A few bad words in Spanish

Thursday, July 26, 2012

Yeah, I knew that title would get your attention...

Our teacher occasionally feels the need to caution us on the use of certain words that may seem harmless if looked up in the dictionary, but can be quite dirty if combined, whether innocently or not, with other words.

Take, for example, the word for "to pick up."  No, I'm not going to give you the Spanish translation. However, it means to pick up something from the floor, the table, etc. In Spanish it is not synonymous with the idea of picking someone up, like giving them a ride somewhere. That word is a whole different word. But in COSTA RICA if you use that first word I told you about to say you are going to pick up Laura (to take her somewhere), you have just dropped the F* bomb and Laura's mother is not going to be very happy with what you are planning to do with Laura!

I also learned how to say the same thing in Mexico using a distinctly Mexican slang word. It's a good thing to know how to be vulgar in two different countries. You never know when that might come in handy.  NOT!  Actually, it is a good thing that he warned us. I certainly don't want to do something like drop the F* word at church or something.

Finally, I learned the crude way to say what results when someone passes gas. I don't like the word in English, so I'm certainly not going to repeat it in Spanish. Our teacher, Oscar, told us that part of the word for someone who is pedantic contains this particular word, so be careful when you are saying that someone is pedantic.

Along that same theme: I had black beans and rice with my breakfast, black beans and rice with fried plaintains and some vegetable mix for lunch, and yes! You guess it: more beans for dinner. This time it was garbanzo beans mixed with yucca, chicken legs, and a yam-like potato. It was actually very good, but I do think I am going to blow up if I eat any more beans this week!

Weather report: We actually had a sunny day with very few clouds all day. I'm told that it is very rare at this time of the year and has the farmers worried about their crops. With the clear skies, I was able to get a good look at the mountains all around us. We are definitely in a valley. The mountains are awesome. I will try to get some pictures of them soon.

Tomorrow's blog entry : after classes tomorrow I'm going to the town center to check out the mercado de artesanias (traditional handicrafts market.)