Post: #176

(08-13-2016 02:18 AM)Vronski Wrote:  

(08-12-2016 06:51 PM)Heart Break Kid Wrote:  

(08-12-2016 06:26 PM)Going strong Wrote:  

(08-12-2016 03:13 PM)Baldrich Wrote:  Sure, Catalunya and Southern France have very good cuisines - did I ever DENY that? I said I DON'T LIVE TO EAT. Many other sources point to Chinese and Indian food as equally good if not better.

"Chinese and Indian food equally good if not better", compared with French food? Seriously? We have in France hundreds of different kinds of sauces, wines and cheeses, hundreds of original, specific, tasty and subtle meals (from fondues or coquilles saint-jacques to parmentier , truffes or andouillettes, etc etc etc, take your pick)... Can any other country's foods compete, in sheer terms of diversity and excellence?

That's a really Eurocentric view though, believe it or not, in most places of the world, European food is stereotyped to be rather bland and spiceless.

I have no opinion on French food though, haven't had enough of it to say. But I don't really get how European food is inherently superior to Asian food, I mean most people literally prefer Asian food to European food....

Going Strong is right of course.

No other country in the world can compete with France for diversity of regional cuisines and ingredients excellence. Nord Pas-de-Calais, Burgundy, Alsace, Loire Valley, Lyon-Rhône-Alpes, Poitou-Charentes(Cognac), Quercy, Périgord, Basque country, Bordeaux, Normandy, Picardy, Aveyron, Champagne, Provence, Corsica, Lorraine, ect ect ect (not even talking about our oversea departments (Cayenne, Guadeloupe and Martinique, Réunion, ect) ......pick just one region and I can find you dozens of succulent (and specific) regional specialities. Oh and you can add to those specialities about 500 different types of cheese, and countless types of wines of course (about twenty wine regions - incl Bordeaux and Burgundy, the most prestigious wines in the world- each regions with dozens of "terroirs").

Bon appetit. Don't forget to finish your meal with a good Cognac or Armagnac.

Edit: There is a reason why the whole world use the interjection "Bon Appetit" .....simply because France has always been (and still is) the country of culinary pleasures.

It's just a matter of taste. I have never found anything particularly special about French cuisine, I lived in Paris for a time, eating both at great restaurants and home made meals, in addition to my grandmother being a professional chef trained in France. Some great dishes, but nothing I couldn't live without.

I personally have enjoyed food in Bangkok and Saigon more, and I'd rather spend a year eating my way around Mexico than France.

Post: #177

(08-12-2016 06:26 PM)Going strong Wrote:  

(08-12-2016 03:13 PM)Baldrich Wrote:  Sure, Catalunya and Southern France have very good cuisines - did I ever DENY that? I said I DON'T LIVE TO EAT. Many other sources point to Chinese and Indian food as equally good if not better.

"Chinese and Indian food equally good if not better", compared with French food? Seriously? We have in France hundreds of different kinds of sauces, wines and cheeses, hundreds of original, specific, tasty and subtle meals (from fondues or coquilles saint-jacques to parmentier , truffes or andouillettes, etc etc etc, take your pick)... Can any other country's foods compete, in sheer terms of diversity and excellence?

I grew up with and have eaten a shitload of asian food around the world and am fairly knowledgeable about it.

I'm going to have to agree here though.

France is most definitely a world leader in food beyond any culture in the world.

A lot of the well known cooking techniques, sauce, and other misc culinary knowledge etc...all came from France.

It's been a single minded autistic like obssession with cuisine over French history.

I'm of the opinion if you can learn one professional version of culinary cooking: French you can easily transition to any other culture.

Post: #178

What is it with anglophones and cheese hating?is it due to the historical enmity between the French and the English that spilled unto american pop culture?

Post: #179

I was very pleased by Baldrichs posts here.

The hype posts here are very tiring and even though people get obviously upset when other people bash their homes it is sometimes needed.

