Americans get a bad rap for not being able to speak a language other than English and that includes their global representative and leader—POTUS or The President of the United States. While heads of state from other countries can give speeches or press conferences in another language (English, more frequently than not) we always see American presidents with an interpreter in tow or just plain speaking in English like to a crowd of Germans at the Brandenburg Gate. Is this image representative of the American capacity to speak another language?

American Presidents Speaking Foreign Languages

Surprisingly, of the 44 presidents that have occupied the office, more than half have had exposure to another language and achieving a level that may not be fluency but certainly enough to read and understand a language other than English. But, this piece of information also comes with an asterisk. Many of the Presidents that have understood another language were taught Greek and Latin which count, obviously, as another language.      

John Adams was the second president of the US, he was a Founding Father, the first Vice-President, diplomat and a 5^th generation descendant of the first Pilgrim settlers. Originally destined to become a church minister, Adams was taught Latin at an early age in preparation for his entrance to Harvard College where he went when he was sixteen. Later, he would also become fluent in French.

Like Adams, 12 of the 23 presidents from the 19^th century were fluent in Latin while some were also fluent in Greek such as Thomas Jefferson (#3) and James Madison (#4). But Greek and Latin don’t really win over crowds. So what 19^th century presidents were fluent in a language that was actually spoken outside of the university?  Well, as mentioned earlier, Thomas Jefferson was fluent in Greek and Latin but he also knew Hebrew (!), French and Spanish. It is said that Jefferson taught himself to read and write Spanish on a nineteen-day boat ride across the Atlantic!

John Quincy Adams (#6) was also multi-lingual speaking Latin, French and German along with a little Greek and Dutch. Speaking of Dutch, Martin Van Buren (#8) has been the only American president to learn English as a second language since Dutch was his first language. Growing up in a small Dutch community in New York, Van Buren learned English during his primary education. Curiously, his wife, Hannah, never lost her Dutch accent.  Apart from Greek or Latin, American presidents would hit a communicative dry spell until Theodore Roosevelt (#26) became president.

Roosevelt was homeschooled and learned French, German, Latin and Greek. Like some other presidents, he passed through the gates of Harvard when classical languages were still  required for getting in (this would not begin to change until 1892). It appears as though Teddy had other things on his mind other than Cicero and he ended up just getting by and would never claim to have fluency in either of the classical languages. With Teddy Roosevelt, the golden age of multi-lingual Presidents would come to an end.

From the 20^th century to the present, language has taken a back seat in the priorities and education of the American President. From Obama (#44) to Taft (#27) here are the Presidents that have fluent non-English language skills:

--Woodrow Wilson (#28) knew French and German.

--Hoover (#31) knew Latin and Mandarin Chinese (from when he worked in China as a mining engineer).

--Franklin Roosevelt (#32) knew French and German. And that’s it.

Jimmy Carter (#39) knows a little Spanish, Clinton (#42) a bit of German and George W. Bush—or just “W”—(#43) knows a little Spanish too which is something he used, more or less successfully, during his presidency. Barack Obama has spoken (or read) Spanish but admittedly doesn’t know it or another language. On the campaign trail he has admitted this by saying “I don’t speak a foreign language. It’s embarrassing”.

 As we can see, the list of presidents that speak or have spoken another language, while on paper, is very positive. But, the result is skewed due to the style of education that was in place in America prior to the 20th century. But even in 19^th century America where people were educated in classical languages, you surely wouldn’t have been able to order a meal at a restaurant in Boston by saying: Ígnósce mihí! Ésurió.

Today, knowing another language is useful for many things and in our increasingly globalized world maybe another 19^th century-style emphasis on languages is needed. Considering that in the US, Spanish is the number two language spoken and in States like California, where Latinos will surpass non-Hispanic whites in numbers, Spanish will continue to grow in importance. Just to give you an idea…in 2050, it is projected that the United States will be the largest Spanish Speaking country in the world and 10% of the world’s population will be Spanish Speakers.        

American presidents are a reflection of American Society and right now the United States is undergoing a tremendous demographic shift which includes migration towards areas that have traditionally not been receivers of immigrants. A clear example today is the fact that Swahili is the most spoken African language in Kansas! In the United States, knowledge of languages will be more and more of a necessity and should not be considered as just another elective in school.

