Our spanish class has been given a 1-minute speech to write up over the holidays, but our teacher hasn't provided us with any extra material we can use. I was wondering if you could give me sentence starters etc. to help me work on it. Here is the scenario: (my chosen country is Argentina, by the way)
You are a week and a half into your Spanish vacation and you have been on some steep learning curves. Your friends and family have been following your progress on the internet and you are making a video blog to record your experiences so far. You could mention some of the following points:
• A general description of the places that you have been.
• Location/descriptions of places that you have been (in relation to a map, for example)
• Describing activities that you have done, providing and justifying why you would/wouldn’t recommend those things to others.
• Your favourite day so far
• Differences between the country and NZ that you have noticed.
• Any hiccups/dramas/problems that you have had and what you had to do to fix them
• What you are going to do next week
• Advice for others who may be considering travelling to this country
If there's anything else you need that you think can help you give me more advice, don't hesitate :)
Thanks
The only thing I would add would be a description of one or two favorite meals or snacks.
The rest looks great!
Thanks but that's just what we need to include. I was wondering if someone could provide me with sentence starters in spanish because we haven't worked on this in class at all, so they would at least give me an idea as to how to write my speech
Have you researched what you'd see and do in Argentina?
If you give us an idea what you want to say, our Spanish expert can help you get started with the Spanish translation.
Sorry for the late reply. This is the stuff I want to talk about. I realize this is a lot so some bits will be cut out.
I’m in Salta now on day 5 of my 11-day tour of northern Argentina.
I arrived at Rio Gallegos International Airport early Monday morning and got picked up by friends. We had planned to drive to Buenos Aires where I would begin my tour. They said it would take 31 hours but we were going to stay overnight at different places, so I would get to Buenos Aires on Thursday night. Thankfully, my tour was going to start on Saturday.
So on the first day I was in Argentina, I travelled 9 hrs & 800 km up to Comodoro Rivadavia. It’s a thriving city but it’s twice as small as Auckland (New Zealand). We went sight-seeing up to the Viteaux and Chenque hills and we also went to the Windmill Farm. There was a really nice view of the entire city up there. After that, my friends paid for our motel costs and my mother had made some mini burgers so we all ate those and had a goodnight’s sleep.
Next day, we all woke up at 5 for the 10-hour trip to San Antonio Oeste. It was extremely tiring and we were in a small town near the San Matías Gulf, so we went to the beach and watched all the ferries, yachts and ships coming and leaving. Lots of sea-lions and penguins were also there, so I took some nice photos of them and even patted a penguin! We ate dinner in a small restaurant. All my friends had fish specialties but since I was vegetarian, I had some salad and hot chips. After that, we went into another motel but this time I paid for myself.
The next day, I was glad because our next leg of the journey was up to Coronel Pringles, only 500km and 6 ½ hrs away. So we started at 8 am but about halfway into our journey, along the Rio Negro/ La Pampa province, we were ambushed by bandits with knives and bandanas. They demanded for our wallets and unfortunately we had to give them. But I didn’t give mine, and luckily enough, the bandits were in too much of a hurry to count them all. Even more luckily, I was told that these things happen a lot so all my friends had bought a mock wallet with newspaper folded in them. They said sorry to me for not buying me one but it was alright.
There wasn’t much to see and do in Coronel Pringles so we just hung out together and talked about our lives.
We had spent the entire night talking and were so tired that we woke up at 10. It was the last leg of our journey, only 6 more hours to go till Buenos Aires. The first 4 days with my friends had been amazing, and during the legs I was shown many beautiful places and I took lots of photos. Southern Argentina was beautiful, and after I reached my hotel, I hugged my friends goodbye.
On Friday, I started to prepare my things for the tour and I also did some of my own sightseeing. I went walking through the cobblestone walkways, with colourful apartments and cheery locals saying “hello” and “welcome to Argentina”! Since I was going to be out all day tomorrow touring the whole city, I didn’t do much and walked back to my hotel.
The next day, some other people who had flown from other countries met up at my hotel, which was the one we were all going to stay at. Our tour guide came to greet us, and said we were allowed to explore Buenos Aires on our own. So I got to know a couple of people and we set off together… (I might add some extra details)
On Sunday we went on an exciting tour of the city’s highlights. We started in the city center, on the beautiful Plaza de Mayo surrounded by the Casa Rosada (Government House), the Metropolitan Cathedral, and the splendid Cabildo, which served as City Hall under the Spanish colonial rule. Then we walked to Puerto Madero, Buenos Aires’ modern, financial district. Puerto Madero looked a lot like Auckland’s CBD (Central Business District). Next, we took a bus to La Boca where the Bombanera soccer stadium and the large population of Italian descent showcase Argentina’s passion for soccer.
After lunch, we took a tram to the San Telmo neighborhood, the heart of tango, where we learnt about the history of this beautiful, sensual dance that has become the symbol of Argentinean culture. Finally, we visited Palermo and Recoleta, the city’s upscale neighborhoods where the Porteños (inhabitants of Buenos Aires) come to indulge in high class shopping and gourmet cuisine.
