Monday through Thursday, my days are almost exactly the same. I’ve been in this routine for so long, it’s weird to think that this wasn’t always my life. My routine has almost no diversity between each day. But, of course, my favorite part of my day, and where I sometimes get some diversity, is food time.

Breakfast: I wake up up around 8:30, then have my breakfast. Exactly one piece of toast with peach marmalade, and a cafe con leche. Within the first week, I absolutely despised peach marmalade, but didn’t have much of a choice. After 3 weeks, when I got my roommate Kritsina, Nutella was added to the mix. I could’ve cried with joy I was so happy to see something just a little different. So, for the next 3 weeks, I had one piece of toast with Nutella every day. I leave for class between 9:05 and 9:10. Get to class around 9:20. Once I woke up early and arrived at class around 9:10. That was a very exciting day in my life.

Snack: In school, we have a set lunch break from 11:30 until 11:20, but our professor usually lets us out about 10 minutes early so we can beat the lunch rush. I’ll usually try to avoid getting a snack, they’re cheap but they do add up, but when I do indulge, I never regret it. For a snack, I always get a toastado con jamon y olive oil, a glass of orange juice, and a café con leche. The toastado and jamon are always amazing, and the orange juice here is a spiritual experience.

Lunch: Lunch is the most important meal here in Spain, and so it’s always the largest. It’s not always the most grand or fancy meal, but it gets the job done: the job being keeping you filled until around 10:00pm when dinner is served. Lunch is usually pretty varied, from lentil stew to whole fish and potatoes to pasta and marinara sauce. In my family, this is the meal that the mother makes, and the meal that gets the most time and effort put into it.

Dinner: If I’m being honest, dinner is my favorite meal (besides snack time). The mother of my host family doesn’t get home from work until late, so it’s up to the father to provide the food. Dinner is usually simple, but delicious. From hot dogs, to grilled ham and cheeses, to strange dishes involving eggs, I can always count on dinner to be something to look forward to. This meal, in Spain, is middle sized one. Breakfast is by far the smallest, lunch is by far the largest, and then you have dinner. Like Goldilocks, I’ve found my favorite meal that’s just right.