Dos de mis personas favoritas

Mi papá y mi esposa

Hola de nuevo. Les presento a dos personas de mi familia que son muy importantes para mí. Primero les presento a mi papá. Mi papá se llama Miguel Angel, y él es de Colima, México.

Mi papá también es muy buen abuelo

Mi papá tiene 64 años. ¡Son muchos años! El es muy intelectual, y le gusta mucho leer libros religiosos. En el pasado, él era muy estricto, pero ahora él es muy amable. Normalmente, él está muy contento con la vida.

Mikey en la Sierra Nevada

Éste es mi hermano. El se llama Mikey y tiene 30 años. El también es de Los Angeles, como yo. Mi hermano es muy interesante, porque su actividad favorita es caminar por las montañas.

Mikey después de la Sierra Nevada

 Mikey también es uno de mis mejores amigos. El es estudiante de psicología, y estudia en la universidad de Cal State L.A. Mikey es cómico, atlético, y muy inteligente. Es una persona muy tranquila.

¡Un verano excelente!

I have to say that I had an amazing summer! It began with a bit of adventure in Mexico City. It was my first time visiting this amazing place, after teaching about it for years in the classroom. I was there with my brother (he's the ugly one in the picture), and so that also added a big element of fun for me.

At the ruins of Teotihuacán. Pyramid of the Sun in the background.

Pyramid of the Sun

The highlight of this part of the trip was definitely seeing the ruins of Teotihuacán, which has been on my "absolutely no matter what must visit at some point in my life" list since I started teaching Spanish.

Carved stone serpents

We then made our way over to Colima, Mexico, which is where my parents are from, and is a small town in every sense of the word. The weather was normally 95-100+ degrees with about 80% humidity, and sleeping with a mosquito net was a must. Dengue fever is active in these parts, and I had no interest in bringing  back that kind of memento.

My aunt (tía) laughing at the boys from Los Angeles.

All in all, I had an amazing time in Mexico. I got in touch with my roots again, and finally was able to see some of the things I have always heard and read about. Best of all... I plan on going back!!

Why study languages? That one's easy...

     This is a great question for any of my students to ask themselves, although perhaps not when they are up late studying for a test. There are many benefits to studying language, and in my opinion it comes down to three different reasons: self-improvement/development, connection with other people & cultures, and personal benefits.

     Learning a second language will introduce you to a totally new way of learning/thinking, and will give you perspectives that you maybe didn't have before. Furthermore, there is actual science that shows that being bilingual increases your brains control and strength in situations where you need increased focus. This essentially has to do with forcing your brain to act as a sort of traffic monitor between two languages, which can result in a stronger brain when it comes to attention. Your brain is basically working out. Here is a long article that talks about it if you don't believe me: Brain article

     Connecting with and learning about other cultures, of course, is another reason for learning language. Being able to speak a different language will open you up to having conversations with all kinds of people around you. People that  you probably know nothing about, but that may enlighten you and help you understand the world around you in a different way.

Lastly, it's no secret that knowing a second language can be a huge benefit when we are traveling, and even when the time comes to interview and try to get a job. Any tourist traveling through Spain, France or China who speaks the native language, will have a much different experience than some who doesn't. Not that you have to travel around the world to reap the benefits of language learning. Even going to your favorite international restaurant and ordering in the proper language can lead to random benefits.