By 
The year 2022 marked my seventh year of living in Los Angeles. It seems like only yesterday when I was hopping onto an airplane with a bag full of dreams, wide-eyed and excited for what was about to come. I was fresh out of college and I had been dreaming of living in LA for almost a lifetime.
In December 2022, I went back to my hometown (Madrid) after not having been there for almost 2 years. While I was there, it seemed like LA was following me wherever I went.
I met up with one of my friends from college. Her boyfriend’s parents are from Galicia and they moved to LA right before the pandemic. While I was eating at an Italian restaurant on a gray rainy day in Madrid, the song “California Dreamin'” by The Mamas & the Papas was playing in the background. One day, I was at the grocery store perusing one of the refrigerators, and I came across a yogurt brand called Abbot Kinney. Besides these instances, I also happened to come across more people that were connected to LA…
One of them was my doorman, who was in LA when I arrived. He came back to Madrid in mid-December. His brother lives in Long Beach, and although he didn’t like the LA metro area that much, he loved Palos Verdes and San Pedro. He was surprised by the fact that I had been living there for 7 years and commented, “I’m sure you can tell the differences between here and LA.” Even in 2020 when I came to Spain, I didn’t notice as many differences as I did on this trip.
Some of the things I talk about in this post don’t apply to LA, but rather the US. Being a US citizen has allowed me to experience first hand the American work culture and the “live to work mentality”.
Produce
California’s agricultural production is number one in the country. However, accessing top-notch quality produce is only available either through very fancy grocery stores or through Farmer’s Markets. While in Spain, I went to a local mom-and-pop fruit shop to pick out some fruit for dessert after dinner. As I was checking out, the owner said, “Don’t you want to try the strawberries? The farmer brought them today and they’re really delicious.” Fast-forward to a few hours later and wow, those were some damn good strawberries.
In the US, since many vendors from Farmer’s Markets can’t have their produce carried at regular grocery stores, it makes sense for them to showcase their produce on Sundays. But I miss having readily available produce at greengrocers, which don’t really exist in the US. Those strawberries would have cost twice as much here in the US.
Distances and space
In the last months, before the daylight savings time change, I would go to Venice Beach three times a week, park my car near the boardwalk and walk to the Santa Monica Pier. There was nothing more delightful than walking while feeling the light ocean breeze and watching the sunset. In Madrid, when I walked the same distance from my house (1.7 miles), I found myself in Atocha – which is very close to the Madrid Centro limits.
This brings me to my next point, which is the space element. If you go to any casual restaurant in LA, you’ll most likely be seated right away. But in Madrid, because of the population density, the restaurants are a lot smaller and the demand is very high – which is why reservations are strongly encouraged.
When I went to Bucólico, a really cool coffee shop in Malasaña, it was reservation only. Some people that walked in were turned away because everything was booked, despite the cafe being half-empty. And this was for a bakery/cafe, not even for a proper restaurant!
I also went to a casual Italian pasta bar. The place only had 3 communal tables that were all fully occupied. I was able to squeeze in on the end, but when a group of 4 girls walked in, the host said the wait time would be about an hour.
Another thing that I always have a hard time getting used to is how tiny the restrooms are in Europe compared to the US. I felt claustrophobic because some of them were so tiny that the toilet narrowly missed the stall door. There wasn’t enough space to hang your coat and your bag, which is why I never took them in with me.
Everything opens late
During my first week, whenever I went out to dinner, I noticed that it was extremely odd to dine at 8 or 9 pm. I remember I called a restaurant for a pick-up order at 7pm, and they said the kitchen only opened at 8. Also, if I wanted to try a new restaurant for lunch, some of them didn’t open until 1pm, and the opening times of most coffee shops was 10am! I was completely taken aback by this on my first day, when I was jet lagged and eager to try a new coffee shop at 8 am.
Christmas spirit is in the air
In Spain, as well as many other European countries, you can feel the Christmas spirit on the streets. If you live in the city center of Madrid and walk to one of the main streets, you’ll be surrounded by Christmas lights. When you go to the grocery store on Christmas Eve, they are packed with people hustling to buy their last-minute food items.
