Matt Chambers Connects
How to Learn Spanish in Medellin, Colombia
Ever wondered how an unexpected encounter at the gym can turn into a cherished friendship? Join me, Matt Chambers, as I sit down with my dear friend and Spanish Professor, Violeta Bernal and reminisce about our unique and humorous meeting in Medellín, Colombia. We laugh about how I mistakenly thought we met at a coffee shop, only to be corrected by Violeta who vividly remembers our first interaction at the gym. Discover the story behind her serious workout demeanor and how it led to our rare connection, all while highlighting the joy of making unexpected friendships.
From there, we journey through the gripping and resilient childhood of growing up in Medellín during the infamous Pablo Escobar era. Violeta shares vivid memories of living in neighborhoods marked by violence and crime, offering a raw and powerful glimpse into life during those tumultuous times. We reflect on the positive changes brought by President Álvaro Uribe's policies and the persistent dangers of guerrilla warfare, painting a comprehensive picture of Medellín's past and gradual return to safety and normalcy.
Finally, we explore the fascinating world of language learning and teaching. Hear how a chance encounter at the Tiger Paw hostel sparked her passion for teaching Spanish and led to the development of an efficient method for expats to learn the language. From understanding the differences between "ser" and "estar" to practical safety tips for travelers, this episode is packed with insightful advice for anyone keen on cross-cultural connections. Don't miss our heartfelt thank you to Violeta for her wonderful contributions and join us in staying connected through our various platforms.
Follow me on Social:
https://linktr.ee/mattchambers
If you'd like to support the show, use the links below.
https://www.buzzsprout.com/2296085/support
https://paypal.me/mcconnects
https://cash.app/$mattchambers11
Ever wondered how an unexpected encounter at the gym can turn into a cherished friendship? Join me, Matt Chambers, as I sit down with my dear friend and Spanish Professor, Violeta Bernal and reminisce about our unique and humorous meeting in Medellín, Colombia. We laugh about how I mistakenly thought we met at a coffee shop, only to be corrected by Violeta who vividly remembers our first interaction at the gym. Discover the story behind her serious workout demeanor and how it led to our rare connection, all while highlighting the joy of making unexpected friendships.
From there, we journey through the gripping and resilient childhood of growing up in Medellín during the infamous Pablo Escobar era. Violeta shares vivid memories of living in neighborhoods marked by violence and crime, offering a raw and powerful glimpse into life during those tumultuous times. We reflect on the positive changes brought by President Álvaro Uribe's policies and the persistent dangers of guerrilla warfare, painting a comprehensive picture of Medellín's past and gradual return to safety and normalcy.
Finally, we explore the fascinating world of language learning and teaching. Hear how a chance encounter at the Tiger Paw hostel sparked her passion for teaching Spanish and led to the development of an efficient method for expats to learn the language. From understanding the differences between "ser" and "estar" to practical safety tips for travelers, this episode is packed with insightful advice for anyone keen on cross-cultural connections. Don't miss our heartfelt thank you to Violeta for her wonderful contributions and join us in staying connected through our various platforms.
Follow me on Social:
https://linktr.ee/mattchambers
If you'd like to support the show, use the links below.
https://www.buzzsprout.com/2296085/support
https://paypal.me/mcconnects
https://cash.app/$mattchambers11
Hello and welcome to Matt Chambers Connects, a podcast hosted by Matt Chambers. This is the podcast that transcends boundaries, empowers cross-cultural connections and fosters a more connected world. I'm your host, matt Chambers, and I invite you to join us on this quest to expand our understanding and build bridges between my two favorite places on the planet Latin America and the United States. I've been traveling, living and doing business in Latin America for nearly two decades.
Speaker 2:Hey guys, hello and welcome to the podcast again. I'm Matt Chambers, your host, and I'm here today with my friend and Violeta Bernal from wow. Six, seven years ago we met right.
Speaker 3:It's been like forever it's been quite a while. Yeah.
Speaker 2:We're here in beautiful Medellínin, colombia, and Violeta and I met one day at a coffee shop and we've been in touch since and and since then she's become the number one. Well, he was actually at the gym oh yeah, I know I keep messing that up, but you could correct me on that. I swear I thought we met at Pergamino because that's not where we met. We met at the gym okay, so we met at the met and we had our first class in pergamino ah, okay, that's what happened?
Speaker 2:uh-huh, but it was at the gym but at that point you were just starting out, kind of right as no I started in back in 2012 in 2012 and I met you like around 2017 something, something like that we met at pergamino right ah no, it wasn't the gym, because I was stalking you.
Speaker 3:No mentiras, you were stalking me that happens a lot by the way you were stalking me and, yeah, that's what I remember because, honestly, I remember pretty well and that's what I keep correcting you where we met because, uh, honestly, you are the only person that I have met at the gym and no one talks to me at the gym. I don't know why. No no one.
Speaker 2:Well, I don't know the gym's kind of. What are you saying? I'm the only one that, uh, that interrupted your workout.
Speaker 3:Kind of, but not really. But honestly, no one talks to me in the gym because I'm very concentrated and my face is so serious. But yeah, it was you and last year, after many years of being working out at the gym, that another guy talked to me, but that's it no one likes you at the gym maybe I'm just too. No, well, actually, at the gym where I go right now, once I was asking to the coaches because for some reason I'm very close to the coaches but not to the people that train there.
Speaker 2:Are you still training in that gym?
Speaker 3:No, no, no in Ultra. No, I don't train there anymore. Now I work out in 101 Boxing Club. Although I don't do boxing, I do the other classes they have there or I just work out by myself there. But why did?
Speaker 2:you quit ultra.
Speaker 3:It got expensive, man well, practically here all gyms are expensive. So because they're in 101 is kind of the same, they charge you depending on the amount of lessons you do per month. So yeah, I guess just gyms are expensive here.
Speaker 3:Yeah they are. And when I was asking them why they I mean, what is the reason they think no one talks to me. One coach told me like well, you look very serious, you are so into the workout. And when I see the old people hey, now gossiping I'm like, oh, I get it now, because I do go there to work out, not to make friends.
Speaker 2:yeah, no, I I think I go with the idea of working out and then I end up meeting friends.
