# Is your life not time synched with Spanish culture?



## dancebert (Jun 4, 2015)

I knew before I first traveled in Spain that my use of time was different from theirs. I'm not talking about jet lag or Spain being way, way in the west of their time zone. My usual wake and sleep times are from not long after sunrise until 17 hours later. Only time that changes is when deeply fatigued. Stomach acid problems means dinner is both early (10-12 hours after waking) and small. Being out of sync presented a few easily solved problems as a tourist that wouldn't exist as a resident.

What would exist is I'd be out of step with Spanish culture and the people. Seems it would be harder (much harder?) to make friends with Spaniards. Without Spanish friends, becoming conversational in Spanish, not to mention using that skill, seems way more difficult. Yeah, I don't need conversational Spanish or have Spanish friends to live in Spain. But I want to.

So, what's it like for you to live out of sync? Useful context would be the population density of expats where you live, e.g., very high to very low, if you've sought or acquired Spanish friends, and how well or your interest in speaking Spanish.


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## Megsmum (Sep 9, 2012)

dancebert said:


> So, what's it like for you to live out of sync? Useful context would be the population density of expats where you live, e.g., very high to very low, if you've sought or acquired Spanish friends, and how well or your interest in speaking Spanish.


Very Low, in fact on a permanent scale three couples approx 10 km apart

Mainly Spanish friends
Speak Spanish reasonably well, need to improve

We do not live "out of Sync" it probably took us about a year to adapt to the Spanish 
ways, I live in Spain I do as the Romans do, as it works well for them. That does not mean to say there are not days when we decide going out at 10pm is a tad too late, or we are going to have a main meal in the evening.


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

dancebert said:


> I knew before I first traveled in Spain that my use of time was different from theirs. I'm not talking about jet lag or Spain being way, way in the west of their time zone. My usual wake and sleep times are from not long after sunrise until 17 hours later. Only time that changes is when deeply fatigued. Stomach acid problems means dinner is both early (10-12 hours after waking) and small. Being out of sync presented a few easily solved problems as a tourist that wouldn't exist as a resident.
> 
> What would exist is I'd be out of step with Spanish culture and the people. Seems it would be harder (much harder?) to make friends with Spaniards. Without Spanish friends, becoming conversational in Spanish, not to mention using that skill, seems way more difficult. Yeah, I don't need conversational Spanish or have Spanish friends to live in Spain. But I want to.
> 
> So, what's it like for you to live out of sync? Useful context would be the population density of expats where you live, e.g., very high to very low, if you've sought or acquired Spanish friends, and how well or your interest in speaking Spanish.


45% of the population of My town is non-Spanish. Yes many who live here still live to the timetable of the country from whence they came.

If they want to eat out though, the restaurants stick to the Spanish timetable, as do the shops, closing for siesta.

However, my life is totally tuned to the Spanish timetable, and has been almost from when we arrived. When you have children in school, or you work, it's pretty much impossible to avoid.


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## skip o (Aug 1, 2011)

Eating late and staying up late is bad for me, and evidence suggests that it can be unhealthy for humans in general. I'd rather feel better physically and have fewer social encounters, but that is me. Everything I have read indicates that Spaniards are less happy and less productive compared to most Europeans, due to the siesta & later work times.


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## 95995 (May 16, 2010)

skip o said:


> Eating late and staying up late is bad for me, and evidence suggests that it can be unhealthy for humans in general. I'd rather feel better physically and have fewer social encounters, but that is me. *Everything I have read indicates that Spaniards are less happy and less productive compared to most Europeans, due to the siesta & later work times*.


I have never read anything of the sort. I don't currently live in Spain, but I'm sure I read somewhere that they are going to reduce the long 'siesta' (closing/non-work time). I think people who are used to it (as I once was - and frankly if you worked locally to where you lived it made it seem that you only ever worked half a day, albeit it 2 half days in one 24 hour period) will have major problems adjusting and it may eventually mean that the Spanish won't keep such late nights. However, if you want to live 'out of sync' in Spain at least for the time being you will just have to cope (IMO). Not only will you have less socialising time, but you will have less time to do shopping etc.


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## tebo53 (Sep 18, 2014)

My wife and I have adjusted to the Spanish way of life and love the lifestyle although, as other posters have said, regularly eating meals late does not suit very well, only on that special evening out. We tend to eat little but more regularly. 

I think if you live your life how you please will always suit you best.


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## Pazcat (Mar 24, 2010)

Well for the most part we have our own schedule, home life, school, work and errands and not much of it is impacted by anything else. After that well it's time to relax and certainly don't want to go out of the way for anything unless it can't be avoided.

The only real annoyance is not being able to stop for dinner or a take away aside from fast food after work but that isn't all that bad because I like fast food.


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## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

I live in a rural town of 5,500 people of which 15 are British. I have adapted to Spanish timings to some extent, but not completely. It took a while!

Sleep: I wake up when it gets light (about 8 a.m. at the moment) and go to bed between midnight and 1 a.m. 