The direction this post has taken though is really disappointing. I felt like I really got "Spain uncut" here. I am in a similar situation to Baldrichs here in Germany and because of this I am hesitant to make a "Germany uncut" post.

Post: #180

(08-13-2016 03:30 AM)kirdiesel Wrote:  I was very pleased by Baldrichs posts here.

The hype posts here are very tiring and even though people get obviously upset when other people bash their homes it is sometimes needed.

The direction this post has taken though is really disappointing. I felt like I really got "Spain uncut" here. I am in a similar situation to Baldrichs here in Germany and because of this I am hesitant to make a "Germany uncut" post.

I think you should make the post, myself and many other people would be interested in reading it. There were just a couple dudes that couldn't handle their paradise being spoken about in a real way, don't worry about that.

Post: #181

(08-13-2016 03:10 AM)El Chinito loco Wrote:  France is most definitely a world leader in food beyond any culture in the world.

Cuisine from South West is my personal favorite - not very sophisticated, but invariably good (traditional dishes include duck breast, gizzards, goose confit, rack of lamb, foie gras, cassoulet, ect ect) ..... here is a full South Western dinner (ok, it misses Cabecou cheese from Rocamadour!) - simple dishes, but very good: Salade Landaise (mixed salad with duck foie gras, duck breast and gizzards) and Piperade Béarnaise, Toulouse sausage with Sarladaise potatoes (garlic and goose fat) and Basque cake - meal accompanied by full-bodied Cahors wine and of course, to finish with style, Armagnac :

Post: #182

(08-13-2016 04:00 AM)Vronski Wrote:  

(08-13-2016 03:10 AM)El Chinito loco Wrote:  France is most definitely a world leader in food beyond any culture in the world.

Cuisine from South West is my personal favorite - not very sophisticated, but invariably good (traditional dishes include duck breast, gizzards, goose confit, rack of lamb, foie gras, cassoulet, ect ect) ..... here is a full South Western dinner (ok, it misses Cabecou cheese from Rocamadour!) - simple dishes, but very good: Salade Landaise (mixed salad with duck foie gras, duck breast and gizzards) and Piperade Béarnaise, Toulouse sausage with Sarladaise potatoes (garlic and goose fat) and Basque cake - meal accompanied by full-bodied Cahors wine and of course, to finish with style, Armagnac :

Vronski, seems amazingly tasty...but this one is hard to beat, Portuguese "Cataplana" of seafood.

   

   

   

Post: #183

^^^^^^^

Pretty sure it is incredibly tasty, and definitely more healthy than French South-West cuisine !!!

Looks a bit like the Brasilian moqueca (from Bahia and Espírito Santo) .... you add coconut milk in the dish ?

Edit: I've never been a fan of Spanish food (too greasy), but in Portugal, you have IMO a healthier food and better dishes -and by the way if I thought about retiring somewhere in South Europe one day, will be in Portugal, definitely not in Spain. Portugese people are, from my experience, very welcoming and generous.

Edit bis : We should have a "Gourmet Thread"

Post: #184

(08-13-2016 11:26 AM)Vronski Wrote:  ^^^^^^^

Pretty sure it is incredibly tasty !!!

Looks a bit like the Brasilian moqueca (from Bahia and Espírito Santo) .... you add coconut milk in the dish ?

Edit: I've never been a fan of Spanish food (too greasy), but in Portugal, you have IMO a healthier food and better dishes.

No coconut milk, it is not used in Portuguese cuisine, just olive oil and white wine, and of course the water that is released from the vegetables and the seafood during the cooking along with the spices, that make the sauce.

But the real secret is the oval pan made in copper that closes completely the stew and makes for a uniform cooking.

Yes, definitely we have better food than in Spain, no Paella can come close to the heels of a Cataplana.

Post: #185

I'm a Spaniard myself, so I feel like I should probably chime in on this one.