Before, a President speaking another language was a novelty: remember Kennedy’s famous “Ich bin ein Berliner” when he stood up to the threat of Communist Europe? Today, the ability to speak the language of wherever you may find yourself is very practical and considered something positive and welcoming. In the future, for an American president, it may also be politically savvy and essential for survival.

Brazil 2014

On June 12, it's that time again! The 20th edition of the World Cup will take place in South America, in the host country Brazil. This year, 32 teams are participating and they will compete against each other in eight squads of four teams. The first two qualify for the eighth finals. From the eighth finals, play continues under the so-called “knockout system”: winners advance to the next round and for the losers, the tournament is over. After the World Championships in 1950, this is the second time the tournament will take place in Brazil. It will kick off at the new São Paulo stadium with the match Brazil v. Croatia.

• The World Cup is in Brazil early this summer. The games will be played in one of 12 stadiums in the host cities: Manuas, Cuiabá, Brasílía, Fortaleza, Natal, Recife, Salvador, Belo Horizonte, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Curitiba and Porto Alegre.
• The Dutch soccer team's first match is against Spain and will take place on June 13 at 9 p.m. Dutch time. After the Netherlands lost to Spain in the final of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, this match will be very exciting.
• Of course, there will be a spectacular opening and a World Cup song again this year.

It was not entirely intended that Brazil would again host the World Cup. In 2003, FIFA decided that the tournament would be held in South America. After the withdrawal of Colombia and Argentina, it was announced that Brazil was the only remaining candidate. Still, a battle was struck by stating that Brazil must meet the required quality standards. In the end, it succeeded and the games will be played in one of Brazil's 12 host cities.

We all know that Brazil is known for its carnival and for its rythmic atmospheres. Therefore, the slogan of the FIFA 2014 is “all in one rythm,” or everything in one rhythm. Choosing the logo, a masscotte and the ball was done by an Internet poll. The logo is a typical representation of Brazil, it consists of three hands that together represent the World Cup. The hands are yellow and green, the colors of the Brazilian flag. The mascot also has the colors yellow and green. Its name is “Fuleco,” a compound of the words “Futebol” (soccer) and “Ecologica” (ecology). Many Brazilian soccer names also end in -'eco'. Fuleco is a three-banded armadillo found only in Brazil and a very funny detail is that the animal can roll up like a ba when in danger. The soccer ball will be called 'Adidas Brazuca'. Brazuca is a national word by which Brazilians denote the national pride of the way of life. It symbolizes emotion, pride and benevolence.

Spain - Netherlands

Spain and the Netherlands both managed to qualify for the World Cup. The Spanish and Dutch teams have soccer history. In the past, Spain and the Netherlands have played each other 10 times. Surely the most memorable match is the final match of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, where Spain won against the Netherlands in reserve time. Now, 4 years later, the Netherlands will again play the opening game against Spain. Even though statistics show that the Netherlands has a small chance of winning, we believe that the Netherlands will win the match! This match will be played in the stadium of Salvador on June 13 at 13.00 (Dutch time 21.00).

So at the beginning of summer, the 2014 World Cup begins. The opening will take place on June 12. Make sure you don't miss it. This edition's World Cup song will be sung by Jennifer Lopez, Pitbull and popular Brazilian singer Claudia Leitte. The song is called “We Are One,” and expectations are that it will be as much of a hit as Shakira's World Cup hit “Waka Waka. Expectations for Spain's soccer and Latin American countries Argentina and Uruguay are also very high, so be sure to stay tuned!

The Spanish team in Brazil

As we all know, Spain is defending the World Cup at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil this summer. By now it is known that Spain is in the same pool as the Netherlands. Together with Australia and Chile, they form Pool B and the first matches will take place on June 13. Even though "La Roja," the Spanish team, won both the 2010 World Cup and the 2012 European Championship, they still fear a bit for their opponents. Our Orange, of course, is fully focused on getting revenge for the lost 2010 final. But they also fear Chile, currently one of the most dangerous teams in South America.

• It is not yet clear who will be in the Spanish team's selection at the World Cup in Brazil, but there are bound to be many familiar names such as Ramos, Alba, Villa and Piqué.
• It remains to be seen if the older guard like Casillas and Alonso will be in the selection.
• If Spain wins the 2014 World Cup, it will become the third country besides Italy and Brazil to successfully defend its world title. 

