It’s been two weeks since my family and I got back from one of the most memorable vacations we’ve spent together — a Western Caribbean cruise aboard the world’s largest ship, Allure of the Seas, courtesy of Fisher-Price and Royal Caribbean — and my kids are still talking about it.

We sailed from Port Everglades in Ft. Lauderdale and after two days at sea, we docked in Labadee, Haiti. It was a great opportunity for me to practice my French with the locals and for my kids to see how important it is to be able to communicate with people in a language they understand. I mean, it’s not like they don’t speak English, but it’s definitely not their first language and the ability to speak French actually got me several discounts in the handicraft market on site.

As I said on my first post about the cruise, from Haiti, we were supposed to set sail to Falmouth, Jamaica, but Hurricane Sandy had other plans and so we ended up spending an extra day at sea since the port there was closed by the government to avoid any potential problems. I was a bit saddened because I had been looking forward to visit Jamaica, if only for a few hours. In the end, though, I was grateful that at least I was not home in Denver, where my friends and family were dealing with the first snow of the season.

Plus, another day at sea meant we got to the opportunity to spend even more time exploring all the Allure of the Seas has to offer to adults and children alike. Check out some of the photos of our adventures within the cruise ship:

On the merry-go-around in the Boardwalk for the 50th time…

Watching one of the endless shows from Chicago to Madagascar, there’s truly something for everyone!

I’m so happy I did the zip line!

Playing mini golf surrounded by the ocean on all sides!

Reading a book borrowed from the library on board. What a view!

Racing on Fisher-Price Power Wheels!

After spending two days at sea, we finally docked in Cozumel, Mexico and took a lovely tour of the city with a very knowledgeable tour guide. The tour also took us to the other side of the island where the kids had some agua de coco and Vanessa picked some conchitas for her ever growing collection. And then, we got to spend a few hours by the water just relaxing. Vanessa was excited to be back in Mexico and our visit gave me the opportunity to talk to her about the immensity and diversity of that beautiful country.

I would’ve never really thought of a cruise as a great opportunity to expose children to different cultures and languages in a short period of time. As I said in my last post, besides the places we visited, the cruise ship was also full of people from all over the world and my kids made several new friends in a trip we’ll be talking about for a very long time.

My family and I just got back from a 7-day Royal Caribbean cruise that took us to Labadee, Haiti and Cozumel, Mexico. (The ship was supposed to dock in Falmouth, Jamaica also, but Hurricane Sandy had other plans.) As you can see from the photo above, we went aboard the Allure of the Seas — the biggest cruise ship in the world! While I’ll attempt to give you a sense of what it was like through a series of photos, I think the only thing that will do justice to our whole trip is for you to experience it yourself.

But before I begin, I want to disclose that this trip was made possible by Fisher-Price and Royal Caribbean. What does one have to do with the other, you might ask? Well, Royal Caribbean has partnered up with Fisher-Price to offer all kinds of incredibly fun onboard experiences to little cruisers. From playgroups with interactive sessions for the teeny ones (ages 6 months to 36 months) to a toy lending program and even a musical birthday party show with the Little People characters, there is something for everyone!

One of my children’s favorite things was Royal Caribbean’s Adventure Ocean youth programs. Although Vanessa was sad to be separated from Santiago because of their age difference, she got over it quickly after she had the chance to experience all the amazing and fun activities she participated in each time she was there. Santiago was in a program called Aquanauts (for ages 3-5 years) and Vanessa was in the one called Explorers (for ages 6-8 years). From science to art to music, there was never a dull moment while my children where a part of the cruise’s youth programs. I must say I loved going to get Vanessa at the end of each session only to find her having the time of her life dancing!

But the aspect I liked the most and which made me feel the most comfortable leaving my kids there — especially when it came to Santiago — was that so many of their staff members were multilingual. As many of you know, Santiago is not yet fully bilingual and Spanish is his first language. As soon as I signed him up for the Aquanauts program, I asked if someone in the staff spoke Spanish and I was so very happy to find out that several of them did! Santiago was quick to make friends with all of them — the Spanish and the non-Spanish speakers alike — but I was glad that he had people there who would be able to understand him without a problem.

