Hola España! Capítulo 1 - Spanish Inspired
←
→
Page content transcription
If your browser does not render page correctly, please read the page content below
¡Hola España!
Capítulo 1Capítulo 1- ¡Hola España!
For the next few months Mary prepared for her trip. She had explained to her
mother that she would be traveling to Spain to visit her favorite teacher from
college who now was running a non pro t organization in Valencia. Mary was
relieved that her mother believed the story since Rose was usually reluctant to let
her daughter out of her sight. Mary had been planning this trip since the moment
she got the letter from the Embassy of Spain. She invited her best friend to go to
Spain with her. They would not travel together. Mary would arrive to Spain one
week earlier so she could meet with faculty and students at the University of
Valencia.
As the day of her trip approached, Mary was beaming with anticipation. She
couldn’t stop thinking about how nally she would be set free from her mother’s
unrelenting grip. Mary’s departure quickly arrived and she soon found herself
waiving good-bye to her mother at the airport’s entrance. Mary rushed through
check-in and security to make it to her gate on time.
Boarding the plane, Mary checked the ticket, approached her assigned seat and saw
that next to her was a handsome man in perhaps his mid thirties. He was reading
the book “100 Spanish Phrases”.
Jokingly, Mary said “Hola, mi nombre es Mary.” The person seated next to her
smiled back and said “Hola Mary! ¡Encantado de conocerte! Mi nombre es Liam.”
He was an anthropologist going to Spain to take intensive Spanish classes over the
summer. Liam had just been admitted to the Master O cial de Gestión Cultural, a
graduate program starting in September. They struck up a leisurely conversation
over the in- ight meal of chicken, potatoes and mixed veggies.
Capítulo 1- ¡Hola España!
Page 1Capítulo 1- ¡Hola España!
It was Liam's rst visit to Spain and he confessed that he was a little nervous
about visiting a country where he wasn’t familiar with their native language. Mary
proposed that they use their time on the plane to practice their Spanish skills.
¿En qué hotel estás?” Mary had asked as she pierced a piece of chicken with her
plastic fork.
“Estoy en el Hotel Petit Palace en el barrio Ruzafa,” Liam seemed embarrassed
about his Spanish pronunciation. He added in English; “the hotel had fantastic
reviews and the neighborhood felt right”. He took o his reading glasses and
laughed. Then, he added, “sounds silly I know.”
“Don’t switch to English Liam” Mary said rmly. The only way to get comfortable
using a second language is to try to speak in your new language all the time.
“Yo también estoy en el Hotel Petit Palace,” said Mary. “El barrio Ruzafa es
perfecto para gente joven. Hay muchos bares muy divertidos en esa zona.”
Liam looked at his book of Spanish phrases and said,
“El hotel está cerca de la Plaza de Toros de Valencia. ¿Quieres ir el domingo a ver
una corrida de toros?”
Mary looked away and said “No, gracias. No me gustan las corridas de toros.”
Capítulo 1- ¡Hola España!
Page 2Capítulo 1- ¡Hola España!
Trying to change the topic of conversation, she said “I think I will give up trying to
attack this rubbery chicken and see if I nd something good to order from the duty
free!” Then, she added “Isn’t it funny that we will stay at the same hotel? It must
be fate!” She grabbed a soft blanket from her bag, opened the in- ight magazine
and relaxed in her seat.
Mary had been worried about making friends since it hadn’t always come naturally
to her, mainly because Rose had always been so overbearing. Mary pushed
thoughts of her mother to the back of her mind. This was her time now and she
was determined to enjoy her trip.
The plane landed at Valencia International Airport in the afternoon. As Liam and
Mary reached the customs counter they were asked “¿Pasaportes, por favor?”
Mary and Liam showed their passports. They followed the sign “Equipaje” and
then “Salida.” Stepping out of the airport, the warm Valencian air hit Mary’s face
and instantly she felt like she had arrived at her new home. She could see the sun
going down behind the beautiful mountains and smell the sweet fragrance of the
orange trees from the elds near the road. Mary at last felt like her life held
promise and that her future was bright.
As they walked toward the taxi stand, a Spanish lady tapped Mary on the
shoulder, “¿Me puedes decir la hora?”
Mary stopped and looked at her watch that she had adjusted to Spanish time earlier
on the plane.
“Son las siete y treinta.”
Capítulo 1- ¡Hola España!
Page 3Capítulo 1- ¡Hola España!
The lady nodded, “Muchas gracias.”
Liam nudged Mary, “Hey, you are really good at this.”Mary proudly replied,
“Estudio español con un profesor muy bueno.”
Liam grinned and said, “Well, as they say, practice makes perfect.”
“Why don’t we share a cab to the hotel?” Mary o ered. “There is no point in
taking separate cabs when we are heading to the same place.”Liam nodded, “Buena
idea”
The taxi attendant motioned a cab forward and Mary hauled her suitcase over the
sidewalk, signaling Liam to follow.
The Spanish cab driver jumped out of the cab and opened the trunk. Mary and Liam
placed their luggage in the back and slid onto the back seat of the cab.
“¿Nos puede llevar al Petit Palace en Ruzafa por favor?”
The driver said. “Por supuesto señora.”
Mary replied “Señora no, señorita.”
The old man nodded and apologized “Disculpe, señorita.”
Winding down the cab window, Mary smelled in the Spanish air. She couldn’t wait
for her holiday to begin and at the same time couldn’t deny that there was a trace
of chemistry between her and Liam.
Capítulo 1- ¡Hola España!
Page 4Capítulo 1- ¡Hola España!
“¿Cuántos días va a estar en Valencia?” The cab driver asked.
“Dos semanas” Mary responded. “Estoy aquí para practicar mi español.”
The cab driver looked at her through the rear view mirror, “Tú hablas español muy
bien. Me gusta tu acento. Todos los turistas tienen que aprender las frases: por
favor y muchas gracias.” He wrinkled his nose as he complained.
Mary couldn’t help herself but chuckle. The driver looked so cute in his Real
Madrid shirt and matching hat. In fact, his whole taxi was decorated with pictures
of players from the Real Madrid soccer team. Looking out of the window, Mary
watched the bright and beautiful Spanish countryside pass by. Finally they arrived
at the hotel, a remarkable building that looked imposing against the Spanish sky.
“Este es el hotel." the cab driver announced.
“Buena elección de hotel” he added as he parked the car on the street. “Mi
hermana trabaja en este hotel. Ella es coordinadora de eventos. Su nombre es
Estela. Dile que Pedro es tu amigo, ¿vale?”
Pedro got out of the cab and walked around to the trunk, opened it and pulled out
Mary and Liam's luggage. Mary got out of the car and walked around to the back.
“Este viaje es quince euros, por favor señorita. Un precio especial para tí” Pedro
winked at Mary and she couldn’t help but laugh.
Rummaging through her purse, she found the proper fare along with a tip. “Una
propina para el taxista mas amable de Valencia.” Mary said.
Capítulo 1- ¡Hola España!
Page 5Capítulo 1- ¡Hola España!
Pedro beamed at her as he closed the trunk. “Muchas gracias. Los españoles
generalmente no dan propinas. Habla con Estela. Ella es muy buena persona.”
Mary waived him goodbye and said, “Por supuesto.”
Pedro reached into his checkered shirt pocket and pulled out a business card, “Este
es el nombre de mi compañía de taxis y mi número de teléfono.”
Mary took the card from him and dropped it into the front pocket of her
purse, “Gracias Pedro.”
As Mary and Liam made their way into the hotel foyer, John was almost
speechless, as he was so in awe of Mary’s Spanish skills.
“You are an amazing Spanish speaker; now I wish I had taken more classes.”
Mary smiled at him, “¡No te preocupes!" You have me to look after you. I will help
you.”
As they walked across the entrance to the reception desk, Mary felt so con dent
and excited at all the possibilities in Spain. She was convinced that a new chapter
of her life had nally begun.
Capítulo 1- ¡Hola España!
Page 6Capítulo 1- ¡Hola España!
With a rush of excitement, Mary went on her phone to check what the weather
would be like for that week, since after all the beach was calling her name. But as
Mary looked down at her phone, she saw a message from an unknown number.
Confused, she clicked on it. As she read the message, her palms started to sweat
and she felt her adrenaline rushing through her body.
Liam noticed and asked Mary “what’s wrong, you look like you’ve seen a ghost!”
Mary looked at Liam and said “Oh no, I’m ne! Liam was glad that nothing was
wrong with Mary. He went into the lobby and started checking into his hotel room.
Mary glanced at her phone again, and read the message one more time.
“Mary, I hear that you are in Valencia, we should meet.-dad”
Capítulo 1- ¡Hola España!
Page 7Learning Goals After reading this chapter and working on the companion activities, you should be able to perform the following tasks in Spanish: 1 -Talk about foods you like and dishes that represent your culture 2 -List the days of the week 3 -Be able to tell time 4 - Recognize numbers 0-30 5 - Understand the meaning of the verb “estar” 6 - Understand regular verbs in everyday conversations 7 - Prepare to go grocery shopping 8 - Identify cultural artifacts 9 - Feel con dent talking about daily habits and hobbies in Spanish. 10 - Demonstrate an understanding of how we can connect to another culture through authentic foods and culinary activities.
You can also read
