Chup Chup

By: Natalie Manzo

Since being in Spain, I have found that life is a lot slower here than in the US. Don’t get me wrong, a lot of my experience has felt very fast; from connecting flights at 5:00 in the morning to sprinting to catch trains in foreign cities, I have had my fair share of craziness. However, the moment I touch down in Sevilla after a weekend trip, I feel a sense of calm and can take a deep breath. Maybe it’s something in the air, but a more likely explanation is that it is the way of life here.

I am from the northeast, New Jersey to be exact, and the only thing that moves slowly there is the traffic (most likely to NYC or the shore). I am used to a very fast paced life that is always go go go. Coming to a country where a slower pace of life is more common was a hard adjustment but taught me a valuable lesson: taking time to pause isn’t always bad.

Whether it is meeting a friend for a cafe con leche before class or sitting at a restaurant after the meal has come and gone for sobremesa, I have learned that the sweetest moments in life often come when you can take a deep breath, relax, and enjoy the present time with those around you.

In one of my classes this week we were discussing what practices we want to take back to the US with us when we leave. Our professor then proposed the concept of “chup chup”. It is a term coined by his friend to describe what happens when you are cooking something and after about an hour the flavors start to meld and bubble up, making a “chup chup” sound. He explained that there are around 170 hours in the week and that at least one of those hours should be time for your version of “chup chup”. It could be sitting outside and reading or relaxing in a cafe with a great latte, but any way to give yourself that time to slow down is necessary in today’s world.

In my last couple of weeks here in Spain I am savoring the small moments of pause to take it all in… the scent of the orange trees blooming, the sounds of children’s laughter at the colegio I walk by to class, or feeling of sun on my face when I paint in the Plaza de Espana. I know when it is time for “chup chup” in the US it will be these moments that I find peace in and it will be these moments that I miss the most.

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