Speaking of which, one of MY favorite parts of the cruise was the amazing diversity not only of languages, but of nationalities among both the other guests and the crew. From what I was told, there were 70 countries represented among the crew and who knows how many more among the other guests. My kids heard all kinds of languages aboard the ship during the time they were there and Vanessa always asked what they were. Plus, we met people from the Philippines, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Colombia, Romania, Peru, England, Brazil, Puerto Rico, Japan, Panama, Canada and from a lot of different parts of the U.S. Sounds like heaven for someone raising bilingual and bicultural kinds, ¿no creen?

I have a lot more to share with you about this amazing experience, but I’ll leave it for another post. I don’t want to overwhelm you!

“I want my kids to be immersed in REAL Mexican culture”…and “San Miguel has just so many ex-pats”; “it’s not ‘authentic’ enough…”. I can’t tell you how many times I have heard comments like these. My children and I are currently on a six-month stay in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico and before it’s done, we will have been here an entire year. Needless to say, my response to these sorts of comments has definitely done a 180°.

Admittedly, I WAS one of those people. I was a skeptic. I wanted a real, ‘authentic’ experience for my family. I wanted us to speak Spanish and make Mexican friends. Despite my concerns, convenience brought us here. Upon moving to a lovely house near the park, I even called my husband to tell him that I would never live here again because it was ‘little America.’ Most of our neighbors were ex-pats who spoke English!

My, how times have changed.

While I still understand those concerns, I now have a new perspective.

For one, I realized that before beginning any journey priorities need to be established …what is your goal for this adventure? Are you travelling for fun or relaxation? For culture? Language? To see a new world? Live differently? What do you want to get out of your immersion trip?

Back in Los Angeles, California, our quality of life is pretty high. Or course the cost of living is also high, but it’s safe to say that our family enjoys all of the amenities of a cosmopolitan city in a First World Nation. Target and Ikea keep us stocked in commerce, and sky’s the limit for the range of activities and opportunities available so long as you can a) navigate the traffic, and b) pay for them.

So, as much as I wanted my children to ONLY speak Spanish when we came here, and only socialize with Mexicans, I now realize that those superficial standards were keeping us from forming stronger natural relationships. It was only once I let go of those preconceived specifications that our real immersion started and we transformed from being tourists to travelers.

The truth is that my children most related to other kids from a similar socio-economic background, and they were not the kids in the campo initially.(C’mon, how could I expect a few kids from LA to instantly bond with kids who lived with chicken coops inside their house?! Life seemed so instantly different at that point!) With the kids that they naturally gravitated toward, they shared similar interests, quickly recognized their commonalities, and formed bonds. And it was this form of peer interaction that was the greatest motivating factor for them to learn Spanish. The more language they acquired, the more they reaped the benefits, and they went from simply being included in games of tag to learning the nuances of telling a joke that doesn’t translate.

But then, an even more interesting thing happened… As they sufficiently mastered the language, the door opened to my so-called ‘authentic’ experience. They spoke the language of all of the kids in Mexico now. So now, their comfort zone grew, and they formed relationships across socio-economic backgrounds. Afterall, don’t all 8-year-old boys have some interest in the spy/ninja world? Or fútbol, at least? And don’t most little girls enjoy a twirl in a tulle skirt?

As an anthropologist, we often discussed the now debunk term “Noble Savage” as it was used to describe Native Americans by scholarly Western folk. “Noble Savage” refers to an idealized concept of an uncivilized person and his/her pure goodness that has not been corrupted by the influences of modern civilization. It’s easy to dismiss that notion in an academic setting, because it is obviously patronizing and lacks acknowledgement of variable cultural values.