Eating: I have lunch (my main meal) about 2 p.m. but I can't do the late dinner, it gives me indigestion. I have a light meal about 7 p.m. If I'm out with friends in the evening I'll eat tapas.

Shopping: the local shops are closed between 2.00 and 5.30 p.m. Funnily enough this was the hardest thing to adjust to. It still doesn't feel right going shopping in the evening.

Socialising: My British friends (including those who have holiday homes here) like to meet for a beer at 6.30 or 8 p.m. which is when the Spanish are having merienda with their kids or doing their paseo. That's too early for me, especially in summer when I'd rather go out about 10 p.m.

My health is fine, I think problems only occur with sleep patterns when you are constantly changing their hours e.g. working shifts.


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## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

EverHopeful said:


> I have never read anything of the sort. I don't currently live in Spain, but I'm sure I read somewhere that they are going to reduce the long 'siesta' (closing/non-work time). I think people who are used to it (as I once was - and frankly if you worked locally to where you lived it made it seem that you only ever worked half a day, albeit it 2 half days in one 24 hour period) will have major problems adjusting and it may eventually mean that the Spanish won't keep such late nights. However, if you want to live 'out of sync' in Spain at least for the time being you will just have to cope (IMO). Not only will you have less socialising time, but you will have less time to do shopping etc.


I have read such reports and there are multinational companies who would love to abolish the afternoon break and have uniform hours across Europe. They should try working in an office in Andalucia with no aircon in July.


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## 95995 (May 16, 2010)

Alcalaina said:


> I have read such reports and there are multinational companies who would love to abolish the afternoon break and have uniform hours across Europe. They should try working in an office in Andalucia with no aircon in July.


The summer heat is, of course, the reason for the long siesta in the middle of the day (in my experience longer in the summer than in the winter).

I do think you have to be prepared to change your lifestyle when you move to another country. That said, the difference is less marked now than when I lived in Spain long, long ago - because of tourism and the influx of foreign (mainly British) residents.

AFAIK no one is forced to eat a big meal late at night in Spain. I'm not a big eater and didn't find it a problem when I lived there (although I had no problem actually eating at 11 pm, I just ate lighter than those around me). Frankly, when I lived in Spain I found that the Spanish ate a great deal (desayuno, a quite substantial almuerzo mid-morning, a substantial meal in the middle of the day, limited but varied tapas for some between 8 and 10 pm, a decent meal at night - and lots of bread!). However, the amount you eat at any given time is really up to you.

I suspect the OP find other potentially bigger differences in lifestyle once resident - not least of which will be the types of food he/she can buy (nowhere near as easy to find American products as British one and something many Americans seem to have great difficulty adjusting to in France). Not to mention the bureaucracy


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## Pazcat (Mar 24, 2010)

I have never brought in to the "it's too hot to work" excuse. It's certainly just as hot if not hotter in Australia and we just got on with it, occasionally you would start a couple of hours earlier and finish before the hottest part of the day. And I can't for the life of me work out how it is in anyway better to split your day like this reducing what little time you may get with your family already.
To be honest I think it is more to do with lunch than anything else, they tend to have lunch as a main meal whereas in Australia it is normally dinner.

Although I suspect there are probably a fair few who are happy not to get back to the madhouse earlier.


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## Overandout (Nov 10, 2012)

Alcalaina said:


> I have read such reports and there are multinational companies who would love to abolish the afternoon break and have uniform hours across Europe. They should try working in an office in Andalucia with no aircon in July.


This surprises me. I have worked for several international companies in Spain and also for several Spanish companies, both large and small, and I have never known any company to have an afternoon break.

I and almost all of my colleagues present and past, have always started work at around 8.30, taken 1 hour for lunch and finishing at around 7.30pm. I would say that this is quite normal for most of Europe (except Sweden where that start earlier and leave earlier, and some other Nordic countries where the lunch break is 30 - 40 minutes. 
I really don't see why people are hung up on Spanish hours being out of sync....


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

dancebert said:


> I knew before I first traveled in Spain that my use of time was different from theirs. I'm not talking about jet lag or Spain being way, way in the west of their time zone. My usual wake and sleep times are from not long after sunrise until 17 hours later. Only time that changes is when deeply fatigued. Stomach acid problems means dinner is both early (10-12 hours after waking) and small. Being out of sync presented a few easily solved problems as a tourist that wouldn't exist as a resident.
> 
> What would exist is I'd be out of step with Spanish culture and the people. Seems it would be harder (much harder?) to make friends with Spaniards. Without Spanish friends, becoming conversational in Spanish, not to mention using that skill, seems way more difficult. Yeah, I don't need conversational Spanish or have Spanish friends to live in Spain. But I want to.
> 
> So, what's it like for you to live out of sync? Useful context would be the population density of expats where you live, e.g., very high to very low, if you've sought or acquired Spanish friends, and how well or your interest in speaking Spanish.


