It's Rough Out There

La calle de la Montera is a very important street right smack dab in the middle of Madrid, and for that matter Spain, since it starts at the Puerta del Sol (the geographic center of Spain) and ends at the Gran Via. This has always been one of the streets where the hookers hang out and ply their trade. In the old days, when I was passing through Montera at late hours on my way to c/ Hortaleza and home, the prostitutes would whistle, wink, call out … hell, even yell sometimes for my attention. I guess I looked like a good prospect, a foreigner with cuartos (that's money).

The problem was: 1) There is no way I would pay for that (at least I haven't so far) and, 2) ALL of the hookers were absolutely scary looking! They were all Spanish in those days (let’s say 1983 through 1995). They were old, fat or very thin due to drugs, bad teeth, probably many were even men, they dressed like some bad 80’s Almodovar stereotype, and they wore nasty make-up. It was really depressing to see, I would quicken my pace near them every time – with head down.

Fast forward to …. today. I walk on Montera now, and thanks to I guess immigration, there are some (not all) very young, and to tell you the truth not bad looking, girls standing around. What the hell is going on? First I think, well times change, things get better. What? Things get better? These are young girls working as prostitutes presumably because they are desperate? Illegal? Or is it just another job to them now?

I’m trying to think…. Are there attractive young girls standing around L.A. Streets working as prostitutes? No, to tell you the truth – I don’t think there are attractive young girls 0n L.A. streets working as prostitutes. But of course in Los Angeles prostitution is illegal and everyone knows it. Prostitution in Spain is one of those, "it's illegal but we don't do anything about it" issues. They even put a police station right on c/ Montera - but obviously no one gets arrested.

Times change, and I think things are getting better in Spain with the EU and all, but judging by the pretty young women selling sex for money, I'd say it's still rough out there for some.