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The American Hangout Is a Scam
Bars and cafes shape public life in Spain. In the U.S., they cost too much to matter
My wife and I are about to head to San Francisco for just over two weeks.
We moved to Valencia, Spain in January and let’s just say — solo llevo cuatro meses en Valencia, pero ya voy a echarlo de menos.
I have only been in Valencia for four months, but I am going to miss it.
Writing for a living helps my Spanish learning big time. And my background — as a former urban studies scholar and hospitality-driven bartender — helps me see the glaring distinction between quality of life in the United States versus Spain.
Like it’s not even close.
Though it absolutely relates, we’ll save the meat of the urban planning-focused argument — the lack of vibrant public space and the absence of a lively public social life on the streets of America — for another day.
Today, we focus on food and drink and what it costs to simply “hang out” in places that sell food and drink.
It’s something near and dear to my heart. As a student and lover of cities, I have always been obsessed with good and bad public space and the divide between public and private space.