First of all, I think although the OP comes accross as bitter and jaded from his time in Spain, there's definitely a lot of truth in what he writes. Most Spaniards do have a group-think mentality and they are usually not as ambitious or career-driven as other Europeans. To illustrate this point, one of my childhood friends, a top tennis player at the time, rejected a full scholarship to study in a New York university, just to stay close to his girlfriend, family and friends. In addition, service is usually very bad and general politness and manners are not something you should expect.

The problem with discussing these things is that most spanish people don't even notice them. I actually didn't start realizing this stuff until I moved abroad.

I think however that Bladrich's main problems stem from not having met enough like minded people and perhaps having wrong expectations of the country. This actually reminds me a lot of my attitude towards the UK, where out of bad luck and bad choices on my part, I rarely managed to really "click" with locals.

In terms of your career, it's obvious that there's better places than Spain. Still, I'm a bit surprised and think maybe you were just unlucky as I personally know plenty of young, ambitious dudes from my country (perhaps you should reflect on how you've been networking all this time or how you've tried to meet Spaniards that are less "average").

At the end of the day, Spain is a relatively big country and despite most people being mediocre, unambitious and tied to their family, hometown and friends, you can still meet people of all walks of life.

Now, about the women... Spanish girls are NO WAY NEAR as feminists as anglo girls. I'm 100% certain of this. The only girls who regularly post feminst stuff on my fb are always from the UK. In addition, anglo girls are a lot more vocal about their views, as they are regularly fed feminist BS by their universities, the media etc. It is true that this is unfortunately changing and Baldrich is right to point out that Spaniards are importing the WORST stuff of modern American culture. Slowly but gradually, I'm starting to notice more SJW girls in Spain but things are way better than in England for example. In terms of their looks, perhaps I'm biased as I haven't travelled that much around Spain myself, but Valencia has a decent supply of hot local girls and I disagree with those saying they have unpleasant, rude, manly mannerisms. It's also definitely possible to meet "traditional" girls. And by traditional I mean that they are relationship oriented, as it is the case of many Spaniards.

In terms of gaming them, it's usually better to be very indirect and try to act more "sociable" and friendly as opposed to flirting with them just straight away. It's also a lot better to meet them through social circle but I do agree that they're generally quite complicated. The cool thing about Spain however, is that even in 3rd tier cities, you can find girls from just about ANYWHERE in the world. Colombians, Romanians, Russians, Poles, Dutch, Germans, Belgians, English, Irish, Americans... There is a massive influx of Erasmus students, girls doing a gap year or working as au pairs or just visiting for a couple of weeks. In Spain you can really carve out a niche in case local girls are not really your thing. One of the best Spanish players I know, regularly gets laid with latinas and Romanians for example.

In fact, you can easily spend years in Spain meeting quality girls from anywhere but Spain and there's particularly a lot of latin clubs in all major cities where latinas are A LOT friendlier than Spanish (Spaniard) girls.

As for the culture, I think Spain might not be a place to relocate permanently unless you really get to meet people who are "outliers", who you can relate to. Personally, I love going back to my home town and hanging out with my childhood friends. We all go way back and have similar mindsets, we are all very politically incorrect, but after a while, I do feel an urge to leave and experience new things.

It is true that Spain has fewer "clubs" where people meet to share an interest, like a reading club as you mention. I think this is partly because of the University system in Spain, where unlike in other countries, you are not really encouraged to pursue other stuff outside your studies. This being said, there's intellectuals in all major cities and again, I think you must have been doing something wrong in terms of trying to meet these people and connect with them. Even then, there's plenty of foreigners in Spain, so you could have always hanged out with more cultured guys from other countries.

Politically, yeah, there's little hope and the fact that the younger generations voted en masse for Podemos (a radical left-wing party ) makes me feel even more hopeless. There's also not a debate culture like in the UK but at least universities are not SJW grounds and masculinity is not attacked as often.

