UNIT 1

CELEBRATION

In Unit 1, you learn how to..

Use going to and the present continuous to talk about the future.

Use indirect object pronouns.Talk about birthdays,

celebrations, and favorite holidays.

Use “vague” expressions like and everything.

BIRTHDAYS Conversation about Mary’s

birthday A: Robert, are you going to be in town this

weekend?B: I don't have anything scheduled yet.A: We were wondering if you would like to come to Mary's birthday party on Saturday.B: I would enjoy coming to Mary's party. Will it be at your house?A: The party will be at Jay's house out by the pool.B: Will everyone be pitching in with some food?A: It would be great if you could bring a side dish, but the rest of the food will be provided.B: What should we wear?A: This is a pool party, so make sure to bring your bathing suit.B: Sounds like we'll have a great time. When you've figured out the details, drop me an e-mail.

FUTURE “Going To”

SPECIAL DAYS IN ECUADOR

PRESENT CONTINUOUS FOR THE FUTURE: GOING TO

“VAGUE” RESPONSES

You can use responses like these if you’re not sure about your answer:

I don’t know I’m not sure Maybe It depends

For example:

Mario: Are you going to the fiesta this weekend?Sara: I don’t know. It depends. Whatnis it axacthy?

TRADITIONS

Day of the Dead End of YearThe Día de los Muertos or Day of the Dead is

commemorated in Ecuador as in many South and Central American countries, although not to the same extent as in Mexico perhaps. Its observance is strongest among the native people, the Kichwa. The festival falls on 2nd November, selling these typical decorations in white and purple which people were buying to decorate the graves of their relatives when they visited them for the celebrations. It is the custom to pay these relatives a visit on this day, much as you would if they were still alive – take them a gift, enjoy a meal (usually a family picnic on or next to the grave) and maybe play some favourite music while reminiscing about days gone by.

One element of the festival that is peculiar to Ecuador is the consumption on and around the festival time of colada morada and guagua de pan. The former is a thick drink (or some would say a thin porridge) made from purple maize and Andean blackberries, flavoured with cinnamon and other spices and served hot. The guagua de pan that typically accompanies it is a (usually sweet) loaf shaped to look like a swaddled baby. Guagua means baby or small child in the native language, Quechua, and pan means bread in Spanish, demonstrating the dual nature of the origins of the custom, mixing native and Roman Catholic beliefs.

One of most iconic traditions is the year-end burning of dummies. When the clock ticks the midnight an other-worldly sight: thousands of dummies burning in the streets and a sky filled with smoke and fireworks. Think Danté’s hell. Think Mad Max. Think Happy New Year.

Most dummies, called año viejos because they represent the old year, are made of cloth and filled either with sawdust, ground cardboard, straw, or leaves. The dummy faces are masks representing everyone from presidents, city councilmen, and cartoon characters.

The dummy tradition dates back more than a century but its origin is largely a mystery. Although it is often claimed that the Ecuadorian practice began during a 1895 epidemic in Guayaquil when the dead were burned in mass, others say the tradition goes back to the early 1800s in Cuenca. Ecuador, however, is not the only place where dummies are burned; the tradition is widespread throughout Latin America