I don't live 'out of sync', I had lived elsewhere in Europe before coming to Spain. Spanish and British culture are not radically different, imo.
No Brits in my immediate area, one German couple here for nearly forty years three doors away.
In the village, few Brits in winter. 
In Estepona, mainly Spanish but lives from tourism of the quiet sort.
I speak Spanish fluently and often very ungrammatically but I am understood.
I have many Spanish friends as well as friends of all nationalities. I am active in a Spanish political Party, a Spanish LGBT Rights organisation, the local flamenco club and an animal rescue and rehoming charity which is 50/50 Spanish and other nationality.


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## Chopera (Apr 22, 2013)

My experience in Madrid is that Spaniards "traditionally" arrive at work around 9.30am and work until about 7.30pm, with a 20 min breakfast break at 11, and lunch from about 2pm to 3.30pm. The low productivity figures for Spain might be a bit misleading because yes if you measure what is produced in those hours it is probably the same as what is produced in a shorter working day in other countries. But if you take into account the extra breaks in Spain, amd instead measure the time people spend working, then the productivity measurement might be higher.

In summer many companies work a reduced/intensive timetable from maybe 8.00am to 3.00pm with a 20 min break. I'm hearing of companies introducing that all year round now. Also companies are now phasing in a day or two working from home, and generally being more flexible.

Generally people in Madrid have the evening meal around 8pm, which is what I did in the UK. I adapted to the Madrid timetable straight away (but then I never was a morning person) - the only thing that annoyed me was the culture of taking more breaks and having to leave the office later. But I'm also noticing companies change those habits as well.


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## Isobella (Oct 16, 2014)

A Spanish friend who works in a hospital on CDS has hours 8am to 3pm. Of course there is no lunch break. Nevertheless they never eat before 10pm. But their main meal is 3.30pm.

We are out if sinc wherever we are started when we commuted when young, in the pub and arrive home about 8pm. We never eat before 8pm now. I know people in Spain who actually eat around 6pm even in summer. Some Germans and French eat early too.


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## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

Overandout said:


> This surprises me. I have worked for several international companies in Spain and also for several Spanish companies, both large and small, and I have never known any company to have an afternoon break.
> 
> I and almost all of my colleagues present and past, have always started work at around 8.30, taken 1 hour for lunch and finishing at around 7.30pm. I would say that this is *quite normal for most of Europe* (except Sweden where that start earlier and leave earlier, and some other Nordic countries where the lunch break is 30 - 40 minutes.
> I really don't see why people are hung up on Spanish hours being out of sync....


8.30 am till 7.30 pm with an hour's break, is that legal?  What about the European Working Hours Directive?

I don't know about international companies, but certainly where I am the small and medium-sized businesses all close for at least two hours in the afternoon. In summer some work 8 till 2 and don't reopen in the evening.

Rajoy wants to change the working week to 35 hours, ending at 6 pm and with a one-hour break, which seems sensible in air-conditioned shops and offices. But it's not going to go down well with everyone.

The end of the Spanish siesta? - BBC News


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## Maureen47 (Mar 27, 2014)

We have slowly adapted over our first year in Spain to local times. If you want to eat out whether it be breakfast , lunch or dinner the times in Spain are just different. I enjoy the afternoon break and the late evening opening , really handy if you have forgotten something in the morning . Its the British TV that catches us out with the hour time difference ending up with late nights if you want to watch a particular programme. Its nice to have Sundays with no shops open , we enjoy that, it defines the weekend a bit more especially when you dont work. In terms of friends there is a small group of English speaking folks where we live but we are pleased to have made a group of Spanish friends too as well as Dutch , Belgian and German,Sputh African ,Moroccan and French .


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## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

Maureen47 said:


> We have slowly adapted over our first year in Spain to local times. If you want to eat out whether it be breakfast , lunch or dinner the times in Spain are just different. I enjoy the afternoon break and the late evening opening , really handy if you have forgotten something in the morning . Its the British TV that catches us out with the hour time difference ending up with late nights if you want to watch a particular programme. Its nice to have Sundays with no shops open , we enjoy that, it defines the weekend a bit more especially when you dont work. In terms of friends there is a small group of English speaking folks where we live but we are pleased to have made a group of Spanish friends too as well as Dutch , Belgian and German,Sputh African ,Moroccan and French .


I'd forgotten about the TV! Spanish peak viewing time is 10 pm till gone midnight and all the rubbish is on around 8 pm. I'm sure this is why some Brits complain that Spanish TV is so awful when they switch on at their usual time and only see soaps, cartoons and quiz shows.


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

Having often worked shifts during my working life, I have never really had a consistent daily routine. Coming to Spain we have tended to retain UK hours. We get up between 7.30 and 8, have breakfast. Lunch is at 1 pm, tea/supper at 7 pm. We don't like eating late because that means we go to bed and our digestive system is still in full flow meaning a bad night's sleep. It works for us and our neighbours and friends accept that is our schedule, just as we accept that they have their own.


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## Overandout (Nov 10, 2012)

Chopera said:


> My experience in Madrid is that Spaniards "traditionally" arrive at work around 9.30am and work until about 7.30pm, with a 20 min breakfast break at 11, and lunch from about 2pm to 3.30pm.