What you mention about our perception of Americans is 100 % true. The redneck stereotype is quite wide spread and in my experience, a lot of Spaniards seem to forget how huge and varied the US really is. Basically, I'd say that in the Anglosphere, it seems that you get a lot of exceptional people on both sides (talented, intelligent, hardworking etc vs stupid, backwards...) whereas in Spain people are a lot more "average" and have a herd mentality.

(08-12-2016 07:34 AM)Lime Wrote:  The best of a culture is usually the worst as well.

Good points about Spain (inexhaustive):

-Very open towards foreigners in nightlife, very friendly nightlife in general.
-Family oriented.
-Proud of their country.
-Not bashing their own culture.
-Cannabis smoking is tolerated, mostly.
-Cheap living.
-Good climate.
-Siesta.

This is absolutely not true. All left-leaning Spaniards regularly bash their own culture and history and even a lot of right-wing moderates do so too. There's no nationalism like in Poland for example and you are usually labelled a "facha" for displaying the national flag. Everyone loves complaining about our country but no one actually does anything. Only the left is a bit more active in this sense, but they're essentially in favour of establishing a country of civil-servants where everyone "works" for the government, which would only make people more lazy and turn Spain into Venezuela.

Post: #186

(08-13-2016 11:20 AM)Rocha Wrote:  Vronski, seems amazingly tasty...but this one is hard to beat, Portuguese "Cataplana" of seafood.

That looks delicious. It's amusing how close that looks to Seafood Tom Yum though. I imagine it tastes very different but just from looks alone it's very similar.

Post: #187

(08-13-2016 04:00 AM)Vronski Wrote:  

(08-13-2016 03:10 AM)El Chinito loco Wrote:  France is most definitely a world leader in food beyond any culture in the world.

Cuisine from South West is my personal favorite - not very sophisticated, but invariably good (traditional dishes include duck breast, gizzards, goose confit, rack of lamb, foie gras, cassoulet, ect ect) ..... here is a full South Western dinner (ok, it misses Cabecou cheese from Rocamadour!) - simple dishes, but very good: Salade Landaise (mixed salad with duck foie gras, duck breast and gizzards) and Piperade Béarnaise, Toulouse sausage with Sarladaise potatoes (garlic and goose fat) and Basque cake - meal accompanied by full-bodied Cahors wine and of course, to finish with style, Armagnac :

I'm impressed..I really want to try the South-west cuisine one day...I'm more familiar eith Lyon snd Burgundy..and Flanders cuisine of course.

Post: #188

(08-13-2016 12:37 PM)El Chinito loco Wrote:  That looks delicious. It's amusing how close that looks to Seafood Tom Yum though. I imagine it tastes very different but just from looks alone it's very similar.

Tom Yum Gun tastes bit different I guess (never tried Cataplana), as Moqueca in Brasil, with bit of coconut milk, and spices are different - and no white wine.

Ok, seafood plate, plus Chiang Mai Sausages and Tom Yum (and of course Singha Beer) at Baan Khanitha in Bangkok. We should definitely have a Gourmet Thread !

Post: #189

(08-13-2016 12:44 PM)MrRoundtree Wrote:  and Flanders cuisine of course.

I'm interested in Flanders cuisine, unfortunatly I only know the "Moules-Frites" - which is admittedly quite stupid and only shows a huge lack of cultural awareness about Nord Pas de Calais and Belgium.

Post: #190

I'm surprised the negativity about Spanish women, my experience is limited to Erasmus and I find spanish women on average attractive, maybe not stunning so often, but feminine and sexy with nice tan skin and big brown eyes. They also always seemed quite open and sexually open, not conservative at all.

Post: #191

(08-12-2016 03:04 AM)atlant Wrote:  

Quote:But even if I do that, many people still will consider you "the Americano".

Welcome to every fucking country in the world outside the USA.

Southern Europeans being family oriented and having rigid social structures is hardly news. Getting friends and girls is tough but once you do, they tend to be fiercely loyal.