This year la Roja is again under the direction of Vicente del Bosque, who was also the coach during the 2010 World Cup and the 2012 European Championship. Since 2008, del Bosque has been in charge of which players represent Spain in international matches and tournaments. And he does it well, given the successful results in recent years. Spain's soccer success keeps coming, including being in the history books as the first team to successfully defend its European title. In fact, Spain also became European champions in 2008, and again the team was led by Luis Aragonés.

It is not yet known exactly what La Roja's selection will look like during the World Cup, but many of the players will most likely be from Spanish soccer teams Real Madrid, Atlético Madrid and FC Barcelona. Notably, the regular players in the national team are Ramos, Alba, Iniesta, Valdén, Villa, Fàbregas, Piqué, Busquets, Pedro and Arbelo. Many of them will be seen during the World Cup in Brazil.

During the 2014 World Cup, the Spanish team will stay at the CT do Caju training center in Curitiba. The training center known as the largest and most modern in Brazil. By choosing Curitiba, the team is also fairly close to the cities where the first matches will be played.

Under del Bosque's leadership, the Spanish team has lost only eight of 85 games in international competition. But before the World Cup really begins, Spain will play one more game, a friendly against El Salvador at the Redskins' stadium in Landover, Washington. There are very many positive expectations from the Spanish team and Spain will of course do everything possible to bring in the cup.

¡Viva España!

This Spanish Formula One driver Fernando Alonso was born on July 29, 1981 in the city of Oviedo, which is located in the northern region of Asturias.

Alonso is of course known for all his victories in karting and Formula One, but mostly for the speed with which he managed to find his way to the highest branch of motorsport.

• In Spain, a country with no Formula One tradition, his successes have led to a real “Alonsomania” and Fernando Alonso is a national hero.
• A funny detail is that the Asturian flag has the same colors as the Renault team, light blue and yellow. The grandstands were totally transformed into a sea of light blue spectators during the Spanish Grand Prix.

At age three, Alonso was already a fan of cars. His father built a little car for his eight-year-old sister, but she found it anything but interesting. For little Alonso, on the other hand, it was love at first sight. He started karting and by age six it was clear that it was not just a hobby. Then came his first victories: in 1988 in Pola Liviana where he won the children's championship and two years after that, the then nine-year-old Alonso won the youth championships in Asturias and the Basque Country.

Until 1998, Alonso was active in karting and by then had many victories to his name. In 1999, he made the switch to single-seaters and immediately became champion of Spain at the Nissan Euro-Open Series. A year later, Alonso drove for the Astromega team in the international Formula 3000 championship. After this season, Alonso signed a Formula One contract with the Minardi team and makes his debut in the Australian Grand Prix on March 4, 2001, as the third youngest F1 driver in history. During his time at Minardi he wins nothing, but he often outperforms other drivers during qualifying runs, so he joins Renault as a test pilot in 2002 and is promoted to full pilot in 2003.

As a Formula One driver with Renault, he gets his first podium finish at the Malaysian Grand Prix, third place, and a few weeks later he is second, behind Michael Schumacher at the Spanish Grand Prix. In August, he does finish first at the Hungarian Grand Prix and eventually scores points in 12 of 18 Grand Prixs which is ultimately good for fourth place in the final standings of the world championship.

The Youngest Formula One World Champion

2005 and 2006 were the heyday of the Formula One driver. In 2005, at the age of 24, Alonso became the youngest world champion in Formula 1 history. Starting in 2006, things don't go so well but in 2012 and 2013 Alonso finishes in second place in the world championship. Alonso has been driving for Scuderia Ferrari since 2011 and is currently fourth in the world championship. At the last circuit in Bahrain, Ferrari did not do very well. The next Grand Prixs are in China, Monaco and Barcelona. “From there we should do better and take podium places,” Alonso said. Ferrari has the resources, the potential and they control everything. We will see!

The Spanish Bijenkorf, that's how we could call this Spanish department store chain. El Corte Inglés is one of the world leaders in department stores and has been around for more than 70 years. As small as they started in the late 19th century, they are now so big. El Corte Inglés has everything from makeup to a hand blender and from a can of beans to a stylish outfit.