Speaker 3:It's been, yeah, but I know, I don't know what happens with me. Maybe because, well, honestly, at least in this gym, when I do the the classes, the group classes, I am the one I notice, I am the one that is cute at all yeah, maybe you have that intimidating face where people just don't want to approach yeah, they told me that it's like you're just too serious, you're so into the workout, so it's not like, no, we cannot interrupt her.
Speaker 2:So yeah, no, I definitely notice that you're uh, you're certainly a focused person and you could be. I could see where you'd be a little bit intimidating maybe, and I get that. I get that for myself too, so I don't know. When I see someone like you, I um, you know, I just kind of figure that. You know, I just want to be annoying and make sure that I trying to break your serious face and bring out a little bit of a smile.
Speaker 3:yeah, that's true, I'm not like like normal paisa, I know, I know I I mean my paisa friends actually tell me that it's like you're just weird, but I like it. I like being the bicho raro and the black sheep and I don't care.
Speaker 2:No, being weird is good. I like being weird. I've been weird my whole life.
Speaker 3:Ah see, so that's why you talk to me. Ah, sí, Bueno, so that's why you talked to me. Yeah, that's why I remember so well the situation about the gym, because my first time that Jorge me was like, oh, someone talked to me, oh what?
Speaker 2:Why didn't we talk after that really? We went to a couple of pergamino classes or something. Sí you probably gave me that intimidating mean face. I was like all right Ay sí, Whatever. Screw this intimidating mean face. And I was just like, all right, screw this, I don't know, but anyway.
Speaker 2:So you know, we obviously know that you've been teaching Spanish for 12 years now and that you've just recently, over the last five years, turned it into a legit company, a legit business but I want to go back and and kind of get a little bit about the history of your life and what brought you to this point, and then we'll get into more details about the language itself and and what brought you down that road. But growing up in Medellín, colombia for you, take me through a little bit of that, a little bit of your life, maybe the highlights from childhood to now.
Speaker 3:Well, when I was young there was still all this drama with Pablo Escobar, and back in that time I was living in another neighborhood. Right now I live in Poblado, but I grew up in Buenos Aires. It's close to downtown El Centro and I remember in my condominium there used to be, you know, a guy lived there and he was one of Pablo Escobarobar's employees.
Speaker 2:You know, I don't know the word sicarios in in English no safe the uh sicarios are back in the day when, when Pablo Escobar used to hire sicarios, they were the guys on the motos. There'd be two guys on the moto, one guy's driving and one guy on the back, and the guy on the back's job was to well, still there are sicarios still in the city.
Speaker 3:But one of the big sicarios was living there and it was quite interesting because, well, he brought a lot of prosperity to the condominium, giving out gifts. But it was also trouble. And I remember after they killed Pablo Escobar they went after the employees, the sicarios and of course after this guy, so the the neighborhood kind of became insecure and unsafe. So I remember one day I came back from school and there was like a lake of blood and it was because at your building, at the porteria and there was like a lake of blood and it was because I went on a little At your building.
Speaker 2:No, at the.
Speaker 3:At the porteria, the gate.
Speaker 2:Wow.
Speaker 3:Uh-huh and I got out of the bus and I saw all the blood in the floor and it was because they shoot the portero the watchman. The portero is the watch, the night guard that got this guarding the gate so the guy, I don't know what happened exactly, but there were, there was blood and there were also like visitors from you know, the from stomach and you know, I don't know it was kind of like yeah, like pieces of organs.
Speaker 2:Oh yeah, like the intestinos, intestines, intestines.
Speaker 3:Yeah, so yeah, it was like, wow, it was shocking. Wow See, so that was during the 90s. Then we had this president, alvaro Uribe. Things got better.
Speaker 3:He cleaned it up yeah, yeah, I mean, he was like a mal necesario, as we say, something that is bad but we need it. But he cleaned up all this bad situation with the guerrillas and these criminal groups. And then I remember it wasn't safe to travel outside Medellin. Just going 40 minutes outside Medellin was dangerous and with my mom and her boyfriend, we used to go to the coast in the car. I don't know why my mom was that crazy. I remember while we were on the road looking at buses on fire. So, yeah, it was normal, because the guerrilla used to just get buses on fire as a threat or they just kidnap people from those buses or if there was someone important and yeah, that's what I said. I don't know why my mom was thinking about, because if you were important or rich, of course you were going to get kidnapped, but we didn't, fortunately, and you were really young then.
Speaker 3:Yeah, like 12, 11. And you were really young then. Pablo Escobar died in 93, 92. In the 93, I was seven.
Speaker 2:You were seven, so that's the year Pablo Escobar died December 2nd.
Speaker 3:And then with these buses on fire. It was in the 99, then I was 12. And then the guerrilla was also blowing away the electricity towers, so we had electricity cutoffs, it was quite normal. And also the whatever bomb, like the car bomb, the chair bomb, you name it bomb.
Speaker 2:That was back when, I think, they blew an Avianca plane out of the sky.
Speaker 3:It was everything bomb and actually I remember this story of a woman that she had a collar bomb. If you Google like collar bomb woman Colombia, you will find the story. It was very shocking. I still remember and yeah, she just.
Speaker 2:Tell me a little bit of detail about that.
Speaker 3:I was very young, I don't remember. I don't remember pretty well the story, but it was just a way to instruction the government and they brought these explosion experts there to save this woman's life, but they couldn't.
Speaker 2:What was the?
Speaker 3:significance of the collarbone? Well, because it's something that is very shocking. I mean, imagine you have this PVC collar but it's full of explosives.
Speaker 2:Oh, she had. Yeah, oh, wow.
Speaker 3:She had a collar made of PVC and it was just Opebe says how we say it in Spanish Y. Yeah, she died. They tried to save her but they couldn't.
Speaker 2:So your childhood was coming up out of that. You kind of grew up at that time where you saw it, and then you saw Medellín after as well.
Speaker 3:And then, when I was just becoming a teenager, then my friends, because we were in. Well, you know, in Colombia we have this estrato classification from one to six, so I guess Buenos Aires is around three, I guess.
Speaker 2:Back in the time, just for the people that aren't listening to that. Haven't spent time here. Stratas are the classification of socioeconomic status. So you can live in a neighborhood from strata one all the way up to strata six. Strata one means it's it's a very, uh, poor neighborhood. And then strata six is a rich neighborhood and the city and country, I believe, charges you electricity and water.