Don't work a Spanish job and Spain is fantastic. Ideal for anyone who is location independent.

Do you have experience living location independent in Spain? Running online business? I know a few in Spain doing so, what's your experience.

Post: #192

(08-13-2016 03:53 PM)nomadbrah Wrote:  I'm surprised the negativity about Spanish women, my experience is limited to Erasmus and I find spanish women on average attractive, maybe not stunning so often, but feminine and sexy with nice tan skin and big brown eyes. They also always seemed quite open and sexually open, not conservative at all.

I second this, similar to my experience. Spain used to be my favorite playground before I stepped foot in Eastern Europe. Though in the last years my success rate with them has faded a bit, but I attribute it more to me being older and consequently lost access to the early to mid 20's chicas, age gaps is not a common thing over there, never attributed it to a fast changing mentality or rise of feminism, but it can be possible that things are changing (almost like everywhere), and as Gopnik confirms.
But still, once in a while I manage to snatch a nice MILF, and Spanish MILFS are top of the MILF chain ))). Those ladies sure know how to take care of themselves,
must be of the Mercadona cosmetics )))

Post: #193

(08-13-2016 11:58 AM)Gopnik Wrote:  I think however that Bladrich's main problems stem from not having met enough like minded people and perhaps having wrong expectations of the country. This actually reminds me a lot of my attitude towards the UK, where out of bad luck and bad choices on my part, I rarely managed to really "click" with locals.

In terms of your career, it's obvious that there's better places than Spain. Still, I'm a bit surprised and think maybe you were just unlucky as I personally know plenty of young, ambitious dudes from my country (perhaps you should reflect on how you've been networking all this time or how you've tried to meet Spaniards that are less "average").

At the end of the day, Spain is a relatively big country and despite most people being mediocre, unambitious and tied to their family, hometown and friends, you can still meet people of all walks of life.

I'm glad OP started this thread because it made me think about my experiences living in Brazil for a little less than a year...obviously not to the extent of OP in Spain.

I think all facets of his life (especially social) ended up being tied down to the business he started from what I presume was an English teaching institution where he employed teachers & other staff members to make his operation flow effectively. Being able to consistently go out of his way to develop connections with the many influences outside of his immediate surroundings likely proved to be a difficult task.

In another thread, I argued:
A) People in the Americas (Ranging all the way south of Argentina upwards to Canada) & the Anglosphere tend to gravitate towards "social skills" & a certain type of superficiality in conversation (not so much material wealth) that can strike the emotional chords of others.

whereas

B) It's ok to be socially awkward in most parts of Europe & Asia as overall intellectual abilities are valued more than the "right type" of charisma in social settings.

With regards to Spain, I'm going to say what they value most in their social preferences falls more in line with category A; I'd even argue that Portuguese people belong in category B based on the abundance of people I've met from the Iberian Peninsula. It's not to say I haven't met Spaniards who gravitate towards the tendencies of category B but the majority fell within category A bar none.

When you combine the attributes of those category A type tendencies with the overly co-dependent herd like mentality that many Spaniards have, it gets to be annoying....especially moreso when you witness it on an everyday basis.

A good example of this would be going to a bar on a Friday night in Hong Kong that is frequented with British/Aussie ex-pats & hearing these groups exchange timely jokes with the majority of the conversation being carried out in slang expressions as they get off on this uncontrollable laughter. These conversations seem to be about nothing but the beers keep flowing as do the shenanigans with hours ticking by. You'll witness the same thing at hostels with native English speakers talking about nothing in groups for hours opposed to sightseeing alone & interacting with locals.

Now I want you to picture these tendencies except this time with Spaniards...and this is essentially how they carry out many of their social interactions...and not just Spaniards...but with basically all native Spanish speakers as well. Category A.

Post: #194

(08-13-2016 03:30 AM)kirdiesel Wrote:  I was very pleased by Baldrichs posts here.