However, that is exactly the same idea as me wanting my children to be immersed in some antiquated idea I have of Mexico… in a rural setting, playing with sticks. If the “savage” is someone who does not have all of the modern amenities or conform to modern standards of living, then savages can be found as easily in the United States as in Mexico and around the world. This has nothing to do with culture or language, but has everything to do with inequitable opportunities, the persistence of poverty without adequate resources, and sometimes traditions. I did not and do not want my children associating Spanish and Mexican culture with poverty or a lack of resources any more than I would want them associating the South (U.S.) with bigotry and hatred. The two exist, of course, but they are not bound by transitive properties and are not true for all peoples.

The Spanish language is a rich and live language, the second most spoken language in the WORLD (after Mandarin Chinese). And the Mexican culture is equally as rich and vibrant, passionate, broad, historied, and detailed. THAT is the Spanish and the culture that I want my children to know. The purpose of our trip, our living here, is to expose them to an equally rich, advanced, and sophisticated culture and language as they have at home, to offer them a different perspective. I try to avoid value judgments as to which is better, but I know that HOW they are exposed and how they FEEL about their experiences will color their opinions and their association with Spanish and the culture. I don’t want to confuse the language and culture with systemic infrastructural problems in the country that dictate how potable water is, for example.

The point is that it takes times to form relationships, authentically; they cannot be fabricated for an ‘experience’, and it is exactly those relationships, once formed, that drive language learning. It’s an emotional need to connect (watch out: they say it’s most easily done between lovers!). It’s funny that children seem to know this truth intrinsically, while some adults still think it’s a malleable concept.

San Miguel de Allende is a sophisticated and cosmopolitan city set in Spanish colonial architecture with cobblestone streets. It is a Mexican city with a large population of ex-patriots from around the world. It is also a city with a storied and proud history, but one that has accepted gentrification with grace. When I finally embraced the realities of living here is when, I’d argue, our real cultural and linguistic assimilation took place. At that point, we were able to build organic relationships with people and the community. We made friends because of mutual interests and with mutual affection, not because we were ‘Americans’ and they were ‘Mexicans’ or ‘Swedes’ or ‘Italians’ or whatever, but just because we liked one another. But it’s been easier to do that when we share a common language.

Last weekend, we spent the morning swimming with friends: Americans who gave birth and are raising their children in Mexico. The ten kids played tag on a beautiful and expansive property in a smattering of English with peppered Spanish. That afternoon we attended a birthday party on the outskirts of town where we were the only Westerners that some guests had ever talked to. To look at us, we stuck out like sore thumbs with blond hair, sunburnt skin, freckles, and light eyes. But to listen… there was no difference. The kids played, ate cake, helped each other onto the brincolin (trampoline), and hit the piñata. The mamás talked about our families and acknowledged the normalcy of children throwing tantrums and eating too much sugar. The socio-economic difference between the two gatherings was plain: one might be painted as a more real Mexico, and the other as a result of gentrification, but there was no distinction made by the kids who were at each place simply to play with friends.

I like that my children do not see a difference in their quality of life between Los Angeles and San Miguel de Allende. I like that the friends they’ve made here would be the same friends they’d make at home. They play with the same toys, discussing items of similar interest — in Spanish, sometimes English, and all the time in ‘kidspeak’, that universal language that kids share to communicate. The idea of the Nobel Savage, or an unsophisticated being that is somehow more pure, is ridiculous – neither were they unsophisticated, nor more pure. But the idea that we, as outsiders, judge the purity of an experience based on external factors, such as country vs. city living, or how many foreigners live in a native country, is equally as ridiculous. The real Mexico cannot be boxed into any one stereotype; the real Mexico is a dynamic country with a passionate past and a thriving future. It certainly depends on your goals, but I don’t think it matters where you choose to study Spanish or immerse yourself in a culture, so long as the intentions are pure.

And when in doubt, just follow your kids – they’re always a beacon of purity.

{All images © Amy Conroy}

Since my girl doesn’t get to see her Abuelita very much, we’re always looking for excuses to get the two of them together. We try to get to El Salvador at least once per year, and my mom tries to visit us in Los Angeles once a year as well.

