Latin American Travel from your Living Room

Travel is a vanishing act, a solitary trip down a pinched line of geography to oblivion.
-Paul Theroux in The Old Patagonian Express

Summer Classes through Denver Spanish House

Take a look at our full summer schedule of classes, including upcoming:

• New Thursday class for beginners starting May 14th at 5:15pm.
• Beyond the basics Spanish on Mondays at 5:15pm starting June 1st.
• Tuesday night Lower Intermediate Spanish at 7pm.

The Next Best Thing: Armchair Travel

After just returning from an eventful time in Mexico City and San Cristóbal de las Casas in Mexico's southern state of Chiapas, I thought about how great travel writing is as a form of exploring would-be travel destinations. Here is some of my favorite travel writing to the Spanish-speaking world:

• First Stop in the New World: a well written gem about the paradoxical charm of Mexico City, a emblematic metropolis of the 21st century.
• Driving over Lemons: tells the story of a British couple becoming expats in the south of Spain.
• The Devil's Picnic: Taras Grescoe travels the world in pursuit of forbidden foods, including various foods from Spain and South America.
• Do Travel Writers Go to Hell?: is the wayward tale of an ex-Lonely Planet writer exposing the underbelly of the travel writing industry.
• The Old Patagonian Express is the tale of Paul Theroux's journey by rail from Boston to Patagonia in the 1970s.
• The Geography of Bliss: explores the happiest places in the world and the characteristics of happy (and unhappy) places.

What are your recommendations? Respond to this email with your favorite travel writing to the Spanish-speaking world for the chance to receive a copy of Bruce Chatwin's classic In Patagonia.

Thanks to those who submitted their favorite words last month! Here are your favorite words and expressions.

Summer Events and Involvement Opportunities

• Host a high-school student from Spain this summer: Compass USA is looking for volunteers to host students from Spain this summer for 4 weeks. Hosting a student will provide a great opportunity to learn about Spanish culture and introduce students to Denver and American culture. Please click here for more information about getting involved.

• 26 MILES: Curious Theater Company (across Acoma from Denver Spanish House) invites you on a cross-country, cross-cultural road trip. In 26 MILES, playwright Quiara Alegria Hudes (2007 Tony-winner for IN THE HEIGHTS) takes us on an impromptu road trip with a vivacious Cubana and her estranged teenage daughter. (May 7th through June 20th)

• Sugar: Currently showing at the Mayan, Sugar is the story of a Dominican baseball player making his way in the US. Coming May 15th to the Mayan Theater: Gael García Bernal's latest film Rudo y Cursi.

Saludos,

Nikki

Denver Spanish House
Classes. Culture. Conversation.
www.denverspanishhouse.com
nikki@denverspanishhouse.com

Denver Spanish House is a language and cultural center with the goal of sharing the Spanish language and culture of Latin America and Spain in the Denver area.

Please forward to anyone you know who may be interested.