Spanish encounter at work

One day I was at work in Theisen's in Monticello. I was running the register when I saw an hispanic costumer walk into the store. While I was helping the people in line I heard this hispanic talking costumer talking in spanish! To my surprise another costumer approached this man and was speaking in fluent spanish as well. I couldn't understand all of what they were saying but I did understand some of it. I was so shocked that I could use my spanish this close to home!

Enrique Iglesias

Last week I was watching best songs of the 2000's. There was a song that came on that I hadn't heard in awhile. It was Hero by Enrique Iglesias. I was kind of shocked because I didn't know that he sung this song. I thought he just started becoming popular these lat two years but I was definitely wrong. I figured he could be somebody I could blog about.
Enrique Iglesias was born on May 8, 1975 in Madrid, Spain. In 1985 his grandfather was kidnapped by a terrorist group, so he was sent to live with his father in Miami. He started off as a Spanish singer and was extremely popular in Latin America. In the 1990's he switched to mainstream English, and started selling albums in the U.S. He has sold over 60 million records worldwide. He won both a Grammy and a Latin Grammy. He holds the record for producing 19 #1's on the Billboard's Hot Latin Tracks. Some of his greatest songs were "Expiriencia Religiosa, Vivir, Miente, Bailamos, Hero, Escape, Do You Know, I Like It, and Tonight."
Enrique Iglesias is an amazing singer. He is well respected in many countries. I hope he comes out with new songs soon.
"Enrique Iglesias." Lyrics Freak. 2010. Web. 14 October 2011.

Hispanic media

The other day, I was watching an episode of South Park about border control. Of course, the episode was not school appropriate, however it attempted to show some spanish culture. One of the characters goes on to become a Mexican icon. He starts off mistaken as an illegal immigrant and works low-level jobs an illegal alien would do. It shows misunderstanding and prejudice Mexicans have to deal with.

I also watched a show about an area affected by drug cartels in Mexico. They would follow around officers and doctors who would go to murder scenes. The censorship was much lower than that of a typical American show. One thing that struck me was that 4 or 5 deaths per day wouldn't be surprising. Another thing was that even immediately after shootings, surrounding businesses and people of the are went about their day as if nothing had happened.

Carlos Esteves

You may know him a Charlie Sheen, or the Machine, or Charlie Harper, or even maybe as that rock star from Mars but you may not know that he is of Latino descent. His birth name was actually Carlos Esteves, but he changed it to Charlie Sheen to gain more credibility as an actor because his father, famous actor Martin Sheen, changed his name but gave his son his birth name. His first movie was The Execution of Private Slovik when he was 9. Although when he was in high school, his acting and baseball careers both looked promising he was expelled for poor grades and attendance and never graduated. Since he has appeared in many classic movies,Platoon, Wall Street, and Major League. What Charlie Sheen is best known for is Two and a Half Men where he became the highest paid comedy actor on TV by making 350,000 per episode until he was fired. Since the 90s, he has dealt with sex, drug and alcohol addictions. Regardless, I view him as a great actor who has had some shortfalls. I think that he has a lot of talent and knows what he is doing when it comes to a lot of things and I believe that it would be hard to dispute that. I find that a lot of people view him as this horrible person who does not care about other but just based off of hearing him speak, I would argue that he does bad things but he truly believes what he is doing is the right thing to do. One way or another, the way I will remember him is his quotes. Although they often make no sense and leave you wondering what is going on, they make you laugh and at times can even be motivational. "I have one speed. One gear. Go! I dare you to keep up with me." "People say it's lonely at the top, but I sure like the view.""Dying is for fools. " "Winning!"

spanish entounter while shopping

My family and I were on our way to Cedar Rapids to go shopping and we were trying to find were Optic Lenses was so we called information ,and then they started to talk in Spanish. They asked the city and state and the place we were looking for. I found it interesting because you would expect it to be in English but you had to change it. Then when we got to the mall there were people talking in Spanish and it was cool ,because they were talking really fast and I understood some of what they were talking about as I walked by. Did you know on some of the tags on clothes the sizes and stuff are in Spanish. Spanish is all around us and know I can see that. Next time when your shopping stop and look around you there is Spanish every were.