In 2021, I spent Christmas day in my apartment in LA with my dad and my brother for the first time. When we went to the grocery store, it felt like any other day of the year. I live in West Hollywood, a neighborhood where you don’t get to see many families and elderly people at the grocery store, so it was very different from Spain’s demographic.
In LA, one of the only places where main streets are lit up is in Beverly Hills. With this being said, there are so many great Christmas events and residential areas that go all out with decorations… but it’s not in your face and you have to look for them.
People and conversations
One of the things I love about LA is that you’re in the comfort of your own car, in your own world, only revealing yourself in places that you want to be seen. It’s a very insular experience. In Madrid, or in any other European city, as you walk, you’re constantly exposed to conversations and a sea of people due to the urban density, for better or worse.
When Argentina won the World Cup in December 2022, I happened to be walking on Puerta del Sol, where I witnessed a bunch of Argentinians carrying flags instantly becoming friends. As I kept walking, I saw an elderly man leaving a theater yelling on the phone at the top of his lungs. I also had other experiences that included a nagging wife reprimanding her husband, and a moody teenager fighting with her mom.
When I came back to LA, back to my car, back to my inner world, I could feel that disconnection from strangers. If you’re easily overwhelmed by loud noises and other people’s drama, this is heaven.
Shoe shops
If you walk on Calle Fuencarral and its surrounding streets, you’ll come across many shoe shops that carry a variety of styles at great prices: boots, closed shoes, sandals, cowboy boots… Depending on the price range, most of these shoes are made of high-quality materials that are made in Spain, and occasionally from other countries like Portugal or Italy.
If you’re lucky, many of them will be on clearance sale. The shoe craze also extends to malls like Plaza Norte or Xanadú. When I went to these two malls, it was astounding to see the amount of shoe shops. It was a shoe lover’s paradise!
In January I went to the Glendale Galleria, and it was a stark contrast from the malls in Spain. There were only a handful of shoe shops like Aldo, and the shoe selection was mostly heels and a few boots, which were exorbitantly expensive. You may resort to outlets like Nordstrom Rack, but overall, it’s not the same because they’re designer brands.
You will not find the following three types of stores in the US:
Tiendas de ultramarinos
‘Tiendas de Ultramarinos’ are shops that carry non-perishable food like tinned fish (conservas), deli meats, cheeses and cereals. You will find one in every neighborhood, and they’re the equivalent of mini marts in the US.
Herbal apothecary stores (Herbolarios)
When I found Wild Terra, one of the very few herbal apothecary stores in LA, I thought I had struck gold. The truth is that those types of stores abound in Madrid and you can find items that range from herbal teas to holistic herbal medicines.
Farmacias
Employees at European pharmacies (Farmacias) wear white coats and must hold a Pharmaceutical degree. When you walk in, you get a personalized experience that drastically varies from walking into a CVS or a Rite Aid. In these American drugstores, you’re left to your own devices. If you have a question about a certain product, you have to flag down the pharmacist, who’s busy packing the prescription meds in the back. But don’t expect them to hand you the product you’re looking for unless it’s a prescription.
This was a bit shocking for me because when I walked into a Farmacia in Spain, I was instantly asked what I needed help with. And if I said I was just browsing, some of the pharmacists gave me a weird stare and watched me the whole time.
Healthcare in the US
I think we all can agree on the fact that the US healthcare system leaves a lot to be desired.
In May 2022, I fractured my humerus roller skating. It’s now fully healed.
Thankfully, I didn’t need immediate emergency assistance so my friend took me to the nearest ER that was in my insurance network.
After waiting for 4 hours, I got 2 X-rays done. The doctor came out and confirmed that I had a fracture and gave me a makeshift arm sling because they were out of the regular ones. I didn’t need surgery, just rehab once the bone started to heal on its own.
About two weeks later, I got a bill in the mail for almost $2,000, which included the adjustment from my insurance. I almost had a heart attack, but as I did my research on the Internet, I learned about all the loopholes available, so I disputed it. In the itemized bill, it showed that they charged $400 for that stupid arm sling! Lesson learned, never pay a medical bill right away!
After five months, I got a letter in the mail…the final price? $30! Yes, the American healthcare system is a joke.
This was my first time going to the ER (and hopefully the last) since I moved to LA. The SIPP survey said that people in the United States have collectively at least $195 billion in medical debt. If you don’t pay it, you won’t go to jail, but the bill will be on your credit for 7 years.