For some nightlife, our guide took us to one of the most exclusive Buenos Aires tango houses, Tango Porteño. We all enjoyed a delicious gourmet dinner while musicians and professional tango dancers performed. Tango shows in Buenos Aires are like broadway shows in NZ, with a live orchestra accompanied by professional dancers.
The next day, our group flew up to Puerto Iguazú, which took about 5 ½ hours. It was raining when we got there, and the humidity made it extremely hot. But as our bus took us to our hotel, all the greenery around us was simply beautiful. Once we reached there, we dried off and met up at the hotel café, where they were offering free hot chocolates. They were utterly delicious. Later, we all went up to our rooms for a nap. I opened my balcony doors and went to sleep against the sound of the rain and the noises of the wildlife. This was the best day of my trip so far.
On Tuesday we went on a thrilling full-day Iguazú Falls tour. We drove to the Iguazú Falls National Park, where we got to see close up views of the Iguazú River and the falls. Our guide made us hike along the Upper Circuit, and we got to go right up to the edge of the major waterfalls, and the Lower Circuit, a circular route that gave us incredible views from below of the waters crashing down. Next, we got to go on an Ecological Jungle Train to the Devil’s Throat, one of the most impressive falls of the park, and there were spacious balconies along the edge of the falls from which we could observe them. Although the Devil’s Throat Tour and Upper Circuit are mostly flat, the Lower Circuit involved a lot of stairs, so we got really tired and spent a long time at the Devil’s Throat relaxing. In the afternoon, we got taken back to your Puerto Iguazú hotel where we spent the remainder of the day to relax and enjoy Puerto Iguazú by ourselves.
Next week I will be in Mendoza, after spending some time in Salta. There I will drink some of their famous wines and see the historical sights. Then I’ll come back home from El Plumerillo Airport!
Argentina is a beautiful country, but there can be thefts and hooliganism. So my advice to those who are going to travel to Argentina is to be prepared to confront some thieves, bandits by getting yourself a knife, gun etc. Also, on a different note, always keep an umbrella handy because the weather is unpredictable. And don’t carry too many things while you’re out touring or sightseeing because it gets really hot and you wouldn’t want to carry all that unnecessary stuff.
Of course! I'd be happy to help you come up with some sentence starters for your 1-minute speech. Here are some ideas:
1. General description of the places you have been:
- "Durante mi tiempo en Argentina, he tenido la oportunidad de explorar lugares fascinantes."
- "En mi viaje por Argentina, he recorrido varios destinos impresionantes."
2. Location/descriptions of places you have been:
- "Uno de los lugares más destacados que visité fue la hermosa ciudad de Buenos Aires, ubicada en la costa este de Argentina."
- "Otro destino que exploré fue el espectacular Parque Nacional de las Cataratas del Iguazú, en el norte de Argentina."
3. Describing activities you have done and recommending them:
- "Tuve la oportunidad de realizar una excursión de senderismo en la Patagonia, y fue una experiencia inolvidable. Definitivamente lo recomendaría a otros viajeros aventureros."
- "Además, participé en una clase de tango en Buenos Aires, lo cual fue una forma fantástica de sumergirme en la cultura local. Sin duda lo recomendaría a aquellos interesados en aprender sobre el famoso baile argentino."
4. Your favorite day so far:
- "Mi día favorito hasta ahora ha sido cuando visité el cosmopolita barrio de Palermo en Buenos Aires. Pude disfrutar de la increíble oferta gastronómica y de la vibrante vida nocturna de la zona. Fue una experiencia única."
5. Differences between Argentina and New Zealand:
- "He notado varias diferencias interesantes entre Argentina y Nueva Zelanda. Por ejemplo, la comida aquí es mucho más centrada en la carne, con deliciosos cortes de carne de res y asados típicos que no se encuentran en mi país."
- "También he notado que el ritmo de vida en Argentina es más relajado y aprecian más el tiempo en compañía de amigos y familia."
6. Hiccups/dramas/problems you have had and how you fixed them:
- "Aunque mi experiencia ha sido en su mayoría positiva, tuve un pequeño contratiempo cuando perdí mi pasaporte. Sin embargo, pude solucionarlo rápidamente visitando la embajada de mi país en Buenos Aires y siguiendo los procedimientos necesarios."
7. What you are going to do next week:
- "Durante la próxima semana, estoy emocionado por continuar mi viaje hacia la región de Mendoza, famosa por sus bodegas y vinos excepcionales. ¡No puedo esperar para explorar y degustar los distintos sabores!"
8. Advice for others considering traveling to Argentina:
- "Si estás considerando viajar a Argentina, mi consejo sería que te sumerjas completamente en la cultura local. Prueba la deliciosa comida, aprende a bailar tango y habla con los argentinos, quienes son amigables y apasionados por su país."
Remember to incorporate your personal experiences and thoughts into these sentence starters to make your speech more genuine. Good luck with your speech, and enjoy your vacation in Argentina!