Did you enjoy the YouTube video? I know I did. It’s a commercial that they show on the T.V. here on a regular basis and it never fails to amuse me. [A side note: I thought that this ad was specifically for Spanish T.V., but an alert reader brought to my attention that it aired during the Superbowl first.]
I find myself watching much more T.V. here than back home in the States because that’s how Pepe and I hang out (my host Dad). We’re both pretty skeptical when it comes to movies, and we both root for Real Madrid (especially over Barcelona) when the game’s on. But my absolute favorite part of watching Spanish T.V. is the commercial breaks. For some reason I just find them infinitely more amusing (read: less annoying) than the ads in the U.S., perhaps because they are in Spanish, perhaps because I think that they are just better thought-out and executed.
Most ads tend to be funny in some way, such as the Darth Vader ad, or they can be really intense, such as this one from El Corte Inglés: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cxxxAWIZjao, or they really pull at some heartstrings. It doesn’t really matter, because they’re all examples of advertising genius. One of the common characteristics is that they tend to keep you in suspense right up until the very end when they finally reveal their product. And, unlike the ads in the U.S., I’m not even incensed that they took up so much time for such a mundane product, but rather amused that they would put so much time and effort and creativity into something that is, in the end, excruciatingly boring. Pepe told me once that Spain won some International Prize in Advertising rather recently, so the creativity is well-recognized.
While I am blogging (what an uncomfortable verb – say it slowly, it flows very inconsistently off your tongue…. And now you’re just sitting in front of the computer looking foolish) about what an awesome institution the Spanish advertising industry is, I should also mention El Corte Inglés, because it is even more of a symbol of the country than the advertising. El Corte Inglés is a department store, but so much more amazing than the department stores we have back home. It has EVERYTHING you could possibly need in one building. I would liken it to Target, if I had to pick a comparison, but without the slightly negative social connotation of Target (yes, there is a negative social connotation, at least where I’m from. If there weren’t, people wouldn’t pronounce it “Tar-shay” like it’s some swanky French store. To those people: you are fooling no one, and sound extremely snobby to boot. So stop.). Anyway, El Corte Inglés is usually housed in a truly mammoth building in the center of town (generally a pretty ugly one, actually, but no one cares) and is used as a landmark by the populace on a regular basis because it’s so well-known. In fact it’s quite common to hear someone say “Oh, we’re all meeting up at Corte at such-and-such a time to walk over to the bar together” (though usually they say it in Spanish). And to give you an idea of just how much power El Corte Inglés has over the Spanish culture, Halloween was nonexistent in Spain until a few years ago when El Corte Inglés decided to start selling Halloween candy and costumes in order to generate more revenue. And now Halloween is so much more intense here than at home.
Actually, this is probably the opportune moment to discuss Halloween in Spain, because it just happened and I’ve already got a segue. Halloween here is very different from the U.S. mainly because when people put their costumes on, they are actually putting costumes on. This applies mainly to girls. Everyone focuses more on the ‘scare’ factor than the ‘sexy’ factor, with the result being that you see far fewer Playboy Bunnies, Sexy Devils, or anything with glitter/fairy wings. Instead, there are a LOT of zombies and monsters and fake blood, and believe me, they go all out. I’m not just talking the actual, physical costumes, but stage make-up as well for things such as clown faces, the Joker, and fake cuts and gashes (there was a girl with a scarily realistic slit throat). What’s more, everyone participates, not just little kids, teenagers, and college students who refuse to give up on free candy. Halloween in Spain is quite impressive and very well done (and sponsored by El Corte Inglés, of course). Though I did not see any Trick-or-Treaters…maybe the monsters got them all.
Today’s post was a bit shorter, but that’s probably a good thing. I’m trying to post shorter essays more often to see if that works. However, I’ll probably break that pretty soon, since I have a couple of longer posts coming up – one about Morocco, and one about Venice.
Abrazos!
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