The hype posts here are very tiring and even though people get obviously upset when other people bash their homes it is sometimes needed.

The direction this post has taken though is really disappointing. I felt like I really got "Spain uncut" here. I am in a similar situation to Baldrichs here in Germany and because of this I am hesitant to make a "Germany uncut" post.

Would love to see this too. I've been growing up in a small village with 700 habitants and moved then to several of the bigger cities. The differences are huge and they became even more visible to me after spending some time in Asia. I would like to hear a critical voice, which usually is very rare.

Post: #195

None of the dishes posted in this thread will ever compete with the GOAT cuisine. Seriously, how can you look at dishes like these and not fall in love?







If any of you guys are planning to try proper fish and chips when you come to the UK, make sure you try some of the local accompaniments. Make sure you ask for the local 'chippy', not 'fish and chip shop' too.

If you're up North, you will see lots of people have gravy or curry sauce with their meal, like so:



In the Midlands, it's common to have mushy peas (like in the first photo in this post), or baked beans with it, although this is quite common everywhere.

And some savages have vinegar with their fish and chips, but quite rightly they are shunned by normal members of society.

Sorry if there are any bits that don't make sense, I'm a bit pissed.

Post: #196

I think Brits might be the only people where a sizeable amount of their population acknowledges how weak their cuisine is.

Post: #197

This thread was a great read, OP's description of Spain reminded me of Italy. Especially regarding lifestyle/culture. Italians are very conspicuous here.

You know I actually get Poles asking me about British Cuisine-I just tell them about FEB's and Sunday Roasts. Meanwhile I can talk all day about Polish cuisine, mm-mmm. But let's not get off topic here...

BTW you've got my support on an X-uncut trend here. I'm tired of reading tourist experiences, positive or not.

Post: #198

(08-14-2016 11:11 AM)AntiMediocrity Wrote:  BTW you've got my support on an X-uncut trend here. I'm tired of reading tourist experiences, positive or not.

What do you mean with an X-uncut trend?

Post: #199

Never heard of Zara? Have you heard of fashion ?

Post: #200

Regarding my limited experiences with Spanish women, I remember the quality in Madrid being higher in 2010 opposed to 2012 when I visited 2 times. I found the women quite pleasant, attractive, and feminine though the level dropped later on. Maybe it had something to do with me arriving there Christmas day in 2012 opposed to mid-Autumn 2010.

Went to a mixer in Dallas with some RVF members right before moving out to Brazil where I met some Spanish speaking gals. One of them was a gal from Madrid though her family comes from a Basque background. Come to find out, she was an attorney for an international bank who did law school in NYC and even studied in China too while her family being Basque had a financial background. Rents with $$$.

She actually moved down to Brazil with an ex-boyfriend from law school at one time though the guy wasn't tearing it up financially or in looks department..just a cool down to earth dude. Anyways, things didn't work out as she moved to Texas for a job opportunity. Though really hot in the past, she gained a bit of weight and hangs around other Spanish speaking girls that are now more feminine than her but still possess somewhat masculine demeanors that are a turn off.

One of my RVF buddies dated a cute Argentine that's a part of her pack in her early 30s though appears mid-late 20s. He found her too masculine as she was already divorced once though now is recently engaged to a Forbes 30 under 30 guy in my city who is younger lol (Thirst is real).

I remember being really interested in the Basque gal but never had the time to hook up due to seeing someone else & preparing for my move to Brazil. Now that I'm back home, I find myself no longer being interested as she just hangs out with her Spanish clique & other attractive Latina friends that I just find.....too masculine for my tastes now.

On another hand, there are some hot feminine Spanish milfs out there. Met one from Valladolid (supposedly milf capital of the country) as her husband relocated to Brazil as an engineer for Renault. She was very politically incorrect & hilarious...didn't think it was possible for there to be Asians in the US as she got impression I was from South Korea lol. Still talk to the lady & I got nothin but mad respect because she wore heels ALL THE TIME.