Simple Stories in Spanish

I wrote a short novel called “La aventura de Zunzuncito”. For this fifth season of Simple Stories in Spanish, I will be sharing a chapter from the novel each week. This week is chapter 11! Zunzuncito is getting closer to the magic flower that will grant his wish to be big. He crossed the grand lake and passed through the land of giants. Only one place remains: the valley of snails. Zunzuncito feel...

I wrote a short novel called “La aventura de Zunzuncito”. For this fifth season of Simple Stories in Spanish, I will be sharing a chapter from the novel each week. This week is chapter 10! After crossing the grand lake, Zunzuncito and Monty must pass through the land of giants. The land of giants is fascinating, until Zunzuncito sees something horrible: animals in cages. Seeing the animals in cage...

I wrote a short novel called “La aventura de Zunzuncito”. For this fifth season of Simple Stories in Spanish, I will be sharing a chapter from the novel each week. This week is chapter 9! Zunzuncito and Monty fell into the grand lake. Thankfully, a turtle came to save them. Once they cross the grand lake, they will reach the second leg of their journey: pass through the land of giants. To the tiny...

I wrote a short novel called “La aventura de Zunzuncito”. For this fifth season of Simple Stories in Spanish, I will be sharing a chapter from the novel each week. This week is chapter 8! Zunzuncito is a tiny hummingbird. His friend, Monty, is an even smaller frog. The two animals are searching for a magic flower. Zunzuncito hopes that the magic flower will grant his wish to be big. Majá is a Cuba...

I wrote a short novel called “La aventura de Zunzuncito”. For this fifth season of Simple Stories in Spanish, I will be sharing a chapter from the novel each week. This week is chapter 7! Zunzuncito is on a mission to find the magic flower that will grant his wish to be big. He spoke with the wise snake Majá and now he knows where he must go, but how will he get there? Thankfully, he has a small s...

I wrote a short novel called “La aventura de Zunzuncito”. For this fifth season of Simple Stories in Spanish, I will be sharing a chapter from the novel each week. This week is chapter 6! Zunzuncito is a tiny hummingbird. His friend, Monty, is an even smaller frog. The two animals are searching for a magic flower. Zunzuncito hopes that the magic flower will grant his wish to be big. Majá is a Cuba...

I wrote a short novel called “La aventura de Zunzuncito”. For this fifth season of Simple Stories in Spanish, I will be sharing a chapter from the novel each week. This week is chapter 5! Zunzuncito is done dealing with the small life. He wants to be big. Luckily, his new frog friend Monty knows about a special magic flower that might be able to grant his wish. He just doesn’t know where it is. So...

I wrote a short novel called “La aventura de Zunzuncito”. For this fifth season of Simple Stories in Spanish, I will be sharing a chapter from the novel each week. This week is chapter 4!  It’s not easy being the smallest bird in the world. You have to deal with bigger bully birds, bees that don’t want to share and spiders that want to suck your blood. Zunzuncito is tired of being small. Perhaps i...

I wrote a short novel called “La aventura de Zunzuncito”. For this fifth season of Simple Stories in Spanish, I will be sharing a chapter from the novel each week. This week is chapter 3! Zunzuncito, a tiny bee hummingbird, just wants to suck delicious nectar from beautiful flowers. But he is not the only one hunting for food. After being chased away from flowers by a group of bees, Zunzuncito is...

I wrote a short novel called “La aventura de Zunzuncito”. For this fifth season of Simple Stories in Spanish, I will be sharing a chapter from the novel each week. This week is chapter 2! Zunzuncito, one of the tiniest hummingbirds in the world, flits from flower to flower in search of delicious nectar. However, some flowers are occupied by larger hummingbirds and insects. In this second chapter o...

I wrote a short novel called “La aventura de Zunzuncito”. For this fifth season of Simple Stories in Spanish, I will be sharing a chapter from the novel each week. This week is chapter 1! Zunzuncito is one of the tiniest hummingbirds in the world. Some might think he spends all his time happily sucking nectar from flowers, and they are not wrong. However, sometimes insects and even other hummingbi...

Welcome to the fifth season of Simple Stories in Spanish! The island nation of Cuba is full of amazing animals. One of the most fascinating is the tiny bee hummingbird, also called the zunzuncito. I was inspired by this little hummingbird and, with some motivation from my students, I wrote a short novel called “La aventura de Zunzuncito”. For this fifth season of Simple Stories in Spanish, I will...