This was an eye-opening experience. When non-Americans say: “Don’t you have to pay $1,000 to go to the ER in the US?” Well… something along those lines. This also greatly depends on what type of insurance you have and your income.
In Spain, you will not get a surprise medical bill like the one I got in the mail. Healthcare is a basic human right and everyone is fully covered.
Grocery stores
If you walk into any grocery store in Spain, you’ll notice that the fish and the meat sections are bigger than in US grocery stores.
Every time I go to Whole Foods, my experience pales in comparison to a Spanish grocery store. The fish available are salmon, tuna, sea bass and shrimp, and the display section is a whole lot smaller. In the US, most fish are already cut in filets. In Spain, some of them are, but you also can pick the fish you want off of the ice and the fishmonger will clean and slice it for you according to your preference.
In addition, the fish selection is much wider: European bass, turbot, hake, trout, sardines and many varieties of shellfish… the display practically overflows with fish. There is a fish market in Glendale called Fish King that is very similar to a European fishmonger, but you have to drive to a different neighborhood.
The fish section in El Corte Ingles, which is an affordable high-end grocery store, is a fish lover’s paradise. If you love smoked salmon, you’ll find smoked Norwegian salmon from different vendors, as well as a stand that cuts it right in front of you. There’s also an entire aisle dedicated to tinned fish (conservas), which I made sure to buy in bulk to bring home to LA. You’ll also find ‘Gula del Norte’,which is a staple in Spain. Gulas are baby eels, sometimes called surimi in English and are usually sauteed with garlic.
Below are two pictures of the fish counter in El Corte Ingles.
Work-life balance
I moved to LA to work, but I also moved to enjoy the city as much as I could. After all, I don’t know where life will take me. I love LA, but is there any guarantee that I’ll be here for the rest of my life? Only God knows.
It’s true that many US companies have a very generous vacation policy and they value their employees’ happiness. The standard is 10 paid days, but this varies greatly depending on the company, the field and the type of job: fully remote, hybrid, temp, part-time.
Last year I worked at a company where we had to work the day after Thanksgiving, as well as a few other national holidays. This is a very extreme case, but working there gave me a peek into the “live to work” concept.
At this company, one of the employees said: “Ask me when was the last time I had a vacation, or a Black Friday off”. In one instance, they were talking about how good the European healthcare and vacation policy was. “They have 3 weeks of vacation!!” I heard once.
I chimed in and said something about the US economy being very strong. “Yes, but don’t you want to have happy employees?” one of them insisted. One morning, a different coworker said, shrugging his shoulders, “I felt like I was just here. Americans, we live to work!”
Oftentimes, another person would complain, “Our motto here is to work harder, not smarter”, followed by an eye roll. I didn’t leave the company solely because of that, but it gave me a deeper understanding of American work culture. Also, many people that complain all the time are stuck at the same job for years.
No tipping culture
While I was in Spain, I went to many trendy artisanal coffee shops. Coming from LA, it was incredibly refreshing not having the cashier spin their iPad around, followed by “It’s going to ask you a few questions.” In Spain, all businesses pulled out an old-school dataphone and scanned my card. No Square, which is the payment app most independent businesses use in the US. If I had some change, sometimes I left some, but I loved not having that added pressure.
When I went to get a massage at one of the coolest spas in Madrid, I had to say that I wanted to tip my masseuse because the last time I was there, I completely forgot and they didn’t even suggest it. The front-desk girl was surprised by this and said that if I really liked it, it would be greatly appreciated if I left a review on the website. I came back for a facial, but this time I didn’t bring any cash and they didn’t accept tips on the card. I apologized profusely. She said “Don’t worry, no one does it”. I told her about tipping culture in the US, and she immediately told me about a trip she took to NY with her husband, who worked at the ballet. She didn’t speak English and she was appalled when she wanted her change back and the cab driver kept saying to her “Tip, tip.”
I have no issue tipping at a sit-down restaurant or when someone is actively providing me a service like an Uber driver, a nail esthetician, a masseuse or a car wash attendant. However, most of us can agree that tipping in the US has gotten way out of hand in the last few years. If you google “Tipping out of control” you’ll see what I mean.
