We are used to the idea that Friday the 13 is a day of bad luck due to the Hollywood movie that goes by it’s name. But in Latin America its on Tuesdays! MARTES 13

Are you scared at your desk while you are reading this? Well you should be! Martes 13 it’s a very serious day and nobody leaves their houses unless they are wearing black! I am just playing with you guys it’s like any other tuesday, but the story behind this day, is very interesting.

Number 13 (número 13) around the world has been considered a bad luck number for several reasons, especially in religion:

• Paganism (Paganos): 13 is the age when people start learning witchcraft (magia negra).
• Christianity (Cristianismo): There were 13 attendees of the Last Supper and the 13th dinner guest, Judas, betrayed Jesus to the Romans. It was on Friday, the 13th of October, 1307 that King Philip IV sent out his guards to systematically massacre the Templar Knights.

• Sikhism (Sijismo): It is a lucky number in Sikhism, in which it means ‘yours.’ The holy word of Sikhs ‘Waheguru’ appears only 13 times in the Holy Sikh scripture. The Baisakhi festival is celebrated on April 13
• Judaism (Judaismo): God has 13 attributes of mercy. 13 years is the age of maturity. 13 circles, or “nodes” make up Metatron’s Cube in Kaballistic teachings.

Many of the buildings around the world don’t have a 13th floor, ( just went to check my elevator but it does have floor 13, I guess my building was built by an unsuperstitious architect) or they just skip the number 13 in the elevator. But that does not mean there is no 13th floor! They say that in government buildings 13th floors are not open to the public, and used for top secret activities.

Por qué un Martes? (Why a Tuesday?)

At the end of the  Medieval Age ,specifically, Tuesday 29 of 1453, the Christians lost control of one of the most important cities of their empire; Constantinopla. This was such a slap in the face for the Pope, Genoa and the Venetian States that they marked this day as a day of bad luck. Also, the name “Martes” is related to the planet Mars (Planeta Marte) that was seen as  the “small hex planet” (pequeño maleficio) in the middle ages. That is why it’s Martes the 13th not Viernes the 13th like the Hollywood movie says!

That is why in Spanish there is a saying : En un Martes 13 ni cases ni te embarques. (Tuesday the 13th neither get married nor start a journey (take a boat or a plane)).

What do you think about all this? Are you a Triskaidekaphobia (someone who has a phobia of the number 13?)

Now you know about Tuesday the 13th! There are a bunch of traditions and superstitions to learn about here in Latin America. We are more than welcome to be writing about them, this is what is all about sharing knowledge. Follow us on #Facebook! Facts, Lessons, and many other #spanish things! http://www.facebook.com/buenoentonces . You can also start learning Spanish with our program! Try it for free! http://bit.ly/BEFreeTrial

This is how we do it! 

BUENO ENTONCES – Video Presentation on Vimeo.

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Bibliography:

• Home of beliefs : http://www.homeofbeliefs.com/the-number-13-superstition/
• Wikipedia: Martes 13

Interesting Fact: Not all authorities agree on which letters make up the Spanish alphabet. Crazy, right? This here is the closest thing to an official Spanish alphabet (from the Real Academia Español. )

A: a
B: be
C: ce
CH: che
D: de
E: e
F: efe
G: ge
H: hache
I: i
J: jota
K: ka
L: ele
LL: elle
M: eme
N: ene
í‘: eñe
O: o
P: pe
Q: cu
R: ere
S: ese
T: te
U: u
V: ve
W: uve doble
X: equis
Y: i griega (E griega)
Z: zeta

Want to hear the words? Check out this great site that has the Spanish alphabet audio clips. Yup, they don’t include the ‘ch’ or ‘ll’ on that site. Because sometimes they take those ones out. Or they add ‘rr’. And sometimes the ‘w’ is called ‘doble v’ or ‘doble u’ or ‘w’ is not included at all. Oh yeah, and the ‘v’ (as in Victor) is sometimes ‘uve’.

Come on Spanish, get your act together.

To find out more about Spanish grammar, check out Bueno, entonces…Learn Spanish and speak and understand native Spanish in five weeks! (You can also check out clips from our Spanish classes on Youtube!)

The only place in the world where you are invited to drink and drive!

