U3A Basic Spanish

We will finish Spanish classes on December 19. The last week will be our usual nibbles (contributions to the buffet will be welcome, of course). We'll have some Christmas-themed Spanish for the first hour, then f ood and drink. The ukulele group has offered to perform some carols for us. The spring term is going to be interrupted by holidays I have booked. I'm skiing twice and have a week to practise my Spanish in Tenerife. We will have nine sessions before Easter and the dates are: January 16, 23 and 30 February 13, 20 and 27 March 6, 20 and 27. Cost will be £7.50 for the spring term. The plan is to start the summer term on April 10.

Grupo Básico Español – lección diez Buenos días señores y señoras. Bienvenidos a la lección diez de la clase de español. Hoy practicaremos hablar y escuchar en español. Más tarde, aprenderemos a descubrir cosas sobre un lugar. Finalmente, tenemos una canción de un famoso poeta y cantante argentino. El ejercicio de hoy - revisión Speed dating – find out as much as you can about the other person in one minute. Things you need to ask and answer … You decide whether you want to be formal or informal, but don't mix and match. When you have answered the question, rather than posing the same question back, just say ¿y tú? or ¿y usted? 1.     Say hello – hola or buenos días . In this situation an informal hola ¿qué tal? might be best. ¿Qué tal? as in “how's it going?” in English is something of a rhetorical question. 2.     Their name – ¿cómo se llama? (usted) or ¿cómo te llamas? (tú) - you decide if you want to be formal or informal 3.     Where they

Cielito Lindo We have heard the ‘unofficial’ national anthem of Cuba – Guantanamera – this week’s song is the unofficial national anthem of Mexico which is Cielito Lindo. They sing it whenever they get the opportunity and, like Guantanamera, the tune has also been stolen by football fans. For me it has extra poignancy because I used to sing it to my granddaughter when she wouldn’t go to sleep. Cielito lindo was popularized in 1882 by  Mexican   author Quirino Mendoza y Cortés, who died in 1957. It is roughly translates as "Lovely Sweet One". The word  cielo  means "sky" or "heaven", but is also a term of endearment comparable to sweetheart or honey.  Cielito , the diminutive, can be translated as "sweetie"; l indo  means "cute", "lovely"  or "pretty". Commonly played by mariachi bands, it has been recorded by many artists in the original Spanish as well as in English and other languages. It is

Grupo Básico Español – lección nueve Special dietry requirements •         Soy vegetariano/a.¿Tiene platos vegetarianos? •         Soy vegano/a ¿Tiene platos veganos? •         Yo no como carne o no comemos carne. •         Soy alérgico/a a – I am allergic to … Use alérgico for a man and alérgica for a woman. Por ejemplo: Soy alérgico a nueces (nuts) Soy alérgico a maní (peanuts) Soy alérgico a huevos (eggs) You may want to tell the waiter that someone else has an allergy. In that case, you would say: Él/ella es alérgico/a a nueces o (por ejemplo) mi marido es alérgico a nueces. Someone may have a food intolerance (as opposed to an allergy). In that case, say: Soy intolerante a la láctosa (dairy) – I am lactose intolerant Mi marido no puede comer mariscos – my husband cannot eat seafood When you're on holiday, it's always good to try the local food. Look for la especialidad de la casa – house speciality – on the menu or ask

We enjoyed this video from the website Why Not Spanish? Click here to see it.

Grupo Básico Español – lección ocho Buenos días señores y señoras. Bienvenidos a la lección ocho de la clase de español básico. Hoy, la fecha es siete de noviembre y sé que tenemos una cumpleañera. ¿Quién cumple años hoy? Hoy vamos a ir a un restaurante dónde nadie habla inglés. Vamos a aprender a pedir comida en un restaurante español. Pero primero tenemos que revisar nuestra tarea y también Veronica y Polly nos dirán lo que han estado haciendo recientemente. For the rest of the lesson, we will be learning how to survive in a Spanish restaurant. Verbs: Comer – to eat Cenar – to dine Beber – to drink Querer – to want Gustar – to like Tomar – to take Tener – to have Servir – to serve Desear – to wish Comidas: El desayuno - breakfast El almuerzo - lunch La cena - dinner Or should we just grab a sandwich? Sandwich is: una bocadillo o un emparedado . No, vamos a comer la cena a un restaurante Booking a table Es