So you’re going to pick-up learning Spanish & consider yourself at the “beginner” level?  That’s awesome – but this website may not be for you.

There are more resources out there on the internet to help kick-start your Spanish than I care to count, much less try to compete with.  They have been created by doctors, college professors, licensed educators, and native speakers, and these resources are much better than anything I could create.  My suggestion?  Take advantage of them.  Use them to their full potential. Someone has spent years of their life creating this content so people like you can consume it. Do them the honor.

To clarify, Where’s the Gringo? is half travel blog, half come-learn-Spanish-with me-on-my-trip-through-Latin-America-blog.  TRANSLATION:  not only do I want to review places I’ve been, offer tips/suggestions, etc., but I also want to document first-hand experiences in trying to manage the language & cultural encounters.  The Spanish material on this website will be geared towards intermediate to advanced level learners.   Depending on your level of Spanish, you may or may not be able to understand, and likewise, fully enjoy some of the content on Where’s the Gringo?

What You Can Expect to Find on WTG?:

• Useful “dichos,” or sayings/phrases in Spanish 
• Photos subtitled in Spanish/English 
• Videos recorded partially or completely in Spanish
• Weekly podcasts with a variety of themes, completely in Spanish.
• “De vez en cuando” (once in a while) vocabulary words
• Links to external resources to further practice Spanish such as Spanish schools, newspapers, websites/blogs, etc.

What You Will Not Find on WTG?:

• Lists of vocabulary words
• Verb conjugation exercises
• Basic grammar exercises
• Topic-specific lessons (i.e. colors, numbers, days of the week, items around the house, etc.)
• Detailed explanations of Spanish language structure
• Any structured lesson of any kind really

To be honest, I would like this website to be a “one-stop shop” for Spanish learners, a place where those interested in learning the language could come and progress through all phases of Spanish.  I just do not have the time to compile nor create that type of information, and want to devote my time to creating & sharing what I think could be helpful & useful to others from my travels.

Also, purchasing programs like Rosetta Stone or Livemocha have certainly proven to be useful. However, I believe with a good work ethic and determination, there is really no need to spend any money on digital programs with the amount of free resources out there.

Here is a list of some of my favorite free, online resources (note: some charge for “extra” features):

Websites

Spanish Proficiency Language Exercises – University of Texas at Austin

FluentU

Speaking Latino

Spanish Unlimited

Study Spanish

Qué Onda Spanish

Blogs

Spanish Playground

Simply Spanish

Always Spanish

How to Learn Spanish

Teaching & Learning Spanish 

Podcasts

La Casa Rojas

Notes in Spanish

Spanish Obsessed

Coffee Break Spanish

Spanish Pod 101

Videos

Butterfly Spanish

Vocabuflash

Learn Spanish

SpanishDict

Señor Jordan

The Spanish Blog

Please check these great Spanish resources out and let me know what you think.  Which resources work for you?  Which ones don’t?  Do you have any favorite online Spanish resources that I missed?  I’d love to hear about them in the comment section below and check them out for myself!