A Tapas Crawl with Chef José Andrés

 

Chef José Andrés offers a tapas guide & crawl in Spain in the BBC News article Chef José Andrés teaches you how to enjoy tapas like a Spaniard, written by Eva Sandoval after the publication of Mr Andrés' book Spain My Way: Eat, Drink and Cook Like a Spaniard. This is a straight-forward report with some food & drink vocabulary, so it can be easily read by B2 students, who may incorporate new synonyms and collocations like: a Spaniard, a Michelin-starred [chef], tapas, a tip, culinary [customs], a restaurateur, an eatery, to be credited, cuisine, a [snack-sized] plate, a Trojan horse, a commitment, a humanitarian, a lively [bar], a bowl of [olives], fine [dining places], an anchovy, to pour [a bottle of wine], a [tapas] crawl, a bite, a snack, to tell somebody how to live his/her life, to pick, a prawn, a spicy [sauce], a croquette, creamy, a gin-tonic, cider, a toothpick, a skewer, the story goes, to check out, an outsider, a mushroom, to set [your destination to a place], to wander, grilled [bread], a bubble, a razor clam, a clam, an artichoke, cured [pork shoulder], crispy, lacy, a fritter, a shrimp.

C1 learners can try Alison Stewart's radio interview on WNYC, Spanish Cooking, José Andrés' Way, where, the always flamboyant Spanish chef talks about the "tapas way of life" for 14 minutes.  As there is no script available, students can use this list of words (some of them in Spanish) as a listening guide: to revolve around, mojo, paella, gazpacho, a churro, baked [bread], sautéd [mushrooms] parsley, a tavern, a cover, to celebrate [life], [hand] motion, a melting pot, ahead of his time, [money]wise, to belong [here], to paraphrase, jamón, a cured [meat], the goodness, preservation, rotten, to slice, delicate, [to act] funny, semiwild, acorn, an oak tree, unique, a bite, iberico ham, a ripe [tomato], a purist, a controversy, over [the years], astonishing, a fried cutlet, a cachopo, beef, floured, crunchy, creamy, a librito, [pork] loin, a butcher, soggy, a crust, olive oil, a pot [of hot oil], croquetas, the leftovers, béchamel, fritters, a pay check, to stretch, [hot] gazpacho, mind-blowing, a launch [party].

Below, C1 students can find a longer video interview (49') and see José Andrés' hand motion when he describes his crush on "ibérico ham" (acorn-fed ham) at 9':34", on "tortilla española" at 16':38", on "fabada asturiana" at 27':53", his views on traditional Spanish cuisine and Ferran Adriá's innovative cooking techniques at El Bulli (36':22") or his description of "gazpacho" at 46':45", among many other interesting explanations. The interview, Spain My Way with Chef José Andrés, by Francis Lan, was released yesterday and is the latest episode of the Minnesota Public Radio show The Splendid Table.

Wildlife Artists on Massingham Heath

Massingham Heath is a privately owned estate whose owner, Olly Brickbeck, is committed to rewilding part of the farmland and restoring the flora and fauna of the original heathland. Last year, he started collaborating with The Society of Wildlife Artists (SWLA) to document how the local biodiversity is coming back to the hills of West Norfolk, in what has been called the (SWLA) Massingham Heath Project. 

The BBC Radio 4 programme Open Country has recently broadcast the episode "Wildlife Artists on Massingham Heath" (23':40") with interviews to various artists and to Mr. Brickbeck. The podcast is quite clear and, although it has no transcript, you can find a written summary of the recording on SWLA Massingham Heath Project feature on Open Country Radio 4. 

