The department has several conversation groups, in various languages, organized and/or led by graduate students in the department. These include the following:

Cafezinho 

(Description by Bruna Kalil Othero) 

Cafezinho has been a tremendous success! I am happy and honored by the incredible attendance, massive crowds, and interest. We organized special editions like Carnaval with DIY masks and samba workshops. Open mic sessions allowed participants to share poems and songs. We hosted a potluck to celebrate Brazil's 200 years of independence and a special Cafezinho for the centenary of Modern Art Week. Attendees enjoyed Brazilian snacks made by Filipe Vieira and me, and a performance by Dina Alves. We also celebrated the World Cup, African independence days, International Women’s Day, and ended with a funny trivia session on Brazilian history. It has been a successful year promoting Portuguese language and culture in a relaxed learning environment!  

Cafè Català

(Description by Ari Plymale) 

This year has been an exciting one for Cafè Català! This past semester, the department’s Catalan conversation table made the decision to move from our former meeting place at the Eskenazi Museum Café to the Department of Spanish and Portuguese, allowing us to expand our reach. This year’s participants included (among others) native speakers of Catalan dialects like Valencian, former and current students of C105, and graduate students in Spanish and Portuguese who, despite not having studied the language previously, were nevertheless excited to stop by and learn a bit of Catalan.  

Café Hispano 

(Description by Erika Sosa) 

Café Hispano is an open space on campus where everyone is welcome to come and make use of their Spanish skills while making new friends interested in Hispanic cultures. Last academic year, enthusiasts appeared to talk about a broad range of contemporary and cultural topics, including globalization, cultural differences, and inclusion. We also had our lotería times as well as trivia games. The Day of the Dead was our coolest gathering since participants had the opportunity to learn the importance of this tradition in Mexican culture. At the end of the academic year, we celebrated with a Fiesta Mexicana! I would like to recognize and thank Andreina Colina, Santiago Arróniz, Rebeca Company Almagro, and Anthony Brandi for their support throughout this experience.