Going over to Spain and experiencing the siesta culture firsthand can be a little disorientating. This goes double for an 18-year-old kid like Jozy Altidore, who has found life with his new Villareal team (including midday naps) a lot different than his time playing for the Red Bulls. But like most people, he’s gotten used to the siesta as a Spanish cultural right of passage—like Americans loving their 128-oz Big Gulps—and has now embraced it with a big, sleepy embrace.

(Ed note to self: go out and get a 128-oz cannonball Big Gulp.)

“Right off the top, I have to say that so much is so different for me. It’s been a real, quick education. Especially this siesta thing. After we eat lunch, it’s siesta for two and a half hours. You just go take a nap and rest. When you walk past guys’ rooms everyone is asleep. Everyone is shut down for three hours. Man, I love siesta. It’s great!

Yes, but is a midday nap enough of a pull to ditch your mother country’s hope for Olympic gold?

I guess I’m in a tough situation: I want to play in the Olympics but it’s also a critical time for me and my club team. But at the end of the day, it’s country over club. It’s a tough decision, but anytime you can honor your country you have got to seize the moment.

So a midday nap is no challenge for helping your country medal in soccer. See, this is what separates Olympians from stoners. Well, the Summer Olympians, anyway—we all know those extreme guys and gals from the Winter games are half-pipe smokers like whoa.

Jozy Altidore: Love Those Siestas [NY Times]
Image [NY Times]