This post is in response to those who've been asking if my Spanish (commonly referred to as Castellano in these parts - there you go, that's one thing I've learned) is improving. The answer is...possibly. I think yes, but not as quickly as I'd like it to. ¨Poco a poco¨(little by little) they keep telling me. And little by little the desire to punch the next person that says ¨poco a poco¨is growing within me.
Some people manage to speak slowly for me and others don't. Sergio, my little brother, has a speech impediment, so that's extra confusing. His family laughs about the fact that when trying to say ´el carbon´ (a place that sells fried chicken) he says ´el cabron´ (a gay man). I've clearly been spending too much time with him because the other day I walked up to a moto driver and said ´el cabron, por favor´ much to the amusement of Sergio who ended up correcting me!
I may not be able to speak fluent Castellano before I leave but I can share with you some interesting jergas (slang) I've picked up:
- A Peruvian guy doesn't have a girlfriend, he has: una jerma (I think this is only really used between men and may not be complimentary) or una gorda (means 'fat' and is a term of endearment that is perfectly acceptable to use when talking to your girlfriend)
- A Peruvian chick doesn't have a boyfriend, she has: un gordo (means 'fat' for boys), un gil or gilberto, and my personal favourite, un machete
- Another word for gay is 'brocoli'
- Peruvians don't get married, they commit 'matrisuicida'.
- 'gordo/a' and 'flaco/a' ('fat' and 'thin') are used all the time as terms of endearment and as general descriptions of people, e.g. 'He's the fat man over there'. 'Negro' and 'negra' are also used all the time for black people or anyone with darker skin than the majority. Anyone with slightly paler skin or hair than normal (this includes locals) may be referred to as 'gringo/a' (white person).
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