Before you go to The whole Spanish-speaking world: eras, customs, phrases and what is still there

Eras in a line

Before 1492 (15000 BC–1492) — For thousands of years Iberia and the Americas had separate histories.
Empire and the colonial Americas (1492–1808) — Spain governed its American lands through viceroys who represented the king: New Spain from 1535 (Mexico City) and Peru from 1542 (Lima), joined in the…
Revolutions and new nations (1808–1898) — When Napoleon imprisoned the Spanish king in 1808, towns across Spanish America formed juntas to govern in his name.
Revolution, war and dictatorship (1898–1975) — The twentieth century brought revolution to Mexico and Cuba, civil war and almost forty years of dictatorship to Spain, and long struggles over land, oil and…
Democracy and today (1975–) — Since 1990 almost every Spanish-speaking country has chosen its governments at the ballot box, though democracy has been tested by economic collapse (Argentina…

La hora latina: the elastic hour — An invitation for eight means you may arrive from eight.
The two surnames — Everybody carries two surnames, one from each parent, and nobody changes their name on marrying.
The twelve grapes — At midnight on 31 December the whole country watches one clock and eats one grape per chime.

Si a usted lo invitan a una casa a las ocho y llega a las ocho, se encontrará con el anfitrión en pantuflas. — If you are invited to a house at eight and arrive at eight, you will find your host in slippers.
El primer apellido suele venir del padre, y el segundo, de la madre. — The first surname usually comes from the father, and the second from the mother.
El 31 de diciembre se llama Nochevieja en España. — The 31st of December is called Nochevieja in Spain.

Tiwanaku on Lake Titicaca — At Tiwanaku, near Lake Titicaca, you can see the Gateway of the Sun, the stepped Akapana mound and the sunken courts.