• Since its founding in 1940, the department store has accumulated a lot of experience and you can find almost anything you need. The literal translation of El Corte Inglés into Dutch is De Engelse Snit.
• Besides the department stores, the Spanish distribution group El Corte Inglés also has other chains, including "Viajes Corte Inglés" and the well-known Sfera. Some of these chain are located only in El Corte Inglés itself, while others also have their own branches.
• With 87 branches of El Corte Inglés in total, the department store is not to be missed. Every city in Spain has one anyway and they are all located in a prominent place in the city. The department store now also has 2 branches in Portugal.

The first Corte Inglés

It all started with a small store on the corner of the street "Calle Preciados" in Madrid in 1890, founded by Ramón Areces. The store focused on clothing for children and tailoring. Only in 1940 was it officially named El Corte Inglés S.L., which in 1952 was transformed into Sociedad Anónima, S.A. (Limited Liability Company). Still, it took another 22 years before the second branch was opened. In 1962, El Corte Inglés also decided to overthrow Barcelona with this new type of store, and it caught on. In no time, new department stores sprang up in several cities in Spain. The goal was and still is to offer the target group a complete assortment in every area: from physical care and fashion to home accessories and groceries. 

It is not for nothing, therefore, that the department stores of El Corte Inglés all have more than 4 floors. The largest have 9 floors and even include a parking garage and foreign currency exchange offices.Pharmacies, chop shops, opticians, tobacconists, clothing stores or a supermarket; you name it, El Corte Inglés has it. All to give customers everything they need. Recently, the department store came up with a method that allows customers to store on all floors without having to checkout at each brand individually. The Carta de Compras booklet allows customers to checkout all their items at once through a sticker system.

El Corte Inglés department store sells many brands through a kind of store-in-store system. Makeup brands such as L'Oreal Paris and Maybelline New York, for example, have their own department with their own cash register and representative to sell the brand. The same happens with clothing brands and stores that sell their products in El Corte Inglés. For example, Desigual, Mango and Tommy Hilfiger also have their own departments. In addition to the various brands that El Corte Inglés sells, it also has its own brand. The most famous is probably "Sfera," a brand that sells not only clothes, but also makeup and body care products and has its own branches in addition to departments in the department store. There are also the Telecor (telecommunications) chain, Hipercor (hypermarket chain), Supercor (supermarket chain), Opencor (convenience stores), Viajes Corte Inglés (travel), Bricor (hardware stores), Informática Corte Inglés (software)and Óptica2000 (Opticians and audiciens).

With 87 branches in total, El Corte Inglés is the largest group of department stores in Europe. As of 2001, it also has 2 branches in Portugal: Lisbon and Porto (2006). In Spain, every autonomous region has at least one branch of El Corte Inglés, except the autonomous region of La Rioja. Almost every city in Spain owns the crowd-pleaser. Major Spanish cities even have two or three. Spain's largest cities, of course, have quite a few more: Madrid leads the way with as many as 11 Corte Inglés department stores, followed by Barcelona (5) and Valencia (4). The El Corte Inglés department stores are fun to look around alone, so definitely worth a visit!

In Spain, the school system is set up by the government and it is the job of the "Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia," the Ministry of Education, to keep quality high. There are also laws associated with this.

In some countries, as a Dutchman, you can get very confused by the school system. The years are divided differently or the level is not comparable. Spain's school system is similar to that of the Netherlands. However, there are some differences.

• Secondary education, Educación Segundaria Obligatoria (ESO), in Spain is similar to high school in the Netherlands. Only they don't have different levels at the schools in Spain.
• In Spain, as in France, they have the baccalaureate, a diploma that you obtain to gain entrance to university/higher education.
• The regulations regarding higher education and university are the same as in the Netherlands.

Education in Spain

Education in Spain does not differ much from the Dutch education system. The first layer is: nursery and primary education. In which we distinguish educación infantil and educación primaria. Educación infantil covers the first six years of the child's life in which the child is not required to attend school. From the age of 3 months until the third year, the child can attend la guardería, the nursery. This must be paid per month and working mothers receive financial assistance from the government. In addition, there is escuela infantil, the kindergarten. After the crèche, the child can attend kindergarten until it reaches the age of 6. From the age of 6 it is compulsory to attend school. Thus, all children must begin primary education, educación primaria. Primary education consists of three cycles of two years each. El primer cyclo begins when the child is 6 years old. With sufficient development, after two years he may proceed to el segundo cyclo and after another two years to el tercer cyclo. In the third cycle, the child is prepared for secondary education. They are taught Castellano (Spanish) as well as any autonomous language and literature.

