Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Preparar

In preparation for my trip to Buenos Aires, I thought it might be a good idea to brush up on my sub-par Spanish skills while at home, seeing as I'll hopefully be communicating in Spanish at least 90% of the time while there.  The great thing about living in Los Angeles --and the glamorous city of North Hollywood in particular-- is that there is a large and vibrant Spanish-speaking community at the tips of my fingers.  So, in order to practice and improve, I've decided to surround my eyes and ears with Spanish.

Primero, I've gone to the public library and checked out children's books in Spanish, so that I can learn some basic words (that I should know, but don't).

Segundo, One of my car's radio stations is set to Latino 96.3, an upbeat mix of Latino hits and Top 40 Hip Hop.

Tercero, I am recording all the episodes of "Triunfo del Amor" and "La Rosa de Guadalupe," two very dramatic telenovelas.  I can't really understand everything they're saying, but their dramatic facial expressions and tone of voice help drive home their main storylines.  I've only watched one episode of each, but am very excited to see what happens next.

Y finalmente, I'm getting the Spanish word of the day sent to my email.  It's not the most helpful thing, seeing as I don't know when I'll be referring to bread-making or highchairs in every day conversation, but I suppose the more words, the better.