Spanish Students at FuegoMundo!

One of the important goals we have at FuegoMundo is to help bring a little South American culture to our neighbors in Metro Atlanta. Such as bringing the Rio Carnaval & Colombian Carnaval Street Festival to Atlanta this coming Saturday 2/13 (more on that later).

But, this past Saturday, we did something even more fun, personal, delicious & educational.

A local Spanish teacher, Erika Velez, brought her “Amigos Spanish class for Parents” of the Atlanta International School (AIS) for Lunch at FuegoMundo!  We assisted in helping the students and families improve their Spanish skills by immersing them in the language.

Once seated at the restaurant, everyone was ONLY allowed to speak Spanish. Our staff ONLY spoke in Spanish, we prepared Spanish-only menus, and once ready, everyone HAD to order in Spanish.

It was a lot of fun.  It was followed by South American Trivia and prizes to the kids and parents of the Amigos Spanish Class.  And as you know from 11th grade language class, you really only begin to learn the language when you immerse yourself in the process.

We enjoyed the experience, and look forward to having them back!

[NOTE: We are always happy to entertain groups and create a similar experience, whether you are a local class, an adult education group, or frankly, just some friends who want learn to speak better Spanish. Let us know!]

Our CARNAVAL party is February 13th, but enjoy this small taste of CARNAVAL from RIO!

photo by tijs zwinkels on flickr

The latest in the FuegoMundo Cultural Series. Owner Masha and General Manager Manuel are both natives of Colombia!

Enjoy!

DID YOU KNOW?

•    It holds a position in the 17 most mega-diverse countries of the world.
•    Colombia does not have varied seasons because of its location close to the Equator.
•    Colombia is the only country in South America to have a coast on both the Pacific & Atlantic Oceans.
•    Shakira, famous for her chart-topping music hits in the United States, was born and raised in Barranquilla, Colombia.
•    12% of the world’s coffee and 95% of the world’s Emeralds come from Colombia.
•    Gabriel Garcia Marquez, the famous writer and Nobel Prize winner, is from Colombia.
•    There are over 2,000 species of birds in Colombia, including our FuegoMundo Toucan.
•    Barranquilla, Colombia was designated one of the top food destinations in the world.
•    The Manager of FuegoMundo, Manuel, and the Owner of FuegoMundo, Masha, were both born in Barranquilla, Colombia.

PAST

The territory of what is now Colombia was originally inhabited by indigenous tribes until the arrival of the Spanish.  Independence from Spain was won in 1819, with independence declared in 1886.  Since the 1960s, government forces and anti-government insurgent groups have been engaged in the continent’s longest running armed conflict, primarily due to the drug trade.

PRESENT

Although insurgent attacks escalated in the 1990s, they have been decreasing since 2002 because the insurgents lack popular support.  Since 2006, the Colombian government has stepped up its efforts to reaffirm control throughout the country & decrease the influence of the illegal drug trade.  Colombia has become the 4th largest economy in South America.  The elected President in 2009, Álvaro Uribe, is one of the most pragmatic and intellectual presidents of Colombian contemporary history.

GEOGRAPHY & DEMOGRAPHICS

Colombia has the 3rd largest Spanish speaking population in the world with 45 million people.  It’s located to the northwest bordering Venezuela, Panama, & Ecuador.  The capital & largest city is Bogotá.  The country is geographically diverse with beaches, snow-toped mountains, volcanic ranges, the Andes Mountains & the Amazon rainforest.  A popular tourist destination is the ancient fortified Port city of Cartagena.  Carnaval is a famous festival celebrated every year on the streets of Barranquilla with dancing, costumes & parades.

Christ the Redeemer, in Rio

Welcome back to our series of posts from the FuegoMundo blog that will focus on South and Latin American culture and history.

As you know, we are trying to build a wonderful customer experience for you at FuegoMundo. And one of our most important goals is to give you a small taste of South America, and its unique culture.

We hope you enjoy learning about this very special place…

Enjoy Rio de Janeiro!

DID YOU KNOW?
• The city’s nicknames are “ Rio” and “The Marvelous City”.
• Residents of Rio de Janeiro are known as Cariocas.
• Each year 6 million people visit Rio de Janeiro.
• The official language of Brazil is Portuguese.
• The ‘Christ the Redeemer’ statue, atop Corcovado Mountain in Rio de Janeiro, has been named one of the New Seven Wonders of the World.
• Maracanã Stadium in Rio is one of the world’s largest soccer stadiums.
• Rio was named the Host City of the 2016 Olympics! This will be the first time in history that the Olympic Games are held in South America.

