Bolivia situation guide
The arrival report
A year of Sunday almuerzos later, the couple moves abroad, and the whole relationship's medium becomes the phone. The flight landed an hour ago; before you've even unpacked, the family group already has six messages. This chapter is the ritual every long-distance family runs on: report first, then answer the care-questions one by one, doña Carmen's trip question, la abuela's '¿ya comieron?' relayed through Camila, and tío Marco's timezone confusion. Reply in vos to Camila and tío Marco; keep usted for doña Carmen, even by text, even from thousands of kilometers away.
Essential vocabulary
- ¡Llegamos bien!: We landed safe! The very first message the family group expects, before any question, before you've even unpacked.
- Recién llegamos.: We just arrived. 'Recién' marks something that just happened, the arrival-report register.
- Acá son las X.: It's X o'clock here. The 'acá' side of the notebook's whole axis, your time, stated plainly for a family across timezones.
- No se preocupe.: Don't worry. The usted reassurance that closes every care-question from doña Carmen or la abuela.
- Un abrazo a todos.: A hug to everyone. The standard warm close for a group message, nobody is left out of the hug.
- instalarse: to get settled in '¿Ya están instalados?' is doña Carmen's practical-care question, right after asking about the trip.
- Les mandamos fotos.: We'll send you all photos. The photo-drop promise, proof of life and the group's favorite kind of content.
Bolivian Spanish terms
- avisá cuando llegues: let us know when you land A standing family law that applies at any distance, the arrival report is never optional, and it always comes first.
- ¿ya comieron?: have you all eaten yet? The universal long-distance cariño question, it means 'I'm thinking of you', relayed through Camila when it comes from la abuela.
- che: hey (attention-getter between friends) Camila and tío Marco's filler word for closeness in text, never disrespect, even at a distance.
Useful phrases
- ¡Llegamos bien! El viaje estuvo largo pero tranquilo.: We landed safe! The trip was long but calm. The opening arrival-report message: announcement plus one detail.
- Acá son las X, así que allá deben ser las Y.: It's X here, so it must be Y there. A timezone explanation that sticks, reusable in every future message.
- Decile a la abuela que ya comimos, no se preocupe.: Tell grandma we already ate, don't worry. Relaying a reassurance through Camila to la abuela, who doesn't text.
- El viaje estuvo bien, doña Carmen; ya estamos instalados, y no necesitamos nada, gracias.: The trip was fine, doña Carmen; we're already settled, and we don't need anything, thank you. Fielding three usted questions in one clean message.
Learn this in the app
Stay Close to a Bolivian Family from Afar, Spanish