La Diada Nacional de Catalunya

So I know I don't usually update more than once a week, but today is a special day here in the area I live in: Catalunya! In honor of this, I thought I'd post some facts about Catalunya(Catalonia in English).

Today is the day that commemorates when Catalan troops surrendered to Felipe V(the recognized king of Spain) in 1714. Though Catalunya is a part of Spain, it is very independent from it, much like Basque Country in the north of Spain. I compare it to Basque Country because both areas of Spain have a very distinct sense of pride in their region, and a language that is different from that of the rest of Spain. Catalunya is governed by the Generalitat de Catalunya, which has been around since Medieval times. It has been abolished and reinstated twice. The second time is notable because it was abolished by the Franco dictatorship. Catalunya is also defined as a "nationality" of Spain, it is one of three areas(the others being Basque Country and Galicia) to hold this definition in the Spanish constitution. This gives it the right to autonomy, though it is always first under the rule of Spain. Since 1979, Spain has increased Catalunya's automony, the Generalitat holds jurisdiction in the areas of culture, environment, communications, transportation, commerce, public safety and local government. Spain shares jurisdiction over education, healthcare, and the justice system. Now, and especially on La Diada, there are groups of Catalans who believe that Catalunya should be independent. On September 11 in particular, there are many demonstrations held.

Below is the flag that those in support of an independent Catalunya fly. It's pretty common here, I've seen it about as much as I have seen the regular flag(I talk about it below). It bears a striking resemblence to the Cuban flag. It was designed in 1904 and was briefly used during Catalunya's independence in 1931. The flag itself is called L'Estelada. 

L'Estelada

Catalunya is the most Northwestern area of Spain, it stretches along Andorra and France(separated by the Pyrenees Mountains), and along the Mediterranean Sea. It is comprised of four provinces: Barelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona(can you guess which one I live in?). Barcelona is the capital of the region. The name Catalunya is theorized to be from the word "Land of Castles" or "castlà".

The language of Catalunya, or "català", is a Romance based language. I've mentioned before how difficult it is to learn, and I'm still serious about that. It sounds a little like French and Spanish. Linguists have traced it back to the Middle Ages. Unlike Basque, where nobody is really sure where it came from, Catalan has distinct origins. It is one of the official languages of Catalunya, and the only language of Andorra, which borders the region. During the Franco Dictatorship, Catalan was banned, and only Spanish was allowed. Once the dictatorship had fallen, Catalan came back strongly(I highly doubt anyone actually really followed the ban). Everything here is in Catalan, with a few exceptions for things in English and Spanish. Schools are taught in Catalan as well.

One very very famous Catalan? Salvador Dali.
  
The flag used today is called Senyera, which is roughly translated into "signal flag" from Catalan. It is one of the oldest flags in Europe. You can see where(obviously) L'Estelada derives from this flag.

Senyera, the official flag of Catalunya

The legend behind it is one of my favorite stories to tell people. Though I had originally heard it without any historical fact from A, I went online and did a little research. The legend originates in the 1300s, but is set in the 800s. Two kings were fighting to keep their kingdoms from the Moors, Wildred I the Hairy and King Charles the Bald. Wilfred I(who I have found was a count not a king), was wounded during battle. As he lay dying, the other king came to his side. Wildred I lamented that there was not flag for Catalunya. He begged King Charles the Bald to create a flag, as his dying wish. King Charles the Bald took his golden shield(or a piece of cloth depending on the version) and with the dying king's blood, drew his hand down the shield. This is why there are four red stripes, one for each bloodied finger.

I don't know how true it is, but it's rather romantic isn't it?

Mistakes We Make Learning English

My first post in September!

For those following to see what my life is like here, it's been pretty relaxed, not anything special since my trip. The girls start school next week, so we have been hanging out at home. I've also been on the job hunt for a second job and had some job interviews but that's another post.

Today's post focuses on the mistakes(the funniest ones) that I have experienced thus far.

Moment #1: The difference between Beer, Bear, and Beard
This happened when I had been here for about 2 weeks, I may have mentioned it in my post about Port Adventura. I was standing in the line for a ride with A and JC, A's brother in law. JC had never spoken English with someone who spoke it as a first language, so he was having difficulty understanding "my accent". This was my first experience with someone calling the way I speak an accent, having lived on the West Coast my whole life, I never thought that I was the one with an accent.

Anyway, JC had been asking a number of questions of how to say certain words, what the difference between the words and the funniest one was this(it has become a bit of a joke): What is the difference between beer, bear, and beard. Now the way he said the words, it all sounded the same. So, I used hand motions and put stress on the parts of the words that make them different. You can see them below, and the captions represent the part of the word I stressed.

bEER

bEAR

beaRD

We still make jokes about it, and I have since made a tongue twister with the words to help them practice, and to give to JC the next it we see him. I also added the word "Bird" as per the request of A and E.

"The bearded bear drank beer with a bird". Say that five times fast!

Moment #2: Misunderstanding one word changes the meaning.

Recently, I've been looking at a pharmacy for a certain kind of medication I take. Since it doesn't exist in the same brand, I had to go and ask. On my way out, I let A know where I was going and what I needed to get. He looked generally concerned.

Turns out he misheard me and thought I had said "I'm pregnant and need to go the pharmacy." He later told me his first thought was "Who's gonna tell Lisa's Mom?"

It was funny, if not a little embarrassing. But on the bright side, I found exactly what I needed! And it is much cheaper here than in the States. My Spanish was a little wonky, but the lady knew what I needed by the package I handed her.

Moment #3: Mixing Up Words

One of the things I do is help set the table for dinner every night. One evening, we were doing business as usual and A asked me to go get the "Kidnappers". What he meant was the "napkins". I explained to him what a "kidnapper" is in English. 

Mixing up words is actually pretty common for people learning English, and the "nap" is in both sentences, with the a vowel being the same for both words. This is probably the second most common error that gets made when using conversational English. The first is pronunciation.