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Five dumb reasons to learn Spanish

February 15th, 2023 8:00 AM

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Without further ado, here are five stupid reasons to learn Spanish, in English, from a company that also teaches French, Italian and German. 

So much pork

We get it. Meat isn’t at the height of its popularity. It’s not healthy or ecological, and goes against many of our respective gods’ wishes. But if cured meats are your thing, and transgression is no biggie, then Spain in particular will be barrels of fun for you.

Literally – much of this pork is stored in barrels. Feast upon lomoschorizos, your Jamón Ibérico, your belotasserranos and your pata negra ... the possibilities are endless. Speaking the language will gain you entrée into the ultrasophisticated world of high-end pork consumption (and possibly the Museo del Jamón).

Cocktails

Pisco Sour, Sangria, Kalimotxo, Margaritas, Piña coladas … these are all traditional Latin drinks that contain alcohol. One of them even includes a raw egg.

Normally there is no language restriction that prohibits non-Spanish speakers from consuming these tasty beverages, but consider that drinking these without speaking the language is a kind of cultural appropriation.

Ok, maybe that’s a bit strong, but so are those cocktails, and they taste even better when you speak Spanish.

It’s close to Italian

So you want to learn Italian. Who could blame you? It’s the language of maestros, mafiosos and of course video game plumbing duo, Mario and Luigi.

Fact: there’s no better stepping stone to learning Italian than starting with Spanish.

Well, in all fairness, you could start with Italian directly, but where’s the fun in that? Learning Spanish before Italian will certainly help you with the basics of conjugation and a ton of vocabulary.

It will also make it difficult for your brain to distinguish which language you’re speaking, and isn’t that in the end what we’re all looking for?

It’s the language of the future

Yes, we previously said this about English, and yes, we said it about French too. And yes, there’s a very strong chance we’ll say about German, Portuguese, Italian, Arabic and Esperanto in the future.

Still, Spanish is definitely the language of the future… until we decide to shamelessly promote another language product.

Note: Spanish is also a language of the present and the past, so it’s got a lot going for it.

Telenovelas

Does art even matter anymore? Probably, we suppose, but consider the telenovela, a sui generis medium that one can argue is the highest form of art.

Emotion, drama, sex, sass, car crashes, abs, backstabbing, and evil twins, and all this en español. To truly understand the cultural impact of the telenovela, there is but one choice: watch in Spanish, and know what it means to truly live life.

Need more reasons to learn Spanish? We’re fresh out. But feel free to try our online Spanish course Hotel Borbollón for free for 30 days with The Southern Star! 

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