The Madrid Club
by ViTo • April 19, 2006 No commentsLast night we went to a spanish club for Madrid supporters to watch the Barça-Madrid football match. I find it somehow curious, because, although being in Stuttgart’s downtown it is a spanish bar. Yesterday, the place was packed due to the special event, yet if you go there during the week you will find around 10-12 retired spaniards playing cards exactly as they would in any small town spanish bar. It seems to me as if they brought a little piece from Spain to Stuttgart.
These are people who came to Germany during the sixties looking for a job and a better life. Obviously, after being abroad for more than 40 years they all speak german perfectly, yet they haven’t forgotten a bit of their native spanish. When you arrive to a new country, finding places like this is quite comforting cause it reminds you of your own country and makes you feel like home. I can’t help wondering if that is exactly what the arab immigrants coming to Spain are doing.
I guess I am not objective in this matter, yet I feel this is a different situation. I think the spaniards fully integrated in the german society while keeping some traits of their own culture. In fact, this is what I find logical, and this is a common situation in Germany where there is a significative percentage of turkish population.
Population in 2002:
- German 75,060,000
- Turkish 2,110,000
They have their peculiarities and can be easily identified, yet even between them they all speak german, which proves their full integration. On the other hand, there is a feeling of discomfort with the growing ammount of immigration in Spain. What is the problem?
- Are they too many?
- Don’t they want to adapt?
- Are they not welcome?
- Is Spain different to other countries?
Too many questions and few answers. By the way, the match ended in a 1-1 draw.
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