This year we were able to find the perfect excuse to spend some amazing quality time together and create the best kind of memories at Disney World in Orlando.

I was one of 200 mom bloggers to receive an invitation to attend the Disney Social Media Moms Celebration, a yearly three-day event put together by the Disney Social Media team to gather in one place mom bloggers and our families. Bloggers get to participate in a full day of sessions led by amazing and inspiring speakers, as well as learn about the Disney way and new initiatives and share our feedback and insights. Meanwhile, the families get to enjoy admissions to the park, the pool at the host hotel, which this year was the Yacht Club, as well as attendance to the nightly, and insanely fun, dinner parties.

My husband and I decided the cost for the three of us to travel was too high-even considering the many perks, discounts, etc provided by the organizers—and figured the investment would be better spent on la Abuelita. And we weren’t wrong.

Not only did my mom finally get to sneak a peek at my life as a blogger (which I’m sure she was dying of curiosity to figure out!), my girl and her Abuelita got to reconnect on neutral and happiest-place-on-earth-ground, just the two of them.

As expected, it was also a reboot for Camila’s Spanish as she always makes more of an effort to speak in Spanish when her familia is around. She knows they understand English, but she also knows they truly are Spanish-speakers and that’s how she relates to them. It’s like a chip in her brain turns on and she knows.

Our trip isn’t over yet, even though Disney Social Media Moms Celebration is. We’re now heading to Tampa to visit my aunt (my mom’s sister) so Camila can spend time with her tía abuela and more extended family and be showered with crazy amor de familia. Next, we’re driving down to Miami for the Mom 2.0 Summit. I’m dragging my patient mami with me through all this not only to help with Camila, but also because these crazy trips and moments are what my girl’s connection to her family are now all about. We have to make it happen como sea.

Share: If you don’t live close to your family, how do you create moments to be together?

Camila y sus primos en El Salvador ©SpanglishBaby, Ltd

It´s been a little over a year since the last time we came to El Salvador. That time Camila celebrated her third birthday with her familia Salvadoreña. She also spent three weeks completely immersed in a Spanish-only preschool during the weekdays. Her Spanish was flowing beautifully since it was the language she heard the most since she was born.

Aside from strengthening her Spanish skills and connecting a need to it, the bonds she made with her cousins, abuelita and tías during that trip are invaluable.

It´s that bond the same one I´ve been using as an Ace under my sleeve whenever she starts speaking too much English at home, especially now that she´s been attending an all-English Montessori preschool every day for the last five months. So, my go-to phrase when when I get too many English dialogue from her–or plain out lovely defiance–is, “Si no hablas español, no vas a poder jugar con tu prima y abuelita.”

That usually does the trick. I see it in her eyes. She gets it.

Part of my arsenal of making sure Camila is completely bilingual, bicultural and biliterate is spending as much time as possible immersed with family in both Mexico and El Salvador. This year it was our turn to head out to El Salvador and I decided we would come for three weeks so Camila would get the whole experience and her Spanish skills would continue to flourish and grow stronger.

Little did I know the surprise would be on me regarding how much Spanish she would feel the need to speak in order to integrate. My solid Ace was quickly toppled when I realized she was speaking to her cousin in English–her language of play–and her prima, the same one I had been insisting wouldn´t understand if spoken in English to, was responding to her in English as well!

The Prima, who is almost three years older than Camila, is already in first grade at the local American School and is super proud of how much English she can finally speak. She’s thrilled that Camila speaks to her in English and she can respond and is getting to practice. Plus, she’s a huge fan of iCarly, Drake and Josh, Mario Bros and tons of older kids shows–all on cable and in English–she’s totally exposing my four year old to.

They are having such a blast and connecting so well, that there’s no way I would interfere with that….no matter what language they choose to speak together.

At least there’s still the Abuelita and rest of the family who I’ve strictly reprimanded anytime they respond to her in English with a warning they are not helping my not-so-strong Ace if they debunk the myth that she can’t communicate with them in English!

We´re on day two of our trip. I´m sure that by the third week our Spanish and culture immersion mission will be complete and successful.