CARNIVAL
Carnival is a famous festival that takes places in Rio de Janeiro every year in February or March. Thousands of people from all over the world come to experience all the Carnival has to offer. It is a 4-day celebration beginning on the Saturday before Fat Tuesday, or Mardi-Gras every year. Mixing Latin, African and European influences, Brazilians dress in elaborate costumes for the parades down the streets of Rio during Carnival.

HISTORY
On March 1, 1565 the city of Rio de Janeiro was founded. Until early in the 18th century, the city was threatened and invaded by several pirates, until the Portuguese arrived. Rio de Janeiro became the capital of the Portuguese Empire from 1808 until 1821, and later the capital of Brazil from 1822 to 1960, after Brazil gained independence. In 1960, Brasilia was named the new Capital of Brazil.

GEOGRAPHY & DEMOGRAPHICS
Rio de Janeiro is the second largest city of Brazil and South America, behind São Paulo, and the third largest metropolitan area in South America, with a population of approximately 11 million people. Rio de Janeiro is divided into several districts, or zones, which are the historic downtown area called Centro, the South Zone, North Zone, and West Zone. Each zone offers its own attractions. The Centro area includes historic downtown & cultural attractions, the South Zone includes Rio’s beaches, and the North Zone caters to local industry, while the West Zone is a newer area called the Barra de Tijuca district.

ATTRACTIONS
Rio de Janeiro is famous for its natural settings, Samba & hotel-lined tourist beaches. Some other famous landmarks include the Christ the Redeemer Statue (‘Cristo Redentor’) atop Corcovado Mountain. The city also boasts the largest urban forest in the world: Floresta da Tijuca.

Panama

Welcome to the first in a long series of posts from the FuegoMundo blog that will focus on South and Latin American culture and history.

As you know, we are trying to build a wonderful customer experience for you at FuegoMundo. And one of our most important goals is to give you a small taste of South America, and its unique culture.

We hope you enjoy learning about this very special place…

Enjoy!

DID YOU KNOW?

• Panama uses the $US dollar as its currency.
• There’s never been a hurricane or major natural disaster in Panama.
• The City of Knowledge (Ciudad de Saber) in Panama City, which used to be a US Army Base, contains over 100 Universities in a 5 mile radius.
• Over 25,000 lives were lost in the construction of the Panama Canal.
• In 2008 Panama had one of the world’s fastest growing economies.
• Panama is poised to become the next “Hong Kong” of the Americas.

PAST
Historically, Panama was plagued with political unrest, corruption and poverty, with the likes of Manuel Noriega running the country. In 1989 Noriega was convicted of drug trafficking and money laundering charges and extradited to the United States.   He served time in a US prison until 2007.

PRESENT
Today Panama is blessed with political stability, a thriving economy, great weather, beautiful beaches, mountain & volcanic ranges, lush rain forests, the Panama Canal & the Free-Trade Zone to the north. Panama City, the capital and largest city, is a modern growing metropolis.  Major construction of world-class high rise buildings & infrastructure is underway in Panama City, including The Trump Tower Hotel & The Rivage Tower, resembling the skyline of a “mini-Manhattan.”  The city boasts world-class banking systems, hotels & casinos.

GEOGRAPHY & DEMOGRAPHICS
Panama is a small country, about the size of South Carolina, located in Central America, bordering Costa Rica to the West & Colombia to the East. Total population is 3.2 million, with over half living in Panama City.  Many locals are bilingual, speaking Spanish as their native language and also English.  Many American retirees have relocated to Panama, especially to the mountain & volcanic regions of Boquete and David, for its affordable high standard of living, natural beauty, friendly people, favorable weather, affordable health-care system, and for the many retiree perks & benefits offered by the country of Panama.

PANAMA CANAL
Panama was made famous by the Panama Canal, a brilliant engineering feet completed by the U.S. in 1914, joining the Caribbean Sea to the Pacific Ocean, and allowing cargo ships to cross through for a fee.  On December 31, 1999, under a treaty signed by President Jimmy Carter, control over the Panama Canal was returned to Panama.  Since then Panama has enjoyed explosive growth.  In 2007, Panama began an expansion of the Canal to allow passage to larger Mega-Cargo ships.  The project is estimated to be completed in 2014 with a cost $5.3 billion, and predicted to greatly stimulate the Panamanian economy even further.