Como Se Dice "Cheeseburger and Fries"?

Well, I finally did it. I broke my big promise.

Let me start from the beginning. During geographical formation of the Earth the part of the ocean which we now call the Mediterranean Sea bit off a chunk of land at the bottom of a country we now call Spain. When people came around and decided they liked the idea of living near such a clear, blue sea they did so, and created a series of cities making up the famous Costa del Sol that line this Mediterranean beach, one of which we now call Málaga. As aesthetics were always important to the Europeans, most  homes were painted white and thatched with red brick roofs and telephone wires were constructed underground. Something that turned out to look a bit like this and this:

But if we look a little closer we can see all the dirtier details of urbanization and capitalism, poignantly displayed by the large Burger King nestled comfortably inward from the coast. A few people dot the edges of said Burger King, but if we look inside we see that hypocrisy stands self-consciously looking around the room like a shamed child with a secret. Actually, it would just be me standing in line awaiting my cheeseburger and fries. 

When I was 17 I made my first trip to Spain and as I sat at a café eating my chocolate croissant and drinking my Irish coffee I secretly reprimanded my fellow American travelers for going to Burger King for lunch instead. It was then that I made that promise to myself, that I would never eat at an American fast food chain while abroad; why do so when each country’s food is so important to their culture? Not to mention delicious. Temptation is everywhere, but I was successful then, and again while living in Argentina, and again in Ecuador. 

So why now? Why, one week into my four month semester abroad in southern Spain have I caved? Early onset of homesickness? My growing awareness that I like more about the USA than I had thought? Or was it simply that I was very hungry, didn’t have much money, and needed to grab some quick food to go? Likely, since I came up with them, a combination of the three, but the simple fact is my God it felt good to eat.

So there you have it. Two weeks in and 15 more to go, Burger King trip total: 1. 

Hop on board, if you will, as I navigate my way through southern Spain, it’s school system, and my own confused soul through the mainstream art of blogging. And I promise you now that each post will not be about broken promises. 

P.S. “Cheeseburger and Fries” in Spanish is still “Cheeseburger and Fries,” it just sounds pretty hilarious.