In South America, the wine culture has been growing rapidly in the last century, especially in Argentina and Chile. In the western city of Mendoza, Argentina you can find more than 1200 vineyards and most of them are open to the public in guided tours. The wines from the region of Mendoza have always been recognized in Argentina. The Harvest Festival, between February and March, is known nationally, with musical performances, parades, and the election of a queen. In the last decade, with the organization of  rutas del vino”wine roads”,  it exploded as wine tourism destination: the wineries opened their doors, organized visits to vineyards, wine tastings, started up restaurants and art galleries. Some of them are even offering accommodation in boutique hotels and spa’s with ”wine”.

The idea of the “wine roads” is to visit the vineyards in the lovely summer weather of Mendoza, and one of the options is by bicycle. The tour is around 12km and it takes the whole day. You visit around 6 different wineries, a chocolate and olive oil factory and some other stops that would let you catch a breath if you are not an exercise fan!

But before you pack your bags to see this amazing place, get your language skills up to scratch so you can fully enjoy the locale (and the locals!) Start Bueno, entonces… Learn Spanish I & II today and get the first class free: http://www.generallinguistics.com

Coolest thing? You can take the classes everywhere with you on your laptop, iPhone, iPod, or iPad so you can learn while you’re exploring!

See for yourself: http://www.generallinguistics.com

Just to go with the trend of the number 11′

SEE! You are reading our post!

We could actually give you just 10 reasons or 12 reasons about why you should learn SPANISH but today we just feel like giving you 11, we just don’t know why yet. But here they are:

Once 11. It’s not romantic but sounds really cool.

Diez 10. There is more than one way to say I Love You.

Nueve 9. You can always wear a t-shirt that says: “watch what you say, this gringo is bilingual”

Ocho 8. It’s spoken by more than 320 million people around the globe.

Siete 7. It can increase your job opportunities.

Seis 6. It will transform your traveling experience.

Cinco 5. To be able to enjoy the warmest and richest culture on earth; the Latino culture. (clearly this latino is not biased!)

Cuatro 4. To develop your creativity – language stimulates the imagination.

Tres 3. To be able to sell your product or service to one or more of the 350 million Spanish speakers in this world.

Dos 2. To meet your Latino/a

Uno 1. Because learning Spanish is fun! 

Well, are you convinced? We don’t mind how you learned, we just want to assure you it’s the right thing to do because it will open the doors to a whole new world.

Here are some spanish courses that will probably teach you spanish but are not as fun or economical as Bueno, Entonces… We don’t know if they give you a free trial but here are the links to their websites:

Rosseta Stone

Rocket Language

Primsleur Approach

Bueno, Entonces…

There are 12.500.000 results for “Spanish Classes App” so you can continue searching or just try our app and see it yourself.

Feel like learning Spanish? Get Bueno, entonces… now and you’ll be speaking and understanding native Spanish in just five weeks! We also have clips of our Spanish classes on Youtube – go check ‘em out and get a taste of our teaching style.

Better yet – you can now get the first 40 minute class for free! Try it out here: http://www.generallinguistics.com

The Backpackers Paradise, in South America.

Located in the pacific coast of Ecuador, Montañita has become on of the most popular places in to visit in this country. It’s a a perfect place for culture, nightlife, surfing, great sea food, and the best thing of all it’s the good vibe from its people.

As we mention before, it’s the backpackers paradise, you will not find a 5 star hotel, and thats the great about Montañita because the true soul of this place is the easy going life and the ambient build from the tourist and the natives.

Montañita By PJ

If you are planning to travel around South America, or just find a place to chillax for a while Montañita must be an option on your list. The idea of  waking up in cozy hostel, and then having breakfast based on tropical fruit in a table with people from all over the world, and talking to them like if you known them since ever, its simply amazing. If you love sea food you will love their ceviches, they are made from fresh sea food, and their tropical ingredients just make them unique. One of the main dishes in Montañita is the Encebollado de Pescado, a soup perfect for the “chuchaqui” or hungover in English. It’s served at any time of the day and its main ingredients are:

Atun Fresco – fresh tuna

Yuca – It’s a root, also known in some parts of the world as mandioca   

Aceite de Girasol – sunflower oil

Tomates – tomatoes

Cebolla roja – red onion

Chile en Polvo – chili powder

Comino molido – ground cumin

Cilantro –  cilantro/coriander

The side dish with the soup includes:

Arroz – Rice

Ensalada – Salad

Platanos – Plantains

So if you have a chance to go to Montañita do it! You wont regret it, nice place to realax and enjoy the true things in life. I will drop you a few links that would be useful if you are planning to go to Ecuador. (they all have translations to different languages but first try to practice your spanish and read them in Español!)

http://www.infomontanita.com/

http://ecuador.travel/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monta%C3%B1ita,_Ecuador

A Sunset in Montañita!