Secondary education lasts four years and is given to children as young as 12 years old. All children are taught at the same level during these four years. In the second and final cycle, the student does choose a profile to prepare for the Baccalaureate or technical education and after four years of study and satisfactory completion of all subjects, the student receives a diploma: Graduado en Educación Secundaria. This diploma gives access to the Baccalaureate and technical training, depending on what the child's level is.

Higher secondary education is what children go to when they have successfully completed secondary education. This includes two levels: 'Bachillerato' and formación profesional. The 'Bachillerato' takes two years and is comparable in level to the havo in the Netherlands. The profile chosen by students in the second cycle of secondary education is continued as a specialization in an industry in addition to the compulsory, general subjects. The diploma you get after completing the Baccalaureate is a requirement for university admission. There is also formación profesional, which are classes and practical classes. It is training for a practical profession and gives access to further courses, a job and the Baccalaureate.

Higher education and university has been the same as in the Netherlands since 2006. As of 2006, Spain now also works with a Bachelor-Master structure. Before you can enter college or university, you must first take an entrance exam in Spain, "la Prueba de Acceso a la Universidad," better known as the selectividad. This tests the knowledge you learned at the Baccalaureate. The Bachelor in the Netherlands is called 'los Estudios de Grado' in Spain and lasts four years. To graduate, a graduation project must be done that eventually gives you el Titulo de Graduado. The next step is 'Máster Universitario' and takes two years. For this too you have to submit a report, better known as the thesis. For the real go-getters, there is 'Doctorado,' which involves independent research in preparation for writing the dissertation to get the highest title.

2013 World Scrabble in Spanish Championship

Airan Perez  (from Venezuela) clenched the title of World Scrabble in Spanish Champion last Saturday after facing  two time world champ Enric Hernandez (from Spain) in a dramatic final match of the popular word game.

International competition was intense at the 17^th annual World Scrabble en español Championships held in Buenos Aires last week; 92 players from 23 different countries (including the US, Israel and Switzerland) entered the 4 day event, many with visions of bringing Scrabble glory to their home countries and earning major bragging rights. Some observers and participants felt that Argentina had dominated on-board Scrabble action for too long, with Argentines having won the title 4 years running.  President of the Federación Internacional de Scrabble en español (FISE), Santiago Rosales stated before the tournament: “Argentina has won so many world titles that they must be stopped any way possible”.

Horacio Moavro, president of the Asociación Argentina de Scrabble and last year’s world Scrabble champ describes the game as “a sport of the mind”, and says that “to play, you have to know a lot of words, but most importantly, you must employ a strategy that allows you to use those words in a way that scores the most points”. Mr. Moavro stated at this year’s competition that “there’s great camaraderie here that goes beyond countries and rivalries, we’re rivals on the board, but when the game’s over we all go have lunch together”. It’s no surprise that Argentina make a strong presence at the event, as an estimated 10,000 Argentines play the game regularly in clubs and associations across the country. Buenos Aires’ city legislature officially declared this year’s World Scrabble Championship an event “of special sporting interest”.

Spanish Letters

The English version of the game only allows for the use of 120,000 words, while Scrabble in Spanish recognizes 660,000 words. 105.000 of those Spanish words appear in the latest edition of the Royal Spanish Academy’s dictionary, while the rest are the 34 to 35 conjugations for each verb and gender differences (feminine versions of nouns generally don’t appear in the dictionary). Among the accepted words are 87 two letter words and 450 three letter words, which are essential knowledge for savvy scrabblers. Small words that score big points include “ox” technically meaning “sound used to scare away chickens”, along with za  ño, and lle. You don’t have to know what the words means though to use them in play, and even world ranked players admit they don’t know what many of the words mean. Spanish Scrabble also has letter tiles you won’t find in the English version, such as the Ñ (worth 8 points), CH (5 points), and the LL and the RR that will each score you 8 points.

Scrabble in other languages

World Scrabble Championships are currently held in 3 different languages around the world: English, French and Spanish. The board game is produced in 29 different languages including Arabic, Hebrew, Icelandic, and the latest language addition Welsh.

