Visual Link Spanish(TM) Newsletter - Volume 6 Issue 9

Current # of Subscribers: 157,138

This issue:
1. Testimonial
2. Weekly Spanish Lesson - “Sentence Building”
3. Words of the Week
4. Ask Dave Section - “Le on Communication Section”
5. Culture Lesson - “Fun Spanish Words!”
6. Responses to Past Newsletters

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Visual Link Spanish(TM) Testimonial –
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Dave,

I think everything is just wonderful and very helpful. The best
Spanish program I’ve used. My daughter and I go to Nicaragua in
February and are trying to be prepared!

Thanks!

Janine Iversen

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Weekly Spanish Lesson—Sentence Building
=========================================

This week’s lesson comes from the complete Visual Link Spanish(TM)
course. Click below for a fun, interactive lesson on Sentence
Building.

To check it out, click here:
http://www.spanishprograms.com/free_vocabulary.htm

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Words of the Week
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Taken from our complete CD-ROM course —–

Monday / I need / (Yo) Necesito
Tuesday / You (formal) need / (Usted) Necesita
Wednesday / He needs / (Él) Necesita
Thursday / She needs / ((Ella) Necesita
Friday / to take a taxi / tomar un taxi
Saturday / to the bank / al banco
Sunday / to work / al trabajo

Click Here to login and access your free membership and lessons.
http://www.spanishprograms.com/login.phtml

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The Official “Ask Dave” Section —–
=====================================

Question

SECTION 6 COMMUNICATION:

IN THIS SECTION WE ARE TAUGHT TO ADD “LE” AT THE END OF THE VERBS
DEJAR, DECIR, HABLAR, LLAMAR, PREGUNTAR. MY QUESTION IS WOULD THIS
PRINCIPAL APPLY TO ALL VERBS THAT WOULD BE SHOWING ACTION TO A
SPECIFIC PERSON SUCH AS IF YOU WERE TO SEND A BOOK TO SOMEONE WOULD
YOU ADD THE “LE” TO MANDAR? (ME GUSTARIA MANDARLE UN LIBRO, A
EL.)????? OR IS ADDING THE “LE” RESTRICTED ONLY TO THE WORDS
PRESENTED IN THE LESSON?

THANK YOU FOR YOUR HELP AND I AM REALLY BENEFITTING FROM THIS COURSE
AS WELL AS THE FAMILY AND FRIENDS WHO HAVE GOTTEN THE COURSE.

REBECCA

Answer

You are correct. You do add the “le” with verbs that show action to a
person.
Examples:

Debes darle la llave a él - You ought to give the key to him
Quiero comparle un libro a ella - I want to buy her a book
No necesitas ofrecerle nada a ella - You don’t need to offer anything
to her

Thanks,

Dave

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Culture —– Fun Spanish Words!
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In Spanish there are many great words that I really enjoy and get a
kick out of. Today I’ll share some of these with you as well as talk
a little about culture.

Some of my favorite words have to do with cars. These words may vary
region to region; for example, the word for “horn” in one country is
“cláxon”, and in another country it is “bocina”. Most core Spanish
words are the same country to country but certain specialized words
vary in different regions.

Now we’ll move on to some of the fun words. The word for umbrella in
Spanish is “paraguas” which literally means “it stops waters”. The
word for a car “windshield” is “parabrisas”, which literally
translated means “it stops breezes”. The word for “bumper” is
“parachoques”, which means “it stops crashes”. And, the word for a
heavy-duty grill in the front of a car is called “mataperros” which
means “dog killer”.

Now of course, for the record, we are a very animal-friendly website
and newsletter, and I wouldn’t have created the word “mataperros” for
“grill” if I had invented Spanish (by way of information,
“mataperros” is the name for “grill” in some regions as well.) I
believe that Latin-Americans may have called it “mataperros” because
there is an abundance of dogs in many Latin American countries –
especially in many poor pueblos where they seem to be everywhere.
Some areas have a kind of dog that is especially strange. It is a
gray dog that is almost bald with just a few hairs on its head. Where
I am from, I had never seen a dog of that breed before going to Latin
America, and especially not hundreds of them in the same city. We’ll
just say that it is the kind of dog I would not choose to own myself.

Now, I must dispel a myth. In some parts of Asia people eat dogs but
not in Latin America. Even though there are hundreds of dogs there,
they still don’t eat them — at least in all the Latin countries I
have ever lived in or visited. They do, however, eat guinea pigs
which are pets in the U.S., but that is a different topic.

As we are talking about food, there is a fun word that I really like
in Spanish that people use commonly. It is called “me ostiga” and it
means “I’ve eaten so much of that type of food that I am really tired
of it”. There is a place to use and not to use this word. Remember,
as I have mentioned in past newsletters, if someone in Latin America
invites you to dinner, if you don’t eat everything or are not very
complimentary and thankful for the food, they can become offended. In
other words, don’t ever use the phrase “me ostiga” with the hostess
that invited you over to eat. The proper place to use this phrase
would be after the meal when you are talking to a friend after you
are out of earshot from the hostess.

Moral of the Story: 1. Spanish words can be fun to learn as long as
you use them in the right setting. 2. Don’t plan on eating dog in
Latin America, but, be prepared to meet lots of dogs if you visit
smaller pueblos. 3. Remember to eat all of your food when eating
dinner with the native speakers and compliment the hostess. 4. You
may eat guinea pig in some countries, but it isn’t very common so I
wouldn’t worry too much.

Sneak peek at next week: “How to instantly learn hundreds of Spanish
words.”

¡Hasta luego! (”Until later”)

David S. Clark — President / Director
Visual Link Spanish(TM)
Fun, Interactive Spanish Courses
http://www.spanishprograms.com
dave_c@spanishprograms.com

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Responses to Past Newsletters
=============================

Response #1

Hi Dave,

Here’s another situation where “Con permiso” is used. I read it in
one of the many books that I have about Costa Rica. I had a new
ex-pat friend offer to show me his house. When he opened his front
door, his Tica wife of thirty years was standing just inside and he
introduced me. Before I entered the house, I asked her, “Con
permiso?” Her face lit up and she brought me inside with much grace
and warmth. Such a simple phrase elicited a response that made me
feel like an old family friend. I hope to make many friends in Costa
Rica and I intend to ask each one “Con permiso” before I enter their
homes.

Thanks for all your great info,

Frank Muschal

Response #2 — Response to our newsletter on purchasing land in
Mexico

There is a lot of misinformation about owning property in Mexico
including leases, etc. You can legally own property in Mexico and
this is how it works. Under the Mexican constitution there are three
areas for property ownership: 100 km. from the borders, 50 kilometers
from the ocean shores and all other areas. In the border and ocean
areas only a Mexican national can own property in a fee simple title.
Foreign nationals may own property outside of the restricted zones
just as a national can. In the restricted zones, foreigners own
property through a bank trust. The sole purpose of the trust is to
own and manage the property on behalf of the foreigner. This gives
the beneficiary of the trust all of the rights, privileges and
protection of property ownership as a Mexican citizen has. The trust
is initially for 50 years and is renewed upon request in year 49.
After 100 years a new trust must be formed. There are a lot more
wrinkles but for people like myself who just want a condo or home in
Mexico, these are the rules.

For more information on property ownership in Mexico and in the Los
Cabos area of the Baja Peninsula, feel fee to email me at
glenn@puertoloscabos.com or Ava Ferguson at ava@dreamhomesofcabo.com.
Mexico is a wonderful place to live. Come down and practice your
Spanish.

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