I don't think that this would be tolerated or practical in the companies where I work or have worked even if it does mean that a 40hr wk is being worked.

Meetings are often scheduled from 9.00am and sometimes even at 8.30am, and certainly 11.00 am is considered as a "core hour", i.e. when everyone has to be available and present.

Maybe some people sneak away for a coffee off the premises, but it is not the norm. 

We have to remember that in these days of high unemployment, very few people are willing to risk giving their employers the excuse to fire them.


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## Overandout (Nov 10, 2012)

Alcalaina said:


> 8.30 am till 7.30 pm with an hour's break, is that legal?  What about the European Working Hours Directive?


I clarify:

These are not the formal required working hours, these are the hours that are required to get at least the most important parts of my job done but there are always exceptions (like today, I have just finished working at 21.30!!!)

I do also (in theory) finish at 15.00 on Friday (unless there are external meetings or work with other countries who work Friday afternoons).

My contract says that I work a 40 hr week, but, due to my category of employment, I should work the hours required to complete my work.

What is legal or not is not really an issue in Spain, as you know!


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## skip o (Aug 1, 2011)

"Spain – A great place to live, a terrible place to work? Spaniards tend to be less productive and more stressed than their European neighbors"
Spain â€“ A great place to live, a terrible place to work? | In English | EL PAÃ�S


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

From this old thread
http://www.expatforum.com/expats/sp...-spain/71073-describe-your-typical-day-3.html


> If you've got kids, or you work in a Spanish company, you've got to adapt to a certain extent sooner or later. If these two factors don't come into your life, it's less likely that your customs will change. Most people say that getting use to the Spanish eating timetable, and the amount of food traditionally eaten at lunch time is the most difficult thing to adjust to.


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

Overandout said:


> I clarify:
> 
> These are not the formal required working hours, these are the hours that are required to get at least the most important parts of my job done but there are always exceptions (like today, I have just finished working at 21.30!!!)
> 
> ...


I've been into many many companies in my area over the years due to my work (in company English teacher) multinationals and SME's and to my knowledge they were all working a 37 - 40 hour week but many, the majority in fact did 5-10 hours overtime a week. That overtime was/ is
a) expected
b) unpaid

I've always said to those who aspire to work in Spain that the hours can be punishing. Better weather, but will you have time to enjoy it?
On the other hand there are 14 days public holiday a year plus 21 days I think it is.


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## 95995 (May 16, 2010)

skip o said:


> "Spain – A great place to live, a terrible place to work? Spaniards tend to be less productive and more stressed than their European neighbors"
> Spain â€“ A great place to live, a terrible place to work? | In English | EL PAÃ�S


I don't know how many people actually realise that the length of the midday break has been significantly reduced over recent decades (it was actually once long enough to get some sleep, at least if you worked within say a half hour of where you lived). And 2-hour lunch breaks remain common in France. There are too many issues around working life in Spain to really be able to attribute much to the siesta and lack of (night-time) sleep, IMO. Not that it matters much, as change is inevitable, albeit it will take time.


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

PS with the being out of synch thing, I think it is potentially a problem for socialising. For example, a great Spanish tradition is the aperitivo especially at the weekend so the Spanish bars at least are at their busiest at 12:00 - 14:30 ish, when British people have gone home to have lunch.
If you've got a Spanish friend who wants to meet for coffee/ cup of tea/ merienda in the afternoon it's likely to be when you are having your evening meal.
It's true that for one day you can change your sechedule around, but on a day to day basis I think you miss seeing "movement" on the street.
It's like going out for a stroll after lunch in the summer. That's likely to be when all the Spaniards are inside sheltering from the heat so the streets are really quiet and can't work out where everyone is


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## Chopera (Apr 22, 2013)

Overandout said:


> I don't think that this would be tolerated or practical in the companies where I work or have worked even if it does mean that a 40hr wk is being worked.
> 
> Meetings are often scheduled from 9.00am and sometimes even at 8.30am, and certainly 11.00 am is considered as a "core hour", i.e. when everyone has to be available and present.
> 
> ...


Obviously people work their breaks around their meetings, etc. At one place I worked, many people came in at 9.30, did about an hour of work and then went off for a breakfast break for half an hour! But that was a few years ago, these days companies tend to provide kitchen facilities and even breakfasts to keep people on site (I am writing this right now during a coffee break).

A lot of the timetable is determined by the sector you work in and how strongly unionised it is. For example banks tend to be heavily unionised in Spain (they've been around a while) and have union reps on site keeping an eye on things. People strictly follow (usually quite generous) working hours laid down by a convenio that has been agreed with the unions.

I work in IT which is a relatively new sector with no meaningful convenios (I can't even remember what type of worker I am classified as). 10 years ago IT workers were open to abuse, working unpaid hours as a norm. But again this seems to be changing as new companies appear on the scene offering more modern working practices, based around flexibility and trying to attract (and keep) skilled workers. From what I can tell there isn't high unemployment in Madrid for skilled IT workers, so they can pick and choose companies to an extent.