The vocabulary in the podcast is very rich in wildlife and farming terms, so it can be recommended for C2 students, who can use the following word list as a listening guide: a heath, an attachment [to], otherworldly, eerie, the trappings, to take over the button, grassland, calcareous, chalk, soil, shallow, flora, precious, biodiverse, to outcompete, vigorous [grasses], clovers, fertile [land], a crop, to feed [ourselves], sugar beet, barley, a strand, to flog [it], marginal land, to yield [a crop], Natural England, to restore, [old] trace, to breathe in, a skylark, Bagot goats, Konic ponies, to [free] roam, a fence, seed [varieties], heathland, wildflower [seeds], a head torch, to blow away, up it came, oddly enough, poppies, [to be] carried away, unfathomable, on it went, a sweep [of wildflowers], a sculptor, a residency, to document [a year in the heath], an exhibition, an oil painter, a water colorist, mixed media, scrap [metal], [found] tools, a falcon, agile, dragonflies, a sickle, to edge [your lawns], pliers, a scissor, rusty, a glimpse, a kingfisher, a capercaillie, engaging, a handsaw, a treasure trove, on plein air, a [drawing] workshop, to dot [all around], an oil beetle, a dingy skipper [butterfly], [looking] intently, binoculars, a stonechat, a ring ouzel, a skylark, a long way off, the highlight, a negative, a shadow, to get there, in brush, dairy [pages], a naturalist, to be driven [to paint], the mist, a [bird] scare, the geese, my pad, a store, yellow ocher, delicacy, a cardoon, the coot, humming, a bumblebee, lush [green], overgrown, hawthorn, brambles, to kneel [down], a hedge, the dormant [period], to zoom in [the details], a ground ivy, a bee fly, a cirrus, crawly, a linnet, a whitethroat, scratchy, a daisy, a bud, a mining bee, to patrol, to lay [eggs], to connect [with the place], to deepen [knowledge]. This episode of Open Country will available for a year on the BBC website. 

Below you can watch a video where Zoology Professor Bill Sutherland had an informal chat to two artists from the SWLA, Bryn Edwards and Amie Haslam, about the Massingham Heath Project back in August, 2025:

Guernica: a Masterpiece against War

Witness History from the BBC World Service has recently dedicated its latest episode to Guernica, the iconic painting by Picasso in the podcast Spain Welcomes Picasso's Guernica. In this documentary, Picasso's masterpiece is shown as the symbol for Spanish democracy and a permanent call against the madness of war. The podcast is around 11 minutes long, and there are no subtitles, but the speakers use very clear English and their pace is not fast, so, it can be recommended for C1 students -with this list of words as a listening guide, and for C2 students without this kind of support: a witness, [to give] a try, a [news] archive, to hand to [Spain], to stress, care, a masterpiece, to freeze [the blood in our veins], troops, to overturn, an aerial [attack], a mural, to commission, nightmarish, to stare on, [to go] on show, an artwork, on loan, to rule, dictator, to claim [the painting], to restore [democratic freedoms], to reclaim [the Spanish throne], a handover, a golden rule, to bear in mind, an inheritance, proof [of the ownership of the painting], the [paper] trail, [to end] the loan, stalemate, to bluff, to skate on thin ice, a widow, a sum [of money], a civil guard, an [attempted] coup, to fail, the canvas, the utmost [secrecy], to arrange [protection], to roll up, to stand in line, the bloody [fascist bombing of Guernica], to set foot [on Spanish soil], bulletproof, on display.

If you want to find out more about the symbology of Guernica, you can check out the Wikipedia entry on Guernica (C2 level), or read Dominic Witek's short and sharp interpretation of the art piece in Artsper Magazine, which is entitled Artwork Analysis, Guernica by Picasso. This text can also be accessible to C1 students and above. 

As for a visual alternative, you can watch Picasso's Guernica: Great Art Explained, a thorough 13:40 video with subtitles for C1 students and above, which delves into the iconographic structure of the painting and compares Guernica to other works or art:

Steph Davis, Rock Climbing in Rodellar (Sierra de Guara) & Flow State

Steph Davis is one of the world's leading rock climbers, a BASE jumper and a wingsuit flyer. She was the first woman to summit all the peaks of the Fitzroy Range in Patagonia, among other amazing exploits in her career. 

B2 students can browse her Wikipedia entry, read the introduction and "early life" sections for some  background information, and they will get familiar with words like: a BASE jumper, to free climb, to free solo, a wingsuit flyer, to summit, a straight-A [student], an asset, sheer [will], brainy, a flawless [technique], an [English] major, a lift up, to [get] sucked in, a [school] break, to boulder, to pursue [climbing], a bacherlor's degree, the canon [of mountaneering literature], disparate shifting [reality], to decide against [it], to quit, to relate to [climbing].

If you want to listen to an old radio interview to Steph Davis, you can try Rock climber Steph Davis on KSJD, (Cortez, Colorado, 2016) by Tom Yoder, a (17':13") phone interview without a script. The vocabulary is not particularly difficult, but the nature of the phone interview makes it harder to understand every single word at some points, so this recording is recommended for Experts, and, perhaps, for C2 students. The following list of words might help learners to follow the interview: a venture, a memoir, an avid [reader], an infatuation, an essay, to jump [into a project], a proper [book], [all] from scratch, to accomplish, funnily [enough], to free solo, attached, to figure out, awareness, to go about [things], a sustainable [life], arguably, to highlight [the fact that], to make an attempt on [a climb], BASE jumping, [to go for] a hike, a lifestyle [really], the tagline, to pass away, to follow in your footsteps, to get into [it], to parachute, wingsuit [flying], to skydive, to blow me away, [to get] stuck [on that], to dive [down], a [climbing] clinic, she-[climbers], to see how it goes, [to learn] stuff [on my own], to live by, to take on [risks]. 

