Anyway the key is definitely to make sure I always have a water bottle in my bag and to buy my water at a little bodega instead of somewhere in the tourist area or Corte Ingles.