This fourth season of Simple Stories in Spanish is focusing on celebrations. While not necessarily historically accurate, January 6th marks the day that the wise men gave their gifts of frankincense, gold and myrrh to the baby Jesus. This moment is celebrated as “el Día de los Reyes Magos”. While other kids around the world get presents from Santa on Christmas, kids in the Spanish-speaking world a...

This fourth season of Simple Stories in Spanish is focusing on celebrations. Semana Santa, or “Holy Week” occurs the week before Easter. While it is a religious celebration all over the world, the most grand Semana Santa arguably is in Sevilla, España. The week is filled with processions of penitents and pasos that depict the events leading to the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Whil...

This fourth season of Simple Stories in Spanish is focusing on celebrations. ¡Hola y bienvenidos a este episodio de Simple Stories in Spanish! Saint Thomas, or Santo Tomás, is the patron saint of Chichicastenango, Guatemala. The locals celebrate their patron saint with a variety of dances. Each dance has its own origen and theme, although with some similarities. The dancers wear bright costumes an...

This fourth season of Simple Stories in Spanish is focusing on celebrations. While it is not a big, crazy party, the Día de la Virgen de Suyapa is an important celebration in the nation of Honduras. La Virgen de Suyapa was the name given to a small statue of the Virgin Mary that a boy discovered on the outskirts of the capital Tegucigalpa. Today, that discovery is marked with a celebration outside...

This fourth season of Simple Stories in Spanish is focusing on celebrations. In the last 70 years, Panama has made a big effort to preserve its past. One way to remember the customs of the past and ensure their existence in the future is to create celebrations centered around them. Thus we find celebrations about agriculture, greetings and even clothing throughout the country of Panamá.  This stor...

This fourth season of Simple Stories in Spanish is focusing on celebrations. El Día de los Muertos, is a celebration most commonly associated with the county of Mexico. However, Día de los Muertos, or “Day of the Dead” is actually celebrated throughout Central America as well. While some of the traditions and beliefs are similar, each region gives the celebration its own flavor. Today we will look...

This fourth season of Simple Stories in Spanish is focusing on celebrations. The celebration of Day of the Dead, or Día de Muertos, is a bright, colorful festivity to remember and honor those who have passed away. To celebrate deceased ancestors, graves are cleaned and decorated, altars with offerings of food and drink are constructed, and faces are painted to make the dead feel comfortable and we...

This fourth season of Simple Stories in Spanish is focusing on celebrations. During the traditional celebrations of Carnaval in the country of Uruguay, two nights stand out for their energy and uniqueness. El Desfile de Llamadas , or Parade of the Calls, showcase el candombe , a unique rhythm created by three drums that originated with enslaved Africans in Montevideo. El Desfile de Llamadas celebr...

This fourth season of Simple Stories in Spanish is focusing on celebrations. Many countries celebrate Carnaval and they all have their own twist. In a previous episode, I told the story of Carnaval en la República Dominicana. Today I will tell the story of Carnaval en Guaranda, Ecuador. Like the Carnaval Dominicano, El Carnaval de Guaranda combines indigenous culture with European influence to cre...

This fourth season of Simple Stories in Spanish is focusing on celebrations. “Las Fiestas de San Fermín” are more commonly known as “The Running of the Bulls”. These eight and a half days involve so much more than the 3 minute sprint from the Ayuntamiento, or City Hall, to the Plaza de Toros. There are parades, music, giant paper maché heads, brilliant fireworks, and bullfights This story is told...

This fourth season of Simple Stories in Spanish is focusing on celebrations. To visit Costa Rica is to experience la pura vida, or pure life. While it is known mostly for nature and coffee, the celebrations of Costa Rica make you feel alive. They are full of that “pura vida”. The biggest celebration in Costa Rica is Fiestas de Palmares - two weeks of parades, bullfights, concerts and soccer, or fo...

This fourth season of Simple Stories in Spanish is focusing on celebrations. Oaxaca, México is best known for its celebration of Día de Muertos, or Day of the Dead. However, there is another festival in Oaxaca that bears mentioning: La Noche de Rábanos, or Night of the Radishes. This colorful evening of radish and vegetable sculptures is a feast for the eyes as professionals and amateurs alike com...

This fourth season of Simple Stories in Spanish is focusing on celebrations. Northern Chile embraces more than Chilean culture. In this region you can find Bolivian, Peruvian, and indigenous influence. This combination of cultures is presented each year in the Fiesta de la Tirana. While “Tirana” means “tyrant” the festival actually celebrates the Virgen del Carmen, one of the Virgin Mary’s many in...