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Feel like learning Spanish to travel all over South America? Get Bueno, entonces… now and you’ll be speaking and understanding native Spanish in just five weeks! We also have clips of our Spanish classes on Youtube – go check ‘em out and get a taste of our teaching style.

Better yet – you can now get the first 40 minute class for free! Try it out here: http://www.generallinguistics.com

It seems to be that everyone in the Western world has it in their head that Latin lovers are the sexiest, most romantic lovers on Earth. Hm.  Well, sexy I can agree with… romantic?  That depends on a lot of things.

Take it from a gringa who has been living abroad for over four years in various Latin countries: I have met my fair share of Latino men, and they aren’t always all that they’re cracked up to be.  But they aren’t all bad, either– Let me explain…

Okay, example:  This past weekend salí­ a un bar (I went out to a bar) with a friend.  We were there charlando (chatting), and a group of four or five Argentine guys came up to us and we started to talk.  They were all childhood friends from about two hours outside of the city (what is called the provincia), and were in town for the night to celebrate one of their cumpleaños (birthdays).  Earlier that night, I had come across a fair share of chamuyeros (bullshitter/sweet-talkers), so I was getting pretty frustrated with the situation.  Anyway, I started talking to this one guy who didn’t seem all bad, and he asked me what I thought of Argentinos (typical line…).  I told him the truth– that I thought that most Argentine men were chamuyeros and thought that all foreign girls were un besofacil (an easy kiss).  He was assuring me that I had it all wrong, and that I had only met the wrong Argentine guys.  He did his chamuyo thing…and somehow swayed me into thinking that maybe this guy wasn’t all that bad.  Then, just as I was almost convinced, he pulled the line ‘Bueno, siempre querí­a saber como es besar a una americana… ¿A vos no tenés ganas de probar el beso Argentino?‘ (Well, I’ve always wanted to know what it’s like to kiss an American… Do you not want to try an Argentine kiss?)  ¡Por Dí­os! Typical, typical, typical.

This kind of stuff happens all the time here.  And not only here, but around Latin America as a whole.  With that said, decent Latino men are not impossible to find, and often the chamuyeros aren’t even all that bad– they are just raised in a culture where they are expected to act like that.

Another aspect of the Latino men to be careful about?  Cheating.  It’s a terrible thing to say, but these guys are a little notorious for it.  Meter los cuernos/cachos o ser infiel.  However you say it, cheating is cheating and in this culture is almost accepted, yet still very taboo.  But keep in mind that men are not the only ones cheating– women are just as guilty!

Alright, alright, with all that said, Latinos are not terrible by any means at all– the culture is just different from that of the United States, Canada, the UK, etc…, so I am giving this information solely for the purpose of a bit of a heads-up for those of you heading into Latino territory anytime soon.  Also, the majority of the men that I have met, I have done so in Buenos Aires, which means that most of them are city-dwellers rather than country boys.  And what does that mean?  Imagine only meeting men in New York City, and not being exposed to those of the rest of the country.  Big difference, right?  And that pretty much goes for any major city in the world.

And last but not least, I have met loads of positively lovely Latino men over the past few years, so this post is not so say that they aren’t out there, but you just might have to dig a little to find them…!  Let us know what your opinions and experiences are of Latino men– We’d love to hear what your point of view is!  And, please, feel free to disagree! –And stay tuned, we will have a ‘Latin Lovers’ post coming up in the next couple days about Las Latinas!

Feel like learning Spanish to take on all of the chamuyeros? Get Bueno, entonces… now and you’ll be speaking and understanding native Spanish in just five weeks! We also have clips of our Spanish classes on Youtube – go check ‘em out and get a taste of our teaching style.