The 2004 documentary Word Wars – Tiles and Tribulations on the Scrabble Circuit explores the curious world of competitive level Scrabble competitions. The film was shown at the Sundance film festival and was nominated for an Emmy. 

Next year’s World Scrabble in Spanish Championship is scheduled to be held in Cuba.

Spanish culture

Sports are very important in Spanish culture. The most important Spanish sport is soccer. But besides soccer, tennis, motor sports and golf are also very popular in Spain. Spain has many athletes who have performed well at the international level.

Spanish soccer

Soccer is the national sport of Spain. Soccer has been played in Spain since the last decade of the nineteenth century. The Spanish clubs, national team and national league "Primera División" are among the best, strongest and most famous in the world. Spain's all-time top scorer is David Villa. Also, the Spanish national team became world champions a total of once in 2010 in South Africa, and European champions 7 times.

Golfing in Spain

Spain is also the perfect country to play golf. Spain has the ideal climate to play golf, for example, it is 18 degrees in the south of the country in the winter and 20 degrees in the summer in the north. Spain has a total of 250 golf courses that together provide more than half a million hours of golf a year. Robert Trent Jones, Jack Nicklaus, Severiano Ballesteros and José Maria Olazábal are some of the famous names in the golf world associated with Spain's golf courses.

Motor sports in Spain

Besides soccer and golf, motor sports are also very popular in Spain. Spain has several circuits for motor sports. But the most famous are the circuit of Catalunya where the Formula 1 race takes place every year, and the circuit of Jerez de la Frontera where the moto GP takes place every year. One of the most famous Spanish racing drivers is Fernando Alonso. Fernando Alonso is and two-time world champion and in 2005 he was even the youngest world champion ever. His success has caused "Alonsomania" in parts of Spain. Fernando Alonso is still active in Formula One and currently drives for Ferrari.

Spanish tennis players

Finally, the sport most famous in Spain besides soccer, tennis. Spain has many professional tennis players who are very highly ranked at the international level. These Spanish tennis players owe their success in part to the tennis courts and schools they have had at their disposal in the past. Rafael Nadal is the best-known Spanish tennis player and is currently ranked No. 4 in the world. His nickname is the King of Gravel, many experts consider him the best gravel player of all time. Nadal has won 11 Grand Slam titles, including Roland Garros 7 times. He achieved his best position in 2008, at which time Rafal Nadal was the No. 1 player in the world.

When the rain and the first cold spells arrive, we feel like trying "comfort" recipes that can recharge our energy and fill our stomachs… and our spirits. Below, you'll find three of our favorite Spanish recipes, which can help you confront the rainy autumn and the cold winter. Keep on joining us on our blog - soon you will discover more traditional Spanish dishes of other Spanish regions.

Besugo al horno (Baked Sea Bream)

Ingredients

1 kilo sea bream, 4 potatoes, 1 green onion, 1 green pepper, 6 cloves of garlic, Spanish Olive oil, salt, chopped parsley, ½ guindilla pepper

Preparation
Cut 4 of the garlic cloves in slices, the green onion and the pepper in thin strips and the potatoes in thick slices. Cook it all in a pan on low heat. When it's almost done, transfer it to a cooking tray, covering the bottom surface. Put it in the preheated oven and cook for 15 minutes. Clean the bream, remove the head and the tail and save them. Separate the fillet meat, removing the spine. Salt as desired and place the bream fillet, with the skin side up, over the mattress of potatoes on the cooking tray. Also place the head and the tail here. Moisten with a little more oil and put the tray in the hot oven for 10 minutes. Serve in a serving dish with the skin side down. Chop the other two cloves of garlic into small cubes. Sauté them in a pan with oil and the guindilla pepper without the seeds (they're too spicy). Add some of the juice from the bream left in the cooking tray. Add the chopped parsley, mix well and pour the sauce of the fish.
Serve with the baked potatoes to one side and the fish with the skin side down.

