In this 19 lesson series, you'll learn about Mexico and different aspects of Mexican culture and society through audio blogs entirely in Spanish. Along the way, you'll pick up sophisticated expressions and advanced grammar in this Audio Blog series geared towards higher level students..
| L# |
Title |
Topic |
Summary |
Cultural Fact |
Vocab |
| 1 |
Day of the Dead (Mexico) |
Day of the Dead |
Ways to celebrate: altars w/orange marigolds, colorful flags, and toys, candies, chocolates, and honey for deceased children; bakery buildup to the holiday |
History of Day of the Dead |
muertito, -a
banderita
pulque
mole
tamal
atole
cigarrito
mezcal |
| 2 |
Christmas Season in Mexico: 1 (Mexico) |
Christmas |
Definition, dates (12/8-2/2), Mexican menagerie (mule and ox), variable scope/mobility |
Nativity Scene |
aguinaldo
arrullo
barro
epifanía
nacimiento
olla |
| 3 |
Christmas Season in Mexico: 2 (Mexico) |
Christmas |
Length (9 days), program: procession around house with candles and nativity trays, people inside play innkeepers and refuse to let them in until holy message is delivered, snacks, piñata, dance |
The 9 days before Christmas (Las Posadas) |
aguinaldo
colaciones
copla
letanías
peregrinos
piquete
posada |
| 4 |
Christmas Season in Mexico: 3 (Mexico) |
Christmas |
Piñatas: origin in the Inns, significance (7 corners for 7 cardinal sins, destroying sin, candy/fruit=blessings); pastorelas (shepherd's plays): funny face-offs between good and evil involving Archangel Gabriel |
The history of the piñata and pastorelas |
piñata
picos
humorístico
huestes
Náhuatl |
| 5 |
Christmas Season in Mexico: 4 (Mexico) |
Christmas |
Santa=infant God, comes on Christmas Eve; 3 wise men bring toys+candy on 1/6 (wish balloons in Pachuca) |
The Three Wise Men |
asimilar
humilde
mirra
petición
provenir
víspera |
| 6 |
A Mining Tradition (Mexico) |
Pastes (empanadas) |
Mexico's 1st mining strike and soccer match in Real del Monte, pastes and what they're made of, origin of pastes as miners' lunch |
The word "paste" |
constatar
empanada
hojaldre
picadillo
fortuito
mole |
| 7 |
Sweet 15 (Mexico) |
Quinceañeras |
Preparation, dress, mass, speech, dances, dinner, more dances, duration |
The significance of 15 years |
ampón
chambelán
chico, -a
coreográfico
color pastel
pretensión |
| 8 |
The Serenades |
The serenade |
Purpose (declaring love, often on Mother's Day), where the musical groups hang out (Plaza Garibali in Mexico City) |
El sereno |
farol
norteño
recurso
sereno
trío
vía |
| 9 |
El Tianguis (Mexico) |
Tinaguis |
Dispersal, definition, influence on artists, peak on Sunday |
Two types of markets |
tianguis
prehispánico, -a
parasol
dispersar
preestablecido, -a |
| 10 |
Gifts between Worlds (Mexico) |
Culinary commerce between Mexico and Europe |
Foods that crossed from Mexico to Europe; foods that crossed from Spain, Germany, Italy, and the U.S. to Mexico |
Chocolate |
bolillo
chocolate
embutido
guajolote
migajón |
| 11 |
Candlemass (Mexico) |
Candlemass |
Date (2/2), origin (presentation of baby Jesus to temple), customs (taking a Jesus doll to church to have it blessed), foods (tamales and atole) |
Niñopa de Xochimilco |
Candelaria
chinampero
fiel
mayordomo
Xochimilco |
| 12 |
The Subway (Mexico) |
Mexico CIty's subway |
9 lines, things to see, starts running at 5, men and women separated, crowdedness, shops |
The Mexico City subway |
de correspondencia
excavar
templo mayor
Tenochtitlan
de reojo |
| 13 |
Petates (Mexico) |
Petates |
Definition, many uses, linguistic contributions |
Expression about petate |
tiempos inmemorables
junco
mortaja
palma
Tollan |
| 14 |
Taquiza prehispánica (Mexico) |
Taquizas |
Pre-Spanish origin, diversity of ingredients, enduring appeal |
Worldly influences |
criollo, -a
epazote
guajolote
jícama
jumiles
taquiza
tompiate |
| 15 |
El Carnaval (Mexico) |
Mexico's Carnival |
Popular customs (floats, flower wars, election of king and queen), unique customs (Chinelos' Hop) |
The start of the tradition |
carnaval
Cuaresma
fuegos pirotécnicos
terciopelo
túnica |
| 16 |
Chamanes (Mexico) |
Shamans |
Ideal climate of Tuxtlas region for growing medicine, corresponding rise of shamans, modern persistence |
The shamans of Catemaco |
Catemaco
chamán
curandero
limpia
mal de ojo
malas vibras |
| 17 |
Snakes and Sharks (Mexico) |
Legends |
Old people migrate to caves, grow feathers, fly away, drop into the sea, and become sharks |
Quetzalcoatl, the Mesoamerican deity |
¡buenas!
enigmático
fijarse
leyenda
mitología |
| 18 |
Day of the Masons (Mexico) |
Day of the Holy Cross |
Bricklayers decorate construction sites w/flowers, candles, colored paper, and crosses made from building materials; feasts |
Catholicism and working-class solidarity |
albañil
barbacoa
carnitas
poner
pozole |
| 19 |
Plaza Day (Mexico) |
Plaza Day |
Variety of goods, measurements, bustling nature |
What's a "plaza"? |
cucurucho
Día de Plaza
galvanizado, -a
pajarear
peltre
pendiente |
