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🇪🇸 Spanish · Fluency Level 3

PART 2 · LESSON 12 OF 30 · 40 MINUTES

Where It All Began

It's Saturday, March 16th, seven in the morning, in Mexico City. After a night flight from Madrid, Sarah rings the bell of Casa Carmen, the hostel where she arrived with a backpack and no Spanish, and Diego opens the door as he did then. Encarna meets Dona Carmen, Valeria brings Isabel, and that night, on the roof, Sarah tells Encarna what she couldn't say the first time. Tell your own story, then and now - this is where it all began, when I arrived I couldn't even say hello, it was a half-truth - introduce someone politely, and hear two grandmothers settle who had Sarah first.

Audio instruction: English

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THE STORY

It's Saturday, March 16th, 2030, seven in the morning, in Mexico City. Sarah, Julian and Encarna took a night flight from Madrid, and Encarna slept the whole way, rosary in hand. Now Sarah rings the bell of Casa Carmen, the small hostel where she arrived in August 2025 with a backpack and not a word of Spanish, and the same young man opens the door. Inside, Dona Carmen meets Encarna, the two women who took Sarah in, and Valeria comes with Isabel, just two. That night, on the hostel roof, Sarah tells Encarna what she couldn't say the first time. This is the conversation you'll be able to say by the end of the lesson.

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Words and phrases

The lesson is for your ears. Open this afterwards, to see what you learned.
Aquí empezó todo.ah-KEE ehm-peh-SOH TOH-dohThis is where it all began.
Cuando llegué, no sabía decir ni hola.KWAHN-doh yeh-GEH noh sah-BEE-ah deh-SEER nee OH-lahWhen I arrived, I couldn't even say hello.
Le presento a Encarna.leh preh-SEHN-toh ah ehn-KAHR-nahMay I introduce Encarna. Politely.
Sarah habla mucho de usted.SAH-rah AH-blah MOO-choh deh oos-TEHDSarah talks about you a lot. Politely.
Nada de usted.NAH-dah deh oos-TEHDNone of that formality.
De tú, que ya somos familia.deh TOO keh yah SOH-mohs fah-MEE-lee-ahLet's be friendly. We're family now.
Que conste.keh KOHNS-tehFor the record.
Yo la tuve primero.yoh lah TOO-beh pree-MEH-rohI had her first.
Pero me la quedé yo.PEH-roh meh lah keh-DEH yohBut I kept her.
aquella nocheah-KEH-yah NOH-chehthat night, long ago

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