Featured Stories

Down like the Economy

By Christine Berghorn

"Crisis Economico."  "4 million without work."  "20% unemployment rate."  "Zapatero discusses new plans."  If you watch any Spanish TV or scan the headlines of the newspaper, these are constant figures that dominate Spanish media.  It seems odd to most of us, especially since Spain is by no means a poor country. While the entire world is experiencing trouble financially, we all seem to be in the same boat worldwide.  Spain continues to be seen as one of the hardest hit countries in this economic crisis. 

Asi De FACYL

By Patrick Dunford

What do you do as a woman hurtles down twenty deadly feet through the air towards the unforgiving granite of the Plaza Mayor in Salamanca, Spain? You watch.

A Modern Flamenco Experience in Salamanca

By Elizabeth Buckley

The modern flamenco group, Flamenco Hoy de Carlos Saura, gave an exhilarating performance with a nice blend of dancing, singing, music, and lighting. Although the origin of flamenco has remained unclear and this art has evolved much since the 1970s, the Arabic and Andalucian gypsy influences, such as the guttural singing and distinct dress, appeared throughout the show. Just as in other traditional flamenco performances, Flamenco Hoy skillfully combined jazz, salsa, and la bossa nova to create an ensemble of nineteen different acts with varying sounds and sights, incorporating both rapid and unhurried dancing, brightly colored and exotic costumes of many shades and tints, and a measurable energy the audience could feel.

Rhythm of the Spanish Night

By Rich Bradshaw

It’s 2:30 in the morning.  Purposeful steps guided us here. Music pumping.  You can hear it from the street. Rounding the first corner, heart rate rises.  Two flights of stairs.  Bright flashing lights.  Loud music.  Intense dancing.  High energy.  The DJ booth is bustling.  DJ 2D2 is about to play.  This is the scene inside Club Cubic and it describes only one of the high octane situations I regularly found myself in as I tried to answer the following question for this article; what is it that the Spaniards are listening to that is keeping them up until five or six in the morning and dancing until the sun comes up?  To answer this question one has to be willing to do quite a bit more than spend a few hours searching the internet translating Spanish web pages and articles. 

Blood Soaked Sand: The History of Bullfighting

By Chris Brause

As the dust finally settled and the spectacle in front of me came into focus, the sand, soaked with blood, was flying everywhere.  The crowd chanted and screamed in a way that only resembled the old gladiator fights of Rome.  The cries of “Acabalo! Acabalo! or Finish it! Finish it!” filled the entire arena and drowned out every other sound.  This nauseating performance was coming to an end and I was relieved, yet terrified of what that entailed.  With one final move it was done, life extinguished with one quick downward thrust.  Sitting there, one would have trouble comprehending the display in front of them due to the frenzy of emotions crowding their brain.  I thought “What kind of sport is this?  How can this still be going on?” and it was at that moment that I realized I had to find out. Bullfighting, this age-old blood sport had to have some meaning or cultural significance to its fan and I was determined to figure out what that was.  I was determined to get to the bottom of Spanish Bullfights.

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