Last Monday I met my conversation
partner Marcos for lunch at Pitaria. Our conversation went really
well: Marcos' English is fairly strong and moreover he seems like a
funny and easygoing guy. We moved from topic to topic easily and were
able to discuss some things in depth. At times, I even felt like I
was conversing with a native speaker. We discussed current events and
American culture at length, and Marcos commented with real insight on
some of the issues in our respective countries. It was the sort of
conversation I might have had with one of my friends.
When we were ordering our lunches, the
cashier asked Marcos 'if that would be for here.' Marcos thought she
was saying 'from here?' and he replied, with obvious confusion, “No,
from Venezuela.” This happened two or three more times before
Marcos realized his mistake and we both laughed about it. After that
bit of awkwardness, Marcos and I got to know each other. We talked
for a long time about the situation in Venezuela, which admittedly I
knew almost nothing about. Apparently there have been widespread
student protests against the new president, who has responded with
violence. We talked in depth about the differences between our two
countries' media (Venezuela's media is heavily influenced by the
state), and the problems they share in common.
Generally my conversation with Marcos
was pleasant and informative, with few issues in communication. I
hope to meet with him again soon.
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