Style of Bingo Can Help You Learn Spanish
Don't be shocked when you play your first game of Mexican Loteria and find a topless mermaid on your game card. You might also have a cadaver or a very politically incorrect black man with top hat and cane!Growing up as kids, we always giggled of our Loteria card had 'La Sirena' - the topless mermaid. Many of the companies that make the game still depict the character with her breasts showing, while others have made alterations to her mermaid outfit and covered up most of her voluptuous body.
You couldn't grow up in a Mexican-American home without playing Loteria sometime in your life. Just like its American counterpart bingo - the idea behind Loteria is to fill your playing card with the characters that have been called out.
We grew up calling the game Chalupa because there is a fair maiden paddling a canoe filled with flowers whose character is called 'La Chalupa."
But others call it Loteria or Mexican Bingo.
Just like bingo, someone gets to call out the names of the characters on the cards instead of numbers. If you don't know how to speak Spanish, this is the perfect opportunity to start practicing.
And like bingo, the game usually includes a jackpot where each player puts in a few coins for every card they play.
You can start small and play for pennies or nickels, but quarters and dollars are much more fun.
You can play a full card or a straight diagonal, horizontal or vertical line. The person that fills their card first wins the jackpot.
Lots of crafts people folks are using the games and deck of cards to create Mexican folk art, Nichos, altars and lots of other items.
I've made earrings, light switch covers, birdhouses, bracelets and thousands of Christmas ornaments with the game cards.
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