Speaker 3:Based on it's, based on the strata six, is a rich neighborhood and the city and country, I believe, charges you electricity and water based on it's based on the strata, is based on the location, not your incomes. So as we were growing up, my friends were going on the bad way, you know, because it's just the options right yep.
Speaker 3:So fortunately my mom got us out of that neighborhood and we moved to Belen and things were better for us, because normally in these areas, well, unfortunately, guys just become thieves or something worse and girls just get pregnant and they don't get education. But I was lucky that my mom was a dentist and we had a good life. Fortunately we could escape to that reality because most of my friends from childhood no, they ended up going down a bad road, huh. Yeah, practically.
Speaker 2:And so you think your mom, moving you out of the neighborhood is what you know steered you in a different direction. Of course, no doubt. And where did your obsession with Spanish and teaching other people Spanish come in? Because you know, I guess it didn't start until about 12 years ago, which is really when Medellín became more of a tourist city.
Speaker 3:Yeah, when it was starting actually, but when the boom, I would say, was 17.
Speaker 2:Yeah, but you can't start that business. You couldn't have started that business 12 years ago if you didn't already have some education.
Speaker 3:See it was the beginning. It was the beginning. Well, the obsession. It was something that I wasn't looking for, honestly. I mean, this profession looks for me. Yeah, I came back from the States in 2011. I was 24. I didn't know what to do with my life. I didn't know what to do with my life. The only thing that I knew was that I needed a job where I could practice English, because I didn't want to lose my English, since I learned in the States in five months. So I said, no, I just I have to keep going with this. And then I found this job in a hostel called Tiger Paw.
Speaker 2:I remember Tiger Paw that was in Poblado right.
Speaker 3:It is still still there although it's not the same as it used to be when I was working there. Now is yeah, back in the time was one of was number one yeah, it was a big deal I remember the competition about it was between tiger paw and casa kiwi. Those two hostels were the like number one like no one two they were, if I remember right.
Speaker 2:They were good hostels that had a lot of private options and parties, but they were clean. They weren't like super backpackers.
Speaker 3:No, no, I mean you have every kind of gets that there was happy Buddha Too. That was a huge see, but after happy what I was after.
Speaker 2:Oh, okay.
Speaker 3:See, but at the beginning I really beginning one practically Casa Kiwi and Tiger Pond I may be black chip battle, but normally the competition in TripAdvisor was oh, hostel World, yeah.
Speaker 2:Hostel World yeah.
Speaker 3:In Hostel World the competition was always Tiger, paw, casa, kiwi those two and I was there working at the reception and I didn't expect to become a Spanish teacher at all. It was just one day that one of the guests he was a very unique person, such a character, honestly, and he was 17 back in that time and he just dropped out of high school to come to Colombia Like super loco.
Speaker 1:He is originally from Georgia, but the country Not Georgia the States, oh Georgia the country, so you can drop out of school, his family moved to Canada and he grew up there.
Speaker 3:But then he suddenly he decided in his senior year just to come to I don't know why loco, random, random, and we met at the hostel. I remember I did his check-in and everything. We became very close and back in that time I was incredibly lost with my life and I used just I used to get drunk and cry after my shift with him in the hostel. I just like I don't know what the hell I'm going to do, I don't know. It's like, and he said many kind words and say you will find your passion, just be patient. It's like you don't know anything about life, you're just 17 but he did know.
Speaker 3:It sounds like kind yeah I was like he, he was my angel number one, I would say I know, I always say when I was number two because I flirted with you oh, you see.
Speaker 3:But no, I say my angel number one. Because, um, well, one day I wanted a beer and I say, oh, can, can you give me a beer? You know, because my salary back at the time was horrible. He said, well, no, I'm not going to give you a beer for free, you have to give me something in exchange. Like, oh, no, he's going to ask for a kiss. That's what I thought. But he's like no, you can teach me Spanish. I'm like Spanish, I don't know how to teach.
Speaker 3:So what I did was just to. I brought my English book, the one that I used in the States. First chapter was the verb to be, because normally they teach you English, it starts with the verb to be. Entonces, I said okay, verb to be Serán, estar. So I remember I just took a piece of paper, like three, four sheets or something like that. I just what is the word for that? We write gripped, gripped, no. Well, I just put this paper together and then I, I, I kind of made a notebook and I started writing verb to be said and start. So it's the story, it is the translation.
Speaker 2:Like I am, you are, I'm gonna love yeah, just a quick question, because I don't really know anything about English grammar, or Spanish grammar for that matter to be. Is I am right?
Speaker 3:yeah, the verb to be is I am, you, are he, she is, and verb to be is I am, you, are he, she is, and so on.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I don't know anything about that.
Speaker 3:So I started doing the two options we have in Spanish and then he was asking me like okay, so when do I use soy or estoy? I'm like, just guess, I don't know. Well, soy is when you say like soy violeta, and estoy like when you say estoy en medellin.
Speaker 2:but honestly, no, I didn't know you didn't really I didn't know what I and that actually takes a long time anyway, for the people listening that don't know any spanish at all. Spanish has two ways to say I am yeah, it's um so I you would say I am in this place, I am am in this seat, and then I also am American In English it's only one. And then in Spanish. Those are two different.
Speaker 3:Two options and practically what I tell my students, because there is a theory to memorize, set for permanent things and start for temporary. But I don't like that way of teaching Because when you go to the past tense on the future.
Speaker 3:It doesn't work and for me it's practically learning the uses of estar, which is a for and a said, and if it's not that, then it's ser easy. So you use the verb estar when it's location for people and things. That way you say estoy en Medellin. You use it for feelings, estoy feliz, a condition which is a status like estoy ocupada. A company Estoy feliz, condition which is status like estoy ocupada, company which is to be with someone, como estoy contigo, and with you Y ongoing actions, like I am walking, I am eating, estoy comiendo, estoy hablando. That's it, and if it's not those five situations, then it's ser yeah, yeah.
Speaker 3:Entonces. So back in that time I didn't know that.
Speaker 2:I was just like I don't know, I didn't know that I was just like I don't know.