A month ago I received a phone call that I know will be life-changing:  I was invited to be one of 24 Ambassadors for the México Today Program–a public and private initiative which is officially launching this week in Oaxaca, México.

I´m sure I should have been a bit more professional, but there´s no way to make a squeal sound pro.  I know, it just came out solito and there was no way to hide my excitement.  Immediately and without hesitation I said “¡Claro que sí! ¿A donde firmo?”

What I have signed up for is to be one of 8 Community Managers which will work with a group of 16 Contributors, all México enthusiasts, to share the positive stories from our México lindo y querido.

Yes, there´s no denying that México is hurting right now with so much violence and atrocities that are happening in some areas, but there is so much more light to counteract that darkness and we need to collectively focus on that to start the healing.

For those that don´t know, I am not Mexican (born in Houston, raised in El Salvador), but please don´t tell my Soul that.

I was living a very comfy and fun life in South Beach, FL working for Univision and mingling with the estrellas.  After my first work-related trip to Mexico City, back in 1998, I immediately felt I belonged in that magical, crazy, chaotic, full of contradictions, reality-slaps-you-in-the-face city.  A year later, I had packed my bags and moved there all by myself. At 29.  With 25 million people surrounding me, no GPS to guide me through its crazy streets and Periférico and only a beeper and a laptop to keep me in touch. Yes, a beeper…remember those?

During the six years I lived in México (one of them in Playa del Carmen) I grew, fell, hit rock bottom, found my spiritual self, grew and fell some more and then found my husband.  Call it Eat, Pray, Love all in one country.

I also got to travel to many regions, cities, beaches, archeological sites and was fascinated by them all.  Places like Chiapas, Veracruz, Querétaro, San Miguel de Allende, Tepoztlán, Acapulco, Veracruz, Tamaulipas, Mérida, Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo, Tijuana, Monterrey, Guadalajara, Puerto Escondido, Mazunte, Huatulco, Cuernavaca, León, and my favorite places of all–Oaxaca city and the Riviera Maya.

Ten years ago, a good friend from my days in México gave me this painting with her depiction of Monte Albán, Oaxaca´s most important archaeological site. She knew it was my place. Months ago I hung it on the wall in front of my desk. It brought Oaxaca back to me. "Monte Albán," by Vivian Pfeffer

Going back to the  first México Today phone call, my squeal converted into a scream when they told me I had to travel to the kick-off event in Oaxaca as one of my duties as an Ambassador. Are you kidding me? I´ve been there five times, but haven´t been back in 8 years and have been itching and threatening to go soon.

So, here I am sharing this story with you just hours away from jumping on a plane that will take me to Oaxaca to officially become an enthusiastic voice for México.

Among other topics, I plan on sharing all the amazing experiences that can be had as a family in México.  Our next door neighbor, and the cradle of heritage for most of us in this country, is an infinite source of language and culture for our kids. No better way to infuse in them a passion for who they are than to immerse them in this ancient, rich and cosmopolitan nation.  I hope my and my family´s experiences will enrich your ideas and motivate you to explore and share.

I invite you to Like the Mexico Today community on Facebook and follow along on Twitter to get to know the 24 Ambassadors and read beautiful México stories.  Among the Ambassadors you will find some longtime SpanglishBaby friends:  The Other Side of the Tortilla, Mamá Latina Tips and A Canuck in Cancún.

Marca País – Imagen de México, is a joint public and private sector initiative designed to help promote Mexico as a global business partner and an unrivaled tourist destination. This program is designed to shine a light on the Mexico that its people experience every day.

Disclosure:  I am being compensated for my work in creating and managing content as a Community Manager for the México Today Program.  I am also being invited to an all-expenses paid trip to Oaxaca as part of my role.  All stories, opinions and passion for all things México shared here are completely my own.

