Introduction post

 Activity 1

The three Spanish speaking countries I am interested in are, Colombia, Cuba and the Dominican Republic. I am interested in all three of these countries because I have been told they are  wonderful spots to travel to with family and or friends. I also have heard that the Dominican Republic and Colombia are very rich in culture and customs which is intriguing to me. I haven't heard much about Cuba but I have heard that the water is beautiful. 

Country: Cuba

Activity 2

1. Culture to me is the environment you grow up in. It's the way you approach life, it's the food you eat, it's the sports you play. Culture is the way someone lives their life on a daily basis. I believe in order to have a society there must be a culture. It is important to have culture in a society because it brings  people together, creates a sense of community and depending on the type of culture it can enrich people's lives

2. The official definition of culture is  "The customary beliefs, social forms, and material traits of a racial, religious, or social group also : the characteristic features of everyday existence (such as diversions or a way of life) shared by people in a place or time" The official definition and mine are very similar. https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/culture

3. My personal culture stems from a lot of places, people and things that have happened throughout my life. The first part of my culture comes from my parents and the rest of my family. The morals and values I grew up with were to have integrity, loyalty, kindness and to treat others how I wanted to be treated. That was the foundational culture of my household growing up. My family, much like hispanic culture, loves to party, dance and  have a good time with the people we love. Being able to let loose and enjoy a good time is a part of who I am. Being a hard worker is another aspect of my culture. Seeing the older people in my family work extremely hard everyday since the day I was born has instilled a sense of personal responsibility in myself. 

Being black has definitely made its way into my culture for the simple fact that it is who I am. I have a vivid memory from when I was little where my parents would have me study different black individuals who changed history for us. During that time I truly became proud to be black. 

As a Chicago native, no matter where you are from in Chicago it will mold you to be tough, resilient, and a person with a story to tell. It’s hard to explain the culture in Chicago. I think it’s one of those things where you have to be from Chicago to truly understand it. To paint an image of Chicago culture imagine a city where you have mostly every culture in the world in one city. That is Chicago, a one of a kind place. There's diversity everywhere in Chicago whether it is food, sports or people. The thing about Chicago is that no matter who you are, what you look like, living in Chicago will give you a certain edge that I humbly don't think many other places can give a person.

Lastly, I am also half Belizean, living there during my summers as a child has definitely influenced my culture and perspective in life. Coming from a first world country to a developing country can be a culture shock but that wasn’t the case for me. I actually enjoyed Belize more. The materialistic and frivolous things weren’t valued as much as here in the United States. Kids didn’t care about who had the newest Iphone or the latest shoes. We would run around barefoot on grass, rocks, gravel playing multiple sports. I got to see what it truly meant to have one another's back and to be your brother's keeper. I created bonds with people that I will never lose. It is also an outer world experience going to a country where all of you are from or related to that place in some way. It makes you feel like everyone is your family and in some ways it is true. I learned to swim in Belize and soon it became one of my favorite things to do. I have truly been spoiled by having the Caribbean Sea as my practice grounds. Belize truly humbled me and made me appreciate the things that truly matter in life. The little things and the grander things that I used to take for granted like family, friends, love and fun. 

4. No, I am not aware of the culture of any of the countries I chose. Using previous knowledge of Spanish speaking countries, I can assume that each of these countries have food that will make your draw drop. They love to have fiestas and dance until the sun comes up and they value family like nothing else in the world. 

Citations

“Culture Definition & Meaning.” Merriam-Webster, Merriam-Webster, www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/culture. Accessed 29 Nov. 2023.