Speaker 3:I didn't know until now, but anyway, I just say, okay, this is just what you have to memorize and that was our lesson. Of course I didn't know anything about Spanish. And then, like two months later I guess, he left. But before leaving he gave me an envelope with something inside and he said just open, open this. When, when I'm gone, like so dramatic, you know, and I say, okay, he left and I remember when I was on the taxi on my way back home, while the traffic light was in red, I opened the envelope and what I took immediately was the notebook that I did with the papers, you know, and when I saw that I don't know why I had this moment of illumination, and it's when I thought like I have to become my Spanish teacher. That's my call.
Speaker 2:I don't know what was in the envelope. Can you share that or no? Oh like is it a secret?
Speaker 3:no, I don't want to see that right now yeah like no, I don't want to see it.
Speaker 2:I want you just to explain what it was.
Speaker 3:I didn't hear what that's what I say, like the notebook that we improvised that day when he exchanged a beer for a Spanish flask.
Speaker 2:So he gave it back to you.
Speaker 3:Exactly. I didn't know he was keeping that. I don't know why he kept that?
Speaker 2:Why did he give it back? He needed to learn right.
Speaker 3:I don't know. He just put and developed that with a beautiful letter and that's it. And when I took that out.
Speaker 2:Was it a love letter?
Speaker 3:Kind of no, it was just beautiful words, like with motivation, that I'm a special person, that I have a lot of values that I'm worth. That is I mean, words that I needed to listen back at that time. So that's what I say. For me it was the call. I don't know why he gave me that, but when I took the notebook out, well, because, as I say, it was just, I just took a piece of piece of paper and staple. Oh, finally, I remember.
Speaker 2:So you had this like romantic moment for a second and then it hits you need to be a Spanish teacher. And then after that you say to yourself I need to go find more gringos like this guy that arrived in sweet notes.
Speaker 3:No, no, no, no, it wasn't like that, no. Then I was like, okay, how can I become a Spanish teacher? I remember I had a friend from Bogota and he was a Spanish teacher for foreigners and I just asked him, like how can I become a Spanish teacher? He gave me the information. I applied to this school in Barcelona. It was a course for two months. I have many problems to get to this school at the beginning was just passing the test. I failed. I did the test three times because I didn't know any Spanish grammar at all. I mean, I know I knew how to speak the language, but know how to teach it. And they were just asking me like things like what do you say to the student? Que tengas un buen dia? And in another situation, you say tienes un buen dia.
Speaker 3:And they're like two young timbers and they're like because that's the correct verb conjugation.
Speaker 2:That's the way my grandma said it when I was a kid.
Speaker 3:I didn't know why, so at the end, after three times, I had the admission but they said you have to keep studying, you can fail the program here in Barcelona After that. Then I was like, okay, I need the money.
Speaker 2:And when I did the math, I needed to work like for five years in order to get the money that I needed for that. So now that you've developed though sorry to interrupt that, but now that you've developed as a Spanish teacher and you now know all the rules better than anyone, I personally know and communicate them very, very well, what do you believe sets your teaching approach apart now compared to other teachers?
Speaker 3:Well, after, finally, well, I can connect what I was talking with this. Actually, I mean, I was denied the visa to go to España, spain, so I could get the money. So my angel number two, a person that I really appreciate, he helped me with this. But the visa I was denied the visa to go to Spain. So it's when I started studying by myself because I say, well, maybe this is the universe just telling me I work at beach because I drop out medicine school, I drop out dentistry school. So it's like, well, if you really want this, show me. So that's what I decided to study by myself. I became a self-taught in the world.
Speaker 2:Self-taught. Uh-huh, self-taught.
Speaker 3:Eso autodidacta. So I started studying with books grammar books from the library of my previous university, online. And with every student that I had I started like studying, you know, analyzing online. And with every student that I had, I started like studying, you know, analyzing. So with the time I became frustrated teaching the language because I actually couldn't understand either of the explanations. I was like for me this doesn't make sense. And I remember, as a student English student, I was kind of a pain in the ass for the teachers because I'm like, why, why, why this, why this, why this? Because I really want to understand the logic of stuff. It's very Capricorn, I'm a Capricorn too, I'm kidding, that's why.
Speaker 2:Maybe that's why we're friends.
Speaker 3:Entonces, I need to know the logic. Entonces, when I was analyzing this, I said no, I don't like this, this is not efficient. My students say a said no, I don't like this, this is not efficient. My students say a lot of time, I don't like it. So I started to just use my imagination, or analysis. Everything you know is like I need to organize this Because what I saw with all the other methodologies was just a mess. So it's when I came out with my method. That's why it's different, because I started to get the stuff that are useless at the beginning, like out. Imagine that I'm just like putting in a line the most important stuff to get.
Speaker 3:Yeah, because when I was an english student, I also noticed that it's like I'm learning this at the beginning. This is so useful it's not useful. So that's how? Because I just organized, reorganized the information to get the things that for sure, you need to learn from the beginning, like one basic thing. For example, is one of the universities, famous universities here, to learn Spanish, efit.
Speaker 2:EFIT.
Speaker 3:First class is the alphabet. When I saw their books because one student shared the book with it I said what the alphabet I mean? Why do you need the alphabet? That's time that you're wasting. I hate wasting time.
Speaker 1:For sure.
Speaker 3:I'm obsessed with the time. So it's like when I was learning also Portuguese, I had the same problem. I'm like why are we doing this? This is so useless. So at the beginning you need to know the names of the letters. You need to know the pronunciation of the letters, and that's what I do in the first class with a beginner from zero. It's like if you don't know the name of the letters, it's not a big deal, you just write down, or just need to know how to make it sound, but no, in a fit the first four hours of class you have.
Speaker 3:There is just learning the names of the letters, which is like four hours that are gone.
Speaker 2:It makes no sense forever.
Speaker 3:So that's why? It's because I made a method that is way more efficient way faster.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so now that you've had you know, 12 years teaching, uh, gringos like me a lot chasing around all the all the american guys in medellin trying to trying to teach classes. Now that you've been doing that, what are? What do you consider some of the challenges that expats face in moving through the language officially?
Speaker 3:Sometimes it's just trying to create their own sentences and that's why I also noticed that with my students and that's why I wanted to create a method that could give them the the tools to create their own sentences and so that express their own thoughts, because normally with many other courses, what you learn is just memorizing phrases. With very famous apps and programs, it's just memorizing phrases and I don't like that way of teaching I I would argue that it gets you from A to B.
