First of all: This is the English version of the transcript of one of our "Trocitos de Real Spanish". Un trocito is a little bit of something (usually something to eat). This Trocito is a preview of our online Spanish course “Español con noticias y documentales 2: La historia de tres regiones bilingües de España”. The additional learning materials referred to in the video are available in the complete course. You’ll find a link to this and all our courses below. If you want to push yourself, try reading the Spanish version of this blogpost and video transcript first (just click on “español” in the menu above) — then come back here to check anything you're not sure about.   Hello! I’m Elizabeth, from Real Spanish, and a dedicated student of Spanish. I love learning new expressions in Spanish. As you know, most of them can’t be translated literally because they are based on the culture and history of the Spanish-speaking world. Some are local to a particular country or region. Some are so interesting that they deserve a video all to themselves! If you’ve spent any time with Spanish speakers, you’ve probably heard someone suddenly lower their voice and mutter ¡Moros en la costa! — maybe when the boss walks in, or when a sibling appears at an inconvenient moment. But where does this expression come from, and what do Moors have to do with it? The story takes us back to medieval Spain, a network of coastal watchtowers (torres vigía), and a very real danger that kept entire villages on permanent alert for centuries. The video below explains the origin of ¡Moros en la costa!, one of the most colourful idioms in everyday Spanish, which can be traced back to its historical roots: the constant raids by North African Muslims along the Mediterranean coast, and the very real danger that kept coastal villages on permanent alert. It also touches on a related expression, prometer el oro y el moro, and looks honestly at why both expressions carry some cultural baggage worth knowing about. Wishing you all the best for your adventures in Spanish, Elizabeth from Real Spanish     VIDEO TRANSCRIPT (English translation) Hello and welcome to this Real Spanish mini-lesson! Today we’re going to learn some interesting things about Catalonia. Throughout this lesson, pay attention to the various uses of «se», such a small but so important word in Spanish. We’ll explain them in the grammar sheet.* You probably already know that in Catalonia, Catalan is spoken alongside Spanish. Although both are official languages in this autonomous community, schools teach in Catalan and official bodies tend to use Catalan more than Spanish. In the inland areas of Catalonia, which are less touristy, you tend to hear more Catalan than Spanish, while in Barcelona and the coastal areas you’ll hear more people speaking Spanish, since there are more people from other Spanish regions and from other countries. The early history of Catalonia is very similar to the rest

 You can customise subtitles and playback speed for videos on YouTube. José explains how to get the most out of these tools. Netflix offers similar options for subtitles and playback speed. If you just want to listen to the audio, you'll find it here. Did you see our first video on how to get the most out of videos in Spanish (or any other language)? Miguel explains how to use some keyboard shortcuts here.   Hi! Great to see you! This is our second video about how the tools on YouTube can help you to learn a language. First: the subtitles. I’m sure you already know that subtitles rarely match exactly what the actors or announcers are saying. Normally, this doesn’t matter. But for language students it’s essential to be able to see and hear the exact words at the same time. For this reason, in the clips from TV and movies that we use in our courses, we have uploaded subtitles that really do match exactly what the actors or announcers are saying. In this clip three friends are talking about the contents of a bag belonging to a young Basque woman who left it behind after spending the night with one of them.  You will hear examples of Andalusian pronuncation, as well as some words that we explain in the lesson. Joaquín:   ¡Cuidao, Currito! no vaya a haber un artefacto explosivo ahí dentro, ¡hijo! Careful Curro! In case there’s an explosive device inside, mate! Curro:      ¡Anda ya! Oh, come on! Curro:      ¿Tú estás seguro de que este bolso es de una mujer? Porque aquí no hay ni pintalabios, ni rímel, ni nada. Are you sure this is a woman’s bag? Because there’s no lipstick, or mascara, or anything. Joaquín:   ¡Si las vascas no se maquillan! Well, Basque women don’t wear makeup! Rafael:     Joaquín, que tú viste a la muchacha, que podía ser perfectamente Miss Euskadi. Joaquín, you saw the girl, she could easily be Miss Basque Country. To activate the subtitles in the TV and movie clips in our courses, click on Settings. Then choose the language. We suggest you view the clip several times, first with subtitles and later without, until you can distinguish every word and phrase without the subtitles. Another useful tool: you can slow down the video so you can distinguish every word. Then you can view it at normal speed. Watch this video. The video is in English Let’s review what we’ve learned so far. If you don’t understand something, try these strategies: First: rewind 5 or 20 seconds Second: If it’s still hard for you, rewind again and activate the subtitles in Spanish. Third: If you can hear each word but still don’t get the meaning, rewind again and choose the subtitles in English. Do you know other ways to get the most out of videos to help you learn a language? Leave us a comment below! By the way, you can find the transcription of this video,