Better yet – you can now get the first 40 minute class for free! Try it out here: http://www.generallinguistics.com

WARNING: STEAMY VOCAB AHEAD. This may not be office appropriate.

We pride ourselves in providing the most useful Spanish phrases, so here is some important vocabulary that we hope you have a chance to utilize at some point (looks like David already has) :

Tenés/Tienes condones? Sí­, tengo condones/preservativos. Do you have condoms? Yeah, I have a condoms. 

Eso es una locura. This is crazy

Más fuerte Harder

Despacito / mí¡s lento. Slower

Despacito / suavecito. Softer

¿Estás acabando / terminando / llegando? Are you coming?

Estás tomando pastillas? Are you on the pill?

La pastilla del dí­a despúes / dí­a siguiente. Morning After Pill

Fue increí­ble. That was incredible

¿Dónde está mi ropa? Where are my clothes?

La pasó muy bien. I had a good time

Now that is the kind of learning Spanish program that we can really get behind. Just try that with Rosetta Stone…

Be safe. Be responsible. Be bilingual.

It just makes life so much easier.

(Check out more clips from our Spanish classes on our Youtube page!)

Happy Music Monday! Today we have influential Argentine rocker, Gustavo Cerati, with his song “Puente”. Unfortunately this fellow is still in a coma and big stars, like U2 and Shakira, have come out to express their wishes for his recovery. Check out this crusie tune, which can help your Spanish and remind you of Coldplay and Nirvana at the same time?

Want to follow along with the lyrics? See them below and practice your comprehension:

Hoy te busque
En la rima que duerme
Con todas las palabras
Si algo calle
es porque
Entendi todo
Menos la distancia
Desordene atomos
Tuyos para hacerte
Aparecer

Un dia mas, un dia mas…

Arriba el sol
Abajo el reflejo
Ve como estalla mi alma
Ya estas aqui
Y el paso que dimos
Es causa y es efecto
Cruza el amor
Yo cruzare los dedos
Y gracias por venir
Gracias por venir
Adorable puente
Se ha creado entre los dos

Cruza el amor
Yo cruzare los dedos
Y gracias por venir
Gracias por venir
Adorable puente……
Cruza el amor
Cruza el amor
Por el puente
Usa el amor
Usa el amor
Como un puente

That’s what so special about Bueno, entonces…Learn Spanish I & II- a program unique in its format and structure. It teaches you Spanish at REAL speed, and gets your ears ready for talking folks on the street.

PLUS: You’ll hear Spanish while seeing both the Spanish and English written below, color coded and with road signs so you can pick up grammar and vocabulary easily.

Best thing of all? You can take it ANYWHERE – on your laptop, iPhone, iPad, and iPod. Check out the first Bueno, entonces… class for free & get a discount!: http://www.generallinguistics.com

Learning Spanish has been one of our main goals since walking the Camino de Santiago in 2008. When we decided to visit South America in 2010, we really wanted to get a move on. During 2009 Linda and I tried lots of ways to learn Spanish: Spanish tutors, Spanish classes, Spanish-speaking friends and dozens of sites for learning Spanish online.

Because I’m really an auditory learner, I started off listening to lots of podcasts from iTunes but I found it really difficult to find any that caught my attention. I’m so busy and learning Spanish is so tough for me, that I really need to be entertained or I pass it off and work on other, more enjoyable, projects. The same is true for many of the systems to help you learn Spanish online: I just struggled to find time for them because I didn’t enjoy them – and learning Spanish was something I did on my downtime.

Bueno, entonces…

OK, so … I was offered the chance to try a new language learning programme based in Buenos Aires. Because the course was developed in Latin America it more closely suited the type of Spanish I wanted to learn and since it was custom-built for iPods and media devices, I could do it while waiting for the bus or whenever I had some downtime while out and about.

The thirty lessons are video files, which you can download in five .zip files or have delivered on DVD. You can also buy some lessons individually from the iTunes app store. The easiest way is to get the video downloads in one shot for US$147 while the DVDs come in at $199.*** Each lesson is around 35 minutes long and is hosted by Jimena – a hot Spanish teacher, and David – her flirtatious British student. The interplay between them gets quite heated at times and, in fact, one episode was banned from the Apple store for their discussion of the Kama Sutra! Let’s just say this is a language programme with adult themes.