Speaker 2:right, if you're a new foreigner coming to another country. If you have a few phrases or a few, the more vocabulary you have. Survival phrases, sure, survival, yeah, survival.
Speaker 3:But if you are not in the survival mode, no, that's useless. It's like if, at the beginning, you just, oh, I need to order something, fine, you just, oh, I need to order something, fine, memorize the phrase, but when you really want to have a fluent conversation, no, that's useless. Yeah, it's just no way, because you're like, oh, how to say? And then your brain is like freezing looking for the sentence that you memorized and it's not. When you understand the grammar well and you know why this, how this, then you just put the things together and you create the sentence by yourself.
Speaker 2:For me. I think that one problem many, especially adults, have is remembering how you learned your native language. And you learned your native language by being a kid and copying everything that everyone around you said in relation to what was going on in the situation. So if you tell me go pick up the ball, my mom tells me go pick up the ball, and I'm you know, I'm a little kid and I go pick up the ball, then the next time I'm just like go pick up the ball, I tell someone else, you know what I mean. So then you start putting all these things together and I think once we become adults, we forget how we learn that native language.
Speaker 3:Yeah, forget how we learn that native language.
Speaker 2:Yeah, because because the brain changes. So that's why I don't like the and you don't want to be, you don't want to be a kid again is what it is you can.
Speaker 3:Your brain is not the same. It's impossible. It's practically impossible, because the structure and the way the brain is wired as an adult is completely different when you're a kid. And that's why, when there is a program or course or whatever like learn spanish as a kid, is impossible. You don't have, you don't have a kid's brain anymore. It's impossible. And as an adult, you do want to find logic in things. When you're a kid you're like, hmm, but I don't, it doesn't make sense. When I mean when you're a kid, you're not just wondering at all, you just take it right. So that's why I don't like that way of teaching, because your brain is not the same and also it takes longer. It's longer, it takes more time.
Speaker 2:I agree. So what I've seen with your content and just knowing you over the years versus other teachers that I've met along the way, right, I find so many teachers around the world to be the same in their approach, and especially here in Medellin, I think you find a lot of people that maybe aren't 100 percent honest about the culture, and you've just been you've just made my life so entertaining here by seeing some of the YouTube videos and just us being friends over the years.
Speaker 2:And you're honest, you tell people the truth about the culture, the funny things, the bad things, and I've always admired that. Because I don't know, I just admire that. But can we for a second, go and discuss the YouTube video that you did about the grillas in Medellín? Can we explain to the audience what a grilla is in Medellín? It's a cricket, but let's talk about that.
Speaker 3:Yeah, it's a cricket. But yeah, I mean to get a better explanation. You can go on YouTube and write down what's a grilla and then you will get the long version of what I will say, right now Are you the first one that comes up, if you talk that in yeah. Type in what is a grilla? A grilla is a female, popularly known as a grilla. It is one of the species that lives in Colombia, and then social Spanish, of course.
Speaker 2:So, and she's going to be dressed in the video like what's the alligator guy, the crocodile guy? Yeah, that was my idea because this is an animal.
Speaker 3:Of course it's an animal's name.
Speaker 2:It's a cricket, so I wanted to create a series.
Speaker 3:Unfortunately, I couldn't continue with that. Colombian is normally National Geographic, but what I wanted to do is a Colombian.
Speaker 2:Colombian version, exactly the.
Speaker 3:Colombian version with the animals.
Speaker 2:And she's dressed like Steve the Australian, the crocodile guy.
Speaker 3:That was the idea as I was hunting the grillas the crickets, a grilla. Practically is a hybrido, a hybrid.
Speaker 2:A hybrid. Between a gold digger and a slut slut. Yeah, so grigia in in medellín is known as it's. It's the girls that do everything they possibly can to dress although not necessarily they are going to have sex with you. Yeah, yeah, no, they're very important, they're only interested in getting money out of everything they do or maybe getting dinner or an iphone something material, of course.
Speaker 2:So it's a slang to explain that that particular person falls into this circle of grillas or cricket girls. The idea is like a cricket, the little cricket on the ground that hops on just to suck some blood and leave right.
Speaker 3:La grilla es un animal carnívoro. Le gusta la carne fresca y con dinero. Para la grilla, es muy importante que su alimento tenga un medio de transporte propio, preferiblemente carro. So yeah, that video got a lot of views. Back in 2013 is when I made that video and I got a lot of critics, like the comments are mostly Colombians, saying that I'm a horrible teacher.
Speaker 3:Also, other teachers say like you're a terrible tutor. Why are you explaining this? Why are you telling the gringos, women here like that and blah blah? I'm like well, no, because I only teach the grammar and I only teach my students how to create their own sentences. I also teach them the culture and they need to understand that there are many gringos there and although they are looking for love and they might think a girl is good or whatever, it's not. Maybe sometimes they are a gringa and actually, um, I have students that after a bar experience with a gringa, they, just when they were trying to find a real girlfriend, they were like well, if you don't approve the girl, I'm not going to date her.
Speaker 2:No, I think I needed that.
Speaker 3:See, no, I mean, it's true. It's true A few students that they had a situation when they show me the girl for the first time and I'm like red flag, red flag, red flag, red flag. I remember one student saying no, you're just, you're so mean, you really think that like people, like your people, they're bad. You just, you're so mean with your own people. I'm like, no, I know how they are, I'm honest and I'm telling you that girl is trouble. I remember, no, I remember this student specifically, because I remember looking at that photo and I'm like what the fuck are you doing? Like that girl looks like a lot of fucking trouble. And he came well, in an app. They were big trouble. Actually, the girl was that toxic, like incredible toxic, that I had a nickname for her, because I guess it's the most toxic girl, that I hired her with my students, whatever, and I called her like Chernobyl, what's that like Chernobyl.
Speaker 2:I don't know what that is, she was very toxic.
Speaker 3:Oh, oh, yeah, yeah yeah so that's what I say, okay, so what's going on with Chernobyl? And it's because she was so incredibly toxic.
Speaker 2:Well, I think what happens, you know, foreigners come to Medellin and I don't think you guys know, maybe understand this. You might, but most people don't understand this. Most Colombians, I don't think, understand. But foreigners come here and even the grillas, the good girls, the bad girls, every girl is pretty right, I mean. So 80% of the girls here are very attractive yeah good, bad, indifferent, whatever.