Music

I got Demi Lovados CD on Itunes and I was looking threw the songs and I noticed that there was a song in spanish. I listened to the song a few times and I understood the words that Demi was singing. After listening to the song for a few times I listened to it in English and I was correct on the words. I was shocked that I would actually know and understand what she was singing. I thought it was very interesting that spanish was on that CD.

Mexican Farmhands

A few months ago I had the chance to work for one of my dad's friends as a farmhand. My dad farms too, but he doesn't really need any extra help and working for this other guy i got paid nine dollars an hour. I've been working there regularly now and ever since I've started more and more Mexicans have started there too. Usually workers only stay there for a little while until they get sick of it and just leave. There is only one other white guy there near my age that occasionally works when I do. Otherwise when it's just me I almost feel a little intimidated being surrounded and outnumbered by Mexican strangers that or older than me. I never talk to them and they never talk to me. I've gotten use to it, yet it still seems weird were they all come from to work there. I never really thought about it until I had to do my blog and instantly I thought about farming there. At least ten Mexicans work there and only four whites. Its out in the country in earlville, I just don't get where they are from since whites are dominate in our rural community. The only other place where I notice Mexicans are at the mall. Maybe someday soon I'll build up my confidence enough to get over my antisocial-shyness and say "de donde eres?" Of course I know they speak English. I wouldn't want someone to get mad at me thinking that I assumed that they did not. By saying that may make me seem ignorantly narrow-minded and almost incriminating to the point racism. Still however though they are very quiet when working and hardly talk, even with eachother.

Summer Time in Mexico

This summer I went with the Spanish Club to Mexico! It was one amazing experience. The culture, food, way of daily life, and everything was so much different then here! When we first got there I was so excited! I had no idea what to expect. Let's just say it was the end of July and you could tell. The climate was so very different there. You wouldn't feel like you were completely hot, but you would be sweating horribly! The food was way, way different then it is here. Here you think of Mexican as sala, chips, and beef tacos! There its mainly pork and chicken tacos with corn tortillas (not the best.) A beef taco down there was like a steak taco here! It took awhile for everyone to get adjusted to the food, just ask Stacey Murray and Taylor Lubben! Going the bathroom I was not used to at all. Throwing your used TP in the toliet was bad! Well you always had a garbage can right there for you! The culture is very different. They are more family, family, family! Us, we are more friends, hanging out, things like that! They were always with there family! When I got my nails done in Isla Mueres, the lady that did my nails her aunt, grandma, mother, sister, and others all came in to talk to her. It was like whoa! Family Reunion! If you even knew a little of spanish it was the biggest thing to them! It made them so happy! We are used to forest, but there it's all jungle, and weird fields. The life down there is just so very different. I would DEFINATLY suggest going to Mexico! One experiance you will never forget!

Spanish TV

One day, while I was flipping through the channels on our Dish, I noticed an all Spanish channel. Realizing that it would be a perfect opportunity for a blog idea, I decided to check it out. I didn't watch enough of the show to follow what it was about, however I did recognize some of the words they said. One thing that was an eye opener for me was how fast they talked! I didn't realize it until now. On top of the fast talking, some of them had very heavy accents, which made it even more difficult to pick out words that I recognized. Another thing that surprised me was the commercials. Their commercials are just like those we have here. For example, there were commercials for Jeep, Avon, and Covergirl. Drew Barrymore starred in the Covergirl commercial, and her nationality is American, so it was nice to see that they incorporated some American pop culture in their television. It was also nice to finally put what I have learned the past three years to use. I was also surprised at how many words and phrases I recognized.

