Hola a todos.
Voy voy a contarles un poco sobre como yo aprendí el español. He grabado un audio y espero que les guste. Como todo ejercicio auditivo no voy a incluir la transcripción entonces ¡agucen el oído!
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I’ve already written a bit about Perla some time ago and in this post I’m going to tell you guys a very interesting experience.
Know when you dream of meeting your idol for so many years then one day, boom! you finally do it! That’s what happened to me. I’ve always been a Perla’s fan because I grew up listening to her songs here in Brazil and on September 27 she came to perform in my city.
I have this student whose uncle organizes the fair where she was going to perform and he got his uncle to arrange a meeting where I could chat a bit with her.
Perla is Paraguayan and was born in the city of Caacupé. She used to have very long, straight black hair and her huge vocal range always fascinated me. She has recorded over 50 albums and has lived in Brazil for 40 years. She has also performed for presidents, ministers, kings and queens all over the world.
Her songs are mostly in Portuguese, Spanish and Guarani, and are widely known in Brazil.
Here’s one of Paraguay’s most traditional religious songs sung by Perla, Virgencita de Caacupé.
¡Nos vemos prontito!
Coger has many meanings in Spanish. Check them out.
1. Esta fecha me coge muy mal. (This date is not good for me.)
2. Cógete fuerte cuando te montes en la moto. (Hold tight when you get on the motorcycle.)
3. Cójanme sitio pues voy a llegar más tarde. (Save me a seat because I’m going to arrive later.)
4. Ella nunca coge mis chistes. (She never gets my jokes.)
5. Siempre coge el mismo hotel cuando viaja de vacaciones. (She always chooses the same hotel when she travels on vacation.)
6. Si quieres ahorrar camino, coge ese atajo. (If you want to get there faster, take this shortcut.)
7. Creo que he cogido la gripe, me siento fatal. (I think I’ve gotten the flu, I feel terrible.)
8. No creo que hayas cogido mi idea. (I don’t think you understood mi idea.)
9. El sofá no coge en el ascensor. (The couch doesn’t fit in the elevator.)
10. Me dijo que cogiera mis cosas y me fuera. (He told me to get my stuff and leave.)
Nos vemos prontito.
Let’s learn some very useful and colloquial idioms.
1. no poder pegar ojo – not be able to sleep a wink
2. dormir a pierna suelta – to have a good night’s sleep
Mi mujer no pudo pegar ojo a causa del ruido, pero yo dormí toda la noche a pierna suelta. (My wife couldn’t sleep a wink because of the noise, but I had a good night’s sleep.)
3. a las tantas – late at night
Todos los días llega a casa a las tantas. (He gets home late at night every day.)
4. andarse con rodeos – beat around the bush
No te andes con rodeos, dime la verdad. (Don’t beat around the bush, tell me the truth.)
5. ver las estrellas – to be in extreme pain
Sentí tanto dolor cuando me caí que vi las estrellas. (I was in extreme pain when I fell.)
6. tomarle el pelo a alguien – to pull someone’s leg
No te creas lo que te está diciendo, te está tomando el pelo. (Don’t believe what he’s saying, he’s pulling your leg.)
7. traer a alguien de cabeza – to drive someone crazy, to make someone worried
Hace un mes que ese asunto me trae de cabeza. No sé qué hacer. (I’ve been worried about this matter for a month. I don’t know what to do.)
8. estar entre Pinto y Valdemoro – not be able to make up your mind
No sabe si se va a Estados Unidos o a Inglaterra para estudiar inglés. Está entre Pinto y Valdemoro. (He doesn’t know whether to go to the US or England to study English. He can’t make up his mind.)
Nos vemos prontito.
Spanish uses a lot of diminutives and the Real Academia Española has some rules to form them; check them out.
1. One-syllable words
a) ending in a vowel: pie (foot) – -ececito, -ececillo, -ececico, -ecezuelo: piececito.
b) ending in a consonant or y: rey (king) – -ecito, -ecillo, -ecico, -ezuelo, -achuelo, -ichuelo: reyecito.
2. Two-syllable words
a) ending in e, ia, ua, io, ei, ie, ue (in the first syllable): calle (street), reina (queen) – -ecito, -ecillo, -ecico, -ezuelo, -achuelo, -ichuelo: callecita, reinecita
b) ending in n and r: joven (youngster), amor (love) – -cito, -cillo, -cico, -zuelo : jovencito, amorcito
3. Three or more syllables
a) ending in n or r: imagen (image), comedor (dining room) – -cito, -cillo, -cico, -zuelo : imagencita, comedorcito
b) any other ending: animal - -ito, -illo, -ico, -uelo: animalito
These are general rules, but there are plenty of exceptions, so listen carefully for them.