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## Pazcat (Mar 24, 2010)

Well my wife works for an international organisation and hasn't really had to change things too much. Her biggest peeve is scheduling meetings at say 12pm as that is when she has lunch normally but other than that it is a straight up 9 to 5 deal. But of course there is flexibility.
Definitely the Spanish workers time table is different but each to their own really, the style of management is different too, very chauvinistic and don't like to be challenged.

School is pretty straight forward, the only adapting is to get used to being in an empty house.

I think the biggest factor is more socialising but if that is not your thing then there isn't much to force you to change things.

Oh and Maureen mentioned about the Sunday's when everything closes. I can see where people are coming from but I really don't like it, especially when the hours on a Saturday can be all over the place.
We spent an hour and a half last Sunday looking for a place that was open for emergency supplies and despite there being websites claiming that they were open none actually were.


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

baldilocks said:


> Having often worked shifts during my working life, I have never really had a consistent daily routine. Coming to Spain we have tended to retain UK hours. We get up between 7.30 and 8, have breakfast. Lunch is at 1 pm, tea/supper at 7 pm. We don't like eating late because that means we go to bed and our digestive system is still in full flow meaning a bad night's sleep. It works for us and our neighbours and friends accept that is our schedule, just as we accept that they have their own.


Thinking about it, it seems I've always adapted more or less with what goes on around me. When we lived in Prague everything started and finished so much earlier. Many shops, especially food shops, opened at six a.m. and many restaurants closed at nine pm. When we went to dinner with friends or ate out we usually expected to be at table by six pm.
It seemed as if most Czechs were in bed before ten pm...
Now we wake up around seven am , get up and take the dogs out either in the campo or by the sea, have breakfast around nine-thirty then get on with the day, usually having coffee with friends around half twelve pm and home for lunch around two thirty pm.
If we're eating out we book for eight thirty pm in winter and nine pm in summer, sometimes later as we walk the dogs when it's cooler.
I rather like the afternoon shut down which is 100% round here. Seeing shops open in the evenings kind of stretches out the day which is nice. Anything which makes the days seem longer suits me as I'm enjoying life and want to get as much out of it as possible in my slowly declining years.
We had absolutely no problems 'adjusting' to life here. After the dreary weather in the UK and the extreme cold in Prague we enjoy mild winters ad spend as much time outdoors as possible, sometimes sitting on the terrace reading until late at night even in November.


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## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

It's now been proved that working long hours makes you less productive, and is bad for your health. Sweden, progressive as ever, has introduced a 6-hour day for the same pay; they found that people do as much work in six hours as in eight, and they are happier and healthier.

Working more than 40 hours a week 'makes you less productive', research suggests | The Independent

The Six-Hour Workday Works in Europe. What About America? - Bloomberg


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

Alcalaina said:


> It's now been proved that working long hours makes you less productive, and is bad for your health. Sweden, progressive as ever, has introduced a 6-hour day for the same pay; they found that people do as much work in six hours as in eight, and they are happier and healthier.
> 
> Working more than 40 hours a week 'makes you less productive', research suggests | The Independent
> 
> The Six-Hour Workday Works in Europe. What About America? - Bloomberg


The four day working week - The Netherlands
Netherlands - World's shortest work weeks - CNNMoney

Oh and they have lunch around 11:30 so that really cocks it up when they come here on business!


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## Chopera (Apr 22, 2013)

Pesky Wesky said:


> The four day working week - The Netherlands
> Netherlands - World's shortest work weeks - CNNMoney
> 
> Oh and they have lunch around 11:30 so that really cocks it up when they come here on business!


I think a lot of the laws mentioned in that article also exist in Spain in one form or another. For example anyone with a child under 12 can ask for a "jornada reducida para cuidar de un niño" and reduce their hours (and pay) by up to 50%, with their social security payments unaffacted (at least to begin with). The difference might be that pay is so low in Spain that people can't afford to do it.


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## Evilbungle (Jul 8, 2016)

I haven't read all the previous replies and I know this is wrong of me but I am about to go out and wanted to add one thing about being out of sync with Spanish life before I left. 

I am very out of sync and have felt exhausted since I arrived, after heading home from work I get in at 7:30 we have dinner and then I put my daughter to bed which takes until about 9 with Bath time and stories etc... My wife and I then get about an hour of Adult conversation before we go to bed ourselves - at the time that most Spanish are heading out! Yet I still don't feel I get enough sleep.

Anyway, That wasn't what I was going to post about but just a Little background. what I wanted to say is two things I have noticed. Because my daughter goes to bed around 8 - 8:30 now she can no longer have takeaway Pizza (Not something we did very often but as a treat I let her pick where we got food from last week and the local pizza place doesn't open until 8 (Which is really 8:30 Spanish time) so by the time it came it would be 9!