Rodellar, in Sierra de Guara Natural Park, is one of Europe's top rock climbing destinations -in the picture on the left you can see a view of El Delfín (F7c+), whereas in the link above, by Climb Europe, B2 students can find details about the location, gear and accommodation to get to Rodellar, as well as interesting & technical expressions like: a gorge, limestone, steep, stamina, to find your way [out], overhanging [caves], an arch, a tufa, a pinnacle, split, a single pitch [route], trad [gear], a rope, a quickdraw, a multi-pitch [route], a twin rope, accommodation, self-catering [bungalows]. For further information about adventure sports, you can check the Somontano Tourism website. 

If you want to learn how rock climbers and other athletes can concentrate so sharply and overcome their fear, you can read this National Geographic article by Shayla Love: What's flow state? Here is the science behind top athletes laser focus. This story is recommended for B2 students and above, who will encounter expressions like: flow state, laser [focus], to tap into, peak [focus], slim, sandstone, grip, free solo [climbing], harness, a parachute, engrossed, a mindset, to leverage, impervious, a javelin [thrower], to accomplish [a goal], to come up [with a theory], to ramp up, [your skills] to take over, the frontal lobe, a seasoned [jazz player], to rely upon, to let go, drywall, your expertise, to tackle [a difficult challenge].

Finally, you can watch this short video about cragging in Rodellar on Jorge Packer's channel, and enjoy the incredible views of the Mascún canyon and El Delfín in the heart of beautiful Sierra de Guara:

Jaialdi/ San Inazio, the Basque Festivals in Idaho

Jaialdi is a major Basque Festival held in Boise, Idaho, every five years. Thousands of Basques migrated to the Western states of the U.S. in the late 19th century and the first half of the 20th century, to work as shepherds or farm labourers in the cattle ranches. In 1987, the first Jaialdi festival began to celebrate Basque heritage in Boise and now it is the largest and most popular festival in the Basque diaspora. San Inazio is a smaller festivity that takes place every year, both events are organised by the Basque Center in Boise.

Jaialdi 2025 runs from July 29th to August 3rd. B1 students can read the article "Drinks and dancing though the decades: Boise's Basque Festival Jaialdi returns this week" written by Jaime Gear on Boise State Public Radio, and they will find interesting expressions like: to chop, an attendee, a [basque] staple, the Gold Rush, a tight-knit [community], a garb, buoyant, to toss, a hay bale. For B2 students, George Prentice's story "Dancing, wagon lifting, chorizo and kalimotxo. Hey Boise, here's your Jaialdi 2025 preview" is more suitable, as the text summarizes a more complex (13':06") radio interview to Lael Uberuaga in "Morning Edition" (C1 level). Some of the expressions in the article are: an overstatement, to skip, to date back [to 1987], a footprint, to stretch, naively, to reconvene, to gather, a vendor, to get underway, an attendee, to ramp up, to dub, herri kirolak, a hay bale, to hoist, an anvil, to be hard-pressed.

If you want further information about Basque culture in Idaho, you can check The Basque Museum and Cultural Center (BMCC) in Boise, which includes Esther Ciganda's The Immigrant All Around podcasts -where Pedro Ciganda's bilingual account of how he picked up English and how he adjusted to the American way of life, is highly recommendable, and the BMCC Oral Histories, a library of interviews to numerous Basque migrants like José Ramón Larrea, or their desendants like Juan Pablo Aramburu who talk about their experiences in the U.S.A. You can also watch a Visit Idaho video about the Basque Block in Boise or another short video from Idaho News 6 about San Inazio 2024, the smaller festival which is held annually.

Finally, C1 students can watch the KTVB report with subtitles below about Jaialdi, where they will find expressions like: a gamut, a thunderstorm, to honour [the culture], to head [to], a closure, to check out, to shape, seating.

Camino de Santiago with Manni Coe

The BBC Radio 4 programme "Ramblings" is broadcasting a series of programmes on "Camino de Santiago" (the Way of St. James) where different routes are explored with different pilgrims, guides and hosts. 

