Slow German

MANY THANKS to my friend Rong for recommeding this site for practicing German.

I remember...

I saw this on my friend Debbie's blog and decided to do the same. It's a lot of fun to go back down memory lane :) Here are the instructions.

1. As a comment on my blog, leave one memory that you and I had together. It doesn't matter if you knew me a little or a lot, anything you remember!

2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. It's actually pretty funny to see the responses. If you leave a memory about me, I'll assume you're playing the game and I'll come to your blog and leave one about you. (you can still leave a comment on my blog without starting a post on yours).

Bueller? Bueller?

Ben Stein wants a sequel to "Ferris Bueller's Day Off". Me too.

An Enduring Legacy indeed

Randy Pausch (1960-2008)

I had seen his speech on "Achieving Your Childhood Dreams" and I had been following his blog since.

It's a speech that I hope to have in mind constantly. A legacy worth sharing.

Who is Nery Brenes?...y feliz "25 de Julio"!

BBC News tells us who he is.

From Costa Rica to Beijing...all the best wishes!

Speaking of Costa Rica...one of it's provinces, Guanacaste, is celebrating being part of our country:

"During colonial times, Guanacaste did not actually form part of the province of Costa Rica, but instead pertained to Nicaragua. Shortly after the nations in the region gained their independence from Spain in 1821, the residents of the communities of Nicoya, Santa Cruz, and Cañas decided that they preferred to become part of Costa Rica and announced their annexation on July 25, 1825. This date is commemorated by a government holiday, even though it was not until 1858 that the change in boundary lines was officially recognized and agreed upon by the two countries involved." (Source)

Costa Rica Straßenfest - Updated

Erlangen, Freitag 18.07. und Samstag 19.07.08

Veranstaltung: Costa Rica Strassenfest Erlangen
Ort: Erlangen 18. und 19. Juli Engelstrasse 15 und Kirchenstrasse 2
Erlangen 19. Juli um 20:30 Uhr. Mexikanischesrestaurant “el lobo”Ludwig-Erhard- Str. 13 Uhrzeit: von 18:00 bis 23:00 Uhr Mehr Infos: www. tamalesenalemania.de

Costa Rica Strassenfest Erlangen
Die Folkloregruppe “Chirripo” aus Costa RicaMit dem Sänger aus der Dominikanischen Republik, Alfredo “El Guava”,Dagmas Exotische Tanzshow, Bjorn Ballbach / Schauspieler und dozent wird die Gruppe “ Grupo Chirripo” durch das Programm führen, Tanz Live Music, sowie landestypische Gerichte.

Gutschein jedes kleine Kind - Kinderüberraschungsspielzeug
Benefizveranstalt ung für behinderte Kinder in Costa Rica
UPDATE:

El "Festival de la Calle" en Erlangen del pasado fin de semana estuvo muy ameno. Disfrutamos de bailes típicos de Costa Rica, cantantes dominicanos y hasta una demostración de baile de samba. Fabián disfrutó el sábado bailando en la calle. Aquí hay fotos de algunas escenas más.

I enjoyed the "Street Festival" in Erlangen: it was a thrill to see Costa Rican typical dances, to hear the rhythms from a great singer from Dominican Republic and even enjoyed the presentation of a samba dancer. Fabi danced on the street and I took several pictures.

BAILES DE COSTA RICA EN ERLANGEN:

La Virgen del Carmen

¡FELIZ DIA DE LA VIRGEN DEL CARMEN!...Felicidades a Abuela Carmen, a Carmen Benavides (en su viaje por Europa), a Carmencita Bogarín...a mi amiga Carmen Hurtado...y a todas las demás que celebraron hoy su onomástico.

Happy Bastille Day!

It's Bastille Day today!

I have been completely immersed in helping out with our Catholic Mission's Summer Party! It was great fun (and a lot of work). Hopefully, this week I will get back to my old routine (and blog some more, too!)

In the meantime...just wanted to point out something that caught my attention. Eventhough I could care less about beauty pageants: how cool is that Latinamerican dominance in the top 5 finalists of the recent Miss Universe contest?

Summer Party at the Spanish Language-Catholic Mission - Nürnberg

You are invited! Sunday, July 13th, '08.

Mass at 11:00am Party 12:00 noon to 8:00pm.

Kuhweiherweg 124, 90451 Nürnberg

See you there!

P.S. Please contact me if you are available to help on Sat. July 12th.

Por favor indicarme si puede ayudar el sábado12 de julio.

Can you feel the beat?

I love chocolate. You'll probably agree with me that chocolate goes with vanilla...with strawberries...but have you ever heard of mixing chocolate and zucchini? Well..it's not only possible...it's delicious! I like chocolate so much...I don't think I would mind mixing it with anything else.

But this post is not about chocolate...it's about (techno) music. Techno is pretty much like chocolate: it goes well with everything! (Well...almost everything. If you know what cumbia is, I'm sorry to tell you that there's techno cumbia).

Have you heard "Time to say goodbye", by Andrea Bocelli? There's a techno version of the song.

You know Hava Nagila? It has a techno version as well (it starts at min. 1:47 of the video).

I'm not sure how Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber feels about this version of The Phantom of the Opera.

Mozart, Ludwig van Beethoven , Vivaldi and J.S. Bach have also been "victims" of this blend. Some people hate it, but others think differently.

If you happen to be in Costa Rica this coming August 25th, you're in luck! You have the chance to see a presentation of Bajofondo. What a great idea! chocolate techno + tango! I think even Gardel would approve!

I'm not going to be in Costa Rica in August and it's also very unlikely that I can go to Dortmund next week. But I'm sure glad there's YouTube! :)

She's free! - Update

After 6 years and a half ... kidnapped in a jungle...Ingrid Betancourt will be able to again see her mother, her husband, her daughter and her son. Amazing!

Gracias Ingrid por tu testimonio: "Gracias a Dios...y a la Virgen, a quien tanto le recé!"

Update:

No me canso de escucharla!
* Declaraciones de Ingrid B - I Parte, II Parte
** Entrevista: III Parte, IV Parte

Runner-up blues

Erlangen streets are normally very clean. That's the reason yesterday I easily noticed a sad trace of the non-celebration here in Germany, post-Euro '08: