Lengua y Vida Diaria

How's it going?

The everyday greeting — friendlier than ¿Cómo está usted?

Informal vs. formal 'you'

Spain uses tú freely; much of Latin America keeps usted longer, especially at work.

Two verbs for 'to be'

Ser for identity (soy ingeniera), estar for states and places (estoy cansada).

Lingering at the table

Staying to talk long after the meal ends. There is no English word for it.

I hope / if only

From Arabic 'if God wills' — always followed by the subjunctive.

OK!

Spain says vale, Argentina dale, Mexico órale. One language, many flavours.