Mexico Connect
Forums  > Specific Focus > Learning Spanish
First page Previous page 1 2 Next page Last page  View All

whynotwrite

Jun 23, 2011, 5:02 PM

Post #1 of 32 (8448 views)

Shortcut

Things are really bad

 Can't Post | Private Reply
Times are so tough in the U.S., now they are trying to smuggle more than guns into Mexico.
http://www.eluniversal.com.mx/notas/774606.html

chinagringo


Jun 23, 2011, 5:45 PM

Post #2 of 32 (8419 views)

Shortcut

Re: [whynotwrite] Things are really bad

 Can't Post | Private Reply
Be it cigars, clothing, electronics or NOB food items, there has always been an underground network, so this doesn't come as any great surprise. Not being a cigar smoker, I have to wonder about wasting their time and effort on US cigars when Cuban cigars tend to be easily obtained!
Regards,
Neil
Albuquerque, NM


whynotwrite

Jun 24, 2011, 6:43 AM

Post #3 of 32 (8311 views)

Shortcut

Re: [chinagringo] Things are really bad

 Can't Post | Private Reply
In Reply To
Be it cigars, clothing, electronics or NOB food items, there has always been an underground network, so this doesn't come as any great surprise. Not being a cigar smoker, I have to wonder about wasting their time and effort on US cigars when Cuban cigars tend to be easily obtained!

The story is not about cigars.
try downloading a translator on your computer.

stevebrtx

Jun 24, 2011, 7:34 AM

Post #4 of 32 (8290 views)

Shortcut

Re: [whynotwrite] Things are really bad

 Can't Post | Private Reply
Well, actually it is about cigars, if you Google Sovereign cigars you'll find them to be Dominican with Connecticut wrappers.
http://www.chapalaweather.net

arbon

Jun 24, 2011, 7:38 AM

Post #5 of 32 (8289 views)

Shortcut

Re: [whynotwrite] Things are really bad

 Can't Post |
In Reply To
In Reply To
Be it cigars, clothing, electronics or NOB food items, there has always been an underground network, so this doesn't come as any great surprise. Not being a cigar smoker, I have to wonder about wasting their time and effort on US cigars when Cuban cigars tend to be easily obtained!

The story is not about cigars.
try downloading a translator on your computer.

¿Is the story not about tobacco products?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


norteño

Jun 24, 2011, 7:56 AM

Post #6 of 32 (8275 views)

Shortcut

Re: [arbon] Things are really bad

 Can't Post | Private Reply
The story is about some cigarettes that were seized because they did not comply with Mexican federal labeling laws (did not display health warnings and pictures, or they were obscured) rather than "smuggling".

whynotwrite

Jun 24, 2011, 8:58 AM

Post #7 of 32 (8245 views)

Shortcut

Re: [norteño] Things are really bad

 Can't Post | Private Reply
it is amazing how many so called "experts" can not even read a simple story. Noteño you are the first and only with a correct answer
.. .No wonder why this forum is such a wreck, no one reads and understands spanish! This answers so many questions of why people write what they write. Thanks everyone!

chinagringo


Jun 24, 2011, 9:38 AM

Post #8 of 32 (8217 views)

Shortcut

Re: [whynotwrite] Things are really bad

 Can't Post | Private Reply
Must be nice to have such a high opinion of oneself! Since you chose to bring up the use of a translator, I do have Google Translate set to automatically translate any page I open in Spanish but I also understand its limitations. When I see a story which interests me and I am in the mood to learn, I flip back and forth between the original Spanish version and the translation in an attempt to further my education of the written Spanish. Some of us are either not in the position to improve our Spanish through immersion and I for one, am not good at studying to learn a language. I am proud of the fact that I was able to self teach myself Japanese (reading, writing and speaking) before age 10 but as they say: "use it or lose it"!