Vanessa saying good-bye to her bisabuela

It’s been almost a week since we got back home from our viaje relámpago to Perú, my home country. Saying good-bye to my family is always extremely difficult for me because I never know how long it’ll be before we see each other again. Coming back to the States is also difficult because life here is so different at so many levels. From the taste of the food to the meaning of time…

Our trip back was hellish, to say the least. Three planes to get from Lima to Denver. We left my grandmother’s apartment at the ungodly hour of 2 a.m. and arrived at our home around 7 p.m. that night, which was really 9 p.m. for us considering the time difference. My daughter did amazing. She slept in two out of the three flights. My baby son, on the other hand, was a complete mess. The poor boy barely slept and was fighting off a cold which I’m sure only made him even more miserable.

On our final flight from Houston to Denver, just as I was about to maldecir en silencio the moment we decided to make such an unforgiving trip, Vanessa — who’s obviously much wiser than her 4 1/2 years — turned to me and said: “Mami, gracias por llevarnos a tu país.” She thanked me for taking them to my country!

If I wasn’t sure before about the importance that exposure to our roots through traveling has on our bilingual and bicultural children, her genuine, unprompted comment cemented it.

Traveling to both Peru and Puerto Rico is extremely expensive now that we’re a family of four, especially when we can’t stay longer than a couple of weeks due to our work commitments. After seeing the impact this short trip to Perú had on our daughter, my husband and I have made a pact that traveling back home as often as possible — at least once a year to either country — has to be one of our priorities.

4 Reasons why travel is so important:

• Full time exposure to Spanish. You might recall a post I recently wrote about how I inadvertently found out Vanessa plays in English because this arena of her life is mostly covered by English while she is in preschool. As I mentioned in my last post about our trip, I pretty much let Vanessa play, play and play some more with her 3 cousins while we were in Perú. I’m sure her “play” vocabulary has expanded exponentially! She also figured out that while we all speak Spanish, there are many variations of the language, as I’ve written about in the past. For some unknown reason (I mean, I have an idea of the history behind it, but it still doesn’t make sense), Peruvians call birthday santos instead of cumpleaños. And since we got to celebrate both my ahijado’s (see picture below) and my birthday there, Vanessa heard this word over and over again until she finally asked me what was up.

Celebrating my godson's third santo

• Showing them our culture is way better than telling them about it. Culture entails many things, including language, food, music, traditions and, in the case of Latinos, familia. Instead of telling my daughter about all these, she got to experience it all first hand and I was thrilled to see she loved every aspect of it. From our very, very loud family reunions to the two days we spent at the beach doing what I always did as child there: nothing.

Vanessa taking a break from collecting conchitas

Santiago getting his first taste of a Peruvian empanada de carne. He devoured it!

Vane drinking her umpteenth glass of chicha morada. The love affair begins.

Vanessa playing cards with her bisabuela

Checking out the Peruvian instruments at the Indian Market

• A chance to stock up on all things Spanish. Before I had kids, I used to spend tons of money at the bookstore whenever I traveled to Perú, or any other Spanish speaking country, for that matter. While Amazon has gotten better and better in terms of their Spanish language selection, still nothing beats browsing the isles of a bookstore in search of that perfect book you’ve been dying to read. No more. Now I do that but for children’s books in Spanish. The bookstore in the picture below is only 3 blocks from my grandmother’s apartment, so it was one of the first places we visited! Vanessa was in heaven. I spent a fortune, but I left with four bags full of books and music for her an her brother. The kind of stuff I’ll never be able to get on Amazon

Heaven on earth

• An opportunity to expand their horizons and to see how life is different, but it’s also the same in other parts of the world. Again, the only way to truly understand this, is to live it, albeit for a short period of time. I think that, beside all the things I’ve mentioned in this and the other posts I’ve written about this trip, one of the main take-aways for my daughter is seeing why it’s important to speak Spanish and how this is a language spoken in many other countries of the world. I hope I never have to do it, but I know that reminding her of how she had no problems communicating with anybody there will serve as a strong detractor if she ever refuses to speak Spanish!

My kids playing in la playa

Pacific Ocean sunset

Have you traveled with your children to a Spanish-speaking country? How was that experience? Why is travel important to you?