The first episode is called "Camino de Santiago with Manni Coe", an author, guide and walker, who went through a deep emotional journey during the "camino" to overcome a personal trauma and find forgiveness. This programme contains a number of relaxed conversations and some descriptions of the landscape, but, as there are no subtitles and it is quite long (23':50"), it can be recommended for C2 students and above. Lower level students could use the following vocabulary list as a listening guide: chilly, crops, brotherly [love], a foundational [month], Down syndrome, to come up with [an idea], to give up, tough, [his] pace, roles reversed, [to open my] consciousness, the scallop [shell], an insignia, faithful,  a [route] to converge, a pungent [smell], to sprout, moss, a [red] tile, a sleepy [village], a [rain] cover, a [recognized] pilgrimage, the tomb [of Santiago], within your means, an upturn [scalop shell], [to collect] stamps, "compostela" (credential), an up-and-coming [route], a [strong] odour [of cows], to rock up, to wing it, St James' appeal, a hermit, "compostela" (field of stars), to hand draw, to rage [down], a drop [of 40 meters], a [single]-arch [bridge], a steep [peak], stonemasons' [insignia], moss & ivy, lichen, to lean over [the balcony], a vocal [dog], a little hamlet, a [raised] [grain-]storage [building], on stilts, grills, stone pillars, to be brought up [in the Church of England], [my faith] to fall apart, the confession, a [public] forum, trauma, [to be] set [at our house], to come up with [the title of the book], to be groomed, to be abused, a vicar, to press charges, to go to court, circumstantial evidence, earthly [father], skewed, to acknowledge [what happened], [a case] to stand up [in court], rage, guilt, to struggle [to forgive], to release [it], shattered, a breakdown, the ramparts [of the castle], to pick up on [the signs], gay, to blame, [for as long as it] takes, to bring them up, fishhooks, to collapse, a gate, to grab [each other], a stream, to flush [them away], baggage, to shed, a healing [process], not linear, a [continuous] mindset, to catch you off guard, thrilled, to catch up.

Other episodes of the series include "Camino Francés with Maggie McLean"  who is a missioner, a reverend canon and one of the first women who was ordained in the Church of England, and "Living on the Camino de Santiago" with Andrea Abbatemarco, who left his life in Milan to run a hostel for pilgrims on the Sanabrés route. Shortly, the episodes "Camino Inglés with Jannine and Sally", "Arriving in Santiago de Compostela with Sharon, Shirley and friends" and "Camino Memories in Penicuik" will be broadcast.

If you want to watch a short, lighthearted video of "El Camino", you can just click on this BBC-2 clip below:

Catherine of Aragon, Queen Consort of England

Catherine of Aragon (1485-1536), is a household name in England, as her marriage to Henry VIII was the first and the longest in a string of six tumultous marriages, but, the Spanish Infanta is, arguably, less known in Spain, as she failed to fulfil her royal duty bestowed upon her by her father, Ferdinand II of Aragon: to produce an uncontested heir to the English Crown that would embody a solid and lasting diplomatic alliance between the kingdoms of Spain and England in the early 16th century, when France emerged as a common rival.

Catherine's marriage to Henry lasted from 1509 to 1533, when the Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Crammer declared Henry's marriage to Catherine "null and void", which allowed Henry to marry young Anne Boleyn -with family ties to France, and undoubtedly contributed to the separation of the English Church from the Roman Catholic Church. Despite the terrible blow to her royal dignity, Catherine never gave up her claim and spent her entire life fighting hard for the right of their daughter, Mary, to be the legitimate heir to Henry's throne. Several authors have recently vindicated Catherine of Aragon as a well-educated and empowered woman, who led the country in military campaigns against the Scots (1513), while Henry was fighting in France, and who fostered bold social reforms in the English court: Catherine was a patron of Renaissance humanists like Erasmus of Rotterdam, Sir Thomas More and Juan Luis Vives, the Spanish scholar who wrote The Education of a Christian Woman, a treatise that "advocates education for all women regardless of social class and ability" -Catherine herself opened several colleges for women when she was Queen consort; she impressed Londoners with contemporary Spanish fashion and she also "started an extended programme for the relief of the poor", which made Catherine a very popular Queen consort in England and abroad, despite her estrangement from Henry.