However the good is being out of sync we tend to hit the supermarket at 3pm on a Saturday, whilst in the UK this was hell on earth with everyone trying to get round in Spain we often find ourselves one of a half dozen couples in a giant hypermarket. It is the nicest shopping experience imaginable - not to be confused with the time I accidently went in at 10am and the queue for the tills was all the way around the outside of the store!!!


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## Gran Erry-Bredd (Nov 1, 2016)

I'm Scottish. In Scotland we eat and drink all day and then have a siesta overnight.


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## Pazcat (Mar 24, 2010)

Evilbungle said:


> Anyway, That wasn't what I was going to post about but just a Little background. what I wanted to say is two things I have noticed. Because my daughter goes to bed around 8 - 8:30 now she can no longer have takeaway Pizza (Not something we did very often but as a treat I let her pick where we got food from last week and the local pizza place doesn't open until 8 (Which is really 8:30 Spanish time) so by the time it came it would be 9!


Haha, yes. Specifically the pizza thing annoys me greatly. Exactly the same issue here, it's just not doable time wise and we don't have anyone that will deliver here either. That said I don't think I have had a good pizza yet, only two places have been passable and one of those was domino's.
I miss pizza.


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

Pazcat said:


> Haha, yes. Specifically the pizza thing annoys me greatly. Exactly the same issue here, it's just not doable time wise and we don't have anyone that will deliver here either. That said I don't think I have had a good pizza yet, only two places have been passable and one of those was domino's.
> *I miss pizza*.


Should you, perhaps, have gone to Italy, instead of Spain?


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## Pazcat (Mar 24, 2010)

Nope because they make "real Italian" pizza not the good pizza.
Plus they don't do pepperoni pizzas either.


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

Pazcat said:


> Nope because they make "real Italian" pizza not the good pizza.
> Plus they don't do pepperoni pizzas either.


You sound like an American who would turn down real fresh flavourful macaroni and cheese for pre-pack mac-n-cheese full of artificial flavours, calories and who knows what.


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## Pazcat (Mar 24, 2010)

baldilocks said:


> The only things we miss are Flora Light (not Flora Original which, even Mercadona stocks) since that has the lowest saturated fats, and smoked haddock,


Yeah well you probably should of stayed in 'Ol Blighty then.
Pull your head in(or out if that helps).


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## mono (Jan 22, 2016)

Before the crisis, Companies, Financial Institutions etc wre trying to say (in boom times) that Spain, Italyy, Greece etc should reduce siestas and get in line to increase the wealth and economic outcomes. Because Northern European who by now, were working long hours, taking no breaks, eating at their desks were all happy wealthy chappies and thriving countries. Really? Then look what happened, all the work and no play did not an ounce of good for ordinary working folk. Unvalued, thankless employers, Crisis, zero hours contracts, mass unemployment, welfare cuts (all scroungers) and the list goes on.
So word to the wise, keep your long siestas. It is wonderful to see villagers out and about in the evenings and late at night, all generations. My village is dead after 7pm in summer and deader in winter.
It is great to be out and about in Southern Europe in the cooler hours of nighttime. Heavens above. Don't copy us


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## Evilbungle (Jul 8, 2016)

Not sure why missing something from your home country seems to be grounds for deportation. I miss many things from the UK it doesn't detract from the things I like from Spain.

On the time differences, what does wind me up is the 10pm DIY and Guitar Playing. Makes it very difficult to get my daughter to bed at a reasonable time.


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## mono (Jan 22, 2016)

Just listening to a phone-in discussion on radio. Re the Health Service concerns about ill-health and obesity linked to reluctance of staff to take breaks and grabbing something 'on the run' at epidemic proportion. They say that employers really need to reverse this trend. The culture is unhealthy at costing more and more.
A lot of the contributors are anonymous as scared to reveal themselves. They say that this is how it is. The 'experts' are saying it is a hidden health and safety issue with long-term adverse effect to citizens and the country


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## Isobella (Oct 16, 2014)

Pesky Wesky said:


> The four day working week - The Netherlands
> Netherlands - World's shortest work weeks - CNNMoney
> 
> Oh and they have lunch around 11:30 so that really cocks it up when they come here on business!


Interesting link, thanks. Useful comparisons considering there was a recent debate about EU workers rights. I note it also says working the least hours is not always from choice. 

I have relatives and friends in the Netherlands and I have never heard of anyone working a four day week. I know they do 12pm to 1pm lunches though. They do have very strong employment laws. A relative had an ongoing story which we called Buniongate! A key worker spent the biggest part of a year on sick leave after having an op on her bunion and no complications it took the Company almost another year to dismiss her with medicals, tribunals, appeal etc. Was an ongoing saga.


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## Isobella (Oct 16, 2014)

mono said:


> Just listening to a phone-in discussion on radio. Re the Health Service concerns about ill-health and obesity linked to reluctance of staff to take breaks and grabbing something 'on the run' at epidemic proportion. They say that employers really need to reverse this trend. The culture is unhealthy at costing more and more.
> A lot of the contributors are anonymous as scared to reveal themselves. They say that this is how it is. The 'experts' are saying it is a hidden health and safety issue with long-term adverse effect to citizens and the country


I have noticed there are a lot of overweight Nurses, some I would describe as obese.