Cocido madrileño (Madrilenian Stew)

Ingredients
250 g of garbanzo beans, 300 g of beef sirloin tip, ¼ chicken, 100 g of tocino entreverado (a type of bacon), 100 g of blood sausage, 100 g of chorizo sausage, 50 g of Serrano ham, 4 small beef marrow bones, 1 kg. of cabbage, 4 medium sized potatoes, 100 g of noodles for the soup, 2 carrots,  1 onion, 1 turnip, 1 clove of garlic, olive oil, salt

Preparation
Soak the garbanzo beans the night before in warm water and with a little bit of salt. In the morning, drain them. Place the meats, the tocino, the cleaned bones and the Serrano ham all in the pressure cooker and cover with water. Place it on the stove top and close it. When it starts to boil, the foam will rise to the surface. Remove the foam with a skimmer and add the garbanzos. When the water boils again, add the carrot, the onion and the turnip. Cook under pressure for 30 minutes to soften the garbanzos.
Open the cooker and add the potatoes (peeled and cut into pieces that aren't too small). Try it and salt to taste. Remove the vegetables and the garbanzos and put them to the side, leaving the broth to prepare the noodle soup. At the same time, in another cooking pot, cook the chopped cabbage for half an hour. Drain, and lightly fry with the garlic. Cook the chorizo sausage and the blood sausage in a separate pan so the color won't mix with the broth.

Presentation: Cocido Madrileño is eaten in three steps. First, the noodle soup is served (noodles must be cooked in the broth for 5 minutes). Then, the garbanzos are served in a serving dish with the vegetables: the lightly fried cabbage, the carrot, and the sliced turnip (about 2 centimeters). The onion is added to the broth to give it flavor, but then it's removed. In the third step, serve the meats cut into pieces, the chorizo and the blood sausage, the tocino and the bones pieces. The marrow spread over toast is delicious.

Patatas a la riojana (Rioja style potatoes)

Ingredients

6 potatoes, 3 chorizo sausages, 1 onion, 1 green pepper, 2 bell peppers, 1 head of garlic, Water, olive oil, salt, 2 bay leaves, 1 guindilla pepper (optional)

Preparation
Place the chopped onion and green pepper in a pressure cooker along with a little oil. Add the entire head of garlic, the bay leaves and the guindilla pepper (this is optional, depending on if you want it spicy or not). Add the sliced chorizo and the potatoes which must be broken into pieces using a knife and your hands (this makes the broth thicker). Cover with water and add salt. Cook for 5 minutes beginning from the time the cooker is pressurized. Soak the bell peppers in warm water after removing the seeds. When they've rehydrated, scrape off, chop up and save the pulp. Open the pressure cooker, take out the head of garlic and the guindilla pepper (if you added it). Add the bell peppers, stir and cook for two more minutes (so the flavors mix). Salt to taste.

Everyone has heard of it and this trend is becoming more and more popular! I'm talking about Salsa dancing. It is of course a typical feature of Latin American culture, but at the same time it is also an intense sport! It is one of the few trends that has not gone away again after a while and is practiced all over the world.

Salsa is actually a collective name for various Latin American dances and forms of expression such as Son, Mambo, Cha-cha-cha and many more.... Each country has developed its own way of dancing salsa over time.

This dance is done in pairs, starting with 8 counts, divided into 2x4 counts. Every 4th beat is a rest beat. As you keep repeating this pattern, a rhythm develops in which a step is performed on each beat. The more you practice this, the easier it becomes and eventually you don't have to count anymore because then it goes by itself!

The music on which salsa is danced is also called salsa! Salsa music is a mix of many different styles of music. Nice detail: ´salsa´ means ´sauce´ or ´mixture´ in Spanish; it is a whole, a ´music sauce´ made by mixing all kinds of rhythms.

Salsa once originated in Cuba but today it is danced throughout Latin America and Spain! Young and old practice this sport. If you would like to take a salsa course or workshop, the best place to do it is in Latin America.

The best places for a salsa course are:

• Argentina, Córdoba and Mendoza
• Chile, Santiago de Chile
• Cuba, Havana
• Guatamala, Antigua

But you can take salsa lessons not only in Latin America! Also in Spain you can learn to dance salsa! In Málaga, for example, you can also find salsa courses and salsa workshops. During a salsa course you will be totally immersed in Latin American culture. You will learn to salsa dance and of course in South America and Spain you will find many salsa bars where you can put everything you have learned into practice! In these bars there is always a fun, relaxed and especially lively atmosphere!

It is of course great fun to take a salsa course in one of these countries! Through such a course you will also learn a lot about Latin American culture. You can also combine a salsa course with a Spanish course, giving you the best of both worlds! You learn to speak Spanish and dance salsa at the same time!