In Pura vida (Life is good)Spanish is more than vocabulary and grammar, just as Spanish-speaking cultures are more than products and practices. In this learner-centered introductory program, the authors’ commitment to a methodology based on true-to-life experiences brings Spanish to life. Pura vida is the discovery of a Spanish-speaking world through the experiences of real people who share anecdotes and reflections on those experiences. Students relate to these people and make deeper, more meaningful connections between language and culture, and acquire Spanish with an unparalleled sense of personal engagement. In this 12-chapter introductory program, students don’t only learn Spanish for real life, but also from real life. They discover that there is not just one homogeneous Hispanic culture, but rather that each Spanish-speaking country has its own rich, unique culture and that the people who live in these countries speak one common language with different accents, characteristics, and idiosyncrasies. The program offers truly seamless integration of cultural notions and language instruction and features 100% contextualized and personalized activities.

The Pan American Games, second only to the Olympics as the biggest international sports competition in the world, are held every four years (during the year prior to the Summer Olympics) under the sponsorship of the International Olympic Committee. This book lists the results of the Pan American Games from their commencement in 1951 through 1999. Los Juegos Panamericanos, los segundos mas importantes del mundo tras los Olimpicos, se han venido celebrando cada cuatro anos desde 1951. Se incluye en el presente trabajo bilingue un recuento de los resultados reflejados en dichos juegos a lo largo de su historia, desde los comienzos hasta los mas recientes, celebrados en 1999.

The enthusiasm and excitement surrounding the Olympics makes it an ideal topic for teaching Spanish. Not only will pupils learn the French words for sports, we also give teachers ideas to reinforce vocabulary and sentence structures for a range of topics, from colours and weather to numbers and travel.

"Animación en hoteles", recrea al lector con la caracterización de una labor que cada día cobra nuevos adeptos en el plano profesional. Partiendo del concepto acerca de lo qué es animación, esta obra aborda la manera peculiar en que las técnicas recreativas contribuyen a satisfacer las necesidades de ocio de los turistas que visitan las instalaciones hoteleras, así como establece consideraciones, a veces poco conocidas, sobre tan apasionante oficio y las personas que hacen posible su ejecutoria. El libro enfatiza en la necesidad de preservar los valores que forman parte de la cultura autóctona de los diferentes pueblos, en contraposición con las formas convencionales que se manifiestan en la actualidad.