A basic linguistic guide across the “stans” History has marched and galloped back and forth across Central Asia – which guide books tend to describe as Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikisitan, and Afghanistan – and to which I’ll add Pakistan bec
“Pa’ todo mal mezcal, pa’ todo bien también” It’s Friday night and our daughter has fallen asleep at dinnertime. She’s had a really persistent flu since Monday and she’s too tired to eat. My wife and I sit down to dinner and she pours us each
Ibrahim is Abarham, but is Serra Sarah? Is Homer Ömer? I was hanging out with a Turkish friend last week and we started talking about names that appear in Christian and Muslim communities. Some are obviously from the same root: Abraham / Ibrahim Joseph / Yusuf Mary / Maryam or Meryem
B.C. Addresses Racism through Curriculum Change In May 2014, a formal apology was delivered by the BC Provincial Legislature to Chinese-Canadians in BC. The province acknowledged and apologised for the historical wrongs committed by previous Provincial governments against Chinese-Cana
So Much More than Llamas! I first visited Peru on a backpacking trip in 2006. I was lucky to travel with a Peruvian who had family around the country which meant we got to see things that others don’t. I was even luckier to land a dream job in Peru seven years later and live the
Agricultural metaphors in English Planting season has me thinking Spring has arrived in the Pacific Northwest. I recently expanded our garden to have room for the plants I want to grow. Marigolds, arugula, spinach, mustard greens, sweet peas, and peas are already in the ground. Indoor
Teatro Amazonas – Manaus/AM – Brasil – photo by Gabriel Smith História do Hino Nacional Brasileiro Em 1822, para comemorar a independência do Brasil, o maestro Francisco Manoel da Silva compôs uma música chamada Marcha Triunfal. Composta originalmente para banda, ao longo dos
Is it just me or are all language lovers also map lovers? Whether or not your linguaphilia is accompanied by an obsession with history, world cultures, or geography, I’m willing to make a bet that a good language map is up there on your list of nerdy pleasures. In addition to th
“Descend” in the water The first time I really noticed this fact – that it’s easy to recognize and guess Spanish words if you speak English, but not so much the other way around – I was teaching a Colombian woman how to swim. She spoke only a little English. When I said “Go down in th
El que no sufre no aprende La cultura del sufrimiento como medio de aprendizaje es muy antigua en la América española. Sin duda una herencia del mundo ibérico a través de los siglos de colonia, hemos aprendido que para aprender hay que sufrir. El cuadro de Francisco de Goya, que ya a
