April 2010
2 posts
¡Ostras!
colloquially means WOW! but literally means OYSTERS! In conversation, it doesn’t really translate. Try it if you don’t believe me (Pilar usually has a hang-loose-type hand gesture accompany the expression, held closer to the chin and shaken in a rapid manner).
Pilars Buys Me Chocolate Ice Cream, Discovers I Do...
When you’re nervous… ¡CHOCOLATE!
or when you’re premenstrual… ¡CHOCOLATE!
or when you’re waiting for a boy to call… ¡CHOCOLATE!
and after you hang up… ¡CHOCOLATE!
and sometimes during the conversation… ¡CHOCOLATE!
March 2010
11 posts
Brainibalism
Speaking Spanish all the time has made me so much more aware of my brain. If I don’t get much sleep or am up really early, things grind through at a slower speed.
Last Night at Dinner
Pilar: ¿Cómo se dice novio en inglés?
Ali: Boyfriend.
Pilar: B-OY. Fre-hend. Chico amigo. Sí. Y, también, ¿cómo se dice marido en inglés?
Ali: Husband.
Pilar: Huz-BANd. Sí. Y… ¿cómo se dice amante en inglés?
Ali: Lover?!?
Pilar: Luh-VUR. Sí.
Y… ¿cómo se dice ¿quieres ser mi amante? en inglés?
Ali: Do you want to be my lover?!?
Pilar: Do YOO… wahnt to bee… mai...
As Pilar flipped through the channels, she saw an...
“The Oscars are this weekend!” she said, melting at the mere thought of George Clooney. “I wasn’t nominated this year.”
Psychoanalysis
Last night, Pilar told me she was only having vegetable soup because she can’t get fat due to her nephew’s upcoming wedding in September.
She served me a plate of french fries and 10 rings of greasy calamari.
Street Sounds
Today I woke up to the sounds of drums and horns and children screaming. March 3rd is a holiday in Gracia in which people ride through the streets and make noise and toss candy to anyone who wants it. Kind of like trick-or-treating for the lazy— or masochistic (all hard candy).
It’s better than waking up to the clanking of metals, which is my normal routine. Pilar once explained the...
How to Have the Best Day Ever in Cordoba
Cordoba is exactly how you picture Europe to be. Narrow, cobble stone streets, white-washed buildings with flowers and laundry hanging off the balconies and huge, humbling pieces of history around every corner. While the town is small, there’s so much to enjoy… if you do it right.
1. Stay in Hotel Maimonides. Not only is the lobby done up to match the Great Mosque of Cordoba, but...
Summer of '69
Living abroad can be a strange experience because the burning need to get the most out of “the best time of your life” (as the adults call it) can leave one feeling unfulfilled and needlessly greedy.
February 2010
77 posts
Reasons Why Turning 21 In Europe Really Isn´t That...
1. You´re in Europe
2. Your 20-year-old friends have no trouble getting into bars and clubs
3. You´re in Europe
4. The weather is warm enough to sit outside
5. Spanish conversation is returned in Spanish
6. The sangria is better here (and so is McDonald´s at 4am)
7. You´re in Europe
8. If you´ve got good friends, they´ll celebrate like it´s a big deal anyways
Soul Mate in Spanish
is “media naranja.”