Paying for water at restaurants
Tips at sit-down restaurants in Spain are not required, but there are other downsides, like paying for water or bread. The first time I went to a fancy sit-down restaurant in Spain, I requested water and I was expecting a big jug of water, but instead they brought out bottled water that you had to pay for. I completely forgot about this. When I asked for tap water at a different restaurant, the waitress gave me a weird look as it’s not a common request and people always drink bottled water.
In many sit-down restaurants in LA, when you say water, they’ll ask: tap, sparkling or still.
Charging for bread is also a common practice that many tourists are unaware of. I was having a meal at another restaurant in Madrid and the waiter offered me bread as he walked by. I asked whether or not it was free and he said no.
Before this post went live, I came across a new regulation which will take hold in 2023: Bars and restaurants must serve tap water for free at the customer’s request.
Movie theaters
I’m very thankful for having grown up watching Hollywood movies in majestic theaters on Calle Fuencarral or Gran Vía and Callao. Each theater had its own distinct character and style. Even when I was 14, I remember paying attention to the details — very different from going to an AMC theater in the States, devoid of architectural history.
Vintage shop fronts
Growing up in Spain, I never paid much attention to this. During this trip, I appreciated them a lot more. In LA, this would be considered special, but in Spain these types of shops are ubiquitous and have many decades or even a century of history.
Beggars, petty thieves and pickpockets
It’s true that Spain and Europe don’t have the overwhelming homeless problem there is in big US cities, but there are other things you need to be aware of, like pickpockets, petty thieves and beggars
While I was eating outdoors, a woman approached me to sell me jewelry. I politely declined, then she proceeded to ask me for a euro. “Not even for the kid?” she asked, as she showed me her kid strapped to her back. Some waiters looked, but they carried on with their conversation. I also saw the same middle-aged gypsy woman begging near my home every day.
This is obviously drastically different from homelessness in LA, where hard drugs like meth are rampant. It was nice walking without having to change sidewalks in order to avoid passing an erratic and mentally unstable person.
No grocery baggers
There are no grocery baggers in Spain, nor do the cashiers do it. I didn’t remember this and was a little bit taken aback when a girl finished scanning my items and then proceeded to clock out for her lunch without looking back.
There is also no banter. In many grocery stores, like Trader Joe’s or Ralph’s, the employees will chat with you. ‘How’s your day been? Oh wow, this looks really good… dinner tonight?’ If you talked to a cashier like this in Spain, they would look at you like you were crazy. I was shocked by this when I first moved to LA because I had never experienced a cashier asking me about my day. As awkward as this was in the beginning, this allowed me to get better at small talk and interacting with strangers, which I later applied to this blog.
Customer service
Customer service in beauty shops in LA is unparalleled. For example, if you walk into a Sephora, they’ll greet you from across the room or have someone designated at the door greeting people. When I went to Sephora or another beauty store in Spain, it was a very different experience, which I’ll share in another post.
Parking and traffic congestion
If you think parking in LA is bad, try finding a parking spot in the city center of Madrid.
One day, I went to a really cool restaurant with my dad, which he loved. When I asked him if he would go there regularly in the future, he said that not really because finding parking in that specific area of Madrid was an impossible task. One of my friends who now lives in the outskirts of Madrid, said she didn’t like going to the city center because the traffic was crazy. She also mentioned that there had been a population spike in Madrid, which I definitely noticed.
Driving
While I was in Spain, I borrowed my dad’s car and went on a roadtrip to Toledo. I had such a hard time following the directions! I may be exaggerating, but driving on the M30 highway was worse than driving on the 405 and the 110. In LA, you have big green signs with white fonts with names that let you know about the next exit or interchange.
In Spain, the signs are white with cryptic number-coded and letter-coded exits like A6, A7, and the font is a lot smaller. I got lost like 3 times… and if you miss an exit, you have to make a U-turn in the roundabouts. The lanes are narrower and you have to merge faster.
While I was in Madrid, what else did I miss about LA?
Besides driving, the openness of the city, having a panoramic view of the sky and the ever-present hills. The à la carte experiences that you can have that differ so much from one another, like going to the beach in Venice, experiencing a magical sunset from the Griffith Observatory, or driving along the coastal bluffs of Palos Verdes.
