Understanding Spanish
 

Although we've been here a few months now, our Spanish isn't great, especially when people talk really fast, or when you try to understand the real colloquial Spanish they talk around here where they knock the 's' off of the end of every plural and join it to the beginning of the next word...!

Today, there was a knock at the door. Or rather, it was more of a hammer than a knock. We peered out and were greeted with our next door neighbour and an old lady, both extremely flustered, both rattling off Spanish at 150 miles an hour. After about 30 seconds without pausing for breath, they both stopped dead and looked at us expecting an answer...

There was a pause as Mrs Twyntub and I exchanged a horrified glance, both thinking "what the hell are they going on about?". :confused:

Then our six year old daughter looked up and calmly said:
"This lady has lost her dog. Its a puppy and it's name is ____, it's black - it's black all over, and it's quite small. They want to know if we've seen it. She lives in the village, opposite the medical centre. Please can we go and look for the dog? Can we? Please?"

:blink::blink:

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

Well done to your little girl, you must be extremely proud of her mastery of the language. But, at the same time it makes you feel really sick that she can understand so quickly and clearly as this makes you feel even worse about your lack of language skills. I think that when people are intense about something it is hard to understand them as they string the words together more than usual so even more power to your daughter for her translation.

Rosemary

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

Forgot to add that if you even feel that your daughter could benefit from being fostered out I know a very good couple who would love to take her in. They are a little odd but their heart is in the right place and they would promise not to use her as slave labour too often, honest.

Rosemary

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

How absolutely wonderful:thumbsup:

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OMG :blink: Amazing!!! Well done to your little girl :thumbsup:

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

It makes you so proud - although as you say, one feels a little silly, especially when the neighbours realise and continue the conversation not with ourselves but with our daughter!! :rofl:

It just doesn't matter how hard we try, it's almost impossible to keep up with high-speed conversational Spanish. Yet to see our daughter today, she didn't break sweat - it's like she's always lived here!!! Absolutely incredible! :) :)

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

It makes me feel so stupid!
It was one of my main aims when I came here to learn the language quickly, but it hasn't happened that way. :(

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

What a darling :)..

Don't despair, it just takes a little longer to learn a new language when you are older, but you'll get there too..

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

Yeah..........

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

I'm looking forward to meeting her when we meet up next weekend, she can order for us in the cafe :thumbsup:

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

Spain is a great leveller!
At the end of the day it doesn't matter who you were, what you did, or what success you may achieved back in the UK......all that matters is what you can do right now.
And I'll hazard a guess that the overwhelming majority of people who go back are the ones who were unable to reach a reasonable level of competence in the language.
You can swing it to some degree living on the Costas....but out here you're going to have serious problems without a degree of communication skills.

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

I thought we could only write in English on this forum :confused:

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

That's a nice piece of Spanish. The top one appears to be a small commentary on genetics, and the bottom one is conflict between war and viniculture.

I can't get the middle one because I'm having trouble with the adjectives. An ethical cat?

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

Greetings from 20 miles down the A10.

I think it's just a nonsense rhyme like 'Jabberwocky'.

My ex-wife used to have trouble with her 'Rs' as well. Usually through trying to fit it into size 12 jeans.

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

That's a bit harsh! :ohmy:

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

PMSL:rofl::rofl::rofl: I have trouble with my Rs as well:eek:

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

True. I suspect that P's response would have been "La madre que lo parió"

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

I've got the occaisional free hour ................discounts for mods;)

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

Hi everybody,
I'm from Spain and i just wanted to say that if you need some kind of help with your Spanish, you can ask me:)

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

I think I have a mandarin tree that is a marisol. Or is it a clem?

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

Hello Marisol, thank you for posting outside of Esuri, it would be nice if a few more did it, tell them we don`t bite. :D :thumbup::thumbup:

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

Sorry Bil,
I know how to speak Spanish but i can't understand hardly anything of English, for instance, what does your post mean?:o

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

Thanks jdr, i will ;)

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

I've just been to the dentist. She could speak a little English and I can speak a little Spanish .......... so I still have all my teeth, and I think she put empaste in the right place :D

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

He says he has a mandarina tree that is called Marisol like your name.

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

so, i'd better go to a Spanish dentist if i want to keep all my teeth :rofl::rofl:

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I thought the translation was not literal, i mean, i thought it was an idiom or something like that, sorry :(

Yes, my name is very usual in beach "chiringuitos" because it is composed of two words "sea" and "sun" in Spanish "mar" y "sol". And is usual in neighborhood hairdressers also :)

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

Yes, you really did pick a good name to use :thumbup:

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

Hi Marisol,

Great to see you here in Siesta time. One piece of advice, don't take anything anyone says too seriously.

