Day 100: Why Is Our Street Dug Up?
At a paleterĂa (a popsicle shop) in Villahermosa, the owner, Don FermĂn (A; don is a respectful title), serves Nicolás (B), a boy from the neighborhood.
How to study this lesson 3 steps
- Read the situation under the title. It says who is talking and how they know each other, which decides how politely they speak.
- 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.
- 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
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A
¿De qué la vas a querer hoy, Nicolás? ¿De mango con chile, como siempre?
What flavor would you like today, Nicolás? Mango with chili, as usual?
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B
De mango, don FermĂn. ÂżY por quĂ© levantaron toda la calle, si ya casi no se puede ni pasar?
Mango, Don FermĂn. And why have they dug up the whole street, when you can hardly even get through?
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A
Están cambiando el drenaje: cada temporada de lluvias esta calle se inunda, porque los tubos viejos ya no dan abasto.
They're replacing the drains: this street floods every rainy season, because the old pipes can't handle it anymore.
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B
ÂżComo el año pasado, cuando el agua llegĂł hasta la puerta de su paleterĂa?
Like last year, when the water came right up to the door of your store?
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A
Exacto. Por eso el ayuntamiento está poniendo tubos más anchos, que van a llevar la lluvia hasta el cárcamo.
Exactly. That's why the city is putting in wider pipes, which will carry the rainwater to the cárcamo.
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B
¿Y qué es un cárcamo? Suena a nombre de monstruo.
And what's a cárcamo? It sounds like a monster's name.
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A
Es una estaciĂłn con bombas enormes que echan el agua al rĂo, es decir, un monstruo que se traga la lluvia.
It's a station with huge pumps that push the water out into the river; in other words, a monster that swallows the rain.
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B
¿Y después siguen con mi cancha? Ahà siempre se hace un lagote y no podemos jugar fut.
And is my soccer field next? A massive lake always forms there and we can't play.
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A
De hecho, sĂ: tambiĂ©n le van a meter drenaje. Terminadas las obras, ya no se encharca, y podrán jugar hasta en plenas lluvias.
As a matter of fact, yes: they're putting drains in there too. Once the work's finished, it won't flood anymore, and you'll be able to play even in the middle of the rains.
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