David and Jemina are joined by a few other characters, like the Professor who explains grammar points and a man and woman who take turns at expanding vocabulary points or talking around a topic. The change of voice and pace come at regular intervals and give good structure to the show, breaking up the story with various expansions.

At times the conversation goes over my head, at other times David’s jokes seem a bit too adolescent, but the shows always make me laugh and because of that, I come back to it time and time again. Because you’re both hearing and seeing the conversations (thanks to the colour-coded magic whiteboard) there’s a high retention factor and there’s a great motivation to re-watch sections.

Is it good for you?

My impression is that Bueno, Entonces… is good for:

• Spanish learners at beginner to intermediate level. More advanced learners who have had little immersion will probably benefit from the native-style language use.
• Visual and auditory learners.
• People who don’t have a puritanical streak. If you find South Park hideously offensive, then it might not be for you.
• People who wish to focus on learning Argentinian or Latin American Spanish.

Read more or buy it here

As someone who teaches English to speakers of other languages for about half the year, I wish I had material like Bueno, Entonces for my class. It’s an excellent learning programme and the research that I’ve read on language acquisition has been put to good use throughout the script and delivery.

We recommend you check out Linda and Craig‘s awesome travel information website – he’s got tons of cool travel tips, guides, and of course, Podcasts. You can also subscribe to the Indie Travel Podcast newsletter and get a weekly newsletter of postings and cool things to check out.

***Now you can try the first Spanish class for free to see if it’s right for you. Just head here: http://www.generallinguistics.com

Bueno, entonces… Class 30 is the final Class in Level I & II and you will get a full review of the vocabulary, verb tenses and phrases covered in the course. And, you’ll learn the last essential words before coming to South America – airport vocab!

PLUS you’ll never believe what happens between David and Jimena!

Don’t have Class 30 yet? You can preview what will be covered here and then buy it online. You can purchase Bueno, entonces… Class 30 from iTunes for $2.99 or buy the whole 30 class course for only $44.99!

Download the app for free here: http://bit.ly/getatitunes

Haven’t seen ANY Bueno, entonces…? Starting now you can view the first class for free- simply go here to start! http://www.generallinguistics.com

Week 5 Class 30

Scroll down for a review/preview for Bueno, entonces… Class 30 and go over everything you’ve learned, including a writing exercise section below. Plus review important airport terms!

CAPÍTULOS

Here are a list of the different sections for Class 30. Make sure to go back and review the section if you didn’t understand the concept completely:

INFORMACIÓN DE REFERENCIA

As a review class, Bueno, entonces… Class 30 covers everything! Go back through the previous studyguides to go over vocabulary, different verbs tenses and phrases.

GLOSARIO

Check out all the new words you learned!
Remember the Color coding? We’ve used it here too:
Feminine Nouns / endings
Masculine Nouns / endings
Adjectives / Adverbs
Verbs – are all seen in the INFINITIVE form, click on them to see all their many conjugations.

Or look at our handy Verb Page to see them all! http://www.generallinguistics.com/conjugate-spanish-verbs/

USEFUL PHRASES:

¿Te plantó? (She stood you up?)
¡Qué bajón! (What a bummer!)
¡Qué pena! (What a shame!)
¿Ya hiciste la valija? (Did you pack already?)
Llena sus datos. (Fill out your information- formal)
¡Qué ganas de comer comida japonesa! (What a craving to eat Japanese food!)
Me muero de hambre (I’m dying of hunger)

EJERCICIOS ESCRITOS

Make sure you’ve got it all! Test yourself here:

http://blog.buenoentonces.com/2011/09/quiz-for-class-30/

It’s a quick quiz, with only 10 questions. See how well you did with the final Class of Bueno, entonces… Level I & II.

Written Exercises:

Vocabulary Review

1. Partes de la casa y muebeles / Parts of the house and furniture

Unir la foto con la palabra / Match the picture with the word.

2. Actividades de vacaciones/Vacation activities:

Ubicar las siguientes actividades según los tipos de vacaciones y el lugar mas adecuado / Place the following activities in the proper column.