Once again, Google Translate did bite me since the word "Cigar" did show up in the headlines and I honestly didn't read the entire article.
Regards,
Neil
Albuquerque, NM


La Isla


Jun 24, 2011, 9:40 AM

Post #9 of 32 (8217 views)

Shortcut

Re: [whynotwrite] Things are really bad

 Can't Post | Private Reply
Just to clear things up for those whose Spanish-language skills are not up to snuff, cigarro = cigarette and puro = cigar.

chinagringo


Jun 24, 2011, 9:58 AM

Post #10 of 32 (8200 views)

Shortcut

Re: [La Isla] Things are really bad

 Can't Post | Private Reply
Thank you for the clarification. Just went back and looked at the Google Translate and discovered something interesting: in the article title where the word "cigarros" was used, it was translated as cigars but then deeper into the article where once again "cigarros" was used, it translated as cigarettes.
Regards,
Neil
Albuquerque, NM


La Isla


Jun 24, 2011, 10:04 AM

Post #11 of 32 (8197 views)

Shortcut

Re: [chinagringo] Things are really bad

 Can't Post | Private Reply
In Reply To
Thank you for the clarification. Just went back and looked at the Google Translate and discovered something interesting: in the article title where the word "cigarros" was used, it was translated as cigars but then deeper into the article where once again "cigarros" was used, it translated as cigarettes.

Wow, Google Translate is even worse than I had imagined! No consistency at all. It should be renamed Google Mistranslate!

stevebrtx

Jun 24, 2011, 11:45 AM

Post #12 of 32 (8164 views)

Shortcut

Re: [La Isla] Things are really bad

 Can't Post | Private Reply
Forgive me if I'm a bit "thick", I was just in Guad and you know what that does for you. I don't smoke, never have, but I went back and read and translated the article and Stallion and Soverign were specifically mentioned, you Google those and they're very definitely cigars, so if you guys want to argue about Google translate, have at it, but the story is about "CIGARS". Now, I need a Chicken cerveza or two to recollect myself.
http://www.chapalaweather.net

whynotwrite

Jun 24, 2011, 11:46 AM

Post #13 of 32 (8163 views)

Shortcut

Re: [chinagringo] Things are really bad

 Can't Post | Private Reply
 it is not such a high opinion of myself, it is that I can read an article and understand what it is saying, using the Google translator. And, since I do live in Mexico, I know Puros are cigars, not cigaros.
You all can put the culpa on Google and myself, but to know and write about Mexico it would be best to read the news from Mexico. Google Translator does a fine job, if you care to understand what is happening in an area or the country. If you care.

La Isla


Jun 24, 2011, 11:58 AM

Post #14 of 32 (8152 views)

Shortcut

Re: [stevebrtx] Things are really bad

 Can't Post | Private Reply
In Reply To
Forgive me if I'm a bit "thick", I was just in Guad and you know what that does for you. I don't smoke, never have, but I went back and read and translated the article and Stallion and Soverign were specifically mentioned, you Google those and they're very definitely cigars, so if you guys want to argue about Google translate, have at it, but the story is about "CIGARS". Now, I need a Chicken cerveza or two to recollect myself.

I was just commenting on the words cigarro and puro for those members of Mexconnect whose Spanish isn´t so hot, not on the brand names mentioned. Since I don´t smoke either, they didn´t mean anything to me.

jrpierce


Jun 24, 2011, 12:10 PM

Post #15 of 32 (8146 views)

Shortcut

Re: [stevebrtx] Things are really bad

 Can't Post | Private Reply
Steve, I just Googled those names myself, and both are brand names for cigarettes as well.

Jim

joaquinx


Jun 24, 2011, 12:14 PM

Post #16 of 32 (8144 views)

Shortcut

Re: [jrpierce] Things are really bad

 Can't Post | Private Reply
Cigars and Cigarettes? My translator is really off as I got it translated as "condoms." Maybe if I set it to another language. They sound like brands of condoms.
_______
My desire to be well-informed is currently at odds with my desire to remain sane.

Bennie García

Jun 24, 2011, 12:51 PM

Post #17 of 32 (8112 views)

Shortcut

Re: [joaquinx] Things are really bad

 Can't Post | Private Reply
Cigars? Cigarettes, ? Tiparillos?


(This post was edited by Bennie García on Jun 24, 2011, 12:52 PM)

Rolly


Jun 24, 2011, 12:52 PM

Post #18 of 32 (8111 views)

Shortcut

Re: Things are really bad

 Can't Post | Private Reply
Maybe this thread should have a more literary title, such as "A Comedy of Errors" or "Who's on First?"

