Archive for 'Uncategorized'
The Spanish Language in Modern Miami Posted by Transparent Language on Mar 28, 2008
We all know Gloria Estefan and her love for her tierra. Gloria has tried to keep her Cuban flame burning over the years and she´s openly proud of her heritage. Gloria is one of the good examples of an immigrant who came to the US as a baby and set the platform for many Latin…
Practice Your Listening Skills Posted by Transparent Language on Mar 19, 2008
A great and pleasant way of improving your listening skills in a foreign language is watching TV. So if you´re studying Spanish and have access to Telemundo or Univision, you´re in for great learning! Besides providing you with real, unedited listening practice, watching these channels will take you on a magic and wonderful journey of…
Colombian Pop Posted by Transparent Language on Mar 12, 2008
So if you think that news from Colombia only mean Latin bombshell Shakira and drug trafficking, think again: Juanes (Juan Esteban Aristizábal Vásquez) is here to stay. The 35-year-old was a member of the heavy metal band Ekhymosis but disbanded the group in 1998 to pursue a solo career. Besides being a best-selling recording artist…
Pablo Neruda Posted by Transparent Language on Feb 19, 2008
As I mentioned in my Reading List the previous month, one of my favorite poets is Pablo Neruda. Originally from Parral, Chile, Neruda is widely acclaimed as one of the world’s most influential poets and was the recipient of the Nobel Prize in 1971. Neruda’s poetry runs the gamut from sensual love sonnets to politically…
Pronunciation, Natural Stress, and Written Accents Posted by Transparent Language on Feb 11, 2008
PART I One of the things I often noticed about my Spanish students was the difficulty they had knowing where to place the stress when pronouncing words. I don’t remember learning this explicitly in my high school Spanish classes (although I probably did) and I suppose I expected my students to intuit this aspect of…
Archaeological Discovery in Mexico City Posted by Transparent Language on Jan 31, 2008
An exciting archaeological discovery in Mexico City is shaking things up for pre-Hispanic historians. Salvador Guilliem Arroyo announced that his team had uncovered ancient ruins in Tlatelolco, a neighborhood in the center of the sprawling capital. Believed to be built between 800 and 1,100 A.D., the site’s Templo Mayor (Main Temple) could be 225…
Report on the State of Poverty in Latin America: ECLAC Posted by Transparent Language on Jan 28, 2008
In he midst of much negative press coming out of Latin America, there is one piece of news that is cause for celebration. Last month, the UN’s Economic Commission on Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) released its report on the current state of poverty in the region, Social Panorama of Latin America 2007, applauding…