25 Yet More Fun Things This American Has Learned About The Spanish Language

Good news is I'm still learning a lot of Spanish. Bad news is that I have only reached the level of speaking of a 4 year old. Better news is that I am noticeably improving all the time. Worse news is that I mix advanced expressions with child-like mistakes. Best news is that I don't care about any of the bad news. Worst news is that the people listening to my Spanish do care about the bad, worse, and worst news', because it makes it hard for them to understand me.

Like in part 1 and part 2 (and part 4, part 5, part 6, part 7, part 8) of this series, I am constantly noticing the subtleties of Spanish, and I want to share them with you. Here are 25 Yet More Fun Things This American Has Learned About The Spanish Language.

1. Parejas disparejas (pairs that don't match) - There are many words that have different meanings depending if the word is masculine or feminine. Fruta (fruit) is the delicious food that you consume, whereas fruto (fruit) is a general term to describe fruit of plants, or the outcome or benefits of something (i.e. fruit of labor = fruto del trabajo). 

Also el televisor is the medium through which you watch la televisión. 

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Bilbao, Spain: White Night and Nice Weather

Synopsis: Guess who has a friend in Bilbao? Yup, this guy! (I set you up for success on that one). So, I'll visit my friend, Iuliana, for two days in the largest city of Basque Country, and check out the home of the Guggenheim museum and delicious seafood. 

Con Puppy (pronounced "poopy" in Spanish)

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12 Stereotypes This American Notices in a Language Class

I thought about doing this as a follow up to Sabes Que Me Saca de Mis Casillas, but I didn't. How anti-climatic was that explanation? Anyway, here are some things in Spanish class that I notice/irritate me, but probably are the same in any learning environment. I present to you: 12 Stereotypes This American Notices in a Language Class. (cue theme music)

1. Know-it-all's 

It's ok to be smart. It's ok to show off your intelligence. But when the teacher calls on someone else, and you are blurting out the answers, now you're just a jerk. 

2. Know-nothing's

We've been taking this class for several months and you still don't know the basics? Why do you even come to class?

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El Matrix Trilogía - Un Revisión

Acabo de ver las tres pelis de trilogía El Matrix, en español. La primera peli ha salido cuando tenia 15 anos y no entendí todo. La segunda y tercera han salido cuando estuve a la universidad y realmente, no entendí todo en ese momento tampoco. Pero ahora, soy adulto y mas inteligente que un bebe y por fin, entiendo la historia completamente. La primera vez perdí algunas detalles pequenas, que en realidad, estaban grandes y influye la historia mucho. Y no puedo mentir, puse los subtítulos en ingles, porque hay muchas palabras grandes en esas pelis, aún difíciles en ingles!

La historia es de un programador de ordenador, Neo, que buscas algo que se llama el matrix. Encuentra alguien que se llama Morpheo que le ayuda descubrir la verdad: esta viviendo dentro una programa de un ordenador y la vida real es mucho menos bonita. Los ser humanos han destruido la tierra y las maquinas han asumido control de la tierra, incluyendo los ser humanos, que los utilizan como pilas por energía. Dentro el matrix, Neo y sus amigos tienen que luchar para buscar como ganar las maquinas en el mundo real. 

Tras viendo las pelis, me he fijado que me olivdado completamente la tercera peli y no he dado cuenta como la historia ha atado junto al final. Con escenas muy elaborado, gran batallas y efectos especiales, las tres pelis son muy divertidos, excitantes y emocianantes. Al final fijamos lo que nos hace ser humanos es nuestra capaz a elegir lo que queremos pensar y creer. Eso es ser ser humano.

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8 Major Differences in Youth Basketball: Spain vs USA

Since the family I au pair for has two children that play youth basketball here in Spain, I've had a first-hand look at how youth basketball works here, and at times I've been completely shocked at some of the differences. Of course, it's possible that youth basketball has changed in the US as well, and I'm just comparing two different generations of basketball, not differences in countries, but we'll pretend that's not the case.

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