What do I think Spanish people love more than paella, flamenco, clothing stores, and the lottery?

Pencil cases.

Not only the students in my Instituto, but professors as well. I've seen men in tuxes and emo-goth girls on the metro whip theirs out.

I always thought pencil cases were a thing of my childhood, displays of affection toward Sailor Moon and Digimon. College was about not knowing twhere your pencils were, finding the loose one in the couch or on the counter before leaving for class, sometimes splurging and buying a whole pack before not knowing where any are the next day.

But Spaniards, they care for their pencils. They have lovely, zippered up houses for their pencils. They're pretty, too. One professor has a sparkly purple snakeskin one. I saw a student with a Hannah Montana one. A man on the metro had a little case with dogs on it.

And it makes sense. Where ya gon keep your pencils?