Rolly Pirate

richmx2


Jun 24, 2011, 1:34 PM

Post #19 of 32 (8095 views)

Shortcut

Re: [Rolly] Things are really bad

 Can't Post | Private Reply
True story:

When I was a tech writer for MCI (a U.S. telecom that has since disappeared), we were involved in a project tweaking some British Telecom software for the U.S./Canadian market. Which had to be documented in both English and French. What BT called a "trunk call" somehow... through the magic of machine translations... went into French, then back into North American standard English... coming back as "visit with a suitcase."

The first artificial intelligence translation device was the "hot line" telephone between the White House and the Kremlin. The test message, sent from Washington, was the Bible quote, "The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak." Which, translated into Russian, came back "The vodka is enthusiastic, but the meat needs more salt."

DO NOT TRUST MACHINES!!!


http://mexfiles.net
http://voiceofmexico.com
http://editorialmazatlan.com

stevebrtx

Jun 24, 2011, 2:27 PM

Post #20 of 32 (8089 views)

Shortcut

Re: [jrpierce] Things are really bad

 Can't Post | Private Reply
Well, there you go, I'm officially "thick" and being a non-smoker I could care less, so I'm out of here.

Well, now wait a minute, I googled Stallion Cigarettes and found they are candy cigarettes? Maybe I gave up too soon? - no, never mind, I was right the first time, who cares? - the world is crashing, the US economy is crashing, MX military trucks are lost and ended up at the US end of bridge #2 and I had to drive all the way to Guad to get chicken beer - and I should care about cigs? - so, discuss it among yourselves and I'll check back later for the truly honest, no doubt in H, always right results?
http://www.chapalaweather.net

(This post was edited by stevebrtx on Jun 24, 2011, 2:33 PM)

mazbook1


Jun 24, 2011, 3:31 PM

Post #21 of 32 (8065 views)

Shortcut

Re: [La Isla] Things are really bad

 Can't Post | Private Reply
Unfortunately for machine translations, cigar and cigarette are a couple of words like lime and lemon that have very different translations into Spanish depending on just where you are in the Spanish speaking world. And then there is the pair tomate and jitomate that can vary in meaning depending just where in México you are.

cigar = cigarro (in most of the Spanish speaking world), puro (primarily—but not exclusively—in México) and tabaco or pucho in a very few places in Latin America.

cigarette = cigarillo in practically all of the Spanish speaking world except México, where it is cigarro.

And if you think this is confusing, look up all the various regional translations of lime and lemon to Spanish. That will drive you nuts!

(This post was edited by mazbook1 on Jun 24, 2011, 6:04 PM)

La Isla


Jun 24, 2011, 4:09 PM

Post #22 of 32 (8050 views)

Shortcut

Re: [richmx2] Things are really bad

 Can't Post | Private Reply
In Reply To
DO NOT TRUST MACHINES!!!

I am totally in agreement! Hire good human translators, like me and some of my colleagues in Mexico!

jrpierce


Jun 24, 2011, 8:21 PM

Post #23 of 32 (7995 views)

Shortcut

Re: [La Isla] Things are really bad

 Can't Post | Private Reply
In Reply To
Hire good human translators, like me and some of my colleagues in Mexico!

Good idea! Could you stop by my house in Morelia each day when I'm reading the Mexican papers? ;)

My wife and I have been living here for three years, and have been working on our Spanish diligently, taking classes, doing independent study, sometimes hiring translators, practicing a lot, and slowly getting better at our Spanish. We conduct all our day to day business in Spanish, and gradually are expanding our circle of Mexican friends (those willing to tolerate our bad Spanish--which usually means they have some level of English comprehension).

For now, I use Google to help me with a first scan of the newspapers. If there is a story I consider important, I struggle to comprehend it on my own from the original Spanish. While I certainly make some mistakes in my translations, I regard it as important to stay on top of what the Mexican newspapers are reporting. Besides, I get some pretty good practice that way.

Jim

cbviajero

Jun 25, 2011, 8:02 AM

Post #24 of 32 (7925 views)

Shortcut

Re: [whynotwrite] Things are really bad

 Can't Post | Private Reply
You might like to try the puros from Campeche.

whynotwrite

Jun 25, 2011, 1:47 PM

Post #25 of 32 (7877 views)

Shortcut

Re: [cbviajero] Things are really bad

 Can't Post | Private Reply
might but the best puros (ranked 95 out of 100) are from veracruz.
First page Previous page 1 2 Next page Last page  View All
 
 
Search for (advanced search) Powered by Gossamer Forum v.1.2.4