Berkley Center

“Ay extranjera, ¿qué piensas de la feria?” ("Ah foreigner, what do you think of feria?"), a smartly dressed woman standing next to camera crew called out to me. While during my time in Spain I’ve become accustomed to being recognized as an extranjera for my height and light hair, I was not expecting to be as conspicuous in the madness of Feria, Sevilla’s annual spring fair.

My host sisters and I laughed as the local Sevilla newscaster pursued me, pointing a microphone at me as her cameraman trailed behind her.

I turned to my host sisters hoping to make a quick escape, but I was caught. Even with—or likely because of—a giant rose on top of my head, my bright red, blue polka dotted Flamenco dress, and the entire city of Sevilla gathered in one hectic fairground, I was clearly una chica Americana and Sevilla’s channel 1 wanted to know what I thought of Feria.

In the many times I have been presumed American in my four months in Spain, I have encountered a wide range of attitudes towards the United States, its government, economy, foreign policy and other pertinent issues filling the front page of El País. And yet, in my brief conversation with the newswoman, I was struck by another sentiment altogether unrelated to any opinion she might have had of America: her pride in this celebration of Andalucía and her desire to show off the unique, joyful celebration that is Feria. While this conversation was hardly the first time I had noticed the pride Sevillianas take in their rich culture, this gathering seemed to embody the spirit and resilience of the city and its people in a new way. Economic crisis aside, Feria brought everyone together and that was more than enough reason to celebrate.

Amidst this incredible celebration, it became evident to me just how much emphasis Andalucian or Spanish culture puts on family, friends, and spending time together. When talking to my Spanish language partner about how the economic crisis had manifested in Sevilla and the problem of unemployment he explained: “Don’t get me wrong, finding a job is nearly impossible these days, especially for people our age, but I think the real difference lies in that we work to live, we don’t live to work.”

Reflecting on my language partner’s comment, I have found his observation pertinent far beyond Feria. From the abundance of people out on the street grabbing a cervecita ;(beer) and tapas with friends to the large family gatherings I have taken part in with my host family, even tough economic times have not overshadowed the importance of spending time together with family and friends. As my parents remarked when they visited Sevilla, from the amount of people walking around shops and passing through bars, you would never guess that Andalucia suffers the greatest unemployment in Spain.

As unemployment and the European debt crisis continue to shape Spain’s future, it seems inevitable that change is on the horizon, particularly for the more traditional region of Andalucia. In my time in Spain, I have encountered many people with a myriad of opinions on the current challenges being faced; but what better way to reflect on these issues and think about the future of cities like Sevilla than with a cerveza and tapas with good friends.