Next you can find a lesson plan with listening and speaking tasks, key and the script in Word and in PDF formats for C1 students, extracted from the interview that Giles Tremlett gave to Jane Garvey in Woman's Hour (BBC Radio-4) after the publication of his book Catherine of Aragon, Henry's Spanish Queen, back in 2010. Next is the clip with the audio recording (03':45") for the listening task. If you want to listen to the full interview, here is a recording of the whole interview (10':56") without a script. In addition, and just out of curiosity, you can find a review of the book from The Guardian newspaper in Word and in  PDF formats. Some expressions C1 learners will find in the listening task are: to be allocated to [other monarchs], fate, to take something in your stride, dowry, an eating disorder, to fast, to bear [a child], pious, a steely [character], submissive, obstinate.

But the interest in Catherine of Aragon has not waned over the years. Last week, the highly successful discussion programme In Our Time on BBC Radio 4, devoted a brand new episode to Catherine of Aragon: In Our Time, Feb. 2025 with host Melvyn Bragg and a panel of three top academics on Early Modern History: Lucy Wooding, from Oxford University, María Hayward, from the University of Southampton, and Gonzalo Velasco Berenguer, from the University of Bristol. This is a long radio programme (53') which contains very rich language without a script, so, it is recommended for C2 students and for Experts (Ex) or teachers who want to learn about Tudor England and Early Modern Spain. The list of salient words and collocations below can be used as a listening guide for lower level students.

Some expressions learners can pick up from the In Our Time radio programme are: to engage in, formidable [skills], fellow, born to [greatness], a monarch, to lay the foundation, a superpower, the lesser [partner], a throne, a half-sister, resilient, a prime [example], to rally [the troops], [to survive to] adulthood, pious, to betroth [children], [to seek an] alliance, a contested [succession crisis], betrothal, to bolster, a deficient [education], a patron of [humanists], a retinue, pageant, a hood, a gown, pleated, [bands of] cane, to send [him] off, to jeopardize [their childbearing potential], to rake [mercilessly], a maiden, a deeply religious [woman], to consummate [a marriage], dowager [princess], dowry, to be at loggerheads, to befit [a Infanta], in cahoots with [the Queen of England], very vocal, self-assertive, outspoken, to drift, a tussel, her piety, [religious] observant, to fast, Infanta [of Spain], linen, brocade [dresses], a warm and affectionate relationship, to feel warmly to one another, exuberant, athletic, a reassuring [presence], raw, glamour, to joust, joie de vivre, a courtly love [convention], to lay her triumphs at her feet, [to court] mask, to throw off [his disguise], to conduct herself [as Queen], devout, arguably, a relief [army], armour, [to buy] supplies, a bloodied [coat], to sew [banners], domesticated and martial [themes], to push forward [the Spanish] agenda, a beacon [for Spanish interests], wool trade, in a vacuum, to intermarry, weary, a debacle, to stew, the kingdom of Navarre, to add insult to injury, to mutiny, to rebuff [an attempt], an annulment, feisty, to wield [authority], [queen] regnant, to be perturbed, [to become] an issue, more ugly than not, [religious] viability, [not without] precedent, appalling, [royal] dignity, reluctant, more telling, to groom [his illegitimate child], a [royal] bride, a role model, [Spanish] heritage, a treatise, to draw up [a plan of education], to be depicted, her upbringing, a shift, patronage, [to give it a new] spin, the dispensation, double-binding, to dispense [a marriage], determination, to engage with [the best intellects], [to support her] corner, an [intellectual] tussle, Papal [authority], to wrangle [around that], God-given [authority], to take a stand, to be interwoven, scandalous, for the sake of [her daughter], to be vanished, a watershed [moment], a dispute, to have the upper-hand, more poignantly, to repeal [a law], her will, to be addressed, [princess] dowager, discreet life, a manor [house], to command [popular support], to nurse [her daughter], vindictive, a bearing, a cooling [of relations], an uneasy [relation], to gather [support], a moving [letter], a hint [of steel], a concubine, a heartbreaking [sentence], astonishing, appallingly, sense of duty, longevity, regent, to set [the model], uncaring [son], [not a] catch, mean, to pass the buck, to make out, wordy [letters], fury, her misfortunes, he is to blame, a flamboyant [dresser], to offset [the complaints], a [last minute] reversal, a cipher, to quail, [politically] apt, dour, sarcastic, impeccably [dressed], the Field of the Cloth of Gold, a makeshift [city], a [wine] fountain, to herald [lasting peace], an encounter, a wrestling [match], [to go] rough, awkward, to smooth things over, the woodcut, a pomergranate, regalia, a robe, a [queen] regnant.

If you want to watch a video with Catherine's story, you can watch "The Warrior Queen Married to Henry VIII: Catherine of Aragon, Henry VIII's First Wife" (2023) below, which can be recommended for C1 students.