Is this acceptable Spanish behaviour?

[sportmixture]

I have rented a house for the summer in the canaries, it is in a small village, there is a small one way road between the house and the sea and we have a pool and there is an almost 5 foot wall between the pool and the road. There are quite a few tourist though not loads as there are no hotels. When we are in our garden ( and when we are not) people walking past keep hanging over our wall pointing at us and our house and acting like we are zoo exhibits!! I understand people will walk past and might glance over but I am talking about practically climbing on the wall, I have tried saying hello but they then act like I am being crazy! Is this normal Spanish behaviour? I spend quite a lot of time in the canaries and I have never encountered this before.

[The80sweregreat]

Sounds odd!

[sportmixture]

Update- just been to the tapas bar, and fished discreetly about people looking over my wall, the locals are mortified but have said that this is typical of the tourist behaviour - we are quite close to a couple of popular tourist attractions and restaurants and tourists think they are well within reason to look over and decide they might like to stay there in the future, so no dead people hidden there - thankfully, just rude tourists, hoped this was the case as local people have made us really welcome andy children have already been to invited to a couple of the local children's birthday parties, we do speak ok Spanish have been going to night classes for a while as I really want to integrate and feel part of community as we come from a town in Scotland so used to everyone knowing our business xx

[FruBayerischOla]

I agree with PPs that it's just curiosity!

I imagine a lot of holiday villas/rentals are actually lived in by the owners during the rest of the year. Stayed in a villa in Greece once and it was quite obvious that the owners lived there when they didn't have holiday bookings.

Maybe your wall climbing ladies are just a sort of Neighbourhood Watch on behalf of the owners

[Littlechocola]

How do you know they are Spanish?

[LinoleumBlownapart]

Given that the us has the highest debt in the world, that's well into the trillions, I think that's a bit rich (excuse the pun) to reject them on that basis .

[Lweji]

Is there an attic? Maybe you have the ghost of a mad woman peeking at the window.

[Lweji]

&As it stands it appears that Congress may reject their request as currently PR has an outstanding debt of $74 billion and is facing bankruptcy*

They'd be joining a few other high debt states.

[Salmotrutta]

Are there any very interesting plants in the garden OP?

Maybe the people doing this are keen gardeners?

Or something?

[originalbiglymavis]

We lived in a cute little​ house in a cul de sac with no pavement and window onto the road.

Many a time I'd be sitting in my PJs nursing a hangover over a coffee, or doing the crossword with a cuppa tea and tourists would come right up to the window and press their faces up to the glass to see if 'people live in there'.

[AcrossthePond55]

Lino it's because PR isn't a state, it's a territory. Only 'fully-fledged' states can vote in presidential elections. Technically Congress has authority over PR, but PR is considered to be effectively self-governed by an elected governor. The 'head of state' is the US president. Statehood can only be granted by Congress.

PR (a beautiful place) recently passed a referendum saying they'd like to become a state. Now a request for statehood has to be made and then it has to go through Congress. As it stands it appears that Congress may reject their request as currently PR has an outstanding debt of $74 billion and is facing bankruptcy. If they became a state the US would be expected to assume that debt. Before this financial debacle, the people of PR rejected statehood in previous referendums.

[BertrandRussell]

Have you offered them some beads or other trade goods?

[LinoleumBlownapart]

Yep possibly or perhaps Italian NY American
Speedy has already made his position clear

[Lweji]

I believe he's American, not Spanish.
Speedy Gonzalez, otoh, it's an illegal alien, who'll pay for the mouse traps.

[LinoleumBlownapart]

Lweji isn't tweety pie Spanish? Or should I say la tweety misses point

[LinoleumBlownapart]

Puerto Rico is a US territory. Puerto Ricans are US citizens but they cannot vote in presidential elections.

Really? !!!? That's shocking given that they are governed by Adolf Twitler Donald Flump. I'm suprised there hasn't been a revolution or something, that's a dictatorship by all accounts, what's the loop hole?

[Lweji]

The canaries aren't even in Spain

After all is said and done, that's factually correct, though.

The vast majority of canaries are not Spanish or in Spain, I'd guess.

The Canary Islands, or the Canaries, on the other hand, are.

[AcrossthePond55]

Puerto Rico is a US territory. Puerto Ricans are US citizens but they cannot vote in presidential elections.

Hawaii is a US state. Hawaiians are US citizens with full voting rights just like any other citizen of any other state in the Union.

[HeartsTrumpDiamonds]

Ugh stop it everyone.

It's geography versus political boundaries.

Two different things.

Geographically the Canaries are not part of the Iberian peninsula / Spanish mainland. Politically the Canaries are part of Spain.

Easy peasy.

[MrsOverTheRoad]

In Italy people openly stare...maybe it's like that?

[LinoleumBlownapart]

Yes, I believe so but they are special ones, not quite the same.

originalbiglymavis 😂😂
thenightsky you said Spain, better get your armour out and wait for the onslaught!

[HellonHeels]

Can people from Gibraltar and the Falkland Islands get British passport if those places are not part of the UK?

[Gwenhwyfar]

My grandparents in north Wales (within Snowonia National Park) used to get people staring at the house. Luckily it had a little garden so they didn't quite have their noses up to the windows, but it was almost like that. My granddad said it was because they (tourists) found it 'quaint'.

[thenightsky]

You've rented a house for the summer. God I'm jealous. I'd love to rent a house in Spain for a whole season.

[jealous]

[TathitiPete]

Yes OP this is definitely a Spanish thing. Every single person who is from any part of Spain, or even any Spanish owned territories, peers over walls at people. It's actually the third favourite national pastime. Behind running with bulls and having giant tomato fights.