Don't Smile

So you know how you walk down a neighborhood street and when you pass someone you smile or say “Hi” to them? Or when you’re walking to class down that long brick walkway passed Swasey and pass a student or administrator and you make eye contact and smile, maybe say “Hi”? Well they don’t do that in Spain. No one smiles. Sure people smile when they’re joking with friends, or when they see someone they know on the street, but if it’s anyone else they don’t even make eye contact. Now I’m a big smile person. I like to smile. I don’t take life too seriously. And maybe it’s a Midwest thing, but you don’t walk down a small street, look the person you’re passing dead in the eye and not smile! I expected it out of Madrid Spaniards because it’s a large city, but not Toledo Spaniards. Toledo is that kind of small town where our tour guide was walking us down a street and she stopped twice to talk to someone she knew. So what still puzzles me is why they refuse to smile! Maybe it’s because the Spanish men take it as a sign that you’re interested. Since when did something as simple as a smile automatically mean that you’re interested in someone? Well maybe I missed the memo, but I learned that a smile is a way to be polite, sincere and nice. Not a “You’re hot, let me give you my really long 12-digit international phone number so you can give me a tour of Madrid.” I mean don’t get me wrong; I know that there are different kinds of smiles. But I’m absolutely NOT doing one of those Joey from Friends “How you doin’?” smiles. I’m purely just trying to be nice. So I’ll clearly be working on not smiling while walking the cobblestone streets of Toledo, but until then I may need to make a sign that says, “Not interested, just trying to have fun” for all those Spanish guys who are not only very forward but don’t get the hint. I’ve already had a tour of Madrid, thanks. And it was by a professional tour guide.