Tuesday, October 21, 2008

You've got great handwriting

To compliment someone on their penmanship, you can say "Tiene bonita letra".

Now, if you've been reading my blog long enough, you already know this post isn't just about complimenting someone on their handwriting.

Ever have someone try to set you up on a blind date, and when you ask "What's she like?" And the answer is, "She's got a great personality". Well, we all know what that means.

It should come as no surprise that this happens in Mexico too. So if you ask the question "¿Como es ella?", the answer just might be "Tiene bonita letra" - The equivalent of "she's got a great personality".

Using this phrase in this manner is very much a Mexicanism, and you use it when you're talking about a member of the opposite sex - sexo opuesto.

Sunday, October 12, 2008

chuparse los dedos

Remember the Colonel and his greasy and sometimes delicious chicken, and his claim that it's "Finger lickin' good"? I sure do. It's amazing how long those ridiculous advertising campaigns stay in your mind.

De todos modos (anyway), if you want to express the same sentiment in Spanish, you can say "La comida es para chuparse los dedos".

I've only had the opportunity to use this once, but I did manage to get a good laugh from my Colombian co-worker. Although this statement does remind me of the tacos I love so much...

Nice Suit

While having dinner with my amigos, somehow the topic of clothing came up, which quickly led to yet another Spanish lesson for me.

I knew the word for suit in Spanish was traje, and had never really thought much else about it. It turns out I should have asked a lot more questions. Anyway, let me share with you what I learned.

If you have on a saco y pantalones (suit jacket and pants), then you're wearing a traje completo, or traje for short. And if you've had your suit tailored it's a traje sastre.

If you don't have on your saco, then you're just wearing your camisa y corbata.

The next question that came to mind was "what about a blazer?"

While my amigos weren't surprised at the question, I was certainly surprised at the answer - blazer. Now, they did tell me that this is probably only said in Mexico. They also told me they use the word "Dockers". Apparently it's not uncommon to refer to things by their brand name the same way we do here.

Well, that's it for now. I wonder what lessons my next dinner conversation will bring?

How would you like that cooked?

There's nothing like a good steak, and it's probably a good idea to be able to tell the mesero how you'd like it cooked. It's a good thing I had my Mexican amigos to give me a little help in this department.

If you like your steak well done, then you want it bien cocido.

Like it medium well? That's tres cuartos. Medium is término medio. If you like your steak medium rare, then you could ask for it término medio pero un poco rojo.

For those of you who like it rare, you have a few options - poco cocido, casi crudo, or roja.

There are probably a few other ways to ask for that perfect steak, but hopefully this has given you a good start.

¡Buen provecho!