The Lunch That Never Ends

In Spain, lunch does not end when the food ends. The plates are empty. The waiter takes them away. And nobody stands up. The family stays at the table and talks. One hour. Two hours. Sometimes more. Tag a friend who can talk for three hours at the table.

U Španjolskoj ručak ne završava kad nestane hrane. Tanjuri su prazni. Konobar ih odnosi. I nitko ne ustaje. Obitelj ostaje za stolom i priča. Jedan sat. Dva sata. Ponekad i više. Označi prijatelja koji može pričati tri sata za stolom.

This time has a special name in Spanish, sobremesa. It means the time at the table after the meal. There is coffee. Maybe a small sweet. But the important thing is the talking. Stories, jokes, family news, football. The afternoon goes slowly, and that is the point.

Ovo vrijeme ima posebno ime na španjolskom, sobremesa. Znači vrijeme za stolom poslije jela. Ima kave. Možda mali slatkiš. Ali važna stvar je razgovor. Priče, šale, obiteljske vijesti, nogomet. Popodne prolazi polako, i to je poanta.

You are new in Spain, and you do not know this. After lunch you stand up fast, because you have plans. Everyone looks at you, surprised. Your Spanish friend pulls you back into your chair and smiles. Sit down, she says. Where is the fire? The best part of lunch is starting now.

Ti si nov u Španjolskoj i ne znaš to. Poslije ručka brzo ustaneš, jer imaš planove. Svi te gledaju, iznenađeni. Tvoja španjolska prijateljica te povuče natrag na stolicu i nasmiješi se. "Sjedni", kaže ona. "Gdje gori? Najbolji dio ručka tek počinje."