The bar manager Adriana Chia has recently opened a new establishment at Antigua, Spain in the center of the Basque Country, named Antigua Compa. The very first thing that struck me about this new club/bar is that it is located in a very prestigious spot, in a very beautiful part of town; the hotel La Cala. Just down the street from her new establishment sits the majestic, seven-star hotel Cartier, and right next door is the very elegant, yet very old and traditional St. Mark’s Square. The atmosphere inside this establishment is truly breath taking; there are three different bars (four if you count the poolside), and the atmosphere exudes a certain type of elitism.
What I find interesting, is the way nationality plays into height difference between the manager/owner and the bar’s regular patrons. On the walls, in large letters, words such as “natual Spaniards”, and “aristocracy”. On the television screens hanging above the bar are words such as “euromancy”, “cerimonials” and “banking”. I have never seen such words in a bar before, and it seems to go well with the theme of an establishment that is focused on certain nationalities and their interests. Further, it makes me wonder how these people feel about their nationalities; in my opinion, it’s a very uncomfortable situation, and yet it is a very real and valid question to be asked.
If the club’s patrons are mostly Catalans, do they not have a problem with being called Spaniards? Are they not Spaniards by choice, but just trying to fit in? The owner seems to think so, and she proudly states on the website that she is a “Catalan national”. Now then, I can understand the nationality issues, and why Chia, the bartender, would find this offensive, but if the club’s patrons are mostly Catalans, and she herself is Catalan, then maybe her “nationality” does not matter to her as much as her choice of a profession.