Hola chic@s,
Let me take you back a fair few años 🕰️
I was interning at an office in Madrid.
Every lunch break, my Spanish colleagues would take an hour and a half to eat their homemade gazpacho and tortilla.
Nattering away at 200mph.
At the beginning I used to dread these lunch breaks.
I would sit on the periphery, catching every other word and trying to piece together what the hell they were talking about.
Trying to say something respectable when my name was mentioned.
My Spanish was decent at this point, ‘textbook’ you might say.
But I was struggling and I needed another plan.
I found a slang phrase👇
Calentar la silla 🔥🪑
Which literally translates to ‘keeping your seat warm’.
But is used to refer to someone who just stays in the office to look like they’re doing work, without actually doing any work….
My target?
Carlos.
We were close enough and he was the joker of the group.
At the next lunch I accused him of ‘calentando la silla’, with a wry smile.
There was a slight pause, before laughter erupted.
I had made it 🙏
My entry into the group.
Every week I was taught some new slang and every week I became a little closer to my colleagues.
The textbooks taught me Spanish.
But the slang taught me how to connect with people.
Slang is the key to deeper connection.
It makes you feel less like a tourist and more like a participant.
Jerga = Slang
[🗣️ HER-GAH]
So I’ve done something to help.
I’ve put together guides to teach you the slang from each of the Spanish-speaking countries.
Each one has a full list, with a downloadable PDF as well as the ability to learn the words and phrases for free on Memrise.
You can find them by going to chatspanish.online
Just scroll down and choose a Spanish-speaking country.
Qué lo qué = Dominican Republic 🇩🇴
Tío/Tía = Spain 🇪🇸
Fome = Chile 🇨🇱
I can’t stress enough how much of a doorway this can be for you.
Disfruta (enjoy).
Un abrazo,
Harrison
Language for living, not just learning
P.S - I also created the Insider Handbook. 42 real-world Spanish expressions, cultural insights and language patterns designed to help you connect more naturally with locals.
Basically:
the Spanish I wish I’d learned earlier.
Available for the price of a London coffee ☕️
I also had to teach Carlos some English slang 😉