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## Justina (Jan 25, 2013)

My son works in Belgium and he is entitled to take a day off once a week as long as he is on the internet and answering mails, etc. I wonder if it was originally organised to help parents, but great idea.


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## Isobella (Oct 16, 2014)

Justina said:


> My son works in Belgium and he is entitled to take a day off once a week as long as he is on the internet and answering mails, etc. I wonder if it was originally organised to help parents, but great idea.


Not the same but many do flexible working here to cut the commute. I used to work from home sometimes. Great in Jim jams on winter mornings


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## Evilbungle (Jul 8, 2016)

Justina said:


> My son works in Belgium and he is entitled to take a day off once a week as long as he is on the internet and answering mails, etc. I wonder if it was originally organised to help parents, but great idea.


My job in the UK used to have a manditory working from home day each week, this was due to the size of the car park though rather tan any concern for health. 

When I worked for a French Company we used to get 1 days leave every month that had to be taken in that month, it was good to know that every month you had one day to get things done etc... 

I work for an international company in Spain now and the office doesn't shut down for an Afternoon break but the hours are long in the Winter (9 - 18:30 but some work 10:30 - 20:00) with a long lunch break (Followed by coffee away from the office) and short in the Summer 8 - 15 with 20 minute lunch break. Personally I prefer the summer way as I would rather spend the extra time with my family than at work. I think UK people hear about the long lunches and many fiesta days and think they work harder than the Spanish but in winter people are often working until 22:00.


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

mono said:


> Just listening to a phone-in discussion on radio. Re the Health Service concerns about ill-health and obesity linked to reluctance of staff to take breaks and grabbing something 'on the run' at epidemic proportion. They say that employers really need to reverse this trend. The culture is unhealthy at costing more and more.
> A lot of the contributors are anonymous as scared to reveal themselves. They say that this is how it is. The 'experts' are saying it is a hidden health and safety issue with long-term adverse effect to citizens and the country


The reluctance of staff to take a break???
That's unusual. Perhaps it's more the inability to take a break due to staff shortages, bad time management (by employees or company) or volume of work.


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## Evilbungle (Jul 8, 2016)

Pesky Wesky said:


> The reluctance of staff to take a break???
> That's unusual. Perhaps it's more the inability to take a break due to staff shortages, bad time management (by employees or company) or volume of work.


And in some situations (Not all but when I have done H&S assesments in the past it has come up quite a lot of times) the people who take "no breaks ever" once you start to question them it turns out they actually take breaks quite often but are often rushing to the shops or running errands so they then come back to the desk to eat their lunch. I find that people tend to forget all the times they are not working when asked if they take breaks.


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## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

Back to Spanish hours for a moment. Some of you who have children have mentioned that it's difficult to get them to bed at a reasonable time. Do they go to bed earlier than neighbouring Spanish children of the same age? Is that all the time or just school nights? Just wondering because they seem to go to bed very late round here especially in the summer holidays. They do usually have an afternoon nap though.


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## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

Evilbungle said:


> And in some situations (Not all but when I have done H&S assesments in the past it has come up quite a lot of times) the people who take "no breaks ever" once you start to question them it turns out they actually take breaks quite often but are often rushing to the shops or running errands so they then come back to the desk to eat their lunch. I find that people tend to forget all the times they are not working when asked if they take breaks.


I used to see a lot that when I worked in an office in England. They also used to spend a lot of time on social media or doing online shopping when they were supposed to be working. That's one of the reasons a shorter working week can be more productive - they have to meet their targets in fewer hours, but they have more leisure time out of work.


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## Pazcat (Mar 24, 2010)

Alcalaina said:


> Back to Spanish hours for a moment. Some of you who have children have mentioned that it's difficult to get them to bed at a reasonable time. Do they go to bed earlier than neighbouring Spanish children of the same age? Is that all the time or just school nights? Just wondering because they seem to go to bed very late round here especially in the summer holidays. They do usually have an afternoon nap though.


I couldn't tell you what time the Spanish would send their kids to bed at age 7 & 5 but ours have always been terrible at going to bed early even before we moved here. Now we look at it as a success if they are both in their beds at 9pm and at that point they either quietly read for an hour or so more or they will go mental and play for a bit.
I can't say that I agree with it, at that age I went to bed when Fat Cat went to bed at 7:30pm but that is just the way it is.

But is that considered late really? I doubt it because often you get kids movies that start at 10pm so I don't really know.
Also a nap is unheard of, they both stopped having them years ago and there is no way they would have one now even if you made them.


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## Chopera (Apr 22, 2013)

Alcalaina said:


> Back to Spanish hours for a moment. Some of you who have children have mentioned that it's difficult to get them to bed at a reasonable time. Do they go to bed earlier than neighbouring Spanish children of the same age? Is that all the time or just school nights? Just wondering because they seem to go to bed very late round here especially in the summer holidays. They do usually have an afternoon nap though.


