The end of the month is approaching and sadly this is my last week in Spain. I was happy to spend the final week solely in Burgos, slowly saying good-bye to my Spanish hometown. I revisited my favorite spots: the grassy area down by the river, the bustling plaza mayor, the small café I habituated for my café con leche, and, of course, the bountiful stores boasting their “segundas rebajas” or second markdown sales.
While taking my final drink of the city, I made two more conclusions about style in Burgos. My first revelation lies with the children of Burgos, and honestly, all of Spain. An ordinary toddler in America could be expected to be dressed in petite jeans and a juice stained graphic t-shirt, but not so in Spain. Each child here under the age of 12 and still under their parents’ fashion dictation is dressed to a T, the young girls in stockings, dress shoes and fancy frocks and the young gentlemen in miniature loafers, slacks, and sweater vests. When I asked a local acquaintance about the noticeably proper children, he responded with the speculation that many parents spend more money on their children’s’ clothes than their own, explaining that, in Spain, parents take great pride in dressing their children well.
In addition to perfect tailored pint size clothes, the parents also seem to have a taste for expensive strollers. Made by the best designers in the baby business, these strollers are sleek and fashionable, usually appearing in dark muted tones with a soft pastel trim. Here, it is apparently standard to buy a stroller with an attached bendable umbrella and a plastic rain shield. Ergonomically designed, these strollers arch at strange angles as their owners casually push them through the crowded plaza, perfectly dressed toddlers in tow, as if taking the new sports car out for a cruise.
Another, more subtle trend that I picked up on in Burgos is matching. Instead of two girls glaring at each other from across the café for wearing the same dress, friends happily sit together wearing the same polka dot top. Gaggles of elderly ladies happily shuffle about in coordinating red shoes, navy slacks, white button fronts, and gray cardigans. While people in America seem to avoid wearing the same shirt or similar outfits for fear of judgment on which person wears the look better, people in Spain seem to celebrate the paired companionship that a matching outfit affords, it seems to say, “this is my friend and we are proud to dress a like in order to create a bond that can publicly be seen.”
I am truly sad to be leaving behind sophisticated toddlers and matching friends of Spain, but at least I know that when I return to America that I will have a new perspective on fashion, and to be honest collegiettes™, a renewed desire for gypsy pants.