The differences....

EEKAYA!!!! No... not some random chant.... it is the inevitable.... the ''ubiquitous'' Ikea. (ee – kay – ah in spanish) I have trouble getting around IKEA in English... so you can imagine the labrynthic nightmare I had in Spanish Ikea BUT I did manage to find the kitchen section after 20 minutes of going round in circles. I don't usually like to ask for directions when I go to a new place. I feel as if it exposes me as being ''foreign.'' I like to blend, to feel as if I have become a part of the society which in a sense I have by virtue of being there. (also handy for warding off those potential pick pockets) So, I like to look like I know what I am doing and know where I am going (even though I am secretly screaming and panicking inside and when this becomes intolerable, then I'll ask)
So differences I have noticed so far.
1)Lunch here is the main meal. Usually everyone reveals a large, cook-book looking, colourful meal (some with names I can barely pronounce correctly) while I munch on a ham and cheese sandwich. I have tried though to shift my eating habits so I have heavier lunches and lighter dinners, for the positive health benefits. I have failed at this attempt so far as I stay up into the late hours and end up eating heavier meals just before I go to bed. I'll keep trying.
2)The lack of security here drives me a little insane. I have now realised how ''psychologically unnerving '' it is not have something as simple as a lock on a bedroom door. Only the front door and back door have locks which, in my opinion, is futile as all the windows are left wide open during the day and at night the back door is left open too. Anyone could technically walk in and walk out at any time and do as they please. I guess the set back though would be that they would have to be spider man as I live on the second floor of the building. In any case, I am so accustomed to having doors locked, windows closed, valuables placed in secure areas that this was and still is a little disconcerting. When I asked a friend about the possibility of having a stranger entering the house, she shrugged and said ''it doesnt happen often, as long as you live on a busy street.. you're fine'' Wow that simple huh? It will take a bit of time for me to get used to that.
3)You say hello.. or rather hola... to almost everyone you meet. People in the corridor, people by the elevator.. sometimes even passers by.
4)Maniacal motorcyclists! There are motorcycles everywhere and it doesn't matter if the pedestrian signal says go.. You may still get run over. That is self explanatory.