Speaker 2:They're pretty girls, and so americans come here, foreigners in general and you really don't know the difference. It took me years before I understood that this is a classy girl, this is a bad girl this is a grigia and this is this, and now I get. It took me a long time and a lot of um yeah, it's like that, it's only for you.
Speaker 3:And that's why I decided to make this video about the grisha, because I'm every class with every student telling him, telling them what a grisha is, and say you know what? I have just to make the video, I will give you the link and you just watch it and that's it.
Speaker 2:Then you get the idea what a grisha is, and if that girl that you're dating is like that run away, you know, I took your video several times, actually not just once, but I took it because I would just I would watch it and I would start laughing. It made me feel better about some situations I'd gone through with some grishas actually, and anyway, I put it up and I had three or four different girls every single time that I put this up. And I probably put it up on my status four or five times on social media and I'd have three or four girls every single time be like oh F you, I don't know, and it was always the gringos that were on my status looking right.
Speaker 3:No, it's just. I mean, I'm fine talking about these uncomfortable things, like. Actually, my most viewed video on my channel is sex vocabulary. Yeah, honestly, so far, or until now, I'm the only Spanish teacher who dares to teach the sex stuff.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 3:Other tutors. Not because in Latin America there is this conception that if you're a tutor you have to be professional and cool, cool and you know, like perfect and teaching this stuff is just like no, I mean, that's no classy whatever, but but I decided to make this video because I also have this situation with my students. They, when they are with their girlfriends or future wife because, believe it or not, many of my students have already gotten married and but when they are in sex, they just don't understand what she's saying.
Speaker 2:Yeah. And I'm sure they don't understand, because I think sometimes it's better not to understand, though I think, looking back on it, I had a lot of fun not knowing no, because if your girl is telling you the instructions.
Speaker 3:What do?
Speaker 2:you mean? I mean, I think it's better just to feel it right?
Speaker 3:No, of course it's very important to understand what the girl is saying but if she's telling you like to pull off or whatever and you don't get it, oh yeah, yeah, yeah, I guess, I, I guess, oh, she's just giving you the structure like I like this better, or do this, do that, and you're like I mean no, of course you need to know I don't know.
Speaker 2:I don't think I knew what they were telling me for like the first year, but I also didn't care. You know it was really. You know it was really funny in English. It was really funny in English. Well, sorry, not in English, but there's a there's a country song that came out right after I started traveling Latin America and and it said it was talking about this guy who had fallen in love with this girl who spoke Spanish, which is the language of love, right? And he says I don't have any clue what she said, but I loved how she said it.
Speaker 2:It was something like that and I heard that song and I'm like this is my life. It was my life for the first year here. I'm like I don't have any idea what that girl said to me. But, I sure liked it.
Speaker 3:It's not good. It's not good at all, and for my students especially the ones that are looking for a future family.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you need to know. I agree, I'm half joking, but you definitely need to know.
Speaker 3:For me it's very important. I can imagine myself in that situation when the guys tell me I'm like I don't know, I just open my legs. No, I mean no, no, that's it. No, no, that's not a real connection in sex. Yeah, well, I think. No, that's not a real connection in sex, so yeah well, I think so much of it's non-verbal, right.
Speaker 2:Like you need to understand, it's mostly a non-verbal, uh, a non-verbal thing where you don't need a lot of work no, I don't, I disagree.
Speaker 3:As a woman, you really need communication, like you know what I like this, I like this, or do this, do that so that I get more pleasure.
Speaker 2:At least for me, it's more important now I understand the words I've definitely learned over the years. It took me a minute, but now I have the vocab and it's really working out for me, oh yeah. So now I want to discuss a little bit about the role of language, and obviously we know that the more interconnected people are and the more different people from different countries understand each other, the better everything works right For the most part. So let's discuss the role of language learning and fostering connections and understanding those differences between cultures. For example, let's compare the quality of experience for someone who lives in Colombia and doesn't speak the language versus someone like myself who does.
Speaker 3:Completely different. That's why I also go through Australia when teaching Spanish, because I know it's not the same experience. And especially if you want to live here for three months, six months, and if you don't communicate, you just don't make friends, and if you don't make friends, you're just isolating yourself from the world. I don't know why you come here then. If you want to isolate yourself, then just stay in your place in your country.
Speaker 3:But yeah, I mean, it's just the lack of connections, for sure. I mean, it's the same when I went to the States. When the Latinos move there and they don't want to learn the language, it's just isolate themselves from the gringos. And for me it's always like what's the point?
Speaker 2:If you go there, why are you here?
Speaker 3:Why are you even living here? It's like I don't get it For me. I don't get it for me I don't get it. Oh, I know, because the money and blah blah. But actually that's not smart in from the point of view of business, because if you want to get better connections, a better job, then you speak the language speak the language, absolutely, you know.
Speaker 2:I want to point out, while we're on that topic, that I used to think before I started traveling. I used to think that I was one of those americans that thought how do these people live here in the United States for 20 years and they don't speak the language? You see people from Mexico, latinos in general, everywhere, every country, but they do exactly what you just said and I thought these Mexicans, I can't believe they come here and they do this. But then I moved to South America and you know what I found? 98%, I think you would agree 98% of the Americans that live in Colombia make almost no effort to learn this language.
Speaker 3:At all they stay in Poblado, where you can ask for an English manual and they complain about not speaking English here. Like people don't speak, I'm like what the fuck? This is not your land.
Speaker 2:You don't speak English here. This is Colombia, exactly.
Speaker 3:Because I have had, honestly, I have met foreigners that are like I don't get it why there are no more Colombians speaking English. Like well, because you're in Colombia.
Speaker 2:They don't have to speak English here. What are?
Speaker 3:you talking about. Yeah, it's just like the disconnection that you get from the people actually. So it applies not only for Colombia, any country, Because when I went to Brazil, for example, for holidays, for me, it was pretty sad that I couldn't talk to people just with survival phrases. It just you just can't get enough information to get the get to know the culture or whatever. So after that trip is when I decided to learn Portuguese yeah, I've said the same thing over the years.
