Spanish 1/Recreation & Lifestyle

Lifestyle

 * baile (bailar) - dance
 * concierto - concert
 * fiesta - party
 * partido / juego - sporting match, game

Recreation

 * ir a ... - to be going to ...
 * ir de cámping (acampar) - to go camping
 * ir de pesca - to go fishing
 * ir de compras - to go shopping

Sports

 * jugar al básquetbol (baloncesto) - to play basketball
 * jugar al béisbol - to play baseball
 * jugar al fútbol - to play soccer
 * jugar al fútbol americano - to play football (American)
 * jugar al golf - to play golf
 * jugar al tenis - to play tennis
 * jugar al vóleibol - to play volleyball


 * sé - I know
 * sabes - you know

Emotions

 * cansado(a) - tired
 * contento(a) - happy
 * enfermo(a) - sick
 * mal - bad, badly
 * ocupado(a) - busy
 * triste - sad
 * preparado(a) - prepared
 * deprimido(a) - depressed
 * aburrido(a) - bored
 * alegre - happy, joyful
 * muy mal - very bad
 * muy bien - very well
 * confundido(a) - confused
 * enamorado(a) - in love
 * enojado(a) - angry
 * listo(a) - ready
 * nervioso(a) - nervous
 * frustrado(a) - frustrated
 * preocupado(a) - worried
 * emocionado(a) - excited
 * disgustado(a) - upset, displeased
 * regular - average, okay
 * sorprendido(a) - surprised
 * fantástico(a) - fantastic
 * excelente - excellent
 * horrible - horrible

Time phrases

 * ¿A qué hora? - At what time?
 * ¿Qué hora es, por favor? - what time is it, please?
 * a la una en punto - at one o' clock
 * a las ocho en punto - at eight o' clock
 * de la mañana - in the morning
 * de la noche - in the evening
 * de la tarde - in the afternoon
 * de la madrugada - in the late night / early morning

Words to accept or decline invitations

 * conmigo - with me
 * contigo - with you
 * puedo - I can
 * puedes - you can
 * ¡Ay! ¡Qué pena! - Oh! What a shame!
 * ¡Genial! - Great!
 * ¡Chévere! - Cool!
 * lo siento - I'm sorry
 * ¡Oye! - Hey!
 * ¡Qué buena idea! - What a good idea!

Words to want something

 * quiero - I want
 * quieres - you want
 * ¿Te gustaría? - Would you like?
 * Me gustaría - I would like
 * Tengo que ... - I have to ...

Other words

 * demasiado - too much, too many
 * entonces - then
 * un poco - a little

Jugar (to play)
In Spanish, the verb jugar means to play. Like ir, it conjugates irregularly. It is a stem changing verb, meaning that its root changes form. In the word jugar, the -ar is the conjugated part, while jug- is the stem.


 * juego - I play
 * juegas - you play (singular)
 * juega - he/she plays
 * jugamos - we play
 * jugáis - you play (plural)
 * juegan - they play

Vocabulario adicional

 * equipo de ... ... team
 * práctica de ... - ... practice
 * reunión de ... - ... meeting
 * reuniones de ... - ... meetings

Cultural Insight (soccer vs. baseball)
You may know that "fútbol" is the big sport in most of Latin America. Although Nicaraguans enjoy soccer, the most popular sport continues to be baseball. Yes, baseball. It was imported during the banana republic days and has remained popular. So you're more likely to find a town getting excited about the local baseball team than the local soccer team. Nicaragua's penchant for baseball puts it in the minority among Latin American countries, but it is not alone.

Country Focus (Nicaragua)
Nicaragua (Spanish: Nicaragua) is a representative democratic republic and the largest nation in Central America. It is also the least densely populated with a demographic similar in size to its smaller neighbours. The country is bordered by Honduras to the north and by Costa Rica to the south. The Pacific Ocean lies to the west of the country, while the Caribbean Sea lies to the east. Falling within the tropics, Nicaragua sits 11 degrees north of the Equator, in the Northern Hemisphere.



The country's name is derived from Nicarao, the name of the Nahuatl-speaking tribe which inhabited the shores of Lago de Nicaragua before the Spanish conquest of the Americas, and the Spanish word Agua, meaning water, due to the presence of the large lakes Lago de Nicaragua (Cocibolca) and Lago de Managua (Xolotlán), as well as lagoons and rivers in the region.

At the time of the Spanish conquest, Nicaragua was the name given to the narrow strip of land between Lake Nicaragua and the Pacific Ocean. Chief Nicarao ruled over the land when the first conquerors arrived. The term was eventually applied, by extension, to the Nicarao or Niquirano groups that inhabited that region.

The Nicarao tribe migrated to the area from northern regions after the fall of Teotihuacán, on the advice of their religious leaders. According to tradition, they were to travel south until they encountered a lake with two volcanoes rising out of the waters, and so they stopped when they reached Ometepe, the largest fresh-water volcanic island in the world.

Nicaraguan culture has strong folklore, music and religious traditions, deeply influenced by European culture but enriched with Amerindian sounds and flavors.

Factbox:

-Official Language: Spanish

-Other Languages: English, Native American languages



-Capital: Managua

-Government: Democracy

-Area: 120,340 sq km (50,193 sq mi) (98th)

-Population: 5,891,199 (110th)

-Religion: Christianity (Catholic 58.5%, Protestant 23.2%, Jehovah's Witnesses 0.9%) 82.6%, Non-religious 15.7%, Buddhism 0.1%, other (Islam, Judaism, Animism) 1.6%

-Human Development: 0.699 (124th, MEDIUM)

-Independence: September 15, 1821

-Currency: Córdoba