In the indie movie ‘The Spanish Apartment’, Xavier travels to Barcelona as an exchange student to find his true calling in life. He is able to learn Spanish for free by chatting with the local barber, restaurant owner, and his racially-mixed co-boarders. At the end of the movie, Xavier realizes two things:
- his true calling is to be a writer;
- there is no such thing as true France or true Spain as everything is mixed in the whole continent of Europe.
The truth of the matter, though, is that true Spain has not vanished despite the continuing influences from other cultures. There is such a thing as the “Spanish soul” and it can be seen from the way the nation has shrewdly embraced the new ways without forgetting its deep traditions. To this day, Spain remains a fascinating place to visit and to learn great things about its enigmatic soul. Is there really such thing as the ‘Spanish soul’?
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