My 6 year old goes to bed between 9 and 10pm and gets up between 7am and 8am (i.e. 10 hours after he went to bed). He doesn't take a siesta (neither do his friends). My 3 year old usually goes to bed a bit earlier and gets up at 8 and occasionally sleeps during the day (she gets about 12 hours sleep a day I guess).

This is term time and fairly typical in Madrid. Generally schools stop siestas around the age of 4 from what I can tell. Some schools operate a jornada intensive whereby the kids leave earlier (maybe 14.30) and I suspect many of those kids have a siesta at home.

During holiday time my kids can be up until midnight or 1am if there's some kind of party/social gathering going on. They'll then sleep in late of course. But usually they're in bed around 10pm. Either way they get the same amount of sleep.

Persomally I love the fact my kids can stay up later - it means I actually spend time with them during the week. The important thing is to live near the school though, so they can get up later. And at the weekends I can go out with them in the evening (babysitters are quite a recent thing in Spain, we might use one a couple of times a year at most)


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## 95995 (May 16, 2010)

Pesky Wesky said:


> The reluctance of staff to take a break???
> That's unusual. Perhaps it's more the inability to take a break due to staff shortages, bad time management (by employees or company) or volume of work.


It's very often fear of losing your job or too much work to get done in the given timeframe (sometimes because of staff shortages, but often because of inapparopriate expectations). Sometimes, too, people do it because they think it might just help them get ahead. It was very very common in my workplace in Australia, as were extra unpaid hours at the end of the working day (or sometimes before the start of the normal working day). It was illegal, but .....


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

Alcalaina said:


> Back to Spanish hours for a moment. Some of you who have children have mentioned that it's difficult to get them to bed at a reasonable time. Do they go to bed earlier than neighbouring Spanish children of the same age? Is that all the time or just school nights? Just wondering because they seem to go to bed very late round here especially in the summer holidays. They do usually have an afternoon nap though.


When we first moved here my two were 4 & 7, & they did go to bed quite a lot earlier than their Spanish classmates. 

I clearly remember a class meeting with the teacher when she asked the Spanish parents to adopt English bed times! As you can imagine that was really well received....

Gradually bedtime became later, but still usually a bit earlier than the Spanish kids. In the summer holidays though, they were allowed to stay up until ........... whenever they crashed or I wanted to go to bed!. They would be out playing with their friends until all hours.


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## Caz.I (Mar 21, 2009)

Alcalaina said:


> Back to Spanish hours for a moment. Some of you who have children have mentioned that it's difficult to get them to bed at a reasonable time. Do they go to bed earlier than neighbouring Spanish children of the same age? Is that all the time or just school nights? Just wondering because they seem to go to bed very late round here especially in the summer holidays. They do usually have an afternoon nap though.


My son's 11 now and goes to bed 10.30-11pm. A bit later at weekends. In the summer it is often later too, and a lot of kids round here, some much younger than him, were running around till after 11pm, often as late as 12. Some kids activities we have been to seem to go on very late - I remember when he was six he went to a friends party at 8pm and they were having Merienda and birthday cake around 10pm! That was a kind of extreme example though.


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## stefig (Jul 14, 2015)

I would say completely synched. The Spanish timetable and customs seem to suit my natural body clock and preferences, so it was never any hardship at all. I almost always have a big lunch around 2.30-3pm, then a long siesta, get up and get things done in the late afternoon/early evening, small dinner around 10-11pm, then bed at 1am or so.


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

It might be an idea to look at UK timetables for kids and ask if it is a good idea for children to be in bed so early....


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## mono (Jan 22, 2016)

I used to go to bed early as a kid. Lay awake for hours every night, usually hiding book and torch. Mind you, we had a big family and I think it was because my mother was exhausted more than anything.


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## Megsmum (Sep 9, 2012)

I'm in uk at the moment. Synced with Spain. Cannot wait to get back to my home in Spain


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

Came back from Madrid on the bus and the Spanish woman I sat next to told me she'd have to cook dinner when she got home. She got off the bus at 21:05, so she didn't get home until 21:15 say. They're not going to be eating until 22:00 I guess. Pretty normal for a Spanish family, but what got me was that she said "Well we have to have dinner early because my son's got to get up for school in the morning"
I just thought of this thread


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## GrownupMomo (Nov 28, 2016)

not true, we are happier than other european countries and the fact is we have dropped on the ranking because of the consequences of adopting the eu coin euro (meant losing 40% of acquisitive value) and the economic crisis we have been through 
about health, search some statistics about weight and alcohol problems and teen pregnancy and compare the numbers.... you´ll be surprised




skip o said:


> Eating late and staying up late is bad for me, and evidence suggests that it can be unhealthy for humans in general. I'd rather feel better physically and have fewer social encounters, but that is me. Everything I have read indicates that Spaniards are less happy and less productive compared to most Europeans, due to the siesta & later work times.


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