Speaker 2:I mean, you know how I travel. When I travel, I'm traveling for a month or two months. I'm'm going to go there and learn, or longer, I'm going to learn as much as I possibly can about a place. And I see friends of mine all the time on YouTube or wherever Instagram, and they'll be like in Rio. They've flown from Atlanta to Rio or Miami to Rio, but they went for four days or even seven days and I'm like, and then they'll tell everybody oh my god, I went to Rio's greatest experience ever, but you didn't even see you in seven days you didn't even see fucking Rio no, that place it's
Speaker 3:8 million people. It's a massive city, there's so much stuff. I mean, when I went there and I didn't speak, I was like, well, next time I come back I will speak and then I will get the experience for sure. Because I felt again what I felt when I went to the States and I didn't speak English, and for me it was horrible, because it's like, well, I really want to know what's going on. Well, that's the way I am, but yeah.
Speaker 2:There is a coolness, though, in the beginning. There's a coolness to not knowing what's going on. I feel like you learn in a different way when you, when you can't speak to the people, and then, once you do learn and you can, you can see both sides right.
Speaker 3:You don't agree no, no, I like. I like it when I actually can well no, I for sure like it better.
Speaker 2:No, no, me too, I like it better. All I'm saying is that don't let that get in your way of traveling to a place, because I don't know that I would. I know I wouldn't have spoken Spanish to the level that I speak it now had I not come to this place. I wouldn't speak Portuguese at all had I not gone to Brazil right, and I was there eight months. But there was a there's a cool experience with not speaking it when you first arrive, because you, you have to figure out all these things. Well, maybe it's because non-verbally- with brazil.
Speaker 3:Maybe it's different, because when I went to europe, for example, and I didn't speak polish, when I went to poland, that I couldn't understand one word, of course, and many people they don't speak english at all. Well, yeah, it's frustrating, but I didn't care that much. Maybe it's because I do care about brazil, because I wanted I mean, I love the culture so for me it was like oh no, it's so frustrating. But yeah, I get the point. Yeah, but maybe it's because with Brazil I feel different.
Speaker 2:Brazil's my favorite country I've ever been to. I do. I'm comfortable in Colombia because I've been here for so long, but Brazil's my favorite country including my own country.
Speaker 2:I love Brazil as well it's the best and it's it's probably the easiest place to go in the world that you don't speak the language in, in that, like I mean, it's, it's a hard, you know, you got to make an effort to learn the language and you're certainly not going to have a great experience without it, but the brazilians make being there without speaking the language easier than most people see.
Speaker 2:So if, if we're speaking to people in the united states that are interested in coming to medellin to learn the language, or just coming to Medellin for whatever, or Colombia in general, we both know that we've hit on we just hit on a minute ago that Colombia has had its history of violence, then I think with Oribe it got really cleaned up for many years, and then I would say that the last five or six years that has started to change back the other way to some degree not to that degree that it was before. But what is your advice? What advice would you give to foreigners who are coming to Medellin to study or do whatever, in order to keep them out of trouble here?
Speaker 3:Well, I mean, although Colombia, we have the fame of a violent country, things run perfectly here, considering this fact.
Speaker 1:They do.
Speaker 3:So even if you are scared about coming, I mean, if you come to cities like medellin, bogota, which is going to be normal, or even bucanamanga or other cities, it's just as long as you're knowing bichada, you know in the amazon area, you will be fine okay and well, I would say, unless you're going to come down here and flaunt money, or don't flaunt your, your wealth, and don't flaunt your things I see también, of course. I mean showing out like your rings and yes, but that's what these idiots do, the people, the foreigners.
Speaker 2:They get in trouble here, it's always because they're doing shit like that and I don't know why this.
Speaker 3:This is how it like when they have on the phone here the the cards you know oh, the credit cards, uh-huh that's something very common in the states here. You don't see people with this pocket that you have here like sticker.
Speaker 2:I don't know what's that I would say just keep your phone in your pocket yeah, but sometimes they have like the cards and also like bills.
Speaker 3:It's like what the fuck? I mean, they put that on the on the table and it's like just telling the thieves like hey, hey, I have a 1500.
Speaker 2:I have a 1500 phone in my hand, plus I have seven credit cards and if you steal this one phone, you get my credit cards, my bank cards, my cash. I don't get it.
Speaker 3:it's pretty dumb and sometimes they have a wallet and with a clip and they have like the cash there and they have like a bunch of hundred thousand pesos bills there. I'm like you see that, and I don't know why. Maybe they just like they have low self-esteem. When I say this, it's like for me, these people, they don't have self-esteem and they just want to show off. I have thousands of pesos and at the end it's just stupid because that's to give papaya. That papaya is to make it easy for thieves to steal your money, or whatever, giving papaya is a slang that Colombians use to say.
Speaker 2:Don't give papaya means don't give them a reason, don't show off to where you attract thieves.
Speaker 3:Yeah, it's like, don't make it easy for thieves, practically yeah, yeah, yeah, but they make it so easy for thieves. It's just do that, watch out your stuff if you're in a coffee shop, because that happened once in a coffee shop A girl left, for she went to the bathroom and she left the mug on the table, gone For sure. It was kind of like, if you are in a coffee shop, just tell the person next to you hey, can you just puedes echarle un ojo? I like to put an eye on that, echarle, and that's it. Un ojito, un ojito and what else? No, that's it. And be careful with Tinder, of course.
Speaker 3:I always tell my students don't use Tinder. It's not a good place to find a woman For. Don't use.
Speaker 2:Tinder. It's not a good place to find a woman. For sure, maybe Bumble, but I don't even. I don't know man.
Speaker 3:I mean, if you like, apps.
Speaker 2:There's just too many bad people working on those apps.
Speaker 3:Unfortunately for you as a foreigner, you are a target that could be a good option for a Colombian guy that knows the dynamic and reads better women, because, although they are Colombian, some guys just cannot read women here. But yeah, unfortunately for foreigners, they're a big target on these dating apps.
Speaker 2:It's just yeah, If you need a date here, just go to the gym and then find the girl with the intimidating face and video. They got it. Apparently that works too. I don't know. They tell me.
Speaker 3:OK, yeah, apparently that works too. I don't know, that's what they tell me. Oh, okay, yeah, maybe it's a language exchange. You have to be careful as well, because now these as we call, or I call, I don't know Escopolamineras.
Speaker 2:Oh, they're drugging people. Language exchanges.
