“Quien mucho abarca poco aprieta”

Do you know the meaning of “Quien mucho abarca poco aprieta”? It´s the same as the English saying of “Bite off more than you can chew".

¿Cuántas veces en vuestra vida cuando habéis intentado hacer u obtener muchas cosas al mismo tiempo os han dicho este refran: “Quien mucho abarca poco aprieta”? How many times in your life when you have tried to do or obtain too many things at the same time have you recalled or been reminded of this proverb: "Bite off more than you can chew"?

This expression seeks to remind that it is better to undertake only as much as you can handle instead of trying to do many things at the same time. Because in the end not only will you not be able to devote enough attention to the respective tasks but you will also not be able to give each task the attention that they deserve.

According to the Royal Academy of the Spanish language, the spanish verb Abarcar has many meanings such as: 

1.   To cover

2.   To include

3.   To embrace

4.   To undertake

5.   To monopolize

All these points refer to the actions that a person performs when they are responsible for taking or doing many things at a single time.

In short, if we want choose to do too many things, it is impossible to take care of all of them as it should be as we will cannot retain and control them. For this reason it is sometimes desirable to resign oneself to do certain things, limiting ourselves to only do what we can do and to not be frustrated with the things we cannot do.

This proverb refers to a series of aspects not only material objects but also for example jealousy, possessiveness toward someone etc. Sometimes in greed one tries to accumulate even more but not being able to focus can lead to neglect and in turn unhappiness.

Everyone should always remember this phrase “Quien mucho abarca poco aprieta” For many people it should not be forgotten as it can help to avoid an end result where the person feels like a failure because of the inability to carry out the task/s at hand.

That is why it is better to do a few things, but do them well. At the end you are satisfied! J

Valeria, Intern at Tía Tula.

Weekend in Madrid!

Living in Salamanca makes it very easy to journey to other places as it is affordable with good reliable transportation lines. I took the opportunity to go to Madrid for a couple of days. Getting to Madrid from Salamanca is very easy; you have the choice of either taking the bus or the train. It usually takes 2 ½ to 3 ½ hours depending on which you transport you choose and students usually travel to Salamanca via Madrid.

 

Madrid is a very interesting city and it is easily navigated. Armed with maps of the city and the metro, I and my companion set off to discover the charms of Madrid. We used taxis solely during our initial entry and departure from Madrid and the remainder of the time we used the metro which was clean, very affordable and with our maps handy we were able to get around easily. We bought our metro tickets at an automatic machine in the station and we were assisted by a very friendly attendant.

In our first excursion we visited The Retiro Park with its boating lake and took some time to just relax and look at the beautiful well-manicured surroundings with the lake. Our subsequent visits included visiting Madrid’s Plaza Mayor, other parks and stores, Real Madrid’s Bernabéu Stadium and Mercado de San Miguel. One of my favorite moments was during our visit to the Museo Reina Sofía in Madrid. I had the opportunity to view the world famous painting Guernica by world acclaimed artist Pablo Picasso! It portrays the devastation caused by the Nazi’s bombing the town of Guernica on April 26, 1937 during the Spanish Civil War. It was one of the most powerful statements in Picasso’s work and many people visit the museum today to catch a glimpse of this painting.   

Madrid is a very interesting city and there is so much to do and experience. I’m happy that I took the time to visit and I hope during my next visit I will have the time to visit some more of the historical monuments and museums in Madrid!

 

Debra, Student in Tia Tula

http://www.museoreinasofia.es/

http://www.mercadodesanmiguel.es/

http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jardines_del_Retiro_de_Madrid

http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Estadio_Santiago_Bernab%C3%A9u

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plaza_Mayor,_Madrid

Stairway to Heaven… Scala Coeli.

If you are in Salamanca I recommend that you visit the Scala Coeli and climb the towers. You will be rewarded with some of the most spectacular views of Salamanca! This monument is located very close to Tia Tula. A mere two minute walk away and it opens daily. Upon arrival, the ticketing desk assistant gave us information on the cost and the next available tour.  I and my companion opted to wander leisurely through the building as the previous tour had already started and we were too excited to wait for the other to start!  After paying the entrance fee which is less than 4 euros each we started our exploration of the building. 
 

We entered different rooms filled with artifacts, preserved literature and there were also small models of the building. There was an amazingly view of the ornately decorated interior of the Real Clerecía de San Marcos which has a magnificent Baroque altarpiece. Afterwards we started our climb up the towers. The steps were narrow and wooden and we got an opportunity to rest on the way up by stopping off to view a projection giving details of the monument.

At last we arrived at the end of the stairs and entered the towers. The views are indescribably beautiful!! One has a panoramic view of the monuments and city of Salamanca. I especially loved the view of the Cathedrals of Salamanca. All the while we were busy admiring the architecture of the monuments and those huge bells in the towers and saying it was definitely worth the climb! 

 

Debra Student in Tia Tula

http://www.torresdelaclerecia.com/

Practice makes perfect…Poco a Poco!

In Tia Tula there are so many international students here and all of them focused on learning Spanish and improving their speaking, writing and reading capabilities. One of the most interesting things for me in interacting and getting to know all of these students is the sharing of the cultures. Not only am I learning about Spanish but I am also learning about so many other different cultures that it’s definitely adding to my experience while I am here!
 

I really enjoy speaking and practicing with various students. Even though I may be in a different class from some of my friends here it’s really easy to meet and make friends in Tia Tula as the school encourages mingling among the students during daily activities, as well the school has an intimate atmosphere so this makes it really easy to interact with each other.

The school encourages speaking Spanish both in and out of class and it’s definitely best to do so. When we are together we are always speaking Spanish and taking the opportunity to correct each other and this way I’ve learned a lot of new words or how to correctly phrase a sentence and conjugate a verb. Even when I am out in the city and interacting with locals in the stores etc. and I make a mistake or don’t know a word they help me by supplying the word or correcting my Spanish.
 

This is what I love about being in Salamanca because I have the opportunity to practice at class, with my friends, at my apartment, as well in the streets!  It’s a great opportunity to practice your conversational skills and if you are in Salamanca I would advise you not to be shy. It is expected that you will make mistakes as you are learning a new language, so laugh off the mistakes, they will make for a good story one day!

Debra, student in Salamanca.