Sofia Vergara

A show that I enjoy watching is Modern Family. I like it because it is a really funny and entertaining show. One of my favorite characters on the show is Gloria. Gloria is a very outgoing and outspoken woman. She says what is on her mind, and she doesn't care what she says. Gloria is also a latina woman. She is played by Sofia Vergara. Sofia was born on July 10, 1972 in Barranquilla, Colombia. A surprising fact abot her is that she is a natural blonde. It is surprising because when you think of Latina women, you think of deep, dark brown hair. From a young age, Sofia went to classes at a private bilingual school, where she mastered the english language. In her teenage years, Sofia was noticed for her good looks. She was a model, and when she was 17 she appeared in a Pepsi commercial in Latin America. At the age of 18, she got married and had a son, Manolo. After modeling, she transfered over to acting. In Latin America, she appeared on many shows. She also appeared on a spanish channel in the United States. Later, she crossed over to American television and movies. She appeared in the movie Four Brothers and the show Entourage. You can now see Sofia on Modern Family, which is on ABC on Wednesdays.

Fernando Alonso

Fernando Alonso

Fernando Alonso is a Spanish Formula One driver. He was born on July 29, 1981 in Spain. He sat in his first racing kart when he was three years old. Like his dad, Jose Luis, Fernando shared a passion for racing. He won 8 races of a junior competition when he was just seven years old. His dad served as his mechanic until he was 12. Fernando won almost all of his competitions. Soon he realized that his families income could not support the fees of his costly racing. So he worked hard to win races to find sponsors, and he succeeded. He constantly broke records for being the youngest racer in a competition's class. A former Formula One driver, Adrián Campos, entered Fernando into the Euro Open MoviStar by Nissan race in 1999 and he won. Fernando then climbed his way rapidly to the top, and by 2001 he was entering his first Formula One race. In 2003 he won the Hungarian Grand Pix Formula One race with Renault. He was the youngest driver to place in 2002 and to win in 2003. Fernando is a two-time World Champion. From the age of three, stepping in to his first racing kart, to winning the World Championship, Fernando Alonso has fulfilled his father's greatest dream for him. Way to go Fernando, you are very inspiring.

http://www.spanish-fiestas.com/celebrities/fernando-alonso.htm

Selena Gomez

I decided to do my blog over Selena Gomez. Selena was born in New York and then at a younge age moved to Grand Prairie,Texas. Her parents are originally from Mexico. There she got rolls in the shows, "Barney and Friends" in 1992, and "Gianna" in 2001. Then her acting career hit a low, she wasnt getting auditions and she wasn't staring in any television shows or movies. Then she got a small roll as "Mikayla" in Hannah Montana. In this roll she played she had to dispise Hannah and had to be better than her. And next a roll in "The Suite Life Zack and Cody." There she played "Gwen." After those kick starts her career seemed to sky rocket. She then got the lead roll in "The Wizards of Waverly Place," as Alex Russo. In "Wizards," also she plays the daughter of a Latino Family! Then she stared in the movies, "The Princes Protection Prgram," "Horton Hears a Who!" "Another Cinderella Story," and "Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie." Selena enjoys hanging out with her best friend, Demi Lavoto when she gets the chance. Also her favorite subjuct is Science, and she loves to play basketball.

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1411125/bio

Salma Hayek

I decided to do my blog on Salma Hayek. The idea came to me this weekend after I got done watching Grown Ups, which she stars in. Salma Hayek was born September 2, 1966 in Mexico. She first became famous in Mexico after she starred in "Theresa" a soap opera. Salma left Mexico in 1991 and moved to L.A. in hopes of furthering her career. At first Salma was discouraged, she was having trouble getting jobs, and didn't land any huge movies. In 1995 she got her big break and starred on Desperado. Since then Salma Hayek has appeared in many movies. In 2009 she married Francois-Henri Pinault. She is continuing to further her career, and is a great role model to many young kids today.

URL: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000161/bio

Spanish Experience at the Mall

Tyler, John, Luke, and myself were walking along at the Dubuque Mall when Tyler said that he wanted a phone cover. So we went to the phone cover booth in the mall and a Mexican man was working and on his phone. After he got off his phone he looked to us and said que pasa. I instantly replied with nada and then he started talking in English. I am guessing he forgot he had to talk in English or something but I also think he was surprised that I said something back to him in Spanish. Its cool to think that I can do that now and be confident in what I say. Luke and Tyler were surprised I even responded and I honestly was too. But, the hard work in Espanol III is paying off and that is good to know.

