Day 100 of 135

Day 100: Huasteca Words Over Zacahuil

At a neighbors' breakfast in Ciudad Valles, in the Huasteca region of San Luis PotosĂ­, Ulises (A), who has just moved there from Mexico City, sits beside his neighbor Don TobĂ­as (B), who was born there (don is a title of respect).

How to study this lesson 3 steps
  1. Read the situation under the title. It says who is talking and how they know each other, which decides how politely they speak.
  2. Read the dialogue line by line with its translation, until every line makes sense. Point at (or tap) a Spanish word to see what it means.
  3. Spend at least 30 minutes listening to native Spanish, for example from the Resources page. It doesn't matter if you don't understand it yet.

Dialogue

Audio recordings are on the way. For now, each lesson is the dialogue with its English translation.

Keys: E hide English · ← → previous / next day · point at a word to see its meaning

  1. A

    Don TobĂ­as, he de confesarle que cuando dijo “zacahuil”, pensĂ© que era un pĂĄjaro. ÂĄY es un tamal del tamaño de una canoa!

    Don Tobías, I must confess that when you said “zacahuil,” I thought it was a bird. And it's a tamal the size of a canoe!

  2. B

    Ha de saber que se cuece toda la noche en horno de leña, envuelto en hoja de plåtano, y da para cincuenta cristianos.

    You should know it cooks all night in a wood-fired oven, wrapped in banana leaves, and feeds fifty souls.

  3. A

    Con razĂłn la señora del puesto se rio cuando le pedĂ­ “un zacahuil para llevar”. Ha de haber pensado que traĂ­a camioneta.

    No wonder the lady at the stall laughed when I asked for “a zacahuil to go.” She must have thought I'd brought a truck.

  4. B

    Aquí se pide por plato o por kilo, vecino. ¿Y qué otra palabra le ha costado trabajo?

    Here you order it by the plate or by the kilo, neighbor. And what other word has given you trouble?

  5. A

    El huapango del såbado. Yo, de buen chilango, pensé en el Huapango de Moncayo y ya tenía planchada la corbata para el concierto.

    Saturday's huapango. Being a true chilango, I thought of Moncayo's Huapango, and I already had my tie ironed for the concert.

  6. B

    ÂżCorbata, con este calor? Un huapango es fiesta: violĂ­n, jarana y huapanguera, falsete, y la gente zapateando en la tarima.

    A tie, in this heat? A huapango is a party: a violin, a jarana and a huapanguera, falsetto singing, and people stamping their feet on the wooden platform.

  7. A

    Y yo que creía que la Huasteca era puras cascadas para fotos. Hasta “Xantolo” lo confundí con un santo.

    And there was I thinking the Huasteca was just waterfalls for photos. I even took “Xantolo” for a saint.

  8. B

    Pues no anduvo tan perdido: Xantolo viene de “Sanctorum”, Todos los Santos, y así le decimos aquí al Día de Muertos.

    Well, you weren't that far off: Xantolo comes from “Sanctorum,” All Saints, and that's what we call the Day of the Dead here.

  9. A

    He de reconocer que llegué creyendo que aquí se hablaba el mismo español que en la capital, nomås con mås calor.

    I must admit I arrived thinking people spoke the same Spanish here as in the capital, just with more heat.

  10. B

    El mismo, pero con otras costumbres y otros sabores. Ándele, sírvase mås, que el såbado le toca zapatear hasta la madrugada.

    The same one, but with other customs and other flavors. Go on, have some more, because on Saturday you'll be dancing till dawn.

  11. A

    Ahí estaré, pero he de advertirle que zapateando soy peor que pidiendo zacahuil.

    I'll be there, but I must warn you I'm even worse at dancing than at ordering zacahuil.

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