I think it may help tremendously with your vernacular English. :D

Chris

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

I'm hoping the fruit will be as tasty as the 'ortaniques'. They are wonderful.

Un arbol con frutas de la puta madre!

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

I was quite proud of myself actually, but the receptionist kept laughing at me

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

Are you aware of the U3A group in your area. They run Spanish sessions for all levels, as well as photography and other hobbies.

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

Didn't work out so well in the Barbers though! :lol:

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Don't worry Marisol, I'm English and I don't have a clue what he is on about.


He is one of Mitzy's friends so he could well be another hippy or something!

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

It sounds like most of you have problems understanding spoken Spanish, which is absolutely normal... speaking is not like writing, grammar is not "respected" and words are joined together (you do the same when you speak English, don't you?).

I got used to spoken English listening bbc-radio 4. You can do the same with Spanish. It is free, and you can do near everything with the radio on. Even when you don't pay attention or you understand bugger all, you are getting used to the sounds and the intonation patterns. The most difficult are the first 3 months, when you don't understand enough to make any sense.

But there will be a moment when you understand 30 or 40% what is said, that is enough to follow conversations in my experience. Sometimes you get everything wrong, but still you are interested. From that moment on, the improvement is exponential. You have to do the big effort the first 3 months. I had bad headaches at night here in London at the beginning, when the only Spanish I could speak was by telephone, but it worths it.

Please don't buy the idea that you cannot learn because you are too old... It is more difficult, yes, but it is absolutely possible. And also consider this: People who learn a new skill later in life (specially a complex skill like a new language) are much less prone to develope Alzheimer and other age-mental related issues. So...choose a nice radio program, follow it every day, and remember to thank me next year.

And never be embarrased to speak bad Spanish. People respects anybody who actually is taking the effort to speak your own language, and they will feel happy to help, to be useful. Well, most of Spanish people, I guess. Get out of your "confort zone", go to the bar on your own, chat with the old man who is having a wine, he has the time, and you will make his day. I do that all the time in London, and I always have a nice time, just don't mention Manuel:rofl:

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

That's it then I will keep on trying:D

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They're far to clever for the likes of me

:p

Thats right ..... I can often translate written Spanish, and I prepare myself with the dictionary for when I go out to do a specific thing, but when someone speaks back to me at speed then thats when the trouble starts. :)

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

Hippy? I resemble that remark!

Understanding spoken Spanish is always harder, but to me it is like tuning your brain in, like adjusting a TV antenna. Listen to as much as you can, and bit by bit, it will start to slow down and make more sense, or at least it will seem that way as your brain speeds.

Wen I was learning Japanese, my tutor said that she was, after some time quite disheartened because she still couldn't understand English worth a damn.

Then one day as she was going out the door, she realise the radio was on, and that she could actually understand what was being said.

One huge problem for a lot of English people in Spain is that they live in an English 'sea' as it were. Because of this they lack adequate exposure to Spanish. This handicaps their understanding of the language, which isolates them further from the Spanish language. and so on, and so on.

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

Same here Mitzy, I can read posters, instructions, adverts, andthing I can study at some leisure, BUT, when they speak.. it's a different matter..

Re: Understanding Spanish
 

Exactly! For the life of me I can´t fathom out why some Brits pay to have lessons when all the resources needed are freely available on the Internet.
And as soon as they step outside their door....everything around them is one big Spanish lesson.

If people made it fun rather than an obstacle then they'd get somewhere. Every day I have loads of fun with both languages....I go into the supermarket and start shouting something to the girls like "Be careful this place is full of Guiris!" The staff are struggling not to burst out laughing and the Brits just look bewildered. :lol:
Then in my mate Jose Luis's pharmacy (he speaks English) I'll walk in and see Brits I don't know there and start it off in English...."hurry up and serve me you lazy Dago"....and the Brits are flabbergasted. :lol:
But I also get caught myself sometimes, usually by Alex in the Ferosan. He can speak a little bit of English....but won't do it cos so many Brits won't even try. So if there's Brits there and I walk in he directs them to me and tells them I'm English....which he knows really pisses me off! So I get stuck with these humanoids while Alex and the other guys are sticking their heads round the aisles and pointing and laughing at me. :lol:

So my point is....relax, chill out, have fun.....don´t make it a formal job....make it fun!