Carlitos Funke

Daisy Fuentes

Although Ms. Fuentes was born in Havana, Cuba, her family fled to Madrid, Spain when she was three years old due to political annoyances. Daisy learned English by watching I Love Lucy episodes, so when her family soon moved to New Jersey, she was prepared for the American life. She began modeling during her senior year of high school and was offered a weather girl position at a local news channel while attending Bergen Community College and majored in communications. Fuentes soon moved to New York where she was named host of the MYV International, a one hour Spanish speaking show that aired in Latin America and the United States. Daisy Fuentes continued her career with modeling, being a spokesperson and even hosting America's Funniest Home Videos and Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin Eve. Among her accomplishmenst, Fuentes appeared on the cover of People in Espanol's "50 Most Beautiful" women, created her first fashion line in 2004 along with haircare products and a new perfume, and also came out with Daisy Fuentes Pilates for Nintendo Wii in 2009. Today, Fuentes lives in California continuing with her many talents. Although she has never been married and has no children, she couldn't be happier living the life she's always dreamed of.

Carlos Marin

Il Divo might be an Italian band name, but this group is made of four men from four different countries. One of the men is Carlos Marin. He was born on October 13th, 1968. He was discovered when he was young. His first album came out when he was only eight years old, and the second was when he was ten. He also performed in many musicals including the following: Les Misérables, The Beauty and the Beast, and Grease. He sang for Tim Burton's Nightmare Before Christmas and the Spanish version of Cinderella. He was a baritone for many operas including La Traviata, The Barber of Seville, La Bohème, Lucia Di Lammermoor, and Madame Butterfly, and many more. He is now a singer in the group called Il Divo. They were put together by Simon Cowell in 2006. The group is touring and the first time I saw them was on America's Got Talent about a week ago. They sing in different languages and are big in other countries. Carlos Marin has been a baritone for many years and is still persuing a career in music. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GYMLMj-SibU
"Carlos Marin Il Divo Fans." Il Divo Fans Il Divo News Community By and For Fans. N.p., n.d. Web. 5 Oct. 2011.

A few days ago I heard the song "Hips Don't Lie" on the radio, and I realized that Shakira would be an interesting person to do a blog on. She was born on February 2, 1977 in Barranquilla, Colombia. Her father was Lebanese and her mother Colombian. Shakira honors her Latino heritage throughout her music. Her major breakthrough was her album Pies Descalzos. The album had Latin, rock and Arabic music. She was very famous in the Spanish-language markets, but also wanted to be famous in the U.S. Pop Charts. Shakira moved to Miami and taught herself how to write songs in English. In 2001, her first English album Laundry Service was a big hit. Shakira has won two Grammy Awards and seven Latin Grammy Awards. By 2006 she had won 32 awards.

Learning about Shakira made me realize that she worked really hard to get to where she is today. Teaching herself how to write songs in English could not have been easy and today she is a very popular singer because of that. She had a goal of becoming a singer and creating English albums and she achieved that goal.

http://www.biography.com/people/shakira-189151

Fools Rush In

A couple of nights ago Dad and I were watching Fools Rush In. I have always liked the movie and was glad to watch it again, although this time was different because when parts had Mexican culture in it, I kept thinking about what Senorita said about them in class and she was completely right. Isabella's (the girl in the picture) father was extremely angry when she became pregnant and put many Catholic pressers on the baby's dad and her boyfriend (the guy in the picture.) They are very much into their religion and will keep the faith within the family.

When Isabella or anyone would speak Spanish it was very hard to keep up with the speed that they talk. The words on the bottom helped but I still had a hard time making out the Spanish they were speaking. The movie just reiterated that Spanish people are extremely religious and they do speak very, very fast and that we still have so much improvement to do so we can speak just like them.