Speaker 3:Sí now it's happening because they know they are gringos, entonces things just got worse after the pandemic. Yeah. After those desperate times, desperate.
Speaker 2:After all, those assholes shut down the world for two years unnecessarily, just no see. Yeah.
Speaker 3:But that's for another time.
Speaker 2:Exactly so, as a language instructor. What do you find most fulfilling about your job, and how does that contribute to your personal goal?
Speaker 3:It's just seeing the process. I always compare this to the feeling that a mom gets. I mean, I don't have kids and I'm not going to have. I already had a surgery.
Speaker 2:You did.
Speaker 3:Yeah, so no, I don't want. No, it's just so much responsibility and I like to sleep, so I don't want. No, it's just so much responsibility and I like to sleep. So of course no. But maybe that's what they feel when you see your baby growing, growing up, and for me it's the same. When I have a student that goes from zero to a conversation, fluent conversation, conversation I'm like, oh, but because I helped to that process, and so how did I grow up?
Speaker 2:from the time you met me to the gym, at the gym, until now, did I grow up? Well, of course are you proud of where I am at this point, sure?
Speaker 3:and yeah, for me that's the thing that may makes me feel wonderful. Oh, when I help people because I mean I don't know the reasons for all my students to learn the language. Sometimes it's just, I mean, there are plenty of reasons, and especially for those who follow me on on youtube, that many times they are not actually taking lessons with me or or whatever. But the thing when I get the messages, like the comments I thank you so much. This was so helpful For sure.
Speaker 3:Oh my God, what I didn't find your channel before, or things like that, because the appreciation. Yeah, I mean, they're like I could get the idea in three minutes for something it took me like five whatever five years to learn. Yeah, it's just like yeah, I don't know how to describe it the feeling that I get when people feel very thankful because I helped them. Very easy, you helped them reach their goals.
Speaker 2:You helped them reach their goals, for sure, absolutely them very easy, reach their goals.
Speaker 3:You help them reach their goals? No for sure, absolutely so.
Speaker 2:For me, it's like oh well, now that's that's what makes me feel that it's worth it to be alive so I know you've written some books, uh, and you have some courses and you get a book or maybe two on amazon, right? It's just one so far one book yeah and then, where do you see your business going from there? Do you think you'll get into more digital products?
Speaker 3:Yeah, the idea is to get more levels. So far, I have my virtual video course. It's a pretty cool video lesson.
Speaker 1:It's exactly.
Speaker 3:Yeah, my website, socialspanishcom, my course, is called Get to the Point. There's the same name for my book, so it's Get to the Point. Exactly because that's the way I am. I go to the point. Exactly because that's the way I am. I go to the point. I don't like this like oh no. Like to the point, because, as I told you, I value a lot of time and I hate when people make me waste my time, especially when learning a language. That's how I felt when I learned portuguese and I'm like in three months, I learned what I normally teach in what a week and a half, and I say this is incredibly slow.
Speaker 2:Portuguese is such a beautiful language right.
Speaker 3:Yeah, it is, it's beautiful.
Speaker 2:And to hear the Brazilians speak in it is just like.
Speaker 3:No, I love it yeah.
Speaker 2:I like the Fiji Baki YouTube Facebook.
Speaker 3:It's like all English words, you just put an E on the end. See it's very cute, that's so cute. So yeah, the idea just to get the levels of my all levels for my Get to the Point course. So far there are available two levels. You can get from the very basic, which is pronunciation. You will cover with level one and two all the indicativo, so it's all these past tense.
Speaker 2:So you go from zero to where? A1, a2? B2. B2. Oh wow.
Speaker 3:The beginning of B2.
Speaker 2:And because C1 is super high level.
Speaker 3:Yeah, so it's the beginning of B2, because in B2 you do all subjunctive as well. But yeah, so far is there, like the levels. So the idea is to get the other levels where I would teach the subjunctive or more specific with verbs like reflexive, like gustar. So that's my idea to keep with the levels and hopefully writing the books for all those levels. But it takes time to write a book, of course, but I already have all the video lessons that you will feel exactly the same as a private lesson. It feels exactly the same awesome.
Speaker 2:So, violeta, you were amazing and I expect that you would be. Thank you so much. So how do these people reach out to you if they're interested in online classes or any any of your services?
Speaker 3:well, especially for the video courses. Uh, you don't need me practically, because it's just exactly the same as a private lesson. Uh, the video course comes with activities, with the theory, with flashcards, with audios. It's just very, very uh comprehensive, comprehensive, yeah exactly, it's muy completo complete comprehensive and so you go to social spanishcom. You will see there, get to the Point and you will get all the information about my courses and, of course, my book.
Speaker 2:The one on Amazon? That's on your website too, or is that on?
Speaker 3:Yeah, get to the Point. You can go on Amazon to buy my book as well, self-learning. It's a self-learning book and I like the fact that it's full color. That's what is available so far. Digital version, unless you are in Medellin. You can get the paperback. For that, you just can reach me on my website, socialspanishco as well. But online you can get the digital version on Amazon. Get to the point social Spanish.
Speaker 2:And I will tell you, guys, I have had a ton of language experience which I don't talk about. I've traveled most of Latin America, most all of it, and I love it all, but there is no better place in the world to learn Spanish than Medellín, colombia, absolutely. This accent is beautiful, these people are beautiful and obviously Violeta is beautiful and if you see her in the gym with that mean face.
Speaker 3:Nah, you can talk to me.
Speaker 2:You can talk to her. It's not that bad.
Speaker 3:Now you know that I'm not angry, it's just like very concentrated.
Speaker 2:Thank you guys for tuning in and reach out to Violeta on her website and I'll see you guys on the next episode. Thanks so much.
Speaker 3:Thank you for having me. It was amazing, very fun.
Speaker 1:Thank you so much for joining me on this episode of Matt Chambers connects. Stay tuned for upcoming episodes where we'll dive deeper into these two fascinating worlds. If you enjoyed today's episode, please subscribe to our YouTube channel, Matt Chambers connects. You can also find us on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube Music and many other major podcast platforms, so you don't miss a show. Also, please join us on our social media channels so you can connect with other listeners and ask your most pressing questions and also tell us what types of guests you'd like to see on the show. Thanks again, and I'll see you next time.