Sebastian: ¡Hola! Bienvenidos y bienvenidas a Un día en español, a podcast for Spanish beginners where, in each episode, you'll get a glimpse into a special day in the life of a Spanish speaker in Latin America or the US, all in Spanish. I'm Sebastian and I'm here to help you understand the story better, so let's get started.

In today's episode, we'll hear a story from Melina. She tells us about the day she met her sister for the very first time when she was 22 years old. Can you imagine what it would be like to meet your sister or your brother for the first time? Would you be nervous? Would you expect to have a lot in common? I'm sure those were questions that both sisters were asking themselves, and they finally found out on this day. Let's hear Melina‘s story!

Merlina: ¡Hola! Me llamo Melina y tengo 22 años. Soy de Lima, la capital de Perú. Vivo aquí con mi mamá y mis abuelos. Mi papá y mi mamá están divorciados desde que soy un bebé.

Sebastian: Melina lives in Lima with her mom and her abuelos, grandparents. She says that her parents have been divorced since she was a baby: desde que soy un bebé.

Her dad remarried and lives with his wife, esposa. Melina's dad and his new wife have una hija, a daughter, Shirley.

Melina: Mi papá y su esposa tienen una hija, Shirley. Shirley es mi hermana.

Sebastian: But they live muy lejos, very far away, so Melina hasn't met her sister or her dad's wife yet.

Melina: Pero mi papá, su esposa y mi hermana viven muy lejos. No conozco a la esposa de mi papá y tampoco conozco a mi hermana.

Sebastian: Melina tells us that sometimes, a veces, she speaks with them on the phone. But she really wants to meet Shirley in person. 

Melina: A veces hablo por teléfono con mi papá, su esposa y mi hermana. Pero yo quiero conocer a Shirley en persona.

Sebastian: Today is an important day for Melina: she's finally, por fin, going to meet her sister. They have organised a trip to the charming city of Cusco. They're going to spend a few days de vacaciones, on vacation, in Cusco. Have you heard of Cusco? It's una ciudad, a city, in the Peruvian Andes, and was the capital of the Inca empire.

Melina: Hoy es un día importante. Por fin, voy a conocer a mi hermana. Voy a encontrarme con mi papá, su esposa y mi hermana en Cusco. Cusco es una ciudad en Perú que está en los Andes. Vamos a estar unos días de vacaciones en Cusco los cuatro: papá, su esposa, mi hermana y yo. 

Sebastian: Have you heard that Melina is using the verb "ir" followed by “a” and a verb? This is like using “going to” in English. She said voy a conocer a mi hermana, "I am going to meet my sister", and she also said that “we are going to be on vacation for a few days”, vamos a estar unos días de vacaciones. 

Primero, first, she is going to take un avión, a plane, to Cusco. The flight is just an hour and a half, una hora y media, but to Melina it feels like eternity. She's very nervous! She wonders if she and her sister are going to get along well: ¿vamos a entendernos bien?

Melina: Primero voy a tomar un avión a Cusco. El vuelo de Lima a Cusco es solo una hora y media, ¡pero para mí es una eternidad. ¡Estoy muy nerviosa por conocer a mi hermana! ¿Vamos a entendernos bien? 

Sebastian: She arrives in beautiful Cusco. Her dad, his wife and her sister are waiting for her. 

Melina: En el aeropuerto mi papá, su esposa y mi hermana me esperan. 

Por fin, mi hermana y yo nos conocemos en persona. 

Sebastian: Por fin, finally, she meets her sister in person. They greet each other, and Shirley asks her how her flight was, ¿qué tal el vuelo? 

Melina: –¡Hola, Shirley! ¿Cómo estás? 

Shirley: –Hola, Melina! ¡Bien! ¿Tú cómo estás? ¿Qué tal el vuelo? 

Melina: –Muy bien, gracias… ehmm… 

Sebastian: They greet each other but after the greeting they don't have much to say. Melina says that solo nos miramos, they just look at each other. And Melina doesn't know what to say to her sister after waiting all these years, no sé qué decir. And maybe Shirley has the same problem. 

Melina: Después de saludarnos, mi hermana y yo solo nos miramos sin hablar. No sé qué decir. Quizás Shirley tiene el mismo problema. 

Sebastian: Melina's dad and his wife notice what's going on and look at them a bit preocupados, worried. 

Melina: Mi papá y su esposa nos miran preocupados. Yo también estoy preocupada. 

Sebastian: And the silence continues in the taxi, until something unexpected happens… A song by Melina's grupo favorito, favorite band plays on the taxi's radio. A rock band that sings in Spanish. 

Melina: En el taxi al hotel estamos todos en silencio. 

Entonces suena una canción en la radio. ¡Es mi grupo favorito! Es un grupo de rock en español. 

Sebastian: And Melina isn't the only one who likes this song. Shirley asks the taxi driver if he can subir el volumen, turn up the volume. And Shirley tells her sister that this is her favorite band. 

Shirley: –¿Puede subir el volumen? ¡Es mi grupo favorito! 

Melina: –¿En serio? ¡También es mi grupo favorito! Voy a ir a un concierto en Lima. 

Sebastian: Alright! So these two sisters just found a way to break the ice: music! Melina tells Shirley that she's going to this band's concert in Lima, voy a ir a un concierto en Lima. They start to talk, empezamos a hablar, and they can't stop! They talk about everything, hablamos de todo, but sobre todo, most of all, they talk about music! 

Melina: Entonces Shirley y yo empezamos a hablar y no paramos. Hablamos de todo… pero sobre todo hablamos de música. 

Sebastian: During her 10 days there, Melina gets to know the magical city of Cusco, su gente amable, its kind people, and its traditional dances. But also her “new” family. She's very happy to get to know them more, and she's also happy to have a sister de repente, all of a sudden. 

Melina: Durante 10 días estamos en la mágica Cusco y conozco la ciudad, su gente amable y sus danzas tradicionales. Y también, y más importante, conozco a mi “nueva familia”. Estoy muy feliz de conocer más a mi nueva familia y de tener de repente a Shirley como hermana. 

Sebastian: An event like this — meeting your sister for the first time after 20 years — can be life-changing! And thankfully, the two really hit it off. I'm sure this is a day that neither Melina or Shirley will ever forget. 

Were you able to catch a lot of the Spanish in this episode? Visit babbel.com/podcasts to follow along with the dynamic transcript, get helpful learning resources and test your knowledge with the full Spanish story.

Un día en espańol is produced by the language experts at Babbel. Whether you're hoping to make new Spanish-speaking friends or explore a new culture, the Babbel app teaches everything you need to understand and use the language. Thanks for listening and ¡Hasta el próximo día!