Grammar And Functional Review

1. Futuro: Ir + a + infinitivo y hablar de planes futuros / Future and talking about future plans

Completar el siguiente diálogo en el que dos amigas hablan de sus planes para el fin de semana. / Complete the following dialogue where two friends are talking about their plans for the weekend.

-¿Qué vas a _________ el fin de semana?

-El viernes a la noche _________ a _________ al cine con unos amigos. ¿Y tú?

-Yo el viernes me voy a _________ en casa porque tengo mucho que _________. ¿Y el sábado que _________ a hacer?

-A la mañana voy a _________ al gimnasio, a la tarde _________ a _________ de compras y a la noche _________ a ir a _________ algo con mis colegas de la oficina. ¿Y tú?

-El sábado a la mañana voy a _________ a correr al parque y a la tarde _________ a _________ una obra de teatro, a la noche voy _________ ir a _________ salsa con mis compañeros de la clase de inglés. ¿Y el domingo qué _________ a _________?

-El Domingo no voy a _________ mucho, voy a _________ la tele o voy a _________ a _________ ¿Y tú?

-El domingo a la tarde voy a ir a _________ a la casa de mi hermana y a la noche… no sé que _________ a _________.

2. Ubicar objetos en el espacio y describir una casa / Object placement and describing a house

Observar el dibujo y decir si las afirmaciones son verdaderas o falsas / Look at the drawing and write whether the statements are true or false.

3. Hacer invitaciones:

Ordenar las palabras y agregar la puntuación para formar un diálogo de invitaciones / Put the following sentances in order to form the dialogue of an invitation.

- cine Vamos este sábado al

- El a hora qué sábado

- noche A diez la, once las o las a a

- negocios no El s puedo una sábado tengo ir a de que cena

- domingo el Y

- donde encontramos El sí nos domingo

- cine en el Directamente

- ver Qué a vamos

- se No ahí decidimos lo

- domingo hasta el Buenísimo

- Chau

_______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________.

4. Reservar una habitación de hotel

Poner las líneas del diálogo en orden / Put the dialogue in order.

-Buenos días, ¿En qué puedo ayudarlo?

-Jorge Maurale y señora.

-Sí, claro. ¿Le gustaría una habitación con vista al mar?

-¡Por supuesto! ¡Qué bien!

-La habitación tiene minibar, ¿no?

-Sí, tres días. Una pregunta, ¿Puede ponernos flores en el cuarto? Es nuestro aniversario.

-Si, claro, tiene bebidas gaseosas, agua, cerveza, vino, chocolates y bebidas blancas.

-¿La habitación tiene jacuzzi?

-Tenemos una reserva para hoy

-No, lamentablemente la habitación no tiene, pero tenemos un spa muy cómodo en el primer piso que puede usar las 24 hs.

-¡Ay que bien! -Aquí tienen las llaves Sr. Maurale.

-¡Qué bien! Desayuno en la habitación, ¡sí por favor! Lo más tarde posible. Muchas gracias.

-A ver… si aquí tengo la reserva, es por 3 días.

-Una cosa mas ¿a qué hora es el desayuno?

-¿A nombre de quién?

-De 6 a 10 de la mañana, peor si prefiere puede tomarlo en su habitación

-Gracias a ustedes y que disfruten de su estadía en nuestro hotel. _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________.

PRÓXIMAMENTE

Congratulations on finishing Bueno, entonces… Level I & II!

Stay tuned for our advanced classes coming soon.

And, as always, please let us know what you think of the study materials and the Bueno, entonces… Learn Spanish I & II program.

Scroll to the end and write a review here: http://bit.ly/iPhoneLearnSpanish

David’s QUOTE of the CLASS:

Like to see ALL of the Support Materials?

You can view the most recent and up to date support materials here:

http://blog.buenoentonces.com/2011/01/see-all-the-support-materials/

Missed the Study Guide and Quiz for Class 29? Check it out here:

Study Guide: http://blog.buenoentonces.com/2011/09/study-guide-for-class-29/

Quiz: http://blog.buenoentonces.com/2011/09/quiz-for-class-29/

Let us know if you have any ideas or suggestions on the new materials in the comment section. Muchas Gracias!